Do you have a teen who might be looking for something interesting to read? The Toronto Public Library runs a great service for teens called “The List”. They interview teen readers in their branches about great new books they’ve read, and why they thought they were fantastic.
Drop by their page to hear more, and get a new reading list for summer!
In late April, our young readers who participated in Forest of Reading™ at the library, voted on their favourite books and joined us for a celebration party. Our choices were:
Blue Spruce® — TRICKY by Kari Rust
Silver Birch Express® — TANK & FIZZ: THE CASE OF FIREBANE’S FOLLY by Liam O’Donnell
Silver Birch Fiction® — FALCON WILD by Terry Lynn Johnson
Red Maple® — THE ASSASSIN’S CURSE by Kevin Sands
We sent all of our votes (even the ones that weren’t the local winners) to Toronto, and the final winners were recently announced. They were:
Blue Spruce® — BARNABY NEVER FORGETS by Pierre Collet-Derby
Silver Birch Express® — MEET VIOLA DESMOND by Elizabeth MacLeod
Silver Birch Fiction® — CHASE: GET READY TO RUN by Linwood Barclay
and
Red Maple® — A WORLD BELOW by Wesley King
Congratulations to all of the winners!
We all read differently. Some of us prefer to read one book at a time, while others like to have multiple books on the go. Some readers devote entire days to finishing a book, while some can only manage to read a few paragraphs before bed each night. Whatever type of reader you may be, we all love books, and that’s the most important thing!
Since we’ve finished up with tax season, many of you might be wondering how to enjoy more out of life without racking up debt. Recently, I came across a great post about how to travel, get things you really want, and save money—all without having a rich uncle leave you a fortune.
The strategy is simple…..live within your means. Nothing fancy. Nothing requiring lots of study or investing. Just live within your means and save for the things you really want. It’s certainly doable….you just have to commit to doing it. (Of course, for some, this might be advice that comes too late. But there are still great hints here to help you find some extra places to save!)
You can read the whole article here, called “The Totally Unsexy Skill That Makes it Easier to Go After What You Want”. It has some great tips for lifestyle choices you can make, as well as solid savings advice.
If you’d like more on this topic of living debt-free, we have some great books at the library, including Christine Conway’s THE DEBT-FREE LIFESTYLE. Drop in and we can show you were to find it and more books like it on the shelf.
If you’re thinking about traveling in the near future, you might think that packing your suitcase is a simple thing. We’ve all heard the tricks—roll up your clothing so that it doesn’t wrinkle, purchase small containers to transfer your shampoo into, and make sure not to pack any scissors or knives in your carry on.
But Marie Kondo takes packing to a new level. We’ve all heard of her book THE LIFE CHANGING ART OF TIDYING UP, and many have tried her home organization tips seen in her Netflix show. Did you know she also offers packing tips for the busy traveler?
Take a few minutes to work out her suggestions, and you’ll wind up at your destination looking wrinkle-free, and with plenty of space to bring home a few trinkets.
Where are you going this spring or summer?
One of our staff members, Judi, always aims to read 100 books a year. Some years, she’s finished early. Other years, she’s come up a little short. But while 100 books doesn’t sound like a lot over 365 days, it is, especially if you’re choosing books that average 350 pages or more.
I came across a fun post recently that gives some great tips to get that reading in…and meet your goal. While this is often done as a New Year’s Resolution, you can start this goal anytime….just read from April to April, or July to July. There are no rules here.
The article talks about bringing books with you everywhere you go, adding in audiobooks (because you can play them while you’re driving and thereby find more “reading” time in a day), scheduling your reading to optimize your time, and leaving books in visible areas around your home to remind you to read.
Personally, this type of reading goal would stress me out. It’s not that I don’t want to read lots of books in one year, but if I knew I was falling behind (because, hey, I would), it would discourage me overall. I want reading to be fun, a way to escape, with no rules or expectations around it. if you’re the same, you probably don’t belong to any book clubs or use Goodreads, and that’s okay. Read as many books as you like. I won’t judge.
You can read the entire article about reading 100 books in a year here.
Do you or your children use our French resources, or take out French books from the library? We find that some people know what we have available at the library…and some people don’t. To make matters a little easier, we’ve got some fresh new brochures that will explain exactly what we offer, how to order something we don’t have, and what you can find online.
Feel free to download one of the brochures, or stop in to pick one up. We have tons of great books, homework help resources online, and even a weekly French Storytime on Saturdays at 1pm…all ages welcome!
