New Magazines for Teens and Children

Recently added titles to the teen collection include:

Justine
While featuring clothes and makeup tips, this is geared beyond celebrity gossip,
to focus on profiles of real teens and young adults who are making a difference in the world. Also, a DIY monthly feature for crafts and activities.
http://www.justinemagazine.com/

Teen Ink
Written by teens for teens.
http://teenink.com

New to the children's collection:
Boy's Quest
for boys ages 6-12.
Focuses on activities, adventure, projects, and humor.

Virginia Festival of the Book

Five Days,
Hundreds of mostly free author events
Wednesday, March 21-Sunday, March 25
Charlottesville, VA
For more information, visit
www.vabook.org

Recommended Reading

Common questions overheard in the library:
Can you recommend a good book?

I just finished the latest book by this author, and I'd like to read more like that

I want to read all the titles in this series in order. How can I find out what the next one is?

The library has several resources to provide "good reads" and answers to those questions.

The first, of course, is the reference staff.
If you have a particular author, and have read everything by them, and are looking for something similar, try asking at the reference desk for new authors to sample.

There are several great website links for mystery, science fiction, romance and reading group guides now listed under "Links" down the right side column of this blog.

Browse the stacks in these (probably unfamiliar to you) Dewey numbers: 011-016, and you will find a wealth of books about books: Reading Resource Guides

Bookmarks Magazine, for everyone who hasn't read everything is published every two months, and is available at the Warrenton branch. It has great articles on authors, what's coming up in the next few months, and explores various genres each issue.

Through the library's website, you can access, with your library card, a great new resource called "What do I Read Next?" This is an online database that you can look at in the wee hours of the night. Click on FindITVA Select Fauquier County Public Library, enter your library card, and then scroll the list for "What do I read next?"

Once you start playing around with it, you can search, naturally for authors, titles, and then also, series, genres, favorite characters, age levels,
both adult and children's authors.
If you like historical fiction, you can search by time period.
If you like certain exotic locales, or just want to read books that take place in Virginia,
you can search by location.
You can enter your favorite authors, and find recommendations for similar titles also.

If this seems a little complicated, just stop by the reference desk, and staff can provide you with an overview on searching strategies. This resource can search for fiction, non-fiction, adult, young adult, and children's literature.

Virginia Wildflower of the Year

The Jamestown (Atamasco) Lily has just been named by the Virginia Native Plant Society as the 2007 Virginia Wildflower of the Year. This was among the early native plants noticed by Jamestown colonists in the Tidewater region.
It is found in southern Virginia, most commonly in the southeastern coastal plain and blooms in April/May.
For more information about this plant and many other native Virginia plants, visit the
Virginia Native Plant Society

Related resources available at the library include:
Virginia Naturalist by John Trott, which was co-published by the Virginia Native Plant Society and the Middleburg Garden Club. It contains essays originally written for John Trott's column in the Fauquier Times-Democrat. He was a naturalist and worked with the Mediera School. The essays cover plants, wildlife and seasonal ruminations.

Spring Wildflowers of the Mid-Atlantic Region is a DVD produced for the Foundation for the Flora of Virginia Project, with Marion Lobstein, John DeMary and Suzanne Lohr. More than 100 common spring wildflowers, shrubs and vines are identified.

Yes, we have Opera

A new series for opera buffs, and those who would like to learn more about opera, is now available on Audio CD.

Black Dog Opera has released 6 classic titles, featuring Beverly Sills, Birgit Nilsson, Renata Scotto and Leontyne Price as leads.

Each opera "set" includes an introductory disc with background information, and synopses of each act and scene, plus biographical information about the lead vocalists.
Currently, the collection includes:
Aida, The Barber of Seville, Carmen, Madama Butterfly, La Traviata, and Il Trovatore.
For more details on the orchestras and performers, see
Black Dog Opera

Opera News Magazine is available at the Warrenton Branch.
For some opera fiction, check out these titles: Opera Novels

To watch opera performances, the library has a substantial collection on VHS.
(sorry, no DVD yet)
Operas on Video

The New Grove Dictionary of Opera is available for reference and research at the Warrenton branch. This four volume work is considered by many to be one of the best resources on Opera in English.

Operamania is a great place to start online.