Monday, September 28, 2009

Did you see our pumpkin?

The Library displayed our Big Read 2009 pumpkin this past Sunday - did you see it? If you missed the lineup, here's a picture of the carved out creation we put together. What do you think? You can blow the picture up just by clicking on it:

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Meet the Baskets (Click to Enlarge)

Stop in the library before Nov. 20th to purchase your tickets. 100% of the proceeds go to sponsoring teen events and materials at the library! Click on any picture to enlarge and see what's inside each basket!

Ticket prices:
1 for $1
6 for $5
15 for $10










Thursday, September 17, 2009

Teen Trivia Showdown Pictures


Last night, about 22 teens from Central Mass gathered at the Shrewsbury Public Library to take part in the first ever "Youth Trivia Showdown!" We also had a great group of other teens, parents, and siblings cheering on from the crowd! A special thanks to ULTRA, teens from Upton, as well as Sutton, for joining in on the fun! Also, I want to say a very special thanks to Dunkin' Donuts of Shrewsbury who sponsored the event!! Here are some pictures from last night - no specific names will be used in this post:






The Runner-Up (left or top, depending on monitor size) & The Winner (right or bottom)


Interesting Survey Facts from the Competition:

Out of 23 responses, teens prefer ("neither" was also an option - so if the numbers don't add up to 23, that means more selected "neither"!) ....

Facebook (12) to Myspace (0)
Harry Potter (12) to Bella Swan (4)
Transformers (15) to G.I. Joe (2)
Moe's (11) to Qdoba (3)
(tie) Papa Ginos (10) to Dominos (10)
Chocolate Ice Cream (12) to Vanilla Ice Cream (11)
Coke (13) to Pepsi (6)
Fall (15) to Winter (5)
Dogs (12) to Cats (7)
Survivor (10) to American Idol (3)
Hannah Montana (3) to Jonas Brothers (1) (yes, neither received 19 votes!)
Math (11) to History (10)
Rock Band (10) to Guitar Hero (8)
(tie) XBOX 360 (10) to Wii (10)
Democrats (13) to Republicans (2)
Dunkin Donuts (18) to Starbucks (3)

Monday, September 07, 2009

WRITING COMPETITION IS ON!!

CLICK THE GRAPHIC BELOW TO PRINT THE OFFICIAL ENTRY FORM, OR PICK ONE UP AT THE LIBRARY. READ ALL THE RULES - LAST YEAR WE HAD TO WEED OUT A FEW ENTRIES FOR NOT FOLLOWING THE RULES. LAST YEAR WE HAD 82 ENTRIES, LET'S SEE IF WE CAN BEAT THAT THIS YEAR!! HAPPY WRITING!




Thursday, August 27, 2009

EXCITING UPCOMING EVENT!

EXCITING UPCOMING EVENT:
Youth Trivia Showdown

Wednesday, September 16th, 6:30PM

If you're a trivia buff, or just seem to know a lot of useless information, it's time to put your skills to good use! Teens and 'tweens from any central Massachusetts town are invited to the SPLAT "Youth Trivia Showdown!" Covering topics like movies, music, history, science, local interest, and some surprises, this event is something not to miss! Register by calling the Shrewsbury Public Library at 508-842-0081 ext. 5. If you leave a voicemail message, be sure to include your age, town, and phone number. FREE OF CHARGE until slots are filled. Teams will be comprised of members from each community, so we'll see which Central Mass town has the smartest (or luckiest!) teens and 'tweens! There will be free pizza and plenty of prizes!

Monday, August 10, 2009

Friday, July 31, 2009

New Things!!

Stop by the Loft to see a great new addition - artwork from Shrewsbury teen Angela Zhou. I am no art critic, but I think the work is great! Also, be sure to check out great France posters in the YA Book Room.

In other news...

The library is now circulating "The Way Cool Game of Science" - a series of DVD games that feature Bill Nye the Science Guy. You can check out two at a time - they are shelved behind the DS games.

All right, that's all I've got for now!

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Seen Harry Potter Yet?

If you've seen the new Harry Potter movie, e-mail me your review along with a star rating (one star to four stars, four being the best) and I'll post it on this blog! dbarbour@cwmars.org

Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince Premiere at the Ziegfeld Theater

Tuesday, June 30, 2009

New Poll

It's the battle of the ages!!!

Well, maybe not, but still - vote in this month's poll to support two of the most popular book series of our time. Do you prefer Harry Potter or Bella Swan? Do you like wizards or vampires? Check back often to see how the voting goes!

Also, welcome Marlboro readers - last month we actually had more readers from Marlboro than Shrewsbury!

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

www.readsinma.org/shrewsbury


Area 609 is now open!!

This is the 2009 Summer Reading Program for Teens and 'Tweens in grades 5-12. Register at the link above (you will have to select the Area 609 tab) to begin entering your books and following clues to win prizes!

Monday, June 15, 2009

Updates!

Hello everyone! Here are some updates...

*The Shrewsbury Public Library is now on reduced hours due to budget cuts. The biggest differences you will see it that we are no longer open on Thursday nights, and every day we open at 10AM as opposed to before where we opened at 9AM on certain days. Also, Saturday, June 27th, will be the final Saturday we are open until the fall.

*The Shrewsbury Federal Credit Union made a generous donation to the library by sponsoring Optimal Resume - an online resume creator that is state of the art. It's never too early to start learning how to write a resume, and it will impress anyone you might be looking to get a job with for the summer. You need a valid library card to log-on (which you can do from home!), but it's free thanks to the Shrewsbury Federal Credit Union! For more information, click here.

*We are now taking sign-ups for the Heritage Night. For the event to go off, we need to have people sign up to take different country booths. Find out more information in the previous post (below).

*I am looking for ideas for educational DVDs to purchase - preferably career skills titles. If you have any ideas, e-mail them to me: dbarbour@cwmars.org

*A bunch of new manga is on the way. Thanks to the SHS Manga Club for all of the great suggestions.

Peace!
Dan Barbour
Young Adult Librarian

Tuesday, June 09, 2009

Heritage Night - NEW DATE SET

Due to a poor date selection, the previous Heritage Night event was postponed from this past May. The new date is Monday, July 13th, from 6:30PM-8:30PM - if you are running a booth, the room will be open from 4:00PM-6:30PM for you to put things together.

If you don't remember or were too busy to notice what the event is, it's a cultural event run by students in grades 5-12. What you need to do is select a country and prepare a booth in our large meeting room to show off that culture. You do not have to be from that country - you just need to research it. Japan, China, and India have been taken so far, but there are plenty more countries to go around!

Prepare things like snacks, music, outfits, and other items to educate visitors on your chosen country. The country team that puts together the best booth as determined by judges will walk away with a great mystery prize valued at $100 thanks to Dunkin Donuts in Shrewsbury.

Like before, we need at least five booths or the event will be canceled. E-mail me to register or stop by the library. If you had signed up before, you have your country reserved - please just confirm with me that you still want to do the event.

**HELP** Below is a poster I designed to promote the event in town. Please print off as many as you can and put them up everywhere!! If you see a spot with ads, ask if this can be put up too! I really would appreciate your help with this, even if you cannot come to the event! Thanks!


CLICK GRAPHIC TO EXPAND




Further information below:

Register your country at the library now. There will be only one booth allowed per country, but no limit to the number of people helping at that booth. The first person to sign up for each country will be in charge of that specific booth, but must provide contact information if others want to help them with that country. Participants have to be in grades 5-12, but do not have to be from the country they are representing. Instead, everyone involved in running a booth must be educated about their chosen country. There is no charge for this event, but people running a booth must provide all of the items and materials.

Thanks,
Dan Barbour
Young Adult Librarian
Shrewsbury Public Library



Monday, June 08, 2009

Dan in Japan

Hello friends!

So I can now tell you a little bit of information about "my adventure" as referred to in previous posts. Some of you know that I was cast on the reality program "I Survived a Japanese Gameshow." If you've seen "Hell's Kitchen", it's sort of like that show, but replace cooking with crazy, off-the-wall, colorful games, and a yelling head chef with a comical Japanese host. I cannot legally say any more, other than you can watch the show on ABC beginning on June 17th (a date that has changed recently - the original date was in July) at 9PM.

I hope you watch, cheer me on, and stop by the library to tell me what you thought!

Here are some neat links with more info - please note that I did not write ANY of this information as I am not allowed to give away info until I either win or am eliminated from the show:

Cast Picture and Information
I Survived A Japanese Game Show - Home - ABC.com

Peace!

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

A Memorial Day Poem

Thank you to Sahil Suresh for sending us this poem! Leave your comments below.

Stop and Think

A Memorial Day Poem by Sahil Suresh

Imagine you were outside playing with your friends on May 25,
Take a moment to stop and think on those who helped to make America what it is now,
Memorial Day is the time of the year when we recognize the superior deeds the U.S. Army did for our country,
It’s the time of the year when we realize who were the people that fought for our country,
The people that risk their lives,
Just to protect our country,
The U.S. Army defends our country no matter what,
They are the true audacious and fearless heroes in our life,
Memorial Day is a day not only dedicated to those war heroes,
Such as Grant or Washington,
But to those soldiers whose names are unheard of,
Memorial Day is the day when we identify those soldiers who died,
And let them know that there death wasn’t in vain,
Because these soldiers died for our country,
They molded America into what it is now,
Memorial Day is the day we acknowledge the people that serve our country,
To those who are currently serving our country,
Or to those served our country at one point,
Memorial Day is when we recognize these people,
We acknowledge them not only for the excellent deeds they have done for our country,
But for their Bravery and Courage,
So next time it’s Memorial Day,
Stop and think,
On those that helped to make America what it is now.

Monday, May 18, 2009

Thursday, May 14, 2009

This is a pretty cool video....

Now, keep in mind, the following e-video is from a book publishing company, but the statistics are a good thing to show parents who may not totally be sold on the idea of graphic novels. What do you think?

Making of a Graphic Novel from Capstone Publishers on Vimeo.

Monday, May 04, 2009

WOW!!

Keep voting and telling your friends to watch the show - but great job in already voting over 35 times in a matter of days!

Peace,
Dan

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Shrewsbury Teens on TV!!

WATCH THE SHOW AND VOTE ABOVE!!!

The show will begin by May 5th, and air for at least two weeks.

SPLAT Teen Writing Competition can be seen on SETV channel 29.

Mondays at 8:30pm & 11pm

Tuesdays at 5:20pm

Wednesdays a t 5:52am

Thursdays a t 4:30pm

Fridays at 6:30pm & 10:30pm

Saturdays at 7pm

This show can be seen at these times until May 17th - when voting closes. The show may air after that, but votes will not be accepted. The contestant who gets the most votes will win a $50 Borders gift card. The voting results will not be revealed until the end of the competition, and the winner will be posted here on or around May 20th.

Feel free to forward this to as many people you know in town! Remember, one vote per computer, so it's up to you to get the word out about voting!

I cannot wait to see how it all turns out, so spread the word and happy voting!!

Sincerely,
Dan Barbour
Young Adult Librarian
Shrewsbury Public Library

Monday, April 27, 2009

TEEN WRITING COMPETITION
HITS THE SMALL SCREEN
AND ONLINE VOTING BEGINS SOON!
Back in March, 13 students from grades 5-12 entered a unique writing contest at the Shrewsbury Public Library. They had three hours to write a story that would take only three minutes to read and present to what they thought would be a small crowd.
There were a couple of surprises though, and one of them is that they would not only be reading their stories for the other participants, but also for the entire Shrewsbury community.

Thanks to SETV Channel 29 and Library Trustee Laurie Hogan, the presentations will soon be airing for a two-to-three week period in which online voting will be conducted. The 40 minute program will let the public decide who they think did the best job. The student who receives the most votes will win a special prize!
So tune in and catch the presentations, and then come back here to vote.
Voting will begin soon and run for about two weeks.

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

We Need Volunteers!

HERITAGE NIGHT

THURSDAY, MAY 28th - 6:00-8:00PM

We are looking for teenagers who can set up booths in our large meeting room to represent different countries.

These participants should:

... come dressed in clothing from their chosen country.
... bring games and toys from their chosen country.
... teach other participants words from the language of their chosen country.
...bring candy and appetizers from their chosen country.
...provide detailed information for participants to take home with them.

Judges will vote on their favorite country booth, and the winners will take home a great prize!

Register your country at the library now. There will be only one booth allowed per country, but no limit to the number of people helping at that booth. The first person to sign up for each country will be in charge of that specific booth, but must provide contact information if others want to help them with that country. So far India and China have been taken.

Participants have to be in grades 5-12, but do not have to be from the country they are representing. Instead, everyone involved in running a booth must be educated about their chosen country. There is no charge for this event, but people running a booth must provide all of the items and materials.