Read for the Fun of It! “Teen Read Week”

BISBEE, AZ – The Copper Queen Library invites teen readers to increase endorphins, decrease stress levels, and “Laugh Out Loud!” during October by checking out a few of the hundreds of fun titles owned by libraries throughout the county during “Teen Read Week” (October 14-20).

This year’s “Teen Read” theme – LOL@Your Library! (“laughing out loud” for you non-text messagers) – focuses on fun by featuring humorous books and graphic novels. To locate LOL titles, just come to the library and browse the displays or go to the library’s online catalog, type in “comic or humorous” as a subject, and let the fun begin!

In addition to LOL titles, “Teen Read Week” also highlights books (humorous or not) voted “best of class” by teens themselves.

This year, teens voted for twenty “bests” – ten “best books” and ten “great graphic novels.”

The “best book” winners for 2007 are M.T. Anderson, The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation (Volume 1: The Pox Party); Alan Gratz, Samurai Shortstop; Sonya Hartnett, Surrender; Patricia McCormick, Sold; Meghan Nuttall Sayres, Anahita’s Woven Riddle; John Smelcer, The Trap; Megan Whalen Turner, The King of Attolia; Nancy Werlin, The Rules of Survival; Gene Luen.Yang, American Born Chinese; and Markus Zusak, The Book Thief.

The “great graphic novel” winners for 2007 are Ellis & Immonen, Nextwave: Agents of H.A.T.E. (V. 1); Hernandez & Fletcher, Sloth; Linda Medley, Castle Waiting; Meltzer & Morales, Identity Crisis; Ohba & Obata, Death Note
(V. 1 - V. 3); Vaughan & Alphona, Runaways (V. 4 - V. 6); Vaughan & Henrichon, Pride of Baghdad; Whitta & Naifeh, Death, Jr.; Wood & Cloonan, Demo: The Collection; and Gene Luen Yang, American Born Chinese (a winner in both categories).

All winning titles are either currently held or are on order at the Copper Queen Library for circulation to anyone with a valid Copper Queen Library card (available free to any resident of Cochise County).

For more information, contact the library at 432-4232.

Vote Now for Your Favorite "ONEBOOK" Title!

BISBEE, AZ – “ONEBOOK Arizona” Committee member and Copper Queen Library Director Peg White announced that on September 17, the Arizona State Library released nominations and opened voting to Arizona’s reading public for 2008’s “ONEBOOK Arizona” titles.

This year, and until 2012 when the state celebrates its Centennial, all books nominated for “ONEBOOK” will feature Arizona people, places, authors, and/or cultures as themes.

This year, the six nominations for Adult “ONEBOOK” title are Craig Childs, The Secret Knowledge of Water: Discovering the Essence of the American Desert; Eva Tulene Watt, Don’t Let the Sun Step Over You: A White Mountain Apache Family Life, 1860-1975; Sandra Day O’Connor, Lazy B: Growing Up on a Cattle Ranch in the American Southwest; Brian McGinty, The Oatman Massacre: A Tale of Desert Captivity and Survival; Lucy Moore, Into the Canyon: Seven Years in Navajo Country; and Nancy Turner, These Is My Words. Learn more about these books and cast your vote at www.onebookaz.org

The five Children’s “ONEBOOK” nominations are Joseph Bruchac, Code Talker; Terri Fields, Danger in the Desert; Dan Gutman, The Homework Machine; Gloria Skurzynski & Alane Ferguson, Mysteries in Our National Parks: Over the Edge; and Joe Hayes, The Day It Snowed Tortillas / El Día Que Nevaron Tortillas. Learn more and cast your vote for your favorite Children’s title at www.onebookaz.org/kids.

Voting for both Adult and Children’s titles will run until October 15.

According to White, all nominated titles are either currently held or are on order at the Copper Queen Library for circulation to anyone with a valid Copper Queen Library card (available free to any resident of Cochise County).

For further information, contact the library at 432-4232.

Library, Bookstore, Merchants Join for "Banned Books Week"

BISBEE, AZ - The Copper Queen Library and Atalanta’s Music & Books, in partnership with Old Bisbee Merchants, will highlight the observance of “Banned Books Week” and the freedom to read with a “Banned Books Scavenger Hunt” to be held September 29 – October 5 on Main Street.

Books that have been challenged will be placed in participating stores, and customers will begin the Scavenger Hunt by picking up a list of Banned Books and Participating Stores from the Library or from Atalanta's starting at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, September 29. The Hunt will end on October 5 at 5:00 p.m.

The names of all participants who find all the books and return their lists to the Library or to Atalanta’s by the deadline will be entered in a prize drawing. At noon on October 6 at the Library, prize winners’ names will be drawn, and winners will be asked to read excerpts from their favorite Banned Book.

First observed in 1982 during the last week of September, “Banned Books Week” reminds Americans not to take the precious democratic freedom to read for granted. Many libraries and bookstores across the nation join in the celebration with displays and readings of books that have been banned or threatened throughout history. These include works ranging from the Bible to John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men.

Each year, the American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom receives hundreds of reports on books and other materials that were "challenged" (their removal from school or library shelves was requested). They estimate that this number represents only about a quarter of the actual challenges. "Most Challenged" titles include the popular Harry Potter series of fantasy books for children by J.K. Rowling, which drew complaints from parents and others who believe the books “promote witchcraft” to children.

For further information, contact the library at 432-4232.

Ríos' "Iguana Killer" Discussion Set for October 10

BISBEE, AZ – As part of the Copper Queen Library’s celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, on October 10 at 6:30 pm, Dr. John Doty will facilitate an examination of Alberto Alvaro Ríos' first book of short stories, The Iguana Killer, winner of the 1984 Western States Book Award in Short Fiction.

According to the University of New Mexico Press, “The stories collected here might be described as small miracles. Ríos confronts some big questions – often from a child's point of view – but he does so in the language of a poet… His stories show us a culture in transition, one reaching back all the way into the jungles of Mexico, rooted in the ancient Mayan and Aztecan civilizations, but extending all the way into the present as well, a present where confused governments go to war over ‘coffee’ and almost anything can happen to a young Chicano, including love and generosity. In the end we see that The Iguana Killer is the story of us all.”

Those interested in attending or participating in the discussion may now pick up a copy of the book at the Library Circulation Desk. All are welcome to participate, and library cards are not necessary to borrow a book.

This free discussion is sponsored by the City of Bisbee and the Friends of the Copper Queen Library and is made possible in part by a grant from the Arizona Humanities Council.

For further information, contact the library at 432-4232.

Library Adds to "Film Noir" Collection

BISBEE, AZ – With assistance from the Cochise County Library District, Bisbee’s Copper Queen Library recently added to its growing collection of classic “film noir” titles with the acquisition of recently-released titles from Warner and the Criterion Collection. These classic films, first released in the 1940s and 1950s, are some of the best existing examples of Hollywood’s famous and lesser-known stylish crime dramas – known as much for their sets and cinematographers as for their actors and directors.

New titles include Ace in the Hole, Act of Violence, Asphalt Jungle, The Big Steal, Border Incident, Born to Kill, Clash By Night, Crime Wave, Crossfire, Dillinger, Gun Crazy, His Kind of Woman, Illegal, Kiss Me Deadly, Lady in the Lake, Murder My Sweet, Mystery Street, The Narrow Margin, Night of the Hunter, On Dangerous Ground, Out of the Past, The Racket, The Set-Up, Side Street, Tension, They Live By Night, and Where Danger Lives.

The series also includes the documentary, Film Noir: Bringing Darkness to Light, a collection of five vintage "Crime Doesn't Pay" short films (Women in Hiding, You the People, Forbidden Passage, A Gun in His Hand, and The Luckiest Guy in the World), plus interviews with modern “noir” aficionados like directors Christopher Nolan and Frank Miller and writers James Ellroy and Brian Helgeland, who provide a multifaceted exploration of the movie style that grew out of the hard realities of post-World War II life.

Some of the directors represented in the library’s new titles include Nicholas Ray, Anthony Mann, John Sturges, Billy Wilder, John Huston, Robert Wise, Fritz Lang, Robert Montgomery, Edward Dmytryk, Richard Fleischer, Charles Laughton, and Jacques Tourneur.

The actors represented are some of the best-known in the world for film noir, including Farley Granger, Robert Mitchum, Maureen O'Sullivan, Richard Basehart, Van Heflin, Robert Ryan, Janet Leigh, Mary Astor, Sterling Hayden, Edward G. Robinson, Jayne Mansfield, William Bendix, Ramon Novarro, Cyd Charisse, Kirk Douglas, James Whitmore, Marilyn Monroe, Jean Hagen, Ricardo Montalban, George Murphy, Claire Trevor, Barbara Stanwyck, Paul Douglas, Robert Ryan, Jane Russell, Vincent Price, Dick Powell, Shelley Winters, Lillian Gish, Ida Lupino, Ward Bond, Rhonda Fleming, and Wallace Ford.

Sound like something you’d like to see? Patrons with library cards may borrow up to three movies at a time – FREE – and keep them for five days. Don’t have a library card yet? Why not? They’re free, too! (just bring proof of residency to the Circ Desk). And what better time to pick up your card than during Library Card Sign-Up Month in September!

For further information, contact the library at 432-4232.

Put "The Smartest Card” in YOUR Wallet!

BISBEE, AZ – September is Library Card Sign-up Month, and the Copper Queen Library wants to make sure that you and your family are among the two-thirds of Americans that carry the smartest card of all – a library card.

Studies show that children who are read to in the home and who use the library perform better in school and are, as adults, more likely to continue to use the library as a source of lifetime learning.

“A library card has always been the most important school supply of all,” says Library Director Peg White. “And best of all, it’s free! Kids can come to the library to get homework help and check out books, but they can also check out free movies for fun and learning and use the Internet to make after school life a little more fun. There’s a lot happening here at the Copper Queen Library – for kids and for adults!”

A recent study by the American Library Association also showed that families use libraries to spend time together. Forty-four percent of survey respondents report taking their children to the library for this reason. The Copper Queen’s Family Place area is especially designed for family fun, with its stock of toys, puzzles, games, books, and activities for families.

Activities at the Copper Queen Library during Library Card Sign-Up Month will include Monday Night Documentary movies, Wednesday night book discussions and presentations, and on-going Tuesday and Thursday morning story hours.

For more information on signing up for your free library card, visit the Copper Queen Library at 6 Main Street, call the Library Circulation Desk at 432-4232, or see the library’s web site at http://www.cityofbisbee.com.

Library hours are Monday noon – 7 p.m., Tuesday – Wednesday 10 am – 7 p.m., Thursday – Friday, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m., and Saturday, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.

Library Sponsors “Express Yourself!” Art Workshops

BISBEE, AZ – The Copper Queen Library, in cooperation with the Friends of the Library, will sponsor a series of free, unstructured “Express Yourself!” art workshops for children ages 3-11 on Saturday mornings from 10:30 – 11:30 a.m. this Fall in the Library Meeting Room, 6 Main Street.

Workshops will be led by Dr. Nancy Cutts, a self-employed artist who holds a doctorate in Family Therapy, a master’s degree in Recreational Therapy, and a BFA in painting. She completed her Art Therapy apprenticeship in California at Harbor/UCLA Medical Center.

Dr. Cutts’ skills are diverse, and she has integrated her expertise through painting, drama, poetry, and puppetry. She has also written and illustrated The Jewel Tree, a true story/work-book for children with learning disabilities, and her fine-art slides are now in the permanent collection of the National Women’s Art Museum Archives in Washington, D.C. and can be viewed on the internet.

Pre-registration for the 18 workshops – which may be attended on a drop-in basis or every Saturday, at the attendees’ convenience – is not required but would assist in determining how many supplies will be required. The complete workshop schedule and a pre-registration form are available at the circulation desk.

September’s workshops include “School: Going for the First Week” (September 1), “Make a Self-Portrait in Color” (September 8), “Make a Portrait of Your Family on a Vacation Somewhere You’ve Always Wanted To Go” (September 15), “Make a Picture of Your Family Pet or a Pet You’ve Always Wanted” (September 22), and “Think of Yourself Far in the Future a Draw a Picture” (September 29).

For further information on these free workshops, contact the library at 432-4232.