Neil Simon is unquestionably one of the finest modern playwrights! What better way to take time out from hectic holiday preparations than to join us as AK Readers' Theatre presents Simply Simon featuring the acting skills of Long Island performers Joe Dobkins and Richard Solow. Excerpts from two of Simon's "funniest ever" plays, The Sunshine Boys and God's Favorite will be highlighted. Don't miss the return to the Library of these popular performers!

The new movie The Golden Compass, starring Nicole Kidman, opens on Dec. 7. It is based on the first book of a trilogy written by Philip Pullman. The trilogy, entitled "His Dark Materials," includes The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass. These fantasy novels are more challenging reads then recent fantasy hits such as the Harry Potter series. The main character, Lyra, is a young girl living in a parallel universe where humans carry a piece of themselves in an animal form called a daemon. There has been controversy regarding Pullman's attitude toward religion and its treatment in the novels. For an insightful take on this controversy check out the blog of Sr. Rose Pacatte, FSP director of the Pauline Center for Media Studies in Culver City, CA. She is a Catholic nun who blogs about movies. For some fun stuff, check out the movie's official website to watch the trailer and take a test to discover your personal daemon. My daemon is a crow.

Congratulations to Denis Johnson (Fiction - Tree of Smoke), Tim Weiner (Non-Fiction - Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA), Robert Hass (Poetry - Time and Materials) & Sherman Alexie (Young People's Literature - The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian ) - all 2007 National Book Award Winners. For a complete listing of all the finalists (and links to author interviews), check out National Book Awards

The greatest fighter in faerun is back!!!! Look For The Orc King By R. A. Salvatore.

The holiday season starts this week along with all the stress and anxiety of getting the seemingly endless cooking, decorating and shopping done before Christmas and Hanukkah. Remember that you can't take care of everyone else if you don't take good care of yourself. Give yourself the gift of time this year to relax and rejuvenate your mind, body and spirit during this busy season. Some books and CDs that we recommend and hope you enjoy are:

CDs

*Comfort: classical masterpieces and originals soothe your soul and spirit
*Nights of quiet stars
*Mountain medow meditation
*A.M. & P.M. yoga meditations

BOOKS

*Leslie Sansone's Eat Smart, Walk Strong by Leslie Sansone
*Meditations in a New York Minute by Mark Thornton
*Yoga: awakening the inner body by Donald Moyer
*The eating well healthy in a hurry cookbook by Jim Romanoff
*The 5-minute face: the quick and easy makeup guide for every woman by Carmindy (of What Not to Wear fame)
*The grown-up girl's guide to style: the maintenance bible for fashion, beauty and more by Christine Schwab

Just a reminder for all those interested in D&D.....inquire at the reference desk and ask for Mr. M!

With the holiday shopping season about to begin this Friday, here's a reminder - books are excellent gifts for all ages but especially for children. If you are looking for some suggestions, here are a few of my favorites from 2007:

Picture Books:
The Flying Bed by Nancy Willard, illustrated by John Thompson
Dog and Bear and First the Egg written and illustrated by Laura Vaccaro Seeger (Rockville Centre's own!)
I'm the Biggest Thing in the Ocean written and illustrated by Kevin Sherry
Mary and the Mouse, the Mouse and Mary by Beverly Dinofrio, illustrated by Barbara McClintock
The Boy Who was Raised by Librarians by Carla Morris, illustrated by Brad Sneed
Cute by Lida Dijkstra illustrated by Marije Tolman
How Do Dinosaurs Go to School? by Jane Yolen, illustrated by Mark Teague
Max's Magic Seeds by Geraldine Elschner, illustrated by Jean-Pierre Corderoch
Digby Takes Charge written and illustrated Caroline Jayne Church

Chapter Books:
The Elephant and Piggie series by Mo Willems
No Talking by Andrew Clements
The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy by Jeanne Birdsall
Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Greg Heffley's Journal by Jeff Kinney
The Invention of Hugo Cabret: A Novel in Words and Pictures by Brian Selznick
The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt
Feathers by Jacqueline Woodson

NEW to our Audio book collection are Playaways. A playaway is a self-playing audio book that comes pre-loaded on a small (the size of a deck of playing cards) device. They were designed with a universal headphone jack to work with almost any type of headphone, speaker or car adapter. Playways are more convenient and easier to enjoy than juggling multiple CDs or cassettes. Perfect if you are a walker or for use on a treadmill. Just put it into your pocket and off you go. Some titles in our ever-expanding collection include:

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi
The Curious Incident of the do in the night-time by Mark Haddon

Join us on Sunday, December 2 at 2 o'clock and be thoroughly entertained by the fellows of A.K. Readers' Theatre as they present excerpts from Neil Simon's The Sunshine Boys and God's Favorite. Joe Dobkins and Richard Solow are popular Long Island theatre veterans, and what better way to greet December than by sharing a laugh or two with friends!

Another reminder, as the cold days of winter keep us indoors and searching for things to do...the Library provides access to the finest New York City museums, (and some on Long Island, too!) through its Museum Pass Program. Take advantage! Stop by the Reference Desk for details!

It's Children's Book Week, and the library has some great new ways to share books with your children. Some highlights to check out -- films based on books, books on tape and CD, our new graphic novel collection and our newest audiobooks, called Playaways.
Be sure to explore our Illustrated Fiction collection now located in between Reference and Picture Books. Illustrated Fiction refers to picture books that are designed for older children. They are usually longer than easy picture books, contain more sophisticated concepts and sometimes have a historical background. Illustrated Fiction offers a wonderful opportunity for parents to read aloud and share stories with older children.

Interested in a 'green lifestyle' but not sure how to get started or what you can do to make an impact? The library has a whole host of informative books to help you along. Some of our favorites include:

Raising baby green: the earth-friendly guide to pregnancy, childbirth and baby care by Alan Greene

The green book: the everyday guide to saving the planet one simple step at a time by Elizabeth Rogers and Thomas M. Kostigen

It's easy being green: a handbook for earth-friendly living by Crissy Trask

Hands-on environmentalism by Brent M. Haglund

A new cyborg is in town. Lila Black is more machine than human and has enough weapons built into her for a small army. Oh yeah and her job is to protect an elven rock star!!

Next week (November 12-16) is the final week for our Fall Storytimes. Sign-up for Winter Storytimes will take place in January. In the meantime, come check out some of our displays for November, including Thanksgiving, Native American Heritage Month and the beautiful artwork of the students from Jacob's Ladder.