"Bringing the Book to Life" Recap.

It was A “small, but mighty” turnout of 16 who attended on March 18th, the first of two "Bringing the Book to Life" programs.

Actor Peter Renaday [see photo] did a wonderful reading selections from Rocket Boys by Homer Hickam, Jr., bringing many of us close to tears. We also had a brief discussion following the reading program.

I hope we have a better turn out for April 2nd. It’s a program worth seeing so please spread the word.

Thanks to Jody for the recap and if you, like I, want to attend the second "Bringing the Book to Life" program, join Peter Renaday and the rest of us on-

Wednesday, April 2
7:00 PM
Burbank Central Library
110 N. Glenoaks Blvd.
818-238-5600

Mercury Seven Program rockets to success!

Last Saturday 73 children and parents heard a short talk about the early space program and then 35 kids [see photo] built some very imaginative rocket mobiles at the library's Mercury Seven program which marked the 50th anniversary of NASA and the announcement of America’s first space program, Project Mercury.

It can be a challenge trying to explain what the Cold War was to a second grader when there isn’t any cold war anymore and there isn’t any Soviet Union anymore, and they never had to practice ducking under their desk for a nuclear bomb while hearing the siren drills. Just what was so important about when Alan Shepard and Gus Grissom and John Glenn made their rides into space? It is difficult to see why something with a funny name like Sputnik, a thing not much bigger than a basketball and not capable of doing anything but making meaningless radio beeps for a few months, was such a big deal when now you can get a zillion channels from space just like that. In this age of the space shuttle it is hard to believe that people actually sat on the tip of a rocket and got blasted into the sky and then got back by falling into the ocean and being plucked out like a bobbing rubber duck by a helicopter. How do you make children understand that a scenario so seemingly unsophisticated and improbable was a cause of great national pride and that so much hung on the outcome?.

Well that is, I suppose, what the idea of this whole Burbank Reads program is all about, putting everyone on the same page, looking at shared historic events and then placing ourselves again at the intersection between those and the line of our own lives and trying to explain the meaning we found there and has followed us, even to those most distant from both. Which is how a sense of community is built, and why the memoir Rocket Boys is such a well chosen vehicle.

Thanks to Hubert for the program and the recap!

What We're Reading: Sky of Stone

Well, it's been a long and wonderful trip! I assume that we've all spent a lot of time (at least mentally) amongst the mountains and tipples of Coalwood, West Virginia. The last book in the series, Sky of Stone, is perhaps my favorite and well worth your time if you're done with the first two - Rocket Boys and The Coalwood Way. Sky of Stone picks up after Sonny's first year at college. He's looking forward to a summer spent with his mother at her new house in Myrtle Beach. However, trouble is brewing in Coalwood and he resigns himself to a vacation spent in his hometown, in the mines. There is a mystery he must unravel here, which culminates in the trials against his father after an accidental death. It seems as though all the residents of Coalwood are hiding something. Sonny begrudgingly takes on the task of finding out the truth.

This book, like the others, reads like a novel. I'm not saying it's untrue. Hickam has the amazing ability to take his real life and spin it into something that propels you to the edge of your seat. The last book reads like a good murder mystery. Sonny the rocket boy becomes Sonny the detective. Click on the link above to see if a copy is currently available at the Burbank Libraries.

"October Sky" Film Screenings.

Burbank Public Library Presents - Two Special Screenings of the film


October Sky

Now that you’ve joined all of Burbank in reading “Rocket Boys” by Homer H. Hickam, Jr., come join us in watching the movie “October Sky” that is inspired by the book.


Starring, Jake Gyllenhaal, Chris Cooper, Chris Owen and Laura Dern.

Run-time is 108 minutes, rated PG


Saturday, March 29, 2008 @2:00 PM
Burbank Central Library
110 N. Glenoaks Blvd.
818-238-5600

Tuesday, April 1, 2008 @6:30 PM
Buena Vista Branch Library
300 N. Buena Vista St.
818-238-5620

"Rocket Boys" Related Reading.

Already read “Rocket Boys”? Need something to read next, well we have prepared some special Burbank READS book lists for your reading pleasure.

Space Exploration (The Men, the Women and more) – features a selection of biographies about the men and women of space exploration. Check your libraries for the bookmark featuring some of these titles too!

More Books by Homer Hickam Jr. – Loved “Rocket Boys”, well here are the other fiction and nonfiction books that the library owns by Homer Hickam Jr.

Fiction of the 50's – a selection of some of the best known, most popular and enduring classic fiction books written in the 1950s.

All About the 1950’s – Want to know more about the 1950s? This is the list for you, history, food, décor, music, photographs, cars and more can be found on this list. All with a 1950s twist!

All of these book lists can be found under the Burbank READS link on your iBistro catalog.

Burbank READS & Rocks...the Grand Finale.

Mark your calendars......

Burbank Public Library Presents

Burbank READS & Rocks
Join us for the 2008 Burbank READS Finale with a Rock 'n Roll concert featuring

Ronnie & the Classics

This versatile quintet puts on a rockin' boppin' 50's & 60's rock and roll show. With their flashy cool attire, hot moves and multi harmony vocals, they reproduce retro oldies music the way it was meant to be delivered: High energy, high visibility and lots of heart! They feature such rock relics as Elvis Presley's "Blue Suede Shoes," Eddie Cochrane's "Summertime Blues" and Fats Domino's "Blueberry Hill". The members of RONNY & THE CLASSICS incorporate fantastic impressions, crazy stage antics and the big sound of the rockin oldies to make this a show to remember.

Bring a picnic lunch, a blanket or lawn chair for a rockin' good time!

Saturday, April 19, 2008

11:30 AM

Northwest Branch Library

3323 W. Victory Blvd.

818-238-5640

Brown Bag Book Club to chat about "Rocket Boys"

All members of the public are welcome to attend the “Brown Bag Book Club” which will be meeting and chatting about “Rocket Boys” by Homer Hickam Jr.

The meeting will be on Tuesday, March 18 at 12 Noon at the Central Library in the Literacy Conference Room.

The "Brown Baggers" haven't told me if swapping a PB& J for a couple of chocolate chip cookies is allowed...but bring your lunch and see what happens!

If you are interested in becoming a member of the Brown Baggers please stop by and join us!