News

This week, October 18-24, we are celebrating National Friends of Libraries Week. Memberships start at just $10! Support your library and get access to fun social and volunteer opportunities.

Don't worry if you don't have time to contribute. We also love our silent partners - members that love the library and want to be in the loop but may not be able to volunteer or attend meetings. All types of support are appreciated!

Visit the Friends Bookstore on your next trip and these links to learn more!

Friends of the Hoover Public Library
Friends Bookstore

The AVL Back to School Quiz has been extended!!

Now through SEPTEMBER 30, library users can take the Alabama Virtual Library (AVL) Back to School Quiz and win books and database access for their favorite library (We hope it’s Hoover Public Library!) or school.

On your next visit to the library, go to http://www.avl.lib.al.us/quiz2009.html, enter Hoover Public Library, and then answer a couple of trivia questions using our wonderful informational databases. All ages can play and there are different questions for each age group.

If you are unfamiliar with our databases, we will be happy to demo them for you. Are you looking for the latest research on a disease or information about a company? Do you need scholarly sources for an important research project? Are you investigating your family history and genealogy? AVL and Hoover Public Library databases can help! See our entire list at www.hooverlibrary.org/databases.

Be an AVL super sleuth, have fun and win prizes for your library!

The Nonfiction Department will be partnering with the Cahaba Lily Chapter of the DAR to promote Constitution Week September 17-23. A special book display will be in the library starting September 14 and a member of the DAR will be at the lobby Sunday,September 20 with handouts for the public.

Try the Interactive Constitution from the National Constitution Center: http://ratify.constitutioncenter.org/constitution/. You can explore the famous document by keyword, topic and relationship to Supreme Court cases.

Now through September 21, library users can take the Alabama Virtual Library (AVL) Back to School Quiz and win books and database access for their favorite library (We hope it’s Hoover Public Library!) or school.

On your next visit to the library, go to http://www.avl.lib.al.us/quiz2009.html, enter Hoover Public Library, and then answer a couple of trivia questions using our wonderful informational databases. All ages can play and there are different questions for each age group.

If you are unfamiliar with our databases, we will be happy to demo them for you. Are you looking for the latest research on a disease or information about a company? Do you need scholarly sources for an important research project? Are you investigating your family history and genealogy? AVL and Hoover Public Library databases can help! See our entire list at www.hooverlibrary.org/databases.

Be an AVL super sleuth, have fun and win prizes for your library!

Everyone has a favorite book from childhood, a book they read over and over and over again each night before bed.  One of my favorites was Animals Should Definitely NOT Wear Clothing by Judi Barrett.  You're probably familiar with her most popular book Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.  What you may not know is that it is coming to the big screen beginning September 18.  Get ready to enter a world where it rains all kind of food, from mashed potatoes to pancakes.

If a world of food storms isn't wild enough for you, I have good news.  Maurice Sendak's Caldecott-winning book Where the Wild Things Are is also heading to theatres beginning October 16.  The Children's Department here at the library is especially excited about this movie.  Drop by the Kid Zone to check out the elaborate display created by our very own Wild Things: Mary Ann, Justin and Wendy.

The Adult Summer Reading theme was DON'T LET THE KIDS HAVE ALL THE FUN! We have been doing Adult Summer Reading for four years. Winner of the Grand Prize Barbeque Grill was Wanda Mayhall.

Prizes donated by the Friends of the Hoover Public Library were:

Gas Grill - grand prize

2- Lowes Gift Cards-$50

Jim ‘N Nicks Gift card $50

10-Rave Motion Picture Gift Cards $30

Bonefish Grill gift Certificate $50

New this year were weekly drawings for prizes provided by:

Chiptole Grill - 10 lunches

California Pizza Kitchen - 10 lunches

Bonefish Grill - 10 appetizers

The Woodcraft Shop of Pelham - $25 gift certificate

September is National Library Card Sign-up Month. One of our goals at the Hoover Public Library is for every child in our community to have a library card. Especially during back to school season, we feel this is the most important school supply children can have.

During the month of September the Hoover Public Library is partnering with Green Valley Baptist Church to provide a location for the Food for Fines Drive. For each canned item you donate $1.00 will be waived in library late fees, for up to $10.00. This is a great way for the people of Hoover to reach out to other members of their community while also clearing up their fines. More...

Thanks to the wonderful group of Master Gardeners who designed and planted the library's Reading Garden as part of the new Plaza area. Come enjoy the garden and the wonderful seating area surrounding the garden. Great tables with umbrellas, including tables for children, with lots of chairs are available on the patio. The Master Gardeners who contributed to the Reading Garden are Martha Picardy, Maurice Picardy, Linda Systrom, Carolyn Wynn, Juanita Smith, Ann Shirley and Hope Long. Special thanks to Hope for leading the effort. Also special thanks to the city's Public Works department for their wonderful help on this project!

About a year ago, anonymous English street artist Banksy painted a piece on an abandoned gas station in Ensley (see Birmingham Weekly story about it here.) The controversial piece lasted only about a day and a half before it was stolen. Banksy did the piece during a tour across the US that was centered around doing a lot of Hurricane Katrina themed pieces in New Orleans around the third anniversary of the storm.

The nonfiction department recently added two Banksy books to the collection so you can read more about the underground art icon that graced our fair city with his art:

751.73 BAN - Banksy Locations & Tours

751.73 BAN - Banksy's Bristol: Home Sweet Home