Books That Make Great Gifts

The following are some of Nancy Pearl's suggestions for gifts:

Adult Fiction Titles

On Canaan's Side by Sebastian Barry
The story of an Irish-American widow looking back over her life and her husband's involvement in the Troubles.  It's just a fabulous novel.  If you're somebody who loves wonderful writing, than this is the book for you.

In Zanesville by Jo Ann Beard
One of my favorite novels this year, narrated by an unnamed fourteen-year-old girl growing up in a small town in the Midwest.  I don't think I'll ever forget the main character.

The Last Werewolf by Glen Duncan
One of the scariest and best written books I've ever read.  It's one of those books you don't want to start too late at night, mainly because you don't want to put it down.  A fabulous, boffo ending.

Blind Sight by Meg Howrey
One of those books whose strength is the dialogue.  All the main characters are wonderfully developed, three dimensional, and the kinds of people who will stay in your mind.

The Long Goodbye by Meghan O'Rourke
The writing is so magnificent, which makes perfect sense because O'Rourke is a poet.  It seems like she's a good friend telling you the story of her mother and those very intimate details of family relationships.

Ghost Hero by S. J. Rozan
S. J. Rozan writes a terrific series of mysteries, and I never think they get enough accolades from the the general public.

Adult Nonfiction Titles

A World On Fire: Britain's Crucial Role in the American Civil War by Amanda Foreman
A wonderful gift for anyone who loves Civil War history or biographies.  The story of two societies - American and British - in the five years leading up to the Civil War and what forces made Britain decide to aid the South rather than the North.

A History of thw World in 100 Objects by Neil MacGregor
Sometimes a book will come along where I think you can give it to every adult on your reading list.  This is one of those.

Rin Tin Tin: The Life and the Legend by Susan Orlean
I think Susan Orlean is one of the best nonfiction writers we have these days.

Explosive Eighteen by Janet Evanovich

Just in time for Christmas, Explosive Eighteen is available for some light reading during the holidays. Plenty of laughs, Stephanie with her friends and relatives delivers another rolicking read of zany mishaps while attending funerals with Grandma Mazer; arresting bail jumpers with Lula; and keeping two boyfriends on the string.

The Drop by Michael Connelly

The open unsolved unit of the Los Angeles Police Department looks into unsolved murders going back 50 years. Of the 10,000 cases still open, using DNA can put new life into a cold case. Harry Bosch and David Chu handle such cases. Bosch finds that confronting killers years later who think they have gotten away with murder very addictive.
Bosch and Chu are given a cold case from 1989 involving rape and murder as well as a current case where the son of his arch enemy Irvin Irving was pushed or fell to his death.
Michael Connelly has a website: www.michaelconnelly.com

Inferno: the world at war, 1939-1949 by Max Hastings

Max Hastings: "This is a book chiefly about human experience. Men and women from scores of nations struggled to find words to describe what happened to them in the Second World War, which transcended anything they had every known."
"Some survivors found that the manner in which they had conducted themselves during the struggle defined their standing in their societies for the rest of their lives, for good or ill."
Read about the battles in the Pacific, Bataan, Midway, Guadalcanal; battles in the Atlantic, Arctic convoys; the Fall of France and Norway; the Russian front, the African front, the European front and finally the Fall of the Third Reich.
Both familiar battles and lesser known conflicts are represented in a fine military book for a broad overview of the Second World War. Find in our new book section under, 940.54 HASTI.

Blowin' in the Wind by Bob Dylan

Illustrator Jon J. Muth has painted beautiful images and has brought to life a beautiful children's book, with words by one of our most admired song writers, Bob Dylan!
His song "Blowin' in the Wind" is captured in beautiful watercolor landscapes. 

This book includes a CD of Bob Dylan's original 1963 recording of the song Blowin' in the Wind from his album "The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan".  In 1999, the song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. In 2004, it was ranked #14 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time".

This book is available at the Hibbing Public Library or through interlibrary loan.

Blowin' in the Wind
Lyrics by Bob Dylan

How many roads most a man walk down
Before you call him a man ?
How many seas must a white dove sail
Before she sleeps in the sand ?
Yes, how many times must the cannon balls fly
Before they're forever banned ?
The answer my friend is blowin' in the wind
The answer is blowin' in the wind.

Yes, how many years can a mountain exist
Before it's washed to the sea ?
Yes, how many years can some people exist
Before they're allowed to be free ?
Yes, how many times can a man turn his head
Pretending he just doesn't see ?
The answer my friend is blowin' in the wind
The answer is blowin' in the wind.

Yes, how many times must a man look up
Before he can see the sky ?
Yes, how many ears must one man have
Before he can hear people cry ?
Yes, how many deaths will it take till he knows
That too many people have died ?
The answer my friend is blowin' in the wind
The answer is blowin' in the wind.

This would be a great Christmas gift 

for any Bob Dylan fan! 



Gadget Zoo

Have you been thinking of stuffing a stocking with an e-reader or tablet this holiday season.  Try one for yourself before you purchase.  Come to the library's gadget zoo on Wednesday, December 14th.  Drop in any time between 1:00 and 4:00 p.m.

We will have the following devices for you to try:

Ipod Touch
Nook Color
Kindle Fire
Ipad 2
Ipod Nano

There will be comparison charts and reviews along with instructions on how to use the library's free "Downloadable Books Library" (Overdrive).

You can also check out the following sites for more information:

TopTenReviews

CNet Reviews

Kindle vs. Nook vs. iPad: Which e-book reader should you buy?

Best Five tablets

Lost December by Richard Paul Evans

Lost December is a nice Christmas story and a fast read for the busy holiday season.  The author is Richard Paul Evans, author of The Christmas Box.  Lost December is a story of second chances and patterned after the age-old story of the prodigal son.  Its message is inspirational and heartwarming.

Devil' Gate by Clive Cussler

Clive Cussler, adventurer and author, leads an exciting life of exploration: "Clive Cussler began writing in 1965 and published his first novel featuring Dirk Pitt® in 1973. His first non-fiction work, The Sea Hunters, was released in 1996.
Clive is the founder of the National Underwater & Marine Agency, (NUMA) a non-profit organisation that dedicates itself to American maritime and naval history. Cussler and his crew of marine experts and NUMA volunteers have discovered over 60 historically significant underwater wreck sites. After verifying their finds, NUMA turns the rights to the artifacts over to non-profits, universities, or government entities all over the world. Some of these finds include the C.S.S. Hunley, best known as the first submarine to sink a ship in battle and the U-20, the U-boat that sank the Lusitania. (from the Clive Cussler website.)
Clive Cussler's latest book, Devil's Gate is ninth in the Numa Files series featuring Kurt Austin.

Minnesota Education Department Has New Website

Hibbing Public Library has received the following notice from the Dept. of Education.

New Minnesota Department of Education Website - Scheduled for Launch December 1, 2011!


The Minnesota Department of Education is pleased to announce that our newly designed agency website is on the way.
Designed with you–our customers–in mind, the new site will provide the same useful information you’ve come to expect from us, presented in a more intuitive and accessible way.

Click here to check out the new site.

Eight Things You Should Know Before You Buy a Daily Deal

Information from the USA.gov team:

Frugalistas looking to snag a bargain on a massage or a fancy dinner at new restaurant can spend a lot of time browsing daily deal sites. While these sites provide the opportunity to try new businesses at a discounted price, shoppers need to be sure they read the fine print on their deals and understand the sites’ terms of service agreements to avoid complications when they redeem their deal vouchers.

These tips from USA.gov will help you better understand the daily deal sites so you can shop safely and enjoy the deals you purchase.

• Check the expiration and black-out dates: Most daily deals have expiration dates. Plan accordingly so you use your voucher before the deal expires. Make sure you check for blackout dates too. Some of the popular vacation deals can only be redeemed during certain times of the year.
• Do your research: Spend five or ten minutes reading reviews of the product or service you're thinking about purchasing. If the company has a lot of bad reviews, you may want to skip the purchase, no matter how great the deal seems to be.
• Understand how you can use the deal: Some deals you can use more than once until the entire amount of the deal is gone, but other coupons you have to use all at once. In general, you can't combine a daily deal with another coupon or promotion. Read the conditions of your specific deal before you buy. If you’ve read the fine print, but still don’t understand everything,ask questions before you buy. Many of the daily deal sites have a frequently asked questions section or an area of the site where they handle questions about specific deals.
• Verify which locations accept your voucher: Some deals for chains are only valid at certain stores. Check to make sure the location closest to you is one of the participating stores or else you might have to go out of your way to use the deal.
• Know when your credit card will be charged: Some sites won't charge you until after a certain number of deals have been purchased; other sites will charge you immediately or at the close of a business day. After you purchase a deal, keep an eye on your credit card statement to make sure you are charged correctly.
• Check the site's refund policy: Some sites will refund your money if you are disappointed in a deal. Others will refund your money if a merchant goes out of business before your deal's expiration date. Some won't refund your money at all. Make sure you understand and are comfortable with a site's refund rules before you make a purchase.
• Know whom to contact with problems: In most cases, the daily deal sites can't help you solve problems with the company you bought the deal from. You will need to work with the company directly. If you have an issue, stay calm and state exactly what happened and how you would like the situation to be resolved. You can use the tips from the USA.gov sample complaint letter to help fix the problem.

The Next Decade by George Friedman

George Friedman founder and CEO of STATFOR, a publisher of worldwide geopolitical intelligence, shares some of his insights about Iran, Russia, Germany, China, Latin America and the US role in history and the next 10 years. Available at Hibbing Public Library, other Arrowhead Libraries and in electronic format.

Z Puppets at Library!

Street performer Chris Griffith and playwright Shari Aronson started Z Puppets Rosenschnoz in 1998 with some fluorescent paint, a $3 pack of ping pong balls, and inspiration and imagination.  Today, they have fifteen original productions and also bring their workshops to thousands of audiences across the country.

Z Puppets’ performances include a unique blend of live music, zealous humor and hand-crafted puppets.  They will be bringing this extraordinary family experience to story time at the Library on Tuesday, December 13^th at 10:00 a.m.

Everyone is welcome to this free program that is funded by Arrowhead Library System, the Minnesota Library Legacy Fund, and the Hibbing Library.

Santa Will Be At The Annual Yuletide Festival

We all know that Santa Claus lives at the North Pole with his magical elves and his flying reindeer.  He makes a list of children throughout the world, keeps track of their behavior and what they have asked to receive on Christmas morning.  The elves work feverishly in the North Pole workshop to make all the toys and the reindeer condition themselves for a marathon flight.  Then on one single night, Santa visits all of the homes in the world and delivers presents. 

Once again Santa is taking time from his busy schedule to spend a couple of hours with all the families that attend the library’s annual Yuletide Festival on Tuesday, December 6^th.  He will be arriving about 6:00 p.m.  There will be a holiday story and song by the fireplace and then Santa will spend time talking to each child that has something to tell him.

Please join us for our annual holiday celebration.  In addition to Santa’s visit, there will be a holiday craft area, the Hibbing City Band will be performing, the Literacy Action Center will be giving away books to children, and the Friends of the Library will be serving refreshments.

New Nonfiction

Learning to Breathe: My yearlong Quest to Bring Calm to My Life by Priscilla Warner

One woman's journey to find peace from her panic attacks.

Attack on Pearl Harbor: Strategy, Combat, Myths, Deceptions by Alan D. Zimm

Evaluation of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor from the Japanese point of view.

You are Not so Smart by David McRaney

Psychology says that you have no idea why you act the way you do.

Book Give Away at the Yuletide Festival

Bring the kids to the Yuletide Festival and have them pick out a free book to take home.  The Literacy Action Center and the book-give-away is another event that has been part of the library’s holiday celebration for many years.

The Literacy Action Center office is located in the basement of the Hibbing Public Library.  It is a program of the Hibbing school district through the Community Education Department.

The Center:
•Provides free, confidential and private tutoring to adults who wish to improve their reading, and writing skills.
•Provides tutoring for people in which English is a second language.
•Works with other community education programs for GED testing and preparation.

It also promotes reading by putting books in the hands of children through book give-aways.  Funding for the books is provided by United Way of N.E. MN, Minnesota Community Foundation, Northland Foundation, Hibbing/Chisholm Rotary, and Security State Bank.

The annual Yuletide Festival will be on Tuesday, December 6^th from 6:00 until 7:30 p.m.

Trout Caviar: Recipes from a Northern Forager by Brett Laidlaw

The author grew up in Eden Prairie, Minnesota and spent time each summer on Lake Brereton in eastern Manitoba: “I can recall so clearly all the sensations of cleaning the fish we caught, an activity which took place in late morning in the cool shade of the pines beside the cabin, on a wooden table covered with newspapers in the yard of packed dirt with a patina of pine needles. I recall the smell of the fish, kept on a stringer in the lake until we were ready to clean them. They smelled … lakey, not fishy, not bad at all, but fresh and watery. When I’m lucky enough to find supremely fresh fish today, I’ll take a good whiff and think, Ah, it smells like Lake Brereton.”

Brett Laidlaw wants to share with the reader his interest in natural foods while finding those foods in the wild, local gardens or the market. Check out the recipes and try a few including: Summer Lake Trout Chowder, Trout Caviar and Apple Blackberry Galette. Find the book in the new book section: 641.302 LAIDLAW

100 Famous Novels with Catchy First Lines

Snoopy, in the Peanuts comic strip by Charles M. Schulz, often started his novel with this line: "It was a dark and stormy night."
The opening lines of a novel can prove crucial. From Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities to Melville's Moby Dick, often the opening sentence or two of a book will become the most frequently quoted and iconic passage from the entire novel. From American Book Review.

The Ranker Website list 100 famous novels with catchy first lines.

What favorite first lines do you remember?

New Movies at the Library

Cars 2

Lightning McQueen competes in the World Grand Prix to determine the world's fastest car.

Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer

Family comedy based on the best selling book series.

Transformers: Dark of the Moon

Shia LaBeouf and the AUTOBOTS must fight the DECEPTICONS to defend the world from evil.

Captain America: the First Avenger

Captain America leads the fight for freeom from the Red Skull and HYDRA organization.

Everything Must Go

Will Ferrell moves himself and all his possessons to his front yard.

Fast Five

Vin Diesel and Paul Walker lead a reunion of all stars from every chapter of the movie franchise.

Hibbing City Band Will Play at Annual Yuletide Festival

Everyone is invited to the library on Tuesday, December 6th for a holiday performance by the Hibbing City Band. The musical selections will begin about 6:15 p.m.

The City Band, once known as the Hibbing Municipal Concert Band, has a long and interesting history. Their background is documented in a graduate research paper, written in 1972 by Arthur M. Hill. “A History of the Hibbing Municipal Concert Band” is available at the front desk of the library.
According to Mr. Hill the first band rehearsals began in 1897, “but progress was slow because of the calloused hands of the men and the difficulty of getting to rehearsals”. The members persevered and in the following years the numbers grew, they elected a director, and even purchased uniforms. The name changed a few times until in 1903 it was changed back to the Hibbing City Band.
In the early 1900s the band began furnishing the music for the town’s Fourth of July celebrations. There is record that the band won competitive honors over the years. They were even invited to play at the State Fair in both 1915 and 1916. The band’s tradition of providing the community with wonderful summer concerts began as early as 1916.
The Hibbing City Band is truly a wonderful tradition in our community. They have graciously played for the Yuletide Festival at the library for many years and we hope will continue to perform for many more. So please join the library staff and the Friends of the Hibbing Public Library on December 6th for some wonderful music.

How to: Many websites and so little time

Websites that offer how to instructions are abundant: How To Do Things, Ehow, Instructibles, and You Tube all give directions and can make you an expert in no time. Need help learning how to knit, paint, tile floors? All information can be found on a handy website. After reading through the instructions, you will quickly know if the thing you are attempting is beyond your abilities and best left to the professionals. What projects have you attempted and had success or decided hiring someone would be a better idea? Write in and let us know.
The library also has sections on woodworking, quilting, knitting, crocheting, painting, house and car repair and many other "do it yourself" projects.