Cultural Arts Fest

Amy Gons, Orange Cove

On October 9, Orange Cove hosted a cultural arts festival as part of our Big Read. Check out these pics!

Showing off their masquerade masks...


Printmaking craft...

Snack time...

Master storyteller Olga Loya...

Enjoying the Sosa Sisters...

Resident artists talking about their craft...

Big Read Fire Safety Program

Wendy Klemin, Bear Mountain

Kids and parents enjoyed a fun fire safety program at the Bear Mountain branch as part of The Big Read: Fahrenheit 451 in March. Activities included crafts, fire engine, firefighters reading stories, and a visit from Smokey the Bear!

Big Read: School Grant Applications

It's October 1st, which means the application period is now open for schools to participate in the Big Read. Teachers, school librarians, and book club advisors can request to participate in several different ways, all by filling out this quick application form.

January - March, Youth/Adult Services staff plan to visit middle and high schools. Here are the choices we offer:

Book Discussion: a discussion of the themes & ideas in Fahrenheit 451 and how they relate to our current society

Booktalk: a presentation of contemporary teen novels that are similar in theme to Fahrenheit 451.

The Inflammatory Institution: a presentation on the history of book banning, censorship, and libraries as targets of destruction

Meet Ray Bradbury: a presentation about Ray Bradbury, including an overview of his life, works and accomplishments

-OR-

Just the books: 3 copies of Fahrenheit 451 and 1 copy of Tim Hamilton’s graphic novel adaptation of Fahrenheit 451 for your school library

We will also provide all schools with Fahrenheit 451 lesson plans, reader's guides, and audio guides. Any school library can ask for the books; 25 classrooms or book clubs who submit the form will be awarded the books and visit from our staff.  Schools will be notified by November 2nd, 2009.

Please spread the word. Any questions can be directed to Youth Services Division at 488.3205. Thanks!

Fresno Big Read in National Spotlight

Roberta Barton, Headquarters


Fresno County continues to be a Big Read favorite! Our Tom Sawyer activities are featured this week on the national Big Read blog. Check it out at www.arts.gov/bigreadblog.

NOYS: Big Read at the River

On Saturday, March 21st, at the Coke Hallowell Center for River Studies on the San Joaquin River parkway, library staff spent a day in the past at the Tom Sawyer Big Read Adventure Day on the River.
There were games to play, displays, music, crafts, and performances for everyone’s enjoyment. Youth Services staff facilitated old-time games for children of all ages to play. Magnet fishing was the biggest hit but everyone tried their luck at the beanbag toss, while volunteers gave away prizes to all the winners. We practiced playing jacks, learned to play pick-up sticks and jumped rope between hopscotch matches.
YS Manager Lisa Eckman and Teen Coordinator Connie Urquhart were the voices behind the curtain once the announcement was heard - “Ladies and Gentlemen! Windblown Theater proudly presents: The Adventures of Tom-cat Sawyer!”

Over 900 people attended the event and even the weather cooperated to make this an incredible day to remember.

New PR Intern

Christy Collet, Headquarters



The library welcomed me, Christy Collet, as the spring 2009 Public Relations intern on February 4, 2009. I will be assisting Roberta Barton in the Fresno County Library headquarters.

I was born in Selma, California, but raised in Fresno. I have an older half-brother who is in his last semester of law school in Fresno. I am a Mass Communication and Journalism major with my emphasis in Public Relations at California State University, Fresno. I am in my final year of school and have an expected graduation date of December 2009. I have five animals - three dogs and two cats. My kitten Gypsy is my pride and joy. I am always happy to show people pictures of her. I enjoy going to concerts and visiting my best friend in San Francisco.

School is finally going really well for me, which is exciting. When I first started at Fresno State I was majoring in Pre-Nursing/Health Science, but at the end of my sophomore year I transferred to the Mass Communication and Journalism department. I absolutely love being a Public Relations major and am finally excited to be going to school. I have an overall GPA of 3.151 and a major GPA of 3.6.

I have always worked in the retail world, but I have recently begun working within my degree. I am a part of the first student-run Public Relations firm on the Fresno State campus called TALK. (www.WeTalkPR.com) I am excited to be working both with the Fresno State firm and alongside Roberta.

I will be a part of the library team until the end of April. Roberta will have me working on several projects including The Big Read. I am excited to see what projects Roberta will have for me in the future and am excited to be working on The Big Read within my first few days of being with the library.

I love to write. I hope one day to have my name on the cover of a novel. I think that writing is a great way of expression and I find that it is a great way to vent. I think that creative writing is a beautiful art form and that more people should take part in it.

I hope that working with Roberta will be a great learning experience for me. I am excited, and a bit nervous, to see what is to come in the future. My goal is to move to Chicago or New York City weeks after I graduate to pursue dreams that are bigger than my current reality.