Lillian H Smith Blog

Borderline by Allan Stratton

 

    Apart from the fact that he is an Iranian American in a rather white neighborhood of Rochester New York, Sami is basically an ordinary teen.  Like any teen he's developed an interest in exploring boundaries and finds himself breaking the odd rule.  Unfortunately, as a visible minority, things that he does seem to count for more. His parents who desperately want him to fit in, react by putting him in an all boys private school where there are even more rules and boundaries. 

    His parents are political moderates who fled Iran when the revolution turned sour, but they are devout muslims nonetheless. This puts Sami in the awkward position of meeting two separate and contradictory sets of standards, the one dictated by his religion, and the one dictated by his parents' desire to fit seamlessly into the community.

   When Sami sneaks off with two friends on an unsupervised cross borer escapade in the thousand islands, he soon finds himself in trouble with his father again.  But his father has also inadvertently raised Sami's suspicions and soon Sami is spying on him. Before long he is drawn into an international incident.  Soon Sami realises that the only way to save his family is through another secret border crossing.  Borderlines is a well paced and intriguing glimpse into the lives of an ordinary muslim family plunged by chance into a spotlight of suspicion.

"Move that Mouse" in Chinese “移動鼠标” 的普通話和廣東話 教學

您是否有意来圖書館參加電腦班，但英語 不是你的第一語言？走進Lillian H. Smith Library，我們將預訂一台電腦為您服務，教學提供普通話或廣東話。我們會教你電腦的基本組成部分，以及如何使用它們，為你介紹互聯網，並幫助您註冊一個電子郵件帳戶, 教你如何輸入中文。
请來電 416-393-7746預訂, call Fennie

Are you interested in taking computer classes at the library, but English is not your first language?  Come into Lillian H. Smith, and we will book a one-on-one computer class for you, with instruction available in Mandarin or Cantonese.  We'll teach you about the basic components of computer hardware and how to use them, introduce you to the Internet, help you sign up for an email account, and teach you how to type in Chinese.  
Call Fennie at 416-393-7746 to book a class.

Kensington Market Winter Solstice Celebration

Tuesday December 21st, starting at 6:30 pm.

Every year the Kensington community celebrates the solstice with lantern parade - it is participatory so be prepared to join the fun!

Gather at Oxford & Augusta for a 6:30 send-off. The parade moves through the market toward Alexandra Park for an 8:00-ish finale.

For photos of previous solstice celebrations, see their website.

Where are the Best Bets?

We are anticipating the New Year by doing some housework at the branch! In order to improve access to library materials, some materials have been shifted to new locations.

Best Bets - 7 day loans - moved to the shelving in the atrium on the left side (east) opposite of the previous location. There is more room and better display space.

Book Sale - books no longer needed by the branch have been moved to the Learning Centre on the 3rd floor.

New Children's picture books - in the picture book area, west side of the ground floor, just behind the Holds pickup shelves.

Pedometers - will be moved to the 2nd floor, right (south) of the Information Desk, near the windows.

Watch for other tweaks - audiobooks (books on CD), pamphlets, etc.

We are still trying to decide whether documentary DVDs would be better interfiled with books of the same subject (Dewey Decimal call number) or left together as a group. Opinions, please!

Where Is My Streetcar?

Taking the streetcar to Lillian H. Smith branch? Many of our patrons and staff do! With the advent of cold weather, the wait can be annoyingly long. Help is at hand! There is a new website, Where is My Streetcar that can tell you when the next streetcars will arrive at your stop - in real time. So if you are taking the 510 Spadina car or the 506 Carlton car to visit us, check it out.  There is an app for mobile devices as well)

How does it work? "This site relies on data feeds provided by NextBus and the TTC, and messes around with the data just enough to get it to display nicely on a Google Map." For more info, see their About page.

You can also check out NextBus which the TTC is beta testing. It is not available on the TTC site. Use the NextBus site to get to it. For reviews of both sites, see Steve Munro's blog post.

Now, if only one of the sites could tell me whether or not the next streetcar will just pass me by because it is totally full!

Dave Murray makes maps with words

Here's a neat perspective on Toronto neighbourhoods: local artist Dave Murray has found a way to turn those ubiquitous tag clouds, or word clouds, into maps.  Pictured here is his map of Kensington Market:
How does he do it, you ask?  He gathers words from signs he sees as he walks around the city. The words that appear most often are larger, the rare words smaller. Read more in this Toronto Star article. Check out his website to see if your neighbourhood has been mapped yet!

Books for Family Sharing at Christmastime

I'm sure everyone knows about the Grinch and The Twelve Days of Christmas and 'Twas the Night before Christmas. Some families may enjoy sitting down to A Child's Christmas in Wales or A Christmas Carol. I'd like to highlight some less familiar books (and one video/dvd) that families might enjoy together this Christmas season.

Tomie dePaola has retold a Norwegian folktale in The Cat on the Dovrefell: a Christmas Tale. A man with a great white bear takes refuge at a house that is plagued by trolls every Christmas Eve. One troll sees the bear under the stove and pokes it in the nose. The very annoyed bear chases away the troublesome trolls. DePaola's soft, whimsical and generously-sized illustrations create a gentle atmosphere to match his simple retelling. Even the trolls are more silly than scary. This is a light and humourous story for little ones.

In a comic strip format, Raymond Briggs depicts a very grumpy individual in Father Christmas. From waking up and getting dressed to feeding the reindeer and getting on his way, Father Christmas complains about everything including the cold and the weather (snow, rain, fog). He complains about chimneys and he complains if there are not chimneys. On and on it goes until at last he is home again. Well, almost. His own Christmas gifts leave much to be desired. Briggs is a fine draughtsman and a droll humourist. His panels will delight readers young and old.

A shift in mood is Briggs' The Snowman. The dreamlike quality of his wordless story, also illustrated in strips, captures perfectly the fantastical adventure of a young boy and the snowman he has made. The animated video of The Snowman is beautiful in every way and one that can be viewed again and again (and I speak from experience). Also wordless, the film is slightly different from the book. The music, composed by Howard Blake, is spectacular and includes the song "Walking in the Air". Cuddle up on a frosty night and be transported.

Baseball Bats for Christmas is a reminiscence by author Michael Kusugak. Far above the treeline in Repulse Bay, a pilot brings in supplies including six "standing-ups" as the residents call these Christmas trees. There is some debate as to what to do with them. Finally a boy decides that they are meant to be used for baseball bats. And so the children have bats to last them all baseball season. The story is full of detail about life in the far north and is told with Kusugak's characteristically rye humour. Illustrator Vladyana Krykorka's northern children are round-faced and rosy-cheeked. Her pastel skies provide warmth to the scene. Altogether it is light-hearted and entertaining.

In Kevin Major's The House of the Wooden Santas, Jesse and his single mother have moved from the city to a small town in Newfoundland. He is miserable. What's worse, he and his mother are broke. Christmas is coming -- a little magic might help -- or maybe the kindness of new friends and neighbours. Broken down into short chapters -- with exquisitely carved Santas decorating each one -- beginning with "Twenty-Four Days to Christmas", this book is begging to be read aloud each night until Christmas.

The Dark Is Rising is Susan Cooper's masterful tale about the struggle between light and darkness. Will Stanton, who has turned eleven on the eleventh day of the eleventh month, is the unlikely hero. Atmospheric and beautifully written, the book will captivate all members of the family -- a perfect read-aloud for a winter's day.

Happy Holidays

Happy Reading

Computers Unavailable at LS on Tuesday December 7, 2010

Lillian H. Smith has been scheduled for a computer update on Tuesday December 7th. Public computers in the building will not be available for use that day.

After this rollout of new equipment, you won't be able to use diskettes (there are no floppy drives on the new PCs). You can save documents with a thumbdrive (USB device) or email documents to your web email.

On Tuesday, library staff will have access to computers so we can help you look for books, etc, place holds and check your patron record. Wireless internet (Wi-Fi) will be available as usual.

UPDATE:

New computers have been installed in the branch.

All About Cold Weather Cycling!

I love hopping on my bicycle in the morning, but now that it's getting colder outside, do I have the courage to keep pedalling to work?

Last Saturday, over 40 people gathered at Lillian H. Smith to learn about bicycling in the winter. They all had a great time, as you can tell by the smiles below. The program was a collaboration between CultureLink, Toronto Cyclists Union, Bloor Information and Life Skills Centre, and, of course, the library. Participants of all ages learned how to ride safely in harsh weather, what to wear, how to put on snow tires, and general winter bike maintenance. Everyone received free reflective tape and velcro pant straps, and two lucky raffle winners took home refurbished bikes.

Look for more cycling workshops coming up in the spring, on a whole bunch of exciting (and warmer!) topics.  And don't forget to drop by the library to pick up a free Toronto Cycling Map.  Now please excuse me while I bundle up and ride!