New Diary of a Wimpy Kid book

The new Diary of a Wimpy Kid book, Double Down, is in the library now. We have 3 copies (which flew out the doors yesterday) so if you would like to reserve it please see Mr McCallum.  

Mr McCallum has a couple of free sample chapters of Double Down so if you would like one please ask him.

Soraya Nicholas visits the library

On Tuesday we had New Zealand author Soraya Nicholas visiting us at Halswell School.  Lots of you enjoyed meeting Soraya and are eager to read her books.  We have all of her Starlight Stables books in the library so if you want to reserve them please see Mr McCallum.

Here are some of the great things that Soraya Nicholas told us:

• She has been writing since she was 9.  She carried a notebook everywhere with her.
• Girls can do anything!  Soraya knew that if she set her mind to it she could get her books published.
• She wanted to see her name on a book but was told that she was more likely to get struck by lightning 3 times on the same day.
• Her dad told her that if she worked hard at riding school for a whole year that he would get her a horse.  She had to get up early every Sunday and be at the riding school at 7am.
• The best thing to remember when you are writing is make sure you have some conflict.  You need to have something going wrong for the characters.

Here are some photos of Soraya's visit:

Middle School series by James Patterson

Do you like Diary of a Wimpy Kid or Tom Gates? You should try James Patterson's Middle School series.  We have some of the books in the library, including the first book. 

Here is a book trailer that introduces you to the series:

The first book in the series, Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life, has been made into a movie that comes out here in NZ in January.  Keep your eyes peeled for a special giveaway of the movie tie-in book here on the blog soon.  In the mean time, check out the movie trailer.  Leave a comment and tell us what you think.

Spooky stories and freaky facts

October 31 is Halloween or All Hallows Eve.  It's an American tradition that isn't celebrated much here in New Zealand but it's a great time of the year to read some spooky books.  We've got some great spooky books that you can borrow from the library and these are just a few:

• The Goosebumps series by R.L. Stine - we've just got a whole new set of these in the library.
• The Scream series by Jack Heath - a new spooky series that is perfect for anyone who loves Goosebumps
• The Giant's Necklace - a ghost story by Michael Morpurgo.
• The Prankster and the Ghost by R.L. Stedman - a funny ghost story.
• Shadow House: The Gathering by Dan Poblocki - a creepy new ghost story series that has a bonus app with extra ghost stories.
• The Ghosts of Tarawera by Sue Copsey - a spooky adventure story set in New Zealand.
• Monkey Boy by Donovan Bixley - a pirate ghost story.

Here are 5 interesting facts about Halloween:

1. The first Jack O'Lanterns were actually made from turnips.
2. Original trick-or-treaters received mostly fruits and nuts not candy. 
3. It is believed that if you see a spider on Halloween it is the spirit of a loved one watching over you.
4. In Mexico they celebrate Dias de los muertos or Day of the Dead on November 1st. It is a big celebration that honors family and friends who have passed away.
5. In Hong Kong Halloween celebrations are known as Yue Lan meaning Festival of the Hungry Ghosts. During Yue Lan celebrations fires are lit and food and gifts are offered to angry ghosts looking for revenge. 

For more information about Halloween, including games to play, costume ideas, party food to make, more books to read and tips for safe trick-or-treating go to the Christchurch City Libraries Halloween page.

Halloween Competitions

It's Halloween on Monday so we have two competitions in the library:

Find the bats - the library is infested with bats!  If you help us track down the bats and bring one to Mr McCallum he'll give you a Halloween candy treat.  Juniors can come bat hunting at 1:00 and seniors can come bat hunting at 1:30.

Create a new Goosebumps title - R.L. Stine has written HEAPS of Goosebumps books, with names like Say Cheese and Die, The Werewolf of Fever Swamp, Night of the Living Dummy and Tick, Tock, You're Dead! All you have to do is create your own title for a new Goosebumps book.  Just make it as spooky as you can.  Write your title, your name and your room number on a piece of paper and put it in the entry box in the library.

Soraya Nicholas and Stacy Gregg visiting Halswell School

In Week 4 we are going to have two very special authors visiting Halswell School.  The first author is Soraya Nicholas, the author of the new Starlight Stables series.  If you love horse and pony stories this is a great new series to try.  We will have them in the library very soon.

Soraya is visiting us on Tuesday 1 November from 9:30am-12:00pm

The second author who is visiting us is Stacy Gregg, the author of Princess and the Foal, The Girl Who Rode the Wind, and her latest book, The Diamond Horse.  Stacy is visiting us on her tour of New Zealand to celebrate her 21st book.  You can borrow Stacy's books from the library, including her new book.

Stacy is visiting us on Thursday 3 November at 10:00am

Save your money for our Book Fair

In week 7 this term, from Monday 21 November to Friday 25 November, we are going to hold our Book Fair.  This is a great opportunity to get some really great books for yourself and raise some money for the library.  Every book, poster, or pencil that you buy at our Book Fair means new exciting new books for our library.

These are just a handful of the books that you could buy:

I'll be asking for volunteers to help with the Book Fair very soon.  We will need people to help decorate the library, put up posters, help at the fair and lots more.