No Winner, So Contest Continues

There was no winner in the National Library Week contest at McAlester Public Library, so the contest will continue until the most-popular book at the library is once again checked out.

To assist those trying to determine the most-popular book, there are flyers placed throughout the library with a list of 61 possibilities. For those who want to peruse the list online, here it is:

Echoes, Danielle Steel
Where the Heart Is, Billie Letts
The New Annotated Sherlock Holmes, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain
How to Eat Fried Worms, Thomas Rockwell
Holes, Louis Sachar
Five Complete Novels, Barbara Cartland
Murder on the Orient Express, Agatha Christie
Dave Barry’s Guide to Guys, Dave Barry
Betty Crocker Cookbook, Betty Crocker
The Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck
Jane Eyre, Charlotte Bronte
Rebecca, Daphne Du Maurier
Fire in Beulah, Rilla Askew
Valley of the Dolls, Jacqueline Susann
A Million Little Pieces, James Frey
Chilton’s Auto Service Manual 2002, Kevin M.G. Maher
My Story, Marilyn Monroe
The Original Adventures of Hank the Cowdog, John R. Erickson
Holy Bible, Tyndale House Publishers
The Outsiders, S.E. Hinton
An Innocent Man, John Grisham
Goodnight, Moon, Margaret Wise Brown
The Diary of a Young Girl, Anne Frank
Eight Weeks to Optimum Health, Andrew Weil
Encyclopedia of Home Designs, Jan Prideaux
Eragon, Christopher Paolini
Portnoy’s Complaint, Philip Roth
The Stranger Beside Me, Ann Rule
Dragonquest, Anne McCaffrey
Jitterbug Perfume, Tom Robbins
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Hunter S. Thompson
When Joy Came to Stay, Karen Kingsbury
Apollyon: The Destroyer is Unleashed, Tim F.
LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins
The Meeting Place, Janette Oke
The Reckoning, Beverly Lewis
Arthur Tricks the Tooth Fairy, Marc Tolon Brown
Tracks, David Galef
Pooh’s Easter Egg Hunt, Isabel Gaines
Who Loves Me Best? Kirsten Hall
Danny and the Dinosaur, Syd Hoff
The Eye Book, Theo LeSieg
Please Try to Remember the First of Octember,
Theo LeSieg
Smokey, Bill Peet
Great Day for Up! Dr. Seuss
Say When, Elizabeth Berg
Send No Flowers, Sandra Brown
The Alibi, Sandra Brown
The Edge, Catherine Coulter
I Spy Treasure Hunt: A Book of Picture Riddles,
Walter Wick
Junie B. Jones Is a Beauty Shop Guy, Barbara Park
Ella Enchanted, Gail Carson Levine
High Five, Janet Evanovich
The Brethren, John Grisham
The Killing Game, Iris Johansen
A New Song, Jan Karon
Ultraprevention: The 6-Week Plan That Will Make
You Healthy for Life, Mark Hyman and Mark Liponis
Oklahoma Gardener’s Guide: The What, Where, and
Why of Landscape Gardening in Oklahoma, Steve Dobbs
Fannie Flagg’s Original Whistle Stop Café Cookbook, Fannie Flagg

Contest For National Library Week

What’s the most popular book at McAlester Public Library? We’ve determined the most-circulated book on our shelves, and this week during National Library Week, we’re inviting the public to try to figure it out too.

Library staff has compiled a list of top-circulating titles in fiction, nonfiction and children’s literature. To that list we’ve added a number of red herrings. Lists are printed on flyers and posters throughout the library. The lucky patron who checks out the single most popular book anytime before Library Week ends April 19 will win a bag stuffed with books, puzzles, scents, bookmarks, doo-dads, candies and other surprises.

Communities across the country will celebrate the contributions of our nation’s libraries, librarians and library workers by offering special programs and services during the special week of April 13-19.

This year, National Library Week marks its 50th anniversary with the theme “Join the circle of knowledge @ your library®.” All types of libraries—school, public, academic and special—participate.

This year’s National Library Week honorary chair is the beloved entertainer and author Julie Andrews, known for her roles in such classic movies as “The Sound of Music” and “Mary Poppins,” and such books as Thanks to You—Wisdom from Mother and Child and The Great American Mousical. In her role as chair, Andrews has produced a series of television and radio Public Service Announcements for National Library Week, which are available at http://www.ala.org/ala/pio/natlibraryweek/andrews.htm.

National Library Week events include the celebration of National Library Workers Day on April 15; Support Teen Literature Day on April 17, sponsored by the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), a division of the ALA; Gaming@ your library, a series of special gaming programs and events, on April 18; and the release of the 2007 State of America’s Libraries (SAL) report on April 14. In addition to National Library Week, many school libraries also celebrate the month of April as School Library Media Month, sponsored by the American Association of School Librarians (AASL), a division of the ALA.

Launched in 1958, National Library Week is a national observance sponsored by the ALA and libraries across the country to honor the contributions of our nation’s libraries and librarians and to promote library use and support. For more information on National Library Week, please visit the Campaign for America’s Libraries Web site at http://www.ala.org .

Friends Book Sale Starts Today

The annual Friends of the Library Book Sale begins today. The doors open at 6 p.m. for a special preview sale at St. John’s gym, 318 E. Washington. There will be a $5 admission charge, and the pre-sale continues until 8 p.m.

Then Saturday morning at 8 a.m., the free admission sale begins. Friends will be on hand to sell books, audiobooks, music, puzzles, videos and other items. All proceeds go toward funding library projects and fixtures. The sale is set to end at 1 p.m.

A companion sale will also be ongoing across the street at All Saints Episcopal Church. Their sale will feature a coffee bar and baked goods.

Whirlwind Of April Events At Library

April started with a tornado warning here in McAlester, and the whirlwind theme just keeps spinning away with lots of events and celebrations. Patrons might want to look for a tornado-themed display near the front desk, courtesy of Reference Librarian Christopher Elliott.

The final sessions of free tax help wind up April 2, 7, 9 and 14. Volunteers from the American Assocation of Retired Persons have had their hands full with regular tax preparation, as well as serving many additional filers due to the stimulus package.

Anthony Smart has another month of free internet classes scheduled. Every Tuesday in the computer lab, beginners are welcome to learn more about how to navigate the World Wide Web. Classes start at 6 p.m. Call 426-0930 to pre-register.

Bodacious Bookies met April 3 to discuss “Water for Elephants” by Sara Gruen. Janice Saaranen had a circus-themed event, with many other reading suggestions set in circuses. Popcorn and cotton candy served as refreshments. The Bookies meet the first Thursday of every month from 1-3 p.m. in the Conference Room. Their next book will be “Double Whammy” by Carl Hiaasen.

The Thin Man Movie Festival skips trippingly along, with 6 p.m. showings. Moviegoers watched a second feature on April 3, and on April 17 the next movie in the series will flicker across the big screen in the Whiteacre Room East.

The weekend of April 11-12 will be busy for the Friends of the Library. The annual book sale begins with an early-bird sale from 6-8 p.m. at St. John’s Gym. Admission is $5. Then the next morning the doors open for a free-admission free-for-all, with wheeling and dealing from 8 a.m. until 1 p.m.

Those who are not too worn out after the sale should come on down to the library for the regular showing of the Second Saturday Cinema. This month’s movie stars Will Ferrell and Jon Heder. They’re on ice skates and wearing spangles. There will be free popcorn and a prize drawing.

Friends of the Library meet at noon April 15, and also on that day, the Night Readers will meet at 6:30 p.m. in the Conference Room to discuss Hal Borland’s “When the Legends Die.”

Children’s Librarian Anita Ross has scheduled her second Family Fun Night for 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 22 in the Whiteacre Room West. There will be lots of fun for all members of the family.

Two “Let’s Talk About It, Oklahoma” sessions are set this month. The first, on April 10, features a presentation by Dr. Alvin O. Turner, who will dissect Carl Hiaasen’s “Native Tongue” for the group. Then on Thursday, April 24, Bill Hagen will help the group get a better understanding of Janet Evanovich’s “One for the Money.” Both sessions start at 6 p.m. and end at 8 p.m. Refreshments will be served at midpoint, and there are door prizes too.

National Library Week is April 13-19. Stop in the library often just to be sure you don’t miss anything!

Scissortail Writing Festival This Week In Ada

East Central University in Ada will be the site of the third annual Scissortail Creative Writing Festival April 3-5.

Among the writers scheduled to attend are: Diane Glancy, author of “Pushing the Bear” and “The West Pole;” Dayna Dunbar, author of “The “Out Here in the Out There” and “Good Friday.”

The festival will also feature Carl Hamilton, Steven Schroeder, Tim Tingle, Rilla Askew and many other regional, published and emerging authors. The Darryl Fisher High School Creative Writing Contest will be judged.

For more information, contact Ken Hada at 580-559-5557 or Mark Walling at 580-559-5440.