International Women's Day has been observed since in the early 1900's, a time of great expansion and turbulence in the industrialized world that saw booming population growth and the rise of radical ideologies. Now an official holiday in Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, China (for women only), Cuba, Georgia, Guinea-Bissau, Eritrea, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Madagascar (for women only), Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Nepal (for women only), Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Vietnam and Zambia. The tradition sees men honouring their mothers, wives, girlfriends, colleagues, etc with flowers and small gifts. In some countries IWD has the equivalent status of Mother's Day where children give small presents to their mothers and grandmothers.

Amelia to Zora: 26 Women who Changed the World tells the stories of 26 diverse, 20th-century women who have made a difference in such varied fields as the arts, sports, journalism, science, and entertainment. The entries include Dolores Huerta, Frida Kahlo, Lena Horne, Maya Lin, and Patricia Schroeder. Determination, imagination, perseverance, and strength are what bind them together.

African Princess: the Amazing Lives of Africa's Royal Women The captivating stories of six of Africa's most remarkable royal women and the eras in which they lived - from 1473 B.C. to the present. Some lived in great luxury as the wives and advisers of the supreme rulers; others lived in exile as freedom fighters. The rise of the slave trade and the arrival of European colonists unsettled the entire continent and forced rulers to find ways to govern and protect their kingdoms. Consequently, many of these royal women ruled in extremely difficult times, marked by palace intrigue, foreign invasion, and harrowing adventure.

Girls Think of Everything: Stories of Ingenious Inventions by Women In kitchens and living rooms, in garages and labs and basements, even in converted chicken coops, women and girls have invented ingenious innovations that have made our lives simpler and better. Their creations are some of the most enduring (the windshield wiper) and best loved (the chocolate chip cookie). What inspired these women, and just how did they turn their ideas into realities?

Rabble Rousers: 20 Women who Made a Difference Short, spirited profiles of 20 women who impacted life in America by speaking out against injustice and fighting for social improvements. The folksy, friendly narrative introduces such fascinating figures as Sojourner Truth, abolitionist preacher; Dr. Mary Edwards Walker, a Civil War physician; Margaret Sanger, birth control pioneer; and Doris Haddock, a 92 year-old champion of campaign-finance reform. The book spans over two hundred years of American history and includes time lines for such important social movements as abolition, woman suffrage, labor, and civil rights. Readers inspired by these fiery women can use the civil action tips and resources in the back of the book to do some of their own rabble-rousing.

Here are more books to inspire and entertain you.

Here's another intriguing Amazon best-selling teen book: Once Upon a Marigold, by Jean Ferris. Published in 2002, the book is "part comedy, part love story, and part everything-but-the-kitchen-sink," according to the cover. Currently the Kindle edition is #13 on Amazon's list. Written for readers in about grades 5-9, the book stars a young commoner named Christian, an admirer of Princess Marigold. Interestingly, Christian lives in a cave with a troll. As Queen Olympia plans to take over the kingdom, it becomes clear that she will stop at nothing to get this done and that Marigold may be in danger.

Olga is one of my favorite guinea pigs!
We have not had her story in the Library since the books wore out.
Now ... Olga Da Polga is Ba-a-ack!
If you like Charlotte and Wilbur I bet you will like Olga.

You can find Tales Of Olga Da Polga on the NEW Book shelves in each Branch Library.
Olga is also in recorded format Tales Of Olga Da Polga and Olga Meets Her Match.
If you like to read stories of animals and pets, try my personal recommendations from this list:
Animal Rescue Team series by Susan Stauffacher, a Michigan author.
Mitt The Michigan Mouse and more by Kathy Jo Wargin, a Michigan author.

Then check out Turkish Delight & Treasure Hunts : delightful treats and games from classic children's books and plan a celebration with your family and friends.

The AADL recently added more than two dozen albums from the 'golden age' of rap to its music collection. The golden age refers to rap and hip hop music from the late '80s and early '90s, which Rolling Stone magazine describes as a period when "it seemed that every new single reinvented the genre."

Allmusic goes further to say the golden age "witnessed the best recordings from some of the biggest rappers in the genre's history....Overwhelmingly based in New York City, golden age rap is characterized by skeletal beats, samples cribbed from hard rock or soul tracks, and tough dis raps...rhymers like PE's Chuck D, Big Daddy Kane, KRS-One, Rakim, and LL Cool J basically invented the complex wordplay and lyrical kung-fu of later hip-hop."

Some highlights from the new additions:

Gang Starr -- Daily Operation (Released in 1992)
DJ Premier's crackling breakbeats and Guru's laid back delivery complement each other perfectly on Daily Operation -- whether Guru is rapping about relationships on "Ex Girl to the Next Girl" or breaking down the perpetuation of violence on "Soliloquy of Chaos", they had a way of accentuating each other's strengths like few other duos in music history.

Boogie Down Productions -- Criminal Minded (Released in 1987)
Criminal Minded is the first record from BDP, with KRS-One on the mic and DJ Scott La Rock laying down his signature sparse-yet-punchy beats. This is the KRS who can use one line to draw you into a scene, another to build the tension, and hit you right in the gut by the third.

Erik B & Rakim -- Paid in Full (Released in 1987)
It's still incredible how Rakim came up with his style back in 1987. There was no one as introspective, complex, and in the pocket at the time, and people are still trying to sound like him today. Erik B's innovative use of samples had everyone digging through dusty crates of James Brown LPs to find the next B-esque drum break to use. No doubt, this is a classic album.

Just about this time each year, with the first hint of spring, I've found myself humming April in Paris, and thoughts tend to drift to the City of Light. Now debut novelist Hilary Reyl will take us there, through the painterly eyes of a young American artist, in Lessons in French.

1989, a time of social and political upheaval. Her fluent French got new Yale grad Kate hired by famous American photojournalist Lydia Schell as her assistant. Kate is thrilled with the chance to pursue her dreams as a painter, but also to return to France where, as a child she was sent to live with cousins while her father was dying.

Immediately she is dazzled by the Schell's fashionable Sixth Arrondissement home, frequented by their famous friends, and falls into the orbit of a band of independently wealthy young men with royal lineage. Impressionable and wanting badly to fit in, Kate deliberately engages in a forbidden romance, becoming deeply enmeshed in the drama of this volatile household, and the ever-more questionable requests they make of her. In the meantime, Kate struggles with her own art.

"In compelling and sympathetic prose, Hilary Reyl perfectly captures this portrait of a precocious, ambitious young woman struggling to define herself in a vibrant world that spirals out of her control. Lessons in French is at once a love letter to Paris and the story of a young woman finding herself, her moral compass, and, finally, her true family".

French literature scholar (Ph.D. NYU) Reyl's first novel is rich and magnetic. Will appeal to readers who enjoy novels of Americans in Paris and other coming-of-age stories.

Bomboclats are trying something new! Invention, composition, and imagination are at your fingertips with Legos. The sky is the limit when you create with these self locking building blocks. Where will the new drop zone be? Your bedroom, basement, classroom, back yard, or community center? You decide, the power is in your hands! Check out all things Lego starting here!

Ms. Rachel did stories about MONSTERs for Preschool Storytime this week ... and we fell in love with them.
We fed the "The Very Hungry Thing" until finally it said "Thank You".
We scared the "Big Green Monster" away... all by ourselves... with support from each other.

If you like to observe monsters from afar ... and talk about monsters ... and not get too scared ... here are more books for you.
Your Pal Mo Willems Presents Leonardo The Terrible Monster by Mo Willems
Go Away Big green Monster by Ed Emberley
Where The Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
Bedtime For Monsters by Ed Vere
There Was An Old Monster by Rebecca Emberley
How To Potty Train Your Monster by Kelly DiPucchio

If you want to find the best monsters for YOU, follow this link into the catalog.

Wild Swan Theater presents "Shipwrecked!" March 14-16 in Towsley Auditorium in the WCC Morris Lawrence Building. This original play, appropriate for kids in about grades 3-8, was written by accomplished local playwright Jeff Duncan. The story is a coming-of-age drama set during a fierce storm on Lake Huron in 1893. Twelve year-old Aaron Buchanan is sailing with his parents on their small schooner loaded with Christmas trees. Aaron's mettle is tested when a fierce gale hits "Shipwreck Alley," and he helps rescue his family. The play is based on historical accounts of the time and should give young people a good chance to learn some of the history, geography, music and maritime heritage of Michigan and the Great Lakes. For those families who may want to learn more about shipwrecks before going to the play, AADL has some great resources.

Red Cat Blue Cat by Jenni Desmond is the story of two cats. Blue Cat stayed upstairs, and Red Cat stayed downstairs, and when they crossed paths they always hissed at each other. Blue Cat didn’t know that Red Cat secretly wished he were as smart as Blue Cat, and little did Red Cat know that Blue Cat wished he was fast and bouncy like Red Cat. One day they both come up with the best idea! Blue Cat will dress up as Red Cat and Red Cat will dress up as Blue Cat. Well, it doesn’t quite go as planned and in the end they find out that they like being themselves more than anyone else, and surprisingly, after all that ruckus, the two cats end up friends. It’s a super cute picture book with wonderful illustrations and a surprise ending that both small children and grown-ups will enjoy reading together.

Currently the bestselling teen book on Amazon is Angelfall(Penryn and the End of Days, Book 1, the debut novel of Susan Ee. Romantic and dystopic, this novel has spent 97 days so far on Amazon's list of the top 100 teen books. It was written for readers about age 14 and up.

The novel opens shortly after angels of the apocolypse descended to destroy the world, seeking revenge against humans for killing the archangel Gabriel. When warrior angels grab a little girl, the child's 17-year-old sister, Penryn, makes a deal with Raffe, a handsome injured angel, and they set out through Northern California toward San Francisco, the angels' stronghold.

According to Amazon, the author "used to be a lawyer but loves being a writer because it allows her souped up imagination to bust out and go feral."