So far this summer we've had a magician and a juggler. Now it's time for a ventriloquist. Join us this Tuesday, July 26 at 2:00 p.m at the Pittsfield Branch for a great show by ventriloquist Vikki Gasko and her charming friends from around the world. The show will be repeated at the Downtown Library at 7:00 p.m that evening.

Have you ever tried ventriloquism? Start here.

This Month is packed with all sorts of games! We've got Madden, Marvel vs. Capcom, Smash Bros. Brawl, Mushroom Wars and Mario Kart Wii, Not to mention THE ARCADE MASTER SERIES! The Arcade Master Series is a retro gaming high-score contest with a new retro game to play at each AADL-GT event. Come to different gaming events throughout the season and rack up high scores to earn an invitation to the Arcade Master Tournament in January.

Friday July 22 6:00pm-8:30pm @ the Downtown Branch

Madden Grid Iron Throwdown: Coach your favorite NFL team to victory in our Madden 2011 tournament for PS3.
Marvel vs. Capcom: You think you've got the skills to reign supreme? Time to show what you've got!

Saturday July 23 1:00pm-4:00pm @ the Downtown Branch

National Smash 2: Wanna play some Smash Bros. Brawl? Come to the Library and defend the AADL's national standing. This event will include both a national tournament against other libraries all over America and a House rules tournament.

Sunday July 24 1:00pm-4:00pm @ the Downtown Branch

All-Ages Mario Kart Tournament: prizes in novice and pro brackets!
Mushroom Wars: We've also got a crazy fun take on the speed risk genre of games, Mushroom Wars!

Monday July 25 1:00pm-4:00pm @ the Downtown Branch

PokeMonday: As always you'll need to bring your Nintendo DS or DSi and a copy of your Pokemon game(Black and White won't work Sorry.) Big screen and Union Rooms battles are used for admittance into the finals, so be sure to have Pokemon of all levels trained for battle!

It's going to be a very exciting week in Ann Arbor. Along with the Art Fair there are always many interesting activities. We're going to provide you with one of them. On Tuesday, July 19 Juggler Jason Kollum will be coming from Chicago to the Library for two shows. At 2:00 p.m. he'll be performing at the Pittsfield Branch. At 7:00 p.m. he'll be at the Downtown Library.

These shows will be fun to watch!!

To learn how to juggle yourself, click here.

Would you like to learn more about the nighttime sky? Does summer conjure up images of stargazing and picking out constellations? Then the University of Michigan Exhibit Museum of Natural History’s “The Sky Tonight: Star Talk” may be just what you're looking for! Venture into the planetarium for a live talk that will cover what is currently in the night sky, including stars, constellations, telescopic objects, and the planets. This program runs throughout July and August. Admission is $5 for seniors, adults, and children.
Exhibit Museum of Natural History web site

Monday-Friday: 11:30, 1:30
Saturdays: 11:30, 1:30, 3:30
Sundays: 1:30, 3:30

If your child loves Winnie the Pooh, they'll love this Essential Guide to the new movie - an old-school style adventure weaving together 5 stories from the original A.A. Milne books. They'll discover fascinating facts about Pooh Bear and the movie's key characters, including his well-loved friends Eeyore, Piglet, Tigger, Rabbit, Owl, Kanga and Roo. It's also full of details on the enchanting Hundred Acre Wood where they all live.

This guide is packed with beautiful stills and watercolor art from the long-awaited Disney movie. You can watch a trailer for the movie here

And while you're waiting for the movie, why not check out A. A. Milne's original stories and poems, Winnie-the-Pooh, The House at Pooh Corner, When We Were Very Young, and Now We Are Six.

Ben on Ipod

One of the many fascinating facts I've learned about Ben Franklin is that he taught himself to read French, Spanish, Latin, and Italian. You can teach yourself a wide range of languages just like Ben. Maybe not just like Ben as he surely didn't have the kinds of social networking options that we have now! Byki offers a free mobile app for the iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch, and Android where you can brush up on the language of your choice. There are also social networking components to assist in your language learning on Facebook, Twitter, and various blogs written by native speakers. For links to language learning materials, and books, movies, magazines, and CDs available in various languages through AADL click here!

J.K. Rowling has created Pottermore, a free to use Web site taking readers right into Hogwarts, as a way of thanking her fans. To be launched on July 31, Harry Potter’s birthday, the site gives users access to roam in Harry's world, to uncover back stories and other additional material written by Rowling, including her notes from the time of first writing the stories as well as those written subsequently. “Find your house by answering random questions posed by the sorting hat” and “choose your own wand from Ollivander’s" are just two of the activities. Fans can join in by submitting comments, drawings and other content.

When the whole site goes live in October it will house a shop, the exclusive outlet for digital audiobooks and e-books, which can be accessed on any platform. This brings to an end the long standing speculation about the digital future of the original titles. “Ebooks are here to stay,” Rowling said. “I love books but downloading ebooks is miraculous especially for travel and especially if you have kids. I feel great about taking Harry into this new media.”

POTTERMORE by J. K. Rowling

Ben Franklin was a legendary inventor whose imagination and hard work led him to conduct famous scientific experiments and invent many new devices.

Inspire the young scientist in your family with stories of Franklin's experiments and inventions with Gene Barretta's Now & Ben: The Modern Inventions Of Benjamin Franklin, Rosalyn Schanzer's How Ben Franklin Stole The Lightning, and Pamela Nettleton's Benjamin Franklin: Writer, Inventor, Statesman.

Then dig into some experimenting yourself! This website from the Franklin Institute has instructions for experiments with electricity, air, heat, and the glass armonica. If electricity sparks your imagination, there are plenty more experiments on this topic, including how to build your own Leyden jar!

Did you know that Ben Franklin was the first scientist to study the Gulf Stream, a powerful, warm current in the Atlantic Ocean. Take your own voyage on the Gulf Stream with these science and math activities!

If you're a teacher or parent seeking to incorporate educational lessons and experiments inspired by Ben Franklin's life, refer to the PBS Benjamin Franklin Teacher's Guide, a series of eight lesson plans aligned to National Standards.

BenFranklinScience

Super Summer Game Update!

Thanks to everybody who's signed up for the Summer Game so far! We're off to a great start, and we've got a few updates for you today and more coming yet this week, including NEW BADGES and BADGE BONUSES! But first, an update to the points scoring page, and some news about much-needed MULTIPLE PLAYERS PER ACCOUNT!

So, as you can now see when you click the "I've read / watched / listened to etc" button on your player page, or click "I've finished this" button on an item in the catalog, we've made the points entry form able to optionally record time spent or pages read, plus a 100 point bonus when you finish an item. So, you can enter time or pages daily, or when you finish an item, or not bother with time and pages at all, just taking the 100 point finishing bonus per item. Let us know what you think about this approach by leaving a comment on this post!

Then, we're hard at work on adding an "add player" button to your player page, allowing you to add extra players on your account who can each earn their own points. There's one catch, though: extra players attached to your account won't be able to earn automatic contribution points for reviews, ratings, comments, or tags, as those are all keyed solely to the main player on the account. If you have extra players in your house who'd like to earn automatic contribution points, they can just create a new aadl.org account (email isn't required) and signup for the game there to have all scoring options available. Don't forget, you can always click "log out" in the top right corner of any aadl.org page to log out of your account and then log in to another. If you have any questions about this, ask away by leaving a comment, or as always, feel free to contact us.

Thanks again for playing the Summer Game! Keep the ideas and the points coming, and have fun with YOUR library this summer!

Abe Lincoln
How often do you get to see one of the nation's important documents up close and personal? Until Wednesday, June 22, 7:00 AM, the Emancipation Proclamation is on display at the Henry Ford Museum. According to a MLive article, over 7,100 visitors have already ventured to Dearborn to see it. Normally this original, handwritten document is stored at the National Archives. In fact, this is the first time that it has been out on display since the 1980s. It is kept under wraps in order to preserve it; it is sensitive to light. There is no charge for admission. While the Emancipation Proclamation is on display until 7:00 AM tomorrow, the doors to the museum will close at 6:00 AM.

For a dose of history even closer to home try these items:

The Emancipation Proclamation, a book for adults.
You Are There. Abraham Lincoln's Great Moments, a DVD.
The Emancipation Proclamation, a book for children.