Books Blog : red bank branch

Are you App Happy?

kiya@evpl — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 16:43:00 GMT

EVPL is presenting two programs on Apps for your Apple and Android products.

Apps Galore! is this coming Monday, March 5^th, at North Park Branch, 6:30 pm.
Amazing Apps will be Thursday, April 19^th, 6:30 pm at Red Bank Branch.

Come join us to learn more about cool stuff for your smartphone or tablet! Share your favorite app!

In the meantime, take a look at these books to learn more:

If you are in to developing Apps, there are even more books available!

Thinking About College - for students and parents

kiya@evpl — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 21:39:00 GMT

I'm a college mom now - dropped our son off at campus and came home alone. The school feels like a good fit for him, and we're pleased with how the admissions and financial aid worked out, though he is a little farther away than we had first imagined.

We got a tremendous amount of help from his school, which is small, with an exceptional counselor who gave him lots of individual attention. Still, I learned a lot from the College Prep programs we've hosted at Red Bank for the last several years. Many parents whose kids have gone to larger schools tell me that the programs have been invaluable to them.

Learn more about the programs here:

College Prep 1 - Choosing the Right School
College Prep 2 - Getting In: Applications and Admissions Interviews
College Prep 3 - Scholarships, Grants and Loans! Paying for College

In the meantime, here are a few of our new books on the subject:

Zoo Story: Life in the Garden of Captives by Thomas French

lit.fic.reader@evpl — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 17:23:00 GMT

"Eleven elephants. One plane. Hurtling together across the sky." From these opening sentences, I was captivated by this account of the inner workings of zoos, in particular Lowry Park Zoo in Tampa. The author is a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter and currently a professor of journalism at Indiana University.

There are many elements that combine to make this such an absorbing narrative. Woven throughout the book is discussion of the issues surrounding the pros and cons of holding animals in captivity and the attendant political implications, local and international. The daily challenge of providing for the well-being of the zoo's residents as well as the safety of its human visitors falls on the shoulders of a largely young, poorly paid, and overworked, if dedicated staff. The author intersperses these considerations with the histories of two of the zoo's most celebrated residents: a chimp who has never fully recovered from his separation from the human family that raised him until adolesence, and a stunningly beautiful but ferocious Sumatran tiger. The ultimate fates of these two animals, the "king" and "queen" of the Lowry Park Zoo, are sadly reflective of the shortcomings of institutions housing animals. Finally, a lighter tone is introduced with an amusing comparison of the behavior of the two-legged power brokers of the Tampa area and the zoo's overreaching director with that of the four-legged denizens of the zoo.

This is as enjoyable a nonfiction title as I've read in a long time and I highly recommend it for its thoughtful examination of the complexities of human-animal interactions.

In discussing the dangers of working with animals, the author makes brief reference to the Christmas Day 2007 attack by an escaped tiger at the San Francisco Zoo, resulting in one human death and another serious mauling; and to the horrific killing, in view of a shocked audience, of a trainer by an orca at Orlando's SeaWorld in February, 2010. An excellent article on the SeaWorld tragedy, "The Killer in the Pool" is in the July 2010 issue of Outside magazine, available at Central and North Park libraries, and is also highly recommended.

College Admissions - what is a parent to do?

kiya@evpl — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 22:35:00 GMT

It's late September. This year's juniors are getting ready to take the PSATs, and seniors are squeezing in one last SAT or ACT while starting college applications and essays. What is a parent to do? How do you help, but still let the kids take the lead in this College Admission process?

You could read all the books that give more than anyone needs to know about how to apply, where to apply, what to put on the essay... and share that information with your grateful teen.

Get Into College by Rachel Korn [well , that's pretty direct and simple]
The Complete Idiot's Guide to Getting in to Top Colleges by Marna Atkin [hmmm]
Making It into a Top College by Howard R. Greene
Fiske Countdown to College: 41 to-do lists and a plan for every year of high school by Edward Fiske [ really? 41 to-do lists?]
All the others

You could go online and meet other overwhelmed (and sometimes overwhelming!) parents on some of the online discussion boards. [note - be careful - some of these folks are REALLY intense]

You can make sure your kid knows about the free online test prep available through the library, and the free programs at the library offered by college counselors, university admissions and financial aid officers. And you can read some narrative non-fiction designed to let you look at the process.

Acceptance: a legendary guidance counselor helps seven kids find the right colleges - and find themselves by David Marcus
Fat Envelope Frenzy: one year, five promising students, and the pursuit of the Ivy League prize by Joie Jager-Hyman

Or you can read fiction about the Admissions process - and learn a little bit, in a more enjoyable way.

Admission, a novel by Jean Hanff Korelitz
Acceptance by Susan Coil
The Sleeping Beauty Proposal by Sarah Strohmeyer
PS, a novel by Helen Schulman

Whatever you choose, I wish you, and your teen, good luck.

Animal Dreams -- Books for Lunch at Red Bank Branch

Shh_ImReading@evpl — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 17:58:00 GMT

On Wednesday, April 8, 2009 at noon we will be discussing Animal Dreams by Barbara Kingsolver at Red Bank Branch Library. I could hardly put Animal Dreams down while I was reading it and I hope you'll enjoy it too. Codi, her father and the other characters are wonderful and the small town of Grace, Arizona captivated my imagination. Barbara Kingsolver is my mother's favorite author and she's been recommending her books to me for years. I'm so glad I've finally taken her advice! Please come and join us for the discussion; the more the merrier!

click here to visit author Barbara Kingsolver's website

Books for Lunch - Jane Eyre!

Guatemama@evpl — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 20:06:00 GMT

It is the book that started it all. The book that awakened my love of reading. It is Jane Eyre!

And this month it is the book that we will be discussing at Red Bank Branch library at our Books for Lunch discussion group.

So.... please come, bring your lunch, and join us as the ladies of Red Bank discuss Charlotte Bronte's timeless classic.

Wednesday March 11, 2009 - noon until 1:00 PM

Books for Lunch!

Guatemama@evpl — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 18:58:00 GMT

Join us at Red Bank Library on Wed. Jan. 14 at noon for our monthly Books for Lunch book discussion where local author, John McMullen, will be our guest. He will be on hand to talk about the many exciting books that he has written.

Defector from Hell

Roman: unparalleled outrage

Utopia Revisited

2084: Tomorrow is Today

The Last Blackrobe of Indiana and the Potawatomi trail of death

Poor Souls

So bring your lunch and come join in the fun!

Lottery -- Books For Lunch at Red Bank Branch

Shh_ImReading@evpl — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 15:58:00 GMT

On Wednesday, November 12, 2008 at noon we'll be discussing Lottery by Patricia Wood at Red Bank Branch Library. This is a great novel that will take you through a range of emotions and make you think a little bit. There should be plenty to discuss, so please bring your lunch and join us! We have copies of Lottery available for check-out at the Red Bank reference desk, including large print and CD audio.

Books for Lunch - October

Guatemama@evpl — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 23:39:00 GMT

Join us next week at Red Bank Branch library for our October - Books for Lunch - book discussion group. On Wednesday October 8, 2008 from noon until 1:00PM we will be discussing the books, Dear Mrs. Lindbergh by Kathleen Hughes and/or No More Words by Reeve Lindbergh. Both titles are available for checkout at Red Bank library.

Bring your lunch and eat with us while we talk about books!

The Food We Eat: New Ways of Thinking About Food

Shh_ImReading@evpl — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 18:01:00 GMT

Red Bank Branch has two upcoming events concerning our food and where it comes from.

On Wednesday September 24 at 6:30pm Marvin Kemper and Joe Schalansky of Seton Harvest will be speaking. Seton Harvest is a CSA, or community supported agriculture project.

Next, on Wednesday October 15 at 6:30pm Suzan Ozel of the River City Food Co-op will be speaking. The River City Food Co-op is a local source for whole foods, organic foods and local produce.

If you're interested in learning more about the food we eat, try these titles:

The Revolution Will Not Be Microwaved: Inside America's Underground Food Movements by Sandor Ellix Katz
Simply in Season: A World Community Cookbook by Mary Beth Lind and Cathleen Hockman-Wert
The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals by Michael Pollan
Coming Home to Eat: The Pleasures and Politics of Local Food by Gary Paul Nabhan
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life by Barbara Kingsolver, with Steven L. Hopp and Camille Kingsolver
Closing the Food Gap: Resetting the Table in the Land of Plenty by Mark Winne
Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal by Eric Schlosser
Feeding People is Easy by Colin Tudge
Everything I Want To Do is Illegal by Joel Salatin