Children! 10 New and Upcoming Chapter Books

Click the links below to find the books in the catalog, but first you must log in with your library card number.
 

1. Clementine and the Family Meeting by Sara Pennypacker (no record for this yet, but coming soon!)

2. Alvin Ho: Allergic to Dead Bodies, Funerals, and Other Fatal Circumstances by: Lenore Look

3. N.E.R.D.S: The Cheerleaders of Doom by: Michael Buckley

4. Ten Rules for Living with My Sister by: Ann M. Martin

5. The Son of Neptune by: Rick Riordan

6. The Medusa Plot by: Gordon Korman (in catalog under this >The 39 Clues Cahills vs. Vespers Book 1 The Medusa Plot)

7. Ghost Hunt 2: More Chilling Tales of the Unknown by: Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson

8. Darth Paper Strikes Back: an Origami Yoda book by: Tom Angleberger

9. Meet Cecile by: Denise Lewis Patrick (one of the new American Girls)

10. Meet Marie-Grace by: Sarah Masters Buckey

~Ms. Laurie

Lumby on the Air by Gail Fraser, #5 in the Lumby series

Two important events are being planned in Lumby. Pam and Mark Walker are planning a family reunion to celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary. Montis Inn will be closed to customers during that week so there will be room for family and time to spend with each other. The Chatham County Fair is upcoming, too, and lots of folks are eagerly anticipating the fun and challenges. Like Mark Walker. He has signed up for several events, like sheep shearing, even though he is woefully unprepared and/or inexperienced in them. But that is Mark. A member of his family that will be at Montis for the reunion is a radio personality who ridicules Lumby to his listeners. He puts Lumby on the Air whether they want it or not. But then, the characters of Lumby have a way of growing on people when they are unaware that it is happening. Mark's relative may need to change his radio delivery and way of treating others. Maybe Lumby really does know how to live. 

Get it here!

~Beth H.

Successfully Using QR Codes in Libraries

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Food for Fines

$1 in fines will be waived for each item of food donated in September.

 
The 39 Public Libraries of Jefferson County will accept donations of canned or boxed food during September 1-30. One dollar in fines will be waived for each item of food donated for up to $10 per library card holder. Expiration dates must be visible on the food containers and the waived fees apply to fines only. The food drive is open to anyone, even if they do not have overdue materials.

 “Our goal is to encourage users to return overdue materials, while at the same time giving back to our communities, especially in the aftermath of the tornadoes,” said Pat Ryan, Executive Director of the Jefferson County Library Cooperative. “We’d rather have overdue items back than the fines because of the costs associated with reordering and processing new materials. And some items cannot be replaced.” 

Public libraries want to do something for their communities and also provide an incentive for library users with overdue fines to return to the library. At this time of year, food pantries are getting low and need to be replenished with the holidays just around the corner. Libraries will be collaborating with the United Way Food Bank, Greater Birmingham Ministries, and Magic City Harvest.

“Food for Fines” is held in conjunction with the annual National Library Card Sign-up Month. In September, cardholders can trade in their old wallet card for a keychain card, or receive a replacement for a worn out card free, without paying the usual $3.00 fee.

A Big "Thank You" from the Children's Department

The Homewood Friends of the Library give so much help and support to the Children's Department. They make so many special events like Summer Reading possible. We wanted to thank these local businesses for supporting our Friends of the Library Booksale. Thank you for helping an organization which is such a help to our department! We would like to extend our gratitude to:
 

The Long Quiche Goodbye

A Cheese Shop Mystery
By Avery Aames

Fromagerie Bessette has been a labor of love of cheese for years.  The people of Providence, Ohio, not only love cheese but also Pepere and his wife, the mayor, who run the cheese shop.  Now that both of them are choosing to slow down Charlotte and her cousin Matthew are taking charge of the operation and making changes. Along with the many tasty local and imported cheeses, they now have a wine annex and give classes in choosing wine and pairing it with cheese.  Very popular among their customers are the quiches which Charlotte prepares.  The grand opening event brought town people to taste and enjoy but during all the celebration Charlotte heard a scream and then saw her grandmother covered in blood and her landlord dead in front of the shop.  Of course, people did not believe Grandmere killed Ed but Charlotte did not trust the lawyer or chief of police to prove her innocence so she decided to investigate.  Avery Aames develops the characters of the small town as the story proceeds through the investigation and campaign for the mayoral election.  And romance is in the air both real and imaginary-or delusional.
The Long Quiche Goodbye is the 2010 winner of the Agatha Award for best first novel.

Reserve your copy of The Long Quiche Goodbye here.

~Beth H.

In the Santuary of Outcasts: A Memoir - Neil White

Leprosy, a mob lawyer, a quack doctor, federal prison, check kiting, and magazine publishing, are part of White’s memoir.

Neil White, Ole Miss. grad, sets out to establish two multi-million dollar regional magazines. Check kiting, keeps these ventures afloat for awhile, until he winds up at Carville, Louisiana, a federal prison and the last leprosy hospital in the United States. While serving an 18 month sentence, White looks at the history of leprosy, his own life, fellow inmates: a mob lawyer, a quack doctor, a drug dealer, and in the hospital: leprosy patients , Ella, a mother figure, a blind husband and wife, and a Catholic priest who ministers to patients and prisoners. Themes of tension and distrust between the lepers and the prisoners, between White and his wife, and between White and his business connections are woven into a history of leprosy treatment in the United States and a memoir. --Carol Kinnaird

Reserve this book here.

Are You Braves Enough?

Starting on August 1st at 10:00 a.m. patrons between the ages of birth and 5th grade may pick up "Are You Braves Enough?" trivia questions. Answer as many questions as possible for a chance to win tickets for you and three guests to the August 13th Cubs Game in Atlanta!

In the case of multiple correct entries, a drawing will be held on August 11th and the winner will be notified by August 12th.

* The winner must agree to take a photo of themselves at the game for use by the Braves organization and the Homewood Public Library Children's Department. We ask that the photo be delivered to the library no later than August 20th.

Understanding Exposure, Revised Edition by Bryan Peterson

This book made it click for me. Having been interested in photography a long time, I just purchased my first DSLR last year. I love my Nikon D90 and have enjoyed using it. It takes beautiful photos. But lately, I'd been curious as to how to take shots manually. No where had I been able to find this info. I'd bought Scott Kelby books, which are great, and other field guides and photography books, but they all left me wondering just exactly how to do that. Well, Bryan Peterson laid it all out so simply!

Now I know! All you do after turning your dial to manual is to decide which setting you want to start with--aperture or shutter speed. Most of the time, I'll think I'll use aperture. Next you adjust your shutter speed till your light meter tells you the exposure is correct which in most cases will be 0. Amazing! It's that simple! Of course, Peterson covers all aspects of photography, especially the light factor: front light, back light, side light, and his concept of "The Sky Brothers" and "Mr. Green Jeans" which are great ways to remember the different circumstances you'll find.

Peterson also speaks alot about "creatively correct exposure" which will produce more interesting photos.

Even though this book was published in 2004 and Peterson says the original one was published fourteen years earlier, it is still relevant today. I just wish there had been some updates, or a note early on in the book referencing the fact that he generally prefers to focus manually. That was a little confusing to me where later in the book he explained some of his advanced techniques of night and low-light photography. That makes a difference with today's auto focus DSLRs.
 
I'm so glad a friend recommended this book to me and I can't wait to try these Peterson techniques!

I just found a copy in the catalog that was published in 2010! It might have some of the updates above. So if I were you and was interested, I'd check out this copy.