Something new and exciting is about to begin at the Downieville Library. Beginning on Thursday, December 5, 3:00-4:00 PM, Laura Ruiz will be instructing in the reading and writing of Spanish. The program is open to all ages, though her focus is primarily on children. Of course, parents are invited to attend with their children. Her plan is to teach Spanish using books, games, and other activities. More details to follow……
The next time the Downieville Library will be open in the evening is on Monday, December 9, 6:00-8:00 PM. This is our fairly new Library@Nite program, designed to (1) enable folk who can’t make it to the library during its normal daytime hours to come in and make themselves at home, and (2) to provide a monthly literary or craft program suitable for anyone who comes. During our October and November openings, we began an oral reading of Ray Bradbury’s The Halloween Tree. Since we had different people attend on those two nights, we began each time at the beginning, and stopped at the same place each time. Therefore, at our December opening, we will do a brief synopsis of what has already happened, for any new folk who come, and then will (hopefully) read through to the end of the book. As those who have attended the first two readings have discovered, through his story of eight boys on a quest to rescue a friend, Bradbury is in the process of uncovering the origins of our modern-day Halloween. So, come enjoy the fun — and the library!
The awards have been announced for authors and illustrators for the year 2024. Here are the ones we track at the Downieville Library:
Caldecott Medal
Winner: Vashti Harrison (illustrator & author), Big
Honor books:
Marla Frazee (illustrator & author), In Every Life
Molly Mendoza (illustrator) & Aida Salazar (author), Jovita Wore Pants: The Story of a Mexican Freedom Fighter
Jerome & Jarrett Pumphrey (illustrators) & Jason Reynolds (author), There Was a Party for Langston
Hanna Cha (illustrator) & Julie Leung (author), The Truth About Dragons
Booker Prize: Samantha Harvey, Orbital
International Booker Prize: Jenny Erpenbeck, Kairos
Newbery Medal
Winner: Dave Eggers, The Eyes and the Impossible
Honor books:
M.T. Anderson, Elf Dog and Owl Head
Erin Bow, Simon Sort of Says
Nasqugraq Rainey Hopson, Eagle Drums
Pedro Martin, MexiKid: A Graphic Memoir (on the shelf at the Downieville Library)
Daniel Nayeri, The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of Dreams
National Book Awards
Fiction: Percival Everett, James (on the shelf at the Downieville Library)
Non-fiction: Jason De León, Soldiers and Kings: Survival and Hope in the World of Human Smuggling
Poetry: Lena Khalaf Tuffaha, Something About Living
Young People’s: Shifa Saltagi Safadi, Kareem Between
Nobel Prize for Literature: Hans Kang
Pulitzer Prize for Literature
Fiction: Jayne Anne Phillips, Night Watch
Non-fiction: Nathan Thrall, A Day in the Life of Abed Salama: Anatomy of a Jerusalem Tragedy
You’ll notice that a couple of these books grace our shelves. We are open to receiving more of them.