Book Week Scotland

Book Week Scotland starts on Monday 26th of November. The Library will be celebrating this event with displays, book readings, competitions and more.

For more information about Book Week Scotland go to the Scottish Book Trust website or click here

Breaking Dawn Part 2

The latest Library display celebrates the release of the final film in the Twilight Saga. There are also other book titles to delight all dark romance fans. So whether you want to re-read the Twilight books, find out more about Robert Pattison or try somethng new, come along to the Library and select some reading to fill the time until you see the movie.

 

LOVE Twilight?

Try:

Blood sinister by Celia Rees

Fallen by Lauren Kate

Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

Lunamorte by Samantha Young

The immortals by Alyson Noel

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

 

For even more ideas -  visit the Library!

Remembrance

On the 11th of November we remember those who fought and died for their country in wartime.Find out why we wear poppies at this time, all about the First World War and maybe read some war poetry or a fiction book set in wartime.

Happy Halloween

There are LOTS of spooky books on display aound the Library, from ghostly tales to vampire, werewolf and moster stories. If you are feeling brave you could reach through the spider's web to take a book from the shelves beneath the display board!

NaNoWriMo

November is National Novel Writing Month, shortened to the catchy phrase NaNoWriMo! So if you think that you could be the next J.K.Rowling or Anthony Horowitz why not challenge yourself to writing as much of your novel as possible during the month of November? The NaNoWriMo website has lots of tips and hints to help get you started and you can sign up to take part in the writing challenge.

Author visit

Higher English students enjoyed a visit by local author Lisa Ballantyne this week.Lisa went to Armadale Academy before going on to study English Literature at St. Andrews University.  Lisa's first novel, 'The guilty one' was published in August this year to rave reviews and is going to be on the Richard and Judy reading list. Lisa gave a masterclass in writing  as well as talking about her book. The event was deemed a huge success by all who attended.

Lisa Ballantyne in the Library

Lisa signing a copy of 'The guilty one'

CfE Parents Evening

Many thanks to the parents of S1 students who visited the Library as part of the CfE information evening. The focus of the evening was on literacy, numeracy and health and well-being and was well received by all. The Librarian was available to give advice about suitable authors for students,the importance of reading and expliained the S1 Library and information  information skills.course.

National Poetry Day

Thursday 4th October is National Poetry Day which is held at this time every year to celebrate the richness, variety and fun of poetry. Each year there is a theme and the theme for 2012 is 'Stars'. Visit the Library to view our display or to borrow a poetry book. Click here for starry poems with a Scottish feel. Or visit the official website or the Poetry Society website for more information about National Poetry Day and for lots more poems.

European Day of Languages

Today - 26th September - is European Day of Languages. The Library has many dictionaries and books which you can use to help improve your language skills. Whether it is French, German, Latvian, or even Cantonese or Urdu the Library has a book that can help.

Scottish Children's Book Awards

The short-list has been announced  by the Scottish Book Trust and it is time to start reading!! If you would like to judge this year's books come to the Library for more information. All you have to do is read the 3 books, come to a few meetings to discuss the books and write a review or two or three! Then in February you vote for your favourite and we watch the award ceremony and have one of our own in the Library.

 

For more information about the books go to the Scottish Book Trust

Roald Dahl Day Display

Many thanks to S6 student Rebecca for her wonderful artwork which forms the main part of the display in the Library for Roald Dahl Day. Rebecca's excellent picture depicts 3 of Roald Dahl's best loved characters -  the Twits and Matilda. Thanks also to Charlotte for ably assisting Rebecca.

Roald Dahl Day

Thursday 13th September is Roald Dahl Day. Roald Dahl, one of the world's favourite authors, was born in Llandaff Wales on 13th September 1916. His first book for children - James and the giant peach - was published in Britain in 1967. Roald Dahl died on 23rd November 1990 but 22 years later book lovers the world over remember this amazing author on the anniversary of his birth.

This year Roald Dahl fans are also celebrating the 30th anniversary of the publication of The BFG.

Click on the link for more  information about Roald Dahl and  for information on Roald Dahl Day click here




Celebrate Roald Dahl Day by reading your favourite       Roald Dahl book in the Library!

Edinburgh Book Festival

If any of you were lucky enough to go to an event at the Edinburgh Book Festival why not write a review about it? You might have seen Jacqueline Wilson or Patrick Ness or someone else. Were they as interesting as you thought they would be? Did you buy a book? Did you queue to get the book signed? Have you read that book and if so would you recommend it to other people?

Write or type your review and pass it to the Librarian who will put it up on the Blog. There will be a small reward for every review added to the Blog.

Flipside Magazine

The latest issue of Flipside is available in the Library, you will find it on the Librarian's desk. There is now also an electronic version which can be found here. Or you might prefer to download the new Flipside app for iOS and Android. The new app is called 'Flipside's Top Tens' and contains the "ten weirdest" picture gallery optimised for 'phones and iPods as well as the July issue sample. Just search for it in iTunes or Android Marketplace.

Holiday reading

Although the School Library is closed over the summer holidays remember that the public libraries are open as usual. If you are not already a member of a public library why not join one? You will have access to books and computers and many run special events over the holidays.  To tie in with the London Olympics some public libraries are holding a Reading Relay and highlighting books themed around the Olympics, sport and Greece.

Or, join in the fun at one of the free Summer Big Read events with the Scottish Youth Theatre around Scotland. There are events on 7th July at the Almondvale Cenre in Livingston and on the 14th July at Cameron Toll in Edinburgh.

Whatever the weather a good book (either printed or electronic) can keep you entertained for hours! Why not share your favourite books by writing a review we can put on the Cool Wall when you get back to school.

Have a great summer!

Return your School Library books

Panda says "Please return those Library books".

Before you go away on holiday please remember to return your School Library books. I would like as many books back as possible no matter how long you may have had them out. By returning Library books you make them available for other readers to enjoy, and you won't end up having to pay the cost of replacing the book!

Euro 2012

Just when I thought the football season was over, along comes Euro 2012! So for those of you who cannot get enough football, or need something to do in the breaks between games, the Library has a display of some wonderful football fiction. For a quick read why not try:
The boy with the lightning feet by Sally Gardner - Timmy has amazing athletic ability but lacks confidence until his grandfather, a parrot called Sheriff and an eccentric trainer come to his aid.
If you prefer something with romance as well as football you might like Over the moon by G.G. Eliot. Ella is a member of the football team and is used to being treated as one of the boys. How will Ella react when she gets a makeover to attend a charity ball and suddenly her teammates see her in a different light?
For a football thriller Mal Peet's Exposure is set in South America and looks at the impact the media can have on the lives of people whether famous or not.
For a quick read with a historical emphasis there is Billy the kid by Michael Morpurgo. Billy was picked to play for Chelsea in 1939 but World War II got in the way. Now eighty Billy remembers the tale of his past glory.

Diamond Jubilee

Tuesday 6th of June is official day for celebrating the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II. Visit the Library to see a display of books related to the British monarchy and to join in with some jubilee craft and quiz activities.

Scotland's favourite book

A survey lists Dan Brown's novel 'The Da Vinci code' as the favourite read of Scottish adults. In second place was 'To kill a mocking bird' by Harper Lee and in third place was 'The lion, the witch and the wardrobe' by C.S. Lewis. Like many surveys this is probably not very representative of the population as a whole, given that only 1000 people were questioned.
The survey also noted that Scots read for an average of 171 minutes a day, the national average is 184 minutes. To read the article in The Scotsman click on this link.

      

You've read the books, seen the film...

...soon you might even be able to buy the doll! A Barbie version of Katniss from The Hunger Games is soon to be released bt Mattel. Whatever next???

US Barbie collector site

Student Review

The 39 Clues series - various authors
The 39 clues is a sensitively written series about two orphans (Amy and Dan Cahill) who embark on an adventure to find the 39 clues and become the most powerful in the world. There are many obstacles along the way and the four branches will stop at nothing to win.  Along the way the orphans discover some of the most famous people in history were Cahills. They come close to finding the truth about their parents and what branch they belong to.

 This series is written by different authors but continues along the same lines. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves action-packed mystery books. There are 11 books in the series, each with an exciting new plot. The cover might be a bit misleading and some wouldn't get a second glance, but it really does prove the point - don't judge a book by its cover.  By NL

Student review

Carbon Diaries 2015 by Saci Lloyd.

The carbon diaries by Saci Lloyd is an exciting work of fiction about people who have been given a carbon card which has a bar down the side and it starts at green but when you get down to red all your electricity goes off and you are left sobbing in the dark!
I think it is a good story because you do not know what is going to happen next and it is an intruiging idea about saving the planet.   by C.C.

Book review

I have recently finished reading The red necklace by Sally Gardner. As you know I am a bit of a fan of historical fiction, however I avoided reading this one because it is set at the time of the French Revolution (1789) a period of history I was put off by a truly dreadful lecturer at university. However the tag line -"Murder, magic, secrets- and the blade of the guillotine is still to fall" - intruiged me and I had to read it and I really enjoyed it. My only reservation is the use of magic in the book as it is so unlikely that such things could be achieved and this detracts a little from the story. Otherwise it is a really good adventure story and gives an insight into the period of the French Revolution.

The hero is Yann a boy with magical talents and an uncertain background. When he and his co-magicians are tricked into giving a performance by the evil Count Kalliovski everything changes. Yann  has to escape to England but is then persuaded to return to France in spite of the danger, to rescue Sido the unloved daughter of  a member of the nobility. Can Yann rescue Sido from the guillotine, find out about the powers of the red necklace and discover the truth about his upbringing?

Study Leave

It is not long now until S4 go off on Study Leave. May I wish you all the very best of luck with all your exams and for the future.
But, before you go:

PLEEAASE remember to return all Library books!

Return any School Library books that you may have in your locker, under your bed, in your wardrobe... anywhere. It does not matter how long you have had them out, I would just like them returned to the Library as you BORROWED them, they are not yours to keep.

Revsion time is here!

Watch out for links being added to the blog to guide you to useful revision sites and materials. First of all your attention is drawn to the new BBC Bitesize Message Boards for students studying for Standard Grades and Highers. As well as the games, videos and tests for the range of Bitesize subjects, you can now post queries or help others with revision online. There are also teachers on standby to offer tips and answer queries. The message boards are moderated and you have to sign in to access them but they are available for posting daily Monday to Sunday from 9am until 9pm.

Bitesize message boards

RMS Titanic

On the 15th April 1912 RMS Titanic sank with the loss of 1517 lives. In 1912 the Titanic was the world's largest and most modern passenger ship and was considered to be unsinkable. She was launched from Belfast's Harland and Wolff shipyard on May 31st 1911.  On April 10th 1912 she set sail from Southampton with some 2223 passengers and crew on board.  There were many wealthy passengers on board as well as hundreds of people leaving their homelands to start a new life in America. At 2.20am on April 15th 1912 the Titanic sank after hitting an iceberg in the North Atlantic.

One century on the loss of this magnificent ship continues to intruige and beguile people. If you are interested in the Titanic come along to the Library to look at the information on display or borrow one of the books about this terrible disaster.

For a new Titanic adventure thriller why not try Titanic 2020:Cannibal City by Colin Bateman. A new, huge unsinkable ship (remind you of anything??) is launched but things go wrong very quickly! The world as we know it is wiped out by a plague but among the survivors are Jimmy and Claire who were on the new Titanic when the plague struck. But althouth the Titanic is fabulous - everyone wants to steal it! Can Jimmy and Claire survive and can they save the new Titanic?

Livingston - 50th celebrations

Was lucky enough to attend the Livingston's 50th Community Awards event at the Civic Centre on Friday 13th April. I was there primarily to see my father receive an award for his contribution to Livingston since he moved here in 1969. However I was delighted to see some familiar faces amongst the Schools bands who entertained the audience so wonderfully after the award ceremony. Well done to you all for so many memorable performances.

If you would like to know more about the history of Livingston then come to the Library where you will find a selection of books about Livingston in the Scotland section of the non-fiction books.

For more information on all the forthcoming events to celebrate 50 years of Livingston go to West Lothian Council's website:
http://www.westlothian.gov.uk/Community-life-and-leisure/Livingston50/communityevents

Author Visit

Students from S2 and S3 were lucky enough to be chosen to attend the talk by author Saci Lloyd who is visiting schools as part of the Scottish Book Trust's Scottish Friendly Children's Book Tour. Saci (pronounced Satchi) is author of three books for teenagers. The books are: The carbon diaries 2015, The carbon diaries 2017 and Momentum. Saci entertained us with readings from her book Momentum and got students to help her create a thriller based on various images that she showed. There was then a question and answer session and the students had lots and lots of really interesting questions to ask. Saci answered them all comprehensively and then signed books and posters and posed for photos. All-in-all an extremely interesting, informative and entertaining visit. Many thanks to all who were involved.

Saci reading from her latest book Momentum

Saci Lloyd

One of many Library displays

For more information visit the Scottish Book Trust website: www.scottishbooktrust.com and
Saci's website: www.sacilloyd.com.

The waiting is over

At long last the 23rd March has arrived and we can all go to the cinema to see 'The hunger games'! If you have already read the book(s) why not write a review for the blog letting everyone know whether or not the film is as good as the book. I REALLY enjoyed the first book but thought that the second and third did not live up to expectations.