"Holi" by Nikita Shalabh

I am very excited to be publishing this article by Nikita Shalabh.

“Holi” also called the festival of colors, is a popular Hindu festival that is celebrated in spring. It is observed in North India and Nepal but not in South India. In West Bengal, it is known as “Dolyatra (Doljatra)”.

My dad was born in North India and my mom was born in South India. My dad’s family celebrates Holi in a big way. They make lots of sweets like “Gunjia”. Holi takes place over a period of two days. On the first day, bonfires are lit at night to show burning of the demoness “Holika”. On the second day, also know as “Dhulendi”, people spend the whole day throwing colored powder and balloons filled with colored water at each other. The colored powder has a medical significance: the colors are made of Neem, Kumkum, Haldi, Bilva, and other medical herbs that have medicinal benefits.

A special drink called “thandai” is made, most of the time containing “bhang”. People invite friends and relatives for potlucks and group celebrations later in the evening.

According to the Hindu calendar, Holi can be on any day but it will always be around late February or early March. This year, in 2008, it occurred on March 22^nd.

Nowadays, people fill water guns with colored water and shoot the water at other people.

International Children's Digital Library

I discovered this website that is really cool! You can read books (yes, whole books) from the computer screen and in different languages. The site is really user-friendly and you can read the books without being a member. Kids, if you wish to become a member, first check with your parents. There is a FAQ page that parents can look at. You can also access the page by clicking on the URL under the Links column. Let us know if you like this website. Post your comments!

St.Patrick's Day and Holi

March 17th is St.Patrick's day. We will have a story time at 10:30 AM and crafts that you can make any time during the day.
Holi is the Indian festival of colors. It marks the end of winter and the arrival of spring. Come to the Children's Room at 10:30 AM to listen to some stories and make a craft. You can also come any time during the day to make the craft.

"A Moving Experience"

Most of you must already be aware of The Big Read that the whole Shrewsbury community is going to participate in. In the Children's room, we are going to highlight our books about immigration, frontier life in the nineteenth century, and stories of immigrants in the twentieth century. Ask your parents about your family's story - when your ancestors came to the US and their experiences in this land of opportunity.

During the April vacation, we are going to have Frontier Games on April 22nd (Register to play games with one of the Children's librarians at 10:00 AM, 1:00 PM, or 3:00PM) . On April 23rd, learn about Levi Pease, a Shrewsbury resident who was the first mailman. Learn about how people communicated before the age of the Internet. Register to attend this program at 1:30 PM. Crafts day is on April 24th. Register to attend this program at 2:30 and learn to make a punch tin lantern. April 25th is devoted to Frontier chores. Come any time between 10:00 AM and 4:00 PM to do some chores. You might even get to milk a cow! We are planning to have a lot of fun during this week and we welcome you to join us.

Newbery and Caldecott awards 2008

The Newbery and Caldecott awards were announced by the American Library Association. This year's Caldecott award for the Best Picture Book was a surprise - the award went to Brian Selznick's "Invention of Hugo Cabret" - a book that is not the size of a typical picture book and can be read and appreciated by older readers - especially readers who enjoy graphic novels. The Caldecott Honor went to four books - Ellen Levine's "Henry's Freedom Box," Laura Vaccaro Seeger's "First the Egg", Peter Sis's "The Wall: Growing up Behind the Iron Curtain," and Mo Willem's "Knuffle Bunny Too".

The Newbery Award went to Laura Amy Schiltz's "Good Masters, Sweet Ladies: Voices from a Medieval Village". The Newbery Honor was awarded to Christopher Paul Curtis's "Elijah of Buxton", Gary Schmidt's "Wednesday Wars" and Jacqueline Woodson's "Feathers".

February Vacation Programs

February vacation is from Feb 18th to Feb 22nd. The library will be closed on the 18th for President's Day. On the 19th (Tuesday) we have a special speaker from Wild Birds Unlimited who is going to tell us about Wild Bird Feeding. The activity also includes a craft. On the 20th (Wednesday), Mr. Raindrop returns to the library to talk about water conservation. He will explain the water cycle and kids get to make a terrarium. On the 22nd (Friday), we will have a President's Day craft ready for you that you can make any time between 10 AM and 4 PM.

We also have the usual programs in February - Baby and Me on Tuesdays at 10:30 AM (12th, 19th and 26th), Lunch Bunch on Wednesdays at 11:30 AM (13th, 20th and 27th), and Preschool Storytime on Thursdays at 10:30 AM (14th, 21st and 28th). Our very popular Read to a Dog program is on Feb 9th (Saturday at 9:30 AM) and Feb 23rd (Saturday at 9:30 AM). We have a special craft for Chinese New Year Day which is on Feb 7th. Drop in between 10 AM and 4 PM to make your craft.

Best interactive software

Great interactive software for kids announced

CHICAGO - The Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), has selected its Fall 2007 list of Great Interactive Software for Kids (GISK), which recognizes high-quality computer programs and digital media for children 14 years of age and younger.

The selected products are:

1701 AD. Aspyr Media. http://www.aspyr.com. Ages 10 and up.

Anime Studio. E-Frontier. http://www.e-frontier.com. Ages 10 and up.

Big Brain Academy. Nintendo. http://www.nintendo.com. Ages 6 and up.

Collage Machine. ProtoZone Interactive. http://www.protozone.net. All ages.

Crazy Machines 1.5. Viva-Media. http://www.viva-media.com. Ages 6 and up.

KaleidoDraw. ProtoZone Interactive. http://www.protozone.net. All ages.

Kaleidopix. ProtoZone Interactive. http://www.protozone.net. All ages.

Nancy Drew: The Creature of Kapu Cave. Her Interactive. http://www.herinteractive.com. Ages 10 and up.

Sid Meier's Railroads. Firaxis. http://www.firaxis.com. Ages 6 and up.

Snapshot Adventures: Secret of Bird Island. Large Animal Games. http://www.largeanimal.com. All ages.

http://www.ala.org/ala/pressreleases2007/december2007/interactive07.htm