With the start of the summer, more people are traveling on vacation.  So this is a great time to announce the annual Audies Award Winners!  The winner of Audiobook of the Year goes to Bossypants by Tina Fey.

For a complete list of finalists and winners go to the Audies website, but here are some of the highlights:

• Fiction: Alas, Babylon by Pat Frank
• Nonfiction: The Murder of the Century by Paul Collins
• Fantasy: Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
• Humor: Shatner Rules by William Shatner
• Mystery: Feast Day of Fools by James Lee Burke
• Teens: The Wake of the Lorelei Lee by L.A. Meyer

Celebrate Audiobook Month!  This week’s Top Ten features the 10 most popular Teen Audiobook Fiction titles on CD this month at KDL.  To view these, click on the link to the KDL Top Ten list!

For some, summer means relaxing – a little down time to read a good book and enjoy a little “me” time.  But if you’re a busy parent, you may wonder where all that down time goes.  Between running kids to summer sports, camps and play dates, how can you possibly find time to read a “grown up” book, let alone remember to have your kids read, or sit down and read with them?

Find the answers at KDL!  Audiobooks can remove the hassle of finding time to sit down and read.  Going on a road trip?  Find a great family book from our list of Great Audiobooks for the Whole Family and listen together in the car. For added benefit, check out the book version of the title for your child to read along with the audio version.  These are also great titles to listen to in the morning as everyone gets ready to start another busy day.

Mowing the lawn or working in the garden?  Listen to one of these great audio titles in our Playaway format.  Just add a battery and headphones and your hands are free to handle those everyday tasks, while your head escapes into your favorite novel via the pocket-sized MP3 device. 

And don’t forget to check out our Experience Summer page for more great ways to stay involved with Summer Reading @ KDL while on the move this summer!

The Kentwood branch of Kent District Library opened their KDLville space last November to the delight of many young children and their caregivers.  The space contains a custom-designed airplane by the Burgeon Group which has interactive panels for babies and toddlers.  There is also a much-loved Imagination Station with a new theme every three months. 
 
The rest of the KDLville space is dedicated to  the fostering of Early Literacy in young children.  Kentwood has four themes:  Transportation, ABC, Construction, and Animals.  Every three months a new theme is introduced to the space.  All the toys and activities bought for each theme are carefully chosen to encourage one or more of the Early Literacy Practices (Singing, Playing, Talking, Reading, and Writing).  The large magnet wall is a gathering place for children to engage in side by side creativity with magnets.  The current theme is ABC with an emphasis on letter recognition and fun with words.
 
Since the KDLville space opened last year, Kentwood has experienced an increase in families coming to the library specifically to play in this dedicated space.  Young children have  been creating, singing, using their imagination, and making new friends.  It is such a joy to see the library become a fun and exciting destination for families.

This article originally appeared in our Early Lit Bits eNewsletter. Read the most recent issue online or sign up to receive this monthly update highlighting early literacy tips and resources for parents and caregivers.

Did you use Mango to learn French so you could converse with the locals on your “trip of a lifetime” to France? Or maybe you adopted a child from Korea and learned some key phrases in Korean  to help your daughter adapt to her new life. Perhaps you are a pastor who took a Biblical Hebrew class through Mango to prepare for an upcoming sermon.

No matter the reason, if you’ve tried our Mango Languages database, we want to hear from you!

Share your Mango story by July 31 using this form and you will get to choose a prize from our Mango treasure chest containing T-shirts, water bottles, tote bags and more! We will even send your prize to your local branch for easy pickup.

There’s more! The two people who share the best story (based on the humble opinions of some KDL staff members) will win a SONY eReader! The grand prize winners will be announced the first week in August.

If you’ve never used Mango, now would be a great time to try it out. With more languages offered than ever before, you’re sure to find something to fit your needs.

We look forward to hearing from you!

Dance and sing along to Jeanie B!

Jeanie B! delivers a dance party that gets young and old up on their feet and singing along. Bring your dancing shoes and come prepared to have some fun!

Schedule:
Tuesday, June 26, 10:00 AM – Kentwood branch (Sponsored by the Friends of the Kentwood Library)
Tuesday, June 26, 1:30 PM – Cascade Township branch
Thursday, June 28, 2:00 PM – East Grand Rapids branch (held at East Grand Rapids Middle School, 2425 Lake Dr. SE)
Thursday, June 28, 7:00 PM – Grandville branch (part of the Summer Family Night Series)

Power has been restored to the Kentwood branch, and the doors will be open until 8:00 PM tonight (regular hours). Thank you for your patience!

Due to a power outage, the Kentwood branch is closed until further notice. We will send an update notice if the branch reopens today. For a complete list of other branches, visit http://www.kdl.org/branches. You can also call our Patron Services Department at 616-784-2007.

Now there’s even more Mango to choose from! Our online language learning resource, Mango Languages, just announced that they’ve added even more new languages to their program:

Mango Languages is FREE to all KDL cardholders, and is an easy, effective way to learn to speak a foreign language. Courses are currently available in 45 foreign languages and 15 English as a Second Language (ESL) courses:

Once you’ve signed up for an account through KDL, you can even access Mango Languages on-the-go with free mobile apps for iOS and Android!

Watch the video below to see Mango Languages in action, then start using it today!

Have you ever been to a carnival or fair and marveled at the man or woman who seemed to draw people’s likenesses so well (and so quickly!)? Learn the basics of cartooning and caricature from Corey Ruffin, a nationally-recognized caricaturist. For teens grades 6-12.

Schedule:
Tuesday, June 19, 4:00 PM – Plainfield Township branch
Tuesday, June 26, 2:30 PM – Wyoming branch
Thursday, June 28, 2:00 PM – Kentwood branch
Tuesday, July 10, 1:00 PM – Englehardt branch
Tuesday, July 17, 1:00 PM – Walker branch
Thursday, July 19, 4:00 PM – Spencer Township branch
Tuesday, July 24, 2:00 PM – Gaines Township branch
Wednesday, July 25, 2:00 PM – Byron Township branch
Thursday, July 26, 2:00 PM – Cascade Township branch
Tuesday, July 31, 3:00 PM – East Grand Rapids branch