A Special Halloween in Kids' Place

Gather all you ghostly ghouls and princesses for Halloween at Kids’ Place on Saturday, October 27 from 2-3:30 p.m. We’ll be reading spooky stories, decorating pumpkins, eating goodies and Trick-or-Treating through the Central Library! Who could ask for more than Halloween treats and another chance to don your Halloween costume? Plus, there’s free parking now on Saturdays! Please register for event online at www.saclibrary.org or by calling 264-2920. Hope to see you on the 27th. Jami, Youth Services Librarian @ Kids’ Place

Discovering Your Roots

Beth Daugherty, our Genealogy Librarian, writes:

Genealogy is one of the most popular hobbies in the United States today. Central Library is planning more exciting programs on this topic in the near future, because of the great attendance and enthusiastic response to the four programs we presented last month.

Details about the new programs will be posted here soon. Until then, you can get a head start on climbing your own family tree by going to the Research Guide on the library’s home page (click the link in the “Library Services” section,) or stop by to browse the how-to books on the fourth floor.

Other genealogy programs and seminars currently being offered in the Sacramento area:

Saturday, Oct. 13, 2007, 8:30 am. – 4:00 pm.
Family History Day
California State Archives
1020 “O” Street (corner of 10th and O Streets)
Genealogy classes and tours of the Archives. This fun event is free and open to the public.
More information

Every Wednesday evening, 7:00 – 8:30 pm.
Genealogy Classes
Sacramento Family History Center
2745 Eastern Ave., Sacramento, CA
These classes are free and open to the public. For a list, click the "Classes" button on the Family History Center's web site.

Saturday, Nov. 3, 2007, 9:00 am. – 3:00 pm.
Gathering the Harvest
Sacramento Family History Center
2745 Eastern Ave., Sacramento, CA
There is a fee for this day-long seminar, which is open to the public. For more info, click the "Seminars" button on the Family History Center's web site.

It's "One Book" Night!

Tonight, from 6-8 p.m., local mystery author John Lescroart will discuss his latest book, "The Suspect". The program will be held at Central Library in the Library Galleria. Doors open at 5:15 p.m. You can find program details in the Event Calendar and in Library News on page 6, or call Telephone Reference at 916-264-2920 after 10 a.m.

The Sacramento Bee published an interview with Lescroart last week that makes it sound like tonight's program will be very interesting. Local bookstores are offering a 30% discount on the title - a list is available in the Bee article - and copies will be available for sale at the program this evening .

Sacramento Public owns copies in print, large print, CD audiobook, and downloadable e-audiobook formats. Add your name to the wait list by clicking the "request" button on the screen that pops up when you click your preferred format.

A Finer Focus: North Korea: Things Looking Up In the Hermit Kingdom?

It’s called, by some, the Hermit Kingdom; withdrawn from world events and ideologically stern, North Korea has defiantly held out as one of the globe’s last Marxist-Leninist states. There are, however, signs of possible change. In the wake of August flooding that killed hundreds and destroyed important crops, North Korea has, at the behest of China, Japan, the United States, South Korea and Russia, vowed to dismantle its main nuclear reactor complex at Yongbyon.

The development is encouraging and one that belies a long pattern of negative behavior (abduction of foreign nationals, assassinations, invasion of South Korea) and reckless military spending (nearly one-third of the nation’s GNP--the U.S. spends between 4 and 5 percent). It’s hard to know if this is the watershed the world’s been looking for, but a denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula would be a big step toward alleviating the tension that’s hung over the region for over 60 years.

A great way to keep up on events in the Koreas and other regions is to check our periodical and newspaper databases. EBSCO offers timely access to popular and specialized journals and magazines like the Economist (1990-present) and Foreign Affairs (1922-present), while Newsbank provides access to award-winning newspapers like the San Jose Mercury News (1985-present), San Francisco Chronicle (1985-present), and Sacramento Bee (1984-present). To use these databases, you only need a library card number and a Personal Identification Number (PIN). For instructions on obtaining a PIN, click here.

The Sacramento Public Library also carries several books on the crisis between the two Koreas. Here are a few:

Jasper Becker, Rogue Regime: Kim Jong Il and the Looming Threat of North Korea, Oxford University Press, New York, 2005.

Gordon Chang, Nuclear Showdown: North Korea takes on the World, Random House, New York, 2006.

Ted Carpenter, The Korean Conundrum: America's troubled relations with North and South Korea, Palgrave Macmillan, New York, 2004

Bruce Cumings, Inventing the Axis of Evil: the Truth about North Korea, Iran, and Syria, New Press, New York, 2004.

Don Oberdorfer, The Two Koreas: A Contemporary History, Addison-Wesley Pub., Reading, Mass, c1997, 2001.

Please also note that on Wednesday, January 30, 2008, at 6:00 pm at the Central Library, CSUS history professor Arthur Williamson, Ph.D., will discuss the Cold War and its impact on the current geopolitical state of the world. To register, call 264-2920 or logon to www.saclibrary.org.

Isabel Allende : " The Sum Of Our Days "

Peruvian- born author Isabel Allende has written a new book entitled "The Sum Of Our Days" which is due to be released in North America in April 2008. The Spanish version of the novel was published in mid 2007 by Editorial Sudamericana and is already a best-seller.

Isabell Allende narrates to her daughter , Paula, events surrounding their family since her daughters untimely death. The reader experiences along with the author a story of personal triumph over some of life's most terrible challenges. Her story is very emotional but not all is doom and gloom, for Allende is surrounded by an entourage of family and friends each with their own inspiring stories to tell us. And with their awe-inspiring stories we are all transported to a life filled filled with love , compassion and a new understanding of the complexities of life.

There are 4 copies ordered for the Spanish collection , and since the English translation has not been published, none are on order yet. But that is sure to change !

SPL OUTREACH: THE SEVENTH ANNUAL TARGET CHILDREN'S BOOK CELEBRATION.

The Sacramento Public Library's Community Outreach Services was once again out in full force at the 7th Annual Target Children's Book Celebration held at Fairytale Town in Sacramento's beautiful William Land Park. The event was held on September 29/30 from 10 am to 4pm where hundreds of families attended numerous stage performances with likes of Francie Dillon , children's storyteller Michael Katz , Ke Buena 97.9 DJ's Lili and Ricardo Reyes ( Spanish - Language Storytime ) and renowned author Laura Numeroff.

Other attendees were KVIE's own "Ready to Learn" kids mobile, Friends of the Sacramento Public Library, and SPL's own Wonder Wagon. Volunteers made many children ( and their parents ) very happy encouraging them to sign up for their very first library card! Community Outreach Volunteers also informed the public about the
benefits of reading to children, reading frequently and about the power of imagination!
It's my participation in events like these ( aside from the other things that I do with library! ) that make me proud to work for Sacramento Public Library and Community Outreach Events. Please feel free to visit my Flickr site and see more photographs taken at the Children's Book Celebration!

Calling All College-Bound Students (and Parents)!

The 2007 Fall College Prep Workshops are now well under way at a library near you. This is the 8th year that the Schwab-Rosenhouse College and Career Center has offered the workshops, and the second year of expanding its out reach services to provide more programs to a greater number of branches. However, due to limited resources, we weren't able to offer the programs to all the branches that expressed interest.

The program, which will run until mid-December, includes many
of the popular workshops from past years such as Inside the College Admission Process, Completing College Applications, Brainstorming the College Application Essay, and Paying for College, all of which combine to address the major aspects of the college application and admission process. A new program - College Planning for 8th, 9th, and 10th Graders – has been added in response to parents’ requests for more resources to help give their kids an early start on the right road to college. These workshops are presented by a stellar group of college admissions and financial aid advisers contracted by the Center. A complete schedule of the workshops is on the Schwab-Rosenhouse College and Career Center web page along with the biographies of the presenters. You can also find this information in workshop brochures at all Sacramento Public Library branches and in your school’s college and career center.

In an effort to continually improve the quality of the workshops, we have included a request, on the evaluation form, for permission to contact the participant at a later date to determine the effectiveness of the workshop in helping him or her to meet their objective.

And, as always, we welcome comments and suggestions from all workshop attendees. Although registration is requested, it isn’t required. Just come on out and join for this very informative program. For more information, call 264-2920 or go online at http://www.saclib.org/college/index.html

Joanne Verdon, Coordinator
Schwab-Rosenhouse College and Career Center