Katherine Lanpher

I went to see Katherine Lanpher do a music-accompanied reading from hernew book "Leap Days: Chronicles of a Midlife Move" at the Fitzgerald Theater. As you may know, she was a columnist for the Pioneer Press, then the host of Midmorning on MPR and then left MN to work with Al Franken on his radio show in NY.
The book is about her decision to move from St. Paul, her long-time,beloved home town, to NY, where she know nobody but a few of the people she was going to be working with, and her growth and adjustment in her new life. She was very entertaining, and the book sounds like it'll probably be good.
Katherine Lanpher is pretty popular here. I tuned into her being interviewed by Gary Eichten on Midday while she was in town for thereading, and the audience's response to her was amazing.
We currently have 35 holds on 10 copies of the book.

Melissa.

Craft Weblinks

Hey all,

There's now a Craft Weblinks group full of fabulous, crafty stuff. Take a look and enjoy. Hopefully the patrons will as well. :)

Melissa.

New Web Site

Ever helped a patron with a tough crossword puzzle clue and wished that there was a web page that would assist you? Well, now there is! Let your crossword-loving patrons know about OneAcross.


Web site submitted by Terry

Rondo's Electronic Classroom

Check out these exciting classes available for the public at Rondo's Electronic Classroom!

Web 2.0 Powerpoint

Here is the Powerpoint for my presentation on Library 2.0 for teens. It can be adapted for parents, seniors, or staff. If anyone is interested in such a presentation, please let me know.


Andrea

CLASS REPORT

THE IN’S AND OUT’S OF OPEN WORLDCAT AND WORLDCAT.ORG

Open Worldcat and Worldcat.org were created by OCLC to help prospective patrons who are used to popular Internet search engines, but intimidated by library catalogs and databases, find library materials. Librarians will still want the sophisticated search options of the Worldcat database, but since patrons may find our materials this way, we should know about it.

Open Worldcat integrates OCLC records into commonly used search engines such as Yahoo! and Google. Searching for “Guns, Germs and Steel” will bring the user to a “Find in a library” search result, although they have to page down to the third page of results. If the user adds “+worldcat” or “find in a library” to a search, it will come up first. This leads to a record which asks for a zip code to find the closest libraries. Clicking on “St. Paul Public Library” takes them right to our catalog. They also have the option of writing a review of the book and purchasing it through an online bookseller. Only around 4 million of the 70 million Worldcat records are available through Open Worldcat right now.

Wordcat.org offers searching of all 70 million records from a clean, Google-like interface. Unlike MNLink, materials can be limited by format through a “refine your search” option. RSS feeds are available and anyone can add the Worldcat search box to their web page. If users have the Google Toolbar on their browser, it automatically has a Worldcat search, while the Yahoo! Toolbar and the Firefox browser search extension can be modified to have that option.

Thing to consider include the fact that not all libraries are OCLC members, that the zip code search may bring up college libraries that the patron cannot borrow from before public libraries, and that only one zip code is assigned to each library. St. Paul Public is assigned the zip code of the Materials Management Center, so patrons in Merriam Park will get Minneapolis as a first choice.

--Andrea

Adult Programs at Central

Saturday, November 4th, Central will have TWO exciting adult programs. At 1:00 pm Minnesota Historical Society will present a program of two films exploring the lives and legacy of Minnesota's Greatest Generation. MHS staff members will be on hand to discuss ways to document your own family's heritage. This is one of a series of programs held throughout metro libraries and is sponsored by MELSA.

At 2:00 pm the Friends are hosting a poetry reading by the Laurel Poetry Collective. It will be held in the Fitzgerald Alcove.

Another Friends program scheduled for the Fitzgerald Alcove is a free noontime concert by the Rose Ensemble on Wed. Nov. 1.

New Collectibles Database Trials

Check out two new database trials for collectibles. Mark has put the links and passwords on the Intranet. Try them out as you help patrons in the Mississippi Room or elsewhere, and send me any comments.


Andrea

Engaging Youth on their Own Terms: Instant Messaging and Gaming in Libraries

This webinar, presented by the author of the famous Librarian in Black blog, is taking place on Tuesday, Oct. 10 from 10-11.



Andrea

Book Club Update

Central's Book Club has begun and members chose books for the November and December meetings. On November 6th, the group will discuss One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. December 4th's book is Team of Rivals; the Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln by Doris Kearns Goodwin. Have you read these books? Are you interested in moderating? Let me know.


Barb S.

Teen Events at Central

Did you know that Teen Read Week is October 15-21? Here at Central, we will be celebrating with activities and events throughout the month (and beyond!).

Beginning October first, teens can submit a drawing of their favorite anime or manga character reading a book for our first ever READ Poster Contest. The winning drawing will be featured on a READ poster to be displayed in the Skinner Room.

Our brand new series of Teen Creative Writing Workshops begins on Wednesday, October 11 and continues throughout the school year on the second Wednesday of every month from 3:30-5pm. This month's theme will be Getting Started-- writing prompts and journaling ideas.

On Saturday, October 21, teens are invited to join us for the first ever Anime/Manga Festival at Central. At this festival, teens can get a caricature of themselves as an anime character, watch a film, have popcorn and pizza, and vote on their favorite entry in the READ poster contest. Watch for more details coming soon!

Laura

Book Chat

Do you have a great idea for a book chat at Zelda's? Terry is doing his "Beyond Bizarre" program appropriately on Halloween. In November Shelly and I will do book chats on great gift books for children and adults. Email me with ideas for future book chats you would like to present!

Barbara Sippel

Book Club

Central is starting a book club! The first meeting is Monday, Oct. 2nd. The club will meet the first Monday of each month from 6:30-7:30 PM in the Meeting Room. I will moderate the first meeting with a discussion of The Painted Drum by Louise Erdrich. Book club members and staff interested in moderating will be choosing the titles for discussion. Anyone interested in moderating future book club meetings should contact me.

Barbara Sippel