February 2012 RETURN TO HOME PAGE FEEDBACK

 

Are your thoughts turning to love? Valentine’s Day is coming soon. For many people it’s time to start hunting for that perfect card or box of chocolates. This year, how about making books part of your holiday? The library has thousands of books that celebrate love for everyone in the family. To whet your appetite, we’ve listed a few here. For more inspiration, check the library catalog at www.sfpl.org shelves for books that you will love. 

 

 

Books for Adults

• While visiting Rome, high school sweethearts meet again after 30 years, in The Love of My Youth by award-winning author Mary Gordon.

• Man Booker Prize winner Anne Enright tells the story of an adulterous love affair set during Ireland’s financial boom, in The Forgotten Waltz. 

• Love’s Exquisite Freedom is a poem by Maya Angelou, beautifully illustrated with paintings by 19th-century artist Sir Edward Burne-Jones.

• Rival circus magicians fall in love in The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern.

• Thich Nhat Hanh offers guidance based on Buddhist teachings that can help couples improve communication, deal with emotions, and manage the pressures of daily life, in Fidelity: How to Create a Loving Relationship That Lasts. 

• The 50 Greatest Love Letters of All Time, selected by David H. Lowenherz, includes letters from a variety of artists, authors, and historical figures, including Michelangelo and Henry VIII.

 

Books for Teens

• Fans of the Twilight series can enjoy the love-crossed story of Bella and Edward in a new format in Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Vols. 1 and 2, by Stephenie Meyer, with art and adaptation by Young Kim.

• A debutante in 1815 London is the protagonist ofWrapped by Jennifer Bradbury, a suspenseful novel full of romance and adventure.

• In Ask Elizabeth: Real Answers to Everything You Secretly Wanted to Ask about Love, Friends, Your Body—and Life in General, actress Elizabeth Berkley gives advice on relationships, including tips on “how to get him to notice you.”

 

Books for Children

• Baby will fall in love with her eyes, ears, and even her tummy while turning the pages of Victoria Adler’s All of Baby, Nose to Toes. 6 months to age 3.

• After Yoko the kitten moves to California, she starts an origami correspondence with her grandparents back in Japan, in Yoko’s Paper Cranes by Rosemary Wells. Ages 4 to 7.

• Justin Richardson’s And Tango Makes Three is based on a love story that took place at New York’s Central Park Zoo. In the book version, two inseparable male penguins take turns sitting on an egg and then care for the female chick that hatches. Ages 4 to 8.

• Find out how the newest member of a family takes over his household in the hilarious Boss Baby by Marla Frazee. Ages 6 to 9.

• Grandfather’s Dance, the final book in PatriciaMacLachlan’s Sarah, Plain and Tall series, is about the love shared by a family living on the Great Plains in the early 1900s. Ages 7 to 10.

• Sydney Taylor drew on her own childhood when she wrote All-of-a-Kind ­Family, a captivating portrait of five Jewish sisters growing up in New York’s Lower East Side during World War I. Ages 9 to 12.

• Jerry Spinelli’s Milkweed recounts how a Jewish street child finds love and hope when he is embraced by a group of orphans in Nazi-occupied Warsaw. Ages 11 and up.

 

AT THE LIBRARY

 

Events for Adults

Noe Valley yoga teacher Johanna Friedman will teach a Gentle Yoga class on Thursday, Feb. 9, from 11 a.m. to noon and again on Saturday, Feb. 18, from 3 to 4 p.m. Her chair-based classes are ideal for seniors or people with limited flexibility. The popular San Francisco Shakespeare Festival returns to the library on Saturday, Feb. 11, at 3 p.m. with a 55-minute adaptation of Macbeth followed by an audience question-and-answer session with the cast. Weather permitting, this event will be held outdoors in the library garden, so bring a warm jacket.

The Great Books Discussion Group will meet on Wednesday, Feb. 8, at 6:15 p.m. This group reads famous short stories, essays, and speeches.

The next meeting of the Noe Valley Book Discussion Group takes place on Wednesday, Feb. 15, at 7 p.m. This group reads a variety of books, usually contemporary fiction.

 

Events for Children

Valentine Crafts with Sophie for ages 6 to 11! Join us in making love-laden somethings for your special someones on Tuesday, Feb. 7, 3:30 to 4:30 p.m.

On Tuesday, Feb. 14—Valentine’s Day!—children newborn to age 5 are invited to sing, dance, and play with musician Charity Kahn of the award-winning Charity and the JAMBand. Come with a handmade valentine to add to our “Love the World” poster. 10:30 to 11:30 a.m.

Children’s librarian Catherine presents her Toddler Tales story time on Tuesdays Feb. 7 and 28 for children 18 to 36 months and their parents/caregivers. 10:15 to 10:45 a.m. and 11 to 11:30 a.m.

Based upon favorite picture stories, our Preschool Films will be shown on Tuesday, Feb. 21, at 10:15 to 10:45 a.m. and 11 to 11: 30 a.m. For ages 3 to 5 years and parents/caregivers.

 

All events take place at the Noe Valley/ Sally Brunn Library, 451 Jersey St. near Castro Street. For information, call 415-355-5707 or visit www.sfpl.org.

 

BRANCH HOURS

Noe Valley/Sally Brunn Branch Library

451 Jersey St., 355-5707

Sun	Mon	Tues	Wed	Thurs	Fri	Sat
1-5		10-9	1-9	10-6	1-6	10-6

Eureka Valley–Harvey Milk Branch Library

1 José Sarria Ct. (3555 16th St.), 355-5616

Sun	Mon	Tues	Wed	Thurs	Fri	Sat
	12-6	10-9	12-9	10-6	1-6	1-6

Glen Park Branch Library

2825 Diamond St., 355-2858

Sun	Mon	Tues	Wed	Thurs	Fri	Sat
	10-6	10-6	12-8	1-7	1-6	1-6

Mission Branch Library

300 Bartlett St., 355-2800

Sun	Mon	Tues	Wed	Thurs	Fri	Sat
1-5	1-9	10-9	10-9	10-6	1-6	10-6