The Magic of the Harp: An Afternoon of Harp Music

International harpist Dominique Piana has toured extensively throughout the United States and Europe.  She will be presenting a concert of harp music featuring music from the Baroque to the Late-Romantic Masters, including Preludes by Handel, Bach, Krumpholtz, Romances by Parish Alvars, and the brilliant “Schubert-Fantasie” by Hans Trnecek, on Saturday, November 14^th, 2009, 2 – 3 p.m.,  in the Dublin Library Community Room.

Dominique Piana studied harp at the Brussels Conservatory of Music, and earned an M.A. in harp performance at Claremont Graduate University.  A faculty member of Holy Names University in Oakland, she is listed in the International Who’s Who in Music. 

This concert is free of charge and sponsored by the Friends of the Dublin Library.

 

They’re back! Teen-Assisted Computer Help for Adults

Do you need help setting up e-mail?  Do you feel awkward using Microsoft Word or Microsoft Excel?  Do you need help with searching the Internet? 

If any of these situations apply to you, come and use the services of our teen volunteers on Monday through Thursday between 4 to 6 p.m. from now until December 17^th.  We will also be offering this service during the winter and spring high school quarters. 

Our volunteers  Ryan, Shyam, Natasha, Jega, Justin J, Justin D, Shine, and Thomas will be very glad to help you.  They will be seated at the table directly in front of the adult reference desk.  They can help you at that table, or if you are already logged on to a computer terminal elsewhere in the library, they can help you at your terminal.

 

Dublin did Read!

It was a truly a family affair last Sunday with many members of author Eva Rutland’s family joining us for a wonderful program.   40 people attended the program and reception for Eva; pictures of the event are to your right under the header “Alameda County Library photos.”   First to arrive that day was grandson John under orders to help with the technology.  He hooked up Ginger’s laptop and we got it working with the library’s LCD projector so that Ginger and her daughter Eva Fields could present a slide show on the family.  Next up we met Ginger’s twin Patty Jo who drove Eva in, followed by Ginger and her daughter, Eva Fields.  Last to arrive was Elsie and her husband.  The only sibling not in attendance was Billy who, we were told, was at his daughter’s high school play in Sacramento.

What a fabulous family!  We had such a good time.  A reprint edition of Eva’s book No Crystal Stair which is a novelization of her memoir, had just come in last week , so people were able to get signed copies.  One woman in the audience was originally from Atlanta and had attended Spelman College just as Eva had, and was so happy to meet Eva.  The slide show was  compelling; I was struck by the way Ginger integrated historical family pictures with text images of things like the wording in a real estate contract that prohibited selling to blacks, and other minorities, or the text from the 16th edition of the Encylopedia Britannica of the early 1900s, declaring the Negro race as an inferior race at a time when her ancestors, the first generation removed from slavery, were going to college and building their lives.

Eva herself was so charming and so humble really thanking us for having her. The Friends of the Library brought cake and punch and altogether we had a lovely time.

The pictures in the photostream on your left include one of Ginger and Eva when they appeared on Channel 30 as well as a couple of pictures from Kirk Waller’s storytelling program on October 10 (we raffled off  copies of Eva’s book and Kirk Waller’s book); click on any one of them to get to Dublin Library’s photo set in Flickr.

Thanks to everyone who came to the programs, participated and read the book — Dublin Reads gets better every year! And our heartfelt thanks to Eva and her family for sharing their story with us!

 

Legal Forms Available Online

 

Law and legal forms are now available online at  www.aclibrary.org .  At the click of the mouse, one can access the most popular legal forms dealing with contracts, wills, real estate, premarital agreements, divorce, bankruptcy and much more through the Gale legal forms database. 

 Here is a link below to access the most extensive selection of legal forms and information below: http://www.aclibrary.org/research/articlesDataBases/default.asp?topic=ArticlesDataBases&cat=LawLegalForms  (IF YOU ARE ACCESSING THE SITE FROM OUTSIDE THE LIBRARY, YOU MUST LOG IN WITH YOUR LIBRARY CARD @ www.aclibrary.org FIRST.)

More information incuded in the website:

* A search feature that allows one to browse by title or catagory

*  Look at catagories by alphabet (An A-Z search)

*  Browse by sample searches, and or by “most popular” forms

*  Legal forms from other states

Other information available include links to federal and state tax forms, an attorney directory, and a section on legal definitions. 

“Warning public users should consult an attorney in your state for serious matters”

 PLEASE READ THE DISCLAIMERS AND LIABILITY LIMITATION LINK

 

One-to-One Résumé Critique at Dublin Library

If you are currently searching for a new job, it’s definitely worth noting that Jerry Simerman, job search specialist at the Tri-Valley One-Stop Career Center, will be holding a One-to-One Résumé Critique program in the Dublin Library Program Room on Thursday, October 29^th, from 1:30 to 5 p.m.  This is your opportunity to have a free individual critique of your job résumé.  

Sign up for your 20-minute individual critique time by calling the Dublin Library Information Desk at (925) 803-7275.

 

Dublin Reads When We Were Colored: a Mother’s Story

Ginger Rutland and her mother, author Eva Rutland, appear on Channel 30s' book discussion program "In a Word."

Dublin Reads was officially launched at the Day on the Glen, the weekend of Sept 19 & 20th and we are off to a great start.  We have lots of copies of the book out there in circulation, including “read and release” copies at Shannon Community Center, the Heritage Center and the Senior Center to make it more convenient for people to find copies.  “Read and release” copies do not have to be checked out with a library card; they are meant to be passed along to neighbors, friends, or co-workers to keep the book moving through the community.  Each book is labeled with a abbreviation “code” so if we come across it, we can tell where it’s been:  HC for heritage center, for example.

A couple of people have asked how to go about making a comment on the book at this blog; here is how to do it:  notice on the right side of the blog, close to the top, there is a heading labeled “Categories.” Underneath that, it says “select categories” with a drop down menu.  Open the menu by clicking on the tiny “down” arrow and select “Dublin Reads.”  This will bring up all the postings we have made about Dublin Reads; pick any posting you want, and notice that underneath the date on the left side is a link that says “leave a comment.”  Simply click on this and tell us what you think!

Take note, that Kathy Cordova, one of the hosts for the Channel 30 book discussion program, In a Word has her own blog called A Few More Words.  She has written a wonderful review of When We Were Colored, be sure and check it out.  She writes, “Eva Rutland is a hero—not just for her courage, good sense and elegance in speaking out and finding common ground in a time of racial divide and fear—but for giving us all an example of how powerful the written word can be. To make us understand, to make us feel, and bring us, as readers, into a world that we would have otherwise never known—leaving us the wiser and richer and, maybe even kinder for the experience.”

Special events for Dublin Reads start this week!  Saturday,  October 3 at 2:00 p.m. in the Library Program Room, filmmaker Leah Mahan will join us to view and discuss her award winning film Sweet Old Song.  This film was recommended to us by Bingo Schmingo’s Kathleen Rushing (who also plays in the band Extended Roots.) Kathleen said this is a wonderful film on love, aging, generational gaps, black history and music. 

Also coming soon — a community book discussion led by Dublin’s Mayor, Tim Sbranti.  Save the date, Tuesday, October 13, 7:00 p.m.!

 

BANNED BOOKS WEEK: Celebrating the Freedom to Read

 

BANNED BOOKS WEEK:  Celebrating the Freedom to Read

September 26 – October 3, 2009

Banned Books Week is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read and the importance of the First Amendment.  Held during the last week of September, Banned Books Week highlights the benefits of free and open access to information while drawing attention to the harms of censorship by spotlighting actual or attempted bannings of books across the United States.

Intellectual freedom—the freedom to access information and express ideas, even if the information and ideas might be considered unorthodox or unpopular—provides the foundation for Banned Books Week.  Banned Books Week stresses the importance of making available unorthodox or unpopular viewpoints for all who wish to read and access them.

The books featured during Banned Books Week have all been targets of attempted bannings.  Fortunately, in a majority of cases the books were not banned, all thanks to the efforts of librarians, teachers, booksellers, and members of the community to retain the books in the library collections. 

A list of frequently challenged books is available from the American Library Association at:  http://www.ala.org/ala/issuesadvocacy/banned/frequentlychallenged/index.cfm

Come and see the display at Dublin Library of books that have been the subject of proposed banning!  This display is located  by the large type books by the public access computer terminals.

 

Thinking of Starting Your Own Business? Then Check Out Small Business Resource Center!

 

Thinking of starting your own business?  Be sure to search Small Business Resource Center database from GALE CENGAGE Learning to learn how to start, finance or manage your small business. Small Business Resource Center is one of many online business databases available to members of the Alameda County Library System.  Resources in this database include sample business plans, how to guides, articles and websites.  Small Business Resource Center offers users complete small business management resources via a combination of unparalleled periodicals and reference content. From conducting industry research to financial planning, to marketing a product and franchising a business, the Small Business Resource Center provides you with all the information you need to succeed.

 

You can conduct a search based on subject or keyword, or by searching the entire document.  You can also link directly to pre-compiled information based on popular business topics and types, sample business plans, and answers to frequently asked questions from a “How To” menu.  In addition to a basic search, an advanced search, a subject guide search, or a search by publication can be performed.   Results from your search are delivered in an HTML-based text and graphics format designed for quick display and readability.

 

Small Business Resource Center is home to the best business resources Thomson Gale has to offer, including the entire Business Plans Handbook Series, containing hundreds of sample business plans created by working entrepreneurs.

Also included are the Encyclopedia of Business Information Sources, Encyclopedia of Management and Small Business Management — A Framework for Success. Small Business Resource Center also features dozens of titles from John Wiley & Sons — best known for the popular and easy-to-understand “For Dummies” series — such as Entrepreneurship For Dummies, Business Contracts For Dummies, Home-Based Business For Dummies, Portable MBA Strategy, 2nd Ed., The 7 Irrefutable Rules of Small Business Growth and Portable MBA in Entrepreneurship.

Small Business Resource Center also includes nearly 200 business journals — both specialty/vertical market and general business — including titles like:

• Better Asset Management
• Black Enterprise
• Consumer Comments
• Cosmetics International
• Direct Marketing
• Financial Management
• Family Business Review
• The Tax Adviser

 

Dewey : A Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I recently finished reading “Dewey : A Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World”.  This book, co-written by former Spencer Iowa Librarian Vicki Myron and Bret Witter, is the story of a cat, the librarian herself, and a small town in northwest Iowa during difficult economic times.  

The book cover hooked me, as it featured a portrait of an orange cat confidently looking straight at the camera.  If you change the color of the eyes from gold to green and add freckles on the nose, then you have a portrait of my own cat Rufus, who fortuitously turned up at the side entrance to the Newark Library on a Sunday afternoon in May 2007, scampering after a teenager on a bike who vociferously made clear that he wasn’t his owner.    

Dewey’s entrance into the Spencer Library was much more perilous.  Dewey was found in the library drop box on a bone-chilling morning in January 1988.  The librarian and another staff member gave the nearly frozen kitten a warm bath and gradually introduced him to library visitors.  

Dewey was remarkable in that he seemed to have a knack for knowing who could use some cheering up – physically and mentally challenged children, older library visitors, farmers and other workers coming in to fill out employment application forms online perhaps for the first time in their lives.    

Though the position was never advertised, the library soon found itself with a goodwill ambassador who greeted library users as they entered in the door in the morning, entertained visitors by jumping from shelf to shelf, and greeted every visitor to the program room by jumping on the large round table and rubbing against the hands of all those present.   The number of visitors to the library rose from 60,000 yearly to 100,000 during Dewey’s first year at the library. 

The author of the book, Vicki Myron, is very candid about why she felt such a strong bond to Dewey.  Both had serious lifelong health problems.  Dewey also served as a go-between to facilitate conversation between Vicki and her daughter Jodi during those difficult years when teenagers think that their parents are the enemy.   

Visitors would come in from different states and even from other countries to see the famous library cat.  Dewey became famous worldwide, getting fan mail from several countries, and was even featured on a Japanese television program.  Dewey died at the age of 19 and his ashes are buried in the lawn outside the library.  A granite marker was placed on the site. 

 New Line Cinema is working on a film adaptation of the book that may reach the screen in 2010 or 2011.  Meryl Streep is reportedly very interested in playing the role of Vicki Myron.  

I would heartily recommend this book to teenagers and adults.  Call Number:  636.80929 MYRON.

 

Registration for Preschool Storytime Starts Today

If you and your child attended preschool storytime in the spring you will notice that we’re doing things a bit differently this time. For the Fall preschool storytime session (8 weeks) we will be taking registration; you will register just once for the entire session. Your child will then be able to attend each Monday from 10:30 to 11:00 a.m. for the duration of the Fall session. Registration begins on Tuesday September 8th. Only children 3 – 5 years old will be able to register and attend preschool storytime. Storytime will take place in the Library Program Room, down the hallway to your right as you enter the library building.

 You are probably wondering why we are making these changes. Children ages 3 – 5 years old have reached an exciting time in their development. Preschool storytime plays an important role in enriching your child’s literacy and social skills through programs designed specifically for this special age. The librarian is delighted to share the benefits of age-appropriate books, stories, songs and fingerplays with your child.

 To help make each storytime session a success, please remember:

 Storytime will begin promptly at 10:30 a.m. and last approximately 30 minutes. Please arrive at least 5 minutes early to collect your child’s nametag and help your child get settled.

 Parents and younger siblings are encouraged to spend time together in the picture book area of the library while their preschooler is in storytime. We understand that this arrangement may cause some separation anxiety in the beginning. In this case, a corner of the Program Room will be set aside for parent’s and younger siblings.

 At the end of the storytime, the librarian will walk the children to the picture book area to meet their parents.

 What if your child is younger than 3 years old? Not to worry, we have storytimes for younger children as well.

If your child is age 24 months to 35 months, they and a parent are invited to attend Toddler Time. Toddler Time will be on Thursdays at 10 a.m. October 8 – October 29 (4 weeks). Registration will be required for this program.

If your child is age 10 – 24 months, they and a parent are welcome to attend the Mother Goose on the Loose program. There are two Mother Goose sessions this Fall. One will be on Wednesdays from 10:30 – 11:00 a.m. September 9 – November 18. The second session will be Fridays from 1:30 – 2:00 p.m. September 11 – November 13. No registration is required to attend Mother Goose.

Posted by Rebecca Maher, Children’s Librarian, and storyteller