The Baskets are Coming!

Actually, they're here!

SPLAT'S Spring Basket Raffle had begun! Tickets are $.50 each or 12 for $5.00. Winners will be drawn on June 15. Spider-Man, Superheroes, Dining Out, Red Sox, and Summer Fun are the themes for this spring.

All proceeds benefit Teen Programming at the Library! Tickets available at the Front Desk of the Library.

Worcester County Youth Poetry Slam

This Sunday, May 6 at the library!
2:30-4:30 PM

Free and open to all intersted. For more info, email George Brown at gbrown@cwmars.org.

FREE COMIC BOOK DAY!!!

This SATURDAY, May 2!


Yes, this day really exists! Actually, it's an annual event: the first Saturday in May! So are they really free? Why, yes they are!

"The annual event is the perfect opportunity to introduce your friends and family to the many worlds of wonder available at your local comic book store. From super-heroes to slice-of-life to action/adventure and beyond, Free Comic Book Day has a comic book for everyone!"

So where can you get your hands on some free comics? Well, we don't have them here at the library, so visit That's Entertainment at 244 Park Ave in Worcester. Chynna Clugston, who wrote Scooter Girl and Blue Monday, will be there, along with other special guests! Be sure to thank the TE staff, for all they do for us at SPL!

For more info:
Official FCBD Website
That's Entertainment

No More Myspace or Blogs in the Library?

It could very well happen. Republican Senator Matt Murphy of Illinois is attempting to get a bill passed that would make it illegal for all public and school libraries to allow access to social networking sites like MySpace and blogs.

Read more about it hereand here.


So what do you think? Should MySpace and blogs like this one be available in the library? Or should they be blocked?

Hell freezes over...AGAIN!

OK, now this is getting a bit crazy!

April's book chat title was recommended to me by a couple of SPLAT members. And, once again, not my favorite genre. But, WOW! I liked this one too.

Twilight
by Stephanie Meyer
April 18 at 3:30 PM

As always, copies of the book are available at the front desk and you have to be in grades 5-12 to participate.

Whose got a title suggestion for May's chat?

SPLAT Recruitment Meeting

***Notice***
Date for this event changed to Saturday, April 14th.

We're having another SPLAT recruitment meeting, this time, with a twist! It's going to be on Saturday, April 14, from 6 PM-9PM. Wait...isn't the library closed on Saturday nights. Why, yes it is!

After Hours SPLAT Recruitment Party!
We'll have pizza and snacks and watch a movie!

Want to come? All you have to do is register at the front desk of the library and pick up a permission slip. Everyone must have their parents/guardian's signature to participate in this program. This program is for Shrewsbury students in grades 5-12.

No one comes in or out between 6 and 9! Registration and parent permission is Required for this event.

Image from http://www.correllconcepts.com/Pizza_Packaging/history.htm

Hmmmm...I think I slept through it

I'm sorry...I must have missed something. Did hell freeze over? It seems that it may have. I am proud to announce that I've finally discovered a Young Adult fantasy book
that I'm actually enjoying. To celebrate, I've picked it as our March book chat book: The Amulet of Samarkand by Jonathan Stroud! There are copies at the front desk if you'd like to join us on:

Thursday, March 15 at 3:30 PM.

As always, this group is for students in grades 5-12 and snacks will be provided! Come join in the celebration 'cause who know when I'll find another fantasy book I'll like! Everyone remember my thoughts on Eragon?

Big Day for Music

This past week had been a BIG week in the music industry! First, for all you rock fans out there,
Van Halen announced that they are going on tour with David Lee Roth for the first time in 20 years! To give you an idea of how important this is, think of it like this--David Lee Roth was the '80s version of Pete Wentz. Since the band has had a revolving door of lead singers, we'll have to watch and see how this plays out. I'm hoping for the best!
Then, My Chemical Romance announced their Spring '07 tour dates, and they're visiting beautiful Worcester, MA! May 8 at the DCU Center.
Fall Out Boy's new album comes out today, and they are also visiting MA--May 31 at the Tweeter Center. Click here for tickets.

Finally, tonight, Justin Timberlake is performing at the Garden in Boston. I'm so jealous of any of you out there who have tickets. I haven't seen him in concert since his 'NSYNC days.(5 times!!!)

College Funding Seminar

We're hosting a college planning seminar for all you college bound kids and parents. Straight from the press release:

"Learn the hidden financial traps before it’s too late, when applying for financial assistance that can end up costing you thousands of out-of-pocket dollars. Discover strategies that can save you big bucks, such as: the right way to position your assets to maximize aid, how to send your child to an expensive private university for less than a state school, or how to pick colleges that will give you the best financial packages.

This powerful workshop will guide parents through the process of college funding, from FAFSA applications to student aid reports, with descriptions of all the major grants and loans.

While this seminar is aimed primarily at upperclassmen and their parents, a note to parents of high school sophomores is in order: Now is the ideal time to arrange your finances in order to get the most financial aid possible, before your “base years” arrive!

This seminar will be repeated on March 6, April 11 and May 9. Call College Funding Architects at 800-975-6108 to register for the evening of your choice, or call the Library at 508-842-0081."

Next SPLAT meeting!

This is the perfect time to join SPLAT!We're having our first meeting of the new year on Saturday, February 10 at 10 AM and we've got a lot of stuff to cover: CD and DVD orders, programs, and other stuff like our SPLAT newsletter and summer plans (yes, I said summer). Fill out a form using the link on the right. Bring a drink; I'll provide donuts!

Niki Burnham at SPL!

Author Niki Burnham is coming to SPL! Tomorrow, Wednesday, January 17 at 6:30 PM. She'll be talking about her experiences as an author, answering your questions, and autographing books! Don't miss a visit from this very cool author. Click here to visit her website. Copies of her books will be available for purchase at the event.

Interesting Article

So this article appeared on the front page of the New York Times on Tuesday. Read it...and let me know what you think of the NJ library who couldn't "handle" the teens in the library, so they closed.

Happy Holidays!

Hope everyone out there has a great holiday! A reminder-the library closes today at 12 noon and reopens on Tuesday, 12/26 at 10 AM. And if you go to the movies this weekend, stay away from Eragon, especially if you liked the book. Come visit next week!

Less than a week till ERAGON: the movie!

ERAGONopens nationwide this Friday, December 15! We're having a book chat on the title on Thursday at 3:30 and then seeing the movie as a group on Friday!

Magic and D&D at the Library

So we're thinking of getting the groups back together again. Magic will tentativly meet on Tuesdays at 2:30 in the LOFT.

D&D will meet on Sundays at 1 in the LOFT.

These are great programs for beginners as well as experienced players. For students in grades 5-12.

Another Contest!

This one is cool!

Baker and Taylor is sponsoring a Teen Readers Sweepstakes.
All you have to do is vote for your favorite title from a list of YA books! Click here for the website. For more info and to get your ballots, see the display in the YA room at the library. We could win an author visit! Ballots must be mailed in together, so return them to me aftet you've filled them out. Also, you can only enter once. The contest ends on February 28, 2007.

New contest!

The library is holding a contest to design a graphic for our new "Kids Only" library cards! It can be hand drawn or computer generated, but it must fit into a space no larger than 3 1/4" x2 1/4", and use no more than 2 colors. Entries are due by 5 PM on November 30 . They can be submitted at the library or by emailing Linda Johnson at ljohnson@cwmars.org. Your design could be featured on Shrewsbury kids' first library cards!

Trick or Treat!!!

So we always do this thing for kids on Halloween called the Big Boo! They come in costume for a storytime. But, I've never done anything for teens on Halloween. So this year, I am. If you come into the library on Halloween--for books, homework, hang out--whatever, you'll get a nice little treat from me. Now, here's the catch. I'm not posting this anywhere else besides here and on MySpace. I want to see how many of you actually read this thing. Special thanks to whoever put this great suggestion in the YA suggestion box in the YA room (see, I do read them!)

Picture taken from Photo Creations by Jim Watters.

Arrggh!

Is there anything more annoying than homework? Yes, there is--homework that you can't figure out! We've just subscribed to a very cool service, Live Homework Help! It's an online real time chat with a licensed tutor! Every day, from 4 PM-10 PM, you can log on with your library card and received expert help for all your homework needs! Plus, it's FREE!!! Give and a try and let me know what you think.

Teens Rock the Common!

Our first concert on the common was a success! Over 150 people of all ages rocked out to SHS's own Midway and Intermission! Special thanks to the bands, Dan McGuire, the Shrewsbury Board of Selectman, and the First Congregational Church of Shrewsbury for being a part of this great program. For those of you who missed it, too bad! What a great show. Don't worry...we'll do it again next year!