And The Winners Are.....

Today marked the big announcement of the Caldecott and Newbery Award winners by the American Library Association. Personally, I think of these as the equivalent of Oprah's next book club pick, but for the younger set, and with better illustrations.

This year's Caldecott went to Jon Klassen for This is Not My Hat, for whom this is a second solo title.  His first lone-publishing venture, I Want My Hat Back, was also a hit for its charming illustrations.

The Newbery Award went to Katherine Applegate for The One and Only Ivan, the story of an easygoing, art-oriented gorilla who has become accustomed to living as an exhibit, until baby elephant Ruby arrives.

Downton Obsessed?

Yeah...  Me too.

This past weekend, CBS Sunday Morning featured a tour of Highclere Castle, used for the filming of Downton Abbey, hosted by the Countess of Carnarvon, the lucky lady of the house!



If you're not yet one of the masses, you can request Downton Abbey Season 1 and Season 2 through the library.  Season 3 is currently airing on PBS, Sunday evenings at 9:00.  Also during the segment, the Countess talked about her book Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey.  Some other reading material you may want to check out in the meantime: Below Stairs by Margaret Powell, a memoir by a kitchen maid in the Downton era; Habits of the House by Fay Weldon, the first book in a projected trilogy centered on the Earl of Dilberne, beginning at the close of the 1899 season; and Ashenden by Elizabeth Wilhide, the story of a brother and sister who, in 2012, find themselves the heirs to English estate and while wrestling with how to determine the estate's future, become engrossed in its history.

Happy Obsessing!

Value Your Antiques & Collectibles through Price It!

Have you ever looked at your household treasures – furniture, a painting, a vintage doll – and wondered, “what is this worth?”  Or, are you an antique collector, trying to determine how much that coveted baseball card or coin is worth? Do you wish you could access opinions like those on Antiques Road Show from your home computer?  If you have a Herrick District card and the Internet, you have access to a great resource called Price It! Antiques and Collectibles that can help you find out how much your valuables are worth.

Price It! Antiques and Collectibles is a comprehensive database that allows you to identify, research and appraise art, antiques and collectibles. This great online resource compiles the bidding results from millions of online records and organizes them into searchable categories. Many results include photos to make your search even easier! In addition to appraising valuables, Price It! Info Center also features articles from industry experts on common and unusual topics in pricing, restoration, repair and more.

Click here to access this helpful resource, OR, visit www.herrickdl.org. Click on “Research” and scroll down to the Subject Guide tab. Choose “Subject – Antiques” and click. In this subject guide, you can access Price It! Antiques and Collectibles as well as our newest books, e-books and e-audiobooks on antiques and collectibles and many additional resources. 

Happy hunting!

Attention Book Groups

Herrick's latest Book Group to Go addition is Call The Midwife: a memoir of birth, joy and hard times.  It is an unforgettable story of the joy of motherhood, the bravery of a community, and the hope of one extraordinary woman

At the age of twenty-two, Jennifer Worth leaves her comfortable home to move into a convent and become a midwife in post war London's East End slums. The colorful characters she meets while delivering babies all over London-from the plucky, warm-hearted nuns with whom she lives to the woman with twenty-four children who can't speak English to the prostitutes and dockers of the city's seedier side-illuminate a fascinating time in history. Beautifully written and utterly moving, The Midwife will touch the hearts of anyone who is, and everyone who has, a mother.

Attention Book Groups

If you have read the book Molokai by Alan Brennert, you may enjoy reading another of his books, Honolulu.  It is the story of a young "picture bride" named Regret who travels from Korea to Hawaii in 1914 in search of a better life.  Instead of the rich young husband and chance for education she has been promised, she is married off to a poor, cruel laborer.  The story tells of Hawaii's history, and of Regret's search for a better life in her new home.  Available as a Book Group To Go Bag.