The Library of Michigan has announced their 2010 list of Michigan Notable Books – 20 books that highlight Michigan people, places and events. This year’s selections emphasize the state’s legacy of perseverance. Check them out!

American Salvage: Stories by Bonnie Jo Campbell (also a 2009 National Book Award Finalist)

Annie’s Ghosts: a Journey into a Family’s Secret by Steve Luxenberg

The Art Student’s War: a Novel by Brad Leithauser

Bath Massacre: America’s First School Bombing by Arnie Bernstein

Fordlandia: the Rise and Fall of Henry Ford’s Forgotten Jungle City by Greg Grandin

Have a Little Faith: a True Story of a Last Request by Mitch Albom

Isadore’s Secret: Sin, Murder and Confession in a Northern Michigan Town by Mardi Link

January’s Sparrow by Patricia Polacco

The Lost Tiki Palaces of Detroit: Stories by Michael Zadoorian (book group members have been giving his recent novel, The Leisure Seeker, rave reviews)

Michigan’s Columbus: the Life of Douglass Houghton by Steve Lehto

Nothing but a Smile: a Novel by Steve Amick

Orlando M. Poe: Civil War General and Great Lakes Engineer by Paul Taylor

Our People, Our Journey: the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians by James M. McClurken

Pandora’s Locks: the Opening of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway by Jeff Alexander

Roses and Revolutions: the Selected Writings of Dudley Randall ed. by Melba Joyce Boyd

Seasons of Water and Ice by Donald Lystra

Stitches: a Memoir by David Small (a 2010 Book Discussion Group pick)

Travelin’ Man: on the Road and Behind the Scenes with Bob Seger by Tom Weschler

Up the Rouge!: Paddling Detroit’s Hidden River by Joel Thurtell

When March Went Mad: the Game that Transformed Basketball by Seth Davis

Since her graduation from Manchester High School, Jennifer Carson has been busy! She and her family live in New Hampshire, where she creates a variety of wonderful things – from dyed wool to dragons. Her creativity and imagination recently led her to publish a book, too. And on Nov. 22, she’ll be here to share it with us!

Join us a 2pm on Sunday, Nov. 22 to welcome Jennifer back to town, and pick up a copy of her book To Find a Wonder, too. If you’d like to pre-order a copy so that you can have her sign it, please give the library a call at 734-428-8045.

For more information about Jennifer and her art, visit her site at www.thedragoncharmer.com.

For more information about Jennifer’s first book To Find a Wonder, visit tofindawonder.com.

Stop by the library this weekend and play a game! We’re celebrating National Gaming Day on Saturday with a variety of board games for all ages. You can learn a new game (we’ll have several to try), play an old favorite, stay for a few minutes, or play games all afternoon.

No registration required; all ages invited!

Whether or not you know a veteran, Nov. 11 is a day to pause and remember all those who’ve served in the armed forces.

PBS will be premiering the movie The Way We Get By, a documentary about 3 senior citizens who greet troops coming home from deployment in Bangor, Maine. Check here for local listing information.

The Way We Get By – Trailer from The Way We Get By on Vimeo.

Little things mean a lot during long, stressful deployments. Here are a few ways to help support troops in the field.

• If you’re a reader and have paperbacks to share, sign up for Operation Paperback, a service that matches soldiers in the field with volunteers who select and mail them paperback books.
• Want to send more than books? AnySoldier.com will match you with soldiers who don’t often get mail — send them small care packages and notes to show you care.
• If you’re into scrapbooking or other paper crafts, you can donate handmade cards to soldiers through Operation Write Home. Your cards are sent to soldiers serving abroad, who then use them to keep in touch with their family and friends at home.
• And last but not least, if you collect frequent flyer miles and don’t use them, donate them to Hero Miles. The program buys airline tickets for family members of service members who are hospitalized due to war injuries, and for service members traveling to receive treatment.

The MeL Study is here! In an effort to continue improving MeL resources including  MeLCat so libraries and Michigan residents get the most benefit from the program, the Library of Michigan has contracted with EPIC MRA to do a study on the Michigan eLibrary.

The study includes a phone survey to the general public, an online questionnaire for library administrators and staff, and an online questionnaire for the public.

Please respond to the library online survey. We need to hear from as many library users – public library patrons, teachers, university students and faculty, K-12 students – as possible. The surveys and data analysis will be done this fall and the results will be available this winter.

Click Here for the Survey

Thank you for your participation!

The last few days, we’ve been hearing about kids missing school due to the flu, and everyone seems to have questions and concerns about vaccines for both regular and H1N1 flu. Here are a few resources that might be helpful:

• First off: what exactly IS the flu? Influenza (flu) at MayoClinic.com
• If you know kids who enjoy Sid the Science Kid (mine do!), you might want to watch this fun video showing how to avoid getting sick.
• Are your children school-age? Get the latest on student illnesses and vaccine clinics: Health Information at Manchester Community Schools
• The Washtenaw County Public Health Department is the place to check for the latest news about seasonal and H1N1 flu vaccine availability.
• Check the Michigan Department of Community Health for the numbers on current H1N1 activity (numbers of people infected).

General good hygiene is the best way to avoid spreading or getting the flu, so we’ll be stocking up on tissues, antibacterial wipes, and hand sanitizer at the library.

Below is a link to a slide show from our fun afternoon with Fancy Nancy. Youth Services staff Anne and Karen threw a great party, and everyone had a good time!

The youth services department is throwing their next party on Saturday, October 24, just in time for Halloween. The Happy Halloween Party will start at 1pm and is open to all kids ages 5 and up. Wear your costume and come prepared to play games, tell jokes, and enjoy a few not-too-spooky stories. You’ll have a spook-tacular time!

For additional activities and events this winter, keep an eye on the library’s calendar.

See you soon!

Voting for this year’s Book Group Open House is now open!

For the 3rd year in a row, we’re offering a list of suggestions for next year’s Book of the Month list. Vote for your favorites and help us select what to read!

Voting in the library ends at 4 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 26. On-line voting ends on Monday, Sept. 29 at 10 a.m.

CLICK HERE TO TAKE THE SURVEY
Thanks for your participation!

Michigan author Deborah Diesen will be at Manchester District Library on Tuesday, Oct. 6 to read her book The Pout-Pout Fish and present a special program for preschoolers (ages 3-5).

The Pout-Pout Fish introduces a fish with a pouty mouth and a gloomy attitude. His ocean-dwelling friends try to cheer him, but he resists their efforts, claiming “I’m a pout-pout fish/With a pout-pout face/So I spread the dreary-wearies/All over the place.” Eventually, one special friend helps the Pout-Pout Fish turn his “dreary wearies” into “cheery-cheeries.” A Time Magazine’s Top 10 Children’s Books of 2008, the book’s “…winning artwork…oozes personality” (Kirkus Reviews). The Pout-Pout Fish was selected for the 2009 Michigan Reads! One State, One Children’s Book program.

Ready to read The Pout-Pout Fish? Check out a copy from the library!

The program begins at 10:30 a.m. No registration is required. You may bring your own copy of the book to be signed, if you like. For more information, contact Heather Sturm (hsturm [at] manchesterlibrary.info), or call the library at 734-428-8045.

This year’s list of Great Lakes Book Award winners is full of great stories. I’ve linked the titles of the list below to the library catalog – just click to read reviews, see availability, and place a hold on any of the following:

Fiction
Dark Places, Gillian Flynn, Random House
The Great Perhaps, Joe Meno, W.W. Norton
A Reliable Wife, Robert Goolrick, Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill
Starvation Lake, Bryan Gruley, Simon & Schuster
The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, David Wroblewski, Harper Collins

General
Coop: A Year of Poultry, Pigs, and Parenting, Michael Perry, Harper Collins
The Foie Gras Wars, Mark Caro, Simon & Schuster
Horse Soldiers, Doug Stanton, Simon & Schuster
Ripped, Greg Kot, Simon & Schuster
A Splintered History of Wood, Spike Carlsen, Harper Collins

Children’s Chapter Books
After the Trains, Gloria Whelan, Harper Collins
The Blind Faith Hotel, Pamela Todd, Simon & Schuster
I Put a Spell on You, Adam Selzer, Random House
Knucklehead, Jon Scieszka, Penguin Group
The Lincolns: A Scrapbook Look at Abraham and Mary, Candace Fleming, Random House
My Brother Abe, Harry Mazer, Simon & Schuster

Children’s Picture Books
Baby Dragon, Amy Ehrlich, Will Hillenbrand (Illus.), Candlewick Press
Birds, Kevin Henkes, Laura Dronzek (Illus.), Harper Collins
Old Bear, Kevin Henkes, Harper Collins
That Book Woman, Heather Henson, David Small (Illus.), Simon & Schuster
The Underwear Salesman, J. Patrick Lewis, Serge Bloch (Illus.), Simon & Schuster