Noe Valley Voice September 2009
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September 2009

Increase Your Skill Sets

Would you like to learn how to draw a Cyclops? Or get your hands on the formula for a perfect bread dough or soup stock? You can find out these secrets by checking out two of the books listed below, which are among the new acquisitions at the Noe Valley­Sally Brunn Library on Jersey Street. The branch is open for business six days a week. And when it's closed on Mondays, you can log on to www.sfpl.org to nab your favorites. For information about Noe Valley Library events, call Branch Manager Alice McCloud at 415-355-5707.

Children's Fiction

- Sam the mouse writes little books and leaves them on the library shelves for children to find, in Daniel Kirk's Library Mouse: A Friend's Tale. Ages 3 to 5.

- Written in both English and Spanish, Book Fiesta: Celebrate Children's Day/Book Day is a picture book by Pat Mora that helps kids have fun reading, especially on Book Day, April 30, which is also Mexico's Day of the Child. Ages 4 to 6.

- In James Howe's Houndsley and Catina and the Quiet Time, a dog who plays the cello and a cat who plays the clarinet get ready for a concert despite the big snowstorm outside. Ages 5 to 7.

- Third-grader Fran learns how to stop being bossy on the playground when she takes her Newfoundland puppy to obedience school, in Puppy Power by Judy Cox. Ages 6 to 8.

- In Samuel Blink and the Runaway Troll, Matt Haig continues the story of Samuel and Martha and the trolls who live in a nearby forest in Norway. Ages 10 and up.

Children's Nonfiction

- Cartoonist Christopher Hart offers a crash course in Drawing Wizards, Witches, and Warlocks, not to mention ogres, Cyclopses, dragons, angels, and goblins. Ages 5 and up.

Books selected by Children's Librarian Carol Small

Adult Fiction

- In the final installment of the Sailor and Lula saga, beginning with Wild at Heart, Barry Gifford's Imagination of the Heart brings 80-year-old Lula back to post-Katrina New Orleans to visit her son.

- An investigation into a college prank gone wrong changes the present-day lives of four friends who had formed an art group that committed acts of sabotage, in Dismantled by Jennifer McMahon.

Adult Nonfiction

- Richard Brodie's Virus of the Mind: The New Science of the Meme explores how the media, advertising, and politicians use viral communications to manipulate attitudes and behavior.

- In Righteous Dopefiend, anthropologists Philippe Bourgois and Jeffrey Schonberg examine a group of homeless heroin addicts in San Francisco through case studies, field notes, personal narratives, and photos.

- Cooperstown Confidential: Heroes, Rogues, and the Inside Story of the Baseball Hall of Fame, by Zev Chafets, explores the history and players of the game.

- In Ratio: The Simple Codes Behind the Craft of Everyday Cooking, Michael Ruhlman explains the formulas for successful doughs, stocks, sausages, custards, and sauces.

- Barney Hoskyns' Lowside of the Road: A Life of Tom Waits traces the 40-year career of an eccentric singer/songwriter.

- To cut calories while eating out or grocery shopping, Men's Health editors David Zinczenko and Matt Goulding urge Eat This, Not That! The Best (and Worst!) Foods in America.

Annotations by Karol Barske, of the Voice staff

LIBRARY EVENTS

Baby Massage

- Certified massage teacher Paule Dominique invites you and baby, age 3 weeks to crawling, to learn about Infant Massage on Thursday, Sept. 24, 10:15 to 11:15 a.m. Please bring a mat or blanket. Massage oil will be supplied. The event is in the downstairs meeting room at the library.

Carol Small Retirement Party

- The library invites you come wish Children's Librarian Carol Small a fond farewell on Friday, Sept. 25, 6:30 p.m.

Book Discussion Group

- The Noe Valley Book Group meets this month on Wednesday, Sept. 16, 7 to 8:45 p.m.

Toddler Tales and Story Time

- Toddler Tales unfolds on Tuesdays, Sept. 1, 8, 15, 22 & 29, from 10:15 to 11 a.m. Family Story Time follows from 11 to 11:30 a.m. Call 355-5707 to confirm, since a new children's librarian may be arriving at the branch.

All events take place at the Noe Valley-Sally Brunn Branch Library, 451 Jersey Street.