By library manager Jaclyn Berry
Summer is half way done already, and we have been having a great time here at Ponoka Jubilee Library. We hope everyone has been enjoying their holidays and are looking forward to the school year ahead.
These past weeks were really fun ones for our Summer Reading Club kids, as they had all sorts of visitors as part of the ‘What I Want to Be When I Grow Up’ week two weeks ago, and got to play with our Makerspace items this past week. No, there wasn’t a fire at the library, but the Ponoka Fire Department was here showing off their trucks to all of the kids. We want to thank Fire Chief Jamie Wilkinson and all of the great firefighters, as well as Constable Scott with the Ponoka RCMP, Councillor Loanna Gulka from Ponoka Town Council, Dr. Trevor Hook from the Central Vet Clinic, and Chany Westling with Ponoka Ambulance Services for taking time out of their busy schedules to come and speak with our kids. It’s always great to open up a child’s mind to the possibilities of what they can be when they get older.
We are really excited to announce our newest regular program, Makerspace at the library. What is a Makerspace you ask? Makerspaces are creative, DIY spaces where people can gather to create, invent, and learn. We are fortunate in our Makerspace to have a number of very cool technology items that can be used. Come try out a Raspberry Pi, Makey Makey, Kano kit, Little Bits kit, or Intuous tablet. What can you do with these things? Build your own computer, run a computer using a banana, create a synthesizer, or draw directly on to your computer screen. Our first meeting will be Thursday, Sept. 24 from 3:30 to 5 p.m., and regular meetings will be the last Thursday of every month. This activity is for ages 12 and older, due to the fragility of some of the items.
The Alberta Readers’ Choice Award Finalists have been announced. The Alberta Readers' Choice Award is awarded annually for the best fiction or narrative non-fiction written by an Alberta author. The $10,000 award - presented annually by the Edmonton Public Library - recognizes the exceptional writing talent in Alberta and encourages readers to support Alberta authors. The nominees this year are The Social Life of Ink by Ted Bishop, Thief of Glory by Sigmund Brouwer, Who by Fire by Fred Stenson, Come Back by Rudy Wiebe, and Winterkill by Kate A. Boorman. Choose your favourite at http://www.epl.ca/ARCAVote.
We are really excited to say that Kate A. Boorman, above-mentioned award nominated author, is coming to the library on Saturday, Sept. 19 at 12 p.m. She will be doing a media presentation, a Q&A, as well as reading from her book Winterkill. Come on down to the library and hear more from this local author.
Coming Soon: From Giller Prize-winning author Elizabeth Hay comes His Whole Life, a coming of age story by one of Canada’s best.