What you can make with that thing he used to clean his pipe with! All kids five and up are invited to join us for Pipecleaner Fun when we make crawly critters and other outrageous creations at the Pittsfield Branch this Wednesday, June 20th at 4:00 p.m.

Find out why Tiger is so mad and Bear is so sad at the Downtown and Pittsfield “Safari” preschool storytimes this week.

When I think of Nikola Tesla, I imagine David Bowie, who played him in the recent film about magicians, The Prestige. The real Tesla may not have looked like a rock star or built a mysterious cloning machine in the mountains of Colorado, but he did compete in a heated rivalry with Thomas Edison, each man hoping to secure the future of his own electrical designs.

See the competition play out in person at the Downtown Library this Thursday evening at 7pm. The Ann Arbor Hands On Museum's very own John Bowditch, an Edison expert featured on BBC and the History Channel, will be on hand not only to discuss this historical scientific rivalry, but also (Steampunks, listen up) to demonstrate some electric artifacts from both inventors—zzzt! spark! flash! Awesome!

megatokyo

Fred Gallagher, author and creator of the webcomic Megatokyo and Jerzy Drozd, of mlatcomics judging your manga drawing – how cool is that?! All entries will be displayed in the Downtown Youth Department in August. Deliver completed drawings to any library information desk by closing on Monday, July 30. The Awards Ceremony is on Monday, August 6 @ 7:00 p.m. at the Downtown Library. Prizes will be awarded in four categories: Grades K-2, Grades 3-5, Grades 6-8 and Grades 9-12. For complete rules and guidelines click here.

This week’s Downtown and Pittsfield storytimes will take you traveling around the pond and off to India and Timbuktu!

Youth in grades Kindergarten through 12th from Washtenaw County are invited to submit their artwork to be juried for the very first Kid’s Art Fair at the Townie Street Party on July 16.

Interested young artists should bring samples of their artwork to the Downtown Library Multi-Purpose Room on Saturday, June 16 between noon and 1 PM. Art jurors will score the work between 1 PM and 3 PM. Everyone is invited to watch the process.

Jurors will announce the young artists invited to exhibit their work at 4 PM. These artists will be allowed to sell their work at a booth at the Townie Street Party!

Check out the library's great art book collection to get some ideas!

Pack up the babies and grab the old wagon and come on over to the Library. Preschool Storytimes begin the week of June 11, 2007. Pick up a JUMP brochure and plan your summer calendar for reading and fun.

Baby PlayGroups begin the week of June 11 throughout the Library System. Pick up a summer season JUMP brochure for days and times and plan for fun.

barton

Surveys have been conducted, forums held, walks walked and now its time for sharing the results. Join the City of Ann Arbor Design Advisory Committee for a
Public Meeting on Thursday, June 7th, 6:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. at Forsythe Middle School to learn survey results and what the next steps are for addressing the deterioration of the roadway that best balances the needs of different users.

Lamaze

Spend the morning pampering yourself on Saturday, June 9 from 10 AM-12 PM in the Downtown Library Multipurpose Room. Relax your aching back to the tranquil sounds of nature, and the refreshing smell of lavender.

Keleigh Lee of Belly Beautiful Henna will create simple henna designs on beautiful pregnant bellies.

Jen Fife-Adams and Stephanie Schaldenbrand will also be here from Lamaze to discuss childbirth tips and exercises, while giving soothing hand massages. Plus, find out what the library can do for you once your baby comes to the world. See about baby playgroups and peruse our parenting collection.