Win Spy Toys

I have a copy of Mark Powers' awesome new book, Spy Toys, to give away to one lucky reader.  If you want to know more about the book check out the Spy Toys website - spytoysbooks.com.

All you have to do to get in the draw is answer this question: If you were a spy what would your secret agent name be?

Send your answer to zac.mccallum@halswell.school.nz.  The winner will be announced on Friday.

See You in the Cosmos by Jack Cheng

I have just read an amazing book with a great character that is perfect for senior readers.  It is called See You in the Cosmos by Jack Cheng.  

It's about an extraordinary boy called Alex who wants to launch his golden iPod in to space in a rocket for alien lifeforms to find.  He records all sorts of things on his iPod, from different sounds of people and animals to the story of his incredible journey that he goes on.  Here is the blurb:

All eleven-year old Alex wants is to launch his iPod into space. With a series of audio recordings, he will show other lifeforms out in the cosmos what life on Earth, his Earth, is really like.
But for a boy with a long-dead dad, a troubled mum, and a mostly-not-around brother, Alex struggles with the big questions. Where do I come from? Who’s out there? And, above all, How can I be brave?Determined to find the answers, Alex sets out on a remarkable road trip that will turn his whole world upside down.

I loved this book because Alex is a unique character who is full of hope. He wants to achieve his dreams, whatever it takes.  He meets lots of interesting people along the way who help him get where he wants to go.

If you like stories with interesting characters and kids discovering who they are you need to read See You in the Cosmos. You can borrow it from the library now.

Check out the Darkmouth series

Darkmouth is a cool new series by Shane Hegarty.  We've got the first two books in the series in the library now.  Here is a little bit about the series:

Legends (also known as terrifying, human-eating monsters) have invaded the town of Darkmouth and aim to conquer the world.
But don’t panic! The last remaining Legend Hunter - Finn - will protect us.
Finn: twelve-years-old, loves animals, not a natural fighter, but tries really, really hard, and we all know good intentions are the best weapons against a hungry Minotaur, right?
On second thoughts, panic.

If you like books stories full of adventure, mythical creatures and lots of laughs check out the Darkmouth series.  Here's the book trailer:

Very Hungry Caterpillar Day

On Monday we celebrated Very Hungry Caterpillar Day in the library by holding a special party for Ahuriri.  Mr Topham read The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle then we coloured our own caterpillars and butterflies.

The biggest surprise of the morning was the AMAZING cupcakes that all of the children got to eat.

 

A huge thank you to Mark and Nadine at PaperPlus Barrington for supplying us with the cupcakes and some extra goodies for the party.

Cool models for our library

You may have noticed some mini buildings popping up in the nonfiction area of the library.  Holly and Eli Grant's dad, Simon, who owns PaperPlus in Merivale, has donated these very cool models to our library.
There are models of space rockets, ships and famous buildings.  Come in and check them out!

Spiders in the library!

We have some new visitors in the library for the next couple of weeks - spiders.  Lots of kids have been asking me if these are real and the answer is no.  They were living once upon a time but now they are forever stuck in the same position inside a glass case for you to stare at.

The spiders come from Science Alive, the same place we got the rocks and crystals from.  I'll be changing the cases every couple of weeks so that there is always something interesting to look at.  There are lots of different topics to choose, from birds to the human body, so if you've got a topic that you're really interested in just let me know and I'll see what I can get.