Blog Post
Celtic Festival
by jaegerla
This weekend the Saline Celtic Festival will be taking place. Today and tomorrow (July 11th and 12th) the festival will be running from 8:30 am to 9 pm. If you are interested in celtic traditions and culture, the library offers a wide variety of books on the topic. Titles included are Twilight of the Celtic Gods, The Celtic Cross: An Illustrated Guide to Celtic Spirituality and Mythology, and Celtic Connections: The Ancient Celts, Their Tradition and Living Legacy.
Blog Post
ZOMG TEH GT IS BACK!!1!
by eli
WOW. The offseason is finally over. The doors to that temple of videogame prowess that is the Downtown Library Multipurpose Room are about to swing open for AADL-GT Season FIVE! Lots of big changes await this year, some right around the corner and some down the road, but here's the entire season schedule and some info about this weekend's tournaments, featuring Guitar Hero, DDR, Rock Band, Super Smash and Kart! First we've got our first ever Revolution Hero tournament, with simultaneous DDR and Guitar Hero tournaments for all ages, this Friday Night from 6-8:30 pm. Then, this Saturday welcomes the return of the SmashKart Championship Series for grades 6-12 to our annual Preseason event. Recruit for clans, test out rulesets; and Graduated Seniors get one more shot at glory. Then, Sunday sees our first ever Rock Band Tournament for 4-player teams of all ages. Then, Monday sees the next round of the racous battlefest Pokémondays from 1-5pm, all at the Downtown Library. Check it out! And read on for full details.
Welcome back GT faithful! It's been a long, quiet off-season, but I think once we get this highly transitional season off the ground, it will be a brave new era in the ongoing saga of the aadl-gt tournament series. But first, we have no Wiis. Yes, our vendor has not yet delivered the shipment of 8 shiny new Wiis, so we've still got just 1 wii. There are two ways to handle this. First, if any of you guys would like to bring your wii and brawl and kart (we have controllers) we could conceivably pull together the hardware at the last minute. That's up to you; let me know here if you think you'd like to bring your wii and we'll see what we can do! Or, we could have a farewell to Melee and double dash, with finals in Brawl and Kart, and see what happens. Either way, we've got all four events lined up but no clan play... and remember that this is the last tournament for which graduated seniors are eligible. A farewell, as it were.
So, here's the full season schedule. Stay tuned for some big changes to your aadl-gt online experience coming soon.... unless you want a sneak preview
Season Weekends
July 11-13
August 9-11
September 19-21
October 17-19
November 28-30
December 19-21
Each Weekend has the same three events:
Fridays 6-8:30 Revolution Hero for All Ages
Saturday 12-5, Smashkart Championship Series for Grades 6-12
Sunday 1-4, Public Library Pokémon League for Grades K and up (except for July 13)
We'll also have the return of the AADL-GT Grudge Buffet and other cool stuff along the way.... See you this weekend!
Blog Post
New dvd releases from Amazon now at AADL
by Maxine
Following are descriptions of four new dvds listed on Amazon's "New Releases" which are now available at the Library. Get your name on the hold list!
Spiderwick Chronicles- An excellent adaptation of the series by Holly Black and Tony DiTerllizi in which boy twins and their mother move into a haunted house.
In Bruges. Colin Farrell and Ralph Fiennes star in this comedy of hitmen who are told to cool their heels after a major job but get into more trouble, incurring the wrath of their crime boss.
10,000 B.C.. The filmaker of Independence Day and The Day After Tomorrow makes another adventure saga in which a hunter sets out to rescue his beloved who's been kidnapped. Along the way, he faces a saber-toothed tiger and other dangers and ultimately, of course, proves a hero and gets the girl.
Definitely, Maybe is a a heartwarming romantic comedy about a father (Ryan Reynolds) who tells his daughter (Abigail Breslin) how he met her mother which leads to unexpected changes in the future.
Blog Post
Family Picnic at Center Supporting People with Disabilities
by iralax
Come to the Ann Arbor Center for Independent Living annual family picnic on Sat., July 12, 11-3 pm at 3941 Research Park Dr. All ages are welcome at no charge for an afternoon of food, entertainment and games. This nonprofit organization is dedicated to providing basic support and services to children and adults with disabilities. Enjoy the fun and meet the great people who make AACIL such an important organization in our community. For more information contact Mary Stack at 734-971-0277 x56 or mstack@aacil.org.
Blog Post
Lost Book Club
by RayaPapaya
My mother is a huge fan of the television series, "Lost," and loves to discuss her theories about what is happening or will happen next. Unfortunately, I have only seen the show sporadically (someday when I have the time I'll borrow them, starting with the first season and catch up), so it's hard for me to understand the complexities of the plot. Finally, though, we have a point of mutual reference for the show! The show producers have started a Lost Book Club over on the official show website, which features books referenced in the show.
I checked out the list and found several of my old favorites, and I think that even non-fans will enjoy many of their selections. For instance, if you enjoy excellent humor carved out of serious situations, the list includes Joseph Heller's Catch-22, as well as Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse Five. If classics are more your style, A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens made the list, as did The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoyevsky. Even young fans can get in on the book club, with selections like William Golding's classic tale of schoolboys surviving on an island, Lord of the Flies, and even (no kidding) Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, which apparently got referenced in episode #117.
So, if you are a Lost fan, or if you are just in the mood for an eclectic book list, you can read them by season, or pick and choose from the entire list. Have a look at the list, and then head over to your local branch to check some of these out!
Blog Post
As for justice, he was "Supreme."
by Maxine
Today, July 2, is the birthday of Thurgood Marshall, Supreme Court Justice from 1967 until his death in 1993.
Marshall was a champion for justice even from his days as a young lawyer when he sued the University of Maryland for racial discrimination in not admitting a black student as he had not been admitted a few years earlier. He went on to become the legal director of the NAACP where he won the landmark case of Brown Vs. the Board of Education in 1954, legally ending segregation in public schools. Marshall went on to argue and win 14 of the 19 cases he argued before the Supreme Court.
Blog Post
What will you do to Celebrate Independence Day this year?
by aschling
Come to The Henry Ford July 2-5 at 6pm and celebrate with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra! This year is the 16th annual "Salute to America" at the Henry Ford. Come when the gates open, get a good seat and even enjoy a picnic from home. The evening is then filled with patriotic marches and a tribute to our veterans of all ages. The night ends with the 1812 Overture along with a fireworks show and a real cannon! Check out the website for ticket information and celebrate our independence. Read about Greenfield Village in A home for our heritage : the building and growth of Greenfield Village and Henry Ford Museum, 1929-1979.
Blog Post
AADL Video on Demand
by iralax
For years, thousands of people have enjoyed the variety and quality of programming at the Ann Arbor District Library. But who has the time or energy to attend all of the interesting looking events? Fret no longer, because Video on Demand is up and running! Just browse the extensive list of programs, and select one to view on your computer or download to an iPod anytime at no charge. To cite just a few of the presentations: people like Nancy Pearl, Cokie Roberts, Anthony Shadid, Yarn Harlot, or informative panel discussions are available for video or audio feed. So relax and enjoy great AADL programming whenever you choose.
Blog Post
Iron Man
by tonyabreu
Iron Man is an action-packed take on the tale of wealthy philanthropist Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), who develops an invulnerable robotic suit to fight the throes of evil. In addition to being filthy rich, billionaire industrialist Tony Stark is also a genius inventor. When Stark is kidnapped and forced to build a diabolical weapon, he instead uses his intelligence and ingenuity to construct an indestructible suit of armor and escape his captors. Once free, Stark discovers a deadly conspiracy that could destabilize the entire globe, and dons his powerful new suit on a mission to stop the villains and save the world. Gwyneth Paltrow co-stars as his secretary, Virginia "Pepper" Potts, while Terrence Howard fills the role of Jim "Rhodey" Rhodes, one of Stark's colleagues, whose military background leads him to help in the formation of the suit. Click on the link to watch the Iron Man Trailer and reserve your copy through our catalog.
Blog Post
The journey of a lifetime...
by RiponGood
Next month the latest retelling of Jules Verne's Journey to the Center of the Earth will hit the big screens. Fortunately, you don't have to wait that long to experience this wonderful story. In fact, we own the 1959 release starring Pat Boone and James Mason. The movie is one of my all time favorites. You should also check out the book and for much younger readers, we have the Wishbone version. Enjoy!