Superhero Summer Takes Flight Starting Monday, June 1

SUPERHERO SUMMER at McAlester Public Library, this year’s version of the annual Summer Reading Program, will feature all the storytellers and performers local residents have come to know and love, as well as special appearances by Kevin Stark, left, in costume as his superhero character “The Curator,” and local Batmobile creator Mel Taylor, right. Stark will appear at the library for four programs June 3-4 and Taylor and the Batmobile will head up a special outdoor program July 2.

Library Invites Everyone to Escape the Ordinary

With ‘Superhero Summer’ Reading Programs

Programs for all ages—each with a superhero theme—are planned throughout June and July at McAlester Public Library.

The “Superhero Summer” kicks off Monday, June 1 and continues until Thursday, July 30 with full calendars of activities for children, teens and adults.

“Beginning with a two-day slate of programs with comic and action figure expert Kevin Stark and ending with a superhero costume contest for all ages, this summer has something for everyone,” said Head Librarian Christine Sauro. “And all of it is designed to make reading fun for the whole family.

“By checking out any type of book, filling out reading logs, attending a program, viewing an audience participation movie or picking up a recommended reading list, families can find many ways to become super readers over the summer.”

Stark, the operator of the Toy and Action Figure Museum at Pauls Valley and creator of the International Superhero Festival, will teach a graphic arts workshop for teens on Wednesday, June 3, followed by a Steampunk character creation workshop at 6 p.m.

Stark was on hand at the library’s booth at the April Baby Fair, and was a hit with his drawings of superheroes, Ninja Turtles and other comic book characters. As an artist, Stark worked on toy designs for the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles for over 10 years beginning in 1990.

Over the past several years, he has worked on other toy lines such as The Simpsons, The Mask, Stretch Armstrong, Toonsylvania, Zorro and Speed Racer.

On Thursday, June 4, he will bring toys from his museum for a children’s show at 10 a.m., then conclude with a 6 p.m. presentation for all ages about displays at the museum, including one on famous Oklahoma cartoonists.

Other programs on the schedule include an outdoor program July 2 with the Batmobile, and a Q&A with owner Randy Roden and Mel Taylor, who helped create the fantastic facsimile of the auto from the 1960s “Batman” television series.

Individual calendars for children’s, teen and adult/family activities, as well as booklets with the full summer schedule, are available at the library. Special displays throughout the library will feature superhero themes. Reading logs will be distributed and suggested reading lists will be available. Favors and prizes will be handed out at most programs.

Children’s program highlights, with the theme “Everyone Hero Has a Story,” include:

*Six weeks of Monday-Thursday “Lunch Bunch” noon activities, with free lunches and activities for anyone under 18;

*Wednesday children’s performances at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. featuring exotic animals, wildlife specialists, singers, storytellers, giant puppets, magicians, and a special program about Smokey Bear.

*Children’s movies every Tuesday afternoon and game times every Thursday afternoon;

*A babysitting workshop July 13-14 and 16-17 for children age 12 and older;

*Tuesday morning story time for preschoolers and Thursday morning activities for older children; and

*A children’s book club, resuming activities at 2 p.m. on Monday, June 22 with the book “As Big as an Elephant.” Copies of the children’s book club title are available now, first-come, first-serve.

Teen program highlights, with the theme “Unmask!” include:

*Superhero costume creation, over the course of several programs, including T-shirts, capes and shoes. After making their costumes, teens will get to participate in a fashion show. Best Costume winner gets a three-month subscription to HeroCrate, a monthly box of hero-themed goodies.

*Reading Buddies, a program that pairs teens with children for one-on-one reading time.

*A Kindle Fire prize to be awarded to the teen who reads the most book pages during the Summer Reading Program.

*A Kindle Paperwhite to be awarded to the teen who wins a creative writing contest. To prepare, teens are invited to attend creative writing workshops with local author Julius Bailey. Entries are due June 29, and details are available from Sarah Standish, Teen Librarian.

*Other programs will feature cooking, crafting, volunteering and opportunities to win prizes.

Adult/Family program highlights, with the theme “Explore the Possibilities,” include:

*Three Audience Participation Movies, with bags of toys and prizes for all who participate. Families are urged to shout when certain characters or scenes appear, blow bubbles at certain points in a movie, use noisemakers, bounce rubber balls and more. The movies—all suitable for young children—all feature live-action and animated superheroes.

*Steampunk Costume workshops, the first with Stark on June 3, and another on June 12 with local costume creator Heather Para.

*Special movies and programs for Spanish-speaking families, with prizes and games. All adult/family movies are being shown with Spanish subtitles, to assist those who are learning English as a second language.

*Two “Super You!” Open Mic Nights on June 18 and July 16, where anyone with a talent is invited to sing, dance, recite poetry, do a dramatic reading, tell jokes or perform. All participants will get prizes, and one audience favorite each night will receive a cash prize.

*Superhero Portrait Night July 27 with the Media Moguls Digital Photography Group. Everyone is invited to dress up in their best superhero costume and have a Superhero Portrait made. Free 5×7 photos will be printed and available at the final event, the Costume Contest on July 30. Prizes will be named in children’s, teen and adult categories.

*A Kindle Fire will be awarded in a random drawing from entries made at all Adult/Family programs. The more programs attended, the better the chances to win.

*Adults are also being asked to volunteer to read to children on Friday afternoons in a new Read-to-Me program.

*Plus, book clubs, crafts, a Learn to Crochet group, the Socrates Café discussion group and special movies with superhero themes are on the schedule.

For more information on this or any Summer Reading Program activity, call the library at 918-426-0930. It is located at 401 N. 2^nd. Hours are 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday. All programs are free of charge. Funds for special programming are provided by Friends of the Library of McAlester and The Puterbaugh Foundation.

 

What’s New at the Library? These Items Just Added

NEW MATERIALS AT McALESTER PUBLIC LIBRARY

APRIL, 2015

 

FICTION

Karen Memory, Elizabeth Bear; Bone Digger, Douglas Hirt; A Time for Hope, Anna Jacobs; Love Song, Elizabeth Lowell; Anvil of God, J. Boyce Gleason; Treasure Freight, Peter Dawson; Miss Hazel and the Rosa Parks League, Jonathan Odell; Sea Gypsy, Fern Michaels; Rising Tide, Patricia Twomey Ryan; Don’t Be a Stranger, John D. Nesbitt; Magic Burns, Ilona Andrews; Demon Wars: The First King, R.A. Salvatore; The Traders’ War, Charles Stross; Mail Order Bride: Westward Winds, Linda Bridey; Mail Order Bride: Westward Dance, Linda Bridey; Lamentation, C.J. Sansom; The Nightingale, Kristin Hannah; Mail Order Bride: Westward Bound, Linda Bridey; The Queen of the Damned, Anne Rice; Holy Cow, David Duchovny; Stagecoach, Max Brand; The Hot Zone, Jayne Castle; Train’s Trust, Max Brand

 

LARGE PRINT

The Laws of Murder, Charles Finch; The Christmas Bouquet, Sherryl Woods; Ho-Ho-Homicide, Kaitlyn Dunnett; The Cavalier of Rabbit Butte, Robert J. Horton; On Borrowed Time, Jenn McKinlay; Rumor Has It, Tami Hoag; A Quilt for Christmas, Sandra Dallas; Christmas in Cowboy Country, Janet Dailey; The Bone Orchard, Paul Doiron; A Map of Betrayal, Ha Jin; The Rose Effect, Graeme Simsion; First Frost, Sarah Addison Allen; The Shocking Secret of a Guest at the Wedding, Victoria Alexander; Grace Interrupted, Julie Hyzy; Dead Heat, Allison Brennan; Haunted, Randy Wayne White; The Missing Place, Sophie Littlefield; A Dancer in the Dust, Thomas H. Cook; Trouble Hunter, Fred Grove; Wanted: Dead or Alive, Ray Hogan; Murder of a Needled Knitter, Denise Swanson; Destiny’s Captive, Beverly Jenkins; Sunshine on Scotland Street, Alexander McCall Smith; Twisted Threads, Lea Wait; The Marriage Charm, Linda Lael Miller; Caprock Range, Ed La Vanway; In Your Dreams, Kristan Higgins; The Promise of Palm Grove, Shelley Shepard Gray; A Deadly Measure of Brimstone, Catriona McPherson; The Bracelet, Dorothy Love; The Girl Next Door, Ruth Rendell; My Gallows Hang High, Stone Wallace; Die Again, Tess Gerritsen

 

NONFICTION

Pagans: The End of Traditional Religion and the Rise of Christianity, James J. O’Donnell; Ocean Worlds: The Story of Seas on Earth and Other Planets, Jan Zalasiewicz and Mark Williams; Tanks: 100 Years of Evolution, Richard Ogorkiewicz; Fifty Weapons That Changed the Course of History, Joel Levy; Roots, Shoots, Buckets and Boots: Activities to Do in the Garden, Sharon Lovejoy; Learn to Weld: Beginning MIG Welding and Metal Fabrication Basics, Stephen Blake Christena; Elementary Gunsmith: A Manual of Instruction for Amateurs in the Alteration of Repair of Firearms, Perry D. Frazer; 100 Years of Who’s Who in Baseball, Douglas B. Lyons and the Staff of Who’s Who in Baseball; The New Southern Living Garden Book, Ed. by Steve Bender; Hard Living in America’s Heartland: Rural Poverty in the 21^st Century Midwest, Paula vW. Dail; One Nation Under Taught: Solving America’s Science, Technology, Engineering and Math Crisis, Dr. Vince M. Bertram; World Soccer Records, Keir Radnedge; The DASH Diet Action Plan: Proven to Lower Blood Pressure and Cholesterol Without Medication, Marla Heller; Port Robertson: Behind the Scenes of Sooner Sports, Edgar L. Frost; Falling Short: The Coming Retirement Crisis and What to Do About It, Charles D. Ellis; Grim Shadows Falling: Haunting Tales from Terrifying Places, Benjamin S. Jeffries; Violent No More: Helping Men End Domestic Abuse, Michael Paymar; Writing Your Family History: A Guide for Family Historians, Gill Blanchard; An Osage Journey to Europe, 1827-1830: Three French Accounts, Ed. by William Least Heat-Moon and James K. Wallace

 

AUDIO BOOKS

Mansfield Park, Jane Austen, Read by Wanda McCaddon; Small Mercies, Eddie Joyce, read by Scott Aiello; City of Ashes, Cassandra Clare, Read by Natalie Moore; The Roosevelts: An American Saga, Peter Collier and David Horowitz, Read by Jeff Riggenbach; Lady Susan, Jane Austen, Read by Laurelle Westaway, David Thorn, Susan McCarthy, Melissa Leventon, and Bobbie Frohman; Last One Home, Debbie Macomber, Read by Rebecca Lowman; Longing, Karen Kingsbury, Read by Various Readers; Robert Ludlum’s The Geneva Strategy, Jamie Freveletti, Read by Jeff Woodman; Jane Austen’s Charlotte: Her Fragment of a Last Novel, Completed by Julia Barrett, Read by Kate Reading; The House of the Seven Gables, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Read by Anthony Heald; City of Bones, Cassandra Clare, Read by Ari Graynor; Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-So-Happy Heartbreaker, Rachel Renee Russell, Read by Jenni Barber; Five, Six, Seven Nate, Tim Federle, Read by the Author; Emma, Jane Austen, Read by Nadia May; City of Glass, Cassandra Clare, Read by Natalie Moore; City of Fallen Angels, Cassandra Clare, Read by Ed Westwick and Molly C.; Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Third Wheel, Jeff Kinney, Read by Ramon De Ocampo

 

DVD MOVIES, DOCUMENTARIES, TV SHOWS

The Dark Valley; Lucy; Boyhood; Tammy; The Houses October Built; The Imitation Game

 

 

 

McAlester’s Hottest Spot Has Everything in May

By KATHY McGILBERRY

McAlester’s hottest place to be this May is the public library. It’s got everything. An end-of-school Camelot party. Preparation for our Superhero Summer. A special event explaining Immigration Programs and Benefits. Free copies of Confessions of an Advertising Man.  A Make Your Own Will class from Legal Aid Services of Oklahoma.  Movies for the whole family. Book, craft and photography clubs. Video games. Free computer skills classes.

In fact, it’s so trendy and cool, we think even Stefon from Saturday Night Live would love it here.

Here’s the schedule:

Tuesday, May 5—Teens are invited to the upstairs meeting room at 3:45 p.m. for the first of two party preparation sessions. The teen group selected the lighthearted theme Knights of Camelot for their end-of-school party, and help is needed to create the decorations for the celebration.

Thursday, May 7—The Bookies will meet at 1 p.m. to discuss The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin. Game Time for Teens, regularly every Thursday at 3:45 p.m., has doubled in size this month. For May, there will be two Game Times every week –one on Thursday and one on Friday–with attendance limited to 12 teens per session. You’ll have to register to get one of those 12 spots, teens, so choose your favorite day and sign in early!

Friday, May 8—Teen Game Time, 3:45 p.m.

Saturday, May 9—We’re getting a jump—a sky-high jump, you might say—on our Summer Reading Program theme with our Second Saturday Cinema movie at 2 p.m. Set in a world where superheroes are commonly known and accepted, young Will Stronghold, the son of the Commander and Jetstream, tries to find a balance between being a normal teenager and an extraordinary being. The film is rated PG and will feature free popcorn.

Monday, May 11—The Teen Lacqueristas/os Nail Art Group will meet at 3:45 p.m. upstairs. Then at 6 p.m., Arthouse Theater features a recent R-rated thriller. A woman, accidentally caught in a dark deal, turns the tables on her captors and transforms into a merciless warrior evolved beyond human logic. She’s a woman using 100% of her brain. Pretty scary, huh?

Tuesday, May 12—The Teens are cooking at 3:45 p.m. The menu calls for Rainbow Cake and Sushi.

Wednesday, May 13—Creative Crafts time for adults at 1:30 p.m. will feature a seashell wind chime project. Spaces are limited, so sign up early! The Sci-Fi with Clout book group will meet at 6 p.m. to discuss Frankenstein by Mary Shelley.

Thursday, May 14—Jesus Ramirez, Community Relations Officer with the U. S. Citizenship and Immigration Service, will be here at 6 p.m. to present a program on Immigration Programs and Benefits. Ramirez will speak about the government’s efforts to combat immigration scams, how to work on immigration status adjustments and the 2012 Deferred Action Program. A similar program was recently presented at the Guymon Public Library to great success, Ramirez reports. This program is being presented in cooperation with the McAlester Regional Literacy Council.

Friday, May 15—Teen Game Time, 3:45 p.m. If you haven’t by now, be sure to stop by the library to pick up your free copy of the 1960s Madison Avenue memoir Confessions of an Advertising Man by David Ogilvy, before the weekend’s Mad Men finale on TV. You’ll want something to remind you of Don Draper once the show is over.

Monday, May 18—The Light Readers will meet at 6 p.m. to discuss Old Fashioned by Rene Gutteridge. Because of the Memorial Day holiday, the Media Moguls Digital Photography Group will meet a week early, also at 6 p.m. Their current project is photographing McAlester landmarks for inclusion on library bookmarks, and members continue to share their expertise on a number of subjects, including Photoshop. All are welcome.

Tuesday, May 19—The Friends of the Library will meet at noon to hear Richard Askew tell about the Community Garden project and its associated lending library of gardening books.  At 6:30 p.m., the Night Readers will meet to discuss Where’d You Go, Bernadette by Marie Semple.

Wednesday, May 20—Anthony Smart’s Computer Skills Workshop tackles a number of subjects that beginning computer students want to know. The three-day workshop meets from 3-4:30 p.m. in the Whiteacre Room. At 6 p.m., the Steampunk Group hosts a PG-13-rated movie about a character conjured by and rescued from the Nazis, who grows up to become a defender against the forces of darkness.

Thursday, May 21—Computer Skills Workshop, 3-4:30 p.m.

Friday, May 22—Computer Skills Workshop, 3-4:30 p.m.; Teen Game Time, 3:45 p.m.

Saturday, May 23—Join us at 2 p.m. for documentaries that look for “the real Frankenstein” and even more spooky stuff. Free popcorn, as always.

Sunday and Monday, May 24-25—Closed for Memorial Day holiday. Remember, our Sunday hours end at Memorial Day weekend and won’t start again until fall. That’s NO Sunday hours in summer.

Tuesday, May 26—A Make Your Own Will class from the Legal Aid Services of Oklahoma office will begin at 6 p.m. These free classes from the local Legal Aid office, conducted with the assistance of local attorneys, have been very successful. Our thanks go out to all who have participated. The Learn to Crochet group will meet at 6:30 p.m. in the Conference Room, with instructor Lana Bowen.

Wednesday, May 27—The Teen Book Club will meet at 2:30 p.m. to discuss Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs. The group will also make snacks and decorate for the Knights of Camelot party later in the week. The SteamPunk Book Group for adults will meet at 6 p.m. to discuss Revenge of the Mad Scientist by Lara Nance.

Thursday, May 28—The Knights of Camelot party is on, beginning at 2:45 p.m. Teens are encouraged to come to this party in costume. Costumes aren’t required, though, so attend no matter the state of your armor. Snacks and games will go with the theme, and there will be prizes for certain events. There’s a prize for best costume, too.

There will be no children’s programs in May as Children’s Librarian Miss Anita prepares for Summer Reading Program.