Hey Kids!
Don't forget to join me and Sleepy Bear at 2:00PM today (Michigan time) for our very first book discussion! It'll be afternoon for us, but 11:00AM for Sleepy Bear! I'm super excited for you all to join me! See you then!
Bear Hugs!
Thorndyke

Little Black Crow follows a young boy as he watches a bird fly through skies that alternate from stormy to sunny, cold to warm. He wonders, "Little black crow, where do you go?" This question is followed by other questions about family, friends, love, and fear. Will Boy and Crow be friends? Check it out to find out. You can always check out some other bird adventures too!

Here are some new and popular music CDs for the kid in all of us:

The best of the Laurie Berkner Band

Tangled by Alan Menken

Yo Gabba Gabba! Music is — awesome. Volume 2

Here comes science by They Might Be Giants

Family time by Ziggy Marley

Rockabye baby!: lullaby renditions of Journey by Dennis Caplinger

Hey kids! And Sleepy Bear!
Well, the book discussion is a go! Make sure you come to the library on Wednesday, February 23rd at 2:00PM to talk books with me and Sleepy Bear. It's going to be so fun!
Thanks, Sleepy Bear, for the reminder that you live in a different time zone than we do. I forget that sometimes! We get sunlight and new days before you do, but you get the weather first. Funny how that works. It has been so warm in Michigan the last couple days that we do not have any snow left. But from your blog it sounds like we will be getting some soon!
There are so many kids to watch in the library, that I don't usually get time to read until everyone goes home. But when I do get time to read, I like to to the fish in our fish tank. I don't know if they listen though. What do you like to read? I like books about bears. One of my favorites is Big Smelly Bear by Britta Teckentrup. Have you read it? I hope it's not about me! I'm big but I hope I'm not smelly!
Talk to you Wednesday for our book discussion!
Bear Hugs!
Thorndyke

Hey Kids! If you've been following Thorndyke's Thoughts you know that he recently made a new friend! Thorndyke and his new friend Sleepy Bear are reading a book together and they want you to join them. Children in first and second grade are invited to join us at 2:00PM on Wednesday, February 23^rd. We'll read Scaredy Squirrel Makes a Friend and have some activities based on that book. Then we'll discuss the story online with Sleepy Bear and his friend Miss Kathleen. Come join us! Registration is not required.

Hey Kids!
Sleepy Bear wrote back! Woo Hoo!
Sleepy Bear — We have had lots of snow here, but it's been kinda warm lately and it's melting. I even saw a robin this week! But I don't think it will be spring here yet. After all, we still have to have Winter Break! What's the weather like by your house?
And speaking of Winter Break, you said you wanted to read a book with us, and guess what? I'm having my very first Book Discussion here at the library that week. Miss Ruth is going to help me here at the library. Now, I don't have much experience hosting a book club, and, I don't talk, so I was hoping you would be a part of my book discussion too! We're going to read Scaredy Squirrel Makes a Friend. I think this would be the perfect book for two bears who a new friends to read. Can't wait to hear what you think!
Well kids, you've heard it from me! If you come to my book discussion during Winter Break, you might just get two bears for the price of one! Oh boy. Am I excited. Can't wait to see you there!
Bear Hugs!
Thorndyke

Celebrate the Year of the Rabbit with crafts, songs, dancing and food. Join us at the library for a fun celebration beginning at 5:00PM with crafts for the kids followed by snacks and entertainment; at 7:00PM for everyone. This should be a great Chinese New Year for everyone. No registration is needed for this February 17^th event.

Last fall we asked for your opinion on a new library card design and got a great response. In total, 880 votes were cast and many of you included comments. Here are the results:

• 252 thought that the patron should be able to pick a color from our 3 options
• 223 favored the blue card
• 217 liked the orange card
• 148 preferred the turquoise card
• 40 wanted to keep the old card design

Many expressed concern about incurring extra costs to have new cards made. Our supply of cards was already running low (we issue about 6,000 new cards each year), so we needed to order cards regardless of the design. We gathered estimates from several card printers and were able to print the new design without incurring set up charges for the additional colors. Other than a small design fee to include our new logo, which was budgeted, it did not cost anything extra to offer a choice of cards.

We have a limited number of the previous design still available. There is a $1 charge to switch to the new card or replace a lost card if you choose the new design. Remember, your barcode number will change! There is not a charge for a new patron to get a card.

The March/April issue of Connections is available online now as a pdf document.
You may subscribe to an RSS feed of library communications by pasting http://www.cantonpl.org/forpress/rss.xml
into your feed reader.

Hey Kids!
Thorndyke here. I found out there's another Blogging Bear, named Sleepy Bear way across the country in the Seattle, Washington area. You can see his blog right here! Now, I haven't met many other bears that blog, so I'm curious and want to be friends. Washington state is really far away. Do you know anything about it? Maybe Sleepy Bear will tell us all about it.
Maybe we can be Cyber Pen Pals! Do you know what pen pals are? Back before there was the internet or email people used to write letters, put stamps on them and put them in the mail to send to people! And then the other person would write back! It took a lot longer than email, but was sure a lot of fun!
So Sleepy Bear, if you're reading this, write back and let's be friends!
What do you think, kids? Will we hear from Sleepy Bear? I sure hope so! Until next time,
Bear Hugs!
Thorndyke.

In this second episode of CPL online storytimes, Miss Kristen and Miss Ruth tell stories and sing songs all about pigs.

If you love the Pigeon books, or have your own Knuffle Bunny, you will enjoy this night of fun with Mo Willems books. Kids ages 5-8 are invited to join in the fun Wednesday, February 23 at 7:00PM. We will read some classic Mo Willems stories and create a "Mo" inspired craft. Registration is now open.

Hey kids! Did you know that you can now find Pinkalicious books in the Readers section of the Children's Department? We've got two new titles in this easy-to-read format. Check them out:

Pink around the rink by Victoria Kann

Pinkalicious: school rules by Victoria Kann

So next time you're looking for Pinkalicious books, remember that they're not only in the Picture Books section, and don't forget to check the Readers section!

When we think of Valentine's Day, we often think of red roses, candy in heart-shaped boxes, mushy valentines, and winged cherubs flying about shooting starry-eyed lovers with arrows.

But did you know that the origin of Valentine's Day, or Saint Valentine's Day, comes from the life and death of a Christian martyr? According to author Martha Zimmerman, the date traditionally celebrated as St. Valentine's Day finds it origin in the Roman festival of romance called Lupercalia, when the gods Juno and Pan were honored. It was a fertility festival or a lover's holiday looking forward to the return of Spring. In the fifth century, in an attempt to abolish the pagan festival, Pope Gelasius changed Lupercalia and its February 15 date to February 14 and called it Saint Valentine's Day. Even though the names and the date were changed, the emphasis continued to be on love.

Miss Kristen and Miss Ruth tell stories and sing songs related to the number 3. Enjoy CPL storytime favorites like the magic box, Miss Ruth's guitar, Miss Kristen telling "The Three Bears," and Miss Ruth saying goodbye to all our friends.

Special thanks to the young patrons of Canton Public Library for clapping, stomping, and playing peekaboo in the video!

Cookie Monster presents Sesame Street Science "Sink or Float." This YouTube video is an interactive science experiment where you can discover why things sink and why they float, all while learning the scientific method. Great for those beginning to experiment with science and those seasoned experimenters. For more information on why things sink or float check out these books.

Guess what! Award season has begun and the newest award winners in books and media for Youth and Teens were announced at the American Library Association Mid-winter Conference yesterday morning. The 2011 winners can be found at the ALA website but some of the highlights include:

• 2011 Newbery Winner — Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool
• 2011 Caldecott Winner — A Sick Day for Amos McGee illustrated by Erin E. Stead
• 2011 Printz Winnter — Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi
• 2011 Odyssey Award for Best Audiobook — The True Meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex
• 2011 Coretta Scott King Award — One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia

Click on the titles to see which ones we have available for checkout. Enjoy!

Do you like to have soup in the winter, when it's really cold? I do, and so does this special little girl in Soup Day. On a cold, snowy day, a young girl and her mother shop to buy ingredients for vegetable soup. At home, they work together — step by step — to prepare the meal. While the soup is cooking, they spend the time playing games and reading. Before long, Daddy's home and the family sits down to enjoy a homemade dinner. Check out some other soup stories that will warm you up on these long, cold days!

Hey! Why aren't you checking us out?? Is it because we are behind the Children's Information Desk? We are put there to greet you when you come into the great Children's Department. Please! Take us home with you and read us. We are awesome! We are new! We are hot-off-the-press! We are the latest and greatest wonder-reads for kids of all ages! Marverlous mysteries, super sports stories, gripping ghost tales, animal adventures, historical happenings, fabulous fantasy, crazy comedies… we are all here. But we want to be there — at your house — with you enjoying us. So stop by and pick us up ASAP!

"Where are the Dora books?" "Where are the Diego books?" These are two questions the Children's Librarians often hear. While we have many Dora and Diego books in the Picture Book section, don't forget that there's another place to find them. That place is the Readers section, where you can find books for both Dora and Diego shelved under J READER DOR. Ask a librarian to show you next time you come to the library!