2014 Mega Crafts Workshop

Come one, come all, to our annual crafting extravaganza!  Projects will abound for all ages, from cards and decorations to crafts suitable for gift giving. Join us in the Burgess Community Room Sunday, November 30 from 2-4 p.m.

Generously sponsored by Friends of the Tigard Library

Mustaches for Movember

It turns out that November, or I should say Movember, is a good month to highlight some fairly new books we have about mustaches.  There's not too many kids books out there on the topics, so here's some fun ones to enjoy:



Mo's Mustache by Ben Clanton (Picture Book)
Monster Mo shows off his big, beautiful mustache to all his friends.  It then inspires all of his friends to copy his style by growing fabulous mustaches of their own, leaving Mo to wonder how he will continue to distinguish himself.  This book makes for a great read on learning about being true to yourself and accepting other's differences.






Mustache Baby by Bridget Heos (Picture Book)
Baby Billy was born with a mustache.  His parents must figure out if it's a Good-Guy mustache, or a Bad-Guy mustache.  You'll never see a mustache on a baby quite like Billy's!










Fake Mustache by Tom Angleberger (Juvenile Fiction)
Lenny Flem Jr. is the only one standing between his evil-genius best friend, Casper, and world domination as Casper uses a spectacularly convincing fake mustache and the ability to hypnotize to rob banks, amass a vast fortune, and run for president.  A perfect read for reluctant readers as this is packed full of humor and laughs.

Fall Story Time Break

This is just a reminder that we will be on a one-week story time break November 24-28, 2014.  You and your little ones are still welcome to stop by the Puett Room and play with toys!  We will be back in session starting on December 1st!  Click here to see our winter story time schedule!

Lego® Construction Zone

Future engineers and mathematicians! Drop in to work on your Lego® creations with our builders and give our race track a spin. We'll supply the building blocks; you bring the creativity.
This all ages event begins at 1:30 and lasts until 3:00.

Tree News

Last week we unfortunately lost our large pine tree outside the front library doors in the windstorm late at night on Veteran's Day. (See our Facebook post on November 12) However, to cheer readers up from the loss, here's some fun tree books that just might bring on some happy faces and provide opportunities to learn about trees.

This Tree Counts by Alison Formento
Before they begin planting new trees, Mr. Tate tells his students to listen closely as the lone tree behind their school counts out ten ways it serves the needs of different animals.

Cat Up a Tree by John Hassett
With rapidly increasing numbers of cats stuck in her tree, Nana Quimby asks for help from the firehouse, the police, the pet shop, the zoo, the library, and even city hall, but no one will help rescue the cats!

Tap the Magic Tree by Christie Matheson
An interactive book that invites the reader to tap, rub, touch, and wiggle illustrations to make an apple tree bloom, produce fruit, and lose its leaves.  This book will provide lots of continuous fun!








Maple by Lori Nichols
A nature-loving little girl's favorite playmate is her maple tree, until the day she's surprised with a baby sister.











A Tree is Nice by Janice May Udry
This Caldecott winning book describes the value of a tree

And if you are still sad, there's always The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein, as a tree is a gift that keeps on giving!

STEAM Saturday

Meep, meep!
Have you ever watched the Looney Tunes cartoons with Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner?
Poor Wile E.! He tries to outsmart the Road Runner with all kinds of contraptions that never work. Why don't they work? Sometimes it's a combination of his impatience and the laws of physics!
And what a fun way to learn about physics. Take a look at these books

Smash!: Wile E. Coyote Experiments With Simple Machines by Mark Weakland
Splat!: Wile E. Coyote Experiments With States of Matter by Suzanne Slade
Thud!: Wile E. Coyote Experiments With Forces and Motion by Mark Weakland
Zap!: Wile E. Coyote Experiments With Energy by Suzanne Slade

Then, the next time you enjoy some of his cartoons, you'll appreciate that he is a physical science genius.

Ziptang!

International Games Weekend

Join us Saturday, November 15 and Sunday, November 16th for an all day, all ages event.
Games are taking over the library! Bring your friends or the whole family and play self-service board games and more.

Two Hot New Titles!

I'm super excited about two fabulous books I read this week.  Now I know neither of these two books don't need any extra promotion, but for those of you out there who haven't heard the news, I've gotta let you know about them!  The holds lists are growing, so be sure to place your holds now before the wait gets longer!!!

Elephant and Piggie are back in their latest installment in Waiting Is Not Easy!  Piggie is sooooo excited to share a BIG surprise with Gerald.  And of course, Gerald is too excited to wait for the surprise, and keeps tormenting Piggie to give it to him right away.  Piggie insists that Gerald must wait and wait and wait.  After the agonizing wait, Gerald is met with a wonderful surprise that even the reader will be truly surprised!  Want to know what it is?  I can't tell you.  You must wait!  And believe me, it is worth the wait!  All of us in Youth Services are super excited about this book!  Miss Jaime says, "It was deliciously awesome.  Just when I thought the Elephant and Piggie books couldn't get any better, they did!" This title will be a perfect read for those of you out there who have kiddos who need a little encouragement in learning the art of patience. 

The other awesome book I read this week was book 9 of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series.  We all know that Greg Heffley needs no introduction as he's wiggled his way into the hearts of many elementary school readers.  In Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul, Mom Susan insists that the family take a road trip for everyone to spend some quality bonding time together.  While the trip starts off with good intentions, it ends up with one problem after another.  Bad gas stations, unbearable hotel rooms, seagulls, lost keys, a piglet, no cash, and a trip to the vet weren't what the Heffley family had in mind, but one page after another is guaranteed for some belly bursting out-loud laughs!  I'm surprised no one around me complained about my laughing while I was reading...it was just that funny!

Authentic First Person

I think some authors are more successful than others at really capturing the voice of children in the first person. I have been fortunate enough to read three great examples recently. What I particularly love about all three of these books is that they cover some very serious issues and in no way dumb it down or try to protect the reader from these very difficult situations.

• Pack of Dorks, by Beth Vrabel. Fourth grader Lucy knows what it is like to be one of the most popular kids in school, and thanks to her former best friend and former boyfriend, she now also knows what it is like to be a dork. But is it really so bad being part of a pack of dorks? Sometimes. A very poignant story of bullying and true friendship.
• Kinda Like Brothers, by Coe Booth. Jarrett is used to his mom fostering babies that have been through horrific situations, and he tries not to become attached, because they come and go and there's nothing he can do about it. But then his mom just can't stand to separate baby Treasure and her older brother Kevon, so Jarrett gains a new brother(?)/enemy(?)/friend(?). Sharing his mom with these needy kids, and now having to share his friends, activities, and worst of all his room with Kevon, Jarrett learns a lot about abuse, family, and friendship.
• Rain Reign, by Ann M. Martin. Rose (rows, roes) lives with her dad and her dog, Rain (Reign, Rein). Her dad found Rain on a stormy night (knight) and brought her home as a gift. There aren't a lot of happy times in Rose's life other than the time (thyme) she spends with her dog and the time she spends with her uncle. But what happens if Rain isn't actually Rose's dog after all? And what happens when her dad just can no longer handle her Aspergerish need to call out homonyms every single time she hears one (won)?

SUPER TUESDAY: Komedy 4 da Kids

Angel Ocasio will be here to present his Komedy 4 da Kids show on Tuesday November 4th at 6:30 p.m. in the Burgess Community Room.  A master physical comedian, Angel will present a high-energy one-man variety show combined with comedy, jokes, juggling and magic.  Be ready to experience an interactive show full of hilarious antics!!!  You won't want to miss this perennial favorite guest of the library!

5th Annual Costume Parade

Despite my original post about the costume parade, the title of this post is correct. I guess I just got ahead of myself. This was not the 6th year. I can't not share pictures from the 5th Annual Family Story Time Costume Parade, so here are a few highlights.



Crazy Cat Lady and I'm pretty sure Dwight from the Office

Princess and the Frog