Meet the Staff: Jo in Brazoria

Name?
Jo

Position?
children’s specialist/assistant branch manager

What are your general job duties?
My main task is to plan and implement all children’s programming, including teen events and summer reading activities, and to manage the children’s collection. I also prepare branch press releases, narratives, FYI newsletter and monthly statistics. I help out at the circulation desk and with shelving and assist our branch manager when needed.

How long have you worked with the library system?
5 years

What are your favorite books or authors?
My favorite authors are John Grisham, Nicholas Sparks and Mary Kay Andrews. I like to read historical fiction and light mysteries as well as biographies. Anything set in the South will capture my attention.

What are your hobbies?
I enjoy cooking, working in the yard and different kinds of crafting and sewing. I am trying to learn how to crochet. I also like to read and watch movies.

Where are you originally from?
Tyler, Texas

Where did you go to school?
I went to school in Tyler at Robert E. Lee High School.
I received my associates degree from Tyler Jr. College and my BS in education from the University of Texas at Tyler.
I am currently studying for my masters in library science online through the University of North Texas.

What do you like best about working at the library?
My favorite thing about working in the library is the daily interaction with our patrons and my co-workers.

New Preschool Storytime in West Columbia

Beginning in January, preschool storytime at the West Columbia Library, a branch of Brazoria County Library System, will be held on Tuesdays at 10:30 a.m. instead of Wednesdays. Preschool storytime is a literature-based program featuring stories, songs, fingerplays, puppets and simple craft projects for children ages three to six years of age.

The storytime theme for January is Winter Wonderland. January 3 we will read stories of snow and paint a snow picture. The next week we will discuss and read stories about animal hibernation. The third week hats and mittens is the topic. We will read some classic children’s stories, such as “The Hat” by Jan Brett and “The Three Little Kittens” illustrated by Paul Galdone, along with new books for children. Penguins and having winter fun is the topic for the fourth storytime in January, and we will be making penguin puppets. The last storytime in January we will discuss when it will be spring. Our craft project will be pop-up groundhog puppets.

For other storytimes and events, please visit our website. Preschool storytime is free to the public. For more information, contact the West Columbia Branch at 979-345-3394.

Meet the Staff: Donna in Technical Services

Name?
Donna

Position?
cataloging clerk

What are your general job duties?
Entering newly-acquired library items into the catalog for BCLS.

How long have you worked with the library system?
nearly 10 years

What are your favorite books or authors?
I appreciate a well-written novel or memoirs of interesting people [and] some poetry anthologies.

What are your hobbies?
Scrapbooking and paper crafting, reading (of course!), writing and sharing poetry, and I enjoy keeping in touch with friends on Facebook.

Where are you originally from?
Oklahoma City

Where did you go to school?
Graduated high school in Moore, OK (home of F5 tornadoes)
BA from University of Central Oklahoma, Edmond (way back when it was called Central State University)

What do you like best about working at the library?
I love seeing the new books and DVDs come in and being able to populate my reading (or viewing) list with ones that interest me.

Free Zumba Classes in Freeport

Every first Saturday of the month at 11 a.m., free Zumba classes will be held at Freeport Library, a branch of the Brazoria County Library System. The hour-long classes begin January 7 and will be led by Zumba instructor Cathy Strambler.

Free Zumba classes are uncommon, and the library is proud to offer this new fitness series. Classes will be limited to about 30 participants and will be held in the library’s meeting room on a first-come, first-served basis. Bottled water will be provided.

“We are happy to provide this free fitness program for our community. There was a good response to our Bollywood Dance class in September, and we wanted to try different services and ways of helping our patrons. It’s going to be fun,” Cindy Yell, Freeport branch manager, said.

Free Zumba classes will be held all year, on the first Saturday of every month. For more information, call the library at 979-233-3622.

Book Review: "The Name of the Star" by Maureen Johnson

Maureen Johnson's "The Name of the Star" is a funny, scary, suspenseful, inventive read.

Rory, a teenager from Louisiana, heads to England with her parents for her last year of high school. While her parents are teaching at a University in Bristol, Rory settles in at a boarding school in London.

Unfortunately for Rory, she's ill-prepared for London's weather, but she's even less prepared when a killer begins striking very near the school. Even worse, the killer is duplicating the 1888 murders of Jack the Ripper.

All of London is terrified by the string of grisly murders, but Rory thinks she's safe at school. Until she sees a strange man on campus. A man her roommate Jazza does not see - even though Jazza is only feet from him.

What is going on? Is he the killer? Why is Rory the only one who saw him?

Johnson has crafted a wonderful story with a memorably witty heroine. Rory is smart and funny and brave. And that's a good thing, because when this book gets scary, it will leave you breathless.

The ending leaves the door open for sequels. I can't wait for the next one!

reviewed by Sara, children's coordinator

Craft Day with Mrs. Claus in Freeport

From 10 a.m to 12 p.m on Saturday, December 3, Freeport Library, a branch of Brazoria County Library System, will host Craft Day with Mrs. Claus. Children who attend will get to make ornaments, decorate a cookie, get a free book, and meet Mrs. Claus herself!

Several stations - each with a different activity - will be set up throughout the library. Children will decorate a cookie, make a tree ornament to take home, and stamp gift wrap to make their own wrapping paper. Mrs. Claus will read stories to all the children, and then they will receive a free book, provided by Friends of the Freeport Library.

“Craft Day with Mrs. Claus is one of our biggest events every year, and we’re excited to see everyone come celebrate the holiday season with us,” Cindy Yell, Freeport branch manager, said.

The event is sponsored by Friends of the Freeport Library and is free to the public. For more information, call the library at 979-233-3622.

Book Club In a Bag

Friends of the Lake Jackson Library members
show off the Book Club in a Bag bags
which were purchased with a Target community grant.

Thirty Book Club In a Bag bags are now available for checkout. Made possible by a community grant from Target, the bags are available in three reading levels: preschool to third grade, fourth to sixth grade, and junior high to high school.

Each bag contains eight paperback copies of the same title along with discussion questions and booktalk notes. These paperbacks supplement the hardcover editions already available throughout the library system to help provide enough copies for a large group.

The purpose of the bags is to encourage more children to visit the library and read for reasons other than just school projects and to develop a lifetime commitment to reading that will carry over into adulthood and be passed down to future generations of readers.

Teachers, groups, organizations, parents or individuals are encouraged to start their own book clubs and check out a bag.

NPR's Back-Seat Book Club

National Public Radio has an online book club for children ages nine to 14. In November, they're reading the classic book "The Phantom Tollbooth" by Norton Juster.

"The Phantom Tollbooth" was published in 1961 and fifty years later it is still popular. Our library's copies have checked out a total of 167 times as of this writing.

From the book's jacket copy:

This ingenious fantasy centers around Milo, a bored ten-year-old who comes home to find a large toy tollbooth sitting in his room. Joining forces with a watchdog named Tock, Milo drives through the tollbooth's gates and begins a memorable journey. He meets such characters as the foolish, yet lovable Humbug, the Mathemagician, and the not-so-wicked "Which," Faintly Macabre, who gives Milo the "impossible" mission of returning two princesses to the Kingdom of Wisdom...

In addition to reading the book, participants are encouraged to interact with the book's author.

Check out a copy of the book. Send the author a message. And don't forget to tell us what you thought about Milo and his journey!

Rocket Languages

Brazoria County Library System announces its latest feature – Rocket Languages – an online resource for language learning available from home or inside the library branches.

“The library system is always looking for ways to help our patrons. Having Rocket Languages available online for people to use at home will be a great service,” Catherine Threadgill, library director, said.

Rocket Languages includes lessons for Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Spanish and American Sign Language. It also includes English lessons for Spanish speakers.

The courses include MP3 files that can be listened to online or downloaded to an MP3 player. The American Sign Language courses also require the installation of software.

The lessons are broken down into a variety of topics and include quizzes and games to test users’ skills. A motivation center is also provided to help keep users excited about learning another language. Each language also includes online forums for additional help, resources and tips for users.

To access Rocket Languages, users should visit the Brazoria County Library System website. They will need to click the Rocket Languages logo or the Homework/Research menu button. The first time users access Rocket Languages, they will need to register with their library card number, name, email address and library password.

Author Visit: Lindsey Backen

photo provided by the author

Lindsey Backen will hold a book tour throughout Brazoria County including a short book talk, followed by a signing. Dates for the tour are:
6 p.m., Nov. 7 at the Angleton Branch
7 p.m., Nov. 9 at the West Columbia Branch
7 p.m., Nov. 10 at the Brazoria Branch
7 p.m., Nov. 16 at the Pearland Branch

A former Sweeny resident, Backen was still attending Brazosport College when she sketched out the basic ideas for a novel. In March 2010 she published "The Calling," the first book in the Secret of Sentarra series.

The book centers around a fictional kingdom called Eirlerre. Tehveor is the nephew of the tyrannical king of Eirlerre. Because of an unusual physical feature, he is also declared to be Celestion, a foretold leader who will reinstate the fallen kingdom of Sentarra. Leading a double life, he must work to understand the bits of writing left by the inhabitants of Sentarra, while ensuring that Sentarra’s rise does not endanger the kingdom that is set to pass on to his benevolent cousin, Prince Kael.

“The book was hard to categorize,” Backen said. "The best I can explain it is ‘historical fiction with a slight fantasy flair.' There are people and trickery that are difficult for the characters to understand or explain, but there are no magic abilities or mythical creatures involved. I’ve gotten good feedback from fantasy and non-fantasy readers alike. I would say that anyone who enjoys the medieval days would enjoy the book. A large portion of the plot is based on character relationship, making it more than a simple adventure story.”

Each visit is sponsored by the branch's Friends. Books will be available for purchase after the talk.

For more information about Backen's novels, visit www.lbacken.com or www.secretofsentarra.com.