Authors are our rock stars: Sarah J Maas at Central Library

Auckland Libraries recently had the pleasure of working alongside our friends at Allen & Unwin, to bring you what was the rock star author talk and book signing of the year!

More than 100 fans, and their friends and family, descended on the Central City Library to attend Sarah J. Maas’ only New Zealand appearance.  The 100 tickets that allowed fans to listen to the author talk and gain priority access to the book signing went like hot cakes, and for several weeks library staff were answering emails asking if people could be placed on the waiting list if people didn’t collect their tickets in time. Plus, we had people living in Wellington, Whangarei, and Cambridge book tickets! >THAT< was the level of excitement!

On the day, the event opened with a brief author talk, where Sarah had the audience enthralled with her completely relaxed self-admission that she was practically unrecognisable without her makeup, has loved Lord of the Rings since she was a teenager, and she had Legolas adorning her bedroom walls!  After charming everyone with how down-to-earth she was, Sarah then spent the next four hours signing books for her fans, chatting to them one-on-one, and posing for photographs – in other words, she totally set the bar way high for future author talks!

This event was a great example of collaboration between Auckland Libraries and a publisher to provide a (hopefully not) once in a lifetime opportunity to meet an author who has something of a cult following.  Auckland Libraries provided the location and managed the ticketing, while Allen & Unwin organised the arrival of Sarah and provided a complete set of her books as a prize for an online competition asking: what question would you ask Sarah if you could only ask her one question?

Jenna and the team from Time Out Bookstore were there to help fans fill any gaps in their collections, and helped fans buy treebooks - because it is really challenging for an author to sign an ebook.  It was a great afternoon, and Jenna obviously enjoyed interviewing Sarah in front of a very engaged audience – an interview which showed that Sarah is a thoroughly lovely person as well as a talented one!

This was seriously one of the best author talks we've ever held, not only because Sarah spent so much time with each of her fans, but also because of how amazing those fans were.  Two young fans had to leave the signing early, because of a job interview and a work meeting respectively, and they were upset that they were going to miss out on their chance to have their books signed.  A quick chat with the two lovely ladies at the front of the queue and they were able to get their books signed with no fuss, and a very special memory of the day.

After her marathon signing session Sarah was driven off into the night to start her two week vacation in New Zealand, and if you are on Instagram you can follow Sarah and see what an amazing New Zealand fangirl she is!

But don't just take our word for it: read Tearaway eMagazine's great article about Sarah’s visit to the Central City Library too.

Photos courtesy of Dan Liu.

Cool cosplay for Halloween

As Halloween sneaks upon us, it is time to think about what cool costume you are going to wear for that party, that cosplay event or even trick or treating. As in most areas of my life, I'm always looking for ways to incorporate all things geeky, and Halloween costumes are the perfect opportunity!

Will I be a gender-swapped Joker? Or maybe a classic Harley Quinn? I know my boys will always want to be someone from Star Wars (Palpatine is the current favourite). Perhaps you are looking for something to wear to Armageddon, which is also almost upon us. Our library collections are the perfect place to start your search for the ultimate costume or cosplay.

Quite possibly one of the best places to start would be with 1000 incredible costume & cosplay ideas : a showcase of creative characters from anime, manga, video games, movies, comics, and more! by Yaya Han, which is just jam packed full of awesome costume ideas. From Speed Racer to Battle Angel Alita, Captain Jack Sparrow to R2D2 and many many more. This is a wonderful book to get you all inspired, but note that it doesn't have tutorials on how to make the costumes.

However, Geek knits : over 30 projects for fantasy fanatics, science fiction fiends, and knitting nerds by Joan of Dark aka Toni Carr totally has you covered with a vast range of actual knitting patterns designed to help you 'embrace your inner geek'. I really really need someone to make me a George R R Martin Dire Wolf, a Communicator Purse and a pair of Cthulhu Gloves. Anyone? Guess it's time for me to take up knitting!

I was pretty excited to come across Geek mom : projects, tips, and adventures for moms and their 21st-century families by Natania Barron, as it looks to be the perfect Mum Manual for me :). It says that it 'explores the many fun and interesting ways that digital-age parents and kids can get their geek on together'. As well as helping you to come up with some thrifty Halloween costumes, there are also loads of other cool things, such as hobbit feasts, magical role-playing games and home science experiments. I need this book pronto!

The fangirl's guide to the galaxy : a handbook for girl geeks by Sam Maggs is just one of the best books ever! With chapters on how to rock awesome cosplay, write fanfic with feels, defeat Internet trolls, and attend your first con, what more could you want?

Lastly, in The big book of Halloween fun by Susie Johns, there are loads of more traditional costume ideas which could easily be adapted to be geektastic. The Eezy Zombies just scream Walking Dead, the Mucky Medieval Peasant would be totally be at home in Westeros, and any Harry Potter fan will love the Wonderful Wizardly Warlock. My personal favourite is the Truly Terrifying Mummy, which brought back many happy memories of The Mummy and Brendon Fraser *happy sigh*.
Not only does this book have loads of costume ideas, it also covers you for Pumpkin carving and Halloween crafts, fiendish food and drink ideas and even some games for your younger Halloween participants. I can't wait to whip up a batch of skeleton popsicles and wicked witch hats!

Comic Book Month, Baby!

It's my favourite month of the Auckland Libraries year - September! This means...

Comic Book Month!

Every year we in the Libraries host a whole bunch of comic/fandom themed events, and generally go crazy about one of my most favourite formats for reading. At first, September was all about celebrating comics and graphic novels, but slowly, this month has also been expanded to include things like movies, cartoons, zines and other geekery and pop culture.

Already underway, Auckland Libraries has had some awesome events such as LibraryCon, a fantastic Panel of comic artists/cartoonists, and other community library based events (I myself ran a small cartooning workshop in one of my fave libraries, ho ho ho).

Displays are up, people are buzzing, and as always we have our comic book card comp - where you get a stamp for each comic you read, open to all ages (not staff, unfortunately ): before I was staff, I went crazy for this!) to get awesome prizes.

If you've ever read any of my posts, you'll know that I am crazy for comics. I go wild for graphic novels, I fangirl over fanart and cry over cartoons. So you can expect, with the amount of buzz about them this month, that I'll be preparing some awesome graphic novel-related posts soon.

But for now, I'll share with you the place to check if you wanna see if there are any events near you - and remind you (or share for the first time, if you don't already know!) about our cosplay workshops! Although they start at the end of this month, I'm still gonna pop the info here so you can check it out.

And remember to have a gander at our new titles page, where you can see all the new graphics we've gotten our mitts on for adults, as well as teens and kids, so you can pass your geekery on to the next generation (and always take some time to scroll through our non-fiction lists for some hidden gems, like this or this).

If that isn't even for you, also check out the popular culture nextreads eNewsletter. Not just for comics, this newsletter puts the light on some new releases, actor/screen related biographies and general popculture-y awesomeness.

Werewolves, walking trunks and magical dresses!

My 'second' update! The trouble with reading books you don't know about is that you're always going to come across one or two that didn't particularly float your boat. Fortunately, books aren't written to take everyone's fancy, so if a werewolf romance or shenanigans in love (or fantastical tourists) sound like a bit of you, then grab these books for what could be your idea of a good time.

A book by a female author - Bitten by Kelly Armstrong

Elena is your average everyday modern woman - except, she's also a werewolf. The only female werewolf in the world, in fact. After being transformed against her will by her lover, Clay, and finding she didn't fit in well, she left her 'pack' to try her hand at becoming a normal person again, living in cities and working your normal 9-5 job with an even normal-er fiancee. It's been years that her pack has tried to contact her, but now the Alpha is calling her back - the pack family is under siege and someone is murdering humans on their land.

A paranormal romance, this one was the first werewolf romance I've read since Twilight (if you could call it one). While not a huge fan of Elena herself, I could definitely see how Armstrong became the immensely popular author she is today if this was her first in what is now a HUGE series.

A book by an author you love that you haven't read - The Colour of Magic by Terry Pratchett

I'm a fan of the hugely popular Discworld series, but I came in late to the books - starting with Going Postal. I had read a few of the older ones, but never bothered to read the first, as I'd already seen the movie. However, when this category came up, I thought I might as well. An earlier work and you can tell, it was still interesting to read of the 'beginning' of the Disc.

Rincewind is by far the most useless wizard in Ankh-Morpork. He only knows one spell, and even then he's never used it. When Ankh-Morpork's first ever tourist Twoflower turns up, with a sentient trunk and bundles of gold, it's Rincewind who gets stuck with him as a tour guide. All his life, Rincewind has tried to avoid trouble - but all Twoflower seems to want is trouble. Seeing dragons, meeting barbarians and getting in pub fights is all on his to-do list, and Rincewind is unfortunately dragged along.

A book with a love triangle - The Dress Shop of Dreams by Menna van Praag

Cora is a scientist, with no time for love, or feelings of any heartfelt manner. Walter is the young man with a heartbreaking voice at the bookstore, who is hopelessly in love with her. And Etta is Cora's troublemaker of a grandmother, who sells dresses that are magic. Everyone is nursing a broken heart, and only Etta takes any steps to fix them. Not hers, of course, but definitely Cora's. When Etta's magic goes awry, nothing goes to plan as Walter finds 'love' elsewhere and Cora gets entangled in a strange crime regarding her parents death.

Van Pragg is a unique storyteller. Every chapter follows a different characters perspective and gives insight to how everyone reacts to Etta's well intentioned magic. The different perspectives did get me a bit confused at times, but it was a magical read with lots of twists and turns.

The goodness of Gaiman

Neil Gaiman is something of a treasure to libraries, and not just because of the incredible books he writes. He is a strong advocate for fiction and reading which is very evident in his recent lecture 'Why our future depends on libraries, reading and daydreaming' 
It is no wonder with quotes like "Google can bring you back 100,000 answers. A librarian can bring you back the right one" that Mr Gaiman is beloved by librarians the world over :)  

The following are my top 5 Neil Gaiman recommendations. This was a pretty difficult list to narrow down, but these are my personal favourites - I'd love to hear which are yours!

Number 5
I'm going to cheat a little and link both The Sandman comic series and the various Death comic mini-series together, as they are after all connected. The Sandman comics were amongst the first I read when I was getting back into the whole comic scene in the mid 90's, and it is easy to see why they are considered classics in the genre.
The series centres around Morpheus, also known as Dream from The Endless, and he and his siblings Death, Destiny, Destruction, Desire, Delirum and Despair take us on a series of unbelievable exploits. The series has a very mythological feel to it, as do many of Mr Gaiman's works. I'll always have a soft spot for Death, who is always so much fun to cosplay, and the deluxe edition of her tales are well worth checking out.

Number 4
Mr Gaiman is a very diverse author and writes for ALL ages. He has many titles for kids under his belt, from the super cute Chu series of picture books to the rather spooky Coraline (I still look at buttons and shudder). But my favourite of these is the wonderful Fortunately, the milk.
Mum is away and Dad is in charge, and he's forgotten the milk for breakfast! Luckily he has some rather marvellous adventures getting it. Such a fun story to share with the littles (or not so littlies) in your life.

Number 3
From the very creepy beginning of The graveyard book where a small toddler manages to survive his entire family being murdered by a mysterious assassin, I was hooked. Bod (Nobody) Owens ends up being raised by the spooks at the nearby graveyard, a crazy assortment of characters. This was one book that stayed with me long after I finished it, in the very best way possible. I'm not sure how you can be creepy but heart-warming at the same time, but this book somehow manages it.

Number 2
Unbeknownst to me, I already owned a Neil Gaiman book long before I was even a fan. Another of my all time favourite authors is Terry Pratchett, and I own many of his books, including Good Omens: the nice and accurate prophecies of Agnes Nutter, a witch, which a little later down the track I realised was a collaboration with that same comic guy I really liked :)
In this fantasy comedy about the impending end of the world, Aziraphale the angel, and Crowley the demon are on a mission to find the (rather nice) 11 year old Antichrist and avert Armageddon.

And in my top spot - Number 1
Stardust is probably the only book I own in any format I can get it. I have the exact hard copy as pictured above. I have the stunning 4 part graphic novel set, beautifully illustrated by Charles Vess. I have the DVD of the movie adaptation (the book is better, lets face it, it usually is - but the movie is pretty lovely). To me this has the same magical timeless quality of The Princess Bride.
Tristran Thorn sees a falling star, and sets out to retrieve it in order to win the heart of his supposed one true love. He is not the only one questing to retrieve the star, and a fantastical adventure ensues. This book makes it not only on my top five Gaiman list, but also on my overall top five book list!

So those are my personal favourites, and I have missed so many wonderful titles I also loved off this list - the novels American gods (hopefully soon to be a TV series) The ocean at the end of the lane and Neverwhere, the stunningly beautiful The sleeper and the spindle (he retells the classics like no one else), his recent short story collection Trigger warning: short fictions and disturbances....I could seriously go on! Thanks Mr Gaiman for letting us share in your daydreams, they are indeed a magical (and sometimes very spooky) place :)

A book with a one word title - Midnight by Erin Hunter

If I was smarter, I would've made this one 'A book with non-human characters', but I didn't think far enough ahead and have already crossed that one of the list. Anyway!

Midnight is the first book in the second part (The New Prophecy) of the Warriors series, by Erin Hunter - a popular Junior fiction author. A friend got me into this series in the later years of high school and I can't recommend it enough.

First, let me warn you - it's about cats. The main character is a cat, who lives, fights, eats with other cats. If reading from a feline point of view will bother you (or your children, or niece etc) then maybe put this one back down. It's also quite a large series. In the first 'part' (Into The Wild), you meet Rusty who leaves life as a pet and becomes Firepaw, a wild warrior adopted by a forest Clan leader who fights to be accepted in his new home.

Fast forward to the next series - Firepaw (now Firestar) is the Thunderclan leader, and one of his warriors, the new main protagonist Brambleclaw, receives a message from 'Starclan' (basically, their ancestors) that he and three other cats from the different clans must join together and travel out of their homes to save all of the clans from destruction. Tagging along with him is Firestar's young daughter, Squirrelpaw - though not by any choice of his.

It seems pretty straightforward, right?

The reason the Warriors series is so appealing (to me, at least) is the honesty and perhaps brutality of it. My friend calls it the anyone-can-die rule; much like Game of Thrones, where your favourite character could die any moment.
The cats fight, get injured, lose friends and family members - all in the name of their clan. For example, in the very first book in the first part of Warriors, one of who I thought was going to be a main character, dies. I don't mean to spoil too much, but they do - and it's not glossed over or forgotten, either. The character is mentioned various times as they reflect on it's life and what they had done while they were alive.
The cats have disabilities, they have illnesses that affect them continuously. They fight adversity, overcome differences, and teach you that no matter what you look like, or where you come from, you can live bravely and soldier on - and others will accept you. Gosh - one of the noblest cats suffers from PTSD and depression - she loses her kits even, and still she is one of the most powerful characters in the book. All the while making sure this series stays kid-friendly and never focussing on the losses - only overcoming them.

These aren't cats that are side-characters, that you hear about once and then never again. And I feel like that's an important part of what we have to deal with as adults, or teenagers - as the grandchild of a war veteran, the mother of a paraplegic, as the lover of someone you 'shouldn't be loving - and to see it portrayed so well in a junior book about cats is something fantastic.

Warriors deals with all these things in a much more gentle, sensitive and hopeful way that ten-year olds can deal with and think about. It makes it real - 'these things exist' - but also shows how the cats handle life, how they move on or get past obstacles and I don't know, continue living.

Maybe this is just me - maybe I love these books a little too much. I plan to write the other reviews or comments about the books from the challenge much quicker and together (this one is getting long), but I felt Warriors needed it's own post because I just seriously love these books. These are brave books for brave children (and parents) and I could never recommend this series enough.

If you want to try it out for yourself, check out Into The Wild and Fire and Ice - the first two in the series of Warriors. They've even had revamped covers which I particularly like.

A List of Lists: Reading Challenges

I am a huge fan of reading challenges. Oh, who am I kidding. I'm a huge fan of challenges in general - especially when I come across them in list form. If there's a list of things that need to be ticked off, then by golly I will try to do that.

Working in the library means that yes, I have access to and often read a lot of books. Why not make a list of them, or read particular ones? Why not try to expand my reading repertoire?

Thus began my main reading challenge - a family wide one (we're very bookish) with a whole bunch of relatives all seeking to mark off a list to see who can finish it first. ("It's not a competition though!")

And, because I like to make life hard for myself, I also set my own personal challenges - another 3 in fact -

Dana's Reading Challenge List

1. The family 'Reading Challenge' - 52 Books in Different Categories
2. Adult Fiction - 26 books, one for each letter of the alphabet
3. Young Adult Fiction - 26 books, one for each letter of the alphabet
4. Children's Fiction - again, 26 books, one for each letter of the alphabet

Why, Dana? Why do you do this to yourself? Especially the books in alphabetical order, and in YA and Children's? Well, I'll tell you why - in another list!

• Forcing myself to go by letters means I'll probably pick up books I wouldn't think of, just because the letter won't have anything I normally read;

• This situation - "This looks like such a lovely book... BUT it's children/YA fiction." should happen less. Why not judge a book by its cover and read it for that instead of whats on the inside (or who it's 'meant' for)?

• Being a young(er) library assistant means that when kids or teens need a recommendation, co-workers often send them to me for help.
  Having a limited knowledge of children/teen fiction means that I've steered too many kids towards 'popular' series - The Hunger Games, Geronimo Stilton, anything by Robert Muchamore for someone after 'action-y books'. While the books are popular for a reason, I'd like being able to cater to a kids preferences better. If they've read The Hunger Games, Divergent series, The Maze Runner - what can they read next? What else is there? You know, I don't know... But I'm hoping reading 52 books that aren't adult will help me find out.

• Also, I like lists. Did I mention I like making lists, and crossing things off of lists? 

So I figure, since I've made so much work for myself already, I might as well make a little more and share my reviews with you as well every so often (as I share them on my family 'Reading Challenge Page' on facebook anyway).

But not today. Today I'll just share the original Reading Challenge with you. Let me know if you have any challenges of your own going on! Or, if you have any recommendations (for example, I'm not a fan of classics, so if you have a favourite then let me know, because choosing it myself would just be 'whatever-classic-is-the-shortest') for either the categories OR the alphabet ones I'm doing. I've already started, and have crossed some off, but don't let that stop you from giving me your opinions!

Or anything else to do with lists, or goals you have in mind to complete by the end of the year. Because, as I said - I love lists (and I can't be the only one).

That New Book Smell

Ahh, that moment when the book you've finally been waiting for comes in. It's brand spanking new and shiny and perfectly covered. The pages aren't marked and it still smells​ of new book. And then sometimes, you get the book you'd long forgotten you'd even wanted. It's a favorite authors book and you've been waiting in line for it for months.The hold you put on, oh, what, late last year? It's finally come in! You pick it up and you think about it for a second - a memory niggles the back of your brain, and then BAM! It's exactly what you needed. Past you knows you so well. You hold it in your hands and you know that the instant you get home, you'll be unreachable to all others until you've at least finished the first 100 pages. That's the perfect moment and definitely one of my favorite things as a book-lover. 

You take that baby home, devour it in one, two sittings, and then afterwards you feel a mixture of excitement, contentment and sadness at the face that it's over so quickly. But it's okay! You're rejuvenated, you're ready for the next one. Hop on our webpage and put more holds on the latest additions, and hopefully beat the rush and get first in line.

If you're like me and you love to take out new books, check out our New Titles tab on the Auckland Libraries website. It has all the books the library has just bought this month (as well as a couple of previous months if you want to look back), plus the links to every one of them on the catalogue. (If you're not sure if we're going to get a book you're looking forward too, you can always suggest it for purchase, too).

Some of my favourite 'new' books that have just come in were these treasures -

Displacement - Lucy Knisley
A travelogue from one of my favourite authors and comic artists, Lucy takes us with her on a cruise... for the elderly. She volunteers to go with her grandparents when her family gets worried, and ends up being run around mad while trying to come to grips with mortality and the hard work of watching the ones you love get older.

First Frost - Sarah Addison Allen
My absolute favourite author. This is the second book in the Waverly Sister series (the first being Garden Spells), but is entirely fantastic as a stand-alone novel as well. The Waverly women are known for their powerful but obscure family magic. Claire starts to doubt her cooking magic which she has always been so sure of, while Sydney (hair magic) tries to understand her teenage daughter, Bay, the way most mothers do. Lovesick Bay knows where things belong - but doesn't know what to do when the person she belongs with doesn't think the same. A lovely, endearing story all aglow with magical realism.

In Real Life - Cory Doctorow, Jen Wang
A simple but thoughtful fiction graphic novel that looks at the way poverty and gaming come together in the form of gold farming - the act of collecting valuable items in-game to sell in real life to wealthier players. Anda, new player to the MMO taking the world by storm, starts out by taking out these gold farmers - until one of them stops to talk to her and an unlikely friendship begins.

And some I've just put on hold now, from browsing through the New Titles list (again)!

Cut, fold & hold : unique cardboard projects for the home - Petra Schroder & Dirk von Manteuffel
I love love love looking at craft books. I don't often make the things in them, but they inspire me nonetheless - especially ones to do with papercraft. 

"This book is filled with detailed photographic instructions on how to create amazing items from cardboard. Everything needed to complete the projects is outlines in the first chapter, and a vast majority are typical household items many people already have lying around."

Sound of a Woman - Kiesza

Yep, even the recent CDs that the library has bought are available to see on the New Titles page. I am a huge fan of what little I've heard of Kiesza and am totally stoked to hear what's on her album past the singles released on the radio. Check out her music and the rest of what we've recently got!

It's always interesting to just scroll through our catalogue and see what has popped up. And now that March has officially started, it's time for me to get requesting... Just joking, I already did on the very first of the month.

Today's the Day... New Wellsford Library is Open for Business

After months of planning, building and organising the new Wellsford Library building is finally opened for business. 

And it's a wait that's been well worth it as the new library building is just wonderful.  Light and bright and airy with plenty of space and energy efficient too with 115 solar panels making it the first solar-powered library in New Zealand.

It's certainly a far cry from the cupboard in the town hall that acted as the Wellsford Library back in 1946..

Yep you read correctly - a cupboard.

To say that the new building is a massive improvement from that very first library is... well an understatement.  It's a great testament to all the people who have been involved.

Not only is the new library building a vast improvement but the collection that fills it is sure to please the local patrons.

More than 2000 new items have been added, ranging from books to CDS to DVDs and magazines. 

There is something for everyone.

So if you live in the area or just passing through why not pop into the new library and check it out.

Why Auckland Libraries is mostly off Twitter today

"What you hear
What you see
Ain't always what's it's s'posed, to be..."
- Misty Frequencies by Che Fu


The day is a little bit crazy, and certainly nothing is as it's supposed to be right now.

In light of the explosions that took place during the Boston Marathon, our Auckland Libraries tweetstream will keep the channel clear for today. We will, of course, respond to queries and feedback as needed.

I feel that it is not the time to be all about us. It is not the time to tell people what events they should come and see, what books to read, what blog posts we've written lately, or which community libraries to visit. Even less is it the appropriate time to be my usual fangirl squeeing self about all things geeky. At a time when people are needing updates, and to contact family and friends, and to make sense of the day's events, I feel like anything we have to say today on Twitter would only get in the way of that.

Take care of each other, people.

Boston, you are in my thoughts.
 - tosca

Happy Birthday Mr Dickens

February 7th is Charles Dickens birthday... or it would have been if he was still alive. And if he was it would have been a rather large celebration as he celebrated his bicentennary - that's 200 years and still going strong.

Today Charles Dickens (7 February 1812 - 9 June 1870) is still one of the best-loved authors in English Literature. Even Keith Richards is a fan and many people refer to him as the Greatest Novelist of English Literature. The Dictionary of British Literary Characters lists nearly a thousand characters created by him (the exact number is 989). Auckland Libraries can help your explore his world both in print, audio and through the adaptations of his books into films and TV. There are books by him and books about him... over 1,000 of them when I do a search of our catalogue (click this link to see the search results to start your search or narrow it down using the options on the right hand side). Whether you are a child or adult, you can enter Dickensian England and France.

Auckland Libraries are celebrating his birthday with a special event in the Whare Wananga on Level 2 of the Central City Library. Join us between 5.30 and 7.00 pm as we toast the great man (courtesy of Glengarry). Nicholas Reid (reviewer, academic, author, film critic) will propose the toast and will suggest why Dickens has his critics and why he has outlasted them. He will be ably assisted by fellow Dickens fans Iain Sharp and Karen Craig. Be enlightened! Be entertained! Pit your wits against our Dickens quiz!

Public holiday hours

Don't forget Auckland Libraries will be taking a break on Mondays for the next couple of weeks, when 54 of our 55 libraries close on Monday 30 January 2012 to celebrate Auckland Anniversary Day (with normal opening hours resuming on Tuesday 31 January) and then again on Monday 6 February for Waitangi Day, with usual opening hours back in operation from Tuesday 7 February.

The only exception is Botany Library which will remain open on both public holidays, from 10am - 5.30pm.

Don't forget to stop by your local library for some long weekend reading, music, viewing or those audio books (children's and adults) if you are planning a long car journey! And hopefully summer is here to stay so it will be a fantastic one for everyone. Don't forget the sun screen and drive safe everyone.

All things New

I was having a wander around the Auckland Libraries website on Monday and found something NEW. That's brand new, fresh and extra helpful.

There is a new addition to the New and Recommended option on our top toolbar. Click on "New Titles" and a whole new world of the most recent additions to the library collection opens up before you.

Browse our new titles lists which includes books, CDs, DVDs, audiobooks, downloadable books and more. It is updated monthly, which should give you enough time to read the ones you ordered last month. There is also an option to print out some of the lists (perhaps your school library could do this for you).

We also offer a number of RSS feeds for new titles.
RSS for all new titles: Please see a daily feed of the latest Auckland Libraries titles to hit the library catalogue.
RSS for new titles by category: Please see an alternative selection of new titles lists updated daily, weekly, monthly or bi-monthly. Each comes with an RSS feed.
(Note: Although these lists are on the former Auckland City Libraries website, they contain titles from across the Auckland region.)

So far I have ordered two fiction, two graphic novels and one music CD. It is a wonderfully dangerous addition to our website. Check it out today.

Auckland Libraries add to the Trophy Case

Auckland Libraries wins diversity award
29/08/2011 - LIbrary Press release

Auckland Libraries has been recognised for an outstanding contribution to the NZ Diversity Action programme by the Human Rights Commission.
The award recognises the services and programmes Auckland Libraries offers that celebrate the region’s diverse ethnic community.
The commission recently announced the winners of 2011 New Zealand Diversity Awards at the conclusion of its Human Diversity Forum in Hamilton.
The forum brings together community groups, government and business organisations to share experience and work related to race relations and diversity.
The commission recognised the libraries as being inclusive and responsive to the needs of residents, diverse ethnic and community groups and organisations.
“We are delighted to have been recognised, especially for our dedicated multicultural services team that works hard to ensure we offer services and information that cater for all Aucklanders,” says Abigael Vogt, multicultural service development team leader, Auckland Libraries.
Examples of library programmes offered are Samoan storytimes, computer classes in Mandarin, read-aloud sessions for migrants and book groups. Events such as Chinese New Year, Diwali, Samoan and Maori Language weeks, World Refugee Day, Matariki, Waitangi Day and Pasifika are highlights of Auckland Libraries’ events calendar.
Auckland Libraries is a network of 54 libraries in locations from Wellsford to Pukekohe and four mobile libraries. It also works with 14 rural volunteer libraries across the region.

Welcome to Auckland Libraries

Inspiring, engaging and informing you

Here is a message from Allison Dobbie, the Manager of the new Auckland Libraries which we are part of.

Kia ora and welcome to all the libraries of the new Auckland Council. I'm really excited to share the resources and opportunities that libraries bring to you...

The original Auckland City Library opening in 1880, thanks to Sir George Grey who had the foresight to gift his diverse book collection to the people of Auckland. Some 130 years later, there are now 55 libraries across Auckland. using your existing library card, you can have free access to any and all of them.

Libraries have changed enormously in recent years. They offer so much more than books - you can also check out dvds, audio books, materials in many different languages, music. They are a fantastic resource and play an important part in your communities by providing opportunities for you and your whole family to learn, to research, to attend story times and events, to browse, to study, to access the internet, to have a coffee, and to find a good book to relax with. Many library resources are available through our website so do check that out as well.

Libraries are great places to spend time - our buildings range from heritage landmarks to modern award winning spaces. Now you can use the libraries that suit you best as you go about your daily life, in conjunction with your work, sport, family or shopping. They are full of surprises and treasures, and will bring much pleasure and value to you and your family. There's something for everyone.

I invite you to discover and explore the libraries across the region. Enjoy!

Allison Dobbie
Manager - Libraries and Information

We will be posting more about all the fantastic resources at the Library (both old and new) in the coming weeks. Or pick up a brochure and bookmark next time you are here.

Changes for the northern libraries online

Just to give you a heads-up that things will be changing a little bit for the Rodney Libraries online sites when we become Auckland Libraries, in Auckland Council. We'll still be on Twitter, Flickr and Facebook as "rodneylibraries". This blog will still exist and will change focus to reviews and community news. The Rodney Libraries website will be part of the new library website for Auckland Libraries. We'll be updating our weblinks over the next week or so.

Probably the biggest change you'll notice is the way that you will be able to search our collection. There will be 3.5 million items and the new 'Catalogue and site search' will let you find what you want. There are lots of different options to refine your search so ask a librarian (after 1 November) if you want a tour.

Remember - after 1 November - there are 55 library sites you can use your library card at AND you can reserve anything from any of those libraries to be sent to your closest library in the Auckland Council region for FREE.

On a personal note this will be my last post as rodneylibraries. I am going to start a new job in November as well. I'll be leaving everything in kowhaireader's very capable hands.
Thanks for your comments and feedback. Have fun with the new collection!

kris aka rodneylibraries

Auckland Libraries – more information

From 1 November, the 55 libraries within the Auckland region will join together and be known as Auckland Libraries. You can borrow from and return to any of the 55 libraries. You’ll enjoy better services and benefits right across Auckland.

From 1 November, you can use your library card at Auckland Libraries to access approximately 3.5 million items including fiction and non-fiction books, CDs, DVDs, console games, audio books, foreign language and reference materials, plus over 100 eResources providing access to the world’s information.

Borrowing fees and loan periods will be consistent across the 55 libraries.

Free membership
There will be no joining or membership fees for residents of Auckland. Everything is free to borrow except for bestsellers and rental items (DVDs, CDs, console games). Charges on children’s or teens’ overdue books or items no longer apply except for rental collections. Audio books will be free to borrow.

Out-of-zone subscriptions
The subscription fee for residents living outside the boundaries of Auckland Council from 1 November is $160 per annum.

Existing loans
Items borrowed before 1 November will be subject to existing terms. If renewed after 1 November the new terms and conditions will apply.

New overdue fees and how to avoid them
Any items borrowed or renewed after 1 November will be on the new borrowing terms. Overdue fees for an adult book will increase to 50 cents per day. Borrowing a bestseller book remains at $5.

Reminder notices is a free email service to help you manage your borrowing. It will be available region-wide from 1 November. With this service, you get a reminder email advising of any items due back in 3 days. You then have the choice of renewing the item, or returning it by its due date. This service is currently available in Auckland, Franklin, Manukau, Papakura, North Shore and Rodney.


Look out for colourful posters and leaflets now available at your library. More information will be available from 1 November. In the meantime, if you have any questions, please ask your librarian.

One City - 55 Libraries - All yours

We are excited! The "Super City" that we become part of on 1st November signals the creation of a "Super Library". Instead of the resources of just seven Rodney Libraries, from the 1st of November your Library card will work at all 55 libraries through Auckland. That's right - 55 libraries.

Here is a snapshot of what it's going to look like:

• 55 Libraries from Wellsford in the north through to Waiuku and Tuakau in the South


• You can borrow (in person or by request) from any of these libraries, and return your books to any library


• Choose from a massive 3.5 million library items. As well as the items you already find at Rodney Libraries (fiction and non-fiction books, CD's, DVD's, audio books, magazines, activities and events) we will have access to some new resources such as sheet music and downloadable audio books


• Free general borrowing remains as do free requsets from other libraries


• Some borrowing fees will reduce. Rental DVD's will be $2 for a week (instead of $5). Some items we currently charge for will be free

That's just a snapshot of the changes but there are many more. Call into your local library and pick up one of the Auckland Libraries brochures to find out more. And watch this space for more information in the lead in to 1st November.