Books at Our Branch

This month's new books list, provided by librarians Roberta Greifer and Carol Small, features a new Henry David Thoreau essay for adults, and a trip to the cloud factory and a snoring pig for children. To check out a book's availability, call 695-5095, or visit the Noe ValleySally Brunn Library at 451 Jersey Street near Castro. Besides books, the branch offers magazines, CDs, a new Netscape Navigator computer, and the archives of the Noe Valley Voice. Hours are Tuesdays, 10 to 9; Wednesdays, 1 to 9; Thursdays, 10 to 6; Fridays, 1 to 6; and Saturdays, 10 to 6.
The Bubble Lady, Rebecca Nile!
- Rebecca Nile performs a special program of bubble sculptures and bubble stories, with audience participation, for all ages, on June 27 at 10:30 a.m.
Summer Reading Club 2000
- Children up to age 13 can read books to earn prizes, from June 3 through Aug. 5, at all city public libraries.
Films for Kids
- The library shows films, for children ages 3 to 5, on Tuesday, June 13, at 10 and 11 a.m.
Preschool Story Time
- Kids 3 to 5 are invited to the library's preschool story time, starting at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, June 20.
Infant and Toddler Lapsits
- You and your little ones can sing lullabies and make fingerplays at the lapsits, Wednesdays, June 14, 21, and 28 at 7 p.m.
Adult Fiction
- Set in the repressive world of 1920s' Ceylon, Cinnamon Gardens by Shyam Selvadurai, author of Funny Boy, portrays a respectable married man with a secret desire and a young girl resisting a marriage her family arranged.
- In Old Wounds, a mystery by Nora Kelly, a historian in a sleepy college town becomes unhinged by the murder of a student leading a double life.
- So Vast the Prison by Assia Djebar, a leading North African writer, tells the story of an Algerian woman struggling to overcome the prejudices of a tradition-bound society.
Adult Nonfiction
- Animal Underworld, by Alan Green and the Center for Public Integrity, exposes the cruel and illegal trade of animals from zoos and theme parks by breeders, scientists, and even conservationists with profit on their minds.
- The Ice Finders by Edmund Blair Bolles describes how three diverse men in the 19th century transformed our understanding of natural history and the Ice Age.
- Arranged by both ailment and herb, The People's Pharmacy Guide to Home and Herbal Remedies by Joe and Teresa Graedon, provides an overview of the 50 most popular herbs in the U.S., Europe, and Australia.
- In the never before published Wild Fruits, edited by Bradley P. Dean, Henry David Thoreau reflects on the importance of preserving our "wild" spaces for future generations.
Annotations by Roberta Greifer
Head Librarian, Noe Valley Branch
Children's Fiction
- After being ousted from several places where she wants to sleep, a pig who snores finally finds the perfect place in Bernard Most's picture book Z-Z-Zoink! Ages 2 to 5.
- A lovable and talented dog, homeless for a while, finally finds a family that appreciates him in Benny: An Adventure Story by Bob Graham. Ages 3 to 5.
- The cloud factory may never be the same, following a visit by an artistic boy on a class field trip to Sector 7, by David Wiesner. Ages 3 to 6.
- At first the object of teasing because of a speech impediment, Rodney later deals with Camilla Capybara and becomes a hero in Hooway for Wodney Wat by Helen Lester. Ages 4 to 6.
- Chang, living on a houseboat on the Li River in China, finally gets the pet he's been wanting, and a new friend as well, in Bird Boy by Elizabeth Starr Hill. Ages 6 to 9.
- After several wishes and many magical transformations, a peasant couple have a new appreciation for their child in Luba and the Wren, written and illustrated by Patricia Polacco. Ages 6 to 9.
- When Olivia and her sister Nellie go to stay with their great-aunt, they have no idea what enriching experiences the summer holds in store in The Lost Flower Children by Janet Taylor Lisle. Ages 8 to 11.
- During her year in eighth grade, Alice deals with dating, sexual feelings, prejudice, and other aspects of growing up in Alice on the Outside by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. Ages 10 and up.
Annotations by Carol Small
Children's Librarian, Noe Valley Branch