Friday, November 6, 2009

Where Men Win Glory


This just in! In May 2002, Pat Tillman walked away from his $3.6 million NFL contract to enlist in the United States Army. He was deeply troubled by 9/11, and he felt a strong moral obligation to join the fight against al-Qaeda and the Taliban. Two years later, he died on a desolate hillside in southeastern Afghanistan. Where Men Win Glory is Tillman's story. Check it out at the SWAHS Library!

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Phineas Gage


Phineas Gage: A Gruesome but True Story about Brain Science tells the incredible story of a railroad worker who, in 1848, survived the piercing blast of a 13-pound iron rod as it entered below his cheekbone and exited the front of his skull.  Miraculously, he survived eleven years after the surgery and became a textbook case in brain science. Although he could walk, talk, work, and travel, Phineas was changed. He had a new personality. John Fleischman, the author, is a science writer for the American Society for Cell Biology. This book includes photographs and a glossary. Whether or not you intend to grow up to be a brain surgeon, you will find this true story a compelling read!

Crickets


Here's a mathmatical cricketism from Mrs. Hobensak:  Count the number of times a cricket chirps within 15 seconds and add 37, the result will be an approximation of the temperature outside. So the next time you lose your thermometer, catch a cricket and start timing! This is an actual SWAHS Library Cricket. No Crickets were harmed in the creation of this post!

Wednesday, October 21, 2009


I'm going to go out on a limb and talk about a book I  read as a college student. It was all the rage in the '70's! I know this will date me but I loved the book and I'd be thrilled if one of our SWAHS students would read it.

Even though the main character, Fiver, is a rabbit, this is no children's book. This book won the Carnegie Medal and was a nominee for the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Adult Literature.

Watership Down is a heroic fantasy novel about a group of rabbits who face the destruction of their warren. The novel describes their odyssey as they seek a place to establish a new home. The rabbits live in a warren in a field like normal rabbits but they are anthropomorphised, and possess their own language and culture.

Yes you could watch the movie...but I challenge you to check this book out of our library and spend some time with this maverick band of rabbits that give insight into the society of man. Be sure to let me know what you think!

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Ishmael Beah

Meet Ishmael Beah who at age 13 became a drugged up AK-47 wielding soldier who committed unspeakable acts of violence. At age sixteen he was removed from fighting by UNICEF and rehabilitated. He moved to the United States and finished high school at the United Nations International School in New York. He graduated from Oberlin College in 2004. Ishmael is now 29 years old. This is a true story. In more than fifty conflicts going on worldwide, it is estimated that there are some 300,000 child soldiers. Ishmael Beah was one of them.








Enrich your life with non-fiction! You will find this book in our library. Don't miss it!

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Jodi Picoult


There are far too many good authors for me to choose one, but Jodi Picoult is definitely a favorite. She was recommended to me by Mrs. Laidacker.  I first read My Sister's Keeper and then I was hooked. She intertwines well researched legal, medical, and controversial social issues into her suspenseful plots. Jodi Picoult (whose last name is pronounced Pee KOE) is the bestselling author of fifteen novels.
We have the following Picoult novels in our library:
Plain Truth
My Sister's Keeper
Nineteen Minutes
Handle With Care

My Sister's Keeper was made into a movie but the ending is different from the book. Has anyone seen it?

We have ordered The Pact. I'll let you know when it arrives!

You can visit her website at: http://www.jodipicoult.com/index.html

Computers

Equipped with 24 computers, the library is a great place to do internet research. Do you recognize these lovely researchers?