If you loved the The Hunger Games as much as I did, you may be wondering about the movie. The official Hunger Games movie trailer has been released and you can watch it on the Hunger Games website. The movie will be in theaters beginning March 23rd. Will you be there?

Evelyn Lauder, the longtime breast cancer activist who helped to create the pink ribbon as the symbol of the fight against the disease, died November 12 at the age of 75. Born in Vienna, Austria in 1936, she came to the United States as a young child when her parents fled from the Nazis. The family settled in New York where she met her future husband, Leonard Lauder, whose parents owned a small cosmetics firm. She eventually went to work with at her mother-in-law Estee Lauder's company which today has revenues of nearly $2.5 billion. During her long career Evelyn was instrumental in developing and marketing new products, including Clinique. She was also a leading philanthropist and became very involved in the fight against breast cancer.

Two notable figures from recent American history passed away this week. Andy Rooney, the curmudgeonly commentator on CBS’s 60 Minutes for more than 30 years, died November 4 at the age of 92. Rooney died one month after he had signed off from "60 Minutes" in October after a 33-year run. A statement from CBS News stated that he died of complications following minor surgery. Rooney began his journalism career as a correspondent for the Stars and Stripes newspaper and was awarded a Bronze Star for his work during the Normandy invasion. He joined CBS News in 1949 and joined "60 Minutes" in 1968, first as a producer, then as a commentator ten years later.

Enjoy an extra hour of sleep this weekend as Daylight Savings Time ends and Eastern Standard Time begins 2:00 AM Sunday November 6th. In addition, take time to change those smoke detector batteries and turn on carbon monoxide detectors to protect your family and home.

Come celebrate the Hindu Festival of Lights at Canton Public Library. The Diwali program is scheduled for Wednesday, November 9th at 7:00 PM in our Community Room. Diwali is one of the oldest and most important festivals in India. The name comes from the Indian word "Deepavali" and the literal translation means "an array of lamps". Diwali falls on the new moon night, so celebrants light lamps to ward off the darkness and to symbolize the removal of spiritual darkness and the onset of happiness and prosperity. Every Indian state celebrates the festival in its own way, but most celebrations include making special foods, buying new clothes, bursting fireworks, and lighting lamps and candles.

This free family friendly event will feature Indian music, dancing, rangoli, sampling of Indian food and the art of drawing henna patterns.

It's that time of year when 19 million acres of woods slowly explode in a frenzy of color. It's when an entire state is in its annual blaze of glory. It's when autumn arrives in Michigan. And there's no better place to see the dynamic colors of a trillion trees aflame than along our highways, country roads and coastlines. So let's head out to the forests. And let's prepare to be amazed, on the fall color tours of Pure Michigan.

Look around the area of the Checkout Desk and adult DVD section to see some exciting changes. The Hold Shelf is now located closer to the Checkout Desk, making it easier for staff to assist when necessary. Adult DVDs, both feature and TV series, have also been moved to a new location, giving each of these popular collections room to grow. We've also moved all adult and teen gaming system games to the area by the DVDs. We're thrilled by our new shelving and hope you will be too. If you need a little help with navigating through the new area, stop by one of the service desks where our staff will be happy to lend a hand.

Like the rest of the world, we are mourning the loss of Apple founder Steve Jobs. His vision has transformed our lives, from computers, smart phones, to music and movies. President Obama remarked that "Steve was among the greatest of American innovators — brave enough to think differently, bold enough to believe he could change the world, and talented enough to do it." We are forever indebted to the creativity of Steve Jobs.

As the Canton Public Library continues to deal with a declining budget, patrons are reminded the "magazine express" program has been discontinued.

Former Vice President, best-selling author and Nobel Prize co-recipient Al Gore will be the plenary keynote speaker at the International Joint Commission (IJC) Great Lakes Water Quality Biennial Meeting in Detroit, Michigan at 1:15 pm on October 13, 2011. Vice President Gore will be discussing the climate crisis. Seating is limited, so the public is urged to register. Registration is free.
[Photo courtesy of AP Images]

Thursday, October 6, 4:00-5:30pm
Lecture at Harlan Hatcher Graduate Library, Gallery (use Diag entrance)
913 S. University Ave., Ann Arbor, MI

According to Dan Okrent, "The digital revolution has upended the roles of bookstores, libraries, publishers, and, of course, readers. It’s the biggest change in the world of words since Gutenberg, and may turn out to be just as beneficial—or even more so." Daniel Okrent is best known as the first public editor at the New York Times, but he first spent more than 25 years in magazine and book publishing. He has written several books, including Great Fortune: The Epic of Rockefeller Center, which was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in history. He also attended the University of Michigan and worked on the Michigan Daily.

Public parking is available in the structure at 650 S. Forest, just south of S. University. Free and open to the public

Our Library Board of Trustees will hold the required Public Hearing on Thursday, September 15, at 7:30pm at the library to take public comment on and approve the library's 2012 budget (attached, with a comparison to our approved 2011 budget), levying a millage rate of 1.5437 mills to generate total revenue of $4.9 million. This is a reduction of about $40,000 compared to our 2011 budget, and a total reduction of about $1.9 million compared to our 2008 budget — 2008 was our "high-water" mark as far as revenues; the recession led to declining property values, which leads to reduced property tax collections and a smaller budget for library services.

Eid Al-Fitr is a holiday marking the end of Ramadan, the month of fasting which is one of the greatest religious observances in Islam. This festival is expected to be around August 30, 2011. Eid ul-Fitr is celebrated for one, two or three days. Common greeting during this holiday is ‘Eid Mubārak which means "blessed Eid" in Arabic.

The Canton Response to Hate Crime Coalition is committed to working to secure the right of every person in Canton to be free from hate crimes and bias-motivated incidents. What is a hate crime? Who are its victims? How do we prevent hate crimes? Come hear the answers and get ideas about how to guide your children in a tolerant, non-violent, non-bullying life. Bring your questions and concerns on Thursday, September 8 at 7:00 PM in the Community Room to Officer Dale Waltz of the Canton Public Safety Department and library director Eva Davis, Coalition co-chair. 

Through a generous donation from our Friends, all our Canton Observer back issues are now online. You can browse issue by issue from November 1974 to December 2010, or search across multiple issues. What a great convenience! No more messing with the microfilm! Remember those days when interest rate was at 7.5% and the FDIC only insured up to $40,000? Look no further than in the December 1974 issue to find this bit of nostalgia!

Via the Detroit News:

Philip Levine, a former Detroit autoworker and product of Detroit Public has been named the U.S. Poet Laureate for 2011-12.

Levine, 83, who graduated from Central High School (1946) and Wayne State University (1950), left Detroit in the 1950s to study in Iowa. While he has lived for years in Fresno, Calif., his poetry often has been anchored in the city of his birth and his working-class Jewish roots.

Levine will be the 18th poet laureate and was chosen by the Librarian of Congress, James H. Billington. "His plainspoken lyricism has, for half a century, championed the art of telling 'The Simple Truth' — about working in a Detroit auto factory, as he has, and about the hard work we do to make sense of our lives," said Billington in a statement.

For more than a billion Muslims around the world, including some 8 million in North America, Ramadan is a month of fasting, marked by prayer, fasting and charity. Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. Because the lunar calendar is about 11 days shorter than the solar calendar used elsewhere, Islamic holidays move each year. This year Ramadan began at sundown on August 1st.
On this occasion we send our greetings to all Muslims worldwide and special Ramadan Kareem to Muslims in North America.

Congratulations to our colleagues at the Troy Public Library! After several years of cuts and threatened closures by city council, previous failed millage votes, and a dire economic situation, Troy voters passed a dedicated library millage of .7 mills annually for five years on August 2. This new dedicated millage means that TPL will not close, and will allow them to maintain library services to their community at state-mandated levels. Troy is a great community that deserves a great library. Everyone at Canton Public Library sends our best as the TPL board and staff work over the next several months to rebuild TPL. Congratulations!

Some recent viewpoints regarding society's business customer service ratings make for some interesting reading in the July 2011 issue of Consumer Reports. The article on the Consumer Reports website contains these comments. CR is part of the CPL adult magazine collection and is also available for patron in-library use located at Adult Reference.