The famous Lucille Ball (Python) will be appearing for one week only, June 17-21, on the Adventuremobile. Lucy, as she is known to her friends, has been the star of many a library event over the last 17 years. Her manager, Deb Southerland of the Bookmobile Department, says they have won the hearts of many a snake-lover and skeptic. Lucy feels, as an ambassador for Snake-kind everywhere, it is her duty and pleasure to help dispel negative myths and advocate for these much maligned creatures. Don’t miss the chance to meet this charming and facinating celebrity. Lucy looks forward to your attendance at any of her appearances. Check times and locations.

Puppies wil be the ”Critters” on the Adventuremobile next week, June 10-14.  On loan from the Helping Hands Humane Society a puppy surprise will be wagging our way. Will they be big or small? Will they be boys or girls? What color? Long hair? We don’t know yet but they are sure to pack wiggles and giggles for all. Puppies are available for adoption ask us for details.

Now that summer has finally arrived, it’s time to get started cooking outside. The Library has several books that can help you design your outdoor cooking space.

Creative Homeowner Best Signature Outdoor Kitchens is a showcase of top outdoor kitchens. It contains designs for 60 kitchens equipped with state-of-the-art appliances. Take a look at over 150 colorful photos and floor plans. This book will show any homeowner how to turn their deck, patio, or any outside area into the perfect outdoor kitchen.

Outdoor Kitchens: Ideas for Planning, Designing, and Entertaining by Joseph Provey and Owen Lockwood highlights fully-equipped outdoor kitchens from across the country. Included is information on planning and designing, budgeting, picking appliances, creating food prep areas, and even outdoor dining spaces.

The Home Neighborhood contains these books and also books on designing other outdoor rooms.

Three of the essential elements are stone, the bones of the landscape; water, the life-giving force; and plants the tapestry of the four seasons. Secondary elements include pagodas, stone lanterns, water basins, arbors and bridges. Japanese gardens are asymmetrical and reflect nature in an idealized form.

Strolling pond gardens were intended as recreational sites for the wealthy. They were sometimes created to be reflections of a place once visited, the place of one’s birth, or a famous place in China. Earlier gardens were viewed from boats floating on ponds rather than strolling along paths.

The Japanese tea garden is a place for quiet reflection on the beauty of nature, and living in harmony with one another. The garden consists of a pathway that leads to a Tea House, connecting inner and outer gardens, separated by a simple bamboo gate. The path through the gardens represents a journey that is important to have the proper state of mind for the tea ceremony.

The Natural Garden was created to encourage visitors to rest, relax and reflect on the essence of life. The flow of energy through the garden refreshes and restores everyone who walks there. The deciduous trees lean slightly in the same direction the water is flowing.

Don’t be a Silly Billy! Visit the Adventuremobile to see our Baby Goat!

Did you know?

• Goats were the first animals domesticated by man somewhere are 7,000 -10,000 B.C.E.
• The ancient Egyptian Pharaoh Cephranes was buried with more than 2,000 goats.
• Goats live 8 to 12 years.
• Both male and female goats can have horns and beards.
• Goats much prefer “browse” (leaves of woody plants) to grass. If you are buying a goat to eat grass, you will probably be disappointed as goats will eat all your shrubs before they touch your lawn.

Don’t forget to sign up for Summer Reading and stamp your Critter Club Membership Card.

Visit the AdventureMobile, and stamp your free Critter Club card at any of our stops June 3rd-7th. After you’ve joined the club, come back to the AdventureMobile each week to get your card stamped and see a new animal. After 7 visits you’ll win a fun prize.

Pick up a copy of The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd for the June 25, 2013 7-8:30PM Bean There, Read That book discussion for young professionals at The Classic Bean (21st and Fairlawn).

Set in South Carolina in 1964, The Secret Life of Bees tells the story of Lily Owens, whose life has been shaped around the blurred memory of the afternoon her mother was killed. When Lily’s fierce-hearted black “stand-in mother,” Rosaleen, insults three of the deepest racists in town, Lily decides to spring them both free. They escape to Tiburon, South Carolina–a town that holds the secret to her mother’s past. Taken in by an eccentric trio of black beekeeping sisters, Lily is introduced to their mesmerizing world of bees and honey, and the Black Madonna. This is a remarkable novel about divine female power, a story women will share and pass on to their daughters for years to come. Description from back cover of book.

If you are interested in reading this, you can nab a copy at the previous month’s meeting or at the Reference Desk, first-come, first served.

We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver will be discussed Tuesday July 23, 2013 7-8:30PM at The Classic Bean (21st and Fairlawn). As always, plan to bring cash for drinks and food as young professionals in their 20s/30s gather for this discussion.

If you have questions or you would like to receive email reminders, contact me at eseeger@tscpl.org. Don’t forget to add to the conversation on the Library’s Goodreads page!

Between 1964 and 1973 around 4,000 war dogs and 10,000 handlers were deployed to defend South Vietnam from an invasion from North Vietnam. The success of the war dogs and handlers helped reduce the enemy’s capacity for suprise attacks. This result was the enemy placed a price tag on the heads of the war dog teams.

The German Shepherd was the only breed trained as scout dogs.They led combat patrols and provided an early, silent warning of danger. The German Shepherd was also used as sentry and patrol dogs. They were deployed as the first line of defense guarding American base camps day and night.

The Labrador Retriever was the only breed trained for tracking. Their role was to track the enemy’s scent throughout South Vietnam. Labs were friendly, handled the heat well and had a natural instinct for tracking.

In 1973, the US ceased ground combat operations and withdrew from South Vietnam. Since the dogs were considered military equipment they were no longer needed. Several thousand were either transferred to the South Vietnam Army or euthanized.This decision to leave the war dogs behind after the war remains the saddest chapter in America’s military working dog history. Only about 200 dogs were reassigned to other US military bases.

After the Vietnam War, military policy was changed to allow war dogs to come home. WWII Marine War Dog Platoon Leader/Veterinarian, Dr. William Putney made this adoption law happen with the help of U.S. Congressman, Rosscoe Barlett of Maryland. This policy is known as No Military Working Dog Left Behind.

William Allen White award winning book, Cracker, is based on historical facts during the Vietnam War. Cracker is a German Shepherd trained to sniff out bombs, traps and the enemy. Entire platoons rests on her keen sense of smell. The story is told in part from the viewpoint of Cracker.

“It’s best to schedule it. Implement bedtime stories or some other story time and stick to it,” said Darcy Kraus, language arts consulting teacher at USD 501. “Use downtime to read. For instance, use your time with kids in the car to point out letters and words in the environment.”

Kraus spearheaded the “iRead 20” reading program, which during the school year encourages students to read 20 minutes a day outside the classroom. The library’s reading time tracker is set to 20-minute reading intervals too.

“Research indicates that 20 additional minutes of reading per day correlates with significant gains for all learners. However, any amount of additional time allocated to literacy proves beneficial at all levels,” Kraus said. “iRead 20 is our proactive approach to preparing students for more rigorous Common Core State Standards that will begin being assessed in the 2014-15 school year.”

Reading practice during summer ensures that your child heads back to school maintaining or improving reading skills, according to our multi-year study of summer reading’s effectiveness on test scores. Great reading skills are not only important in school, but also an integral part of everyday life!

Parents, pull out the time tracker in the center spread of this edition of Library News or sign up and start tracking at summerfest.tscpl.org. Library cards are not required. Reading programs are only the tip of the iceberg to grow the next generation of readers. It takes the whole community, and it will be better for the whole community because as studies show better readers are more civically engaged, Kraus said.

With Zinio you get instant online access to complete digital copies of over 200 popular magazines. Zinio is convenient and easy to use, allowing you to access these magazines from any location using your computer, tablet, mobile device, and many ereaders.

All you need is a web browser or the Zinio app to get all these digital magazines right at your fingertips.

In addition there are no due dates or hold lists…access any magazine, any time, and keep it as long as you like.

If that wasn’t enough, some magazines allow you to print articles or share them with friends via email or various social networks.

What Works with Zinio

Zinio works on your PC or Mac, iOS and Android devices including most smart phones, the iPad & iPad Mini, Samsung Galaxy Tab, Google Nexus, Coby Kyrus, Microsoft Surface, and Kindle Fire or HD. The app should also work with the Nook HD or HD+, although there have been issues getting the Nook app to work.However, on the Nook HD or HD+, you can still read magazines by using the built in web browser. Using the web browser isn’t as integrated an experience as the Zinio app, but you can access the service.

The Zinio app unfortunately does not work with dedicated ereaders such as the Nook SImple Touch, Kindle Touch, or older Kindle models.

With Zinio you need either a web browser or the Zinio app.

Using Zinio

Click here to be taken to Zinio and other online resources to feed your appetite for reading.

Zinio is different from our other products in that you will need to create two account logins, one to browse the collection and get content and one to read magazines or deliver them to the Zinio app.

It may seem complex at first, but once you create your accounts and begin subscribing to magazines it becomes easy.

Full instructions and more can be found on the Digital Branch’s under Digital Download Information.

If you have any problems accessing or using Zinio contact the library at 580-4555, stop by a reference desk, or come to a Computer & Gadget Drop In session.

A wonderful offering of Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library is the Monday Farmer’s Market (8:00 to 11:30 a.m. on Mondays, May 13 through Oct. 7, 2013) where you can find herbs, garden fresh veggies and fruits, bread, fresh cut flowers and plants, and more (even programs such how to make your own kale chips on June 10, 2013 10-10:30 a.m.!). Stop by to stock up on such items and then visit the Cooking Neighborhood for recipe ideas!

Below are a few recommended cookbooks to spark inspiration on using your fresh finds:

• True Food : seasonal, sustainable, simple, pure by Andrew Weil and Sam Fox, with Michael Stebner
• Cooking in the Moment : a year of seasonal recipes
  by Andrea Reusing
• Cooking From the Farmers’ Market by Jodi Liano and Tash De Serio
• Eating Local: the cookbook inspired by America’s farmers by Sur La Table with Janet Fletcher
• Clean Food: a seasonal guide to eating close to the source, with more than 200 recipes for a healthy and sustainable you by Terry Walters
• Blue Eggs and Yellow Tomatoes: recipes from a modern kitchen garden by Jeanne Thiel Kelley

What have you been cooking lately? Let me know below and give others great ideas for Summer meals!

photo source