Alison Jack
Librarian / Media Specialist

“Reading makes immigrants of us all. It takes us away from home,
but more important, it finds homes for us everywhere.”

The old adage that "time flies when you are having fun" is certainly true, as here it is already spring! This year has been a whirlwind of activity at the EMS Library. Circulation at the library this year has been high. Hundreds of great books have been read and shared. A wealth of knowledge and information has been gained. The library staff hopes that EMS students' love of books and quests for knowledge will carry on through the spring and summer.

Does your student get bored a week after school is out? What better way to alleviate that lament than to enroll him/her in a summer reading program. The Wichita Public Library has an idea that would be perfect for those summer doldrums. Teens 12-17 or entering grades 6-12 in fall 2012 may join either the Summer Reading Club or Teens Read. In Teens Read, participants get the chance to win great prizes based on their time spent reading. Summer's the time to read whatever you want, without book reports to write or presentations to give. Reading is a great way to fight the summertime blues! Go to the Wichita Public Library Website http://www.wichita.lib.ks.us/kids/summer+reading+club/) and click on Teens Read. You might also visit the Goddard Public Library which is located at 118 N. Main Street in downtown Goddard.

If your student would prefer to design his/her own reading program, the William Allen White award books for 2012-2013 would be a good place to start.

The following is the new list of W. A.W. books:

• "Extraordinary Mark Twain" (According to Susy) by Barbara Kerley
  Thirteen-year-old Susy Clemens wants the world to know that her papa, Mark Twain, is more than just a humorist and sets out to write a comprehensive biography of the American icon.
• "Candy Bomber: The Story of The Berlin Airlift's Chocolate Pilot" by Michael O. Tunnell
  Describes the efforts of U.S.Air Force Lieutenant Gail Halvorsen to aid the children in Russianblockaded West Berlin by dropping packages filled with candy from the air.
• "Ghost Dog Secrets" by Peg Kehret
  Sixth-grader Rusty, determined to help an injured dog that is chained outdoors in frigid weather, calls animal control then takes matters into his own hands, aided by his best friend and a ghost collie that leads Rusty to an even deeper secret. Includes instructions for knitting cat blankets.
• "Mockingbird" by Kathryn Erskine
  Ten-year-old Caitlin, who has Asperger's Syndrome, struggles to understand emotions, show empathy, and make friends at school, while at home she seeks closure by working on a project with her father.
• "Moon Over Manifest" by Clare Vanderpool
  Twelve-year-old Abilene Tucker is the daughter of a drifter who, in the summer of 1936, sends her to stay with an old friend in Manifest, Kansas where he grew up, and where she hopes to find out some things about his past.
• "Strange Case of Origami Yoda" by Tom Angleberger
  Sixth-grader Tommy and his friends describe their interactions with a paper finger puppet of Yoda, worn by their weird classmate Dwight, as they try to figure out whether or not the puppet can really predict the future. Includes instructions for making Origami Yoda.
• "Tale Dark and Grimm" by Adam Gidwitz
  Follows Hansel and Gretel as they walk out of their own story and into eight more tales, encountering such wicked creatures as Wicked, along with kindly strangers and other helpful folk.
• "Zora and Me: The Song of Ivory"
  by Victoria and T.R. Simon Bond A fictionalized account of Zora Neale Hurston's childhood with her best friend Carrie, in atonville,
  Florida as they learn about life, death, and the differences between truth, lies, and pretending.