For the Kid in You...

And, the adult in your kid.

Maybe we don't need yet another

Best of 2010 List, but since I'm the

(Adult) Teen Librarian, humor me. :)

Best Teen Fiction for Old Folks Like Us:

**Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

**Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly

Twin's Daughter by Lauren Baratz-Logstead

I am Number Four by "Pittacus Lore"

The 10 P.M. Question by Kate De Goldi

Violence 101: A Novel by Denis Wright

Dirty Little Secrets by Cynthia Jaynes Omololu

**The Cardturner: A Novel About a King, a Queen,

and a Joker by Louis Sachar

**The Prince of Mist by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

**The Marbury Lens by Andrew Smith

No and Me by Delphine de Vigan

Wildthorn by Jane Eagland

**White Cat by Holly Black

Stolen by Lucy Christopher

Virals by Kathy Reichs

Best Adult Books with Teen Appeal:

Beautiful Malice: a Novel by Rebecca James

**Blacklands by Belinda Bauer

**Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin

Crossing by Andrew Xia Fukuda

The Four Stages of Cruelty by Keith Hollihan

**The Girl Who Fell From the Sky by Heidi W. Durrow

Greyhound: A Novel by Steffan Piper

Hello Kitty Must Die by Angela S. Choi

The Madonnas of Echo Park by Brando Skyhorse

**The Tale of Halcyon Crane by Wendy Webb

**So Cold the River by Michael Koryta

**Also available & equally excellent on audio

Listen Up! (Best of 2010)

Best Audiobook:

Precious by Sapphire
Or, maybe the best one ever. Top 10, without a doubt.
Note: But, best not to drive & listen, lest you become engrossed and veer off road.

Best (Music) CD:

You Are Not Alone by Mavis Staples
Repeat Track #2. Repeat Track #2, then listen to the entire CD repeatedly. Now that's a voice.

Best DVD (You Probably Didn't See):
The Stoning of Soraya M.
Iranian honor killings, gender roles, & cultural divide. Difficult to watch, impossible to look away.

Best Books of 2010

If we're gonna be frank, a disproportionate number of this year's "buzz" books proved rather unbuzzworthy. It did, however, make it that much easier to weed through the superfluous fluff, and lo and behold, we had ourselves something akin to the proverbial Christmas miracle...

We 3 wise women agreed, these be the best of 2010:

Still Missing by Chevy Stevens
This nailbiting thriller is sadistically addictive from start to finish. And, just when you think you've got it all figured out...

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
Exquisitely written & meticulously researched, this book is guaranteed thought-provoker, no matter your interests (medicine, genetics, ethics, race relations etc.) If this one doesn't stiumulate some serious contemplation, you seriously need a boob tube hiatus.

The Unnamed by Joshua Ferris
A middle aged man afflicted with the compulsion to run (and run and run) does unique a protagonist make. Unnamed is a seriously strange & simultaneously sad story of a family ravaged by a mysterious illness. It's sure to stick with you.

Hellhound on His Trail: The Stalking of Martin Luther King Jr., and the International Hunt for His Assassin by Hampton Sides
The assassination of MLK has been done before. It's never been done like this.

Room by Emma Donoghue
Readers who enter Room will encounter a story of survival in captivity and its subsequent release as recounted by a 5-year-old. Disturbingly realistic, yet impossible to put down.

Running the Books: The Adventures of an Accidental Prison Librarian
by Avi Steinberg
Call us biased, but any book with a line like, "Pimps make the best librarians" is an absolute must-read. So, no matter your vice--thugs, thieves, or Jew boy geeks--go ahead, do the jailhouse rock!

A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan
Hailed by Entertainment Weekly as "a frequently dazzling piece of layer-cake metafiction," we agree. Plus, there's really cool PowerPoint. Just trust us.

Committed: A Skeptic Makes Peace with Marriage by Elizabeth Gilbert
Not the "megajumbo international bestseller" that was Eat, Pray, Love, the "once bitten, twice shy," (and ultimately happy-to-be-hitched once again) Gilbert thoughtfully explores the making of a marriage within the greater sociocultural context.

The Handbook for Lightning Strike Survivors by Michele Young-Stone
We were struck by this luminescent debut novel that follows the lives of two people who are forever changed by lightning strikes. The parallel stories, quirky characters, & curious path convergence will keep you turning the pages.

Unbroken: A World War 2 Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption
by Laura Hillenbrand
Heartwarming, horrifying, and historically rich, Unbroken is an ode to our men of days gone by. The tale of a true American icon, Louie Zamperini--a juvenile delinquent-turned-Olympic runner-turned-Army hero--is the perfect book for anyone looking for some serious inspiration.

OverDrive’s Audiobook App for iPhone

OverDrive, the leading global distributor of audiobooks and eBooks to libraries, has announced the availability of OverDrive's free audiobook application for iPhone®, iPadTM, and iPod touch®. With OverDrive® Media ConsoleTM for iPhone, users can now wirelessly download MP3 audiobooks from OverDrive-powered library websites to their Apple® device.

The free audiobook app for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch can be accessed in iTunes® and on the Apple App Store (http://bit.ly/OverDriveiPhone). Go to http://bit.ly/epw8pm to check out available titles.

E-Reader Demonstration

Thinking about buying an e-reader soon? Not sure which one suits your needs? Librarians will be conducting demonstrations of the Kindle2, Sony Reader, the Nook and the iPad before the holidays. Demonstrations will take place in the Conference Room on 12/16 and 12/18 from 12-1 pm, on 12/21 from 6-7 pm and on 12/22 from 4-5 pm. Call 825-0702 or email sunref@scls.lib.wi.us for information.

New Key Ring Cards

We now have key ring library cards!

Always have your library card with you when you get the key ring card.

You can replace your current library card for a $1.00 replacement fee.

Free for new library card users (only one form of library card is permitted).

New Wisconsin Newspaper Database

We now have access to archived issues of The Sun Prairie Star, Wisconsin State Journal, Madison Capital Times, The Isthmus and other local papers!

The Wisconsin Newspaper Association and BadgerLink have partnered to bring you the Wisconsin Newspapers Digital Research Site. It provides access to daily and weekly newspapers in Wisconsin, starting in 2005 to the present, with an embargo delay of 60 days. The Wisconsin Newspapers Digital Research Site provides access to 235 member newspapers. Each addition is covered cover to cover in a PDF, searchable format. Available in the library or remotely with a valid library card number through our Databases page at http://www.sunlib.org/.

Top June Holds

Top June holds at Sun Prairie Public Library:

Books:
1. Sizzling Sixteen by Janet Evanovich
2. House Rules by Jodi Picoult
3. The 9th Judgment by James Patterson
4. The Help by Kathryn Stockett
5. Storm Prey by James Sandford
6. The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larrson
7. Hannah's List by Deborah Macomber
8. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
9. The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner by Stephenie Meyer
10. Deliver Us From Evil by David Baldacci

DVDs:
1. The Blind Side
2. Alice in Wonderland
3. Invictus
4. It's Complicated
5. Extraordinary Measures
6. Shutter Island
7. Valentine's Day
8. The Book of Eli
9. Hot Tub Time Machine
10. Crazy Heart

Music:
1. Cherrytree Sessions by Lady Gaga
2. Fame Monster by Lady Gaga
3. Save Me, San Francisco by Train
4. Glee: the music. Vol. 3, Showstoppers
5. Beautiful Eyes by Taylor Swift
6. Animal by Ke$ha
7. The Time of Our Lives by Miley Cyrus
8. Valentine's Day Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
9. Adventures of Bobby Ray by B.o.B.
10. Life Starts Now by Three Days Grace

Wii Games:
1. Mario Party 8
2. Super Mario Galaxy
3. Carnival Games
4. Wii Sports Resort
5. Ultimate Board Games
6. Super Mario Galaxy 2
7. Jililan Michaels Fitness Ultimatum
8. Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games
9. Cooking Mama
10. Family Game Night

Learn a New Language Before You Know It

We're pleased to announce the addition of Byki (Before You Know It), a new online language learning system. Byki is a rapid learning system that uses flashcards to teach over 80 different languages ranging from Afrikaans to Zulu, including 15 ESL languages. Byki offers personal progress tracking, speaking and writing exercises, as well as speech analysis to improve your pronunciation skills. Plus you can follow Byki on Facebook or Twitter, use it on your PC, Mac, or mobile device, and sign up for Word of the Day alerts.

Byki is available in the library and remotely to City of Sun Prairie cardholders through our database page. For first-time users, click on "Sign Up Now" to create an account. It's fast, effective and fun!

True Blood - Season 2

Season two promises to be as sultry and sanguine as its predecessor. Critically acclaimed, and one of the library's most popular television series on DVD, this 5-disc set will surely fly out the door like a bat out of hell.

Get on the HOLD list now, before the May 25th release date.

Friends of the Library Trivia Challenge Prizes

Don't miss out on a chance to win these fabulous prizes:

Food Lover’s Basket (La Tolteca, Burrachos)
Reader’s Basket (The Star, Read Before Book Store)
Beans ‘N Cream Basket
Party Pleaser’s Basket (My Menu)
Gardener’s Basket (The Flower Studio, Jungs)
Family Movie Night Basket (Family Video, Pizza Pit)
Repair & Maintenance Basket (Ben's Auto, Dorn Hardware)
One-year subscription to The Star
One-month membership to Snap Fitness
$10 gift certificate to La Tolteca Restaurant
LED pocket pliers from Dorn Hardware
14-inch pizzas from Pizza Pit
DQ cake from Dairy Queen
$15 gift certificate from Atlantis Taverna
$5 gift card to Family Video
Burrito at Burrachos

Trivia Challenge at the Library

Trivia Challenge Fundraiser
Saturday, May 15 2-4 p.m. in Library Community Room
Entry fee $5 per person or $20 for team of up to 6.
Cash and door prizes awarded to top teams.
Registration required by May 12. Call 608-825-0702 or email

DVD's For The Blind Or Visually Impaired

Did you know Sun Prairie has DVDs for the blind or visually impaired? Some DVDs contain a "Described Edition," which allows the viewer to experience the ambiance of a film with additional descriptive language.

To find materials like these, search for: "Described Ed." as a VIDEO Key Word Search.

March Art Exhibit

Don't miss the show of work by Sun Prairie artist, Jackie Martindale, on view in the library through March 21st. Exhibit is located on the outside of the Renk Room.

New Moon, Blind Side, Sherlock Holmes

The HOLD list is filling up fast for these movie titles with March

release dates.

Visit LINKCAT to get in while the getting is good!

A New Cracking Caper!

Finally!

Wallace & Gromit are back in a new murder mystery! A triumphant return to the shorter, 30-minute format that originally catapaulted the dynamic duo to international fame, makes it easy to squeeze in.


Get on the HOLD list to see this marvel of clay-mation hi-jinx.