TweenSpace: Checkermania! @ Malletts Creek, Tuesday, January 22, 4:30-6:00 pm

Mon, 01/21/2008 - 7:22pm by joy k

Work with your team to jump over opponents in a life-size game of checkers. Haven’t played before? Come and learn! We’ll also be making our own checkerboards that you can take to play on at home! For kids grades 4 and 5.

Your Home, Your Future

Mon, 01/21/2008 - 11:23am by MarilynG

Your house is one of your most valuable possessions. If you are facing financial uncertainty which could threaten making your mortgage payments on time, there is a source of free advice that could help. MSU Extension is holding a series of free seminars at various locations across the county on preventing foreclosure. Register now because space is limited.

Storytime Takes Flight!

Fri, 01/18/2008 - 7:58pm by StoryLaura

The hilarious new picture book, Grumpy Bird, will be joined by a blackbird adventure from India and a crafty trickster rabbit tale from American Indian tradition, when rabbit bounces up through the clouds to steal fire from the sky people, at the Wednesday Downtown and Thursday Pittsfield storytimes.

Rabbit Raves

Wed, 01/16/2008 - 9:50am by StoryLaura

Meet Jumpity the Rabbit and listen to wintry tales from China and Scandanavia at the Wednesday Downtown storytime and the Thursday Pittsfield storytime this week.

Celebrate MLK Day with UM's MLK Health Science Program

Tue, 01/15/2008 - 6:39pm by amy

On Monday, January 21, 2008, UM's MLK Health Science Program presents "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere": A dialogue with Spero M. Manson

Spero M. Manson, Ph.D. (Pembina Chippewa) is a member of the US Institutes of Medicine and Professor of Psychiatry and heads the American Indian and Alaska Native Programs at the University of Colorado at Denver and Health Sciences Center. Spanning 8 national centers, totaling $63 million in sponsored research, program development, training, and collaboration with 102 American Indian and Alaska Native communities, Dr. Manson is widely recognized as the foremost authority in the nation on American Indian and Alaska Native health, with special emphasis on alcohol, substance abuse, and mental health. Dr. Manson will discuss the intersections of social justice, strategies for addressing and resolving health disparities in the United States.

11:45 a.m. UM Hospital, Second Floor (there will be signs!): Dow Auditorium in the Towsley Center

It's All Write! Short Story Writing Contest

Thu, 01/10/2008 - 4:35pm by Bertha

1st Place $250
2nd Place $150
3rd Place $100
First, Second and Third Place prizes in the following categories:
Grades 6-8, Grades 9-10, and Grades 11-12
Winners will be announced at the Ann Arbor Book Festival Short Story Contest event, Saturday, May 17 featuring teen book author Deb Caletti
Entries accepted FRIDAY, JANUARY 25 through FRIDAY, MARCH 21
Prize winning short stories is a published booklet of previous years winners available for you to check out.

The guidelines are attached below.

AXIS Coffeehouse @ Malletts Creek, Friday, January 11, 6:30-8:00 pm

Tue, 01/08/2008 - 5:40pm by joy k

The AXIS Coffeehouse is back! Come perform your own work, or poems/essays/monologues by others at this open mic night. Try reading a favorite poem or essay; share a book, cd, or movie review; recruit some of your friends and act out a scene. Or just hang out, sip on a hot drink, and enjoy the company. This coffeehouse session will run on Friday nights at Malletts Creek from 6:30 to 8:00 pm for six weeks, starting on January 11 and ending February 15. For grades 6-12.

Ice Worlds: Why are the Poles so Cold?

Tue, 01/08/2008 - 10:32am by lola

Where are the North and South Poles, and why are they so cold? What’s the difference between seawater and fresh water? Sea ice and land ice? How do layers of ice stack up? From ice cores to ocean currents, we’ll learn about the coldest places on Earth in this exciting science workshop held in collaboration with the UM Exhibit Museum of Natural History. The workshop is for children ages 6-11 and their adult guardian. Activities are created for both adults and children to complete together.

Call the Youth Desk at 327-8301 or ask at any service desk to register for the program. Choose from the following dates:
Wednesday, Jan. 16, 4:30-5:30 PM at the Pittsfield Branch
Saturday, Jan. 19, 10-11 AM at the Malletts Creek Branch
Saturday, Jan. 19, 2-3 PM at the Northeast Branch

Read up on the topic in these great books: Life in the polar lands by Monica Byles, Icebergs, Ice Caps and Glaciers by Allan Fowlar, Shackleton’s Stowaway by Victoria McKernan, and Polar Bears Past Bedtime by Mary Pope Osborne.

31st Ann Arbor Folk Festival

Sat, 01/05/2008 - 4:25pm by manz

The 31st Ann Arbor Folk Festival takes place at Hill Auditorium on Friday, January 25, and Saturday, January 26. Each night features a different line-up of artists starting at 6:30pm. Ben Folds Five, Toad the Wet Sprocket, Emmylou Harris, Patty Griffin and Shawn Colvin are among the long list of artists performing. All proceeds raised through the festival will benefit Ann Arbor’s The Ark. See The Ark’s website for more details on tickets and performers.

Credit cents

Fri, 01/04/2008 - 10:20am by MarilynG

Do you find credit ratings and debt management baffling? Start the new year out right by taking a three part class on Making Sense of Credit and Debt taught by the Michigan State University Extension. Classes begin on January 14 at the Washtenaw County Library Learning Resource Center. Pre-registration is required. Call 734-222-3943 before January 10 to register.

If going to a class doesn’t fit into your schedule, check out a book from the library's collection on credit and debt management like Starting Out by Sheryl Garrett. Start out 2008 with financial knowledge.