Wallkill Public Library
Top ten of '11
Library Journal picks best books of the year

One of the good things about the end of a year are the various "best of" lists that help discerning readers (or music fans, or movie-goers) decide what's worth their time. In a culture bombarded by multi-formatted entertainment spewed by sources ranging from reputable publishing houses to unheard-of authors, a little guidance can be worth a lot.
That said, a little something can be found for everyone in this year's Best Books of 2011, put out by Library Journal:
Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty, by Andrew Bolton and others (text) and Solve Sundsbo (photographs) - An exhibition catalog to the blockbuster Metropolitan Museum of Art show of the same name - visual narrative as therapy and inspiration for even the most fashion averse (LJ Xpress Reviews, 8/26/11).
Midnight Rising: John Brown and the Raid that Sparked the Civil War, by Tony Horwitz - Horwitz faithfully renders Brown's life through the use of original sources and his own considerable narrative gifts. (LJ 9/15/11)
Silver Sparrow, by Tayari Jones - Gripping family drama about two African American half-sisters and the father who tries to keep them apart. (LJ 2/15/11)
1Q84, by Haruki Murakami - In 1982 Tokyo, Aomame leaves a cab to avoid gridlock and finds herself in a brave new world, while Tengo labors to polish a manuscript a teenager has submitted to a literary contest. These two stories wind around each other and eventually conjoin in Murakami's blockbuster. (LJ 9/15/11)
The Tiger's Wife, by Tea Obreht - A tiger that's fled the zoo during WWII and the "deathless man" who collects the souls of the departed: two tales told to young medic Natalia by her grandfather that frame this bold, imaginative debut. (LJ 1/11)
The Buddha in the Attic, by Julie Otsuka - A communal self-portrait of Japanese women who came to America as picture brides for California's Japanese laborers after WWI. (LJ 8/11)
The Tragedy of Arthur, by Arthur Phillips - Herewith the publication of a previously unknown play, long in the possession of the author's family, by none other than William Shakespeare himself. There's also an extended introduction that doubles as a memoir focused on Phillips's art forger father and reflecting on how we judge what we see. (LJ 2/15/11)
The Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined, by Steven Pinker - Harvard psychologist Pinker takes readers on a tour of human history, arguing persuasively that violence has declined since our origins.(LJ 10/15/11)
Tides of War, by Stella Tillyard - Moving from the drawing rooms of Regency London to the bloody battlefields of Spain, this sweeping and assured debut novel by an acclaimed British historian reveals how war was as transformative for the women who remained at home as for the men who fought Napoleon. (LJ 9/1/11)
The Empty Family: Stories, by Colm Toibin - Each narrative is an all-encompassing world that will stop readers on their axis and cause them to reconsider the suddenness, ecstasy, and isolation of human connection in settings as divergent as 19th-century England and post-9/11 Spain. (LJ 11/15/10)
Vote now - enjoy great programs later 

 We hate to nag, but this is too great an opportunity to let slip through our fingers!

The Pepsi Refresh Project will give the library $50,000 for after-school programming - all we have to do to get it is vote!

And by "we," we mean everyone out there interested in making Wallkill a better place for our children. Vote everyday online, via Facebook, with your mobile, or all three ways. Yes, it's possible to vote three times a day if you can text and you're on Facebook in addition to voting online!

The quickest and easiest way to cast your vote is to text 110765 to Pepsi at 73774. You can vote online by clicking on the Vote Now button on Wallkill Public Library's homepage. You do have to register before you vote, but that's just a precaution Pepsi's put in place to guard against unfair voting.

Vote today, vote tomorrow, vote each and everyday right through the end of the month. This is a numbers game and we can still win it!

Coming up this week at the library....
 
Tuesday, Dec. 20 - Mommy & Me - 10:30 a.m.
Let's Play - 1-1:30 p.m.

Wednesday, Dec. 21 - **The library is open from 2-8 p.m. today!
Art Show - 6-7 p.m. - Our young artists from Miss Christine's Wednesday workshops will put their masterpieces on display for all to enjoy. 

Thursday, Dec. 22 - Imagination Playstation - 4:30-5:15 p.m.

Friday, Dec. 23 - Toddler Story Time - 10:30 a.m.

Saturday, Sunday, and Monday (Dec. 24, 25, and 26) - The library is closed.

Have a happy Hanukkah, a Merry Christmas, and a happy Kwanzaa!
Shopping locally pays off for patrons 

 Unbelievably, there are only nine shopping days left until Christmas! Whether you're looking for gifts or bargain-hunting for yourself, great discounts can be had locally when you show your Wallkill Public Library card at the following businesses:

  • Chela's Market
  • China Kitchen
  • Chocolate Dreams
  • Elsie's Restaurant
  • Friends' Used Book Shop
  • Hair Gone Wild
  • Heavenly Creations Ice Cream & Gifts
  • JayDee's Deli
  • MultiMedia Service Center
  • My Father Sam's Barber Shop
  • O'Willy's Wine and Liquor
  • Rob's Pizzeria
  • River Rock Cafe
  • Stewarts Shops (Wallkill location)
  • Sunoco Station (Wallkill location)
  • Wallkill Clam Bar
  • Weber's Hardware and Paint

Now through Dec. 31, show your card at any of the above shops or eateries and receive special discounts. Places like the Friends' Used Book Shop not only offer inexpensive gifts (not just books, but stuffed animals, collectibles, and decorative packing cans), but donate the money earned from those sales to a good cause!

Thanks to all for participating this year! 

Trouble with the catalog? Click here 

The library's new electronic catalog, Enterprise, is up and running! For those who have had trouble initially, we ask that you bear with us - a couple of bugs are still being ironed out of the system. 

Since the library switched over to the new catalog last week, some of our patrons have reported having trouble accessing the system.

In some cases, we've found that users have saved our former catalog - Horizon - in their Favorites on their computers. Since Horizon is now defunct, that site will no longer work. To link to Enterprise, our new catalog, you can go to our website and access it via our homepage (on the right side, beneath "Quick Clicks"). Then bookmark it to save yourself some time later.

For those who were keeping lists in Horizon, that information should have transferred by now over to Enterprise. You should be able to access your lists at this point. If for some reason you're unable to, please let us know.

And as always, keep us up to date with whatever questions, concerns, or comments you may have regarding the catalog or anything else. We're here to help!

Books Alive! soon to kick off Season 7
Books Alive! directors Adrienne and Jim Perine
Books Alive! directors Adrienne and Jim Perine
Registration is open for this season's Books Alive! children's theatre project. Participants have until Dec. 31 to sign up.
Practices will be held from 3:30-5 p.m. at the Wallkill Reformed Church beginning Jan. 3 and 4. Grades 5-7 will rehearse Tuesdays; those in grades 2-4 will practice Wednesdays. The performance is scheduled for Saturday, March 10, when there will be two shows - one at 1 p.m. and one at 5 p.m.
There is a suggested registration fee of $40 per child. Requests for exemptions or reductions in the fee will be considered on an individual basis and will be kept confidential - those interested should email Mary Lou directly at mcarolan@rcls.org.

 
Thanks for the memories (now on DVD)....

 Rich Rossi, owner of MultiMedia Service Center, was kind enough to create a DVD compilation of the photos from our various programs and events, which we're happy to be able to display on the TV behind the circulation desk. Thanks, Rich!

Keep MultiMedia in mind when you're looking to turn your old home movies into more accessible DVDs (a great holiday gift idea!) or whenever you want some sort of old-to-new media conversion - Rich Rossi's your man. He also offers corporate video productions, CD duplications, and much more! You can reach him at 566-6897. 

Congratulations to our raffle winners!

 Thanks to all who participated in the Friends of the Wallkill Public Library's Kindle and Nook raffle! With your help, the Friends raised $570 that will go toward children's programming!

And congratulations to Leslie Soto, who won the Kindle, and Lisa Palmer, who won the Nook. Happy reading!

Library closed for training, holiday
 This coming Wednesday, Dec. 21, the library will be open from 2-8 p.m. due to a staff training session taking place during the first part of the day. We apologize for any inconvenience the reduced hours may cause.

Please remember the library will also be closed Dec. 24, 25, and 26 for Christmas.

Happy holidays, everyone!

Reference site of the week....
 Mango is a language-learning tool that emphasizes real-world situations and the importance of cultural insights as well as verbal skills.Its library edition offers more than 50 languages including Arabic, Cantonese and Mandarin Chinese, Spanish, and ESL for speakers of various tongues. The courses come in two levels, basic or complete. Both focus on conversation skills, but the complete course also offers grammar instruction and a greater range of vocabulary.
And the best news? It's free with your Wallkill Public Library card!! Just visit our website and click on "Online Research Tools." That will take you to the page where you can access the Ulster County InfoPortal, a selection of databases you can log onto with the user ID off your library card. Considering how much language-learning programs like Rosetta Stone run, this is the deal of a lifetime. Great for students, travelers, and the just plain curious.
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