An Unexpected Journey Begins!
It has been a long wait, but The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey movie is finally being released next weekend. The Hobbit has always been one of my favorite books and I loved the LOTR movies by Peter...
View ArticleJourney to the Pacific Northwest
Over Christmas, I will be heading back to the Pacific Northwest, where I spent the first twenty-something years of my life. Yes, I’m excited to see friends and family. But there’s just something...
View ArticleAltered Books
A cold, snowy winter’s day is a great time to get crafty and creative! Sometimes books outlive their usefulness. Why not turn those 1970′s era Britannica Encyclopedias into a work of art? Altered art...
View ArticleVote for your favorite YA book of 2012!
Every January, a bunch of library folk get together at their semi-annual meeting and announce the winners of annual YA book awards. This is something I greatly look forward to each year, and spend...
View ArticleStart your 2013 reading lists with YALSA’s new award winners!
Over the weekend, librarians from all over the country gathered in Seattle to make some decisions about the best books of the year for teens and children. The results of these meetings (and a year of...
View ArticleAwesome and Amazing Audiobooks
As a librarian serving both children and teens, I need to ingest as many titles as possible to keep up with everything that’s happening in literature for ages 0-18. Consequently, I recently began...
View ArticleWhether You’re Pro or Anti Valentine’s Day, We’ve Got What You Need
Valentine’s Day elicits a wide range of emotions in people. Even if you’re a Valentine’s hater don’t give up on this post, you may read something you like! In elementary school, I loved creating my...
View ArticleNational Read Across America Day
Dr. Seuss from quickmeme.com Tomorrow is National Read Across America Day! This date was chosen to coincide with the birthday of Dr. Seuss (pictured in the meme above). The whole point of this day...
View ArticleLadies First!
Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift and Ke$ha all belong in the top 10 of most-downloaded iTunes songs of all time, but not too long ago women did not reign the music charts. Since March is Women’s History Month,...
View ArticleRalph Munn Creative Writing Programs
The Ralph Munn Creative Writing Contest is an annual contest for high school students (grades 9-12) in Allegheny County. Submit a piece of creative writing (short prose, poetry, or screenwriting) by...
View ArticleNew Slang
Slang, especially as an indicator of the evolution of language, is fascinating. Slang is defined as “the use of informal words and expressions that are not considered standard in the speaker’s...
View ArticleSummer time is travelling time!
Summer time is almost here! It has been a long, long, long winter, but we finally have some nice weather and (hopefully) some time off to enjoy it! Whether it is summer vacation for teens or a few...
View ArticleGet out the vote!
Last week, Pittsburghers turned out to vote in the May primaries. That is, Pittsburghers over the age of 18 helped decide which local candidates will go on to the November election. In contrast,...
View ArticleReading & Writing This Week at CLP
I’m sure that by now, Teen Summer Reading (TSR) is old news. However, if you haven’t signed up yet, I do encourage you to stop by your local library, say hi to your librarian, and sign up! You can...
View ArticleEnd of Summer Adventures
Road trips, bike trips, end of summer adventures! picture is my own August is just around the corner, and I love August! It’s often a bittersweet month—it’s still the middle of summer, fresh produce...
View ArticleDrivin’ Around Town
Most of my friends and I looked forward to getting our driver’s licenses when we turned 16. It was a rite of passage, and in a city with less-than-stellar public transportation, it seemed like it was...
View ArticleO Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?
He’s in a Pittsburgh Citipark near you. All pictures of the performance were taken at the opening performance at Frick Park by the author of this post. Pittsburgh Shakespeare in the Parks presents...
View ArticleRenaissance Festival Time!!
Fall might be my favorite time of year for many reasons. Football season is starting (the Broncos are playing the Ravens tonight!!), the nights get colder and way better for sleeping, apples and...
View ArticleThe link between rhythm and reading
Image by imagerymajestic, via freedigitalimages.net This just in from the Journal of Neuroscience: researchers have discovered that learning to keep a steady beat can enhance your language skills and...
View ArticleDo you have what it takes to be a leader?
Of course you do! Leadership is hard, but everyone can be a leader. It takes work, practice, and experience, even for folks who are more comfortable with the role. Fortunately, there are many...
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