Banned Books Week

September 27-October 4, 2008 is Banned Books Week, a national celebration of the freedom to read. Wonder what the most challenged titles of 2007 were? How about the most challenged books of the 21st century? The American Library Association has the answers and more about what you can do to help preserve our right to read what we choose to.

What's next?

We are often asked to find out the order of books in a series, or to find, for example, the next book in a series when someone has read the first few. There are several ways to find this information. First is to Google the author's name - many authors have websites with complete information about their writings. Second is the What's Next? database from the Kent District Library. You can search this database by author, book title or series title. The third and richest source of information is the database Novelist. In it you can not only find series information, but reviews, articles, readalike suggestions and much more. You'll need your library card to access it from home. It's well worth exploring - check it out!

New DVDs

Among the latest DVDs to arrive at the library are:

Children of Dune (Rotten Tomatoes rating 80%)





Finding Neverland (Rotten Tomatoes rating 83%)





Definitely, Maybe (Rotten Tomatoes rating 71%)






Shoot 'Em Up (Rotten Tomatoes rating 66%)






Persepolis (Rotten Tomatoes rating 96%)

New and notable books

Listed below are just several of the newly arrived and critically acclaimed books at the library (click on the title to see a summary and reviews). Come by and check out our browsing collection for the very latest and most popular books!

When will there be good news?







The Gargoyle








The Dark Side: The Inside Story of How the War on Terror Turned into a War on American Ideals

Happy first day of fall!

Fall is the time to take care of home maintenance and any repairs needed before winter sets in. We have a large selection of do-it-yourself books and videos, including:

Popular mechanics when duct tape just isn't enough : quick fixes for everyday disasters




How your house works : a visual guide to understanding & maintaining your home





Save energy save money : do-it-yourself projects, tips, and ideas

International Talk Like a Pirate Day

Avast, mateys, today be International Talk Like a Pirate Day! For those o' ye with a hankerin' ta larn more, check out some o' our booty:

Pirates: Predators of the Seas





Pirate





Booty: Girl Pirates on the High Seas

What we're reading

This month we (the reference staff) are reading historical fiction. We've set up a display by the reference desk and listed some of the books we've read, along with brief reviews.

For example, Randy read A Conspiracy of Paper by David Liss and describes it as "a thrilling mystery set in 18th century London, featuring Benjamin Weaver, a freelance debt collector and former boxer. He's hunting the murderer of his father and his investigation touches on all manner of things, including the beginnings of stock speculation. Exciting, lots of action, full of period details, with many fascinating tidbits about the early stock market." Come check out the display (and a book or two!)

A good walk spoiled

For those of you who don't accept Mark Twain's aphorism that golf is "a good walk spoiled", don't forget that today marks the beginning of the 37th Ryder Cup, pitting Europe's best golfers against America's best. And also don't forget that the library has many books and videos on golf, including (just to name a few):

Preferred Lies: A Journey into the Heart of Scottish Golf







The Golf Rules Problem Solver






The Ultimate Golf Book

Get a free book or library bag

Saturday, September 13 is the date of the 2008 Red Wing Diversity Festival. There will be all sorts of things to do and see at the festival, most of which are nicely summarized in a Republican Eagle article. The library will have a booth at the festival, and will be giving away a free book and library bag to the first 10 kids that show their library card, as well as a free library bag to the first 50 people that show their library card.

Preschool Storyhour registration begins soon

On Monday, Sep. 15, registration begins for preschool storyhour. The sessions begin October 8 and 9 and continue through March, 2009. The times have changed slightly this year - while the Wed. sessions are still at 10:15 and 11:15, the Thursday session has moved to 10:15 from 11:15. Please give us a call if you have any questions!

Finding out where you vote

Remember that tomorrow is an election day as well as the chance to vote on the local school funding referendum. To find out where you vote, visit the Minnesota Secretary of State's polling place finder (or just give us a call at the library and we'll do it for you!)

Now open longer!

The Red Wing Public Library has returned to its usual seasonal hours. We are now open 10:00 am to 8:30 pm Mon.-Wed., 10:00 am - 6:00 pm Thurs.-Fri., and 10:00 am - 4:00 pm on Sat.