Animal Explorers: Bundle Up with Polar Animals

 

 Hey everybody! Welcome to this meeting of Animal Explorers! I'm Ms. Meghan, and for fifteen years I was an animal keeper at different zoos.  Now that I'm here at the Galesburg Public Library, we're going to explore the animal kingdom together! Each month you can pick up a Animal Explorers kit and become an expert on a new animal! Then you can come and talk about it at our club meeting.

This month we're going to bundle up and learn about polar animals. Which species did you become an expert in? What's one thing you learned about your species? Which polar animal is your favorite? Tell the club in the comments below. 

Kid Review: Eleanor, Alice, and the Roosevelt Ghosts

 

Eleanor, Alice, and the Roosevelt Ghosts

By Dianne K. Salerni

New York: Holiday Housem 2020.

From the Publisher: It's 1898 in New York City and ghosts exist among humans.When an unusual spirit takes up residence at the Roosevelt house, thirteen-year-old Eleanor and fourteen-year-old Alice are suspicious. The cousins don't get along, but they know something is not right. This ghost is more than a pesky nuisance. The authorities claim he's safe to be around, even as his mischievous behavior grows stranger and more menacing. It's almost like he wants to scare the Roosevelts out of their home - and no one seems to care! Meanwhile, Eleanor and Alice discover a dangerous ghost in the house where Alice was born and her mother died. Is someone else haunting the family? Introverted Eleanor and unruly Alice develop an unlikely friendship as they explore the family's dark, complicated history. It's up to them to destroy both ghosts and come to terms with their family's losses.

Reviewed by: Elinor, age 9.

This book was pretty good. I do think it was pretty scary so I guess the right age group would be 9 and up. I liked how the cover featured the ghost lamp. I think the way the cover and the words on the back at first glance make the book look A LOT less scary. I was surprised at the end. If you look very close at the cover you might be able to tell it was scary but the cover told a story which I really liked. Overall I would give it four stars and I would recommend it to others. 

Animal Explorers: Oh Deer!

 

Hey everybody! Welcome to this meeting of Animal Explorers! I'm Ms. Meghan, and for fifteen years I was an animal keeper at different zoos.  Now that I'm here at the Galesburg Public Library, we're going to explore the animal kingdom together! Each month you can pick up a Animal Explorers kit and become an expert on a new animal! Then you can come and talk about it at our club meeting.

This month we're going to discuss deer! Several species are familiar to us, like our own white-tailed deer, as well as moose, reindeer, and elk. Which species did you become an expert in? What's one thing you learned about your deer? Which deer species is your favorite? Tell the club in the comments below. 

City of the Plague God

City of the Plague God

by Sarwat Chadda

New York: Disney Hyperion, 2021

 

Thirteen-year-old Sik wants a simple life going to school and helping at his parents' deli in the evenings. But all that is blown to smithereens when Nergal comes looking for him, thinking that Sik holds the secret to eternal life. Turns out Sik is immortal but doesn't know it, and that's about to get him and the entire city into deep, deep trouble.

Sik's not in this alone. He's got Belet, the adopted daughter of Ishtar, the goddess of love and war, on his side, and a former hero named Gilgamesh, who has taken up gardening in Central Park. Now all they have to do is retrieve the Flower of Immortality to save Manhattan from being wiped out by disease. To succeed, they'll have to conquer sly demons, treacherous gods, and their own darkest nightmares.

First, let's just take a moment to look at that cover. Even if I didn't love the Rick Riordan Presents imprint, I would have picked this up based on that image alone. I've been looking forward to this one for awhile, and was fortunate enough to see Sarwat in a virtual panel earlier this fall. This novel focuses on the deities and mythology of Mesopotamia. City of the Plague God follows Sikander Aziz, the son of Iraqi Muslim immigrants, as he works in their deli and continues to process the loss of his older brother, who died two years ago. His world is disrupted when minions of Nergal, the god of disease and war appear, demanding the treasure his brother stole. What follows is an action packed tale as disease and pestilence grips the city, while Sik finds himself in the company of Belet and Ishtar. Themes of family, loss, and prejudice are masterfully woven throughout. It's always wonderful to see less familiar mythologies get a chance to shine in these books, and this is one of the best examples. City of the Plague God is highly recommended for Percy Jackson, mythology, and adventure fans of all ages. It will be available from Galesburg Public Library after the January 5, 2021 release date.  Thank you very much to NetGalley and Disney Hyperion for the ARC. 

Animal Explorers: Let's Talk Turkey (and Other Game Birds)

 

Hey everybody! Welcome to this meeting of Animal Explorers! I'm Ms. Meghan, and for fifteen years I was an animal keeper at different zoos.  Now that I'm here at the Galesburg Public Library, we're going to explore the animal kingdom together! Each month you can pick up a Animal Explorers kit and become an expert on a new animal! Then you can come and talk about it at our club meeting.

This month we're going to talk turkey. And chickens. And peafowl. And...grouse? It's Game Bird month! Which species did you become an expert in? What's one thing you learned about your bird? Which game bird species is your favorite? Tell the club in the comments below. 

Animal Explorers: Primates

 

Hey everybody! Welcome to this meeting of Animal Explorers! I'm Ms. Meghan, and for fifteen years I was an animal keeper at different zoos.  Now that I'm here at the Galesburg Public Library, we're going to explore the animal kingdom together! Each month you can pick up a Animal Explorers kit and become an expert on a new animal! Then you can come and talk about it at our club meeting.

This month we're going to prattle about primates. World Lemur Day is on October 30, and we're teaming up with Lemur Conservation Network to learn, share, and act to save primates together. Which species did you become an expert in? What's one thing you learned about your primate? Which primate species is your favorite? Tell the club in the comments below.  

 

 

STEM to You: Science Starter Pack

Hello Stem to You members! This post will be your portal to our interactive participation for the Science Starter Pack event.

Now that you've drawn your scientists, tell us about them in the comments! Use three descriptive words to complete the sentence 'my scientist is ___'. What kind of scientist did you draw? What are they doing? Where are they working? What is similar and different about other people's scientists? If you want, post the drawing of you as a scientist, too!

You can watch the video on how to make you paper rockets here.

Here is a page with detailed biographies for the scientists who were featured on the collage. There's information on each one of them, as well as where you can find out more information about them and the fascinating work that they're doing.

The Galesburg Public Library has a lot of books on science and scientists. Here are a few to check out that tie in to this activity.

Marvelous Mattie
by Emily Arnold McCully
New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2006 

Mattie could sketch and build just about anything. When she was only twelve years old, she came up with a metal guard on looms that kept workers from being injured and killed. As an adult, she invented a machine to make the square bottom paper bags that we still use today. However, a man tried to steal her idea and challenged her in court, saying she "could not possibly understand the mechanical complexities." Mattie proved him wrong and won her case!

 Mae Among the Stars
by Roda Ahmed
New York: HarperCollins, 2018

Inspired by the life story of Mae Jemison, the first black woman in space, this wonderful book teaches you how to dream big and follow your heart.

Whoosh! Lonnie Johnson's Super-Soaking Stream of Inventions
by Chris Barton
Watertown, MA: Charlesbridge, 2016

Lonnie Johnson invented the mechanics for the Super Soaker entirely by accident. In his bathroom. While trying to create a new cooling system for refrigerators and air conditioners. This is just one of the many inventions and projects he's worked on in his career as an engineer, including powering the spacecraft Galileo that explored Jupiter. 


Did you know you can sign up for a Galesburg Public Library card online? Just visit the link here to get started?