A very special preschool storytime at Ruth Gotlieb (Kilbirnie) Library on Wednesday the 10th of July at 10:30. Come along and listen to French stories (in English) with special guest storyteller, Estelle. There will also be songs, dancing and dress up to celebrate France.
See you there!
Llama Drama It is showtime, by Rose Impey
It’s a huge surprise when Farmer Palmer chooses Lewie the Llama to guard his new lambs. It is the most important job on the farm and everyone thought he’d pick the biggest, strongest, loudest llama. Lewie is the best at singing and dancing but is he a match for a cunning coyote?
Another Awesome animals book!
Age 7+
The snake who came to stay, by Julia Donaldson
There is a big racket at Polly’s holiday home for pets. The guinea pigs, the mynah bird and Doris the snake all have something to say! But what will Polly’s mum say when Doris goes missing?
Age 6+
The wrong Pong singin in the Drain, by Steven Butler
Rubella is desperate to star as the grumptious stepsister in Whingerella. Her chuffly parents think Rubella looks a right Honker, squeezed into her tutu and tights. But she’s not the only one with showbizzly ambitions. Snickerish show director Abominatia Bunt hatches a dreadsy plot, but when Neville discovers the rottish truth he invents a grotsome plan…
Age 8+
Me, the queen and Christopher, by Giles Andreae
Freya’s the luckiest girl in the world. She’s been invited to have tea WITH THE QUEEN ! But it’s not quite what you might expect… It’s not all butlers and silver platters.
Take a peek behind the scenes at how the Queen lives in this funny and touching book by bestselling and popular Giles Andreae and Tony Ross.
Age 6+
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang : the magical car, by Ian Fleming
“Crackpot” is what everybody calls the Pott family. So when they go to buy a new car and come back with a wreck, nobody is surprised. Except for the Potts themselves. First, the car has a name. And she tells them what it is. Then they find that she can fly. And swim… Chitty chitty Bang Bang is a car on a mission to stop a criminal gang in its tracks- and she is taking the Potts with her!
Age 8+
On Monday 27 May at 10.30am we will be holding a very special preschool storytime at Ruth Gotlieb, Kilbirnie Library. Come along and listen to African stories with our Librarian-turned-Story-reader, Taitu! There will also be music and songs to celebrate Africa month. See you there!
Did you have some exciting adventures over your holidays? Maybe not as thrilling as what happens in these books… Check this out!
We dine with Cannibals : an accidental adventure, by C. Alexander London
Oliver and Celia Navel suffered through a whole summer exploring with their father’s nemesis, Sir Edmund, and are ready to begin a new school year glued to the TV. But when their mother vanishes (again) in search of the Lost City of Gold, El Dorado, the twins must trek from the ruins of ancient temples through the shadowy forests of the Amazon. This time they will need all their reality-TV survival skills to brave raging river rapids, furious fire ants and a most unusual jungle feast.
This is the kind of adventure that you will love to read about, making sure it never happens to you!
Age 9+
Swallows and Amazons, by Arthur Ransome
The Walker children – also known as Captain John, Mate Susan, Able Seaman Titty, and Ship’s Boy Roger- set sail on the Swallow and head for Wild Cat Island. There they camp under open skies, swim in clear water and go fishing for their dinner. But their days are disturbed by the Blackett sisters, the fierce Amazon pirates. The Swallows and Amazons decide to wage war and so begins a summer of unforgettable discoveries and incredible adventures.
Get ready for a new adventure if you are a fan of Pirates, Treasure Hunts or Shark Fishing !
Age 9+
Phantom of Terawhiti, by Des Hunt
It’s the school holidays and Zac thinks he might go crazy with boredom. He’s living in exile with his disgraced father on the remote Terawhiti Station on Wellington’s wild southwest coast.
Then Zac and his dad witness a boat sink off the coast during a storm. Investigating further, Zac finds a set of unusual animal prints on the beach. Whose boat is it? And what creature could have made the prints? Soon armed men are prowling the coast, and threatening Zac, his friends and his family. He must do all he can to protect the Phantom of Terawhiti from those intent on hunting it down.
This startling adventure happens just next to where you live! It might happen to you next time you go around one of the Wellington beaches…
Age 8 +
The empty city, by Erin Hunter
Lucky is a golden-haired mutt with a nose for survival. He has always been a Lone Dog, relying on his instincts to get by. Other dogs have Packs, but Lucky stands alone. Then the Big Growl strikes. Suddenly, the ground is split wide open. The Trap House is destroyed. And all the longpaws have disappeared.
Now Lucky is trapped in a strange and desolate new world with no food, foul water, and enemies at every turn. He falls in with others left behind, including his littermate Bella, a Leashed Dog. Relying on other dogs – and having them depend on him- brings new dangers that Lucky isn’t prepared for, but he may not be able to survive on his own. Can Lucky ever be true Pack Dog?
Did you like the Bear’s journey in Seekers, the Cat’s quest in Warriors? Then you might be ready for this Dog’s adventure in the very new Survivors series…
Age 9 +
Monster Mountains by Marcus Sedgwick
Eep! Those mountains are scary! Saving the world is not going very well for Elf Girl and Raven Boy. It’s not the strange wailing noises they hear in the dark, or the gigantic yeti who wants to eat them for breakfast that they find alarming, so much as the crazy wizard, who wants to add them, and Rat, to his collection of all too life-like stone statues.
Perfect for you if you like scary, creepy stories!!
Age 8+
The great Weta Robbery by Peter Friend and Alicia Ponder
When your after-school job is looking after weta the size of cats, it’d be understandable if you thought that your life couldn’t get any more exciting or dangerous. But there is a darker secret lurking in the laboratories of Krell Research and it’s down to one boy to get to the bottom of it.
Do you love big creepy-crawlies ? If so you’ll enjoy this book!
Age 6 +
In a glass Grimmly, by Adam Gidwitz 
If you dare, join Jack and Jill on a harrowing quest through a new set of tales from the Brothers Grimm, Hans Christian Andersen, and others. This book will lead you into creepy forests, gruesome deeds, terrible monsters, and – far worse- the dark places of the human heart…
A fantastic eerie, subversive, and hair-raising companion novel to A Tale Dark and Grimm
Age 10+
When fairies go bad, by Ursula Vernon
Danny’s mother has disappeared into a fairy ring growing in her backyard vegetable garden, and Danny and his friends, Wendell and Christiana, must go to Faerie to try to save her.
And if you like this story, don’t miss the other books in the smoking hot Dragonbreath series !
Age 8+
This Sunday 7th April 2013 is the official No Housework Day!
It’s a day to spend with your family doing things that are fun instead of cleaning your room, washing the dishes or vaccumming the living room.
So make sure you tell your folks to relax, take it easy and if they are really desperate to do something cleaning- related make sure they read these super clean books to you instead.
Click on the pictures to locate these great reads!!!
Horray for World Poetry Day!
On March 21st 2013, it is World Poetry Day! It’s a chance to grab your favourite poem or book of poetry and read it out to your class, your parents or your friends. World Poetry Day is about reading, writing, publishing and generally enjoying the magic of poetry. So check out a few cool poetry books from the library or even try to write some yourself!
Here are a few to start with :
Jed’s really useful poem by Ragnhild Scamell.
The Hero Beowulf. Retold and Adapted by Eric Kimmel.
Flamingo Bendalingo : poem form the zoo by Paula Green and fifty children.
100 New Zealand poems for children edited by Jo Noble.
The Word Witch by Margaret Mahy.
Judy Moody and Stink: The Mad, Mad, Mad Treasure Hunt by Megan McDonald.
Avast, ye scum buckets and swashbuckling buccaneers! Come on board and plunder with the best of Judy Moody and Stink’s newest adventures. The Moody family drops anchor on ” Artichoke” Island ; yes you heard me correctly, Artichoke Island. Here they are greeted by the mysterious Cap’n Weevil, a one-eyed pirate with a scaggley beard and of course a treasure map! Ooooooooha!! Stinky and Judy start an exciting adventure to find the missing gold!!!! Check it out at your local library!!!!!
The Haunted School by Deborah Abela.
This spine-tingling adventure will raise the hairs on your arms!!!! Angeline and Edgar have to go to their senior school sleepover, but Angeline is dreading having to talk to the other kids. The night goes wrong when a ghost appears in the dormitory where they are camped out. Their classmates are terrified – and Principal Primm is not happy! With the aid of Ghost Club, Angeline and Edgar must find out who the ghost is so they can help her.
Dragon Breath No Such Thing as Ghosts by Ursala Vernon.
Not only must Danny and Wendell trick-or-treat with skeptical classmate Christiana, school bully Big Eddy dares them to enter a haunted house on Halloween night, where they may have to sacrifice their candy to a ghost.Will Danny DragonBreath stand tall in the face of danger or cower in the corner eating candy ? Be brave and read this super read!!!!
The Spindlers by Lauren Oliver.
Hands up if you love rats; if so check this awesome book out! Accompanied by an eccentric, human-sized rat, Liza embarks on a perilous quest through an underground realm to save her brother Patrick, whose soul has been stolen by the evilest of creatures–the spider-like spindlers. Both riveting and bewitching this is the book for you !!!!!!
Om Shanti Babe by Helen Limon.
Winner of the 2011 Frances Lincoln Diverse Voices award this amazingly well written book is both laugh- out-loud- funny and a real roller-coaster of discovery.Cass is on buying trip to India with her mother who owns a fair-trade craft shop in London. Although Cass has been looking forward to the trip, she finds that nothing is as she expected. First Cass discovers her mother is romantically involved with an Indian man, then she’s involved in a stand-off with fashion-mad Priyanka, and finally she finds out that her mother’s business is on the rocks. When pop idol Jonny Gold arrives in Kerala to film a music video, Cass is caught up with a mystery, new friendships and a race to save the mangrove swamps.
Utterly Me Clarice Bean by Lauren Child.
An utterly fantastic book! I utterly think you should utterly read it!! Mrs Wilberton wants Clarice Bean and his classmates to write a book project which sounds UTTERLY dreary.Until Clarice finds out there is an ACTUAL prize. Utterly fantastic!!!!!
Are you a big animal fan ? If so, we’ve got plenty of new Fiction available this month. Check this out!
Spitting Image, by James Roy
The afro-wigged, eye make-up wearing alpacas have escaped!
Charlie and Helen need to get them back into their pen before anyone notices. If they can’t, there’ll be trouble.
But how do you catch an animal that is out to get you?
If you like catching animals, you might be able to help Charlie and Helen !
7 and +
The one and only Yvan, by Katherine Applegate
“I am Ivan. I am a gorilla. It’s not as easy as it looks…”
Ivan is an easygoing gorilla. Living at the Exit 8 Big Top Mall and Video Arcade, he has grown accustomed to humans watching him through the glass walls of his domain. He rarely misses his life in the jungle. In fact, he hardly ever thinks about it at all.
Instead, Ivan thinks about TV shows he’s seen and about his friends Stella, an elderly elephant, and Bob, a stray dog. But mostly Ivan thinks about art and how to capture the taste of a mango or the sound of leaves…
Beautiful, touching story that might change your outlook on life…
Age 8+
Gobbolino the witch’s cat, by Ursula Moray Williams
No one could mistake Gobbolino for a simple kitchen cat, with his sparky whiskers and magic tricks, but that’s just what the witch’s kitten wants to be. Instead of learning how to turn mice into toads for the witch’s brew, Gobbolino sets out on an adventure to find a family and a home of his own.
Enjoy the new edition of this unforgettable classic tale!
7+
White Dolphin, by Gill Lewis
When they first met, Kara and Felix can’t stand each other. But on discovering an injured dolphin calf on the beach, they know they must work together to save it.
Now friends, they set out to find the truth behind the disappearance of Kara’s mother, and to protect the nearby reef.
But powerful people don’t want them to succeed. And with the odds stacked agains them, how can Kara and Felix make their voices heard?
A heart-soaring read for every dolphin fan!
9+
Kung Hei Fat Choy! Happy New Year!
Chinese New Year celebration runs from Sunday February 10 – Sunday February 24 this year. Now not only people in China can have colourful and dynamic performances and activities to mark this special occasion, people in New Zealand can also participate and enjoy them.
In Wellington, there will be exiting celebrations for the Year of of the Snake held on the weekend of Saturday 23 and Sunday 24.
Here are some details:
– There is a New Clothes for New Year Fashion Show on Saturday 23 February at the TSB Bank Arena, Queens Wharf from 7pm-8.30pm.
– On Sunday 24 February, Chinese New Year Festival Day, you can come and taste the delicious food at the Asian Market at the TSB Arena as well as enjoying the crafts and performances from10.30am-4.30pm.
– Cultural Entertainment will be held at Frank Kitts Park from 3pm-4.30pm.A colourful Street Parade will start at Courtenay Place at 2pm.
– There will be performances from Shenzen Song and Dance Ensemble from 7pm-8.20pm (tickets from Ticketek)
– The festival will finish with a Firework Display.
You can visit the Wotzon and Chinese New Year websites for more details.
Have fun!