READ on the WILD SIDE!

We've had a great registration turn out for our Summer Reading Program, READ on the WILD SIDE and it's not too late to crank over your engine and join us!

For adults, the program is in the form of a road trip with a special focus on Route 66, otherwise known as the Mother Road. We have terrific programs for adults that fit our road trip theme-check them out on our online newsletter or on the Adult Program page of our website. We even have book suggestions with a journey theme listed on our Book News link-don't miss them!

In the meantime, rev up your engines, pack your favorite reads in the car, and join us as we READ on the WILD SIDE!

To Honor Their Memory

Here is a list of books picked especially to honor Memorial Day (Monday, May 25th). Enjoy!

Non-Fiction
Flags of Our Fathers by James Bradley
War Journal of Major Damon "Rocky" Gause by Damon L. Gause
We Band of Angels by Elizabeth M. Norman
Ghost Soldiers by Hampton Sides
Shadow Divers by Robert Kurson
No Ordinary Time by Doris Goodwin
WWII Memorial by Douglas Brinkley
At All Costs by Sam Moses
Greatest Battle by Andrew Nagorski

Fiction
The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien
No Graves As Yet by Anne Perry
President Lincoln's Spy by Steven Wilson
Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane
My Vicksburg by Ann Rinaldi
Rules of the Game by Leonard Downie
The Glorious Cause by Jeff Shaara
A Country of Our Own by David Poyer

Feel free to add your own Memorial Day recommendation in the comments!

It's Beginning to Feel a Lot Like Spring!

While it's still early days yet, this week seems to be moving us in the right direction-SPRING!

People are starting to wake up from their winter hibernation and are thinking about getting into their gardens.

We are in the spirit of things here at the library too. We will sponsor the bus trip to the Chicagoland Flower and Garden Show at Navy Pier this Sunday, have A.J. Vilt coming March 17 to share his knowledge on container gardening, and Holly Momper will offer a great Spring Entertaining program on March 28 (pssst-think food and taste testing)!

In the meantime, here's the weblink for the National Gardening Association:
http://www.garden.org/home
They offer lots of great information from tips on celebrating the seasons to "edible landscaping" (check out this month's recipe for chocolate violet cake).

Check out our collection of gardening books too, and be sure to sign up for the upcoming programs!

GO TO 2040 Community Meeting Wednesday, February 4, 2009

You’re invited to participate in a GO TO 2040 community conversation with CMAP, the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning. The library will host this meeting on Wednesday, February 4 from 6:30-7:30 P.M.

The GO TO 2040 regional plan will be built on a common vision of how residents want Northeastern Illinois to look for themselves, their children, and their grandchildren. This is an important meeting to share what you like best about the City of Wilmington, and what you envision for the future. Please plan to come and share!

For more information on this meeting, please contact the library.
For more information on CMAP, you can visit their website at: http://www.cmap.illinois.gov/default.aspx

We're Celebrating Abraham Lincoln's 200th Birthday Early!

Join us on Monday, January 26th from 6:30-8:00 P.M. as we celebrate Abraham Lincoln's 200th birthday early with a terrific program from Dave Clark entitled, "Roads that Lead to Lincoln".

Highway Historian and author, Dave Clark will tell the story of Lincoln’s Illinois in pictures and music. He will take us on a photographic road trip of Lincoln sites near and along Route 66 from Chicago to Springfield, the Great River Road from Alton to Gulf Port, and the Lincoln Highway from Dixon to Chicago Heights.

There's no fee for this program, but pre-registration is recommended. We hope you can come and celebrate

Happy New Year!

Downloadable Audio Book News!

Patrons have really enjoyed the convenience of being able to download audio books onto their MP3 players, and love our selection (over 1,400 titles and growing for non-Apple MP3 players). But those with iPods and iPhones weren't able to join in the fun-until now!

As of January 5th, we have over 100 titles available for iPod and iPhone formats (they will also be accessible for most other MP3 players as well). While the list is currently small, we'll be adding more each month. Look for more information on our website on the eMedia page.

Now everyone can listen to a great book today!

Databases

The Wilmington Library provides our patrons with access to many useful databases. From within the library, click the links below to access the database. To access a database from home, click on "Access from Home" at the bottom of that database and be sure to have your library card number handy.

America's GenealogyBank
Easily search and browse millions of genealogies, obituaries, marriage and birth announcements and more from 1652 to the present. Includes historical newspapers, books and documents, along with modern obituaries and the Social Security Death Index.
Access "America's GeneologyBank" from Home

Associated Press Images
Associated Press Images Database is a research database of every news event covered by the Associated Press for the last 150 years. Over 150 years of history as witnessed by the Associated Press AP Images contains over 3 million news photographs from the 1840's through today, with more than 3,000 photos being added on a daily basis. Additionally, users can search through over 100,000 graphics, including maps, timelines, logos and graphs.
Access "Associated Press Images" from Home

EBSCO
Visit this site for a trial version of Home Improvement Reference Center, Small Engine Repair Reference Center, or Auto Repair Reference Center. This is a trial version. Please enter "wpl" for the User ID and "repair" as the password for access.
Access "EBSCO" from Home

FirstSearch
A database that contains abstracts plus many full text articles on a variety of subjects. You will also find a catalog of books, periodicals and other media found in libraries around the U.S. and some foreign countries. Have your library card number ready when accessing from home.
Access "FirstSearch" from Home

Grolier Online
This is the latest addition to our online resources. This resource includes Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia and America the Beautiful. Grolier Multimedia includes 40,000 articles, timelines, games and news for middle and high schools. America the Beautiful includes articles, timelines, profiles, games, and maps about the states. It also includes state-by-state history and current events for elementary and middle schools. Have your library card number ready when accessing from home.
Access "Grolier Online" from Home

HeritageQuest
Your resource for census data, family records and local histories. This collection assembles every extant U.S. federal census, banking and military records, genealogies, local histories, primary source materials, and genealogical and local history serials. An ongoing project (new content is added weekly), HeritageQuest Online will grow to encompass obituaries, Freedman's Bank Records, Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Index and additional materials.
Access "HeritageQuest" from Home

Learning Express Library
Practice taking all kinds of tests from the GED to Civil Service to College Entrance Exams. Create your own login and password.
Access "Learning Express Library" from Home

Newsbank
America's Newspapers: A selection of the electronic version of several major national and state papers, including the Joliet, Kankakee and Morris papers and the Chicago Sun-Times. The papers are searchable and most include archives for several years. Paid ads are not included. Have your library card number ready when accessing from home.
Access "Newsbank" from Home

NoveList
NoveList is a database that helps readers find authors and titles and also includes articles, reading lists and reviews. Have your library card number ready when accessing from home.
Access "NoveList" from Home

TumbleBookLibrary
An online collection of animated, talking picture books, reading comprehension quizzes, educational games and teacher resources.
Access "TumbleBookLibrary" from Home