Friday, October 23, 2009

All Hallows Eve, 10-27-09

How many of you have costumes already for Halloween? Did your kids change their minds about 100 times before deciding on the costume they originally wanted and can you find it in time? Are you dressing up and taking them out for a round of trick-or-treating? All these questions are flashing through the minds of millions of Americans the closer we get to Halloween. But does anybody really wonder where we got the holiday in the first place?

The Gaelic festival of Samhain (pronounced sow-in) is the holiday that Halloween first received its inspiration from. The Gaels believed that during this night, the barrier between the real world and the spirit world became thin and ghosts could wander around as they pleased. Families took the time to honor their dead at this time of year and it was often thought of as the Gaelic New Year, when the next year would begin.

So why do our children dress up and run around like princesses and monsters? Not all the spirits who could pass between the worlds were harmless family ancestors. Some of the spirits were evil and costumes were a way of warding them off. If a person disguised themselves as a harmful spirit, they believed the actual harmful spirits would leave them alone! The entire idea behind trick-or-treating is that the children are dressed as the harmful spirits and the candy works as a balm to keep them pacified and to prevent them from playing tricks on you or on your house. Don’t ask me how dressing up like a harmful spirit translates into princess costumes. I haven’t figured that one out yet.

And the pumpkins? Why do millions of people every year spend hours digging out the squishy guts of gourds and trying to make them look scary? Well, it’s better than an enemy’s head, isn’t it? The Celts believed that the wisdom and the spirit resided in the head of their enemies and, since they were headhunters, they would hang those heads on their door lintels, to keep the wisdom near their house. They would also carve faces into turnips and rutabagas to make lanterns to keep evil spirits away. In the new world, pumpkins were readily available, not to mention larger and easier to carve, so the pumpkin got the job of being a lantern for the protection of the home.

Halloween is not necessarily an evil holiday, or really terribly scary, but Hollywood and literature have certainly made it into one. New horror films typically come out in October, we’ve got haunted houses and witches, black cats and vampires, all of which are not traditionally associated with the original holiday itself. Of course, now that we consider them part of the season, they will never be easily parted. Besides, there’s something about watching a scary movie on Halloween that really appeals to most people and I, personally, think it’s too bad we haven’t got a haunted house in Pipestone.

So I’ll probably see you on Halloween night, trick-or-treating. My children will be Tigger and the Little Mermaid and I will be dressed as, well, a mom. Come on, did you really think I’d say something more exciting?

Stop by Meinders Library for a party on October 31st, from 2-4 PM. We will have goody bags for the kids, mini pumpkins and gourds to paint, and bookmarks to color and stamp. Stories will be read every fifteen minutes and the activities will be self-directed. We hope to see you there!!

If you have any questions, or have a book to reserve or renew, please don’t hesitate to give us a call at 507-825-6714. The hours for Meinders Library are Monday through Thursday, from 10 AM to 8 PM, and Friday and Saturday from 10 AM to 5 PM.

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

New Young Adult Section 10-14-09

Teenagers are often an underserved minority in the library world. Most of them don’t want to spend a lot of time somewhere they have to be quiet, and even more of them are so involved with school and extra-curricular activities that reading for pleasure is an alien concept. But for those who still love the idea of a good book, there are plenty to read!

Meinders Library has a new section, geared specifically towards teenagers (9-12 grade) and the fiction they would enjoy. If you can get your teenager, or any teenager, into the library, tell them to ask for the Young Adult section and we will find them something they simply *have* to check out. The books reviewed in this column are all excellent books, geared toward the teenage reader (though I must admit to wanting to read several of them myself).

The Book Thief, by Marcus Zusak
This book received a star review by the School Library Journal and centers around a girl named Liesel during the 1930s and 40s. Liesel steals books, though she begins before she even knows how to read, and those books become her refuge. The book is actually narrated by Death, an is a striking, original story that chronicles Liesel and her friends and their stolen books.

Thirteen Reasons Why, by Jay Asher
A relatively heavy book that begins with Clay Jenson receiving a series of cassette tapes from a classmate who has committed suicide. 12 others also receive cassette tapes, detailed the reasons behind the self-inflicted death of Hannah Baker, who is not held blameless in the events that unfold. Though the book is rather serious, mystery readers will adore it and the book has an important message about the consequences of how we treat each other.

Uglies, by Scott Westerfeld
At 16, everyone in Westerfeld’s visionary story receives a surgical operation that conforms them all to an ideal standard of perfection. Before 16, the children are referred to as “uglies” and they dream of the time they can become as “pretty” as everyone else. Tally Youngblood gets caught up in trying to find some rebel “uglies” for the Department of Special Circumstances – if she finds them and betrays them, she can have her operation. Will Tally have a change of heart?

Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins
This book received a starred review from Publisher’s Weekly. In a society obsessed with reality television, this book really hits home. Following an apocalypse, a country similar to the United States demands that two kids be taken from each territory for a fight to the death, televised. Katniss and Peeta, both from what was once Appalachia, struggle to win the competition but also fight to keep their humanity in a game that strips humanity away. The book is intense and filled with meaning, for any who read it.

The Forest of Hands and Teeth, by Carrie Ryan
Mary is trapped in her village, surrounded by a chain-link fence – and beyond that chain-link fence is a forest filled with zombies that will eat any villager who dares to step outside. The zombies came into existence over 100 years ago, during a period of history called the Return, and the cities and wonderful technology were completely wiped out. No Mary lives in a restrictive society, controlled entirely by a faction called the Sisterhood. Is there such a thing as an ‘ocean?’ Is there a way out through the forest? Mary intends to find out.

Graceling, by Kristin Cashore
Katsa is a warrior girl, with one blue eye and one green eye marking her as a Graceling – a person born with a particular Grace. In Katsa’s case, her Grace is fighting and there is no one who can beat her. Despite her power, Katsa is forced to serve as a henchman though she manages to form a secret society with others who believe in truth and justice. Filled with fantasy and a little romance, this book is sure to win the hearts of fantasy lovers everywhere.

Also, Teen Read Week is coming up from October 18 – 24! Stop in with a teenager for a prize and a book!

If you have any questions, or have a book to reserve or renew, please don’t hesitate to give us a call at 507-825-6714. The hours for Meinders Library are Monday through Thursday, from 10 AM to 8 PM, and Friday and Saturday from 10 AM to 5 PM.