Sylvan Lake Library

Family Literacy Day

2012-01-26T14:34:00.000-08:00

Join us on Friday, January 27th from 1 to 2 p.m. for a trip around the world that encourages literacy.

Pick up your "Journey to Learning Passport" at the library now so you can complete it with your family and enter the draw!

Featuring special guests, stories, prizes and snacks.

Drop In.

Upcoming Movie Matinee!

2012-01-26T14:26:00.000-08:00

Our next movie marathon will feature the theme "Who Let the Dogs Out?" Our movie line up is; Lady and the Tramp, Fox and the Hound, and Homeward Bound.

There will be drinks and popcorn!

Date: Saturday February 2nd

Time: 10:00 - 3:30 p.m.

Drop-in and FREE

Family Movie Matinee Marathon

2011-12-30T15:18:00.000-08:00

Become family film buffs at the Sylvan Lake Library Family movie matinees featuring great family movies from our DVD collection

Date: First Saturday of each month
Time: 10:00 - 4:00 p.m.

Drop-in and FREE

Film Society: The Way

2011-12-30T15:09:00.000-08:00

TheSylvan Lake Film Society will be showing "The Way" on Monday, January30th at 7:15 pm.

Tickets are $8 and can be purchased at the Sylvan LakeLibrary or at the theatre on movie night.

Season passes are availablefor $24 for four films.

Understanding RESP's

2011-12-30T15:00:00.000-08:00

Do you have questions about opening an RESP for your child or grandchild?

come to the Sylvan Lake Municipal Library on Saturday, January 28th 1-5 pm to have those questions answered.

Lynette Baker of Heritage Education Funds Inc. will show you the benefits of starting an RESP, how the government grant initiatives will help add to your savings and how a safe and flexible RESP from Heritage Education Funds will help meet your needs.

Registration is not required

Heritage Education Funds Inc. is a top provider of fixed-income RESPs. They are a Canadian company that has been helping families across the country save for their children's post secondary education since 1965.

Raffle Tickets!!!

2011-12-03T15:33:00.001-08:00

Raffle tickets arenow on sale for a Christmas stocking that is stuffed with gifts!!! Tickets $2 eachor 3 for $5. Tickets can be purchased at the library. The winning ticket willbe drawn on Monday December 9^th. Buy yours soon!!!

Christmas Cheer

2011-12-01T10:34:00.001-08:00

Canada Reads 2012

2011-11-25T09:21:00.001-08:00

The final five non-fiction books for Canada Reads 2012 have been announced.
They are an eclectic array of true stories:

The Game by Ken Dryden is being championed by Alan Thicke.
The book: The Game is still widely regarded as the best book about hockey ever written, even almost 30 years after its original publication in 1983. In it, legendary goalie Ken Dryden chronicles his 1979 season with the Montreal Canadiens. -Canada Reads 2012 website, November 25, 2011

On a Cold Road by Dave Bidini is defended by Stacey McKenzie.
The book: On a Cold Road, the book that marked Rheostatics guitarist Dave Bidini's transition from rock star to writer, is a chronicle of the band's 1996 cross-Canada tour with The Tragically Hip. -Canada Reads 2012 website, November 25, 2011

Prisoner of Tehran by Marina Nemat championed by Arlene Dickinson

The book: Prisoner of Tehran is Marina Nemat's harrowing account of her imprisonment, at the age of 16, in Iran's most notorious prison for political dissidents. -Canada Reads 2012 website, November 25, 2011

Something Fierce by Carmen Aguirre defended by Shad

The book: Something Fierce is playwright and actor Carmen Aguirre's memoir of coming of age in the Chilean resistance movement. -Canada Reads 2012 website, November 25, 2011

The Tiger by John Vaillant is being championed by Anne-France Goldwater.

The book: John Vaillant's The Tiger is the shocking true story of the citizens of a remote Russian village and the ferocious, endangered Siberian tiger who is out for revenge against the poachers who survive by destroying his kind. -Canada Reads 2012 website, November 25, 2011

Get ahead of the gang and read the books before they have been voted off the Island! Click on the links to check them out of the library.

The 2011 Governor General's Literary Awards are ....

2011-11-16T10:58:00.001-08:00

The Canada Council for the Arts has announced the winners of the 75 anniversary Governor General's Literary Awards 2011.

The winner for Fiction: The Sisters Brothers by Patrick DeWitt.

The winner for Non-fiction: Mordeci: the life & times by Charles Foran

The winner for Children's Text: From then to Now: A Short History of the World by Christopher Moore

The winner for Poetry: Killdeer by Phil Hall

The winner for Drama: If We Were Birds by Erin Shields

The winner for Children's Illustration: Ten Birds by Cybèle Young

The winner for translation: Partita for Glen Gould by Donald Winkler

To check out these books from the library click on their title links!

2011 Giller Prize Winner is ....

2011-11-09T08:38:00.000-08:00

Esi Edugyan has been named the 2011 winner of the Scotiabank Giller Prize for her novel Half-Blood Blues, published by Thomas Allen Publishers.

The Jury citation of this winning book states:

"Imagine Mozart were a black German trumpet player and Salieri a bassist, and 18th century Vienna were WWII Paris; that's Esi Edugyan's joyful lament, Half-Blood Blues. It's conventional to liken the prose in novels about jazz to the music itself, as though there could be no higher praise. In this case, say rather that any jazz musician would be happy to play the way Edugyan writes. Her style is deceptively conversational and easy, but with the simultaneous exuberance and discipline of a true prodigy. Put this book next to Louis Armstrong's "West End Blues" – these two works of art belong together." -The Scotiabankgillerprize.ca, November 9, 2011

You can find this fascinating book at your local library by clicking the link at the top of this post.

The 2011 Winner of the Rogers Writers' Trust is..

2011-11-03T08:53:00.000-07:00

The $25,000 winner of the 2011 Rogers Writers' Trust has been announced, the winner is Patrick deWitt for The Sisters Brothers!

The jury citation of this winning book states:

Patrick deWitt’s joyous and genre-bending, The Sisters Brothers moves along at such a rampant pace it’s easy to lose sight of what a truly original novel it is. His exploration of the blurred lines between good and evil is masterful and mesmerizing. This is the sort of material that, in lesser hands, could easily have sunk into middling farce, but deWitt’s portrayal of the homicidal brothers and the quixotic roster of characters thrown in their path is fresh, moving, insightful, and always funny. Cinematic in its scope, meditative in its tone and brilliantly inventive in its characterization, The Sisters Brothers is a book unlike any you may read during this or the coming years. Unforgettable. -The Writers' Trust of Canada, November 3, 2011

You can find this remarkable book by clicking the link at the top of the post. Enjoy!

The Winner of the Writers' Trust of Canada for 2011

2011-11-02T10:34:00.000-07:00

The winner of the Hilary Weston Writers' Trust of Canada for Non-fiction has been announced. Charles Foran, the author of Mordecai: The Life & Times is the winner of the $60,000 prize.

The jury citation of this winning book states:

Charles Foran’s biography, Mordecai: The Life & Times, is an epic work of scholarship and energy, capturing the career and life of the Montreal writer, Mordecai Richler, with a majesty that doesn’t betray the wit and sincerity of Canada’s most famous literary contrarian. Mordecai delivers an authentic portrait of a writer who could be both tragic and gut-busting funny, a loving family man and defender of human rights, who could also snap off barbed quips infuriating both Quebec and anglo nationalists, as well as his fellow writers, and even his own Jewish community in Montreal. To portray this multi-faced life with such amazing ease signals the quality of Mordecai. It’s a big book, inclusive, intelligent, and sometimes sad. Charles Foran never wears his research on his sleeve, easing it near-invisibly into the web of this great life.Mordecai is well written, exciting to read, even-handed, and magisterial. -The Writers' Trust of Canada website, November 2, 2011

Man Booker Prize 2011 Winner!

2011-10-19T08:56:00.000-07:00

The winner of the Man Booker Prize 2011 was:

The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes

Synopsis

A truly wonderful novel that will have the reader immersed in the story from the very first page, and all the while marvelling at the precision of Barnes’ prose. Tony Webster and his clique first met Adrian Finn at school. Sex-hungry and book-hungry, they would navigate the girl-less sixth form together, trading in affectations, in-jokes, rumour and wit. Maybe Adrian was a little more serious than the others, certainly more intelligent, but they all swore to stay friends for life. Now Tony is in middle age. He’s had a career and a single marriage, a calm divorce. He’s certainly never tried to hurt anybody. Memory, though, is imperfect. It can always throw up surprises, as a lawyer’s letter is about to prove. The Sense of an Ending is the story of one man coming to terms with the mutable past. Laced with trademark precision, dexterity and insight, it is the work of one of the world’s most distinguished writers.

The short list for the Man Booker Prize included two canadians!

Carol Birch - Jamrach's Menagerie

Synopsis

I was born twice. First in a wooden room that jutted out over the black water of the Thames, and then again eight years later in the Highway, when the tiger took me in his mouth and everything truly began.’ 1857. Jaffy Brown is running along a street in London’s East End when he comes face to face with an escaped circus animal. Plucked from the jaws of death by Mr Jamrach – explorer, entrepreneur and collector of the world’s strangest creatures – the two strike up a friendship. Before he knows it, Jaffy finds himself on board a ship bound for the Dutch East Indies, on an unusual commission for Mr Jamrach. His journey – if he survives it – will push faith, love and friendship to their utmost limits.

Patrick deWitt - The Sisters Brothers

Synopsis

From the author of the acclaimed Ablutions, this dazzlingly original novel is a darkly funny, offbeat western about a reluctant assassin and his murderous brother. Oregon, 1851. Eli and Charlie Sisters, notorious professional killers, are on their way to California to kill a man named Hermann Kermit Warm. On the way, the brothers have a series of unsettling and violent experiences in the Darwinian landscape of Gold Rush America. Charlie makes money and kills anyone who stands in his way; Eli doubts his vocation and falls in love. And they bicker a lot. Then they get to California, and discover that Warm is an inventor who has come up with a magical formula, which could make all of them very rich. What happens next is utterly gripping, strange and sad. Told in deWitt’s darkly comic and arresting style, The Sisters Brothers is the kind of western the Coen Brothers might write – stark, unsettling and with a keen eye for the perversity of human motivation. Like his debut novel Ablutions, it is a novel about the things you tell yourself in order to be able to continue to live the life you find yourself in, and what happens when those stories no longer work. It is an inventive and strange and beautifully controlled piece of fiction and displays an exciting expansion of Dewitt’s range

Esi Edugyan - Half Blood Blues
Synopsis

‘Chip told us not to go out. Said, don’t you boys tempt the devil. But it been one brawl of a night, I tell you…’ The aftermath of the fall of Paris, 1940. Hieronymous Falk, a rising star on the cabaret scene, was arrested in a cafe and never heard from again. He was twenty years old. He was a German citizen. And he was black. Fifty years later, Sid, Hiero’s bandmate and the only witness that day, is going back to Berlin. Persuaded by his old friend Chip, Sid discovers there’s more to the journey than he thought when Chip shares a mysterious letter, bringing to the surface secrets buried since Hiero’s fate was settled. In Half Blood Blues, Esi Edugyan weaves the horror of betrayal, the burden of loyalty and the possibility that, if you don’t tell your story, someone else might tell it for you. And they just might tell it wrong…

Stephen Kelman - Pigeon English

Synopsis

Newly arrived from Ghana with his mother and older sister, eleven-year-old Harrison Opoku lives on the ninth floor of a block of flats on an inner-city housing estate. The second best runner in the whole of Year 7, Harri races through his new life in his personalised trainers – the Adidas stripes drawn on with marker pen – blissfully unaware of the very real threat all around him. With equal fascination for the local gang – the Dell Farm Crew – and the pigeon who visits his balcony, Harri absorbs the many strange elements of his new life in England: watching, listening, and learning the tricks of inner-city survival. But when a boy is knifed to death on the high street and a police appeal for witnesses draws only silence, Harri decides to start a murder investigation of his own. In doing so, he unwittingly endangers the fragile web his mother has spun around her family to try and keep them safe. A story of innocence and experience, hope and harsh reality, Pigeon English is a spellbinding portrayal of a boy balancing on the edge of manhood and of the forces around him that try to shape the way he falls.

A D Miller - Snowdrops

Synopsis

"A.D. Miller’s Snowdrops is a riveting psychological drama that unfolds over the course of one Moscow winter, as a young Englishman’s moral compass is spun by the seductive opportunities revealed to him by a new Russia: a land of hedonism and desperation, corruption and kindness, magical dachas and debauched nightclubs; a place where secrets – and corpses – come to light only when the deep snows start to thaw… Snowdrops is a chilling story of love and moral freefall: of the corruption, by a corrupt society, of a corruptible man. It is taut, intense and has a momentum as irresistible to the reader as the moral danger that first enchants, then threatens to overwhelm, its narrator."

Synopsis' are courtesy of http://www.themanbookerprize.com/prize/thisyear/shortlist.

Governor General's Literary Awards 2011

2011-10-12T13:42:00.000-07:00

The 2011 Governor General's Literary Awards have been announced. The Governor General’s Literary Awards – commonly known as “the GGs” – were first awarded in 1936. They are awarded in seven categories, in both French and English, with a $25,000 prize.
The finalists for fiction are:

The Little Shadows

Marina Endicott | Fiction

The little shadows revolves around three sisters in the world of vaudeville before and during the First World War. The girls, overseen by their fond but barely coping Mama, are forced to make their living as a singing act after the untimely death of their father. They begin with little besides youth and hope, but the three girls slowly and steadily evolve into true artists even as they navigate their way to adulthood among a cast of extraordinary characters

The Sisters Brothers

Patrick deWitt | Fiction

When a frontier baron known as the Commodore orders Charlie and Eli Sisters, his hired gunslingers, to track down and kill a prospector named Herman Kermit Warm, the brothers journey from Oregon to San Francisco, and eventually to Warm's claim in the Sierra foothills, running into a witch, a bear, a dead Indian, a parlor of drunken floozies, and a gang of murderous fur trappers.

Half-Blood Blues: A Novel

Esi Edugyan | Fiction

This is a new part of an old story: 1930s Berlin, the threat of imprisonment and the powerful desire to make something beautiful despite the horror. Ernst told them not to go out. Said don't you boys tempt the devil. But the cheap beer in his gut must have made Hieronymus think a glass of milk would be worth the risk. Of course Ernst was right, and the star player on the Berlin scene of the late 1930s, right before the war began for the second time, was taken away that night by the Boots. An easy target, being a mixed-race German. Not like the others, the Americans, Europeans, black, white and Jewish, who could hide a while longer. Fifty years later and Sidney's going back, to hear for the first time the unfinished recording the band was making, the obsession that kept them there long after it was safe. The thing that stopped them using those visas while they were still good.

Touch

Alexi Zentner | Fiction

In Sawgamet, a north woods boomtown gone bust, the cold of winter breaks the glass of the schoolhouse thermometer, and the dangers of working in the cuts are overshadowed by the mysteries and magic lurking in the woods. Stephen, a pastor, is at home on the eve of his mother's funeral, thirty years after the mythic summer his grandfather returned to the town in search of his beloved but long-dead wife. And like his grandfather, Stephen is forced to confront the losses of his past.

The Free World

David Bezmozgis | Fiction

Bezmozgis follows his well-received Natasha and Other Stories with a meticulous study of the capricious spaces between historical certainties. First, there's the gap that allows the Krasnansky family to flee Soviet Latvia in the late 1970s for the edge of Rome, where a population of Jewish refugees contemplate their chances of emigrating to Canada, America, or Australia while awaiting news of Israel's peace with Egypt amid widespread anti-Zionism. Then there's the generational gap between the Krasnansky patriarch, unreconstructed Communist Samuil, who only reluctantly leaves the bloc he fought and sacrificed for, and his somewhat profligate sons, Alec and Karl, keen to snatch up the opportunities-sexual, financial, and criminal-that the West affords. And finally there is the growing distance between Alec and his wife, Polina, who is fleeing an ex-husband and a scandalous abortion. Bezmozgis displays an evenhanded verisimilitude in dealing with a wide variety of cold war attitudes, and though the unremitting seriousness of his tone makes for some slow patches, the book remains an assured, complex social novel whose relevance will be obvious to any reader genuinely curious about recent history, the limits of love, and the unexpected burdens that attend the arrival of freedom.

The finalists for non-fiction are:

Empire of the Beetle: How Human Folly and a Tiny Bug Are Killing North America’s Great Forests

Andrew Nikiforuk | Non-Fiction

Beginning in the late 1980s, a series of pine beetle (also known as the bark beetle) outbreaks unsettled iconic forests and communities across western North America. An insect the size of a rice kernel eventually killed more than 30 billion pine and spruce trees from Alaska to New Mexico. The pine beetle didn't act alone. Misguided science, out-of-control logging, bad public policy, and a hundred years of fire suppression released the world's oldest forest manager from all natural constraints. The beetles exploded wildly in North America and then crashed, leaving in their wake grieving landowners, humbled scientists, hungry animals, and altered watersheds. Although climate change triggered this complex event, human arrogance assuredly played a role. And despite the billions of public dollars spent on control efforts, the beetles burn away like a fire that can't be put out. Author Andrew Nikiforuk draws on first-hand accounts from entomologists, botanists, foresters, and rural residents to investigate this unprecedented pine beetle plague, its startling implications, and the lessons it holds. Written in an accessible way, Empire of the Beetle is the only book on the pine beetle epidemic that is devastating the North American West.

Mordecai: The Life & Times

Charles Foran | Non-Fiction

Foran's book is IT: the definitive, detailed, intimate portrait of Mordecai Richler, the lion of Canadian literature, and the turbulent, changing times that nurtured him. It is also an extraordinary love story that lasted half a century. The first major biography with access to family letters and archives. Mordecai Richler was an outsized and outrageous novelist whose life reads like fiction. Mordecai Richler won multiple Governor General's Literary Awards, the Giller Prize, the Commonwealth Writers' Prize, among others, as well as many awards for his children's books. He also wrote Oscar-nominated screenplays. His influence was larger than life in Canada and abroad. In Mordecai , award-winning novelist and journalist Charlie Foran brings to the page the richness of Mordecai's life as young bohemian, irreverent writer, passionate and controversial Canadian, loyal friend and deeply romantic lover. He explores Mordecai's distraught childhood, and gives us the "portrait of a marriage" - the lifelong love affair with Florence, with Mordecai as beloved father of five. The portrait is alive and intimate -warts and all.

Nation Maker: Sir John A. Macdonald: His Life, Our Times, Volume Two: 1867-1891

Richard Gwyn | Non-Fiction

#1 NATIONAL BESTSELLER An exciting story, passionately told and rich in detail, this major biography is the second volume of the bestselling, award-winning John A: The Man Who Made Us , by well-known journalist and highly respected author Richard Gwyn. John A. Macdonald, Canada's first and most important prime minister, is the man who made Confederation happen, who built this country over the next quarter century, and who shaped what it is today. From Confederation Day in 1867, where this volume picks up, Macdonald finessed a reluctant union of four provinces in central and eastern Canada into a strong nation, despite indifference from Britain and annexationist sentiment in the United States. But it wasn't easy. The wily Macdonald faced constant crises throughout these years, from Louis Riel's two rebellions through to the Pacific Scandal that almost undid his government and his quest to find the spine of the nation: the railroad that would link east to west. Gwyn paints a superb portrait of Canada and its leaders through these formative years and also delves deep to show us Macdonald the man, as he marries for the second time, deals with the birth of a disabled child, and the assassination of his close friend Darcy McGee, and wrestles with whether Riel should hang. Indelibly, Gwyn shows us Macdonald's love of this country and his ability to joust with forces who would have been just as happy to see the end of Canada before it had really begun, creating a must-read for all Canadians.

The Damned: The Canadians at the Battle of Hong Kong and the POW Experience, 1941-45

Nathan M. Greenfield | Non-Fiction

The Measure of a Man: The Story of a Father, a Son, and a Suit

J.J. Lee | Non-Fiction

Taking as its starting point a son's decision to alter his late father's last remaining suit for himself, this is a deeply moving and brilliantly crafted story of fathers and sons, of fitting in and standing out -- and discovering what it means to be your own man. For years, journalist and amateur tailor JJ Lee tried to ignore the navy suit that hung at the back of his closet -- his late father's last suit. When he decides to finally make the suit his own, little does he know he is about to embark on a journey into his own past. As JJ moves across the surface of the suit, he reveals the heartbreaking tale of his father, a charismatic but luckless restaurateur whose demons brought tumult upon his family. He also recounts the year he spent as an apprentice tailor at Modernize Tailors, the last of Vancouver's legendary Chinatown tailors, where he learns invaluable lessons about life from his octogenarian master tailor. Woven throughout these two personal strands are entertaining stories from the social history of the man's suit, the surprising battleground where the war between generations has long been fought. With wit, bracing honesty, and great narrative verve, JJ takes us from the French Revolution to the Zoot Suit Riots, from the Japanese Salaryman to Mad Men, from Oscar Wilde in short pants to Marlon Brando in a T-shirt, and from the rareified rooms of Savile Row to a rundown shop in Chinatown. A book that will forever change the way you think about the maxim "the clothes make the man," this is a universal story of love and forgiveness and breaking with the past.

The finalists for poetry, drama, children's text, children's illustration and translation can be found at the Governor General's Literary Awards website.

The winners of the Governor General's Awards will be announced November 15, 2011.

2011 Children's Literature Award

2011-10-07T10:48:00.000-07:00

The 2011 winners of the TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award, Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award, Norma Fleck Award for Canadian Children’s Non-Fiction, Geoffrey Bilson Award for Historical Fiction for Young People and the inaugural John Spray Mystery Award have been announced.

Each of these award-winning books was chosen because they exemplify the best work in the Canadian author and illustrator community. Adult and child readers alike are sure to be captivated by these engaging stories, and it is certain that they will soon become Canadian classics that will adorn bookshelves across the country.

All of the winners are available at the library, clicking on the title will take you to the catalogue listing of the title.

TD CANADIAN CHILDREN’S LITERATURE AWARD ($25,000)

Sponsored by TD Bank Group

Plain Kate
Written by Erin Bow (Kitchener, ON)
for ages 11 and up
"Plain Kate is a triumph of imagination. With astonishing skill, Erin Bow creates the world of Kate, whose talents as a wood carver mark her as a witch. The fascinating, intricate plot bravely explores the wrenching complexities of cruelty and of love. Bow’s prose is at once lyrical and raw, and her characters are indelible. This is a book that will be read for generations.”

MARILYN BAILLIE PICTURE BOOK AWARD ($20,000)

Sponsored by A. Charles Baillie

I Know Here
Written by Laurel Croza (Markham, ON)
Illustrated by Matt James (Toronto, ON)
Groundwood Books
for ages 5-7
“An authentic, personal voice captivates from the first line, in this leave-taking from a beloved childhood home. The centre of this child’s universe is a trailer camp in the northern wilderness, rendered in all its details with brilliant harmony between Croza’s affecting, naturalistic words and James's evocative, childlike paintings… Running throughout are bittersweet emotions, wonderfully narrated, that all will recognize.”

NORMA FLECK AWARD FOR CANADIAN CHILDREN’S NON-FICTION ($10,000)

Sponsored by the Fleck Family Foundation

Case Closed? Nine Mysteries Unlocked by Modern Science
Written by Susan Hughes (Toronto, ON)
Illustrated by Michael Wandelmaier (Toronto, ON)
Kids Can Press
for ages 8-12
“A perfect combination of science, story and history, compellingly presented by Susan Hughes who shows with absorbing detail how modern science can shed new light on some of mankind’s most beguiling mysteries… The book is replete with colourful graphic illustrations, maps, photographs and fascinating forensic notes to intrigue the curious child as well as adults… An exciting and entertaining read.”

GEOFFREY BILSON AWARD FOR HISTORICAL FICTION FOR YOUNG PEOPLE ($5,000)

Sponsored by the Canadian Children’s Book Centre’s Bilson Endowment Fund

The Glory Wind
Written by Valerie Sherrard (Miramichi, NB)
Fitzhenry & Whiteside
for ages 11 and up
“A very moving portrayal of both small town life and friendship… Sherrard beautifully conveys the small-mindedness and prejudice of the town, and the subsequent consequences… The Glory Wind effectively depicts life during the 1940s, but still manages to be a modern story that resonates with contemporary readers… It did everything for me that a good novel should do – it made me smile, it made me angry, it brought me to tears.”

JOHN SPRAY MYSTERY AWARD ($5,000)

Sponsored by John Spray

A Spy in the House
(The Agency)
Written by Y.S. Lee (Kingston, ON)
Candlewick Press
for ages 13 and up
“In A Spy in the House Lee has got Victorian London right; this is what Dickens’ world really smelled like, literally and morally... Interesting and unique, Mary Quinn is a strong character who can think on her feet... I loved this book from the first line to the very last... A great read for a young adult of any age... It worked from beginning to end.”

The short listed books for all the categories can be found at The Canadian Children's Book Centre.

Giller Shortlist 2011

2011-10-06T14:23:00.000-07:00

The Giller Prize 2011 shortlist has been announced. The 2011 Scotiabank Giller Prize finalists are:

David Bezmozgis for his novel THE FREE WORLD, published by HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.

Polina has somewhat fecklessly left her devoted, upright husband for Alec, a smooth-talking womanizer now eyeing a teenage girl. Responsible older brother Karl has big dreams but helps the family survive by getting involved in a shady business. Family patriarch Samuil, who still mourns a brother lost in World War II, remains firmly secular even as his wife drifts toward the family's Jewish heritage. Sounds like your typical family problems, but the Krasnanskys are Soviet Jews who have fled to the West (it's 1978), and the miracle of this debut novel is how effectively Bezmozgis (Natasha: And Other Stories) captures both the family's recognizable tensions and the particular difficulties of the Soviet emigre experience. Staunch Communist Samuil, for instance, contravened his convictions to emigrate and remain with his family, while Polina will never see hers again. Having opted not to go to Israel, the Krasnanskys find themselves in Rome, struggling to arrange visas to the United States or Canada. Bezmozgis fills their wait with carefully nuanced anguish and, yes, hope. Verdict Bezmozgis proves why he was recently proclaimed one of The New Yorker's 20 Under 40; this is mellifluous, utterly captivating writing, and you'll live with the Krasnansky family as if it were your own. Highly recommended.-Barbara Hoffert, Library Journal (c) Copyright 2010.

Lynn Coady for her novel THE ANTAGONIST, published by House of Anansi Press

Due to his size, but against his true nature, Gordon Rankin ("Rank") has always been cast in the role of enforcer. After tragedy strikes, he disappears. Almost twenty years later, he discovers that an old friend has written a novel mirroring his life. The betrayal leads Rank to finally confront the tragedy he's been running from.

Patrick deWitt for his novel THE SISTERS BROTHERS, published by House of Anansi Press

Esi Edugyan for her novel HALF-BLOOD BLUES, published by Thomas Allen Publishers

Zsuzsi Gartner for her short story collection BETTER LIVING THROUGH PLASTIC .EXPLOSIVES, published by Hamish Hamilton Canada

Summer of the flesh eater -- Once, we were Swedes -- Floating like a goat -- Investment results may vary -- Adopted Chinese daughters' rebellion -- What are we doing here? -- Someone is killing the great motivational speakers of Amerika -- Mister Kakami -- We come in peace -- Better living through plastic explosives

Michael Ondaatje for his novel THE CAT’S TABLE, published by McClelland & Stewart

In the early 1950s, an eleven-year-old boy in Colombo boards a ship bound for England. At mealtimes he is seated at the “Cat’s Table”--as far from the Captain’s Table as can be--with a ragtag group of “insignificant” adults and two other boys, Cassius and Ramadhin. As the ship makes its way across the Indian Ocean, through the Suez Canal, into the Mediterranean, the boys tumble from one adventure to another, bursting all over the place like freed mercury. But there are other diversions as well: one man talks with them about jazz and women, another opens the door to the world of literature. The narrator’s elusive, beautiful cousin Emily becomes his confidante, allowing him to see himself “with a distant eye” for the first time, and to feel the first stirring of desire. Another Cat’s Table denizen, the shadowy Miss Lasqueti, is perhaps more than what she seems. And very late every night, the boys spy on a shackled prisoner, his crime and his fate a galvanizing mystery that will haunt them forever. As the narrative moves between the decks and holds of the ship and the boy’s adult years, it tells a spellbinding story--by turns poignant and electrifying--about the magical, often forbidden, discoveries of childhood and a lifelong journey that begins unexpectedly with a spectacular sea voyage.

Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize

2011-09-30T10:39:00.000-07:00

The five finalists for the 2011 Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize were announced on September 28, 2011, at Toronto's Ben McNally Books.The Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize recognizes Canadian writers of exceptional talent for the year's best novel or short-story collection. Finalists were selected by a three-member jury composed of Emma Donoghue, a past winner of this prize; Rabindranath Maharaj, a past finalist of this prize; and Margaret Sweatman, also a past winner of this prize. The prize will be awarded in Toronto during the Writers’ Trust Awards event on November 1.
This year's finalists are:

Clark Blaise The Meagre Tarmac

Michael Christie The Beggar's Garden

Patrick deWitt The Sisters Brothers

Esi Edugyan Half-Blood Blues

Dan Vyleta The Quiet Twin

Hilary Westons' Trust Prize for Nonfiction

2011-09-22T12:00:00.000-07:00

The Hilary Weston Trust Prize for Nonfiction is a new award that replaces the Writers' Trust prize for nonfiction which has been without a sponsor for a number of years now. The $60 000 prize is sponsored by the former lieutenant governor of Ontario Hilary Weston.

This year's finalists are :

Charles Foran | Mordecai: The Life & Times
Published by Knopf Canada

Charlotte Gill | Eating Dirt: Deep Forests, Big Timber, and Life with the Tree-Planting TribePublished by Greystone Books/David Suzuki Foundation

Richard Gwyn | Nation Maker: Sir John A. Macdonald: His Life, Our Times; Volume Two: 1867-1891Published by Random House Canada

Grant Lawrence | Adventures in Solitude: What Not to Wear to a Nudist Potluck and Other Stories from Desolation Sound
Published by Harbour Publishing

Ray Robertson | Why Not? Fifteen Reasons to LivePublished by Biblioasis

Polaris Music Prize Winner 2011

2011-09-20T12:24:00.000-07:00

The Polaris Music Prize has been announced. The 2011 winner is Arcade Fire's The Suburbs.
The Polaris Prize celebrates Canadian music of the highest artistic integrity. Check out their website- www.polarismusicprize.ca/

Polaris Music Prize short list nominees for the 2011 short list are:

Arcade Fire – The Suburbs
Austra- Feel It Break
Braids- Native$Speaker
Destroyer- Kaputt
Galaxie- Tigre et Diesel
Hey Rosetta1- Seeds
Ron Sexsmith- Long Player Late Bloomer
Colin Stetson- New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges
Timber Timbre- Creep On Creepin’ On
The Weeknd- House Of Balloons

Giller Prize Longlist Announced

2011-09-16T09:15:00.000-07:00

The Giller Prize longlist has been announced. Visit the site and you can make your own shortlist. The official short list will be announced on October 4, 2011.

Adult Programming

2011-08-20T10:14:00.000-07:00

Winter Gardening Basics

at the Library

It’ll soon be time to tuck your garden
in for the
winter months.
Are you ready?
Join Cheryl De Bour, Town of Sylvan Lake
Horticulturist,
as she walks us through the steps
necessary
to ensure your plants are
strong and healthy next spring.

Date: Wednesday, September 14
Time: 6-8 p.m.
Place: Sylvan Lake Library
Registration is not required, but seating is limited.

Summer Reading Program

2011-06-16T11:09:00.000-07:00

TD Summer Reading Club

Life's a beach at the Sylvan Lake Library this summer.

Six weeks of reading fun and weekly prize draws.

Reel in a good read at the library this summer.

This program is open to children and adults alike.

Registration began on June 1st and continues all month long.

Reading Kits can be picked up after the Beach Party Scavenger Hunt

on Wednesday, July 6, 1-2 pm.

Call 403-887-2130 for more details.

Book sale donations

2011-06-16T10:44:00.000-07:00

The Sylvan Lake Library is now accepting donations of new and gently used books, CD's, and DVD's for the Annual Friends of the Sylvan Lake Library Book Sale.

You can drop off your items at the library.
Call 403-887-2130 for more details.

Volunteers Needed!

2011-06-16T10:26:00.000-07:00

The Friends of the

Sylvan Lake Library
Annual Book Sale

Friday, July 8 & Saturday, July 9

Are you interested in volunteering a few hours for the annual booksale?

We need your help raising money for library initiatives.

Call the library for more information and to book your shift.

403-887-2130

Traveling Art Exhibit at the Library until June 21, 2011

2011-06-09T10:40:00.000-07:00

Alberta Society of Artists
AFA Traveling Exhibition
Program presents….
The Book Arts
At your Library

The Book Arts is a travelling exhibition focused on
aspects of the art of the book including book binding, fine press, paper making, illustration and a selection of
artists’ books by 18 artists from across

Western Canada.

Sylvan Lake Film Society is seeking volunteers.

2011-06-09T10:34:00.000-07:00

Do you like indie films?

If you’re a movie buff and enjoy some of the lesser known flicks, consider being a volunteer with the
Sylvan Lake Film Society.
For more information call the
Sylvan Lake Library at 403-887-2130.

The new film season starts in September!

Teddy Bear Picnic

2011-06-03T13:34:00.000-07:00

The Teddy Bear Picnic is tomorrow! Can't wait to see you, if you haven't registered your children yet and want to come please call the library as soon as possible to register.

Farmers' Market Opening this Weekend

2011-05-20T14:32:00.000-07:00

The farmers' market has opened again for the season. It runs Friday from 4 to 7:30 pm in the Railway Park Promenade East lot, across from the arena, starting this long weekend.

Slave Lake Fire Relief

2011-05-18T08:36:00.000-07:00

Slave Lake Fire Relief Fund
Those wanting to help the residents of the Town of Slave Lake that have been effected and displaced by the fire can do so by contacting the Canadian Red Cross at #105, 5301 43 Street in Red Deer
Ph 403 346-1241

Donations will be accepted at the Town Office.Cheques should be made payable to the Red Cross.

Mighty Machines

2011-05-13T12:10:00.000-07:00

Mighty Machines will be held this Saturday, May 14th from 1-2 pm. It is for children 3-8 years old. If you want to come make sure to call first and register.

Family Movie Matinee

2011-05-05T14:09:00.000-07:00

Join us at the Library for
Trunk Loads of fun!

Saturday, May 7

10 am - 3:30 pm

Popcorn and juice provided.

Sylvan Lake Film Society

2011-04-26T13:28:00.000-07:00

Thank you to everyone who supported the
Sylvan Lake Film Society
throughout the 2010-11 season.

If you missed any of our film screenings you still have
an opportunity to see them.

The Sylvan Lake Library purchases all films screened
by the Film Society once they are released on DVD.

Happy viewing!

Sylvan Lake Municipal Library presents...

2011-04-26T11:00:00.000-07:00

The Alberta UFO Study Group

Did you know that many UFO sightings
have been reported
in Alberta!

Join us for an engaging presentation
with our special guest Jim Moroney.

Jim has 25 years experience in UFO research.
He has had intimate and personal experiences with the phenomenon.

If you have questions or experiences to share on this controversial subject, call to reserve your seat.

A guest on national television and radio,
Jim has spoken at numerous
conferences and symposiums.

This is a presentation not to be missed.

For more information about the
Alberta UFO Study Group visit:http://www.aufosg.com/

Saturday, May 28
1 pm - 2 pm

Registration is free,
but required.

Minors must be
accompanied by an adult.

Sylvan Lake Film Society

2011-04-21T13:26:00.000-07:00

The Illusionist

When: April 25, 2011
Where: Landmark Cinema
9 Beju Industrial Drive
Tickets: $8 each
Showtime: 7:15 pm

Cast: Jean-Claude Donda, Eilidh Rankin
Director: Sylvain ChometDuration: 80 minsYear: 2011Rated: PG for portrayals of substance abuse and violence

This is an animated film.

A French illusionist finds himself out of work and travels to Scotland, where he meets a young woman. Their ensuing adventure changes both their lives forever. ~www.imdb.com

Easter Hours

2011-04-21T10:53:00.000-07:00

The Sylvan Lake Library will be closed Good Friday and Easter Sunday. We will be open Saturday and Easter Monday, regular hours.

Easter Egg Hunt

2011-04-20T10:59:00.000-07:00

The bunny has arrived at the library. Bring the children to the library from 1-2 on Saturday and begin the hunt. The children will search out tiny bunny tickets and trade them in for a chocolatey treat bag. There will be an easter craft in the program room. We should also be able to fit in some face painted bunny noses and a Bunny Story.

This is a free drop in event. We are looking forward to seeing you!

Sylvan Lake Film Society presents...

2011-03-25T13:38:00.000-07:00

MADE IN DAGENHAM

Monday, March 28 7:15 pm

at Landmark Cinema in Sylvan Lake

Tickets cost $8.00 each

· Starring: Sally Hawkins, Miranda Richardson, Bob Hoskins, Rosamund Pike

· Director: Nigel Cole

· Duration: 113 mins

· Year: 2010

· Rated: 14A for coarse language

A dramatization of the 1968 strike at the Ford Dagenham car plant, where female workers walked out in protest against sexual discrimination. ~www.imdb.com

A new Science Crate has Arrived

2011-03-24T09:15:00.000-07:00

FARMS: Farm Animal Relationship Monitoring System Science in a Crate

Mar 15 – 30 2011

Description

Animal Life Cycles – Grade Three
With seven hands-on activity centres, this crate immerses grade 3 students into farm life where they help Jo observe some common and not-so-common animals found on her farm. Students discover and deepen their understanding about animals – animal adaptation to different environments, life cycles, and requirements for their care. Let’s help Jo out on her farm!!

Made possible through funding from Imperial Oil Foundation and Agriculture Financial Services Corporation (AFSC)
Animal Life Cycles
Grade 3

Up to date Japan Crisis Information

2011-03-18T14:12:00.000-07:00

The CBC has a special Japanese Relief page. It features breaking news, how to help out and live blog feeds. It can be found at http://www.cbc.ca/japanrelief.

Google Art Project

2011-03-04T14:11:00.000-08:00

Check out some famous works of art without having to leave the warmth of your home. Google has undertaken googleartproject using street view technology. There is the ability to zoom in on the art pieces and it also provides further information on the works.For now the following museums are included in the project:

Alte Nationalgalerie, Berlin - Germany
Freer Gallery of Art, Smithsonian, Washington DC - USA
The Frick Collection, NYC - USA
Gemäldegalerie, Berlin - Germany
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC - USA
MoMA, The Museum of Modern Art, NYC - USA
Museo Reina Sofia, Madrid - Spain
Museo Thyssen - Bornemisza, Madrid - Spain
Museum Kampa, Prague - Czech Republic
National Gallery, London - UK
Palace of Versailles - France
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam - The Netherlands
The State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg - Russia
State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow - Russia
Tate Britain, London - UK
Uffizi Gallery, Florence - Italy
Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam - The Netherlands

Colour Therapy at the Library

2011-03-03T13:22:00.000-08:00

Join Linda Cattoni, of Cattail Therapy, at the library on Sunday, March 20 from 1pm to 5pm and discover how Colour Therapy can balance and enhance your life. Linda is a professionally qualified Colour Therapy practitioner, who will help you to understand your colour preferences, and your need for a certain colour or colours. Colour therapy is a totally holistic and
non-invasive therapy for us all - adults, children, babies and animals. Heighten your awareness of the energy of colour and it can transform your life.

Registration is not required, but seating is limited.

March Movie Matinee

2011-03-03T13:17:00.000-08:00

March Movie Matinee

featuring

The Black Stallion series

Young Black Stallion

Black Stallion

Black Stallion Returns

Saturday, March 5

10 am - 3:30 pm (approximately)

FREE popcorn and juice

Drop in

Film Society Tonight

2011-02-28T09:53:00.000-08:00

Brave the cold and the snow and come see the forces of nature with David Suzuki tonight at Landmark Cinema courtesy of the Sylvan Lake Library Film Society.

Freedom to Read Week!!

2011-02-23T15:06:00.000-08:00

Freedom to read week

Centennial Park!

2011-02-10T13:51:00.000-08:00

Are you curious about what the Town of Sylvan Lake is planning to do with Centennial Park but can't get to the Town office during working hours? Never fear! We have the design boards on display right now at the library.

So come on in and check them out!

2011-02-02T12:38:00.000-08:00

From the Library of Alexandria:

The library is safe thanks to Egypt’s youth, whether they be the staff of the Library or the representatives of the demonstrators, who are joining us in guarding the building from potential vandals and looters.

Princess Movie Marathon

2011-01-28T14:08:00.000-08:00

"Princess and the Frog"

"Princess of Thieves"

"Princess Diaries"

Saturday, February 5
10-3:30pm

FREE, DROP IN

Winterfest Movie Marathon

2011-01-28T13:58:00.000-08:00

Come in from the cold

and enjoy some wintery movies,

hot chocolate and popcorn.

Saturday, February 19

10-3:30pm

Free, Drop In

Kill-a-Watt Power Monitor

2011-01-20T15:02:00.000-08:00

Fortis Alberta has donated a power monitor to each library in the
Parkland Regional Library System.
They come in a small black case and included in the case is a quick start guide
and safety instructions.
The power monitor can be signed out for one week at a time.

The Kill-a-Watt Power Monitor lets you measure how much electricity
is used by appliances or other devices in your home or office.
Simply plug the Kill-a-Watt into an electrical outlet, and then plug your device into the Kill-a-Watt.

By tracking which devices are consuming power unnecessarily,
you can save hundreds of dollars a year in power bills and help the environment at the same time.

Family Literacy Day: Play!

2011-01-18T13:13:00.000-08:00

On January 27, 2011 Canadian families from coast to coast will Play for Literacy in support of Family Literacy Day which encourages parents and children to spend at least 15 minutes enjoying a learning activity every day. The Sylvan Lake Municipal Library will be participating in Play! for Literacy and invites families to come out and Play! at the Library on Thursday the 27^th of January from 1-2 pm as we support Family Literacy Day.

The Sylvan Lake Library is planning a plethora of board games, card games, puzzles, guest storytellers, and refreshments from 1-2 pm on Thursday January 27^th. We are also hosting a prize draw for Literacy Bingo, courtesy of The Henday Association. Come in as soon as possible to get your bingo card and complete the activities so you’re eligible for the prize draw.

Play for Literacy can include all types of play that encourages literacy and numeracy development as well as comprehension skills, such as board games, card games and imaginative self-created activities and games. Games, and the carefree act of playing, provide a fun outlet in which individuals of all ages can engage in activities that inherently provide new learning or opportunities to improve one's reading, writing, math and comprehension skills.

"Playing games not only has the ability to bring people together, it also provides a fun environment in which learning takes place," explains Margaret Eaton, ABC Life Literacy Canada President. "Card games help improve numeracy skills while board games, and even word association games, sharpen spelling, reading and comprehension skills. The reality that learning can take place while laughing and being engaged together as family is important to remember as we continue to be challenged in our day-to-day lives."

Family Literacy Day, held annually on January 27, was developed by ABC Life Literacy Canada (formerly ABC CANADA Literacy Foundation) in 1999 to celebrate adults and children reading and learning together, and to encourage Canadian families to spend at least 15 minutes a day enjoying a learning activity together. Visit FamilyLiteracyDay.ca to find a local event or to access resources to create your own celebration.

Maskacis (Bear Hills) Traveling Art Exhibition

2011-01-15T10:31:00.000-08:00

Alberta Society of Artists
AFA Traveling Exhibition
Program presents….

Maskwacis Bear Hills.

January 5 - 25, 2011
at the Library
Presenting an eclectic mix of
artworks created by young artists and professionals,
this exhibition reflects upon the attributes important to the
Nehiyaw and their individual stories. Maskwacîs (Bear Hills) was generously funded by
Syncrude Canada.

Getting On Track: Increase Energy Levels and Improve Your Health in 2011

2011-01-12T17:08:00.000-08:00

Would you like to put balance back into your life this year? Join Kim Reinhart of Optimal Fitness and Kathleen Robertson of Vitality Nutrition and Wellness at the library to find out how.

Thursday, January 13
7 pm to 8 pm

Learn how to eat mindfully, develop healthy exercise habits and reduce stress.
All those in attendance will be entered into a draw for a one month training session at Optimal Fitness ($200 value) and a free nutritional assessment from Vitality Nutrition and Wellness. ($90 value).

About the Facilitators:

Kim Reinhart
Kimberley Reinhart, is a Personal Trainer and the owner of Optimal Fitness in Sylvan Lake. She created Optimal Fitness in March of 2009 after being certified as a Personal Trainer through Can Fit Pro. Kim has her Level 1 Agatsu Kettlebell Certification, Level 1 MMA Fitness Instructor certification as well as the TRX Suspension Training course certification. Optimal Fitness specializes in small group training for all shapes, sizes and abilities. Visit the website for all services and class schedule.
Check out Kim’s website: http://personaltrainingsylvanlake.com/

Kathleen Robertson

Kathleen Robertson is a holistic nutritionist who provides personalized wellness plans to help you reach and achieve nutritional balance and reach your goals. Kathleen graduated from the Canadian School of Natural Nutrition.
Check out Kathleen’s website: http://www.vitalitynutrition.ca/

Looking for Heather's Blog for Kids?

2010-11-19T14:17:00.000-08:00

It's moved with all its archives to its new web location:

Heather's Blog for Kids

Test

2010-10-07T13:54:00.000-07:00

testing testing testing