SBC Reads - In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto

Did you hear about the library's new Sustainable Book Club (SBC)? Pick up your copy of In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto at the library and join us for a fascinating book discussion on Tuesday, October 26 at 6:30pm.

Identity Theft Talk - Stay Informed

If you did not attend last week's Identity Theft Talk presented by Sue Moulton, Certified Identity Theft Risk Management Specialist, you can stay informed and learn more about this important topic by visiting some of the websites that Sue recommends:

List of Websites

Thank you for sharing your time and expertise with the Hooksett community Sue!

Identity Theft - Websites

A list of online resources for learning more about Identity Theft. This information was provided to the library by Sue Moulton, Certified Identity Theft Risk Management Specialist:

AnnualCreditReport.com

F.T.C. Identity Theft Site

Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force

Identity Theft Assistance Center

Identity Theft Resource Center

Internet Crime Complaint Center

Justice Department Identity Theft Site

myfico.com

Privacy Rights Clearinghouse

Social Security Administration's Answers

Federal Bureau of Investigations – Identity Theft

Credit Report Services:

Equifax

Experian

TransUnion

Hannah Dustin's Legacy - Author Talk

Tuesday, October 12 at 6:30pm
Presented by Juanita Carey, Author of Hannah’s Revenge. Mrs. Carey will read from her book and talk about the life of Hannah Dustin. This presentation is geared towards young adults, teens and adults.

Hannah Dustin was a 17th Century Massachusetts woman, caught in an overwhelming tide of events, who found herself in a life-or-death struggle for which she had never prepared.For more information please visit our
online events calendar.

Mark your calendars...

• Columbus Day: The library will be closed on Monday, October 11 in observance of the Columbus Day holiday. Please remember...the library's catalog and online resources are always available by visiting www.hooksettlibrary.org.
• Library's Book & Bake Sale: Saturday, November 13 from 9am - 3pm. Purchase used books, audio and video materials at bargain prices. Delicious baked goods will also be for sale. If you can help us bake goods for the event please contact us at 485.6092 or via E-mail: mbose@hooksettlibrary.org. All Proceeds to benefit the Library.

Puppets and Quilts...

The Library is looking for donations of gently used puppets for a kids theater program, and also for quilts that babies can sit on with their caregivers during storytimes. Thank you in advance for your support of the library!

Banned Books Week @ Your Library...

Catcher in the Rye . . . Of Mice and Men . . . Harry Potter . . .

What's your favorite book? Chances are good that someone has tried to ban it. Celebrate YOUR freedom to read during Banned Books Week, September 25 to October 2.

For more information, visit http://www.ala.org/bbooks or come to your library and view the Banned Books Week displays, and join us in daring to read.

Week 4 of the summer Reading Program

Pirates were making a splash this week at the Library!! Participants were turning into pirates every day! The kids made pirate eye patches and pirate hats to wear, and they also created their own pirate faces, including scars!! The Percy Jackson Party was a BIG hit. Everyone made name tags using the Greek Alphabet. It was pretty tricky because you may not find a letter in your name in the Greek Alphabet!! They also made Oracle of the Delphi fortune tellers! It wouldn't be a party without food. We were treated with "Nectar of the Gods", "Ambrosia" and fresh strawberries from Camp Half-Blood.
Minute To Win It contestants took part in the 4th week of contests. They had to keep a feather up in the air for a full minute by blowing on it. The second part was to sort M&M's into 5 colors in order of color: Red, Orange, Yellow, Green and Blue. This was harder than you would think; you couldn't put one in out of order!!
Two weeks left to the program. I can't wait to see who has read the most hours!!

Week 3 of the Summer Reading Program

This week's theme was Splish, Splash Summer and we really did get splashed!! On Monday, July 19th, we had a water game night. We played Towel Toss and Sponge Tag, had a relay race with sponges and played Drip, Drip, Drenched! Everyone got wet!!That was such a fun night!
On Wednesday, July 21st, we continued the theme by decorating beach towels with fabric markers. We also sorted sea shells and decorated them and everyone was able to take their favorite shell home.
We had our third Minute To win It Contest. Participants had a stack of 39 red cups and one blue cup. They had to remove the blue bottom cup and place it on the top and continue with the red ones until the blue cup was back at the bottom. All within a minute!! This was a hard one.
Next the participants had to blow up a balloon and use that air to knock down 15 cups from the table. As the air was let out, they would need to blow the balloon up again and again until all the balloons were knocked off. All within a minute!! This one was a fun one to do!!
On Thursday, July 22nd, Majestic Theatre came to entertain us with a great show called: The Taming of Katy Lou. What a great show. Everyone loved it and spent the night laughing and enjoying some great songs!
Splish Splash Summer was a lot of fun!!

Summer Reading Program Week 2

Oceans of Fun was the theme for the second week of our Summer Reading Program. And we had FUN!! We made Flying Fish on Monday and Finger Print Fish on Wednesday. We had a Sea Serpent Scavenger Hunt on Thursday and even drew our very own sea serpents!! Our second "Minute To Win It" contest was a big hit. We played Wheel of a Deal and Breakfast Scramble. Wheel of a Deal was a contest to sort cards from a deck and Breakfast Scramble was a puzzle contest. We are keeping track of our winners for the ultimate contest at the end of the summer. Next week Majestic Theatre puts on a show for us on Thursday, July 22nd at 6:30!

Summer Reading Program begins

Week 1 of our summer program was a big hit!! We had 60 children come in to participate in all the week's events. Wednesday , July 7th, was our first Minute To Win It contest. We had so much fun!! One by one the kids had to try to keep 2 balloons up in the air for a full minute! There were 4 winners for this contest. Next they had to blow a bubble from a wand, then blow that bubble through a hoop that was 10 feet away!! There were 10 winners for this race! Can't wait to see what the kids will be doing for the next Minute To Win It contest! Also during this first week, everyone made inner tube markers to track all their reading time. Some have already made it to 10 hours of reading!! Great Job! Class wall decorations were also made. What grade will have the most participants?? Also a special Thank You to Susanne Fournier for coming in to talk about Water Safety. Keep Safe everywhere you go this summer!!

Mario Kart Racing Contest Up-date!!

Our first race date is coming up and we have some up-dated news to pass along to all interested racers!! There is only enough time for 10 racers from Hooksett to race on each race date. Please register for the race for the day you would like to race. Please register for one race day event. I will let you know if there is space available for the next race date. Also, if you have a spare steering wheel, please bring it along. We need 2 steering wheels in order for 2 kids to race at the same time. Remember we are competing against 5 other libraries who will all be racing at the same time!! Hope to see you at one of the race dates this summer!!

Summer Reading Program Registration 2010

Registration begins June 1st for this year's Summer Reading Program: Make a Splash, READ! This program is for those students who have finished first grade on up to those who have finished fifth grade. We have planned 6 weeks of fun activities where children can discover the joy of water. Here are some highlights from our exciting program:

• July 8th: Water Safety Talk with Suzanne Fournier
• July 22nd: Majestic Theatre to perform Go West!
• July 29th: Percy Jackson Party and Comedy Night, Fishing For Laughs
• August 5th: Movie Night, Finding Nemo
• August 11th: Mad Science to perform at our Award's Night
• On-going weekly contest: Minute To Win It
• Mario Kart Contest with other libraries.

To register for this summer reading program, click here. For more information and for other summer events/reading lists:

Summer Reading Events @ your library...
"Make a Splash" Program
Register for "Make a Splash" Program
Other Summer Programs

Summer Reading Lists...
For 6th Graders
For 7th Graders
For 8th Graders

Kick-off to the Summer Reading Program

"Make a Splash, Read!!" is the theme for this year's Summer Reading Program. Wednesday, June 23rd, will be the night for our Kick-Off Event. Beginning at 6:30PM, Steve Blunt will start us off on a great summer of reading activities. You can register for the program on-line beginning on June 1st. This program is for those children who have finished 1st grade on up to 5th grade. A Schedule of Events will be available that night, along with your Book Chart and a book mark. You may start reading and recording time spent reading beginning on June 23rd. We will keep track of the hours you spend reading.
This summer we will also have available activities for all age groups. We will continue our Infant Lapsit and Toddler Time on Fridays at 10:00 AM. We will add a drop-in Storytime for 3 to 6 year olds on Tuesdays at 10:00 AM beginning July 6th.
So have an ocean of fun this summer at the library and join us for the Kick-off on June 23rd!!

West High's FIRST Robotics Team Visit

Loads of fun during West High's FIRST Robotics Team visit last night. Check out the photos of the event. Special thanks to West High's Team for taking the time to come and demo their robot and explain their story to a very eager audience of the Library's Lego Club members. -Mark

Children's Author JE' Taylor visits

Children's Author JE' Taylor visited the library for our April Nighttime Storyhour on April 22nd. She read her story "The Animal Dance". The children who attended loved the pictures and the magical poem that JE' Taylor read. After the story, the children colored some Earth Day pictures to celebrate Earth Day.

Storyhour in May...

After the April Spring vacation, there will be only one more Storyhour and then our Closing Parties will start during the second week of May. Miss Vickie will keep you posted about these events as the end draws near.

West High's FIRST Robotics Team to demo robot...

Are you really into science and want to know how things work? Visit the library on May 13th to see a demo of West High's FIRST Robotics Team robot. Free and open to the public.

Happy 205th Birthday, Hans Christian Andersen!

Hans Christian Andersen, born on April 2nd, 1805, was Denmark's most famous author. His fairy tales are among the most widely read works in world literature. His stories of make-believe have enchanted young readers around the world for generations.

Ingwersen, Niels. "Andersen, Hans Christian." World Book Online InfoFinder. World Book, 2010. Web. 2 April 2010.

ARE YOU A PERCY JACKSON FAN??

Check out these book recommendations from the author, Rick Riordan, himself!

Express your creativity through our EDIBLE BOOK CONTEST!

Create a representation of your favorite book in food!
How to participate...

1. Everyone can participate: the young, the old, the professional and non-professional, residents and non-residents, and even groups.
2. Entries must be book-related. Examples of this can be found in our slideshows of past events (2007, 2008, 2009) and also online at the National Edible Book Contest homepage.
3. Entries can be made out of anything, as long as it is edible.
4. Entries must be family-friendly.
5. Participants can enter up to 3 entries.
6. Registration is free!

Check out pictures from last year! Or find more information at our Edible Books page.


Judging will be on Saturday, April 17th at 10am

Lincoln "visits" the library...

History really came to life with a program last Thursday (Feb. 25th), entitled "A Visit with Abraham Lincoln." Lincoln was portrayed by Steve Wood. Completely in character, Wood began the program with a recounting of Lincoln's early life and ended with a reading of the Gettysburg's Address. Along the way he commented on Lincoln's debates with Stephen Douglas, his run for the presidency, and the Civil War. *Mark*

New - Cake Pans that you can check out!

Have to bake a cake and want to make it special? We now have themed cake pans of various shapes and sizes that you can check out. See our current selection. *Mark*

Summer reading T-Shirts...

Order your summer reading T-Shirt(s) today! This year's theme is "Make a Splash". <<Order Form>>

Max the Mascot visits library...

Who says that lions can't read? Max, the mascot from the Manchester Monarchs, visits the library on Tuesday, December 29th, to promote reading. See photo journal of event...

Guess who came to the library today...?

Mrs. Claus paid us a visit today, during the library's annual Christmas party. She was joined by over 100 children with their families. Check out the photo journal of the event. *Mark*

Want to find your energy hogs at home?

Find which appliances are consuming the most energy in your home. Borrow one of our "Kill A Watt" meters donated to the library by NHSaves. Available for check out at the front desk. *Mark*

Mrs. Claus visits the library...

Don't forget to mark your calendars for Mrs. Claus' visit next Saturday, December 12th, at 1:00pm. It promises to be a fun-filled, festive event, with cookie and Christmas tree decorating, singing, and craft making. Refreshments too! Register here.

Missed the Home Safety program presented by Hooksett PD?

Slides used for the Home Safety/Community Awareness program, presented by the Hooksett Police Department @ the Hooksett Library on November 9th, are now available for review.*Mark*

community awareness-home safety presentation (PDF format)

Mrs. Claus visits library on December 12th...

We are planning a holiday party with Mrs. Claus on Saturday, December 12th, from 1:00-3:00pm...

Mrs. Claus is making a special request for the following items:

Home-made sugar cookies (to decorate with Mrs. Claus), sealed cans of frosting, jimmies, sprinkles, candy decorations, hot cocoa mix in canister, mini marshmallows, toilet paper rolls (empty) and paper towel rolls, wrapping paper, candy canes, red and green ribbon, jingle bells (1/2"), curling ribbon, cups, napkins, small paper plates, plastic knives, juice, craft beads (5 to 10 millimeter diameter), 12-inch plastic decorating pastry bags, jelly beans, green pipe cleaners.

THANK YOU SO MUCH!!

New titles to check out...

Are you a visual learner? Then you'll love the new "Teach Yourself Visually" series that we've recently added to our computer manual collection. You'll find these titles in our newly redecorated computer lab located beyond the YA/Teen room. *Mark*

Children's Storyhour Registration...

Children's Storyhour Registration
Tuesday September 8, 2009 9:00 AM

Registration for Children's Storyhour begins at 9:00am on Tuesday, September 8th. Registration will be online at www.hooksettlibrary.org. There will be 6 sessions to choose from: Mondays, Tuesdays or Wednesdays at 10:00-11:00am or 1:00-2:00pm. Children must be 3 years old by September 1st. Please join us for Toddler Time if your child is not 3 by September 1st. Storyhour runs from September to May.

It's Back to School!

Stop by your library after school and check out what we have for you. We have the latest music CDs and family videos. We also have family-friendly videogames for Wii & PS2, audiobooks for your MP3, IPod, audiobooks on CD & Playaways. We've also planned the following monthly programs for you:

• Afterschool Storyhour: The third Thursday of the month, beginning September 17th at 4:15 PM. For grades K thru 2nd grade.
  
• Night-time Storyhour: The fourth Thursday of the month, beginning September 24th at 6:30 PM. For ages 3 to 8 years.
  
• Toddler Time: The first Monday of every month starting in October from 9:15 AM to 9:45 AM. No registration necessary. For ages 3 and under.
  
• Family Movies: The first Thursday of the month, beginning September 3rd at 6:30 PM. For all ages.
  
• Lego Club: The second Thursday of the month, beginning September 10th at 6:30 PM. For grades 1 thru 5.

New video games @ your library...

If you like to play video games, but don't want to pay the high cost involved in acquiring them, did you know that you can borrow them @ your library? We have an ever-growing collection, including Wii as well as PlayStation 2 games. They can be borrowed for up to two weeks at a time. Check out our collection of over 70 titles here. --Mark

Children's Summer Reading Program Registration now live!

The Children's Summer Reading Program for grades 1-5 is just around the corner (starts the week of July 13th). You can now register your child(ren) online by visiting this link. The complete schedule of events will be available at the Kick-off party on Monday night, July 6th, at 6:00pm. Be sure to visit our Children's Summer Reading homepage for all the latest news about the program.

NH Flume Book Award Announced...

Out of 686 votes, Jodi Picoult's Nineteen Minutes won first place for this year's (2009) NH Flume Book Award, with City of Bones by Cassandra Clare, coming in at close second. Check out reader reviews of the winning title.

Week 4 of the Summer Reading Program

Week 4 was great! It was our voting week. We voted for our Favorite Australian Animal between a Koala and a Kangaroo. And the winner was: Koala with 47 votes!! (Kangaroo received 25 votes). We were so lucky to have Mr. Fleury come in to show us his sugar gliders. They were very cute! Ms. Fiona also came in to visit us and tell us all about Australia. She told us some interesting things and we really learned a lot! Then on Thursday, we were entertained once again with Majestic Theatre. They performed "The Return of the Glass Slipper" and it really was the best show I've seen!! Lots of kids have been searching for Bindi each week. That's been a lot of fun! Hope you heard this week's clue! Can't wait for Award's Night next Friday!!

Summer Reading Program Weeks 2 and 3

Week 2 had many of us making crafts that had to do with the Great Barrier Reef. We had a blast making Nemo magnets and Sea Urchins from styrofoam balls. We even brought home an Ocean in a Bag!! All the crafts were so colorful, especially our Seahorses. We had a total of 123 participants come in this week!
Week 3 was all about the Outback and the Aborigines. We created beautiful Walking Sticks, but had to delay our Walk-About due to the rain!! We also made some Aboriginal handprints, a bull-roarer that really works, a boomerang, and some great clap-sticks! We learned about decorating with dots! There were a total of 127 for week 3!

Summer Reading Program- first week

The first week of Summer Reading was a huge success and so much FUN!!
We had 140 participants come in to make surf boards and wall decorations for their class wall. And so many pompom fish were created to decorate the window frame!
Many of you found Bindi on her first week out in Hooksett. She has traveled to a new location for the second week. Hope you can find her. Everyone has been doing a great job reading. Keep those surf boards moving up the wave!! Make every day, a G'Day For Reading!!

YA Summer Reading

Calling all Hooksett Tweens and Teens: The HPL’s YA summer reading program is kicking off! It’s easy, fun, and gives you the chance to win awesome prizes just for reading this summer!

There’s no registration, just fill out a SHORT review form, available at the library, for every book or magazine you read, include your name and phone number, and you’re entered to win! It’s that simple!

You can win prizes like gift cards to EB Games, Restaurants, stores at the Manchester Mall, and even an ipod!

If you have any questions, contact Sarah Foster at the Hooksett Public Library

sfoster@hooksettlibrary.org 603.485.6092

Upgrade available for Overdrive Media Console used for downloadable audiobooks service

We've just received word from our downloadable audiobooks vendor, Overdrive, that an upgraded version of their media console is now available for download. You can get it here. The new software upgrade includes the long-awaited CD burner wizard, explained here in Overdrive's press release:

"In response to the overwhelmingly positive feedback we received from our Transfer Wizard, we have added a Burn to CD Wizard. With OMC v3.0, patrons no longer need to launch Windows Media Player to burn to CD. Instead, in just a few clicks, patrons can burn WMA audio titles through OMC. Clicking the Burn button launches the Burn Wizard, which guides the user through this simple and straightforward burn process. For your audiobook users who burn titles to CD, they will be excited to learn that the new Burn Wizard splits OverDrives Audiobook parts into tracks (based on the existing MediaMarkers), allowing users to more easily navigate content they have burned to CD."

What to expect from new library system in August, cont...

Have you ever found a number of titles in our online catalog and wanted to place hold requests on them, but found that you could only place such requests one at a time, and not all at once? Our new system coming in August will enable hold requests to be placed on multiple items at once. In addition, it will also allow hold requests to be placed on individual items, such as particular magazine issues. Say you're interested in this month's issue of Martha Stewart's Living--you'll be able to place a hold on just that issue. We were very excited to hear of these system capabilities and we hope you'll be too when our new system is deployed.

What to expect with new library system, continued...

In a previous post we indicated that our new library system coming in August will support email reminder notices of materials coming due. Another nifty function of the new system will be the ability to limit your searches of the online catalog in many different ways, among which will include limiting searches to items that are currently available. The idea behind this function is to help you find only what's currently on the shelf for the immediate taking in the library and not what's checked out and therefore not of immediate interest.

What to expect with new library system - email reminder notices

As mentioned in a recent post, we'll be converting to a new library system in August. Besides keeping you up to date about the latest developments with respect to the August conversion, we thought that you'd also like to hear in the ensuing weeks about some of the many features that the new system will support. One of the features will be a courtesy email reminder notice of your borrowed items coming due. How do you like that? - Being reminded about borrowed items' due dates before they're due! If you'd like to benefit from such a service, you'll have to make sure that we have your email address. You can give us your email by going to your account here and then editing your account profile to include your email address or by stopping by the front desk during your next library visit.

New Integrated Library System Coming in August

One of the tremendous advantages of being a member of a multi-library consortium is that, by pooling our resources together, we can bring you the latest and greatest in resources that would otherwise be very difficult to provide. Recently, we were able to expand our online request service so that you could place requests on any requestable materials available at any of the 11 consortium libraries, and not just the Hooksett Library, this thanks to our consortium membership.
The good news does not stop there. We are happy to report that, after a year's worth of research and planning at the consortial level, we are going to be able to markedly improve how we serve you technologically. That's because we are going to convert to a whole new integrated library system (ILS), which comes with a more user-friendly, state of the art, online catalog and a lot of behind the scenes stuff that will help us serve you better. Our target conversion date is sometime towards the end of August. We'll keep you posted as things develop. By all means contact us if you have any questions before then.

2008 Flume Book Award Winner

The votes are in and the 2008 Flume Book Award Winner is New Moon, the second book of Stephenie Meyer's popular Twilight series. The voting breakdown was as follows:

New Moon	254
Just Listen	87
Marley and Me	42
The Book Thief	40
Life as We Knew It	39
Lord Loss	39
The Glass Castle	38
Heavy Metal and You	35
A Certain Slant of Light	20
The Night My Sister Went Missing	16
King Dork	11
Over a Thousand Hills I Walk with You	10
The Minister's Daughter	5
Total votes cast	636

New website alias

I don't know about you, but I often found it a nuisance to have to type the rather cumbersome web address of our website: "http://www.hooksett.lib.nh.us". Inevitably, I would forget to type a period or forget which order the "nh" and "us" came in. Well, we've solved these issues by adding an alias to our web domain. You can now navigate to our website by simply typing "hooksettlibrary.org" in your browser's address bar. If you use Firefox as your browser, it'll automatically add the "http://" prefix. This alias even applies to our email domain extension, so if you want to reach us via email, you don't have to type "@hooksett.lib.nh.us" for the domain name, but only "@hooksettlibrary.org". Not only does this change make our web address more intuitive, it also makes us more accessible in cyberspace. We hope you like the change.

"Show us your flowers week"

The week of May 5th through May 10th is "Show us your flowers week". Join the staff and wear your flowered shirt, dress or maybe your tie. If you do not have clothing with flowers, wear one in your hair or on your lapel.

Top 10 Banned Books of 2007

Every year the American Library Association tabulates the number of books that are challenged by special interest groups for questionable and/or controversial content. The list of last year's top 10 "banned" books is out and here are the titles:

1. And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell
2. The Chocolate War by Rober Cormier
3. Olive's Ocean by Kevin Henkes
4. The Golden Compass by Phillip Pullman
5. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
6. The Color Purple by Alice Walker
7. TTYL by Lauren Myracle
8. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
9. It's Perfectly Normal by Robie Harris
10. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

Read them for yourself and see if you can guess why they were challenged.

Edible Books 2008 Photos

Check out our photos from this year's edible book contest which took place Saturday, April 12th. Kevin Lane's entry was inspired by the book "Who Moved My Cheese". Roxanne Kate's entry was based on the series "Sweet Potato Queens", Lee Ann Chase's, by "Fast Food Nation" or "Super Size Me", and Mark Glisson's, by "Toasting Tina". The votes are in with the following results in the order of highest to lowest votes:

1. "Super Size Me".
   
2. "Who Moved My Cheese".
   
3. Tied for third place: "Sweet Potato Queens" and "Toasting Tina".
   

A big "Thank You" for all who participated.

Changes at the HPL!

Design gurus Mark and Lee Ann put their heads together and rearranged the furniture in the reference section, make sure you come down and check it out! While you’re here, make sure you also take a look at our ever-expanding CD, audio book, and DVD collections!

Library Easter Egg Hunt for the Hooksett-ites

The Hooksett-ites enjoyed a special Easter Egg Hunt that we prepared for them this morning during their regular Friday visit to the library. We thought that this would be a great way to say "Thank You" for their very gracious and generous help in stuffing the Easter eggs for last month's Children's Easter Egg Hunt. Among all the 200+ eggs hidden throughout the library, Elizabeth Stewart found the surprise jumbo egg which we hid in a plant in the Children's room. By finding this prize egg, she won a collector's item in the form of a crystal egg.

New resource added to our reference site

We've added a very content rich medical reference resource to our reference tools page. It's called MedlinePlus, a U.S. Government sponsored site recommended by doctors to help consumers learn more about their health, find information for school projects, look up info on prescriptions and over-the-counter medicines, and prepare for doctor's visits. Check it out and enjoy the resources there!

Spring? It's Coming!

Check out our new Spring has Sprung book display! On the table in front of the quiet study room you will find numerous books to help you whip your garden into shape. Spring is just around the corner, (we hope!), and now is the perfect time to start planning your garden!

Expanded Request Service

We've made it even easier for you to get the material you want by expanding our online request service. Previously, your requests made in our online catalog applied only to Hooksett Library holdings. And, if we didn't have the item, you had to contact us and make an interlibrary loan request or drive to a GMILCS library which had the item and pick it up there. Now, your requests extend to holdings in all participating GMILCS libraries. In addition, if we don't have the item you're looking for, but a participating GMILCS library does, all you have to do is request it online in the "All GMILCS" catalog, and you'll even be able to choose the pick up location for the item. If you'd like to find out more about this expanded service, watch the short presentation here.

Easter Egg Hunt Photos 20080322

Everyone had a blast during this year's Easter Egg Hunt and party. All 120+ participants. We held the event indoors, since the ground was snow-covered outside. Many thanks to everyone who helped out: Hooksett Kiwanis Builders Club of Cawley Middle School, the Hooksett-ites, the Friends of the Library, and many others!

Foyer Display by Massabesic Audubon Center

Stop by and check out the beautiful Spring display in our front foyer, courtesy of the Massabesic Audubon Center. When you see it you'll really think Spring. If only we could leave the display up year round! It's that impressive. Visit the Massabesic Audubon Center at 26 Audubon Way in Auburn and find out what programs they're offering to celebrate Spring. You can also visit them at www.nhaudubon.org.

Edible Book Contest on April 12th 2008

We’re “cooking” up a real treat to kick off National Library Week during the second week in April. Do the titles “The Cherry Cheesecake Murder,” “How to Eat Fried Worms,” and “Everything on a Waffle,” ring a bell? They were last year’s entries in our first-ever “Edible Book” contest. We’re hosting the contest once again this year on April 12th, since it was quite the hit. If you’d like to participate, please contact us no later than April 11th at 485-6092 or at hplbooks@hooksett.lib.nh.us to register. The rules are simple: (1) Everyone can participate: the young, the old, the professional and non-professional, residents and non-residents, and even groups. (2) Entries must be book-related. Examples of this can be found in our photos of last year’s contest here or in photos from the international contest here. (3) Entries can be made out of anything, as long as it is edible. (4) Entries must be family-friendly. (5) Participants can enter up to 3 entries. (6) Registration is free.

Scheduled activities for the day:

1. 9:00am-10:00am: Drop off entries.
2. 10:00am-3:00pm: Voting by public.
   
3. 2:00pm-4:00pm: Cake decorating demonstration and other crafts/activities/games.
4. 4:00pm: Awards.

If you don't feel inclined to submit an entry, but would like to volunteer your time to help out with the various activities and cake decorating demonstration, please let us know at 485-6092.

Won't you wear a sweater on March 20th?

In honor of what would have been Mister Rogers' 80th birthday we are asking that you join us and wear your favorite sweater on March 20th. It doesn't have to be a zipper sweater like Mr. Rogers wore, it just has to be special to you.

Computer Instruction at the HPL

Are you looking to improve your computer skills? Need help setting up or maintaining an email account? Would you like some extra tips and training? Well, you are in luck! Starting in April you will be able to sign up for FREE, one on one, half hour computer instruction!

Dr. Seuss Night

Thursday, March 27th is Dr. Seuss Night at the Library. Starting at 6:30 PM, we will have guest readers, activities and a Birthday cake for Dr. Seuss!! Come and enjoy a night of rhyming fun! For kids up to 10 years of age. Let's have a WUBULOUS Time!

Get Cooking at the HPL

Looking to try some new recipes? Want to impress friends and family with your culinary genius? Or are you just trying to boil a pot of water without burning it? Come to the Hooksett Public Library and browse our collection of cookbooks for inspiration and tips. Learn to cook food from all over the world- Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia with “Curry Cuisine”. Or, get some gluten-free baking recipes from “Great Gluten-Free Baking”. We have two new cupcake books: “Hey There, Cupcake” and Betty Crocker’s “Decorating Cakes and Cupcakes”. And for you Food Network people we have Rachel Ray, Alston Brown, Paula Deen cookbooks plus DVDs! And for you fancier folk we have Jacques Pepin’s “Fast Food My Way”.

In addition we have a large selection of books on wine, specialty diets, food allergies, and overall health. As always, if we don’t have what you’re looking for just ask at the desk and we’ll be happy to order it for you!

Reference webpage tutorials

In a previous blog entry, we reported that we had added a search toolbox to our reference webpage to make searching through the variety of resources a bit more user-friendly. We hope that you've had a chance to experiment with it. We're now working on adding some video tutorials on how to use some of the resources. If you're like the average person, seeing a demonstration is better than just reading about it. So, keep an eye on the reference webpage for these additions/updates. If there's anything else that you'd like to see there, let us know here. Until then, best of luck with your research projects.

HPL Reference

Looking to take the LSAT, GMAT, SAT, or PRAXIS soon? Interested in learning more about the GRE or Law Enforcement test? Look no farther than the HPL! Here at the HPL we strive to bring YOU, the patron the latest and the greatest in reference and one such tool is “Learnatest”. This innovative learning implement is available online from our reference tools section. Simply log in using the barcode on the back of your library card and off you go! Also, feel free to stop by or give us a call with any questions!

Bored? Head down to the HPL!

Are you looking for a new hobby or interest? Have cabin fever after so much snow and too much time indoors? Well, the HPL has a cure! As you enter the library, look to the table on your left, where you will find a display of books entitled “Try something new in the New Year”. You can find all kinds of interesting and new hobbies, from building birdhouses to playing better bridge. Other titles deal with subjects such as using GPS, Sea Kayaking, Mahjong, T’ai Chi, Swing Dancing, and even gender specific woodworking projects. If you can’t quite find what you’re looking for let us know and we’ll be happy to help you!

Easter Egg Hunt and Party:

We have begun planning for our annual Easter egg hunt which will occur on Saturday, the 22nd of March. This year we will have two schedules for egg hunters. 1-5 year olds will start at 10am and 6+ year olds will start at 11am. A special prize will be awarded to the one in the older group who finds the golden egg which will be hidden for them. We'll provide crafts and activities during the event. Refreshments will also be available. Bring your own Easter egg baskets. Registration is requested but not required. Register here or call us at 485-6092.

Update on Reader Reviews on our online catalog:

Since we're the first users of the new Chilifresh.com reader review service, the sooner you register to do a review of your favorite titles on our online catalog, you'll be able to pick a unique user name that noone else will be able to use. In addition, when someone clicks on your user name associated with your review of a given title, others will be able to see all your reviews. So, if readers liked the same title that you did, then it's likely that they'll like other titles that you liked and will then add them to their reading lists. As a reminder, in order to write a review, find the "write a review" link (if the title has not yet been reviewed) or the "reader rating" link (if the title has been reviewed). To view a single or multiple reviews of a given title, click on the "# reviews" link. Note: you must enable pop-ups in your browser or at least add chilifresh.com to your unblocked pop-up list. Enjoy!

New Navigation Toolbox on our Reference Page

In our ongoing efforts to make our Reference webpage more user-friendly, we've created a new navigation toolbox! This change will enable users to navigate to our various online resources, either by reference categories or by individual resources. When selecting any item in the toolbox's drop down boxes, the user is taken directly to the resource or resource category in question. Of course, subscription based resources will still prompt you for your patron barcode, but once logged in for that browsing session, you will be able to move between the various resources with ease. Tell us what you think!

Parent shelf-Teachers Resource shelf

The parent shelf in the children's room has moved. It is now at the end of the children's videos. The teachers resource shelf is now on the shelf to the left of
Miss Vickie's desk.

So much to do at the HPL!

There's so much to do at the Hooksett Public Library! AARP is here to help with taxes on Tuesdays from 5:00pm - 8:00pm and Fridays from 10:00am - 2:00pm. On Thursdays you can swing by and drop off your recycling. Fridays and Saturdays? You can come in and pick up a couple of DVDs to watch, without paying the Blockbuster prices! Of course, we also offer books, c.d.'s and audiobooks! If we don't have what you're looking for let us know, we're always happy to order your desired item from another library!

New Hampshire Maps

Look around the library and you will see many New Hampshire maps from the 4th grade classes at Hooksett Memorial School. Every year the 4th graders are assigned the project of creating their own NH map from any material they wish.Some are made from Leggos, others out of clay,many with many colors and some with added pictures from around the state! I wish that I could have brought all the maps for everyone to see, but this is just a small sampling of the many that are now on display at the school.Hope you enjoy them!!

Book 3 in Paolini's Inheritance Series - finally!

For fans of the Inheritance series by Paolini, you'll be happy to know that the third book, Brisingr, will be published in September - finally! You'll also be interested to know that Paolini was forced to make his originally planned trilogy into a quadrilogy, because the third book got so long that it needed two parts. You can read more about it here. As soon as we order the book, of which we'll probably have to order a couple of copies to meet the demands, we'll let you know. We'll also order the audiobook. Until then, keep practicing your Old Norse so you can understand the book's terminology.

Programming at the Library!

Hi everybody, Sarah here! A big part of my job is to organize programming for the library. Keep an eye on our calendar of events, in the upcoming weeks- I will be updating with a myriad of programs, everything from a clutter specialist to teen safety on the internet. I am always on the look out for new and interesting programs to bring to the Hooksett Public Library’s patrons! If you have any suggestions or ideas please, please, please contact me at the library, sfoster@hooksett.lib.nh.us or via telephone 603.485.6092

School vacation activities!!

Looking for some activities for your kids over school vacation week? Well, come to the library on Monday, February 25th at 1:00 PM for a Magic Tree House Day. We will have trivia, games and crafts, and some raffle items! Come dressed as Jack or Annie or your favorite character! For grades K-3rd.
We will have a movie day on Tuesday, February 26th beginning at 1:00 PM. Snow Buddies will be shown for all ages.
And on Thursday, February 28th, join us for a Special Nighttime Storyhour on Dental Health.This event will begin at 6:30 PM and is for ages 3 to 8.
Spend some vacation time at the library!!

Crazy Hat week staff photos

Ladies Night Expo

The Hooksett Public Library’s 2^nd annual Ladies Night Expo will be held this Thursday, January 31^st, 2008. Doors will open at 6 p.m. and the party will continue until 9 p.m. Come prepared to shop, since many of our 30+ vendors will be offering their wares at a special discount. Also, there will be plenty of freebies and door prizes, as well as free massages and spray on tanning as well as a demonstration from Pedals and Pilates! Grab your daughter, sister, mother, and girlfriends and come down to the library for a relaxing, fun evening!

TODDLER TIME

Toddler Time is for any child 3 and under and is held on the first Monday of each month starting at 9:30 AM. We sing songs, read books, play games, learn fingerplays, and color. The children learn to socialize. Parents can receive support from others, and make new friendships in the town. (Especially for new residents). So join us for a fun time at Toddler Time!!

Childrens Met pass

Great news! The Childrens Metamorphis Museum is staying open. The museum passes are now available with a change. The passes are now available Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday 9:30-5:00, Friday 9:30-8:00 and Sunday 1:00-5:00. You may reserve your pass on line, call us or just come in and visit with us.

Reader reviews from Chilifresh

You asked for it and we have done it! You can now enter reader reviews in our online catalog. Loved a book you've read recently? Add a review! Not sure if you want to read the latest Grisham? Read what other readers have said!
This service has been contacted from Chilifresh and will appear on your screen as a pop-up window. Please allow pop-ups from chilifresh.com to allow for it to work.
Enjoy!

GUITAR HERO NIGHT

Guitar Hero Night has been quite a success here at the library!
The 3rd Thursday of every month, pre-teens and teens meet to play head-to-head in rock and roll competition! It's become so popular that we need to have 2 set-ups each month. In February, we will have a play-off on the big screen, and for anyone who is just starting out, try the game out for yourself!!
Hope to see you on February 21st at 6:00 PM.

New blog syndication features added

Since we've been updating our blog on a more regular basis of late, we thought it would be a good idea to make it easier for you to keep track of our latest posts. At the top of the right panel of our blog you will now see two widgets. The first of these will allow you to subscribe to our blog through your favorite feed reader and the second, through your email service. We hope that you will enjoy these new features and the new posts as well. Happy reading!

Looking to join a kid's book club?

Do you like to read? Do you like to talk about the great book that you just finished reading? Do you wish you could talk about the book with others who have enjoyed it too? Then come to our once-a-month book club. We will meet the second Thursday of each month. Book titles will be announced 2 months ahead of time so you will have plenty of time to read them!! If you need a copy of any of the books that will be read, just let us know and we will order one for you! February's pick is: So B. It by Sarah Weeks and March's pick is: Holes by Louis Sachars. The meetings begin at 6:30 PM.
Hope to see you there!

2008 Caldecott Winners Announced

2008 Caldecott Winner:

The Invention of Hugo Cabret: a novel in words and pictures

Honor titles:

Henry's Freedom Box, Ellen Levine
First the Egg, Laura Vaccaro Seeger
The Wall, Peter Sis
Knuffle Bunny Too: a case of mistake identity, Mo Willems

2008 Newbery Award Winners Announced

2008 Newbery Award Winner: Good Masters! Sweet Ladies!: Voices from a Medieval Village by Laura Amy Schlitz


Honor titles:
Elijah of Buxton, Christopher Paul Curtis
Wednesday Wars, Gary Schmidt
Feathers, Jacqueline Woodson

Dog whisperer

Check it out! We know have the Dog Whisperer on DVD. We have season 1 and season 2.
He has some very good ideas on helping you with your dog.

Ladies Night

Ladies, Mark your calendars and call your girlfriends! The library is putting on a night just for you!
We will have area businesses here to show your their wares! So far, we have Pilates & Pedals from Bedford bringing a mini trampoline, way fun!
Mama Chix will bring an assortment of their absolutely gorgeous purses and accessories!
We have Mary Kay, Avon, Tastefully Simple ladies from Hooksett.
We will have a masseuse on hand and chocolate galore!
Giveaways and door prizes to boot! So, pick up the phone and call that girlfriend you haven't had an outing with in a while and come visit us for a great night!
For more information, please see call us at 485-6092 or email Sarah Foster at sfoster@hooksett.lib.nh.us
We welcome new vendors who are interested! The event is free to all, vendors and attendees alike!

Resume resources at the Library

Did you know that you can learn how to compose a resume by using our LearnATest reference tool? Just visit our reference page and click on the LearnATest link under the "Consumers" heading. From there you have to set up an account, if you haven't done so already, by simply using your library barcode as the user name and then creating a password. Once logged in, you can find a great resume writing course which takes you through the steps to writing a polished resume that fits your needs. In case you didn't already know, Microsoft Word also has a resume wizard tool that will help you to design a suitable resume. Come in to the library and we'll be happy to get you started, and if you bring your own resume quality paper, you can print your resume on our laser printer.

Girl Scout Cookie Castles at the Library

Come visit us in the Children's Room and see the display of 29 Cookie Castles created by Hooksett Girl Scouts. This yearly event is a Kick-off for Girl Scout Cookie Sales. Each troop began with the same ingredients, but was also able to choose an extra item to decorate. See if you can guess what each extra ingredient was for each castle!! Hooksett Girl Scouts can start a group as early as kindergarten as Daisies, on up to Brownies, Juniors, Cadettes and Seniors!

Crazy hat week

Come in the week of Jan 7th-12th and join the staff for "Crazy hat week". We will be taking photos of everyone to put in our photo gallery.

Library Calendar of Events

For those of you who frequent our homepage, you will have noticed that we display our calendar of events there in a list format. The list consists of up to 10 upcoming library events over a 30 day period. Each of these events are hyperlinked to our event calendar program where you can see a description of the event and also use cool tools, such as...

1. save the event to your MS Outlook program,
2. tell a friend of the event via email,
3. or set up a reminder of the event to be sent to you via email.

If you'd like to see a full month's view of our events while you're on our homepage, you can simply click on the "Library Calendar of Events" link at the top of the events list. From there, you'll see a calendar view and will be able to click on the day of the month to access the more detailed info about the day's events. Enjoy!