user bar first menu

Library Account Login


Log in to your library account above.
Search the catalog above.

What's Happening at the Hoover Public Library.

Library Blog

Information on events, library related happenings, and other deep thoughts from our library staff.

Summer DVD Spinner -- Super Summer Movies

The entire summer is devoted to heroes big and small.  So, naturally, our seasonal DVD spinner will be stocked with heroic films big and small.  The movies will star heroes like . . .

Batman
Superman
Spider-Man
The Avengers
X-Men
Underdog
Mighty Mouse
Darkwing Duck
He-Man
She-Ra
Paw Patrol
Doc McStuffins
Wonder Pets
Team Umizoomi
Super Why
LEGO Justice League
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Transformers
The Incredibles

 . . . and more!

 

Target Age: 
Katiem's picture
Author: 
Katiem

Graphic Novels -- A Guide for Parents and Teachers

Let's face facts.  Your kids love graphic novels.  And, more than likely, you don't.  You don't think they are "real" books, and you want to steer them to better literature.  Let me encourage you to give graphic novels another look.

  1. Graphic novels promote literacy.  They attract reluctant and struggling readers.  The illustrations provide contextual clues to the meaning of the written narrative, as well as clues to emotional context.  This is especially helpful for autistic students.  English-language learners also find them helpful for increasing vocabulary and English proficiency.
  2. Graphic novels have become accepted methods of storytelling by librarians and educators, on a par with novels, picture books, and audiobooks.  Many graphic novels, including El Deafo by Cece Bell, are included on recent lists of award-winning titles.
  3. Graphic novels often contain more advanced vocabulary than traditional books at the same age/grade/interest level.  Readers are actively engaged in the process of decoding and comprehending a range of literary devices, including narrative structures, metaphor and symbolism, point of view, the use of puns and alliteration, intertextuality, and inference.
  4. The format of a graphic novel is a lesson in itself -- panels and gutters, description and word balloons, sound effects and motion lines.
     

This is just a small portion of the helpful information I found in Scholastic's A Guide to Using Graphic Novels with Children and Teens.  I highly recommend you read it.  You can also use these online resources to better understand the graphic novel format.

Target Age: 
Katiem's picture
Author: 
Katiem

10 Years of Bad Kitty

Bad Kitty first rocked the kiddie lit world in 2005, when author Nick Bruel published a picture book called Bad Kitty.  Now there are picture books AND chapter books featuring this funny female feline.  Make sure you read them all!

PICTURE BOOKS (E  BRU)
1. Bad Kitty
2. Poor Puppy and Bad Kitty
3. A Bad Kitty Christmas

CHAPTER BOOKS (J  BRU  FIRST CHAPTER BOOK)
1. Bad Kitty Gets a Bath
2. Bad Kitty: Happy Birthday, Bad Kitty
3. Bad Kitty Vs. Uncle Murray
4. Bad Kitty Meets the Baby
5. Bad Kitty for President
6. Bad Kitty School Daze
7. Bad Kitty Drawn to Trouble
8. Bad Kitty: Puppy's Big Day

Target Age: 
Katiem's picture
Author: 
Katiem

Izzy Barr, Running Star

I love the Franklin School Friends series by Claudia Mills.  Each book focuses on a different third grade girl's favorite thing . . . and how that can bring both joy and disappointment.  The newest title is Izzy Barr, Running Star.  If you're a sporty kid, you'll love her story!

"Izzy Barr is the star athlete of the third grade: she hits homeruns on her softball team and is one of the fastest runners in her class. But at home, her half-brother, Dustin, seems to be her father's favorite athlete--why else would her dad go to all of his games and miss so many of hers? Izzy pretends that she doesn't care, but as she, her friends Annika Riz and Kelsey Green, and the rest of their class are gearing up for class field day, she can't help but hope her dad will be there to cheer her on in the big race against her rival, Skipper Tipton."

If you're a book kid, you'll love Kelsey Green, Reading Queen.

If you're a numbers kid, you'll love Annika Riz, Math Whiz.

Target Age: 
Katiem's picture
Author: 
Katiem

Graceful Return to Willow Falls

Wendy Mass has written another book set in Willow Falls.  Graceful will be the final title in this truly magical series.  It comes out tomorrow, April 28, 2015.

"Angelina D'Angelo has left town to see the world. It's now Grace's turn to use her magic to protect the people of Willow Falls, and she is up to the challenge. This is her destiny, after all. But destiny is a funny thing-it doesn't always behave the way you'd expect it to. Mysterious postcards from Angelina begin showing up in the mail, Grace's parents are freaking out with worry, and something BIG is coming to town that will affect everybody who lives there. But all Grace is powerful enough to do is turn leftover meatloaf into pizza. Fortunately, she's not alone. She has Team Grace on her side! Amanda, Leo, Rory, Tara, David, and Connor know a thing or two about magic and how it works. But none of them are prepared for what's coming, and none of them know how to stop it. Life in Willow Falls is about to change forever."

Read (or re-read) them all!

  1. 11 Birthdays
  2. Finally
  3. 13 Gifts
  4. The Last Present
  5. Graceful (no catalog record yet -- stay tuned!)
Target Age: 
Katiem's picture
Author: 
Katiem

Storybook Brunch Catches Boogie Fever

We have one more Storybook Brunch this season.  Join Miss Anna Beth this Saturday, April 25, 2015 at 10:30 a.m. for a dance-themed storytime, Boogie Fever.  There will be stories!  There will be music!  And, of course, there will be dancing!  Plus there will be a breakfast snack -- cereal mix 'n match.  This is our final Saturday storytime of the school year, so don't miss it!

DID YOU KNOW?
National Dance Week begins on April 25!

Target Age: 
Katiem's picture
Author: 
Katiem

Food Dudes

Target Age: 
Katiem's picture
Author: 
Katiem

Celebrate Australia

The countdown to Aussie fun has begun!  The Hoover Public Library will Celebrate Australia on Tuesday, April 28, 2015 at 6:30 p.m.  There will be a sampling of Australian treats to eat, and the very brave can take The Vegemite Challenge.  Didgeridoo Down Under will also provide authentic musical entertainment on the Plaza.  Want to explore Australian culture further?  Adults can find lots of excellent fiction and nonfiction titles under the official display in the main hallway.  Are you a kid or a teen?  Check out one of these!

Aboriginal Australians by Diana Marshall
Are We There Yet?: A Journey Around Australia by Alison Lester
Australia by Colleen A. Sexton
Big Red Kangaroo by Claire Saxby
Cultural Traditions in Australia by Moly Aloian
Explore Australia and Oceania by Bobbie Kalman
Great Barrier Reef by Valerie Bodden
Koala Country: A Story of an Australian Eucalyptus Forest by Deborah Dennard
Meet Our New Student from Australia by Ann Weil
Not-for-Parents Australia: Everything You Ever Wanted to Know by Janine Scott
Over in Australia: Amazing Animals Down Under by Marianne Berkes
Sand Swimmers: The Secret Life of Australia's Desert Wilderness by Narelle Oliver
Spotlight on Australia by Xavier Niz
Stories from the Billabong by James Vance Marshall

Target Age: 
Katiem's picture
Author: 
Katiem

Gone Crazy in Alabama

It's true!  I live in Alabama, and I'm crazy about the author Rita Williams-Garcia!  Her books about the Gaither sisters are a joy to read or listen to.  (The audiobook reader, Sisi Aisha Johnson, is excellent!)  Their third and newest adventure is called Gone Crazy in Alabama.  The Gaither sisters are about to learn what it's like to be fish out of water as they travel from the streets of Brooklyn to the rural South for the summer of a lifetime. Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern are off to Alabama to visit their grandmother, Big Ma, and her mother, Ma Charles. Across the way lives Ma Charles's half sister, Miss Trotter. The two half sisters haven't spoken in years. As Delphine hears about her family history, she uncovers the surprising truth that's been keeping the sisters apart. But when tragedy strikes, Delphine discovers that the bonds of family run deeper than she ever knew possible.

Don't forget to read the first two adventures!

  1. One Crazy Summer 
    2011 Coretta Scott King Award Winner
    2011 Newbery Honor Book
    2011 Scott O’Dell Prize for Historical Fiction
    2010 National Book Award Finalist
  2. P.S. Be Eleven
    2014 Coretta Scott King Award Winner

     
Target Age: 
Katiem's picture
Author: 
Katiem

The Remedy

Suzanne Young has created a compelling series about a difficult topic.

First, there was The Program.  When suicide becomes a worldwide epidemic, the only treatment erases painful memories.  Seventeen-year-old Sloane doesn't want The Program to steal memories of her dead brother and boyfriend.  That would be a fate worse than death.

Then, there was The Treatment.  Sloane considers taking The Treatment to unlock her memories, which she hopes will help her bring down The Program.

Tomorrow, there's The Remedy.  This stand-alone prequel helps set the stage for other two titles.

Target Age: 
Katiem's picture
Author: 
Katiem

Pages
http://www.hooverlibrary.org/blog?page=9
www.hooverlibrary.org
crawl=CC-MAIN-2015-35
110042
application/http; msgtype=response
sha1:TBN6ELHW3RUUE7UDZCRNTPT6XMVK6ME5
<urn:uuid:792c7ae7-e8d5-48fd-b4fa-d55aa3fd943b>
2015-09-01T10:02:30Z
50.116.40.145
sha1:CJRJBWMHBBC65ALDCHUEAIERFRECJJO6
<urn:uuid:a0a853ef-d2ca-4680-a36c-456241580236>
http://www.hooverlibrary.org/blog?page=9
response
<urn:uuid:450caeea-a7ae-4766-8339-bdebb6ee95c8>
robots: classic
hostname: ip-10-171-96-226.ec2.internal
software: Nutch 1.6 (CC)/CC WarcExport 1.0
isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2015-35
operator: CommonCrawl Admin
description: Wide crawl of the web for August 2015
publisher: CommonCrawl
format: WARC File Format 1.0
conformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf