Fairy Time Fun

This has been a magical week at the library.  Tuesday Zap the Magician gave us an inside look into the world of magic during our teen magic workshop.  Everyone learned some great tricks and even some performance tips when showing magic to your friends and family.

Today we had more than 60 kids make a fairy house to take home.  During the two hour workshop we had more than 100 people visit and construct some very cool houses that are sure to attract some fairies to local neighborhoods. Barb Toth and her group of volunteers helped everyone construct a fairy from simple materials and allowed each participant to pick out the hair color and skirt colors.  There was even fairy food to put into the little dishes in order to attract hungry fairies.

Kids worked for hours and the results were amazing.  You can make your own fairy house at home using things like pine cones, leaves, and things you find around your yard.

For more ideas on constructing fairy houses you might want to check out Fairy Houses by Tracy Kane or some of the other books and movies available at the Amherst Public Library.

Let the Reading Begin!

Wow, it's been out of control here at the Amherst Public Library.  It's four o'clock on Friday afternoon and I've just taken a moment to sit down.  We've registered over 400 kids and teens for our summer reading program and some kids have already earned some prizes.

Thanks to everyone who waited patiently if there was a line. 

We had a great time at craft day Wednesday when we had hundreds of people come in for our Founders Day Puppet craft.  We soon "bagged" the whole idea of pioneer puppets as kids let there imaginations go wild producing alien puppets, Star War creatures, princess puppets and even an Abraham Lincoln puppet complete with money under his hat.

The best part of craft day is our "no rules" rule of anything goes as far as creativity. 

With five days of summer reading complete we're off to a good start.  Keep reading!

More sweet prizes

There's more than donuts and cupcakes to our summer reading program.  Many people have taken advantage of signing up early and beginning Monday you'll be able to track your reading online also. 

We've got some great prizes this year in honor of Amherst's big bicentennial birthday.  If you haven't already, check out our calendar for some of the many programs offered as part of our celebration.
Remember that storytimes begin next week as well as our popular craft day on Wednesday.  We'll kick off with a great Famous Founders puppet craft. There's no rules when it comes to craft days. 

The Countdown Continues

Things are lining up for a great summer reading program here at the Amherst Public Library.  Since we are celebrating the big Amherst Bicentennial this summer we thought it only fitting that we partner with Tim Kiedrowski of Kiedrowski's Simply Delicious Bakery to help us with the celebration. 

Every person who completes our summer program, whether you are age 4 or 104, will recieve a coupon for a FREE DONUT at Kiedrowski's, 2267 Cooper Foster Park Road in Amherst.

We've got some other surprises in store so sign up early and read often.

Online registration begins May 31 and registration at the library begins Monday, June 6. 

Sneak Preview

We've been working on getting the web pages set up for online registration that begins May 31.  If you'd like a peek at how things are coming together, log onto our Online Summer Reading site. 

Some changes from last year include being able to share your reading and any reviews you write with your Facebook friends.  It's even set up so you can log your reading or submit a book review using your Smartphone.  Just finished reading a book by the pool and want to log it and share it with friends?  Simply sign onto our site and enter your info right from your phone.

When you become eligible for a prize, simply print off the certificate and bring it into the library to claim your prize. 

More about prizes later.  Bookmark our site so you'll be reading when the program begins.  Summer is almost here.

The Countdown Begins

For many people flipping the calendar page to May means soccer practice, getting the ball glove out of the basement and watching for all this rain to bring on the May flowers.

Here at the library our Youth Services Department is busy getting ready for another season of Summer Reading.  This year we are honoring the 200th birthday of Amherst by inviting everyone to "Join the Celebration" and take part in the best summer of reading yet.

We've got some great programs booked and some of the prizes are ordered.  Hey, we've even ordered the cake!

Watch for online registration to begin on May 31, but you won't be able to start logging your reading until registration opens at the library on Monday, June 6.  Watch for some improvements to our online site this year including being able to post your reviews and books you've read to your Facebook page and being able to access your summer reading account with your Smart Phone. 

Check back often as the countdown continues.

Summer Fair Fun

Another summer reading fair has come and gone.  Despite the heat and humidity we had a great response and lots of kids and families showed up for the fun.  Leapin' Little Ones set up the jump house and Zap Entertainment of Parma provided a balloon artist.  Representatives of Sandstone Summer Theater manned the ice pop station handing out refreshments.

But the best part is the number of volunteers that help with the games. Kids who used to come to storytime are now old enough to help with summer reading!  Thanks to Paul, Michael and Alex who worked the baseball game.  That's the first game I worked when I began at the library and volunteered for the fair. Thanks also to all the kids who volunteered thoughout the summer helping us manage one of the best summer reading programs around.

And thanks to all the kids, teens and adults who had fun, read books, wrote reviews, and attended all our great programs.  Thanks to the babysitter who brought all the kids here after they said our library was the most fun.  Thanks to the dad who always brought his daughter in on Wednesday after work to attend craft day together.  Thanks to the grandma who drove her grandkids to every storytime, craft day and special program.  Thanks to all the kids who kept reading no matter what.

Sometimes there are moments between the craziness that reminds you there is still a chance to have a little fun, or to provide the mechanism to share that fun with others.  Thanks to the more than 1000 summer reading club members, I know there still can be those special moments.

The Race is on - Scavenger Hunt forms now available

Finally, after a long wait, the annual library scavenger hunt is now available at the Amherst Public Library.  We provide you with 25 photos taken somewhere in downtown Amherst and you tell us the location.  Completed forms need to be submitted by Saturday, August 21, to be entered into our drawing for a grand prize.  We have a library bag filled with Amherst related prizes like movie tickets to the Amherst Cinema and pizza at Angelos.

So get up and visit our web site where you can view the form or stop by the library and pick yours up today. 

Bubble-icious

We packed the house when Sue the Bubble Lady visited Amherst on Friday, June 25, for a special summer reading show at the Main Street Center. 

There was no more room as kids of all ages came to see some of the great bubbles Sue made using all sorts of gadgets.  The crowd loved the bubbles made from such everyday objects as rubberbands, Pringles cans, and even a straw.  Making a square bubble was interesting and how she inserted a straw into the bubble to make it expand...who would have know you could even do that!

At the end of the show some volunteers actually stood inside a real bubble.  After the program Sue drew two lucky tickets out of the bucket and two kids won, what else, some bubbles!

We have over 1000 young people signed up to take part in our summer reading program so far.  Join us the next time we get together for Pirate Magic (Arghhh...) on Tuesday, July 6 at 2:30 p.m. 

The Story Continues

Storytimes continue through the summer with Waddler Storytime each Monday at 10 a.m. and also regular storytime at 10:30 where every age is welcome.  On Tuesdays at 10:30 you'll find Mrs. Stanley in the shelter house at Amherst Township Park where we share stories with our friends outside.

We read a great story about sharks and one about getting to the beach.  Everyone enjoyed the bubbles at the end.

Bubble fans, don't forget that the Bubble Lady will be at the Main Street Center on Friday, June 25 at 1 p.m.   She will show you all kinds of bubbles and some bubbles so huge that a person can stand inside.  Don't think there's any such thing as a square bubble?  Wait and see.