April Monthly Gauntlets

“The first of April is the day we remember what we are the other 364 days of the year.”

Happy April Fools’ Day!  Do not be fooled, though….this is the real blog with the real gauntlets for this month!

And it IS a busy month at DPL. The first 3^rd Friday of the year will take place on April 15^th, so come by and see us in Jones Park. We will have 2 free classic movies for your viewing pleasure on the 2^nd and 4^th Thursday of the month, both featuring Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn. The Friends will be hosting Robert Bailey on the 21^st to discuss his latest thriller, Between Black and White.  Each of these events is an opportunity to get a bonus stamp on your Reading Charter, just make sure to see StephRhonda and/or put your name on the sign-in sheet at each event.

Both gauntlets for April are tied to events from the month. The first one is another either/or choice, so you only have to read one OR the other.  William Shakespeare was born and died in April. As a matter of fact, this year marks the 400^th anniversary of the bard’s death. The other author for the month, Mark Twain – also died in April.  But the real reason he is part of the either/or choice is because we love his quote about April 1^st (above).  So for the first gauntlet in April you may read William Shakespeare OR Mark Twain.

April is National Poetry Month, so the second gauntlet is to read a poet. Because the challenge is tied to the fact that April is national poetry month, the book you read by the poet must be poetry.  Poetry is found in the non-fiction section of the library. If you prefer American poets such as Nikki Giovanni, Emily Dickinson, Walt Whitman, or Billy Collins you need to check out the 811s. For English poets such as John Keats, Matthew Arnold, T. S. Eliot, or Simon Armitage you should browse through the 821s.

Remember the challenge this year is all about the authors. Regardless of which gauntlet you choose make sure you read something written by Shakespeare, Twain, or the poet of your choice.

Happy Reading!

StephRhonda’s April Schedule**:

Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday
					1. 9am-12pm	2. 9am-5pm
3. 2pm-5pm	4. 9am-5:30pm	5. 9am-5:30pm	6. 9am-8pm	7. 9am-5:30pm *RoundTable Book Club 12-2	8. 9am-5pm	9. Not Available
10. Not Available	11. 9am-5:30pm	12. 9am-5:30pm	13. 9am-8pm	14. 12pm-6:30pm *Movie Night	15. 11am-3pm *3rd Friday	16. Not Available
17. Not Available	18. 9am-5:30pm	19. 9am-5:30pm	20. 9am-8pm	21. 9am-6pm *Robert Bailey	22. Not Available	23. 9am-5pm
24. 2pm-5pm	25. Not Available	26. 9am-5:30pm	27. 9am-8pm	28. 12pm-6:30pm *Movie Night	29. 9am-5pm	30. 9am-5pm

** This schedule is accurate as of 4/1/2016, but subject to change. If you have questions or wish to make sure we will be available at a certain time, please contact us.

Email: stephrhonda@dectur.lib.al.us

Phone: 256-353-2993 ext. 125

Big Library Read-American Sniper

Be a part of the world’s largest global eBook club
Big Library Read program allows readers to borrow American Sniper without wait lists or holds

We are excited to take part in the Big Library Read program, the world’s largest global eBook reading club through libraries and schools that connects millions of readers around the world with the same eBook at the same time. DPL users will be able to borrow the eBook and audiobook American Sniper: The New York Times bestselling memoir of U.S. Navy Seal Chris Kyle now through Thursday, March 31 by clicking here. Big Library Read is facilitated by OverDrive, the company that provides our eBooks and eAudioBooks.

American Sniper was the source for the blockbuster movie which was nominated for six Academy awards, including best picture. U.S. Navy Seal Chris Kyle recorded the most career sniper kills in United States military history. Kyle, who was killed tragically in 2013, writes honestly about the pain of war – including the deaths of two close SEAL teammates – and in moving first-person passages throughout, his wife, Taya, speaks openly about the strains of war on their family, as well as on Chris. 

Big Library Read is an international reading program that connects millions of readers around the world simultaneously with an eBook and eAudioBook. The free program runs for two weeks and to get started reading, all that is needed is a DPL library card. American Sniper can be read on all major computers and devices, including iPhone®, iPad®, Android™ phones and tablets, Chromebook™ and Kindle® without worrying about wait lists or holds. The eBook will automatically expire at the end of the lending period, and there are no late fees.

For those participating in the Adult Reading Challenge Authorian Quest, this title will work for several quests:  an author who is or has been a soldier/veteran; an author whose book has been made into a movie or a TV series; an author published in Non-fiction; and an author who started or supports a charity/foundation.

The Big Library Read program is made possible through a partnership between Decatur Public Library, OverDrive and HarperCollins, publisher of American Sniper. Library readers voted American Sniper as their biography choice for Big Library Read. To borrow the eBook or eAudioBook, you can:

·         click here

·         go to www.decatur.lib.al.us, click on CamelliaNet at the bottom of the screen, and sign in using your library card number

·         go to the OverDrive app on your device

 For more information on Big Library Read, visit BigLibraryRead.com.

March Monthly Gauntlets

For March there are 2 gauntlets. The first is another either/or proposition and the second is tied to a March holiday and an author’s nationality.

The either/or is either James Patterson or Terry Pratchett. Patterson celebrates his birthday on March 22^nd, while Pratchett died on the 12^th of March last year. Both of these authors are well represented in our collection and you should have no problem finding something to read no matter what format you prefer.

The second gauntlet is tied to Saint Patrick’s Day. The Friends of the Library will host the Vulcan Eegits on the 10^th. To get in the spirit before (or after) the concert you are tasked with reading an Irish author. For this quest the author must be born/have citizenship in Ireland not just write about Ireland. There will be a list of authors who qualify in the notebook found in the Reference department. Some examples to start with are Cecelia Ahern, Maeve Binchy, and Frank Delaney.

Of course the Friends program on March 10th will qualify for the Friends’ Library After Hours Event in the Bonus Events part of the challenge. The concert will start at 6:30 and like all library functions is free and everyone is invited. Also this month will be a chance to receive credit for a DPL Family Movie Night Extravaganza on Thursday, March 24^th. The movie will be an animated film about the voices in your head and will also start at 6:30. We hope you can join us for one or both of these events.

Happy Reading!

March Calendar for StephRhonda

Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday
		1 9am-5:30pm	2 11am-8pm	3 9am-5:30pm *RoundTable 12-2	4 9am-5pm	5 Not Available
6 Not Available	7 9am-5:30pm	8 9am-5:30pm	9 9am-8pm	10 9am-6pm	11 9am-5pm	12 Not Available
13 Not Available	14 9am-5:30pm	15 9am-5:30pm	16 9am-8pm	17 9am-5:30pm	18 9am-5pm	19 9am-5pm
20 2pm-5pm	21 9am-5:30pm	22 9am-5:30pm	23 9am-8pm	24 12pm-6pm *Family Movie Extravaganza	25 9am-5pm	26 9am-5pm
27 Closed for Easter	28 9am-5:30pm	29 9am-5:30pm	30 9am-8pm	31 12pm-6pm *Movie Night

Gee’s Bend and Heritage of Hope

You may have noticed a lot of mention of the Gee’s Bend quilters in your Decatur Public Library.  (If you’re not familiar with the story of Gee’s Bend, take a look at this Encyclopedia of Alabama article for a brief overview.)    We’ve had our focus on Gee’s Bend this year for a couple of reasons:  first, four of the famous quilters will be visiting Decatur – and our library! – this month; and second, we at Decatur Public Library have a fondness for quilts.

How did we manage to get the world-famous quilters to visit?   The credit belongs to Decatur City Schools elementary art teacher Beth Young.  As part of an arts grant, Beth was able to bring the quilters of Gee’s Bend to Decatur to visit and share their art with her elementary art students.  Because she is incredibly generous and gracious, Beth invited other community organizations to take part; we’ve all been working together since May of last year to put together a week of events designed to let as many people as possible visit with the amazing artists of Gee’s Bend.  

Naturally, we are especially excited about the Library events and they have already begun!  On January 20^th we kicked off the River City Read; we hope it will be the first of many.   Generous members of our community donated the money to allow us to purchase 44 “pass-along” copies of the book Leaving Gee’s Bend by Irene Latham and we are delighted to say that all 44 copies are now out and about in the community.  The idea is that you take a copy, read it, and either give it to someone else to read or return it to the Library; if they are brought back to us we put them out for someone else to take them.  We were also fortunate to have Irene Latham here in our Library on January 28^th.  Ms. Latham was a wonderful speaker and storyteller who shared not only her books but the story behind her story of Gee’s Bend; we thoroughly enjoyed her visit and highly recommend Leaving Gee’s Bend.   

Beginning February 1^st we have Gee’s Bend-inspired artwork on display created by students in Decatur City Schools.  The art teachers from various schools selected the best pieces from their classes and are displaying them here at DPL throughout the month of February.   The artwork is located in the display cases inside each Library entrance and you can vote for your favorite until February 14^th.   We will announce the viewer’s favorites at our Gee’s Bend Meet & Greet, which is our next exciting event!

On Monday, February 15^th, the Library will be closed for business in observance of President’s Day.  We will, however, have our building open from 2pm – 4pm so that we may welcome the quilters of Gee’s Bend to our Library and our city!   This will be a chance to meet the ladies, have them sign any books you might have (click here for a list of purchase suggestions), and enjoy light refreshments.   As always, this event is free and everyone is invited.  We hope to see you there!