Great Outdoor school holiday programme 12-16 July

The second week of the school holidays has dawned crisp and clear. Here's what's on in the libraries for primary-school aged children this week.

Helensville Library
Mon 12 July 10.30am Foliage Friends time!
Wed 14 July 10.30am Can you see what I see?
Fri 16 July 10.30am Sitting under a camp fire…!

Kumeu Library
Thu 15 July 10.30 am Great outdoor stories and fun

Mahurangi East Library
Thu 15 July 10.30am Great outdoor stories and fun

Orewa Library
Tue 13 July 2.30pm Great outdoor stories and fun

Warkworth Library
Thu 15 July 10.30am Sitting around the campfire

Wellsford Library
Thu 15 July 10.30am Camping at the Beach

Whangaparaoa Library
Wed 14 July 2.30 pm Great outdoor stories and fun

NB. Pre-school storytimes may still be on at libraries - check with your librarian.

Not just a dolphin

It might not be Moko, but it probably is. And in the greater scheme of things, he is just a dolphin. But what are we really saying about society if we cannot take the time to mourn the death of any living being. So today's post is about Moko and the other dolphins who fascinate us.

Moko is the latest dolphin to capture the hearts of Kiwis. He has his own Wikipedia entry, his own Facebook page and Twitter account. This is the link to his page from his home in Whakatane. He is male Bottlenose Dolphin who highlighted both the joys of marine animals and the fact that they are still wild animals that need to be treated with respect.

Pelorus Jack was one of the first dolphins to interact with Kiwis. He was a Risso's dolphin from the 1880's and who accompanied ships that travelled between Nelson and Wellington. He was the first dolphin to be protected by law. The Te Ara website has a wonderful story and footage on him as well as other information about dolphins around New Zealand.

In the 1950's Opo the Bottlenose dolphin visited the Hokianga and inspired folklore and song. Once again the Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand website has an Opo page and this link to Flux Media will enable you to play a documentary about her.

To look up dolphins in the Rodney Libraries, you have plenty of choices as you can see from all the subject headings in our catalogue.

Here is a NZ Herald newslink from today for Moko. News of his death has been published as far afield as the UK. Personally I hope his death was from natural causes. May he rest in peace.

Great Outdoors Thursday 8 July

School holiday programme activities on today:
Mahurangi East Library 10.30am Come and discover the outdoors in your library
Warkworth Library 10.30am What animal is that? Tracking and Watching
Wellsford Library 10.30am Bird Watching in the Bush

The Millenium Trilogy

I had a couple of days off last week and have used it to good effect. I finally got my hands on Book 3 of Steig Larsson's Millenium Trilogy "The Girl who kicked the Hornet's Nest" to complete the cliff-hanger from the end of Book 2.

I was not disappointed. The twists and turns of the story continued, although in many ways this was much more psychological drama than action fiction. All the main players were there Blomkvist, Salander and Berger. They are joined by new characters and intrigue as the story lead's up to Lisbeth's trial. I'm not going to say much more, because I run the risk of giving away the story to those of you out there who have not yet discovered this fantastic series.

The end of this book came on page 599 and although it left me satisfied, there was also the strange feeling of unanswered questions and that there should have been more. I am particularly interested in how Lisbeth's sister fits into the picture. So I did some digging.

When Steig Larsson decided to start writing this series, he plotted out 10 books. When he passed away he had the unfinished manuscript for Book 4 on his laptop. Unfortunately a battle has erupted between his life partner and his family and this is affecting the possible completion and publication of any further adventures for Lisbeth and Mikhail in the near future.

On another note, the movie of the second book is being released in theatres later this month. If you would like to get a sneak preview the Village Bookshop at Matakana is hosting a charity event on Sunday 18th July of The Girl who Played with Fire to support Adults in Motion. If you are interested contact the Bookshop on 09 4230315.

Great Outdoors Wednesday 7 July

School holiday programme activities on today

Helensville Library 10.30am Let’s go fly a (mini) kite!
Whangaparaoa Library 2.30 pm Great outdoor stories and fun