April 2016


 Image by flikr1920
 
"If I read a book [and] it makes my whole body so cold no fire ever can warm me I know that is poetry. If I feel physically as if the top of my head were taken off, I know that is poetry."  
 
 
   Emily Dickinson

Make, See, Hear, Read,  & Say Something!

Image from Bernardsville Public Library
 
A Poem in Your Pocket Day
Thursday April 21
Don't look now, but there's a poem in your pocket! The idea is to share a poem with a friend, someone in your family, or a random acquaintance. The poem can be ancient, modern, or futuristic. A rap, a jingle, a song, a limerick, spoken word, or a haiku -- a ballad, a sonnet, rhyming couplets, or free verse. --yours, or written by someone else. The possibilities are endless. Note: often best when shared aloud! On Thursday April 21, look for giveaways at your local branch.


Make a Matchbook @THP South
Wednesday, April 13
3:30-4:30pm
To celebrate National Library Week (April 10-16) we're doing a special Make Some Thing workshop where we make books! Mini-match-books to be specific. Materials will be provided free. Take home a project you make. For teens of middle and high school age.

Oh No!
SUSPENDED!
Librarians at North Branch are shifting themselves around, creating a bit of a disruption. The weekly Teen programs at North have been suspended (but not for long) while things get sorted out. Don't worry, your favorite programs will be back soon, better than ever. Check our calendar for details.


Shrinky Dinks @West
Tuesdays, 4:30-5:30pm
Come to Make Some Thing workshops where we experiment with shrinky dinks! Materials provided. Take home something make! For teens of middle and high school age.

(And, in case you were hoping to make a career of shrinky dinking, you should know this: in 2008, University of California Irvine Professor Michelle Khine, used Shrinky Dinks to create tiny structures for the application of microfluidics to topics such as stem cell research. Wow!)



Book Club: Author Charlie Jane Anders & All the Birds in the Sky @North Branch
Wednesday, April 20
7:00 - 8:30pm
Charlie Jane Anders, editor of the popular science and pop culture website io9.com and Hugo Award winning author will talk about her new novel All the Birds in the Sky, a kaleidoscopic, charming, and whimsical story about the end of the world. Read more...
 
Copies of the book are available at the North Branch. Grab it, read it, and join the conversation!
Read Now!
Chapter & Verse
Novels-in-verse pack a punch. The authors (poets) choose each word carefully, styling their verses with laser-like focus. Dealing with a crazy-wide range of subjects, they are dramatic and intensely evocative.

The below selections tell stories about everything from basketball to illness. And, if you find the poetry format appeals to you, read the Queen of novels-in-verse, author Ellen Hopkins.


And then, if you still haven't had enough, search our catalog for "novels in verse".

Another great place to find poems? At our 24/7 elibrary under Granger's World of Poetry.
Slam Dunk
April 16
Finals at Davies Symphony Hall
You can be part of the Berkeley spoken word scene by joining BPL's YouthSpeaks workshops. Every Thursday at 3:45.

Featured Review
Salt to the Sea
by Ruta Sepetys
At the end of World War II, refugees in East Prussia are fleeing the vengeful Russian army while trying to avoid the equally dangerous German army.

This is the haunting story of those trying to make it to what they hope is the safety of the ship called the Wilhelm Gustloff.

Audiobook reviewed by Will Marston, Teen Services, West Branch
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Our  Four  Favorite Novels-in-Verse verse
Crossover
by Kwame Alexander
"With a bolt of lightning on my kicks...
The court is SIZZLING. My sweat is DRIZZLING. Stop all that quivering. Cuz tonight I'm delivering..."

Kwame Alexander @Central in May!
Two Girls Staring at the Ceiling
 by Lucy Frank
This emotionally gripping story follows the unfolding friendship between two very different teenage girls who share a hospital room and an illness.
House Arrest
by K.A. Holt
Timothy stole a wallet. Now he's on probation and is required to keep a journal. "He's not allowed to write nothing." It starts like this: Week 1. Boys don't write in journals. / Unless it's court-ordered. / At least this is what I've figured.
One
by Sarah Crosnan
Tippi and Grace share everything-clothes, friends . . . even their body. They're literally joined at the hip. Just when things are starting to look up they realize they must separate. The moving story of conjoined twins.

Special Thanks
Most free events at Central Library, South and West Branch Libraries are sponsored by the Friends of the Berkeley Public Library. Events at North Branch Library are made possible by a generous gift from the Pace Trust, in support of the North Branch of the Berkeley Public Library.