Kia ora! 

You've received this newsletter because you've expressed interest in our library activities for kids and families. Read on for upcoming events, helpful library resources and more!

There’s still two weeks left of the Summer Reading Adventure!

Have you been taking part?

So far you’ve read over 14,500 books. We’re getting close to our community reading goal of 20,000 books!

You’ve written over 5,300 book reviews. What books have you reviewed? Have you read our blog with some top review-writing tips?

We’ve given out over 1000 prizes of badges, books and other goodies so far. Are you in the running for one of our Grand Prize Packs?

There’s still time to sign up and join the adventure!

Looking upwards around our libraries

One of the activities in the Summer Reading Adventure is the Upward Looking Urban Photographer, where we’ve challenged you to look upwards and notice details that you might have otherwise overlooked.

Inspired by this activity, we’ve taken our cameras around our libraries and pointed them upwards, and put what we found together into this blog post! In this selection of images you’ll find many artworks, interesting angles, library signage, and ceilings seen from a different perspective – it’s an exploration of library architecture!

Can you figure out where the photo of your library was taken?

Box of Birds! With Birdlife Productions

Check out this photo from the first performance of Box of Birds! at Newlands Community Centre! We’ve got four more performances to go, so you can still join us for this production by award-winning theatre company Birdlife Productions.

Box of Birds! is an exquisite puppet show featuring interactive songs, percussion, and gorgeous handmade puppets.

Recommended for tamariki aged 3-6 with their caregivers.

Nau mai rā tātou katoa | Everybody is welcome. 

Upcoming sessions

• Thursday 18 January: Island Bay Community Centre   
• Saturday 20 January: Cummings Park (Ngaio) Library  
• Thursday 25 January: Johnsonville Library  
• Saturday 27 January: Karori Library         

Waitohi Community Hub Bubble Day

Wednesday, 17 January

11am – 2pm

Waitohi Community Hub, 34 Moorefield Road, Johnsonville

Come and celebrate summer at the Waitohi Community Hub! The Johnsonville Library, Keith Spry Pool, and Common Ground Cafe are coming together to turn the Waitohi Hub and Memorial Park into a bubble-filled wonderland! With bubble-themed games and activities, there’ll be something for everyone.

In case the weather doesn’t play along, our postponement date is Thursday 18 January. Keep an eye on our social media page, the Waitohi community group - and the weather forecast! – for any updates.

Story Box Library- Preschool and primary

Have you been missing our Preschool Storytimes over the summer? While you wait for them to start for the year, why not check out Story Box Library? Sign in with your library card barcode number and 4-digit PIN to access a plethora of stories read aloud by New Zealand and Australian storytellers, authors, and performers.

Author Spotlight: Elsie Gravel

Elsie Gravel is a Montreal based author/illustrator whose books are full of humour, vibrant, cartoon-style illustrations and A LOT of (friendly) monsters! We first came across her work after we added the delightfully witty and informative Disgusting Critters series to our libraries way back in 2018. Filled with interesting facts as well as funny asides, this series is a winner with younger kids – just don’t read the book Head lice when you’re dealing with an infestation of your own!

Her more recent books deal with important and topical subjects such as body positivity, gender identity and media literacy, but always in a humorous, relatable and kid-accessible way.

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