News from KNOWhere - 1/31/08

February 1 is National Wear Red Day, which is an annual event to raise awareness of heart disease in women. It’s also the first day of Black History month and Library Lover’s Month – so come to the library Friday in your red dress or shirt and check out a book on black history!

Want to make your opinion known about a book? Go to this blog's sister site, the SJRLS Bookblog, sjrlsbooks.blogspot.com, and comment or recommend a book for review!

Wondering what the Not Yo Mama's high school book club book is? It's THE LAST BOOK IN THE UNIVERSE by Rodman Philbrick. If you're a teen who'd like to join us in reading it, come by the library and put your name on the list. As soon as it arrives, we'll give you a call and you can come pick it up and take it home to keep! The next meetings will be 4pm January 27 in Millen and 4pm Thursday, January 28 in Sylvania.

Want to know what the middle school Not Yo Mama's book is? We haven't decided! Come to the library at 4pm Wednesday, January 20 in Millen or 4 pm Thursday, January 21 in Sylvania to cast your vote!

The library does have copies of the federal income tax forms available for anyone who needs them. Unfortunately, the state forms have not come in yet. You'll have to download the forms off of the state's site until they do.

News from Screven

We’d like to send a big thank-you to Dr. Charles Cravey and everyone who contributed to making this Sunday’s concert over at First Methodist Church a success! Dr. Cravey kindly offered to donate the funds raised by the concert to the Friends of the Library, and we really appreciate that his hard work in gathering the artists who performed and organizing the event has given the Friends a big boost that will help the library to do even more great stuff for the people of Screven County! Missed the concert? I’m sure that Dr. Cravey would be more than happy to let you buy a copy of the CD from him!

We'll be having a great time on Thursday, February 14 at 4 pm with our creative craft day! All ages are welcome, just make sure to sign up ahead of time so that we can make sure to have all the materials you'll need to have a fun (and free) time!

The board of the Friends of the Screven County Library will be meeting at 7 pm on Thursday, February 7 at the library. Committee chairs are particularly urged to attend!

News from Jenkins

Come join us Wednesdays at 4 pm for our wonderful storytimes! Bring your children after school to listen to a story and do a creative craft project. It's a fun way to help your children learn and grow up to be smart and successful adults!



Now, on to the books!

THE ABSTINENCE TEACHER by Tom Perrotta. Stonewood Heights is the perfect place to raise kids – good schools, solid values, a real all-American suburb. Ruth Ramsey is a human sexuality teacher at the high school, who becomes the target of a public crusade led by a local soccer coach who doesn’t like what she’s teaching. But when a controversy on the soccer field pushes the two of them together, they have to look beyond their obvious differences to the ways that they’re the same.

A WANTED MAN by Linda Lael Miller. The past tends to catch up with folks in Stone Creek, and the local schoolmarm and marshal are about to learn that the hard way. Add to that the smoldering attraction they’ve felt for each other from the moment they met, and you’ve got a lit fuse that’s ready to explode.

CHASING FIREFLIES by Charles Martin. “Never settle for less than the truth,” he was told. But when you don’t even know your real name, truth can be an elusive thing, and can even flourish inside a lie.

CHARLIE WILSON’S WAR: THE EXTRAORDINARY STORY OF THE LARGEST COVERT OPERATION IN HISTORY by George Crile. The plot reads like something out of a John Le Carre novel – a whiskey-swilling Congressman and a rogue CIA operative conspire to launch the biggest covert operation in US history. But it’s real, and you can find out how we became allies with men who are now leading the current wave of Islamic terrorism.

KNIT TOGETHER: DISCOVER GOD’S PATTERN FOR YOUR LIFE by Debbie Macomber. Debbie Macomber was a slow reading dyslexic ten year old when she started writing, and did so poorly in school that her third-grade teacher once said that she was “such a nice little girl, but she’ll never do well in school.” But Debbie felt called to write, and is now one of the most popular authors out there.

Just a click will take you to any of these cool websites!

OpenCourseWare
This initiative from the famed Massachusetts Institute of Technology isn’t a replacement for a degree from MIT – but it’s the next best thing. Over 1800 free online courses – nearly the entire curriculum at the college – are available to anyone who has Net access. Not quite ready for college? Check out Highlights for High School, which offers introductory courses in biology, calculus and physics, as well as videos of competitions, learning labs and much more.

The Blues, Black Vaudeville, and the Silver Screen, 1912-1930s
This "online collection consists of selected correspondence, financial records, contracts, and advertising materials" relating to the Douglass Theatre in Macon, Georgia, historically "a preeminent entertainment venue for African American Georgians outside of Atlanta" that featured legendary blues performers, vaudeville acts, and silent films. Browse by title, subject, and other factors. Includes an essay on the theater, a related finding aid, suggested readings, and a list of related archival materials. From the Digital Library of Georgia.

Financial Times In Depth: US Elections 2008
News and analysis about the 2008 U.S. presidential election, along with interactive features, candidate profiles and interviews, and other material about the election. From the Financial Times, a British publication that features world business, financial, and political news.

22nd Century
Website for the pilot episode of a 2007 PBS program about technology and innovation. Features video of stories about cochlear implants, "eyetap" ("glasses that continuously record what you see and have the ability to interject new information into what you are watching"), an electrode implanted in the brain of a man to restore communication abilities lost in an accident, and related topics. Also includes interviews, writings, and links to related resources.

The Continuous Commitment: African Americans in the American Red Cross
This exhibit highlights "a small portion of the contributions made by African Americans yesterday and today" to the American Red Cross. Some of the topics include abolitionist Frederick Douglass' participation with Clara Barton in the founding and continued efforts of the American Red Cross, African American involvement in the Red Cross during World War II, and the development of the African American HIV/AIDS Program. From the American Red Cross.

Well, that’s it for now – see you at the library!