The Oprah Winfrey and Tyler Perry produced film Precious is being released in some markets this Friday, but Ann Arbor will have to wait until November 20 when it will be at the Showcase Theater in Ypsilanti. Precious is based on the book Push by Sapphire and has been buzzed about since it's debut at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year. Set in 1987 Harlem, Precious is the story of a 16-year-old girl struggling in a bleak and brutal world. She's pregnant for the second time by her absent father; at home she must wait hand and foot on her mother, a poisonously angry woman who abuses her emotionally and physically. School is chaos and Precious has reached ninth grade with high marks and a terrible secret: she can't read or write. Threatened with expulsion she is offered the chance to attend an alternative school. This chance takes Precious on a journey from darkness into light and self-determination. The film stars Mariah Carey, Sherri Shepherd, Mo'nique and Lenny Kravitz.

Eric Guilbert

From history to travel, interviews to fiction -- this month's youth magazines sure have a lot of interesting stories to share!

Dig Magazine starts the party with an issue focusing entirely on the history of food. Learn about Ancient Egyptian bread baking and the history of the tortilla, as well as how to roast a whole pig. Even more fun than McDonald's!

Jack and Jill travels the world, with a look at winter holiday celebrations and life in Mongolia's Gobi Desert, as well as an interview with 16-year-old figure skater and Olympic hopeful Mirai Nagasu.

Ever heard of scientists who brave dense jungles and hang from trees to study rare insects? Ranger Rick Magazine has the whole story, along with cool pictures of animal sculptures made entirely from tin cans.

If this makes you feel like exploring the world, come on down! The library is always the best place to start.

tween

The magazines on our parent shelf are taking on the world, and they can take you along for the ride.

Parenting: School Years starts out strong with an article on how to enjoy your child's "difficult" tween years, and just keeps on swinging with a special Mom Congress report on the necessity of art education, a guide to family hapiness, and their picks for "toys of the year."

Coincidentally, Family Fun Magazine also features their Toy of the Year Awards -- number one is Klutz's "Invasion of the Bristlebots", a kit for making robots out of toothbrush heads. The magazine continues with an article on blogging as a family, a list of fun Thanksgiving activities, and five unique pie recipes for those bored with the same old pumpkin-from-a-can variety.

Gifted Child Today tackles some serious issues in their fall edition -- a guide to involving children in caring for the earth, an article by Dr. Gilman W. Whiting, director of the Scholar Identity Institute on reducing dropout rates among diverse students, and a guide to identifying signs of Asperger's syndrome-- an Autism-spectrum disorder.

If all this makes you want to roll up your sleeves and dive in, great! These great ideas and more are just a trip to the magazine rack away.

dollar sign

Want to go to college but don’t know how you’ll pay for it? Get the funding scoop from University of Michigan Foundation and Grants Librarian Karen Downing and colleague, Jennifer Bonnet. They will show you how to develop a strategy and introduce a variety of Web resources and several key Internet tools, including the Foundation Center website and the Foundation Directory Online.

Find Funding for a College Education | Wednesday, October 21 | 7:00-8:30 PM | Pittsfield

bf

With the school year well underway, now is the perfect time to check out Brainfuse, the online tutoring service offering free help any day of the week from 2 – 11pm. Brainfuse allows your student to chat live online with trained instructors for real-time assistance, no appointment is necessary. Every tutor has a specialty area and is trained in online teaching techniques to help explain the tough subjects for grades 3 and up. Available in Spanish and English. Click here to get started or take Brainfuse for a test drive at one of our upcoming sessions in the Malletts Creek computer lab.

Ask October

Just in time for the scariest month of the year, Ask magazine has come out with a special issue on...you guessed it... fear.

Ask magazine goes beyond the usual scary story collection, however, with an article on how the brain processes and produces fear as well as a guide to controlling and dealing with fear -- useful for kids and adults! This issue also includes the instructions for Ask's latest contest -- to design a Monster so terrifying it will frighten other monsters. Winners will get published in a future issue of Ask!

Finding the right college and getting admitted is easily the most daunting project teens and parents face. Make the process easier by listening to advice from local experts. College application experts John Boshoven, Community High’s premier college prep counselor, and Deb Merion, founder of Essay Coaching (essaycoaching.com) will be joined by performance coach Geraldine Markel at this event for parents and teens. Seating will be limited, so arrive early.

College Night | Thursday, October 8 | 7:00-8:30 PM | Traverwood | Grade 9-Adult

aadl.org

If you ever wanted to learn the easy way to mail form letters to clients, print addressed envelopes for your contacts, or create address labels for yourself or organization; Microsoft Mail Merge is the right class for you!

Monday October 19, 2009: 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm -- Traverwood Branch: Training Center

Registration is required. Register online, visit any AADL location, or call 734-327-4555.

See you in class!

I Love Math

School has rolled around again, and with school a plague worse than colds or flu ... math anxiety! Well, fear no more -- the cure has arrived. The October issue of Scholastic's "Dyna Math" magazine is here, with puzzles and articles to boost math skills painlessly.

"Dyna Math" combines mathematical puzzles with interesting stories from the news, real life and the authors' zany imaginations to help math make sense. An article about texting helps to teach graph reading, for example, and a story about a bizarre birthday party helps teach rounding and estimation.

As a former student, I can say without a doubt that the puzzles in this magazine are at least five times more interesting than any math problems I had in school. This magazine is a great resource for anyone who wants to get better at math and have fun at the same time.

Brainfuse logo

Need help with homework? Drop in and test drive Brainfuse Online Homework Help. You will receive a handout telling you how to connect with Brainfuse on the aadl.org website. Once you are in you’ll be free to explore all the menu items including three that connect you to a tutor: Homework Help, Live Skills Building: and the Foreign Language Lab. Check out other features like the Writing Lab, 24/7 Help, and the Test Center. Youth in grades 3 and up, teens and interested family members are welcome.

Brainfuse Test Drive | Tuesdays, October 6, 13, 20 & 27 | 7:00-8:00 PM | Malletts Creek Computer Training Center