May 26: Summer Hours begin

Summer Hours begin at the Library on Saturday, May 26; we will close at 1pm.  Have a safe and fun Memorial Day weekend.

The Appleton Memorial Day Parade will begin on Monday, May 28 at 8:58am. The parade route begins on College Avenue at Appleton Street; proceeds east on College to Meade Street; north on Meade to Pacific Street; and east on Pacific to Owaissa Street, ending at the entrance to Riverside Cemetery.

Register for 2012 Summer Reading Programs

Registration has opened for the Adult, Teen, Children's, and Family Summer Reading Programs, all of which are set to begin June 11.  The new Family Reading Program encourages adults to be "reading role models" to children in their household. Join one or more of our fun Summer Reading Programs and get your reading lists out!

Looking for recommendations?  Check out APL's Staff Picks for Adults & Teens and for Children.  Look in InfoSoup's right column where several options are available under Find Books, For Kids & Families, and For Teens.  If your Library Card is handy, you should also take a look at NoveList and NoveList K-8; along with summaries and reviews for titles, they frequently provide Title Read-alikes, Author Read-alikes, and sometimes even Series Read-alikes: lists of similar books or authors that you just might love.

Appleton's Got Talent

What’s your talent? Can you sing like an angel, pull Houdini out of a hat, or juggle like nobody’s business? Then you should audition for Appleton’s Got Talent, a talent showcase of Appleton performers of all ages. Sign yourself up as an individual performer, or register the whole band, troupe, or group for a collective performance.

Register online for an audition or fill out a form (available online and at service desks) and turn it in at the Appleton Public Library. Those picked for the final show will be eligible for a grand prize in their age category. Please review all rules before your audition.

Individuals & groups will be contacted regarding an audition time. If your audition is accepted, you will go on to perform in the Appleton’s Got Talent show at the Appleton Public Library on Saturday June 22 from 10 am -1 pm.

Maurice Sendak (June 10, 1928 – May 8, 2012)

Award winning children’s author and illustrator, Maurice Sendak, whose books are engrained in the psyche of children born from the 1960’s to present, has died at the age of 83.  As a child, Mr. Sendak loved Disney movies and comic books.  He began his career as an illustrator in the 1950’s and continued to illustrate throughout his career.  He became a famous author and illustrator of such books as The Sign on Rosie’s Door (1960), Where the Wild Things Are (1963), Higgelty Pigglety Pop! (1967), In the Night Kitchen (1970), Outside Over There (1981), Bumble-Ardy (2012) and many more.  Sendak has been a dominant and perhaps transformational figure in 20^th century children’s literature, but his works have occasionally been challenged.  Unlike classic children’s literature, his characters are sometimes strong willed and obnoxious.  Sendak’s work often reflected his interest in the dream world and fantasies of children.  His illustrations often had a comic quality to them.