July 27, 2005

Circle Time Alert

Circle Time (Tuesdays at 10 a.m.) will feature Nancy Nuttle of Music Together on August 23. Nancy will bring a taste of how this program encourages parents to play with their young children in musical and developmentally appropriate ways.

A great part of the success of Circle Time at the Library is due to its consistency. We meet every Tuesday morning (barring Library closures for holidays or catastrophes) and there is no sign-up required. The mornings are often wild and wooly, yet always good-natured. But we could use some back-up for those times when the Librarian (moi) is on vacation or, as in this case, when she is just glad to get a break and participate from the audience. If you or someone you know yearns to lead Circle Time on occasion, please let us know.

Posted by at 05:35 PM | Comments (0)

July 06, 2005

Summer Quest Shrinks!

So there you are on your kitchen table, shrunk to the size of a Froot Loop. Between yourself and your bedroom are miles and miles of the vast and dangerous wilderness that is your own home. Can you sneak past your cat? Can you escape the clutches of the Spider Mother? Maybe, but first you have to work your way past a sink full of dirty dishes...

The Takoma Park MD Library SummerQuest is happening again. This is an all-ages adventure game where your character advances across the Big Gameboard (in the Children's room) with each new book you read. The challenges vary depending on your place on the board. There are as many ways to 'win' as there are active readers. Come in pick a character and sign up! For parents and other adults who wish to play, I'll create a personalized Character.

Watch for notice here and in the Takoma Park Newsletter, since at the end of the summer we have a big party for all 'Questers.

Posted by at 02:54 PM | Comments (0)

Takoma Park Authors for Kids

First of all, this list includes illustrators, but if you look them up in our on-line catalog, you will see that they are listed under "authors." The authors listed have some sort of connection with Takoma Park, but only a few are currently living here. Websites for these authors and also others who live in the D.C. area can be cunningly tracked down by going to the site of the Children's Book Guild of Washington.

Claudia Mills
lived on Birch Avenue for many years. Her earlier fiction books reflect life in a town like Takoma Park - her more recent ones, Boulder, Colorado, where she lives now. Her picture book, Phoebe’s Parade, was inspired by our 4th of July parade and is dedicated to the children of Takoma Park. She has also written the delightful series of readers featuring Gus and Grandpa.

Katherine Paterson is our most famous Takoma Park children’s author. Her husband John was the pastor at the T.P Presbyterian Church for a number of years. She has written many wonderful fiction books including two Newbery Award winners. The famous Bridge to Terabithia was inspired by the life and death of Lisa, her son David’s friend at Takoma Park Elementary School. The Great Gilly Hopkins takes place in “Thomson Park,” a thinly-disguised T.P. She has also written non-fiction , quasi-fairy tales, and readers.

Gene Inyart Namovicz was a close friend of Katherine Paterson’s, and she was also a very good friend to our Library. Her first books were written under her maiden name, but we have put them all under the name Namovicz. She has four fiction titles on our shelves, though a friend may be sending us more.

Phyllis Naylor is also a friend of Claudia, Katherine, and Gene. She may be as famous as Katherine Paterson on account of her Alice books. She lives in Bethesda, but her recent prequels concerning Alice show Alice living in Takoma Park. I don’t know when Alice moved!

Miriam Cohen must have lived in Takoma Park many years ago. Ellen Arnold-Robbins remembers her checking out books here. I had no idea! She wrote those wonderful little school stories in the picture book section, illustrated by Lillian Hoban, books like Will I have a friend? More recently she has written stories about Mimmy and Sophie ( one amongst the picture books and one in juvenile fiction.)

Enid Romanek is a Takoma Park illustrator who wrote and illustrated the picture book Teddy. She also illustrated an African folktale, The First Morning.

Jill McElmurry is an illustrator who lived in Takoma Park for a short while. I don’t know where she lives now. Her picture book is called Mad About Plaid , but she has also illustrated a book of poems as well as the best Hannukah storybook I have ever read.

Beth Baker, who has lived in Takoma Park a long time, has written Sylvia Earle, Guardian of the Sea about the famous “living legend” marine biologist .

Denis J. Hauptly once lived in Takoma Park - does he still? If you don’t read fiction at all (!!) , you could tackle one of his books on the Constitutional Convention, on the history of the western world, or Vietnam, or Puerto Rico.

From the adult side, check out Beowabbit,a parody which was published in T.P.by Centa Press. Or one of the sci-fi books by Roger MacBride Allen. There are other Takoma Park authors who have published books for adults that older kids might possibly enjoy - ask a Librarian! And tell us who we missed on this list, so we can fix our omissions and mistakes.

P.S. I have found a wonderful storytelling blog by a person who I think once lived in Takoma Park. Check it out !

Two additions to our list of Takoma Park authors and illustrators! Hally Childs reminded me of Abby Bardi's The Book of Fred, which she loved (so did I.) Though it is catalogued as an adult book, it is a marvelous book for "young adults," about 15-year-old Mary Fred who was raised in an isolated fundamentalist sect. Abby Bardi writes the "Sin of the Month" column for the Takoma Voice.

Paige Billin-Frye is an artist who lives in Takoma D.C. She often makes collages and 3-dimensional pieces that are photographed for picture books. She led a workshop in this technique some years back here at the Library. Some watercolor illustrations cane be seen in this mini-on-line portfolio.



Posted by at 02:53 PM | Comments (0)
Recent Entries
Circle Time Alert
Summer Quest Shrinks!
Takoma Park Authors for Kids
Other Web Logs
News
Books
Children's Room
Teen Book Buzz
Archives
March 2016
February 2016
January 2016
December 2015
November 2015
October 2015
September 2015
August 2015
July 2015
June 2015
May 2015
April 2015
March 2015
February 2015
January 2015
December 2014
November 2014
October 2014
September 2014
August 2014
July 2014
June 2014
May 2014
April 2014
March 2014
February 2014
January 2014
December 2013
November 2013
October 2013
September 2013
August 2013
July 2013
June 2013
May 2013
April 2013
March 2013
February 2013
January 2013
December 2012
November 2012
October 2012
September 2012
August 2012
July 2012
June 2012
May 2012
April 2012
March 2012
February 2012
January 2012
December 2011
November 2011
October 2011
September 2011
August 2011
July 2011
June 2011
May 2011
April 2011
March 2011
February 2011
January 2011
December 2010
November 2010
October 2010
September 2010
August 2010
July 2010
June 2010
May 2010
April 2010
March 2010
February 2010
January 2010
December 2009
November 2009
October 2009
September 2009
August 2009
July 2009
June 2009
May 2009
April 2009
March 2009
February 2009
January 2009
December 2008
November 2008
October 2008
September 2008
August 2008
July 2008
June 2008
May 2008
April 2008
February 2008
January 2008
December 2007
November 2007
October 2007
September 2007
August 2007
July 2007
June 2007
May 2007
April 2007
March 2007
February 2007
January 2007
December 2006
November 2006
October 2006
September 2006
August 2006
July 2006
May 2006
April 2006
March 2006
February 2006
December 2005
October 2005
September 2005
August 2005
July 2005
May 2005
August 2004
July 2004
June 2004
Takoma Park city seal THE LIBRARY IS A DEPARTMENT OF THE CITY OF TAKOMA PARK
Call the desk at 301-891-7259
Contact the director by e-mail