Frankston Literacy Festival

Literary events in September

The Library is hosting several events related to books, writing and literarcy during September. Please follow the links below for more information, including booking details:

• A short story competition for ages 3 to 8 - enter all month
• Mayor’s Reading Challenge Finale - 1 September
• This Writing Life - a Melbourne Writer's Festival panel discussion, 2 September
• Our very own poetry slam - 7 September
• Michael Panckridge's writing workshop for young writers  - 10 September
• Graham Davey performance storyteller for kiddies - 15 September
• Terry Denton's drawing workshop - 27 September
• Plus our usual pre-school and tiny tots storytimes throughout the month

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Graffiti outrage

Street art and the library

The Herald Sun (Graffiti site preserved for cultural value) and 3AW's Neil Mitchell have been all over it today. The National Library of Australia's Pandora archive of Australian websites includes one site that is pro-graffiti (along with plenty of Council websites that are against it, like our own).

As Richard of Melbourne points out in the story's public comments (see comment 24) , "it is the JOB of the National Library to collect and archive materials pertaining to all aspects of Australian life." Likewise, it is the job of public libraries to make available to our customers the best books available on subjects relevant to their interests. Therefore, we have books and DVDs on all sorts of odd and controversial topics, from UFOs to the occult, believers vs Richard Dawkins, on tattoos, bonking and, yes, even graffiti. It doesn't mean that we approve of it.

It is part of a librarian's ethics that we provide free access to information:  there's even an ALIA policy statement on this that the Library endorses.

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Round 23 round-up

No free burgers

The 8 is finalised and, for North Melbourne, the necessary delusion of finals football in 2011 is over.  Maybe the AFL knew something that we didn't by playing us in next week's Sunday twilight match.

Because of the Kardinia Park upset, no one on the Blogalogue ladder tipped 8. With just a week to go, Bottle leads kiwi sok by 1, with Magpie Magic 3 wins behind in 3rd, so the top prizes are still up for grabs.

Kanga

#geekreads finale

SF month round-up

August is the month of the Hugo awards, which reward excellence in science fiction and fantasy publishing. This year's top novel prize goes to Connie Willis for her books Blackout and its sequel, All Clear, which you can borrow from the Library.

Part of the reason for August being being dedicated to science fiction is that it includes National Science Week. In a neat segue between science real and science imagined, NASA and major SF publisher Tor/Forge have agreed to give SF authors some time with NASA scientists to help them get their facts right. I wonder if we'll see more "hard SF" as a result?

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Like us on Facebook

And potentially win something!

Like our Facebook page between between 19 August and 30 September, 2011, and you'll go into the draw to win one of 6 signed copies of popular children's books.

When you Like us, you'll be kept up to date with all the latest Library events, competitions and programs.

Here's the link to the terms and conditions.

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Round 22 round up

Season's twilight

As the season slides towards it's inevitablee conclusion with another Collingwood premiership, I must admit that I'm getting a little concerned. The Pies' margins aren't what they used to be. We're probably just saving ourselves for the finals. That must be it.

With only 2 weeks to go in the Blogalogue tipping contest, the ladder is still topped by Bottle and kiwi sok, while google's 8 saw her jump 2 spots into 3rd. Mollyfud also scored 8 this week.

Eddie

Round 21 round up

Beat-ups

Footy journalists follow memes and lately it's been winning margins, but I don't get it. In a season that's seen three draws and a jam of teams in the middle vying for a place in the 8, what's the problem? There's always been the occasional shellacking of bottom dwellers by top sides.

That said, the tipping has been a tad predictable this season, but only champ picked all 8 winners in round 21; lots picked 7, though. At the top of the ladder, Bottle, kiwi sok and Magpie Magic are still the top 3, with librarytart and google close behind on margin.

Gav

SF 101

Where to start with #geekreads

If you're unfamiliar with science fiction books, these links will help you start:

• Check out this top 100 list of science fiction and fantasy books as voted in the NPR listeners
• Look for awards winners from the Hugo and Nebula awards for the best SF (and fantasy) novels
• For the best in Australian SF (plus fantasy and horror), make a note of Aurealis Award winners
• Read reviews and news from sites like SF Site,  SF Book Reviews and SFFWorld.com

Don't forget to search the catalogue for the Library's science fiction titles and set up an alert for new items with the science fiction subject heading. We also have a selection of SF books on the fast fiction sehlves.

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July customer feedback continued

Catching up with Carrum Downs

Here's the written feedback we recieved from our customers at the Carrum Downs Library in July. 

Thankyou.

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Before and after Underbelly

The Razor book(s)

Larry Writer wrote a book about the slasher gangs of Sydney during the 1920s. Now it's been appropriated into the Underbelly series and we have both an early edition from 2002 and the re-branded Underbelly edition available for loan.

Underbelly: Razor starts on the telly Sunday, 21 August.

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July (and June) customer feedback

Entrées, roasts and sweets

Here is the June customer feedback for the Carrum Downs Library and the July customer feedback for the Frankston Library.

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Zines for all

@stickyinstitute

Hear my confession: I am a paid up member of the Sticky Institute.

Before blogs, Twitter and online forums, there was the zine. Zines are DIY publications, a kind of underground  magazine, often stapled, photocopied and written by angsty teens with an attitude and only sometimes by aging librarians with a thing for haiku. They can be funny, personal, political, illustrated and occasionally hand-written.

In this UNESCO City of Literature (Melbourne), the centre of zine culture is the Sticky Institute, a tiny zine-filled shopfront in the Flinders Street to Degraves Street subway. With so many of the CBD's book shops now closed, now is a good time to discover Sticky and the alt world of zines.

To learn more about the Sticky Institute, go to their website or watch these YouTube videos.


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August is sci-fi month

Time for some #geekreads

Science fiction is hard to define, but you probably know it when you read it (or recognise it by its cover designs). Mostly it's futuristic, but sometimes those futures have past (like in Orwell's classic, 1984). Some people (like SF Grand Master, Isaac Asimov) have distinguished between science fiction (eg, Star Trek) and sci-fi (eg, Godzilla Meets Mothra), but please never confuse it with fantasy fiction (although there are cross-overs). From nut-and-bolts hard SF to genetically modified biopunk, anarcho utopias to authoritarian dystopias, time travellers to robots, science fiction's many sub-genres take us to worlds that are only partially defined by their advanced science and technology.

The Library has oodles of science fiction in print and on disc. The books have the Saturn-like ringed planet on their spines pictured here.

August is Read It 2011's science fiction month, so release your inner geek, read some SF and discuss it on Twitter using the #geekread tag.

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Round 20 round up

Footy can be cruel

Spewin! That's how I felt as Goodesy's 50m kick after the siren sailed between the goal and point posts amid the boos of those feral Bombers supporters. Sick to the stomach I was. Nearly fish all over the place.

But I wasn't the only one. 8tony was the only Blogalogue tipster to pick all 8 this week, but lots of others tipped 7. They either fell by the way from picking my beloved Swans (wrong by 1 point) or the Lions (down by 5 points). While the top 3 on the ladder stayed in position, they picked only 6 wins each, seeing 4 others each with 7 wins join 3rd placed Magpie Magic on 117 wins. With only 4 more rounds, only 3 wins separates 1st from 7th.

Herbie

What if Winnie the Pooh and his friends went to the doctor?

What would the doctor perscribe?

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Sparkles between the shelves

Library lovers @Library_Vic

When an author wants to get the support of a publisher for a new book, they will often pitch their idea in the form a book proposal. Recently, at the State Library of Victoria, there was a different kind of "bookish proposal".

When Jonathon Chang wanted to propose to Stephanie Campisi, he left her a trail that led to the 843.9s in the Redmond Barry Reading Room at the State Library. In what reads like a plot line from a romance novel, Stephanie found a special present for her in a hollowed out book.

Maybe they could be the champions for the next Library Lovers Day?

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Save Our Libraries: Fairer Funding Campaign

For the public good

The Victorian Government’s ongoing funding of Public Libraries is vital to our day-to-day operation.  However, State Government funding has been cut in the 2011-2012 year and may result in a reduction of services and programs.

The Government’s ongoing contribution helps to cover the daily running costs of libraries – paying staff, opening the doors, providing web access, running programs and events.

Ratepayers are increasingly being asked to pick up the shortfall between the library’s daily operating costs and State Government funding contributions.

Get involved! Sign the petition in the library or online or contact Frankston’s local Member of Parliament:

Mr Geoff Shaw MP
140 Young Street,
FRANKSTON VIC 3199

Geoff.shaw@parliament.vic.gov.au

Phone No. 9783 9822

Join the Save Our Libraries Facebook page to show your support or tweet, blog, talk to your friends and write letters to the Editor. You can also write to or email the Minister for Local Government or even the Premier to show your support for public libraries. Here's one we prepared earlier for you to adapt.

More information about the campaign can be found on the Municipal Association of Victoria’s website.

Dollars, sense and public libraries
A recent study of the socio-economic value of Victorian public libraries highlighted 5 key reasons to keep investing in libraries.

1. For every dollar invested in Victoria’s public libraries, $3.56 is the average rate of return in community benefits. In Frankston , the figure is $4.56 for each $1 invested.

2. The majority of Victorians are public library customers. 2.6 million Victorians are library members.

3. Library customers receive services valued at $419 per year.

4. Victorian public libraries have something for everyone.

5. People would pay more… but don’t have the capacity to do so.

For more details, see the 2 page summary of findings or the full Dollars, Sense and Public Libraries report.

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2011 Victorian Premier's Literary Awards shortlist

 We (almost) have them all

The Victorian Premier's Literary Awards recognise excellence in Australian writing and this year's shortlist has recently been announced. Our Collections Team has tracked down almost all the shortlisted titles for your reading pleasure. Please feel free to reserve, read and vote for your favourite.

CJ Dennis Prize for Poetry

• Swallow, Claire Potter
• The Taste of River Water, Cate Kennedy
• This Floating World, Libby Hart

Vance Palmer Prize for Fiction

• Five Bells, Gail Jones
• When Colts Ran, Roger McDonald
• The Roving Party, Rohan Wilson
• Bright and Distant Shores, Dominic Smith
• The Amateur Science of Love, Craig Sherborne
• That Deadman Dance, Kim Scott

Nettie Palmer Prize for Non-Fiction

• A Private Empire, Stephen Foster
• Delusions of Gender, Cordelia Fine
• My Blood’s Country, Fiona Capp
• Into the Woods, Anna Krien
• Good Living Street, Tim Bonyhady
• An Eye for Eternity: The Life Of Manning Clark, Mark McKenna

Prize for Writing for Young Adults

• The Life of a Teenage Body-Snatcher, Doug MacLeod
• Graffiti Moon, Cath Crowley
• The Three Loves of Persimmon, Cassandra Golds

 Louis Esson Prize for Drama

• Sappho… in 9 fragments, Jane Montgomery Griffiths
• Do not go gentle, Patricia Cornelius
• Intimacy, Raimondo Cortese (we can't get a copy of this one)

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Round 19 round up

On the rebound

Unfortunately for them, Port copped the Crows off a coach killing margin. All I can say about that, is that the Blues should take the Dees seriously this weekend.

As for the other results from round 19 AFL action, apparently it was all predictable. 17 of the Blogalogue's 41 tipsters achieved a perfect score at picking winners. Well done! Some of you have definitely got footy smarts out there. Bottle, kiwi sok and Magpie Magic still top the ladder, in that order.

Formerly Known As Craig