Featured book: Persepolis: [the story of a childhood] by Marjane Satrapi

Persepolis : [the story of a childhood]Teen Book Club:

Our latest book we’ve been reading in our Teen Dystopian book club is not fiction. In fact, it is a unique, non-fiction, illustrated graphic novel that is a coming of age story about a young girl who grows up in Tehran during the Islamic Revolution, and during Iran’s war with Iraq. Perhaps Marjane, Persepolis’ rambunctious protagonist, would be precocious and rebellious no matter where she had grown up; the fact that she listens to Iron Maiden in an intolerant regime where music considered to cause any joy or excitement was forbidden puts the stakes up significantly for her. As one of the teens in our book club noted, Marjane, in a lot of ways, might remind one of Tris Prior in the Divergent series. She isn’t afraid to speak her mind, even though in the world she inhabits it can be quite dangerous to do so.

And like Tris Prior, or Katniss Everdeen (unlikely hero of the Hunger Games), Marjane’s story is one of bravery, displacement, and overcoming overwhelming odds in difficult circumstances. It is even more powerful because it is a true story, and an incredible memoir. The second book, Persepolis 2 : [story of a return], continues her story, including leaving Iran for Europe and coming back, until she leaves Iran permanently at the age of 24. Persepolis (both books combined) became an animated film in 2007, written and directed by Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud, based on Satrapi’s original story and illustrations.

Why read this?

In part inspired by some of the conversations we were having in our teen Dystopian Book Club, and in part because of the current events happening around the series of protests, demonstrations and government changes in the Middle East and Northern African (often referred to as the ‘Arab Spring’), I decided this would be an important book for us to read in our book club. At the heart of Persepolis is the story of a young person having the courage to be who they are and of growing up in difficult circumstances. So far in our book club, we have read Veronica Roth’s Divergent (often called the next Hunger Games by critics) and Son, the last of Lois Lowry’s Giver quartet. If you are a teen, and would you care to join us, we meet again May 22, at 7:30pm.

Did you know: Persepolis’ title is a reference to the ancient city of Persepolis. It was founded in 518 B.C., and was the capital of the Achaemenid Empire.Scene from Persepolis : Marjane gets caught buying music

Jane’s Walk in Brentwood

No one can find what will work for our cities by looking at … suburban garden cities, manipulating scale models, or inventing dream cities. You’ve got to get out and walk.”
-Jane Jacobs (from Downtown is for People, 1957).

May 4^th and 5^th marks the annual Jane’s Walk, an event which happens throughout North America and honours the late Jane Jacobs (1916-2006). And Calgary is hosting quite a few walks!

Who was Jane Jacobs?

Jane was an author, activist and urban thinker known for her influence on creating “walkable” neighborhoods. She lived in Greenwich Village, New York and later in Toronto, Ontario where she spearheaded movements that favored more walkability in communities (over more car-centered approaches). Her vision of cities was unique; she saw every city as its own ecosystem with its own narratives that would change over time, shaped by its communities.

Brentwood Celebrates 50 Years

The Nose Hill library is pleased to be hosting “Brentwood Celebrates 50 Years” for this year’s Jane’s Walk. Come walk, and listen to remarkable stories that shaped the Brentwood community this upcoming Saturday, May 4th. All walkers please meet us at 10:30am, just outside our library program room. For more information about this and other Jane’s Walks in Calgary, why not visit: http://www.janeswalk.net/index.php/walks/canada/calgary/

Happy birthday to us! Today, in 1988, the Nose Hill Library opened for business. That same year...

Nintendo released Super Mario Bros. 3.

The Governor General's Award for English language fiction David Adams Richards, Nights Below Station Street.

The Pullitzer prize for Fiction was awarded to Toni Morrison for her novel Beloved .

The Pullitzer prize for Non-fiction was The Making of the Atomic Bomb by Richard Rhodes.

In film, the epic motion picture The Last Emperor won nine Oscars.

And Stephen Hawking Published A Brief History Of Time.

And, of course.....

Calgary made its mark worldwide hosting the Winter Olympics. It was the last Olympics where athletes from the Soviet union played together. The year after, the Berlin Wall came down and all the republics regained independence.

1988 Pop Quiz:

The 1988 games saw the "Battle of the Brians" in figure skating between which two Brians? Who took the gold medal?

The official mascots for the games were Hidy and Howdy. What were they?

Who took home the gold at the 1988 Olympics in hockey?

And another fun quiz, vintage style! : Who knows whose nose? Our library is surrounded by other famous noses! Can you name them all?Who Knows Whose Nose?

Joe"s CowsA painting of cows inspired by Canadian prairie artist and humourist Joe Fafard. A painting of trees on the banks of a calm river. A painting contrasting the skyline between the mountains and the prairies. A painting of our rolling foothills. An impressionist interpretation of a steam locomotive from the Canadian Pacific Railways…

These are but some of the many paintings featured in Under the Prairie Sky – Acrylic landscapes by grade five and six students from Calgary’s École King George. They are colourful, and remind one of impressionism (think Claude Monet's works, and how our Alberta landscape might have impacted his style, and this might have been what the paintings would have looked like when he was younger!) These paintings were also the art students' first work with acrylic painting, and the results are remarkable!

Teacher Lorraine Fafard states that, "In class, within a rather brief time frame, students were asked to observe, and reflect on life styles and natural imagery of life on the Prairies. Through the eyes of Canadian folk artists, William Kurelek, prairie artist Henry K. Ripplinger, and contemporary visual artists Wendy Tilby and Amanda Forbis, as well as other forms of media presentations and archival photographs obtained through our school library, students began to connect to their subject and take risks in their productions."

Under the Prairie Sky will be on display until the end of April at our wonderful library. La Pleine Lune (from the artist"s imagination)

Lois Lowry

In her award winning book The Giver, Lois Lowry doesn't provide us with too many answers. In fact, she leaves us to our own devices by the end of it, to ponder what exactly happens to Jonas and Gabe when they start to hear music for the first time...

Do they make it to a new civilization? Do they starve to death? And what happens to little Gabe, who has only been kept alive by the memories of food that Jonas gives to him, as they have no food with them during their escape? Does one live and one die?

It is a compelling story that has been read in many a classroom, and long before dystopian books like The Hunger Games became popular. And now, many years after The Giver had been published, comes the thrilling conclusion to the story in Lowry's newest book, Son.

Incidentally, we are currently reading Son for our Teen Dystopian Book Club, which meets on the last Wednesday of every month. Are you a teen who would like to join us?

Come visit us at the Nose Hill library for more details, or register online.

Spanish Conversation Club.

Our library has an incredibly special program - our Spanish Conversation Club! What makes this program so special is, in part, the sense of community that the club builds with each participant. Both the participants and the wonderful language coaches bring their creative ideas, energy, and enthusiasm into the club. It is such a pleasure to watch this group interact and learn with each other. Just look at the party they are having together!

Our nest session of Spanish Conversation starts May 30th. Please note that our Spanish Conversation Club is for intermediate to advanced speakers only please.

Club de conversacion en español

Nuestra biblioteca tiene un programa especial increíble – el club de conversación en español. Lo que hace nuestro programa tan especial es, en parte, la unión que el club desarrolla con cada participante. Tanto el participante como los maravillosos entrenadores en el idioma traen sus ideas creativas, su energía y su entusiasmo al club. Es un placer ver la interacción y el aprendizaje dentro del grupo. ¡Solo observen la fiesta que tienen juntos!

Nuestra próxima sesión empieza el 30 de mayo. Por favor noten que nuestro club es solo para personas con un nivel intermedio o avanzado de español.

Here is what a few of our participants have to say! (*With thanks to our volunteer Jorge for the translations. Gracias.)

“Es uno de más fabuloso classes en mi vida.” (It’s one of the most fabulous classes in my life.”)

“Estoy muy contenta estar en esta clase de conversación. Los voluntarios son los mejores que he tenido. Las clase esta muy divertida y al mismo tiempo todos aprenden muchisimo.” (I am very happy to be in this conversation class. The volunteer are the best I have had. The class is very fun and at the same time everyone learns a lot.)

“Quisiera agradecerá todos los profesores de esta clase de español en la biblioteca por su tiempo, gentileza, paciencia y bondad. Son muy buena gente y fue una experiencia fantástica de estar aquí. Que divertida esta clase!” (I would like to thank all the professors of this Spanish class in the library for their time, gentleness, patience and kindness. They are very good people and being here was a fantastic experience. This class is so much fun!)

For the last few weeks, our Tuesday evenings have had special guests – and these guests are featured on CBC News: Calgary at 6!

Who are these remarkable guests? Well, our special guests are dogs. In fact, they are highly socialized dogs. Nice dogs. Dogs that help kids read, and help kids get excited about reading too. That’s the idea behind Story Pals: children in this program practice reading out loud in a relaxed space with these wonderful animals. This happens in both a kid-friendly and dog-friendly environment. In our Story Pals program, children between the ages of six and nine read to both the canines and their handlers (who happen to be volunteers with the Pet Access League Society.)

Did you know? The Pet Access League Society is a non-profit organization in Calgary "dedicated to enhancing the life of individuals through pet therapy"? Here is the broadcast:

http://www.cbc.ca/player/News/Canada/Calgary/ID/2352068495/

Wonderful canine volunteer.

A meaningful life.“A meaningful life” – a metal sculpture which is also an amazing tapestry of colour and vivid imagery – has arrived at the Nose Hill library!

This is the result of a collaborative work between Calgary artist Jeff de Boer and 24 other artists. What is unique about this collaboration is that the 24 collaborating artists also have developmental disabilities, and the sculpture tells some of their stories. The art on the sculpture reflects each artist’s unique narrative in a visual form. The aluminum sculpture also gives the impression of different strands being interwoven together, which in turn could symbolize the interconnectedness that we all have in the community we share.

There is a video you may view which gives a further in depth look at the project, and how “A meaningful life”was created: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmcMR4FLY5c

The touring sculpture has been on display recently at the Alberta Legislature, and will be at our library until April 5^th.

From our LEGO context last year.Did you know plastic LEGO pieces have been around since 1947? And did you also know that the Nose Hill library has a contest and a club where you can build your own LEGO creations?

Our fabulous LEGO contest is on Saturday, March 23, from 2:00pm to 3:30pm. Children and teens will compete in several different age catagories to create something original and spectacular that can be viewed in the library. The Age Categories include: 5-6 years; 7-8 years; 9-11 years; and 12 years and over. All of the contest's creations will be on display for public viewing until the end of our awards ceremony, at approximately 3:30 pm. Registration for our contest is currently full, but don't depair, because we also have a fantastic Lego Club!

Our LEGO Club happens from 4-5:30pm, on the last Wednesday of every month (March 27th is our next date!) It is for ages 7 and up; or for a younger child accompanied by an adult.

Did you know the word "Lego" comes from leg godt, a Danish word that means "play well"? We hope you come on down to the Nose Hill library and do just that!

Divergent.Imagine determining everything in your life by one decision that you made when you were sixteen. This sets the stage for one of the latest series in Young Adult fiction - Veronica Roth's Divergent series. In the first book, sixteen year old Tris Prior must decide which faction she will dedicate the rest of her life to (in this world, the factions are societal groups based on a virtue that they endeavor to emulate.) Choosing your faction can mean choosing between your real self and being what your family wants you to be. In fact, choosing a faction that's outside of the family means losing your family and all that you knew...

In our dystopian teen book club, we have faced our own fears, just as protagonist Tris Prior must do. We have also discussed whether or not dividing a society like this could work, whether or not we ourselves would choose a faction or to be factionless, and whether or not one can ever overcome fear - or just learn how to control their fears...

And that was just the first book our teen dystopian book club has been reading! Next up is Lois Lowry's thrilling conclusion to The Giver quartet, her newest novel called Son. Are you a young adult who would care to join us? Our teen book club runs the last Wednesday of every month; come on by, pick up your copy of Son, and register!