SPL Shelf Life

Shelf Life now in New Catalogue

2009-08-14T16:36:00.001-04:00

Stratford Public Library has a new catalogue called BiblioCommons. All future Shelf Life reviews will be incorporated into our new catalogue. Check out the catalogue here.

To search for books that have been reviewed in Shelf Life, select tag from the drop down menu in the search box and then search for shelf life reviewed.

We will not be posting any further Shelf Life Reviews on the blog. Thank you for visiting the blog over the past year.

-Stratford Public Library

Gap Years for Grown Ups

2009-08-14T12:14:00.002-04:00

by Susan Griffith

"Because gap years are wasted on the young..." so says the new edition of Gap Years for Grown Ups. But a "gap year" is not necessarily a full twelve months, it is whatever length of time one needs to recharge, reinvigorate and follow one's bliss. Think of it as a sabbatical, an unpaid leave or just a break, a gap "year" can allow one to achieve a long-time dream, put spring back into one's step and give a person new focus, no matter if a person is burnt out, seeking simplicity or perhaps disheartened for some reason. Taking a break from a job - or just normal life - can be scary though, and this book outlines the steps needed to decide if the time is right for a gap, and how to determine what kinds of activities are out there to fill up that gap if the right time is right now: maybe a turn as an overseas volunteer, or perhaps a spiritual retreat is what is needed? The author includes advice on how to persuade the boss or family about that break, how to afford a gap year, and lots of practical tips for getting around red tape, where and how to find accommodations, health and safety and general travel. The best part are the many stories of people to took that gap and did extrordinary things, like volunteering on biological reserve in Ecuador, moving to Florence to take Italian immersion and cooking courses, teaching Tanzanian villagers how to knit, or leading tours in a variety of countries and cultures. By no means a solitary venture, "gapping" can involve the entire family, and the author shows how kids - especially young children - can quickly adapt to world travel, even with their schoolwork in tow. Lastly, there is a chapter about readapting to one's "normal" life - which may not feel as normal as after taking an exciting gap year of one's own. Click here to reserve a copy in our new on-line catalogue, Bibliocommons.

We're Moving!

2009-08-12T16:54:00.003-04:00

SPL Shelf Life reviews can now be found in BiblioCommons, the new discovery layer of the Stratford Public Library Catalogue. To find reviews, simply do a keyword search for Shelf Life.
To visit BiblioCommons, click here.

Where Did Pluto Go? A Beginner’s Guide to Understanding the “New Solar System”

2009-08-07T07:17:00.001-04:00

By Paul Sutherland

The laws of astrophysics state that the universe is expanding, but in 2006 when the International Astronomical Union “demoted” Pluto from a planet to a dwarf “plutoid”, our neighbourhood in it shrank by about 2,543,166,000 km. It created quite a stir, for a planet that had only been discovered in 1930. Astronomy has come a long way in the past century, with the spaceships Voyager 1 and 2 making their trips to infinity and beyond, sending back data along the way, and the powerful Hubble telescope able to capture images of our planets and deep space that are more incredible than any artists’ imagination. All the “news” from our solar system is contained in this well-organized book. The sun and each planet has a chapter dedicated to it and their moons or satellites, and our moon gets one of its own (because it’s ours), plus there are separate chapters on asteroids, comets, and “extra-solar” planets. Mars gets some extra treatment because of the excitement Rover created in finding bacterial fossils, ice and what appeared to be the ‘face of Mars’. One whole section tells you how to observe these heavenly bodies, with the help of the planisphere (included in the book’s cover) which can be set to show what you can see in the sky on any given date and time – if you can escape all our light pollution. There are loads of pictures, Hubble photographs, artists’ renderings and quaint illustrations of superstitions about our past beliefs, more astrological than astronomical. There are side-bar tidbits in each chapter designed to fuel deeper interest in these cosmological spheres, and the author includes a glossary and index for quick references. On a clear night this summer, throw a little planet-gazing into your star-gazing and learn a little more about our place in the universe. Click here to find Where Did Pluto Go? in our on-line catalogue.

Gotcha! Mystery Hunters: 18 Amazing Ways to Freak Out Your Friends

2009-08-06T09:00:00.002-04:00

by Daniel Acer

Daniel Acer’s book, aimed a slightly older reading audience than Boredom Busters, offers a number of ways in which kids can amaze and astonish themselves and their friends. How? Taking phony UFO photos, turning themselves into headless zombies (using an amazing illusion), making fake Bigfoot footprints, filming a lake monster video, and various other illusionary and magic tricks are presented with illustrated, step-by-step directions. For each hoax, a list of required materials – if any – is provided.

Sound like fun? The whole family can enjoy and participate in the activities of this book, which is based on the television series Mystery Hunters, produced by YTV and Discovery Networks International.

** Recommended for ages 9 to 12 years.
Find this book in the library catalogue.

Boredom Blasters

2009-08-06T09:00:00.001-04:00

by Helaine Becker

The sub-title of this book, Brain Bogglers, Awesome Activities, Cool Comics, Tasty Treats, and More hints at the fun to be found in this gem. Easy-to-follow recipes and instructions for games, crafts and recipes, and plenty of quizzes, jokes and brain bogglers, are provided – plus lots of wacky and astounding facts. Kids can make monster footprints, fortune cookies, bread bag tag racers or gross-out gummy worms. They can play “Fortune Bingo”, decipher secret messages, discover some cool calculator tricks, play “Star Warts”, and even learn some simple magic tricks.

As the author states, this is the book to consult if you are sick of watching the grass grow, if you have lost count of the ceiling tiles in your house, or if your thumbs are tired of twiddling! “Whether you use it on your own or with friends, Boredom Blasters will save the day. It’s a superhero, it’s a book … it’s your new best friend!”

“How did so much fun get into one book?” is what children and parents will wonder after perusing this publication!

** Recommended for ages 7 to 11 years.
Find this book in the library catalogue.

Teddy Payne's Restaurants of Stratford

2009-07-30T12:12:00.000-04:00

by Edward "Teddy" Payne

Hot off the local presses is this slim little volume, the newest by Teddy Payne, that is dedicated to some of Stratford's finest eating establishments. Each restaurant was chosen by Teddy, reviewed by Teddy, and each is accompanied by one of Teddy's original whimsical watercolours of the restaurants themselves. Arranged in alphabetical order from Bentley's to York Street Kitchen, each of the fourteen eateries contributed at least one of their chief recipes, which appear at the end of the book. Thus readers can find out the secret ingredient of Bijou's tasty onion soup, the perfect spice-mix for Raja's chicken korma, how to assemble Down The Street's panko crusted sablefish dish, and what makes the The Parlour's fire-roasted tomato and wild mushroom soup an award-winner. Teddy also added a favourite recipe of his own, contributed the introduction in his warm, anecdotal style, and thoughtfully provides the contact information for all fourteen reviewed restaurants, plus that for other 'honourable mention' restaurants and cafe's (in case you can't get a reservation at those he reviewed). What makes this little book extra special is that Teddy is donating a large portion of the proceeds of the sale of his book to the Stratford Symphony Orchestra in honour of their upcoming fifth season, and it is for sale all over town, as well as on the Symphony's website. It makes a nice souvenir of our fair city, but it is of course available to be borrowed at the Library as well. Bon appetite! Find it here in our on-line catalogue.

The Castle on Deadman’s Island: A Mystery

2009-07-27T13:35:00.002-04:00

by Curtis Parkinson

A old castle with a deep basement, a secret tunnel, a child’s skeleton, a woman’s mysterious disappearance, a ghost, an eccentric millionaire, a bizarre will and a curse born in local lore, are only some of the ingredients in a suspense-filled mystery novel featuring the same three friends (Neil, Graham and Crescent) who appeared in Curtis Parkinson’s previous children’s novel, Death in Kingsport.

Soon after the owner of the castle on Deadman’s Island in the St. Lawrence River dies, Graham’s aunt abruptly disappears. Graham is convinced that she hasn’t simply left on a sudden trip, as some think. His conviction grows as various clues begin to turn up, such as an abandoned pair of sensible walking shoes, similar to those that his Aunt Etta would often wear. The revelation that Graham’s aunt has been bequeathed a one-third ownership of the castle complicates the situation. Then Graham is attacked, tied up and gagged by two intruders. What is going on … and can he and his friends discover the truth before it’s too late?

This is another adventure / mystery story with plenty of suspense and action, almost certain to intrigue readers looking for some great fiction to read over the summer.

** Recommended for ages 10 to 14 years.
Find this book in the library catalogue.

Footprints in Time

2009-07-27T13:30:00.002-04:00

by Petru Popescu

Thirteen-year-old Jack Conran can’t believe his fantastic luck when he’s included on a research trip to the “Witch’s Pot” – an unexplored crater in the isolated savanna area of Tanzania, East Africa. However, his great luck quickly changes to horrible when the small plane crashes, the other occupants are tragically killed, and Jack, wounded, is left on his own in a desperate struggle for his very survival. With hungry lions roaming everywhere in the crater area, far from civilization, Jack knows that his struggle won’t be easy, but what he doesn’t expect is to meet a mysterious creature who saves his life.

Who, or what, is this creature, and why is it helping him? Could the creature possibly be the mysterious link from the past for which Jack’s father had been searching? Can Jack and the creature come to understand each other and even become friends?

Readers who like adventure stories with plenty of action, danger and suspense won’t be able to put down this exciting, fast-paced tale until the very last page.

** Recommended for ages 9 to 13 years.
Find this book in the library catalogue.

The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen

2009-07-24T12:21:00.000-04:00

By Syrie James

In an English manor's attic, behind an old brick wall, an ancient sea-chest is found. Inside, carefully preserved, is a literary treasure - the memoirs of one of the most successful and enigmatic writers in English history, Jane Austen. Have you ever wondered how a woman who never married and by all accounts was never in love was able to create some of the most romantic relationships in literature? What if she did have a secret affair with a man of wealth and distinction, far above her own station? Author Syrie James takes much of what is really known about Jane Austen and weaves these facts into a "what might have been" life of Jane Austen, one where she meets Sir Walter Scott, visits the Derbyshire that became an important setting for Pride and Prejudice, and falls deeply in love with a man who may have been the inspiration for all her male heroes, one Frederick Ashford. James brings to life Austen's entire family - her hypochondriac mother, affectionate father, all her brothers and of course her sister Cassandra to whom she was devoted - as well as a host of other more-or-less imaginary characters that readers of Jane Austen will find vaguely familiar. She also includes a variety of things that make this fictionalized autobiography seem convincingly real - a map of Jane's England, a copy of the Austen family tree, and introduction by "Dr. Mary I. Jesse, president of the Jane Austen Literary Foundation", who is actually one of those imaginary characters. This edition comes complete with a reading guide for book clubs, an insightful author interview and a chronology of events in Jane Austen's real life, and is an excellent substitute for anyone who wishes Ms. Austen had given us more of her own life's story or written more novels before her untimely death. Reserve your copy here in our on-line catalogue.

The Odd Egg

2009-07-20T09:00:00.002-04:00

by Emily Gravett

That “beauty is in the eye of the beholder” is never more evident than in Emily Gravett’s latest story, the Odd Egg.
All the birds had laid an egg except Duck.

One day, Duck came across an enormous egg with green spots near the river. She thought it was beautiful, but it was so unusual in appearance that the other birds laughed and laughed.

After a few days, all the eggs except Duck’s had hatched. Everyone was intrigued. When would it hatch? Would it hatch at all? As time went on, only Duck, knitting patiently near the egg, believed that something would eventually happen.

Finally, one day, there was a “creak”, a “crack” and a loud “snap!” from the egg… and a baby crocodile appeared! Duck was so happy! Right away, she loved her baby despite its unducklike appearance and habits…. and despite the ridicule of the other birds.

The author has used a minimum of words to convey the theme of unconditional love in this story. In fact, the economy of text is one of the beauties of this tale, a technique which serves to highlight the excellent illustrations in this wise and witty picture book for preschoolers and their parents.

** Recommended for ages 3 to 6 years.

Find this book in the library catalogue.

The Cow that Laid an Egg

2009-07-20T09:00:00.000-04:00

by Andy Cutbill

Unable to ride a bicycle or perform handstands like the other cows on the farm, Marjorie didn’t feel very special at all. Instead, she felt extraordinarily ordinary. The chickens, noticing that Marjorie was down in the dumps, “hatched” a plot. The next morning, there was an almighty commotion in the barnyard …. “I’VE LAID AN EGG!” bellowed Marjorie the Cow.

The other cows were stunned. None of them had ever laid an egg before! The farmer called the local newspaper; people came from far and wide to see the egg laid by a cow, and Marjorie sat on it to keep it warm.

The other cows were suspicious. Had Marjorie really laid that egg, or were the chickens somehow involved?

Day after day, Marjorie happily sat on her egg until finally, it cracked open and a small feathery bundle appeared. Feathery? Yes, it had feathers and looked just like a chicken. The suspicions of the other cows seemed justified … but only until Marjorie’s baby opened its mouth!

This hilarious story is accompanied by equally hilarious illustrations, plus a CD on which the story is read aloud by Rubert Degas.

** Recommended for ages 4 to 7 years.
Find this item in the library catalogue.

The Glassblower of Murano

2009-07-17T11:44:00.002-04:00

by Marina Fiorato

Take a dash of Under the Tuscan Sun, throw in a smidgen of Jane Johnson’s Crossed Bones, add a tiny drop of Umberto Eco’s The Name of the Rose, and then just the tiniest hint of The Da Vinci Code, and you get a novel like The Glassblower of Murano. During the Renaissance Corradino Manin became a glass artisan by complete accident. Hiding on the island of Murano after his family was betrayed by one of their own, the young Corradino survived by learning the craft of the Murano glassblowers. So well did he learn the craft that he becomes the best, most renowned, most sought-after maestro of glass in the known world. It is precisely because of his fame that his fate is sealed when he finds he has a daughter, Leonora, the product of an affair with a noblewoman. Forever separated from her by class but hoping to build a life for them together, he commits an act of treason – but before doing so gives her a perfectly shaped glass heart. Now in the present day, Nora leaves behind her life in England to take up residence in Venice, Italy, the home of her ancestors and the father she never knew. All she takes with her is the tiny glass heart that her father passed down to her, a heart forged and shaped by her Renaissance ancestor Corradino Manin. Nora changes her name back to the Italian Leonora, and tries to find peace in the ancient, decaying city, forever known for its beauty and treachery. When she is hired by a glass foundry on the very street named for Corradino, the past and present begins to converge, taking Leonora in directions she never imagined. Two stories forming one, both sad and beautifully hopeful, and both stirring up vibrant images of a city always enchanting and ensnaring – that’s the recipe for a fine novel. Reserve The Glassblower of Murano here in our on-line catalogue.

The Day Leo Said I HATE YOU

2009-07-17T10:00:00.000-04:00

by Robie H. Harris

One day, Leo’s mother said “No!” to everything that Leo did. It was “No!” to rolling squishy tomatoes across the floor; “No!” to dropping string beans into the fish bowl, “No!” to dancing on the table, and “No!” to squirting blue toothpaste into the toilet. In a temper, Leo went to his room and drew an ugly picture of his mother on the wall. “No!” yelled his mother when she saw the nearly-finished picture. “No, no, no!” Then it happened. Leo suddenly found himself yelling back at his mother …. “I HATE YOU!”

The words were out. Leo was horrified. Would his mother still love him?

Robie Harris’ newest picture book explores the theme of unconditional parental love, as well as the feelings of frustration and anger sometimes felt by young children as they learn to adjust, cope and communicate in a world where it often seems as if there are far too many rules.

** Recommended for ages 3 to 5 years.
Find this book in the library's catalogue.

Big Words for Little People

2009-07-17T08:00:00.000-04:00

by Jamie Lee Curtis

Sometimes it’s very difficult for young children to communicate in a big person’s world. Adult words such as “considerate”, “persevere”, “patience”, “appropriate” and “consequences” can be not only difficult to pronounce but also to understand. Yet an understanding of such words – and their meanings - is essential in our world. As the author notes, “Words – big or little – are the bridges that connect us all.”

With clear, humorous explanations in rhyme and lots of colourful illustrations, Jamie Lee Curtis’ newest picture book explores some of these words and concepts, and provides simple explanations which even preschoolers can understand.
The team of Jamie Lee Curtis (author) and Laura Cornell (illustrator) have created a number of picture books which, with sensitivity and humour, explore the feelings and emotions of young children – for example, “It’s Hard to be Five”, “Today I Feel Silly and Other Moods that Make My Day” and “Tell Me Again about the Night I Was Born”.

** Recommended for ages 3 to 7 years.
Find this book in the library's catalogue.

My Mom is Trying to Ruin my Life

2009-07-10T11:30:00.001-04:00

by Kate Feiffer

A little girl is firmly convinced that her mother is actually trying to ruin her life! Why otherwise would her mother always kiss her in front of her friends (embarrassing), come to school with things that her daughter might need during the day (also embarrassing), talk and laugh loudly (especially embarrassing), and worry so much about her safety (meaning that some fun, but dangerous, activities are forbidden)?

Perhaps her father is also trying to ruin her life, in different ways. He reminds her constantly about her homework, and always insists on a prompt bedtime and a clean bedroom.

Life would be so much simpler without parents and their rules ... or would it? Who would cook for her, tuck her into bed, read her a bedtime story, kiss her goodnight and comfort her if she had a bad dream?

After some thought, the little girl realizes that she is actually very lucky to have two such loving, caring parents!

** Recommended for ages 3 to 6 years.
Find this book in the library's catalogue.

The Mother-Daughter Book Club

2009-07-10T11:25:00.003-04:00

by Heather Vogel Frederick

Emma, Jess, Cassidy and Megan simply can’t believe their ears! Their mothers have enrolled them in what? A mother-daughter book club? A book club which is to meet once a month, taking turns at members’ homes? What on earth could their mothers have been thinking – or not thinking?

The four middle school girls have many other things on their minds than reading and discussing Little Women. Megan is entirely preoccupied with her own set of fashionable friends; hockey is Cassidy’s life; Jess misses her absent mother too much to care about anything else, and Emma has already read just about every book in print - including Little Women. Besides, although Jess and Emma are good friends, they are despised by Megan, a snob, and Cassidy appears to have no use for anyone not involved with hockey.

However, as this novel skilfully demonstrates, the four unlikely friends have much more in common than they suppose at first. They also have quite a bit in common with the four sisters in Little Women - and with their own mothers. Connections are drawn between the girls and their families and into the past, as on various occasions they begin to ask themselves, “What would Jo March do now?”

Heather Frederick’s novel scores highly in appeal, humour and realistic dialogue, and it’s quite likely that middle school readers will be looking for more of her books. (The Library has two.)

** Recommended for ages 9 to 12 years.
Find this book in the library catalogue.

Cat Chat

2009-07-10T11:16:00.003-04:00

by Meredith Phillips

Why do cats purr? Why are they often more responsive to women’s voices than men’s? How do they almost always manage to land on their feet, and do they really like to drink milk?

Meredith Phillips’ attractive book, one of the Pet’s Point of View books for children, will supply the answers to these questions and provide many more intriguing facts about cats as well. Did you know that cats groom themselves for more than one quarter of the time that they are awake, and that they mark their territory by rubbing their faces on things or people? Did you know that cats have trouble digesting sugar, that a cat can leap about six times the length of its body, and that the record for the largest litter is nineteen kittens?

Cat Chat provides an opportunity for children to learn about their feline friend from its point of view, using fun facts, attractive photos, instructions on basic cat care, a glossary and a timeline of significant events in the history of cats.

** Recommended for ages 5 to 10 years.
Find this item in the library's catalogue.

Titanicat

2009-07-10T11:11:00.004-04:00

by Marty Crisp

The Titanic was enormous. With its own post office, swimming pool, gymnasium, squash courts and library, it truly was a ten-storey high “floating city”.

Historians believe that huge ocean liner had a cat, necessary for seagoing vessels at the time to control mice and rat populations. If so, what happened to the cat when the Titanic sank on that fateful April night in 1912?

Titanicat tells the story of a young cabinboy, Jim, who “adopted” the Titanic’s cat and her three kittens when he worked on the ship during the final preparations for its maiden voyage. However, when the much-anticipated day of departure came, Jim noticed that the cat was quickly removing her kittens from the ship. When she had trouble locating the third kitten, Jim found it, took it to her on the dock … and so missed the departure of the ship, the voyage – and the tragic fate of the “unsinkable” Titanic.

Is Titanicat entirely fictional? It could have happened, for it’s often said that animals can sense an impending disaster ….

The remarkable watercolour illustrations which accompany this fascinating and suspenseful story for children are truly memorable and beautiful.

** Recommended for ages 6 to 10 years.
Find this item in our catalogue.

Patterns in the Sand

2009-07-09T11:38:00.001-04:00

by Sally Goldenbaum

For those who love a cozy mystery – no gore, no bad language, no violence – it doesn’t get much better than Sally Goldenbaum’s Seaside Knitters series. In the follow-up to her debut, Death by Cashmere, the Seaside Knitters Club members, Nell, Izzy, Cass, Birdie, and others are startled to find a body in the window of the snug Knitting Studio – a sleeping one. The stranger in town (the aptly named Willow) is known for her fibre art, and she fits well into the Sea Harbor community of like-minded artisans, but she seems reluctant to fully join the knot of friendly knitters. The women embrace her anyway, knowing that in time her reserve will thaw and she will start to feel at home. What they don’t count on is that this young woman is somehow tied to one of their friends, a friend who is poisoned during the renowned Art at Night Festival in nearby Canary Cove, and they must help the young woman prove her innocence before another tragedy occurs. With her evocative descriptions of New England ocean-views, salty-air breezes and the laid-back, hospitable folks of Sea Harbor, this series by Sally Goldenbaum may be the most tranquil set of murder mysteries you will ever read, and they are a perfect accompaniment for languid summer evenings – especially if you can’t get to a bit of seaside of your very own. Find a copy of Patterns in the Sand here in our on-line catalogue.

The Urbanite’s Guide to the Countryside: Southern Ontario Edition

2009-07-02T18:30:00.002-04:00

By Wayne Caldwell et al, University of Guelph

For those wanting to buy and eat locally, The Urbanite’s Guide to the Countryside gives an overview of the vast variety of crops and products available in southern Ontario. Beginning with a history of agriculture in Ontario and touching on some of the issues farms face today, the authors also include sections on typical sights encountered in rural southern Ontario – the traditional and modern farm-scapes, Old Order Mennonites, the rural towns and its often lush forests and wetlands (with cautions for the Urbanite driver about our gravel roads). Following this comes each mini-chapter, arranged alphabetically by resource type, from apples to wind farms. Each entry contains statistics on the listed industry, sidebars of trivia, and little eye-catching photographs. This slim volume does have some shortcomings that will hopefully be corrected in the next edition – there is no index, photos are often not identified (including one of Wellington St. here in Stratford), and there are no addresses or websites provided for the various types of farms, something that could have been added in an appendix or two (a silly oversight from the publisher – the University of Guelph!). Still, it will be useful for children doing projects and adults looking for local produce - even things like ginseng, fish-farms and alpaca wool, besides the traditional maple syrup, dairy and pig farms, and a quick call to the reference desk at the Library will tell you exactly where to look for those llamas. Click here to find The Urbanite's Guide to the Countryside in our on-line catalogue.

One Hen by Katie Smith Milway

2009-06-29T17:07:00.002-04:00

Sometimes the biggest changes in our world begin in the smallest ways. Katie Smith Milway’s story relates how the purchase of one small hen changed an African community.

In a small village in Ghana, young Kojo and his widowed mother were just able to survive by gathering and selling firewood. One day, given a small loan, Kojo bought a hen to provide them with eggs. He sold the extra eggs at the market, repaid his loan, and eventually saved enough to buy another hen, then another, and another, and so on. After a while, Kojo earned enough money to pay his school fees as well. He attended school and obtained a bank loan, using it to establish a poultry farm near his village. As the farm grew, it employed others, enabling them – like Kojo and his mother – to leave poverty behind. With the taxes paid by Kojo and his employees, the whole community benefited. As the author states, “Change can happen, one person at a time.”

Was there a real Kojo? Yes: some years ago, Kwabena Darko, a boy living in the Ashanti region of Ghana, helped his mother to support his family. Winning a scholarship to attend an agricultural college in Israel, he studied poultry science, returned to Ghana and with some difficulty, obtained a loan to start a poultry farm. The farm eventually employed many others, and flourished, as did his community. Kwabena then established the Sinapi Aba Trust to provide microloans to others. The Trust grew. In a single year, 2006, it provided loans to 50,000 Ghanaians to establish small businesses such as raising small livestock, sewing, selling firewood, etc. The lives of thousands of people from many communities were transformed. Today, Sinapi Aba is part of the global nonprofit microfinance organization, Opportunity International.

The author of One Hen, Katie Smith Milway, was formerly a co-ordinator of community development programs in Africa and Latin America for the global organization, Food for the Hungry International.
One Hen was illustrated by Eugenie Fernandes, of Ontario, one of Canada ’s foremost children’s picture book author-illustrators.

Note: The copy of One Hen reviewed above was given to Stratford Public Library CEO Sam Coghlan as a registrant at Stratford’s Canada 3.0 Forum, June 8 and 9.

** Recommended for ages 5 to 10 years.
Find this book in the library catalogue.

Classic Crime Short Stories

2009-06-25T08:00:00.002-04:00

Read by Jack Shepherd and Patrick Malahide

FBCD FIC Class (book on CD)

DownloadLibrary (downloadable audiobook)

Summer is here! (Technically.) This means vacations are being planned, gardening needs to be done, and long work-weeks need to be wound down for hard-won weekends on the balcony or deck. It’s hard to read while gardening or in the glare of sunny balconies (I’ve noticed), and I’m pretty sure it’s illegal to read while driving to the cottage or weekend soccer matches. But that doesn’t mean one must neglect favourite books – simply listen to them on your car’s CD player, a laptop, or even your MP3 player or ipod. For instance, this excellent collection of short stories from the crème de la crème of crime-writers is available as a book-on-CD, or from our DownloadLibrary audio collection. Classic Crime Short Stories contains ten tales of the criminal element from authors like Margery Allingham (she of the Albert Campion series), G.K. Chesterton (Father Brown’s author) and Ruth Rendell (Inspector Wexford’s creator). They are read by veteran British actors Patrick Malahide (Law & Order UK, Poirot), and Jack Shepherd (Silent Witness, Charlotte Gray), and average about 30 minutes for each story (the longest is 46, while the shortest is a mere 8 minutes – don’t fall asleep or you’ll miss it!). The CD set contains 4 CDs, each with 2-3 stories; the DownloadLibrary edition can be saved to either an MP3, ipod, PC or Mac computer, and can be burned to your own discs should you wish to keep a copy. Ranging from the mysteriously creepy to amusingly adventurous (I have a soft spot for the two gentlemen thieves, AJ Raffles and Arsene Lupin), the Classic Crime Short Stories audio-book is an easy way to multitask this summer, whether you’re hitting the highway in the SUV or just hitting a nice bottle of white wine on the deck. Enjoy!

Book on CD version

DownloadLibrary version

Nose Down, Eyes Up

2009-06-19T08:00:00.001-04:00

By Merrill Markoe

Gil is a laid-back guy. A handy-man with a perpetual live-in job at a ritzy Malibu summer house for a richer-than-anyone-needs-to be retired couple, Gil happily works on their unending reno projects with his pack of four adoptee dogs at his side. Sure, he isn’t rich and has commitment-phobia (his ex-wife took care of that), but with the owners always away, Gil and the dogs have a pretty easy life, where they answer to no one and where it is always “beer-thirty”. Until the owners announce their imminent return. So Gil and the dogs have to move into his flaky girlfriend’s tiny home with her dogs. Sara is a “dog communicator”, but according to Jimmy, she always gets it wrong, and Jimmy should know – he’s Gil’s dog. That’s right, along with all the other upheaval, Gil suddenly finds he can hear and talk to his dogs – any dogs – like they were human, except they never think or say what we think they’re thinking or saying, and that’s when it gets a bit chaotic for poor Gil. For instance, Jimmy’s sage advice to the other dogs is “nose down, eyes up” will get a dog anything he wants. Plus, after years of being told he’s a “good boy”, Jimmy has come to believe that he is a higher, hybrid creature, half-canine, half-human, and is devastated when he learns that he is all dog. He insists on meeting his birth-mom – who happens to live with the ex-wife – and then refuses to leave his new pack. Soon Gil is trapped with his overly-friendly ex-wife, her jealous new husband and the detective he hired to spy on her. Gil heads for the hills to escape the coming catastrophe, gets into more trouble (with women), and gladly heads back to get Jimmy after his ex-wife’s marriage implodes. Only once he arrives in Malibu, he is met with raging wildfires that are engulfing most of the coast – and the guesthouse where Jimmy was left. Full of canine-human insights, foul language and screwed-up relationships, Nose Down, Eyes Up is nevertheless a very funny and heart-warming book, sure to have any dog-owner looking at their companions in a whole new light. Click here to find Nose Down, Eyes Up in the SPL on-line catalogue.

Disasters of Ontario: 75 Stories of Courage & Chaos, by Rene Biberstein

2009-06-16T15:33:00.003-04:00

Anyone who thinks that Ontario hasn’t experienced its share of disasters may be convinced otherwise after reading Rene Biberstein’s Disasters of Ontario!
Quite a number of devastating events have actually occurred in our fair province.

Tornados? Consider the Windsor Tornado of June 1946, which claimed 14 victims and injured 155, or the Barrie Tornado of 1985.

Shipwrecks? Read about the Edmund Fitzgerald, the biggest freighter on the Great Lakes until 1972. It sank on November 10, 1975, in a Lake Superior squall; all 29 crew members perished.

Evacuations? You may remember the 1979 derailment of a train carrying deadly chemicals through Mississauga, which caused the second-largest evacuation ever to take place in North America - after Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana.

Fires? The Cochrane District Fire in the summer of 1916 destroyed not only the town of Cochrane, but Iroquois Falls , Kelso, Matheson, Porquis Junction, Nushka and other communities as well. Tragically, a number of people suffocated when they took shelter in enclosed wells and root cellars.

The list continues: in all, 75 disasters – including mine collapses, floods, bridge collapses, deadly epidemics and many more marine disasters on the Great Lakes - are described in fascinating detail in this book.

** Recommended for ages 9 years and up.
Find this book in the library catalogue.

Tsunami! By Kimiko Kajikawa

2009-06-16T15:26:00.003-04:00

When wise old Ojiisan, alone on the steep mountain, saw the enormous wave flowing away from the land during the rice festival, only he recognized what it signified. “Tsunami – the monster wave!” he whispered to himself in horror. None of the other villagers had any idea of the impending danger, and everyone except Ojiisan, young and old, watched the sea excitedly from the beach.

What was Ojiisan to do? How could he quickly convey to the villagers the terrible threat posed by the monster wave, which would roar back any minute as a tsunami? How could he describe its overwhelming power, and persuade the entire community to leave the festivities and climb the steep mountain, safe from the sea? How would the villagers even hear his feeble voice from atop the mountain? Yet he had to do something, or four hundred people would be swallowed by the angry sea.

In the end, Ojiisan’s generous sacrifice – setting his precious rice fields on fire, knowing that every villager would rush up the mountain to fight the fire - is successful, and every life is saved.
Kimiko Kajikawa’s touching story has been adapted from Lafcadio Hearn’s earlier story, A Living God, and Ed Young’s brilliant cut-paper collage art strongly conveys the dramatic and terrifying power of a tsunami.

** Recommended for ages 4 to 7 years.
Find this book in the library catalogue.

Teen Health and Wellness: Real Life, Real Answers

2009-06-12T12:00:00.002-04:00

An On-line Database from Rosen Publishing
@SPL: http://www.stratford.library.on.ca/teens/subtopics/databases.htm#health

SPL has subscribed to a database just for teens, one that can’t be found by Googling. Although its title, “Health and Wellness” would let you think it’s only about nutrition and fitness and hygiene (*yawn*), it actually goes much further than that. Its homepage alone has links for in-depth, honest looks at an A-Z list of teen issues including Friendship and Dating, Skills for School, Work and Life (i.e. managing money), Body Basics, Grief and Loss, Diversity (how to fit in if you’re from another country) and a whole host of others. Each topic is connected to a list of articles that contain links to related subjects, or sub-topics, and it is just as easy to find an article by hitting the quick search bar at the top of each page. There is an alphabetical and a subject list as well, in case you can’t spell “dyscalculia” or just want to browse all the thousands of things teens are going through. At the top of each page is a link to teen hotlines, and a glossary to look up things like “dyscalculia”. Each article can be printed or e-mailed (for more private reading), and comes with complete citation information for project bibliographies (helpful in avoiding accusations of plagiarism). The homepage contains a new poll each week, teen-wellness trivia with accompanying articles, a “personal story” archive about teens and how they have dealt with some pretty horrible things, and even the chance to consult a real-life doctor on-line – confidentiality ensured. Accessible at the library or in the privacy of your own home, Teen Health and Wellness database contains candid, reliable information for just about any teen issue you can think of, and some that you wouldn’t want to. Highly recommended for all teens. Click here to access the Teen Health and Wellness: Real Life, Real Answers database.

Interview the Best

2009-06-09T11:30:00.003-04:00

with Alan Ladd
@SPL: DVD 650.14 Int

There are a lot of people looking for work right now, so the job market is more competitive than it was even a year ago. In order to help put your best foot forward, it helps to know the better practices behind job searching. In Interview The Best, consultant Alan Ladd, a job coach with more than 20 years experience, explains the job search process from start to finish, as he goes around a table of job-seekers. Some of them have college degrees, some have graduated from university, and some have little formal education but years of experience in a particular field. The philosophy that Ladd believes is that it does not matter how qualified you are, the person that interviews the best will always land the job. The DVD is sectioned into “chapters” on your resume, searching for a job, identifying your strengths, the interview, questions and answers, “the close” and the follow-up. There is also a chapter review where each section’s highlights are listed for quick reference (hit the “pause” button frequently to take notes). These highlights are often small thing that often seem unimportant but could be the difference between getting an interview and the job or not. For instance, your resume may impress an employer and she decides to call you to set up an interview. Except that she gets your answering machine, and the message says, “Yo, I ain’t here – leave your info!” She probably won’t, and she won’t call back, so it is important when looking for work to look and sound professional – even in your voice mail. Another example Ladd highlights is doing homework on the organization or companies to which you are applying. Test their products, check out their website and annual reports, visit the site or take a tour of the facility – all this before an interview is good preparation. Not only does it give you extra armor for the interview, you will also know where their offices are located and be able to arrive for an interview relaxed and on time. There are many more true-to-life examples on this DVD, it is a useful tool for anyone at any level of education or experience trying to land a new job; I highly recommend it. Click here to find Interview the Best in our on-line catalogue.

A Princess, A Pirate, and One Wild Brother, by Cornelia Funke

2009-05-29T12:12:00.002-04:00

Best-selling children’s author Cornelia Funke’s collection of three original stories also features a princess who makes some unusual choices. In the first story, Princess Violetta wishes not to be a queen, but a brave knight.

This notion, of course, meets with disapproval from the king and queen and scorn from her three older brothers. It’s up to the princess to prove that not only can she become a skillful knight, but that she can make an excellent choice of husband as well.

In the second story, Molly, a pirate girl, is kidnapped by a crew of pirates, led by Captain Firebeard. Molly is able to turn the tables on the kidnappers by secretly summoning her mother, Barbarous Bertha, who rescues her daughter and sets Firebeard’s terrified crew to cleaning, scrubbing and cooking for her own pirate ship.

The third story describes the sibling relationship between an older sister and a preschool-aged little brother who pretends to be a brave “explorer” during the day … but who still wants to snuggle up beside his sister every night - in order to keep the monsters away!

These amusing, inspiring stories, featuring some unusual heroines and heroes, are free of the stereotyping that sometimes occurs in children’s stories.

** Recommended for ages 4 to 7 years.
Find this book in the library catalogue.

Such a Prince, by Dan Bar-el

2009-05-29T11:55:00.003-04:00

When Princess Vera is diagnosed with love sickness, her fairy godmother recommends that she eat three perfect peaches … and be married within a week!

Of course, in the opinion of the king and queen, not anyone will do for the position of new son-in-law. He must be “such a prince” - rich, dashing, strong and handsome. In other words, he must be entirely “wonderful and irresistible”!

In the countryside, a poor young man, Marvin, is not rich or handsome, dashing or strong. (In the very candid opinion of Libby Gabborchik, Vera’s fairy godmother, he’s definitely not a “hunk”!) However, he is kind, compassionate, generous and intelligent. Could such as he become a prince? Princess Vera, who notices and appreciates Marvin’s kindness and intelligence, certainly thinks so. In fact, the princess finds him entirely “wonderful and irresistible”!

With Libby’s help, Marvin is able to overcome the many objections of the King and Queen and marry his princess - but not before the king is tricked into kissing his own donkey!

Does this unusual fairy tale end “happily even after” for Marvin and Princess Vera? Well ….very likely, as fairy tales usually do!

Canadian author and storyteller Dan Bar-el’s hilarious tale, told from an unusual fairy godmother’s point of view, is wonderfully paired with John Manders’ colourful, goofy illustrations.

** Recommended for ages 4 to 8 years.
Find this book in the library catalogue.

Raffles: The Amateur Cracksman

2009-05-28T16:29:00.002-04:00

By E. W. Hornung

Back when Sherlock Holmes was testing cigar ash and sampling liquid cocaine, he had a counter-part in the literary crime world, one A.J. Raffles. It would be Raffles’ cigarette ash that Holmes would be testing – Raffles is a burglar. Not a particularly smooth burglar – his schemes do not always go quite according to plan – but he is fairly successful none-the-less, making away with Australian gold bullion in one escapade, and in the next, brazenly out-burglaring some well-known thieves for a Dowager-Marchioness’s sapphires. With his own version of Dr. Watson at his side (the peculiarly nick-named Bunny who also narrates these tales), the pair insinuate themselves into high society by playing cricket with aplomb, hob-knobbing with lords and ladies, and often doing so right under the unsuspecting nose of Inspector MacKenzie of Scotland Yard. As much a master of disguise as Holmes, Raffles chooses their targets not only for financial gain (they tend to spend their ill-gotten gains rather quickly), but also for the challenge of the theft. Thus, they tangle with the brutish Rosenthall, an illicit diamond buyer, and undertake to re-steal a stolen and priceless work of art for the handsome sum of £4000 - and risk getting nothing if they fail. Written in 1899, in late Victorian style by the brother-in-law of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, reading Raffles is very much like stepping back through time to visit a much beloved but forgotten gem of a character, one who creates the types of crimes Holmes would solve. While the late 1890’s slang may be as mysterious as the liberal use of cricket lingo (some words used have completely different uses today!), these short, early adventure stories of the gentleman thief have great flair, and are first-rate reading for true mystery fans. Any association with the stylish Raffles Hotel in Singapore – also built in the 1890’s – I am sure is just a happy coincidence. Click here to reserve a copy of Raffles: The Amateur Cracksman in our on-line catalogue.

100 Questions and Answers about Influenza

2009-05-21T16:19:00.000-04:00

By Delthia Ricks, MA, MS

With all the media frenzy regarding the N1H1 influenza virus, AKA the “swine ‘flu”, it is about time we had an objective look at influenza strains and how they affect our daily lives. Author Delthia Ricks, a medical writer for Newsday, has compiled 100 frequently-asked questions about the flu, neatly organized into nine sections on the basics, flu shots, medications, concerns for children and seniors, epidemic and pandemic planning, historical contexts and of course, how to prevent the spread of flu viruses. Each section has a number of corresponding questions, with informational sidebars (for definitions that can also be found in the handy glossary), and each question is answered with straightforward, clear information. An appendix at the back has a list of authoritative organizations and sources that can provide further information, like Flu Watch, which is coordinated through Canada’s own Centre for Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, or the Families Fighting Flu organization, an American group formed by families whose children did not survive flu, or were made dangerously ill by it. There is information about every strain of flu or virus that we have lately heard about in the news – Norwalk, H1N1, Avian, SARS – as well as many others. This book will not only help arm yourself from influenza, it will help arm you against misinformation about it too. Click here to find it in our on-line catalogue.

Ancestry Library Edition On-Line: IN LIBRARY ONLY

2009-05-14T16:14:00.000-04:00

The Stratford Public Library has just subscribed to another new database, available exclusively to library card holders (free to all residents of Stratford, West Perth, Perth East and South Perth). It’s The Ancestry Library Edition, the subscription part of the Ancestry.com website, and it provides a more in-depth means of getting at genealogical records and family histories. It contains census and military records, passenger lists, even land and probate records from Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and a smattering of other European nations. Searchable fields include one for records, one for photos and maps, and another tab for newspaper stories and similar publications. It is also browsable by location, with clickable maps linked to census records and other data for specific regions, and the database contains the downloadable form to start creating your own family tree. The scanned search results can be viewed with a zoom, downloaded, saved, or e-mailed (in case your family tree is a cross-country family project, say). Search results can also lead to message boards (otherwise hidden and hard to find) for communication with other people looking for the same information – maybe distant cousins! Although it can only be used from within the library (licensing issues - sorry!), it is an ideal, free tool for anyone involved in geneological study, or for anyone wanting to know a bit more about their family history than can be gleaned from the original website.

A Year on a Pirate Ship, by Elizabeth Havercroft

2009-05-13T09:55:00.001-04:00

A Year on a Pirate Ship, by Elizabeth Havercroft, 24 pages.
@ SPL: J 793.73 Hav

What do pirates do throughout the twelve months of the year besides chasing and attacking other ships? How do they overpower the crews of other vessels, and do pirate ships always carry the Jolly Roger flag? Where do pirates bury their treasure, and do they like to build sandcastles on the beach after burying their treasure? Most importantly, how often do they take baths, change their socks and brush their teeth – if ever?

As this book proves, the life of a pirate is a busy one - from surviving dangerous storms at sea to attacking other ships - and it certainly isn’t dull or easy!

Young children who are interested in pirates will be intrigued by this book which is full of action-packed illustrations with many things to notice and find. It’s just one of the Time Goes By series for children; other titles include A Year in a Castle, A Year in the World of Dinosaurs and A Year at a Construction Site. Each book in the series offers suggestions for activities and further reading relating to the book’s theme, plus a short glossary.

** Recommended for ages 4 to 8 years.
Find this book in the library catalogue.

The No-Good Do-Good Pirates, by Jim Kraft

2009-05-13T09:52:00.003-04:00

The No-Good Do-Good Pirates, by Jim Kraft, 32 pages.
@ SPL: JP Kraft

Oh, those pirates! “Good” is definitely an unknown concept for them as they spend their days doing all sorts of evil deeds, which include plundering children’s birthday parties, stealing toys ….and even making teddy bears walk the plank of their ship, the Flying Pig! Can anyone deter these awful rogues - the scurvy Captain Squint, Ed the Fierce, One-Tooth Willy and Smelly Bob - from their reign of terror and nastiness?

When the no-good pirates are finally caught by the law, they are found guilty of robbing, looting and keeping a parrot without a license. However, they aren’t sent to prison (it’s closed for spring cleaning); instead, they are ordered to do one good deed before sundown.

Now the pirates are in real trouble! How can they accomplish this with no idea of what a “good deed” is?

Lacking a dictionary (and a public library), the pirates proceed to make some wildly unsuccessful guesses of what would constitute a good deed in the eyes of the townspeople. Finally, just before sundown, tired and discouraged, the four pirates happen by the harbour, just in time to see the notorious pirate ship, the Sea Monkey, arrive to plunder the town. Is this the pirates’ opportunity to do a good deed? Well …. maybe …. but in a very unexpected way!

Children will enjoy joining these hapless pirates in a thoroughly hilarious and swashbuckling adventure!

** Recommended for ages 3 to 7 years.
Find this book in the library catalogue.

Rosie and the Nightmares, by Philip Waechter

2009-05-13T09:49:00.001-04:00

Rosie and the Nightmares, by Philip Waechter, 24 pages.
@ SPL: JP Waech

Poor Rosie the Rabbit! Every night, she would experience another scary “monster nightmare”. It had been like that for weeks, with each night bringing another horrible dream – and Rosie was tired of it. So one day, she went to visit a dream specialist.

“Hmmmm”, said the specialist, and wrote her a prescription for a wonderful book that gave all sorts of helpful advice about dealing with monsters. Rosie was intrigued. She read the book all day, and when she was finished, she began to use her newfound knowledge to develop a plan of action – a plan which would tame those terrifying night monsters for good!

The next day, she put her plan into action. It worked beautifully. Never again would Rosie the Rabbit be terrified by ghastly dreams about monsters.

Philip Waechter’s picture book exemplifies the value of confronting one’s fears, no matter how huge and frightening they might seem at first. Rose is a feisty heroine who proves that courage is not the absence of fear… instead, courage is acknowledging and overcoming one’s fears.

This book will likely interest the many young children who have a nighttime fear of the dark when the lights are turned out at bedtime.

** Recommended for ages 4 to 7 years.
Find this book in the library catalogue.

Princess Peepers, by Pam Calvert

2009-05-13T09:44:00.003-04:00

Princess Peepers, by Pam Calvert, 30 pages.
@ SPL: JP Calve

Princess Peepers loved wearing all of her many pairs of glasses. These included her sparkly glasses (to match her sparkly outfits), her bug glasses (to wear when bug-catching), and her very favourite rose-coloured glasses (to wear most of the time). In short, Princess Peepers was never without a pair of glasses perched on her nose, and she was perfectly happy and at ease wearing them.

Everything changed, however, when Princess Peepers started attending the Royal Academy for Perfect Princesses. Teased beyond endurance by the other princesses about her “extra set of eyeballs”, the Princess decided not to wear glasses anymore – not even her beloved sparkly glasses. From that point on, she walked, ran and fell into trouble everywhere she went - for Princess Peepers truly did need glasses!

One evening, the Princess fell into a different type of “trouble” – the arms of a handsome prince - who also needed glasses! Suddenly Princess Peepers gained a brand-new perspective on the value of clear sight.

Readers can guess the happy ending to this appealing, well-written story, which carries a gentle message about being one’s self.

** Recommended for ages 4 to 7 years.
Find this book in the library catalogue.

Spell Hunter

2009-05-08T13:54:00.003-04:00

Spell Hunter, by R.J. Anderson, 329 pages.
@ SPL: YA FIC Ander

Faery Rebels, a new fantasy series for young adults by local author Rebecca Anderson, is certain to quickly gain a devoted following in Canada.(The first title, Spell Hunter, has already become a children’s bestseller in Britain where it was published under the title Knife.)

In the faery world of Oakenwyld, Knife, the main character, is a young rebellious faery who is determined to find the answers to her questions, follow her own instincts and do what she wishes – despite the Faery Queen’s strict rules. A few years later, Knife has become the Queen’s hunter due to her courage and fighting skills. As such, she is able to protect the faeries from their many predators … but she cannot shield them from a new mysterious, deadly disease. Could the humans living nearby have some answers or clues that would help? Knife feels that she must find out, once again defying the orders of the Faery Queen.

Knife’s quest to find the answers which the faeries of Oakenwyld so desperately need place her and Paul, her human friend, in immense danger. Knife’s courage and resolve are tested and strained to the limit in this suspenseful masterpiece, which so successfully juxtaposes magic and adventure, good and evil, and the faery and human worlds.

Young adult and middle-grade readers will be enchanted!
** Recommended for ages 10 to 14 years.

Find this book in the library catalogue.

Would You, by Marthe Jocelyn

2009-05-08T13:30:00.004-04:00

Would You, by Marthe Jocelyn, 165 pages.
@ SPL: YA FIC Jocel

One of the best recently-published Canadian books for teens is Marthe Jocelyn’s Would You, which has been included on the shortlist for the prestigious Canadian Library Association’s 2009 Young Adult Book Award.

Would You is an exceptionally realistic account of a tragic event that strikes an ordinary family on a late summer weekend, and the impacts of the tragedy on each member of the Johnson family are examined. Just before starting college, older sister Claire is struck by a car and very seriously injured. Soon her parents and younger sister, Natalie, must make a heart-wrenching decision. Should life-support assistance be removed from Claire and her organs used to help someone else? Should they follow the specialist’s recommendation to do so? What would another family do in such a situation, in which life has changed so horribly in only a few seconds? What would you do?

It’s almost impossible to find any fault at all with this brilliant novel – it’s simply that good! One of its best features is the convincing teen dialogue occurring throughout the book. (Author Marthe Jocelyn once mentioned that she modeled her dialogue on conversations which she overheard between her own daughters.)

Marthe Jocelyn, a local author/illustrator, has written a number of children’s novels and picture books; Would You is her first novel for teens.

** Recommended for ages 12 to 16 years.

Find this book in the library catalogue.

Small Engine Repair Reference Centre

2009-05-07T20:44:00.001-04:00

from EBSCO Database Publishing

The Stratford Public Library has just subscribed to a new database, available free of charge, exclusively to library card holders – and since library cards are free to all residents of Stratford, West Perth, Perth East and South Perth, just about anyone can access it. It’s the Small Engine Repair Reference Centre. Got a lawn-mower that won’t start on a Sunday morning but lost the service manual? Get the entire troubleshooting guide before your neighbours finish their morning coffee. How about a Ford tractor that won’t pull? There are service documents for over 70 models, free to download or print. In fact, in each category of small engine – from “generators” and “motorcycles” to “boat motors” and “snow mobiles” – there are subcategories for each brand, and each brand is broken down further by specific model. The model might have a single service document (like the 1992 Kawasaki KLF300 4x4 ATV), or an entire index of part instructions (like the John Deere Model 70 diesel tractor). Users will need the latest version of Adobe Acrobat Reader loaded onto their computers to read and print the manuals (free to download at get.Adobe.com/reader), but navigation of the website is straightforward, even though it lacks a search bar (check under “Outdoor Power Equipment” for snow-throwers, and not under “Snow Machines”). Manuals for machines newer than 3 or 4 years old may not yet be available, but for anyone with an older tractor, motorcycle or outboard motor, this database will make you very happy campers, and might save some repair bills at the same time. Access the Small Engine Repair Reference Centre only on-line with your library card at www.stratford.library.on.ca/databases.htm#car

Among the Mad: A Maisie Dobbs Novel

2009-04-30T20:00:00.004-04:00

by Jacquline Winspear

Each novel in the Maisie Dobbs series focuses on a small aspect of the after-effects of war, and as the title hints, the fifth deals with mental illness. Among the Mad has the heroine using her peculiar investigating style and talents to help the brass at Scotland Yard to track down an anonymous terrorist who has threatened to kill citizens of London. When his demands are not met – pensions for certain WWI survivors – he chooses his first victims, and his method is alarmingly close to a gruesome way thousands of men died in the Great War: poisonous gas. During the course of her inquiries, Maisie comes to realize that of the thousands of shell-shocked men who returned from the war, many were not given the help that they so urgently needed and indeed, earned in service to their country, and it is one of their number who knows far too much about chemical weapons. As she gets closer to the killer, she also begins to glimpse some governmental machinations employed during the war, the consequences of which might be at the root of the killer’s mad threats. In her calm, methodical way, Maisie also helps her trusted assistant Billy Beale cope with his wife’s slide into deep depression, and her gets her friend Priscilla to face her unhappy memories of the city instead of drowning them in gin. At the same time, Maisie’s somewhat cold exterior begins to melt – just a bit - as she finally lets go of some demons in her own war-time experience. Among the Mad is a highly empathetic look at mental illness, and is overall a well-written, atmospheric novel of the inter-war years in London. Find it here in our on-line catalogue in print or as an audio book-on-CD.

Silver Tongue, by Charlie Fletcher

2009-04-30T13:52:00.007-04:00

Silver Tongue, by Charlie Fletcher, 509 pages.
@ SPL: J FIC Fletc

The Darkness flowed into London on the same night that the Ice Devil arrived. Released through a crack in an ancient rock, this darkness was the purest, most malevolent gloom. Not the black darkness which results from the mere absence of light and hope, it was instead a force that, with the help of the ghoulish Walker, sucked light, hope and life into itself and obliterated them.

George, Edie and the Gunner are trapped in a perilous, hidden “unLondon” where two mutually hostile tribes of statues are cascading towards a final battle. The Ice Devil has frozen both time and the city; the heavy snowfall has buried everything; the people have disappeared - George and Edie are the only humans left. With time standing still, the way appears to be almost entirely open for the Darkness, the Last Knight and the Queen of Time to work their evil. George and Edie’s chances of vanquishing the Darkness back into the stone, pushing the Ice Devil back into the Black Mirrors, and resetting time into motion, are so slim….and yet, this is what they must somehow do.

Set in a many-layered London , Silver Tongue is a powerful and engrossing fantasy encompassing adventure, magic and history by a talented British writer. The book completes Charlie Fletcher’s epic “Stoneheart” trilogy which began with Stoneheart and Ironhand.

** Recommended for ages 11 to 15 years.

Find this book in the library catalogue.

Shimmer, by Dallas Reed

2009-04-30T13:46:00.005-04:00

Shimmer, by Dallas Reed, 314 pages.
@ SPL: YA PB Ree

The mysterious box had recently been uncovered in a cave near the peak of a nearby mountain by a blast crew. Now it was in Justin’s home, awaiting a professor’s expert examination. But as it sat on the desk in his dad’s study, Justin could sense that the box, carved from a type of deep grey stone, was exuding some sort of inexplicable, intractable force. Who had constructed this box … and what was inside?

Justin could have no idea of the horrific events that would unfold in his town when the box was impulsively opened by a high school acquaintance during a party at his house… events that would include the release of some sort of shimmering dust from the box, transforming everyone it touched… events that would send a group of terrified teens fleeing for their lives through a freezing blizzard …. events almost beyond imagination, which would change the isolated Colorado town of Winter forever.

A modern rewriting of the Pandora’s Box myth, Shimmer is a realistic, thrilling and mesmerizing tale that unfolds at an incredible pace, with well-developed characters and a satisfying ending. Teens will find it hard to put down.

Dallas Reed is a new author whose next book, The Calling, a paranormal thriller, will soon be released. Mr. Reed lives in Texas.

** Recommended for ages 11 to 16 years.

Find this book in the library catalogue.

76 Tips for Investing in an Uncertain Economy For Canadians for Dummies

2009-04-23T20:00:00.000-04:00

by Sheryl Garrett, Camilla Cornell

The Canadian publishing industry is doing their best to respond to the worldwide recession, and this one by Sharon Garrett, founder of the Garrett Planning Network, and Camilla Cornell, an award-winning personal finance writer is a welcome addition. Written with the same style and formatting of other "For Dummies" books - that is to say, extremely easy to navigate with a fantastically detailed table of contents and index – this one is less alarmist than other financial aid books which makes it immediately less intimidating (because let’s face it, financial insecurity is scary stuff). The first part is about what they call “The Basics”, or figuring out where you stand. You may be better off than you think, or there may be gaps you had not considered. This section lets you assess where you can save, where you can reduce debt and how you can set goals to get you to the next steps. Part 2 is extremely useful for those who want to know where and when to invest their hard-earned-and-increasingly-valuable cash, explaining the cycles through which the economy can go. It explains the differences between stocks, bonds, hedge funds, commodities, RRSPs and the relatively new TFSA (tax-free savings account), plus it delves into real estate investment trusts, government bonds, and gives tips on getting the most from employer pensions and taxable accounts. Part 3 focuses on understanding the risks involved with different types of investments, and provides advice on how to protect your savings for the long road ahead. Part 4 goes into how to accumulate savings – even for beginner investors, and then there are chapters on heading securely into retirement (active or the slowing-down stage), how and when to draw on your savings, and even how to preserve assets with estate planning for future generations. Whether you are on shaky, stable or secure financial footing, there is an abundance of helpful advice to be found in this book. Find 76 Tips for Investing in an Uncertain Economy For Canadians for Dummies in our on-line catalogue.

Lio: Happiness is a Squishy Cephalapod

2009-04-16T20:00:00.000-04:00

By Mark Tatulli

Lio is almost an anti-comic strip, told without word balloons or captions (just the odd sound effect does nicely), so careful observation and an active imagination is essential when reading this book. With eyes like Little Orphan Annie and hair reminiscent of Ed Grimly, Lio is a kid who can out-Calvin Calvin and Hobbes, and none of the other popular comic strip characters are safe in his world either. Charlie Brown’s kite eating tree develops a larger appetite, Gumby wanders by to his detriment, Garfield’s lasagna-lust ends badly and a Dagwood sandwich develops a whole new meaning. Lio is an enigma – he may arm bears to help even the odds for woodland animals in one strip, but buy a puppy as a birthday gift – for his pet snake – in another. He treats squirrels and little demons with equal affection. He thrills at beating the Grim Reaper in board games (Life, of course), but shushes the Wild Things in his closet when they get too giggly. Part mad-scientist who keeps dragons, monsters and carnivorous plants as pets, Lio is also like normal kids – he wants to avoid chores, is bored in school and thinks he’s smarter than his somewhat hapless dad (in this case, he just might be). Consider it darkly gothic, subversively humorous or just plain weird, creator Mark Tatulli is the natural heir to Edward Gorey or Charles Addams brand of pictorial story-telling, making this a great entertainment for the discerning imagination. Click here to find Lio: Happiness is a Squishy Cephalapod in our on-line catalogue.

encore: finding work that matters in the second half of life

2009-04-09T20:07:00.002-04:00

by Marc Freedman, founder of Civic Ventures

Ostensibly written for baby-boomers who are either too bored or too poor to enjoy retired life, this book is just as relevant for anyone currently looking for fulfilling employment. It includes essays from trailblazers who have done complete 180’s from their former careers, like a former car salesman who became sick of the way customers were cheated, and traded in his lot to become what he calls a “social entrepreneur”. He started a business that provides low-interest loans and fuel-efficient cars to low-income families in rural New Hampshire. The interconnecting chapters explain the current state of employment for the baby-boom generation in the US, but the appendix is the really helpful part that helps you focus your own career path. With hard questions to answer like how much income you’ll need and which community or national problems motivate you into action, the appendix shares links for occupational direction, and directly focuses on some of the more prominent fields, like education and health care. According to a further example in the book, one doesn’t need to have started out in either field to start a new career in them – a former truant officer became a critical care nurse in her “retirement”. With this book and its examples as your guide, you’ll be on your way to becoming part of what author Richard Florida calls “the creative class” – the class that is likely to change the world. For further career direction, check out the “Career Cruising” database, available for free on our website http://www.stratford.library.on.ca/databases.htm#employment

Find a copy of encore: finding work that matters in our on-line catalogue.

Kids' Play Structures and Tree-Houses: 10 Easy-to-Build, Fun Projects

2009-04-03T20:30:00.002-04:00

by Jeff Beneke

Summer is coming (eventually), and to make the most of the lazy hazy days of summer for your children, here's a book full of fun structures sure to keep their imaginations engaged outside. From the Creative Homeowner publisher, author Jeff Beneker has compiled a whole host of play areas. Each plan comes with a complete set of illustrative schematics, a list of tools, lumber and hardware that will be needed, and of course like any good construction book, this one starts with chapters on planning (choosing a site), specialty tools (i.e. post-holers), materials (choosing materials to create a safe play space), techniques, finishing and maintenance for each structure. Then we get to the fun stuff, the projects themselves. For the smaller backyards there are plans for simple sandboxes, swings and teeter-totters; for larger areas there are plans for monkey-bar sets, playhouses, and some pretty cool tree houses - one even looks like a boat, 'floating' through the trees. Advanced projects include a miniature Victorian playhouse - complete with gingerbread, no less, the aforementioned boat tree-house, as well as a tree-house fort, for those clubs and backyard adventures that tend to make up the more thrilling aspects of kid-hood. Each project is accompanied by photos of the finished product, and the index is accompanied by a handy Canadian-friendly Metric conversion table. Be prepared for the X-Box to accumulate a layer of dust if a set of these monkey-bars appears in your backyard! Click here to find Kids' Play Structures and Tree-Houses in the SPL on-line catalogue.

Casey and Derek on the Ice, by Marty Sederman

2009-04-03T16:07:00.004-04:00

Casey and Derek on the Ice, by Marty Sederman, 28 pages.
@ SPL: JP Seder
Casey and Derek’s hockey team, the Rockets, have exactly one minute left to tie a hard-fought hockey game with the opposing team, the Titans! Can they do it? It doesn’t look promising. The Rockets are tired and are just about completely out of steam. As the suspense in the hockey arena builds and builds, the Titans are sure that they have defeated the “underdogs” and that the game is theirs.
When Casey wins the face-off, it’s up to Derek to score the tying goal. The fans are on their feet … Derek speeds down the ice, cutting through the Titan defense … but just as he’s about to shoot the puck, he is tripped and the final buzzer sounds. Now the Titan fans are on their feet, cheering the win.
However, this rewritten version of Casey at the Bat isn’t finished yet. There’s a twist – with a happy ending for the Rockets.
Young hockey fans will very much enjoy this rhyming picture book which is suspenseful from beginning to end, as well as Zachary Pullen’s illustrations.
Author Marty Sederman, her husband and her sons all enjoy playing hockey.
** Recommended for ages 4 to 8 years.
Click here to find Casey and Derek on the Ice in our online catalogue.

Inside Hockey! The Legends, Facts, and Feats that Made the Game, by Keltie Thomas

2009-04-03T15:57:00.007-04:00

Inside Hockey! The Legends, Facts, and Feats that Made the Game, by Keltie Thomas, 64 pages.
@ SPL: J 796.962 Tho
As the NHL playoffs approach, kids can delve into the wild world of professional hockey with this book, which is packed full of hockey facts, inventions, personalities, anecdotes, stories, legends, adventures, photos and humour – of interest both to those who know a great deal about NHL hockey and to those who do not. Some of the practical jokes and hijinks that are a part of NHL history and legend are also included, and girls will appreciate that women’s hockey has also been addressed in Keltie Thomas’ latest sports book. Readers can even discover what types of good luck charms have been used through the years by various hockey players.
Readers will find the “inside scoop” on the dazzling careers of some of hockey’s greatest heroes, such as Maurice “Rocket” Richard, Sidney Crosby, Mark Messier, Phil Esposito and the “Board Street Bullies”. Perhaps best of all is the “Strange but True” section of bizarre stories: after reading it, the reader will agree that just about anything can happen in the world of hockey!
Keltie Thomas is a Toronto-based writer for children who has previous books about hockey, snowboarding, basketball, soccer, and baseball to her credit.
** Recommended for ages 8 to 13 years.
Click here to find Inside Hockey! The Legends, Facts, and Feats that Made the Game in our online catalogue.

Computing for Seniors / Internet for Seniors

2009-03-26T20:00:00.004-04:00

Computing for Seniors in Easy Steps for the Over 50's
by Sue Price
@SPL: 004.16 Pri

AND

Internet for Seniors in Easy Steps for the Over 50's
by Michael and Sue Price
@SPL: 004.6780846 Pri

Readers will know that SPL offers an array of computer classes which become filled as quickly as we advertise them! To fill the gap between courses, here are two books whose titles say they are for seniors, but are really geared toward anyone who wants to brush up on their computer and Internet skills. (The bonus of these particular two is that they are for Windows Vista, that much maligned Microsoft operating system that many in the computing world would swear was designed to be the anti-Mac, that is to say, extremely difficult to use.) The first of these, Computing for Seniors, goes through the basics of all your computer parts, explains some commonly used jargon, and then walks you around what you'll see on your screen in different software applications (word processing etc.), and then helps you discover e-mail, how to play movies and music and view photographs on your computer, how to write, save and find documents - it even goes into creating household budget plans and putting them into an easy-to-read spreadsheet, as well as other domestic projects to help you stay organized. The second book, Internet for Seniors, begins by explaining the equipment you need to connect to the Internet, and has an excellent chapter about searching, following links and adding favourite websites to a list so you can easily find them again. The next few chapters are on the entertainment aspects of the Internet - online games (Sudoku, chess), how to watch television and radio episodes online, crafting websites, geneaology searching and making safe travel arrangements. There is a very important chapter on Internet security (which would have been better to put at the front of the book), and even a chapter on some of the more newfangled areas like blogging and RSS feeds. Both books are colourful, easy to navigate, full of tips and tricks and have well-organized indexes for quick reference. Not just for seniors by any means, these books will benefit anyone who wants or needs to improve their computer skills - the next best thing to one of our computer classes! Click here to find Computing for Seniors and here to find Internet for Seniors in our on-line catalogue.

The Canadian Edible Garden AND Herb Gardening for Canada

2009-03-19T20:55:00.000-04:00

The Canadian Edible Garden: Vegetables, Herbs, Fruits & Seeds
By Alison Beck

Herb Gardening for Canada
By Laura Peters

The first day of spring is finally here! At this time of year it is difficult for hard-core gardeners to refrain from planting until that all-important May 24th weekend. Luckily there is a plethora of new gardening books to help the planning stage and to sooth that itch – these two from Lone Pine Press are for the micro-farmers in the gardening crowd. In these times of rising costs, a home-grown produce aisle can be a real boon, and just think of the taste of sun-warmed grape tomatoes and basil leaves combined with that locally made mozzarella – a taste of Italy from your own back-yard or balcony! Both books explain which edibles will grow where (Southern Ontario is truly a blessed part of Canada), the best soils and levels of sunlight for each kind, how to grow edibles from seed or seedling, how to handle pests (keeping in mind Ontario’s new pesticide ban), and how and when to prune, harvest and store them. The most interesting part of each is discovering new varieties of edibles: for example, fiddleheads are popular in New Brunswick, but grow well in Ontario, as does perilla, a cinnamon-lemon flavoured herb, also known as shiso, or Japanese basil (it may help keep pests off of your heirloom tomatoes, too). Both books contain plenty of tips for planting and uses (although please use caution when using any herbs for medicinal use!), and while neither book contains many recipes, another new book from Lone Pine Press, the Canadian Harvest Cookbook (by Jennifer Sayer-Bajger) can help you out there. Happy planning!

Click here to find the Canadian Edible Garden in our on-line catalogue, and here to find Herb Gardening for Canada.

The Temptation of the Night Jasmine

2009-03-12T20:53:00.000-04:00

By Lauren Willig

The newest novel in Lauren Willig’s series about aristocratic spies of the 18th century picks up where the Seduction of the Crimson Rose leaves off – current historian Eloise Kelly has finally got her man, Colin Selwick, descendant of one of the spies she had been researching, the secretive Purple Gentian. As Eloise has come to find out, however, Colin’s ancestor was just one in a whole bouquet of florally-named spies, and as she delves further into the Selkirk archives, she finds that the oft-overlooked, innocent Lady Charlotte Lansdowne comes to the fore when she accidentally uncovers a plot to subdue and kidnap the King – mad King George III, who may not be as mad as everyone believes. Her discovery coincides with the return from India of her favourite distant cousin, Robert, Duke of Dovedale. Long enamoured of Robert, Charlotte’s romantic notions of her white knight are dashed when Robert takes up with a gang of libertines, the notorious Hellfire Club. But little does Charlotte realize that Robert has returned from India hot on the trail of the man who betrayed his regiment to the enemy and killed his mentor. And little does Robert realize that the plot Charlotte uncovered involves the same killer, the elusive but deadly “Night Jasmine”. In trying to recover the king, their paths merge, but will their hearts? As Eloise discovers their story, she uncovers something quite unexpected about the object of her own affections: that the apple may not fall far from the family tree. Moving back and forth through time and written with quick wit, this latest romantic adventure from Lauren Willig is as thoroughly researched as her past novels, and is as every bit as enjoyable to read. Click here to find The Temptation of the Night Jasmine in our on-line catalogue.

The Book of Unholy Mischief

2009-03-06T08:00:00.003-05:00

by Elle Newmark

It is the height of the Renaissance and in Rome the Borgia family is in power, but in the Republic of Venice a crafty doge reigns supreme. Although renowned for its intrigues and scandals, the city is abuzz with news of a mysterious book, and no one is more curious about it than Luciano, a lively orphan who has been rescued from the street by the doge’s personal chef. Counting himself very fortunate for his improved circumstances, and anxious to prove himself a worthy culinary student to his Maestro, young Luciano cannot help but retain some of his street wiles, gleaning information about the book and the dangerous inner workings of Venetian politics. Who actually has the book? Luciano witnesses the doge commit murder, and then pours a golden elixir down the corpse’s throat - does the book contain magical spells and a cure for death? The chef’s friends have some strange ideas about the nature of the universe – does the book contain the heretical teachings of Copernicus? Is the book the long-searched-for solution for turning base metals into gold, as the city’s alchemist’s hope? The doge’s cold-blooded rival for power, Landucci, wants to destroy the seat of religious power in Rome – perhaps the book contains lost Gnostic gospels? Then again, the Maestro himself seems to be able to bend the doge’s will with his wondrous food, created from his varied and suspect ingredients (like the ‘poisonous’ tomato), grown in his own mysterious garden – perhaps the book is simply the best cookbook the world has ever known? Whatever the answer, Luciano’s own tale is as furtive as the winding canals of Venice, with as many twists and murky depths that will keep readers entranced. The author impressively evokes the atmosphere of day-to-day life in Renaissance Venice, its festivals, its food and its people, and although this might seem like another ‘artifact mystery’ in the vein of “The Da Vinci Code”, it is has a much richer feel. Click here to find The Book of Unholy Mischief in the SPL Catalogue.

Black Ice: The Lost History of the Coloured Hockey League of the Maritimes, 1895-1925

2009-02-27T08:00:00.002-05:00

by George and Darril Fosty

In Ontario we are well aware of the trail of the Underground Railroad that allowed black slaves to escape into freedom to as far north as Owen Sound. But long before that route was gaining momentum, there was already a large population of Blacks living in Nova Scotia, the population of which was added to when Black Loyalist refugees from the War of 1812 settled there. Just a decade later, these new settlers were playing this new game, a combination of shinny and Mi’kmaq hockey, and a few decades after that the first official Coloured Hockey League was formed. While it centres on the history of this leagues’ teams, players and games, Black Ice is far more than a sports book – it tells the historic tale of the Black experience in the Maritimes, recounting their challenges, their contribution to the efforts in WWI, their victories and the accomplishments of their leaders such as James Kinney. Kinney was the first Black man to graduate from the Maritime Business College and he later became a force in forming the Coloured Hockey League. He was also a student of Booker T. Washington, and after the league folded, Kinney used this education to influence other Black leaders in the establishment of a Black orphanage, the Nova Scotia School for Coloured Children. The author includes many uncomfortable examples of the type of racism that defined this history as well, so as Black History Month draws to a close, read Black Ice and try to determine how far our attitudes have come – and how far we still have to go. Click here to find it in the SPL catalogue.

The Winter Olympics: An Insider’s Guide to the Legends, The Lore and the Games

2009-02-20T08:52:00.001-05:00

by Ron C. Judd

We are officially less than a year away from the twenty-first Winter Olympiad, the Vancouver Winter Olympics. Canada’s “own the podium” campaign has been swinging into high gear as of late, with athletes winning gold medals in various world championships as they hope to peak just in time for next February. With the Olympic torch scheduled to pass through Stratford next December, the Olympic spirit is sure to be high in this region, so you can prepare for the frenzy by boning up on Winter Olympic trivia from this new book. It covers the history of the games, of course, and if you’re actually going to the Vancouver Games there is plenty of information about the venues, tickets, transportation and other handy travel tips. But if you will be watching the games from the comfort of your living room you can skip all that and get right into the in-depth chapters on the sports themselves. Divided into two sections on ice sports and snow sports, each chapter gives a history of the sport in the Olympics, exciting narratives of memorable races or competitions, a ‘spectator’s guide’ to the rules and equipment of the sport, the records broken, a schedule of the sport events for the Vancouver Games and (YAY!) a thoroughly Canadian perspective highlighting our athletes’ accomplishments (as well as other ‘legends’ of each sport). There is even mention of the newest event at the Winter Games, the ‘ski cross’ – a freestyle skiing event that is described as “motocross on skis”, which should be interesting viewing! The Winter Olympics: An Insider’s Guide to the Legends, The Lore and the Games is a great book for any sporting enthusiast and is especially recommended for proud Canucks who will be cheering on our athletes.

Will You Marry Me? Seven Centuries of Love

2009-02-13T08:00:00.003-05:00

Edited by Helene Scheu-Riesz

Long before jumbo-trons and hot-air balloon rides at dawn, the most elegant proposals of marriage were done so through the written word, in the form of a love letter. Will You Marry Me? brings together some of the most beautiful, memorable, and also notorious and unusual love-letters and matrimonial requests throughout history. Arranged in chapters by era, you can peruse proposals from the Victorians, Renaissance and even what the editors have termed the Gothic era - which is actually the high to late Middle Ages - in which one can read the love letter of 14-year old Arthur, Prince of Wales, to his Spanish bride, Catherine of Aragon. Each letter is preceded by some historical context and tells you if the letter was successful in wooing a wife. There are some remarkably romantic notes (as a certain Thomas Carlyle’s is to his future wife), and some are as unromantic and pragmatic as a business contract (a great deal of these were unsuccessful!) There are also several examples of letters written by enterprising young women who were too high-spirited and intelligent to wait for young men to declare themselves. This slim volume is a perfect companion for Valentine’s Day whether you celebrate it or not – there are letters enough for the romantics out there as well as the cynics – presented as it is with beautifully illustrated old engravings. It may also be a handy guide for those who are planning for a future proposal of their own! Click here to find it in our on-line catalogue.

The Smart Canadian’s Guide to Saving Money, 2nd edition

2009-02-06T08:00:00.002-05:00

by Pat Foran

Boy oh boy, can we all use help in this regard these days. Not only are we in an economic crisis, but money-related stress is now considered the biggest factor in relationship stress as well. Luckily, Pat Foran (who is most recognizable as the Consumer Reporter on the CTV network) has just released the updated edition of his money-management guide. Incorporating many items seen in his Consumer Alert segments on Canada AM, this second edition of his book is just as thorough as his first, and provides tips and advice on what to do and not do to reduce debt, save for the long-haul and just manage your day-to-day finances. Foran provides not just the basics with handy budget sheets, but also goes into the questions of automobile leasing or buying, gives an extensive chapter on all-things mortgage-related, explains why making a will can save you money, and even clarifies whether or not to say “I do” to a prenuptial agreement. It is so up-to-date that there is even a section on the new tax-free savings accounts that most banks are touting these days. He is particularly helpful in explaining the benefits of RRSP’s and RESP’s (but not so much on mutual funds), the chapters are short and very straightforward (the one on day-trading is three paragraphs long), and it is easy to skip over the parts that do not apply to you (yet) and not get lost. There are great tips for people living in Ontario (i.e. why you should stop renting your hot-water heater), and he reveals other little-known secrets of saving; like the virtually unknown law around those automatic scanners at grocery stores that could save you a small wad of cash if you are diligent when you shop (expect longer lines once more people latch onto it!) This is an extremely helpful guide that will help take the stress out of your money management and perhaps allow you to sleep more easily at night. Click here to reserve your copy in our on-line catalogue.

Planet B-Boy: Breakdancing Has Evolved

2009-01-30T08:00:00.004-05:00

From Mongrel Media

Who knew that breakdancing has something in common with the rumble in West Side Story? Fact of the matter is, breakdancing got its start as rival gangs postured for authority, somewhat like those Jets and Sharks, but without the guns and knives. Rather than die a painful (but necessary) death with other ‘fads’ of the 1980’s, breakdancing simply crossed the pond and took a major hold in Europe. It made its way back to North America with the rise of hip-hop, but do not confuse it, if you please, with gangsta rap hype or the pseudo-b-boying of boy-bands - the b-boyers of today make those posers look like Mickey Mouse, influenced as it is by martial arts, gymnastics and the style of James Brown. Planet B-Boy follows 5 teams as they vie for the chance to represent their countries at the Battle of the Year, the world championship of breakdancing, which annually swells the population of the small town of Braunschweig, Germany by eight or ten thousand fans. Fans aside, this is not a high-perk championship, as we learn by following groups from the USA, South Korea, Japan, and France as they overcome obstacles (many of which are personal) to win their regional championships. In the first round each team is judged on their choice of music/theme/choreography, their synchronization, and their stage personas, and the top 4 ranked teams then ‘battle’ for the top three places. The French team emphasizes inclusion and style, and has the littlest member, “Lil Kev’, who cartwheels around the stage like a demon; the Japanese team is the most imaginative, the US team is arguable the best at battling, and the two South Korean teams – one of whom is defending their title - have the jaw-dropping power moves. The teams are not only thrilling to watch the stage, but they are inspirational behind the scenes too – through the power of breakdance two of the boys reconcile with their families, one overcomes racism and two of the teams fly in the face of political oppression. In this particular year, the winners for the Battle of the Year went on to perform for a national arts festival, as well as at the World Cup of Soccer, plus star in a dynamic commercial for national tourism – but you’ll have to watch the DVD to find out which nation that was. If you think you know how to dance, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet! Click here to find it in SPL's on-line catalogue.

167 Tax Tips for Canadian Small Business 2009

2009-01-23T08:00:00.000-05:00

By Stephen Thompson, CA, CFP, TEP

Tax season is quickly approaching, and in this economic climate those in small business ventures – entrepreneurs, mom-and-pop stores, small corporations etc. – are especially vulnerable. Stephen Thompson, a Certified Accountant with the firm Wilkinson & Company has put his specialist knowledge of small-business taxation into a well-organized guide to the murky world of Canadian tax rules, with the intent of showing how small business can reduce the taxes they pay. The table of contents alone reads like an FAQ for quick reference, although to get the most out of the book (and your taxes) it is recommended that the book is read from start to finish, since there may be savings tips along the way that you didn’t know could be applied to your business. The first chapter begins with the basics, like the types of expenses that can be deducted, then there is a chapter on accurate record keeping (essential in case the tax man revisits), a guide to incorporation, an entire chapter just on the GST, numerous chapters on saving, and he even provides information on what can happen after all the tax forms are submitted. I especially like the easy, (mostly) jargon-free language he uses, the side-bar “Tax Beater” short tips and its quick reference index in the back, which is very handy in avoiding turned-down pages or a mass of sticky-note bookmarks. Read this book early to avoid the tax-season rush. Click here to find it in SPL's on-line catalogue.

That Stripy Cat, by Norene Smiley

2009-01-16T09:27:00.000-05:00

Oh, that stripy cat! What will become of him? Rescued and brought to Mrs. Cosy at the Hummingbird Animal Shelter, the little grey and white-striped cat is up for adoption … but with his rambunctious nature and silly tricks, he’s unlikely to be chosen by anyone. Sure enough, after hiding in drawers, climbing curtains, shrieking like a fire engine, and refusing to come out from under a couch, the little cat is consistently left behind. Every customer who enters the shelter leaves with a new pet that is calmer and more predictable than Stripy Cat. At the end of the day, Mrs. Cosy isn’t sure what to do with him… except to take him home and see what happens…
Readers won’t be able to resist this loveable little cat who appears to have adopted his owner before she has adopted him! That Stripy Cat is Nova Scotia author Norene Smiley’s first picture book. Paired with the illustrations of Ontario artist Tara Anderson, it’s definitely a winner!
** Recommended for ages 3 to 6 years of age. @ SPL: JP Smile
Find this item in the library catalogue.

Bad Dog, Marley! by John Grogan

2009-01-16T09:00:00.000-05:00

Marley, the family’s new Labrador pup, didn’t mean to be bad! How was he to know that shoelaces, buttons and Mommy’s eyeglasses were not to eat, and that Daddy’s paycheck wasn’t something to chew – and that the delicious turkey fresh out of the oven wasn’t meant for him? How was he to know that he wasn’t to chase every squirrel within sight or steal underwear from neighbouring clotheslines? And he certainly didn’t have the slightest idea of the awful mess that would result from destroying every feather pillow in the house…
On the other hand, how was his new family to know that the irresistible tiny, squiggly, yellow furball, which came home with Daddy one day, would quickly grow into a large, floppy, but good-hearted dog that would leave a trail of canine chaos everywhere he went?
Just when the family wondered if they should find another home for Marley, something happened to convince them that Marley wasn’t a “bad” dog after all!
Bad Dog, Marley! was inspired by John Grogan’s best-seller, Marley & Me (also available at the Stratford Public Library). Beautifully illustrated, this is an engaging picture book for young children.
** Recommended for ages 3 to 6 years of age. @ SPL: JP Groga

Find this item in the library catalogue

Published in the Stratford Gazette on January 16, 2009

No Job? No Prob! How to pay your bills, feed your mind and have a blast when you’re out of work

2009-01-13T14:40:00.000-05:00

By Nicholas Nigro

I wish there were not a demand for books like these, but thank goodness the publishing world is responding to the current economic reality. Released this month is this very optimistic approach to unemployment, No Job? No Prob! Nicholas Nigro’s philosophy is that unemployment does not have to mean a reduction in the quality of life. He looks at joblessness as a series of opportunities to reorganize one’s mind and life’s direction, create new networks, have fun in unconventional (and virtually free) ways, as well as making a bit of money to help tide things over. The atmosphere of the book is upbeat, positive and anti-doom-and-gloom; a hard but necessary thing to achieve for those of us who feel that job loss is akin to a shipwreck. (This is aided by numerous “Unemployment Benefit facts” sprinkled throughout the book, like “you can get up bright and early to watch the sun rise… and then go back to bed.”) Not all fun and games, each chapter also has a series of exercises to help you get through this stressful time – like focusing one’s goals, choosing where to trim one’s budget, streamlining the job search so it doesn’t consume you, plus a whole chapter of tips for avoiding stress, boredom and depression. Although the book is American in its focus, it only takes a little imagination (and maybe the help of your friendly neighbourhood librarians) to find local equivalents of its suggestions. This book is for anyone who is currently unemployed or facing job loss.

Click here to find it in our on-line catalogue and reserve a copy.

Dear Fatty, by Dawn French

2009-01-12T08:28:00.008-05:00

Dawn French is a household name in Britain and to those who watch BBC Canada. She played the Anglican minister Geraldine in The Vicar of Dibley for 10 years, which is tuppence compared to how long she’s been in the comedy biz with her buddy Jennifer Saunders (she of Absolutely Fabulous fame, and to whom the ‘Fatty’ of the title refers - who is anything but). Younger audiences may know Ms. French from her cameo as “the fat lady portrait” in the third Harry Potter film, and lately she has been seen in the series’ Jam & Jerusalem and Lark Rise to Candleford. In this most unusual memoir, however, she writes very little very about her own stardom, although plenty of pictures show just how broad her career has been. Still, she keeps the name-dropping at a tantalizing minimum, and instead focuses on the people in her life who have influenced and inspired her along the way. Each chapter is actually a letter to one of those people – her parents, Fatty, various friends met along the way, past crushes, her B.F. (best friend, whose name is not revealed), her husband and daughter – and each letter recalls hilarious anecdotes, cringe-worthy moments, and even imaginary fantasies (i.e. the kiss with George Clooney - not so imaginary, but the after-affect was). A perpetually overweight RAF-brat who moved around lot and developed her sense of humour to make friends and not alienate people, her seemingly privileged life has not been tragedy-free by a long-shot. However, she avoids being maudlin by introducing these episodes in a very gentle way, chapters before she gets into the nitty-gritty of the circumstances. More like a peek into someone’s diary, Dear Fatty is likely to leave one tearful as much from laughing at Dawn French’s ebullient self as from the tender revelations of her life. It is the best memoir I have read in a very long time.
Click here to reserve your copy of her memoir, or here to watch her in action on Youtube.
In the Stratford Gazette on January 9, 2009

Dino-Hockey, by Lisa Wheeler

2009-01-06T15:25:00.006-05:00

Could dinosaurs skate? Did they play hockey? Well … perhaps they did!
In this imaginative hockey story, dinosaurs are indeed playing hockey. The fearsome meat-eating dinosaurs have challenged the plant-eating dinos to a match!
The opening face-off, with T-Rex and Triceratops battling for the puck, has fans roaring in the stands, and after that, the hockey action doesn’t stop for a minute.
Dino-Hockey may even have the edge on NHL hockey in this particular game, “unrivalled in history”, with its fascinating cast of dinosaur hockey players.

Told in rhyme, this clever story combines a child’s love of hockey, if dinosaurs, and of an entertaining, well-written story.
** Recommended for ages 4 to 8 years. @ SPL: JP Wheel

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In the Stratford Gazette on January 9, 2009.

Wendel and the Great One, by Mike Leonetti

2009-01-06T15:19:00.004-05:00

David has just been chosen as captain of his hockey team! But wait – what exactly will this mean? What responsibilities will he have as team captain?
David does some research, reading about such past NHL captains as Wendel Clark (the Toronto Maple Leafs) and Wayne Gretzky (the Los Angeles Kings). With the help of his dad, he also checks out other notable Canadians who have been leaders in some way: Terry Fox, Roberta Bondar, Rick Hansen, various Canadian prime ministers, and others. He discovers much about leadership – that it involves setting a good example in hard work and perseverance, promoting good morale among team members, and encouraging and supporting the other players. Soon there is an occasion when David is able to apply his knowledge, by helping a team member who faces a language barrier.
Canadian author Mike Leonetti, who has written a number of hockey stories for children, has created an inspiring story in Wendel and the Great One – one which is sure to be popular during this season of hockey. Illustrated by Greg Banning, it is also available in French (Wendel Clark et le Grand Gretzky) at the Stratford Public Library.
** Recommended for ages 6 to 10 years. @ SPL: JP Leone
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In the Stratford Gazette on January 9, 2009

The Human-Powered Home: Choosing Muscles Over Motors By Tamara Dean

2009-01-02T08:00:00.002-05:00

It is the New Year, but we still have the same old economic crisis, the same old global warming, and maybe the same old tendency toward poor fitness habits. If only there was a way to tackle all three problems at once… But wait, there is! Check out The Human-Powered Home, and learn how to reduce your hydro bills, reduce your carbon footprint, and reduce your waistline all in one go. Through designs for pedal and pump power we can power any number of household appliances, from blenders to washing machines (remember the one on Gilligan’s Island?), even pedal-powered snowplows (wait till you see that one) and bike-framed cultivators for your garden. When considering implementing these plans in your own home, it may be helpful to have a friend or family member who is an engineer at heart, as the schematics are not as detailed as the instructions, but the author – who lives in her own human-powered home – also provides information on commercially available parts and contraptions. There are photos from all over the world illustrating the various uses for pedal and pump power, including some innovative entrepreneurs who use them in their various businesses. These machines are designed for energy efficiency, not time efficiency, of course, and your grandparents may recognize some of them from days gone by (the hand-cranked ice-cream maker is just one example), but sometimes the old things really are best for the economy, earth and your own health. This book is recommended by Mother Earth News.

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In the Stratford Gazette on January 2, 2009

Downsizing Your Home in Style: Living Well in a Smaller Space by Lauri Ward

2008-12-26T08:00:00.003-05:00

Christmas is barely over, but New Year’s Resolutions are around the corner. Some of us may make the resolution to get rid of the STUFF that has been piled, hoarded, packed, and multiplying like dust bunnies in our various junk drawers, garages, closet shelves, basements and cupboards. But this is not just a de-cluttering guide, this is a decorating, repairing and downsizing guide all rolled into one bright little book. Lauri Ward, author of Use What You Have Decorating, explains how to make the transition to living large in smaller spaces – no matter the reason for the change. There are entire chapters on creative storage (you can never have enough), creating cohesiveness when there is not enough wall space, repurposing (or ‘MacGyvering’) older pieces, finding multiple functions for small spaces and how to decide what to keep or ditch – plus an entire chapter on where to ditch the things you decide not to keep, often a stumbling block for those of us who are pack rats at heart. Ward’s explanations are greatly helped by the use of lots of colour photographs of real homes – not the upscale ones you see in designer magazines, but the homes of real families that she has helped. Although some of the hints she suggests are not realistic for everyone (keeping the size of a television in proportion with your space would get pretty expensive after a few moves), most tips and suggestions are quite adaptable (choosing the right fabric for a small space, for instance). There is a handy source guide in the back with many Canadian retailers (although IKEA is notably absent), and the index makes it a snap to locate specific solutions. So whether you need to downsize or you are trying to lead a simpler life, or even if you are just tired of your STUFF, this is one book you need. Happy New Year!

Find this book in SPL's on-line catalogue here.

In the Stratford Gazette on December 26, 2008

The Treasures of Islam: Artistic Glories of the Muslim World by Bernard O'Kane

2008-12-19T08:00:00.003-05:00

Although today we associate Muslims with the middle east, the artistic stamp of the Islamic empire has been left on countries from as far west as Spain to as far east as Indonesia (the largest Muslim country by population), dating back to the seventh century. Encompassing Ottoman and Mamluk art, and influenced by both classical and Byzantine styles that came before, the ceramics, manuscripts, mosaics and towers of the Islamic world reveal much about its history and cultural development. The displays in this gorgeous ‘coffee-table’ type book, The Treasures of Islam, are not simply exotic eye-candy – although the rich patterns and jewel-like colours can provide hours of happy gazing. The author, a professor of Islamic Art and Architecture at the American University in Cairo, presents these treasures in rough geographic and chronological order with historic background, religious context, and close-up photos of intricate architectural detail, illuminated manuscripts and even some basic floor plans to some of the bigger structures, like the complex of Sultan Hasan, with its qibla iwan (hall of two hundred lamps). Some of the more impressive masterpieces are showcased in golden ‘special feature’ pages, like the Dome of the Rock in the centre of al-Haram al-Sharif, or the Noble Sanctuary (aka the Temple Mount). Like any university professor would, O’Kane provides a bibliography for further reading, plus a basic glossary and a complete index for quick reference – although this is one book which should be savoured, not quickly read.
Click here to find it in the on-line catalogue at SPL.
In the Stratford Gazette on December 19, 2008

An Irish Country Christmas by Patrick Taylor

2008-12-12T13:04:00.006-05:00

Think of James Herriot but set in rural Ireland instead of Yorkshire, and where the patients are human instead of the four-legged kind, and you’ll have a good understanding for the atmosphere of Patrick Taylor’s books. An author who grew up in Ulster and spent many years in Canada, Taylor draws upon his own experiences as a doctor in Northern Ireland in the 1960’s as his inspiration, although the Ireland he depicts is admittedly a rosier one than actually existed in those violent times. This third novel revolves around the Yuletide season so it is rosier still, but it is not overly sentimental. Sprinkled liberally with references to current events of the time (including the adoption of a certain maple-leaf flag), we follow the young Doctor Barry Laverty as he is about to spend his first Christmas in Ballybucklebo with his mentor, Doctor Fingal Flahertie O’Reilly. As Dr. Laverty hopes that his girlfriend Patricia will make it home for Christmas, Dr. O’Reilly finds himself finally letting go of the torch he has carried for his young bride, killed in the WWII blitz of Belfast. Together they take keep an eye on the competition - a new doctor in town who went to school with O’Reilly – take care of the villagers’ usual and unique ailments, and even work a few old fashioned Christmas miracles. Cozy up to the bar at Black Swan pub in Ballybucklebo, and get to know these charming townspeople and their respected physicians in this entirely enjoyable story.
Click here to reserve a copy in the on-line catalogue.
In the Stratford Gazette on December 5, 2008

Get Wired, You’re Hired! The Ultimate Canadian Internet Job Search Guide by Mark Swartz

2008-12-12T11:54:00.006-05:00

Dec. 12, 2008

Ontario has been hit hard by job losses of late and times are getting tough. People who suddenly find themselves without a job may want to consult this book, Get Wired, You’re Hired – it is written specifically for Canada’s job market, and can be found in the the Career Centre at the Library. What makes this book better than your average job search guide (besides the fact that it’s Canadian), is that it shows how to expand your range of work options – beginning with an evaluation of your own skills and leading into sections about exploring different options and upgrading skills (it may be easier than you think). It also tells how to find and apply for - in the correct format – most of those jobs on-line. Part two of the book is a directory of job and career sites in Canada, complete with current (as of printing) pictures of the headers you should see when you go to each site – very handy in case you have misspelled something in a lengthy web-address. It might be tempting to go straight to this half of the book, especially since it has a section specific to industries, but the first part gives great hints at things like getting your resume or cover letter noticed by those impersonal screening programs that many employers now use – and yes, this is a resume writing guide as well. Each web-tool the book mentions has been developed by universities or employment consultants, and there is plenty of practical advice in its “unplugged” section, where the author, president of TheCareerExperts.com, answers questions from readers of his Toronto Star column. From new workers to Canada, to those recently unemployed or even those wanting to shift careers but haven’t a clue where to begin, Get Wired, You’re Hired is a good place to start. Click here to find it in the SPL catalogue.

i love dirt! 52 activities to help you & your kids discover the wonders of nature by Jennifer Ward

2008-11-24T15:39:00.009-05:00

It’s (supposed to be) getting colder, a time for hibernation, and you may be wondering how, in the days of lengthening darkness, to peel your kids off that cozy couch. How can all of their senses and their imaginations be engaged without an LED screen? Jennifer Ward’s answer – take them outdoors. She provides 52 simple, free (or at least very inexpensive), appealing activities, divided by season, that will stimulate quiet skills. Skills like observation, concentration, curiosity, wonder, discovery, and even problem solving. Autumn is a great time to be an ‘animal sleuth’, and early winter nights are great for finding ‘the hunter’, ‘big bear’ and even the ‘lion’ in the dark sky. Each activity challenges both parent and child to think about their surroundings with interesting questions, for which there are rarely wrong answers, and provides “Help me understand” mini-boxes with answers to questions like, “Do ants have noses?” and “How are snowflakes made?” (but unfortunately not “why is the sky blue?”). For those super-inquisitive minds, the author has included recommended reading lists for adults and children, and a handy list of websites that can be visited together – if you can pry them away from the great outdoors.

Find this book in the PCIN Library Catalogue here.

In the Stratford Gazette on November 21, 2008

In the Land of Long Fingernails: A Gravedigger’s Memoir

2008-11-24T15:35:00.008-05:00

By Charles Wilkins

It is more appropriate for a Halloween column perhaps, but this quirky and very unusual memoir only came across my desk in early November, after it was discussed on CBC Radio’s “Ontario Today” program. The author spent five months in the turbulent year of 1969 as a gravedigger in a re-named cemetery in an unnamed Ontario town, where he met a legion of re-named, morally suspect undertakers, grounds crewmen, plot salesmen and even mourners. It is the type of summer job one might think would have inspired Stephen King, but the tales revealed by Wilkins – a National Magazine Award-winner – reveal not so much the gory and horrific, but rather the often sad, awful truths about the business of after-death (for instance, what would happen if grave-diggers went on strike?), and the ways that its employees create their own rules to cope. Told with brutal honesty and a lot of coarse language, this book is not for the faint of heart, and absolutely not for anyone needing closure, comfort and solace about a dearly departed loved one. Readers with a macabre sense of humour and those who like shock value however, will be amazed at the odd professional facts and grim philosophies Wilkins uncovered that summer he spent burying the deceased.

Reviewed in November 7, 2008.

Find this book in the Library catalogue.

The Fighting Canadians: Our Regimental History from New France to Afghanistan by David J. Bercuson

2008-11-24T15:30:00.007-05:00

Just in time for Remembrance Day comes a history of Canadian military regiments and their achievements. In four parts, historian David Bercuson starts with early Canadian military history, including aboriginal military practices and the first regiment, the Régiment Carignan-Salières. He then devotes sections to WWI, and WWII, with the fourth part devoted to 20th century contingents active during the Korean War, Cold War and in Afghanistan. An Honourary Lieutenant Colonel with the 33 Field Engineer Squadron, Bercuson even includes the Royal Newfoundland Regiment (often left out of other “Canadian” histories about the Great War since they were still a colony of Britain during WWI) whose designation of Royal came after their virtual decimation during the opening battle of the Somme at Beaumont-Hamel. The Fighting Canadians isn’t just a military history, it is a history of how our military companies have influenced our national development and our international reputation through the actions of the Princess Patricias, Hasty P’s, Van Doos and other famous companies. While it is not as exciting to read as an action-adventure novel, it is not mired in exhaustive details, so the sectioned chapters are easy to navigate and quite clear. The book could use more than its sixteen pages of photos, but those included tell a thousand more tales. Lest we forget.

Reserve your copy here.

Reviewed November 7, 2008

The 10 Best Questions for Surviving Breast Cancer by Dede Bonner, Ph.D.

2008-11-01T11:00:00.006-04:00

October was breast cancer awareness month - an estimated 22,570 women and men (yes, men) will be diagnosed with it in 2008 - so it is fitting that at its close we find a new book about this terrifyingly common disease. Dede Bonner, the "Question Doctor" actually provides 200 questions that those diagnosed with breast cancer are likely to have, and these are divided into three sections: talking to your medical team, choosing a treatment, and living and coping with the disease and its effects. Each of these three parts are broken down into further specific areas. For example in the 'choosing a treatment' part, she provides 10 questions to ask about choosing a hospital, about radiation, clinical trials, and so on, while part three includes advice for breaking the news to a spouse, to children, to employers and others. Her answers are comfortingly succinct and extremely practical: she includes a section for financial health, and one for the “10 worst questions to ask a breast cancer patient” for those of us who are unsure how to respond in the face of this disease. At the end of every chapter there is a list of resources concerning the previous topic, and Bonner also includes an easily accessible index, a chapter-by-chapter bibliography for further reading and research, and a list of the more than 50 experts she consulted. This book should prove valuable to anyone touched by breast cancer, especially those who are newly diagnosed or in the early stages of treatment.

Click here to find it in the on-line catalogue.

The Lace Reader by Bruonia Barry

2008-10-28T14:57:00.010-04:00

Fans of Joanne Harris and Alice Hoffman delight, here is a new author who combines Hoffman’s gift for atmosphere with Harris’ talent for characters and storytelling. The Lace Reader is set in modern day New England and centres on an estranged group of women. Sophya “Towner” Whitney has a troubled past and family from which she has tried to escape by moving to California. When she receives word that her beloved aunt Eva is missing, she returns home to Salem, Massachusetts, and to the strange family circle that has long been the source of unfathomable secrets. There Towner’s severed ties are re-threaded and old webs of lies are untangled, including the mysterious disappearance of her twin sister so many years ago. Reader beware: in this mystery-that-isn’t-a-mystery, not everything is as it seems – even Towner will tell you that. This is a haunting, evocative novel that will perfectly suit a windswept dark night.

Reserve a copy here.

Reviewed November 28, 2008

Happyslapped by a Jellyfish

2008-10-21T11:06:00.005-04:00

Oct. 24th

Happyslapped by a Jellyfish
By Karl Pilkington

Most travel memoirs are written through rose-coloured glasses, relating anecdotes for readers of sunshine, language gaffs, delicious local cuisine, helpful people and happy coincidences. Not so with Karl Pilkington’s travelogue, Happyslapped by a Jellyfish. As a former producer and star for XFM Radio’s the Ricky Gervais show, Karl is not a good traveler. He falls into the category of reluctant tourist, one who is mistrustful of foreign places and customs, someone whose touring glasses are more cloudy-grey than silver-lined. For all that he seems to dislike traveling, he does get around. From holidaying in Wales - with chicken-pox - as a youngster, to the stormy and jellyfish laden seas of the Caribbean; from boring Brussels to miserable Malaga, Karl relates his many misadventures and traveling disappointments, with comic illustrations, lots of non-sequiturs and even some bad limericks. This book is ideal two groups of people – those who love to travel but are putting it off due to the economy and want to make themselves feel better about it, and those who realize – like Karl – that their own backyard is the ideal travel destination. To whichever group you belong, this book is a hilarious, fast read. Reserve it in our on-line catalogue here.

Playful Reading : Positive, Fun Waysto Build the Bond Between Preschoolers, Books, and You by Carolyn Munson-Benson

2008-10-07T14:18:00.003-04:00

Literacy expert Carolyn Munson-Benson offers a wealth of ideas for parents, grandparents, caregivers and other adults to promote early literacy with young children in her recent book, Playful Reading: Positive, Fun Ways to Build the Bond between Preschoolers and Books and You. Stressing that sharing picture books is fun for both children and adults, she offers lists of titles to read together, with an emphasis on familiar, funny, award-winning, concept and beautifully-illustrated books. She provides related activities such as games, crafts, recipes and reflections, and devotes a chapter each to the important issues of positive values, positive identity and social competencies.Recognizing that children will identify with characters whose dilemmas mirror their own, the author has made wise choices of the titles featured in her book – titles that can aid in the healthy emotional development of young children. Carolyn Munson-Benson’s book is full of easy-to-use ideas which will be appreciated by parents, grandparents and other adults working with young children.The author is the founder/director of the Early Bird Project, a Minnesota-based program which brings together children and the best of children’s books.

** Recommended for parents, grandparents, caregivers and other adults.

Find this item in the PCIN Library Catalogue.
Published October 2, 2008.

A Parent’s Guide to Reading With Your Young Child by Dr. Susan B. Neuman and Tanya S. Wright

2008-10-07T14:07:00.003-04:00

While parents of young children are generally aware that instilling a love of reading is one of the most significant gifts that they can give to their children, many are unsure just how this is to be accomplished. To address this question, two early literacy/educational experts from the University of Michigan have co-authored a concise guide to what and how to read to young children. The guide is organized in a practical way for time-deprived parents, with a chapter addressing each preschool age division: infants, young toddlers, older toddlers, etc. Annotated suggestions for specific titles for each age group are given, along with fun and easy ideas for building pre-reading skills.This practical resource will inspire parents to read often to their preschoolers, providing the important first steps on the path to later academic success in school.

** Recommended for parents, grandparents, caregivers and other adults.

Find this item in the PCIN Library Catalogue.

Published October 2, 2008.

The Complete Pool Manual for Homeowners and Professionals by Dan Hardy

2008-10-07T14:02:00.006-04:00

Pool owners may not have had as many chances to use their private swimming facilities very often this past summer given the cooler temperatures and rain, so it may be hard to think of closing it up now that autumn has arrived. This year it may be less of a chore with the help of this book by the “pool-doctor”, Dan Hardy. There are maintenance tips for every kind of swimming pool (except the inflatable kind) and related equipment, and there are sections on heating, sanitizing and on keeping a pool chemically balanced – with the advantages and disadvantages of the different pool chemicals spelled out. There is a chapter on hot tubs and spas, and even a chapter for troubleshooting algae (all four kinds) and other problems, like metal corrosion and phosphate pollution. The chapter on safety includes a checklist for the owner (like knowing CPR) and professional (like not leaving chemicals where children and pets can access them) plus a list of safety equipment to have and chemical treatment charts.
Of special interest at this time of year, there is a chapter with step-by-step directions for winterizing your pool or spa, and the inserted colour photographs show some examples of well-landscaped pools, their construction, equipment and design, for those who are thinking of adding a pool in the future. For quick reference there is a great index and glossary in the back. Until next summer…

Reviewed October 2, 2008

Click here to find it in our on-line catalogue.

Guy Spaces: A Guide to Defining a Man's Personal Space, by Wayne Kayln

2008-09-19T10:04:00.011-04:00

Sept. 19, 2008

Who says that home décor has to belong to a woman’s realm? From Creative Homeowner publishers comes this glossy, fully illustrated book on creating the perfect guy space, from wicked workshops to killer outdoor kitchens – complete with monster grills, of course. Not all of these rooms are decorated with the stereotypical mounted antlers, pin-ups, chrome and dark wood either – although the mahogany and leather-paneled media room (page 74) looks pretty darned cozy. There are chapters for the regular rooms – bed, bath and storage – but also for game rooms, home gyms and outdoor courts (even a putting green or two), as well as garages and workshops. Although this book is heavier on the pictures and ideas than actual building plans, each of these chapters has many immensely practical tips, especially for preparation: like making sure you have zoning permission before converting the garage into a wine cellar, wiring a future music or media room, or ventilating a home gym (and its adjoining steam shower or swim spa). There are lots of tips for future considerations as well, like the four rules of shelving, how to choose a wide-screen television, how to boost the strength of a shed roof in regions that receive a lot of snow in the winter, and the proper safety and etiquette for the home sauna. The rooms in this book are sure to appeal men of all hobbies and interests.
Click here to find it in our on-line catalogue.

Crossed Bones, by Jane Johnson

2008-09-15T14:51:00.009-04:00

August 22, 2008

In the seventeenth and eighteenth century Barbary corsair raids were a common occurrence on the south coasts of England. It is estimated that at one time more than 3000 British citizens were held in the prisons of Salé in Morocco; these raiders were motivated to capture Christian slaves and goods in the name of Islam, just as the Knights Templar captured Muslim slaves and treasure in the name of Christianity. Author Jane Johnson uses this bit history as the basis for her novel, Crossed Bones. In modern day England, Cornish craftswoman Julia Lovat is given a seventeenth-century book of embroidery patterns as a consolation prize when her lover dumps her. Although broken-hearted, Julia is spellbound when she discovers a journal in tiny handwriting between the patterns; the diary of a young woman of Penzance in Cornwall named Catherine Anne Tregana, who became a captive slave to the “Sallee Rovers”, the corsairs of Sale. As Julia follows Catherine’s journey to Morocco and self-discovery, she follows her own journey – she is pursued by her ex-lover who realizes the book’s material worth, and reconnects with her oldest friends as she races to find out if Catherine’s story is true. What she finds are connections to her own past – and to her future. Part historical fiction, part mystery, part ghost story, Crossed Bones is a fascinating story about a little-known era in British and Moroccan history.

Click here to find it in the SPL catalogue.

Don't Let the Lipstick Fool You, by Lisa Leslie

2008-09-15T09:48:00.011-04:00

At 6’5”, the statuesque Lisa Leslie could easily be mistaken for a top model, and she is not an unfamiliar face between the covers of Vogue. But her strongest talent lies on a basketball court – she is the centre for the Los Angeles Sparks, and has led that team to two straight WNBA championships, is tied with Sheryl Swoops for the most MVP awards of the WNBA, and has earned thee Olympic Gold medals as part of the last three US Olympic Women’s basketball teams.. But if that were not enough to earn admiration, Lisa Leslie has had to overcome quite a few challenges to get where she is: The “normal” teasing that comes from being six-feet-tall in the sixth grade, a father she never knew who lead a double-life, and a sister so jealous that she tried to steal Lisa’s identity and ruin her. Although her mother drove a truck for a living and was often absent, Lisa credits her strength of character as a source for her own inner strength when such battles had to be faced – on and off the court. After being told over and over that pretty girls – even tall ones – could not play well enough, Lisa went on to score 101 points in the first half of a high school basketball game, and she never looked back. She has earned a Master’s Degree in Business Administration, started a family and will be helping her team-mates defend their Olympic title in Beijing starting this Saturday. Lisa Leslie’s memoir is great reading for sports fans and inspiration for anyone facing obstacles in their own paths to greatness.

Click here to find it in the SPL catalogue.

Eat This, not That! For Kids, by David Zinczenko

2008-09-15T09:44:00.004-04:00

Sept. 12, 2008

Here we are, two weeks into the new school year with the media covering not only scary processed meats but also the scare of childhood obesity and all the other health threats included therein. What are concerned and busy parents to do about filling their children’s lunchboxes? To the rescue comes this nifty little book about eating right in a world of convenience food. It starts out by defining 8 rules of thumb for childhood nutrition, and then hits you with the 20 worst kids’ foods in the industry (with their healthier counterparts). This is followed by the nitty –gritty – what to eat (and not eat) at favourite fast-food places (including KFC, McDonalds and Starbucks) and other types of restaurants (Italian, seafood, etc.). In the next section it shows how to decode nutrition labels (Kellogg’s Smart Start cereal isn’t so smart a choice) and then has pages and pages of what to buy (and not buy) and why in the supermarket (just skip the pages on deli meats for now…) This book doesn’t just list the types of food, but also the actual brands, with pictures (some of the brands are American, but most are readily available in Canada). It doesn’t skip the condiments, beverages or dessert aisles, either. This useful book ends with chapters aimed at the school cafeteria and vending machines, and with a weekly menu suggestion for home-cooked meals with ten ‘kid-friendly’ revised recipes at the back. Grocery shopping for healthier choices will be a breeze, especially as Eat This, Not that! contains a very excellent index for quick reference. Find it here in the SPL catalogue.

A Royal Pain

2008-09-15T09:40:00.008-04:00

By Rhys Bowen

The author of the Molly Murphy and Constable Evan Evans mystery series presents her newest Royal Spyness novel. Lady Victoria Georgiana Charlotte Eugenie of Glen Garry and Rannoch (Georgie for short) may be thirty-fourth in line for the British throne, but England is still in a depression following the Great War and she’s still stone broke. Learning to fend for herself is a new experience, but as Georgie learns to do without, she also learns to do for others – she hires herself out as a maid. Her cousin, Queen Mary, has no idea that Georgie must now work for a living (she would not be amused) and gives her a different kind of task – playing chaperone for a visiting princess of Bavaria in hopes that the young royal will lure her son, the Prince of Wales, away from that dreadful American woman, Mrs. Simpson. However, the lively young princess is a Royal Handful, and her unbridled enthusiasm soon lands both ladies in a pot of hot water when they are accidentally linked to a murder, then to the Communist Party and then to more murders - not to mention getting in between Georgie and the dashing Darcy O’Mara. With her dear ex-copper grandfather acting as her butler (so the princess doesn’t think she is the pauper that she is), Georgie tries to untangle the murderous mess before she and the princess inadvertently cause another world war. Written with an almost chick-lit tone but set in Interwar-period England, A Royal Pain is a fun-to-read mystery of the “cozy” genre.

Find it here in the SPL catalogue.

Reviewed September 8, 2008

House Proud: Hip Craft for the Modern Homemaker, by Danielle Proud

2008-09-15T09:36:00.005-04:00

August 29, 2008

The home-decor industry raked in over 20-billion dollars in Canada in 2002 (thank-you, Trading Spaces). For those of us who prefer a personalized touch without spending a fortune, House Proud is a great source. Danielle Proud, the British queen of cheap-chic is the ultimate recycler, reclaiming forgotten treasures with tried and true crafting skills. With great detail and lots of pictures she demonstrates each step in a multitude of projects: turning a threadbare 1960's dress into oven mitts, past issues of Vogue magazine covers into placemats, vintage plates into an attractive roller blind (yep, roller blind), a boring IKEA-like dresser into a one-of-a-kind objet d'art, and a shark into a door-stop (yep, shark). The projects are divided by room, including ideas for 'in-between' spaces and the garden, and she provides tips and tricks for finding fine flea-market furniture too. Since this is a UK publication, the list of sources in the back are not especially helpful for quick visits unless you like shopping on-line, but armed with this book, her website (houseproudcraft.com) and possibly the IKEA-hacker site (ikeahacker.blogspot.com), anyone can transform their homes, apartments and dorm-rooms into something spectacular.

Find it here in the SPL catalogue.

Last Chance for Paris, by Sylvia McNicoll

2008-08-16T10:04:00.002-04:00

As much as 14-year-old Zanna loves her twin brother, Martin, and her dad, she is absolutely certain that a vacation with them in the remote Alberta icefields – sans e-mail or television - will be boring and dreary, at best. She would much rather be in Paris with her mom, checking out the French culture and cuisine scene. When Martin saves a wild puppy near their isolated Alberta cabin, Zanna names it “Paris ” and falls in love with it, but a know-it-all forest ranger insists that it’s a wolf. Zanna reluctantly agrees to leave it at the nearest wolf haven … and wonders if her summer will get any worse. Unfortunately, it does – Martin goes missing in the wilderness.
Frantic with worry, Zanna and her father enlist the help of Paris, hoping that the wolf puppy’s sensitive nose will lead them to Martin in time.
Last Chance for Paris offers teen readers an enjoyable combination of wilderness / survival novel and romance story, one that can be easily enjoyed by readers who may usually be uninterested in adventure or animal tales. Strong, realistic characterization, a suspenseful plot, wry humour, and a poignant message about family ties are all evident in this excellent teen novel.
Author Sylvia McNicoll has a number of young adult books to her credit, and she is also the Features Editor of Today’s Parent Toronto.
** Recommended for ages 12 to 15 years of age.

Find this item in the PCIN Library Catalogue.

The Sandcastle, by M.P. Robertson

2008-08-16T09:59:00.003-04:00

What boy or girl hasn’t built a sandcastle at the beach and wished that it would last for a few days instead of being destroyed in a few minutes by the waves or the wind? Jack loved building sandcastles with high walls and towers, but the sea always took them away. One day, he found a beautiful shell, placed it on the highest turret of his latest sandcastle and made a wish. “I wish my sandcastle was as big as a real castle and I wish that I was king.”
Later that night, he awoke, looked out his bedroom window and saw that his wish had come true. He could see a large, stately castle on the beach. Jack entered and sat upon a seashell throne. “Hail, King Jack!” cheered the crowd. But in the merriment that followed, no one heard the large waves washing against the walls until they gave way and the sea rushed in. The courtiers became sea creatures, while Jack escaped to the highest tower and from there, to safety.
British author and illustrator M.P. Robertson has created a hauntingly exquisite story which isn’t easily forgotten. Can any human power – or magical power - ever be greater than the strength of the sea and of nature?
M.P. Robertson is also the creator of The Egg, The Great Dragon Rescue, The Dragon Snatcher and various other picture books for children.
** Recommended for ages 3 to 6 years of age.
Find this item in the PCIN Library Catalogue.

Emma-Jean Lazarus Fell Out of a Tree, by Lauren Tarshis

2008-08-16T09:51:00.002-04:00

Emma-Jean Lazarus did, indeed, fall out of a tree… both physically and metaphorically. Her sore ribs recovered quickly from the tumble. However, her “fall” from a well-ordered, logical world into a less certain world of changes, growing up and relationships, was not so quickly resolved.
Emma-Jean was the smartest girl at William Gladstone Middle School. She was also known as one of the strangest girls there. Emma-Jean didn’t care about that, knowing that “strange” can mean “unique” and “remarkable”. She was quite satisfied with her life, until she found Colleen Pomerantz crying in the girls’ room and decided to help her, thereby setting in motion a complicated, unforeseen chain of events. Suddenly, Emma-Jean’s life – both at school and at home - became just plain …. messy!
Lauren Tarshis’ first novel is a very enjoyable read which contains a world of wisdom. It has much to say to girls of middle school age about self-acceptance, empathy, honesty, courage and dealing with bullies. The characters are very realistic, and the author uses a “spare” style of text that appears quite polished.
What’s the best thing about this book? The answer: a sequel is planned!
An interview with the author is included at the back of the book.
** Recommended for ages 9 to 12 years of age.

Find this book in the Library Catalogue

Jack and Jill’s Treehouse, by Pamela Duncan Edwards

2008-08-16T09:34:00.007-04:00

What better project for a summer day than building a backyard treehouse? Follow Jack and Jill as they fetch some boards of wood, haul them up to a sturdy branch, and fashion them into a roof and a floor. Watch them drape a large, colourful blanket over the roof and down the sides, and, as a final touch, hang a flashlight from the roof. Now Jack and Jill have a wonderful, cozy treehouse … much more fun than fetching a pail of water and falling down the hill with it!
Pamela Edwards’ charming picture book, illustrated by Henry Cole, is a cumulative read-aloud, or “pattern book”. (“This is the branch that held the treehouse that Jack and Jill built. This is the wood that was hauled up to the branch that held the treehouse that Jack and Jill built….”) A pattern book invites young listeners to join in with the repeating phrases and even to “read” the book later on their own, using the accompanying illustrations – a beginning step in learning how to read.
Pamela Edwards, from Virginia, is the author of many children’s picture books, many of them illustrated with Henry Cole’s delightful pictures.

Recommended for ages 3 to 6 years of age.

Find this item in the Library Catalogue

Living in a Foreign Language: A Memoir of Food, Wine and Love in Italy

2008-08-01T11:27:00.006-04:00

By Michael Tucker

Michael Tucker and his wife Jill Eikenberry are probably best known from their time on LA Law, but about five years ago they gave up their Californian lifestyle to buy a 300-year-old cottage in Spoleto, Umbria, complete with its own olive grove and 400-year-old forno, or outdoor oven. This memoir is a little about their life in Umbria, a little about their relationship and attempts to learn Italian, a little about the ex-pats and local Italian people that they meet along the way and a lot about the food.
Barely a page goes by without a detailed description of some fantastically simple Italian dish, how it is prepared, its ingredients, how it tastes – the Margherita pizza, the strengozzi al tartufo, the fresh cheese drizzled with chestnut honey – you could gain 20 pounds just from reading this book, and it is sure to have its readers either making reservations for Italian food or for a flight to Italy.
What comes through the most is the author’s near reverence for the freshness of their food and for the gently-passing, conversation-filled meal-times shared with his beloved wife and dear friends, as opposed to the grab-and-gulp frozen meals eaten in North America. Those who have been to Italy will love this book, and for those who just dream of going this book brings it all the way to your door – you can almost smell the mortadella on every page.

Find this book in the Library catalogue

Sun Going Down by Jack Todd

2008-08-01T09:37:00.003-04:00

Are you a fan of authentic-feeling Western adventure or family sagas? Are you a fan of Larry McMurtry’s or Cormac McCarthy’s? This one won’t disappoint. Jack Todd’s latest effort is a beautifully written and painstakingly researched good ol’ fashioned yarn, so real you can feel the grit in your teeth.
At nearly 500 pages, this big book is well-stocked with danger, romance, drama and history: a bit of everything to captivate you during those long summer evenings.
Set in the American West just after the Civil War, the traveling Paint family and their various greenhorn kin evolve into courageous pioneers and cow folk, who both embrace and brace against the captivating, relentless prairie sky. The plot often pivots around real historical events – Wounded Knee, the dust-bowl depression, early century flu and tuberculosis epidemics. In another author’s hands, this might end up a dire and sad tale, but instead, Todd (inspired by his own family’s diaries and letters) creates a riveting, entertaining book.
You just can’t ask for a better summer read than this one. Saddle up!.

Get fit With Your Dog, by Karen Brown

2008-07-28T09:11:00.004-04:00

All the experts agree that having a workout buddy is one of the best ways to stick to any fitness program. What better buddy can you ask for than the one who always wants to be with you, is raring to go whenever you yell “walkies!” and who will eat his organic veggies without any complaints (well ok, if they are in biscuit form)? Right off the bat this book states that getting fit is not about having a tiny waistline or big biceps, it’s about being able to ‘function at our full potential when we engage in physical activity’. This goes for your dog, too. Throughout, human and canines are compared in terms of obesity risks, fitness benefits, and it gives even gives point-by-point information on human and doggie nutrition, pacing for any age (of dog or human) and types of exercise you can do together – including some human activities that can be adapted for dogs, and vice versa – even in the pool. With lots of pictures and helpful side-hints, this fitness book describes how exercising with your dog can increase physical, mental and emotional health for the both of you. Don’t try this with the cat.
Click here to find this book in the Stratford Public Library's catalogue.

My Trip Down the Pink Carpet, by Leslie Jordan

2008-07-15T14:26:00.009-04:00

What’s summer without a large dish of, well, dish? And who can dish it out better than the self-professed “gayest man he knows”, Leslie Jordan? Leslie Jordan is probably best known as the campy “Beverly Leslie” from television’s Will & Grace, and claims to have fallen ‘right out of the womb to land smack dab in his mama’s high heels’. In his memoir Mr. Jordan reveals how he always knew he was ‘different’, but that his grandparents and mother never questioned him during his southern Baptist youth. He also paints a tender – yet brutal - picture of his time as a hospice volunteer with Linn House in West Hollywood at the height of the AIDS crisis and hysteria in the early 1990’s, and his commitment to the Trevor Project, a national GLTB helpline. There is plenty of upbeat celebrity chat about his times on-stage (like the time he was a Ferengi with a Tennessee accent on Star Trek) - and off-stage (like the time he shared a prison cell he with Robert Downey Jr. - which turned out to be a lot more poignant than it seems). Throughout the autobiography the elfin maven speaks frankly (and often graphically) about getting started in “the biz”, and his many uphill battles with drugs, sex-addiction and self-loathing. But although some of his stories are harrowing, Mr. Jordan never sounds self-deprecating; rather his anecdotes are full of self-awareness and even better, self-acceptance. The result is a very readable memoir with an atmosphere of gratitude and grace that is quite inspiring.
Click here to find this book in the Library catalogue.

Gardening Grief and Glory by Ed Lawrence

2008-07-15T14:21:00.008-04:00

For the avid Southwestern Ontario Gardener there is no better-known personality than Ed Lawrence, the gardening guru heard every week on CBC radio. Each week his noon-time call-in segment is flooded with calls about houseplants, fruit trees, garden and animal pests, organic veggie-growing, lawn woes and various other horticultural questions and dilemmas; his radio portion became so popular that CBC just recently expanded his time slot, but for those of us unluckily unable to get through on the phone or who can never find a pen quickly enough to jot down his advice, he has gathered 25 years of calls and questions into this handy answer book. The chapters correlate to months of the year, which is not particularly helpful for quick reference, so the detailed index at the back is excellent for pinpointing problems with pear propagation or for finding fixes for that failing ficus. Although it could use a few photos of the mites, moulds and blights that affect plants, this is a fantastic manual for gardens of any scale and gardeners with any shade of green thumb.

Click here to find this book in the library catalogue.

A Version of the Truth, by Jennifer Kaufman and Karen Mack

2008-06-18T10:13:00.005-04:00

The lazy days of summer are upon us, and as you are heading off on vacation loaded with cottage country reading material, you might want to include this uplifting little novel full of humour and natural inspiration that could be taken straight out of the pages of Thoreau. Cassie Shaw has always felt dumb. Her teachers told her so, so she gave up on school. Her cheating-swindling husband told her so, and she believes him (but he gets what he deserves.) Cassie finds that the employment force has no room for a broke, uneducated widow; desperate, she lies on her resume and promptly lands a job as an assistant to a professor of animal behaviour. Always drawn to animals and nature, for the first time in her life Cassie finds that she wants to learn more. She begins to audit classes, discovers the true reason for her previous ‘dumbness’, and develops close relationships. But the secret of her false resume weighs heavily on her, and the more lies Cassie creates to conceal the truth, the closer the truth gets to the surface, threatening to destroy all that she has learned to love. Although it might sound it, A Version of the Truth is not your typical chick-lit novel, but should appeal to any fan of the genre.
Find this book in the library catalogue.

The Sugar Queen, by Sarah Addison Allen

2008-06-18T10:10:00.010-04:00

Meet Josey Cirrini, only daughter of Marco Cirrini, who rebuilt and brought prosperity to the North Carolinian town of Bald Slope. Being a quasi-royal has never fit Josey though – she quietly looks after her dominating, widowed mother and escapes by hiding in a secret closet, eating sweets and reveling in travel magazines or romance novels. To her dismay however, her private paradise is invaded by the brash Della Lee Baker, a woman as far removed from the society of the Cirrini’s as chocolate is from cheese. Hiding from a secret of her own, Della takes up residence in Josey’s closet, forcing her out into the world she dreams of but in which she never lives. In the real world Josey discovers Chloe Finley who makes the world’s best sandwiches, and is in dire need of a good friend. Through Chloe she also meets her not-so-secret crush Adam, the mailman and ex-extreme sporting participant. While Della pushes her to get closer to Adam, Josey tries to push Della away – or at least out of her closet. But Della’s presence harbingers a far greater mystery than any of them can at first intuit. From the author of Garden Spells, The Sugar Queen is a magical gem of a novel for a balmy summer evening.
Find this book in the library catalogue.

The Comfort of Home for Alzheimer’s Disease: A Guide for Caregivers, by Mary S. Mittleman, DrPH et al.

2008-06-18T10:00:00.006-04:00

It is hard to fathom a more insidious disease than Alzheimer’s. A disease that slowly erodes memory and personality, it can be challenging, frightening, frustrating and heartbreaking for both victims and caregivers. Many people who develop Alzheimer’s prefer the familiar surroundings of their homes, and with ever-growing waiting lists to get into long-term care facilities, many patients rely on their loved-ones for care – which can be emotionally grueling for everyone concerned. The Comfort of Home for Alzheimer’s is well-named – it is a reassuring source that describes the development and effects of the disease. In addition, it helps one to prepare the home, to plan financial, medical and legal aspects for the patient, and to know when the time is right for choosing a home care worker. Part two provides plans for daily activities and special occasions, shows how to help move the patient and prevent falls, and of utmost importance, it gives detailed information about how to communicate with the patient at every stage of the disease. With helpful tips, notes and illustrations throughout, and a glossary and index in the back, this American series of caregiver’s guides gets extra points for listing contacts for Canadian support organizations. Written in a thoroughly compassionate manner, this book should be of use to anyone who knows someone suffering from Alzheimer’s. "

Find this book in the library catalogue.

When Dinosaurs Came With Everything, by Elise Broach

2008-06-03T15:59:00.006-04:00

The sign above the doughnuts in the bakery read, “Buy a Dozen Get a Dinosaur”. A dinosaur? A toy, perhaps? But no – the little boy (and his unhappy mother) were presented with a real triceratops after buying a dozen doughnuts! Next, at the doctor’s office, they were given a stegosaurus. And at the barbershop, the little boy received a flying pterosaur. “Yessss!” said the boy. “Noooo!” groaned his mother, as the newly acquired dinos followed them down the street. Suddenly, there seemed to be dinosaurs everywhere on the sidewalk, accompanying happy children and glaring moms, while signs on every business advertised even more Jurassic giveaways. What was going on?
When Dinosaurs Came With Everything is a clever story that is certain to delight young children. Elise Broach is a Connecticut author.
The art in this picture book is a perfect fit for the story. Illustrator David Small, from Michigan, has received both a Caldecott Medal and a Caldecott Honor for his artwork in previous children’s books. (He says that he would like to receive an Apatosaurus with his next coffee purchase….)
** Recommended for ages 4 to 7 years of age.
Find this book in the library catalogue

Trouble According to Humphrey, by Betty G. Birney

2008-06-03T15:40:00.006-04:00

Humphrey the Hamster is a popular pet in Mrs. Brisbane’s classroom, Room 26. However, Humphrey has a secret! Unknown to the students and their teacher, he can escape from his cage whenever he pleases. One night, his escape is noticed, setting off a series of unfortunate consequences. How can one little hamster cause so much trouble? Humphrey, who actually loves helping the students of Room 26, is appalled, and has no idea of how to fix the problems he’s unintentionally brought about. What can he do to make things better? Will Room 26 ever return to “normal”?
Trouble According to Humphrey is a lively, entertaining chapter book and Humphrey fans will be happy to know that the library owns two more titles about this intrepid hamster: The World According to Humphrey and Friendship According to Humphrey. Betty Birney is the author of many more children’s books.
** Recommended for ages 8 to 10 years.

Find this book in the library catalogue

Speechless, by Valerie Sherrard

2008-06-03T15:09:00.005-04:00

“Oh what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive!”
Griffin Maxwell is a quiet student who hates, above all else at school, class speeches. This year he is determined not to give a speech at all. With his best friend, Bryan, he comes up with a plan to fool his teacher – one that seems fail-proof, at first. It’s a plan that will indeed make Griffin, “speechless”!
However, events don’t play out as anticipated, and Griffin’s “fail-proof” plan results in a bizarre set of hilarious events. Long before the end of this book, young readers will also be speechless - with laughter!
Readers will easily identify with the likeable, realistic characters of Griffin and Bryan in this enjoyable, light-hearted story. Author Valerie Sherrard, from New Brunswick, has also written Kate, Sam’s Light and the Shelby Belgarden Mysteries.
** Recommended for ages 9 to 12 years.

Find this book in the library catalogue