Trick or Treat @ the Library

This weekend come and Trick or Treat @ the Library! On Saturday, 9:30am - 5:45pm, and Sunday, 1:00pm - 4:45pm, kids are invited to stop by the Children's Desk for a free Halloween treat. One treat per child while supplies last.

And have a very safe and happy Halloween!

Haunted Halloween Craft Party

Calling all ghouls and goblins ages 6 and up!

This Saturday, October 30th, I'll be hosting a Haunted Halloween Craft Party in the John Clarke Children's Program Room from 2:30pm - 4:30pm. Come in costume and make a variety of spooky crafts. Light Halloween refreshments will be served.

See you there!

October Meeting Wrap-Up

The Book Buddies Book Club met yesterday afternoon to discuss our October book, The Ghost, The White House and Me by Judith St. George. We had a great discussion, enjoyed some Halloween cupcakes and finished up with a pumpkin craft!

Everyone really enjoyed the book and found it to be a spooky story perfect for Halloween. We all thought that KayKay was a really interesting main character and liked that she was an adventurous person who appreciated a good mystery (like so many of us!)

In the story, KayKay mother has just been sworn in as President of the United States and we spent some time discussing the idea of a female president. We all thought it was very exciting to think that a woman could be president and we feel confident that it's an event that will happen in the near future. We liked that the author chose to write the story this way instead of having KayKay's dad be President, and we especially liked that it was just another fact of the story and not the main focus of the story. We talked about how the story would have been different if it were KayKay's dad who was President and felt that it would have been a dramatic change, since one of the driving features of the story was KayKay's mom being so busy as President and not as available to her kids.

We discussed what it would be like to live in the White House and have our own secret service agents following us around all day long. Most thought it would be sort of cool to live in the White House but like anything else, there would be pros (Chef Toni's cooking!) and cons (no privacy).

We spent quite a bit of time talking about the idea that the White House is haunted, an idea that persists in real life, not just in the story. We read from the non-fiction book Who's Haunting the White House? by Jeff Belanger about some of the ghostly happenings that have be reported in the White House especially all of the ghost stories surrounding Abraham Lincoln and his ghost. We talked about KayKay's dad's idea that the White House is haunted by history and how that might be. There is so much history here in New England, we talked about the ghosts that might be around Newport and how Newport might be haunted by history as well.

We discussed KayKay's relationship with Borden, the former President's grandson, and how it changed over the course of the story. In the beginning, KayKay didn't really like Borden but she also didn't really know him. As the story progressed, she realized that Borden was actually a pretty interesting person and they became good friends.

We also talked about the prank KayKay and Annie played and how it went wrong and how they were punished.

Overall we all really liked The Ghost, The White House and Me and we are looking forward to reading more from Judith St. George!

It was a terrific meeting and thanks to all the Book Buddies club members who attended!

Meeting Reminder

Just a reminder that the Book Buddies Book Club will meet this coming Monday, October 25th at 3:30pm in the John Clarke Children's Program Room to discuss our October book, The Ghost, the White House and Me by Judith St. George. Come for a great discussion and some Halloween treats! See you there!

Featured Book: Haunted Houses

October's featured children's book is new to our collection. It is Robert San Souci's spooky Haunted Houses, a collection of ten scary stories about haunted houses, pirate treasure and ghosts. Read if you dare!

Haunted Halloween Reads

Halloween is almost here! Here are a few ghost stories you might want to read to get into the spirit of the holiday...

The Ghost on the Stairs by Chris Eboch (2009)

Thirteen-year-old Jon and his eleven-year-old sister, Tania, are typical kids, except for the fact that Tania can communicate with ghosts. Their mom and stepdad are producers of a ghost-hunter reality television show, but they have no idea that Tania possesses this ability, and Tania wants to keep it that way. While filming at an old hotel in Colorado, Jon and Tania find themselves trapped in a ghostly love story that happened more than a century ago. Local legend has it that a ghost bride still wanders the hotel, waiting for her lost husband. Can this fearless brother-sister duo reunite a newlywed couple, and put these ghosts to rest at last?

The Hanging Hill by Chris Grabenstein (2009)

While working at a summer stock theater, eleven-year-old Zack and his stepmother encounter the ghost of one of Connecticut's most notorious criminals.

All the Lovely Bad Ones: A Ghost Story by Mary Downing Hahn (2008)

While spending the summer at their grandmother's Vermont inn, two prankster siblings awaken young ghosts from the inn's distant past who refuse to "rest in peace."

The Scary States of America by Michael Teitelbaum (2007)

Twelve-year-old Jason Specter, self-proclaimed "clearing house for the weird," introduces and presents his favorite stories of the paranormal--one from each state of the Union--submitted to the Web site he created after his own encounter with a ghost at school three years earlier.

The Ghost's Grave by Peg Kehret (2005)

Apprehensive about spending the summer in Washington State with his Aunt Ethel when his parents get an overseas job, twelve-year-old Josh soon finds adventure when he meets the ghost of a coal miner.

Who's Haunting the White House?

Our October book, The Ghost, the White House and Me by Judith St. George, is about two sisters (the president's daughters) who hear rumors that the White House is haunted and decide to investigate. For a book with a similar theme, try the non-fiction book, Who's Haunting the White House?: The President's Mansion and the Ghosts Who Live There by Jeff Belanger. (2008) Welcome to a tour of the White House that very few people have ever taken.

You're going on a supernatural investigation to look for ghosts in this very famous and very haunted building! As you move forward, you'll hear from past Presidents and First Ladies, as well as from people who work inside the White House every day.

It's been said that the original White House landowner calls out in a strange, far-off voice from the Yellow Room; that the ghost of Andrew Jackson makes his presence known in the first family's living quarters; that Abraham Lincoln saw an ominous vision in a mirror; and that Harry S. Truman had a ghostly encounter he couldn't explain.

Enter now and learn about all the unearthly goings-on in America's most famous house.

Author Judith St. George

Judith St. George is the wonderful author of our October book, The Ghost, The White House and Me. She has written many non-fiction books and biographies for children and currently lives in Connecticut with her family. Visit her website for more information and pick up another book by this great author!

Stand Tall, Abe Lincoln (2008)

Abraham Lincoln grew up poor and without schooling in a Kentucky wilderness and lost his mother before he was ten. It was sparkplug Sally Bush Johnston who married his father, brought a library of books to their log cabin home, and believed in Abe from the beginning. She was an inspiring turning point for young Abe, who went on to become America's sixteenth and most popular and respected president.

Mystery Isle (2007)

What seems a harmless enough trip to the family's ancestral home on a Maine island turns into something much more dangerous for thirteen-year-old Kim.

Make Your Mark, Franklin Roosevelt (2007)

Young Franklin Roosevelt grew up knowing the finer things in life - sailing, horseback riding, and foxhunts on his family's large estate. Growing up wealthy meant he could live a gentleman's life, like his beloved papa. Yet gentlemen weren't supposed to go into politics, right? But why not? As young Franklin learns from a famous uncle and a famous mentor, there is more to the world than he thought. And about politics? Well, maybe there is more to that, too.

So You Want to Be President? (2000)

Presents an assortment of facts about the qualifications and characteristics of U.S. presidents, from George Washington to Bill Clinton.

October Book Selection

Our October book selection will be Judith St. George's The Ghost, The White House and Me. We will meet to talk about the book and have some Halloween treats on Monday, October 25th at 3:30pm in the John Clarke Children's Program Room.

When eleven-year-old KayKay Granger learns that the White House is haunted and uses that knowledge to play a prank on her family, she lands in big trouble with her mother, the United States President.