Nick van Frankenhuyzen will be at the Adrian Public Library on April 14th

Nick van Frankenhuyzen will be at Adrian Public Library in time for spring. In addition to being a well-known illustrator and children's author, he is also interested in wildlife rehabilitation. If you are interested in a local author who can do a wide range of activities with kids (art, wildlife issues, book reading), he is a great choice!

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On Saturday, April 14, 1-3 p.m. artist Gijsbert van Frankenhuyzen will visit the Adrian Public Library for a presentation/signing to discuss his work illustrating T is for Titanic: A Titanic Alphabet, his latest children’s book from Sleeping Bear Press. Written by Michael and Debbie Shoulders, T is for Titanic relates the history of the ship and its tragic sinking. Original oil paintings by van Frankenhuyzen capture the grandeur and the tragedy of this moment in history.

Lisa Lutz will be at the Hazel Park Memorial Library next month

Hazel Park Memorial Library has a great event coming up with mystery writer Lisa Lutz. I had somehow missed this author and after reading the reviews of her books, I know have the first one on hold at my library. For anyone who likes the books, this promises to be a great event and if you haven't read the books, apparently we have missed something!

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Lisa Lutz, NY Times best-selling author of the Spellman Files series, is coming here to
the Hazel Park Memorial Library in support of her new book that comes out Feb.
28th. We are soooo geeked! We are going to be her only stop in MI. She will be here March 14th from 6-8 PM reading from her new book and signing copies. Copies of her new book will be available for purchase at the event. The event is of course free and open to the public.

Fremont Area District Library's Writers Live! @ your library

The Fremont Area District Library has an annual Writers Live! @ Your Library program and always have an excellent group of speakers. Sometimes I wish I lived closer to Fremont. For 2012, the have the following five programs.

• Feb. 16th - Jim Cooper and Friends play Jazz of hte 1920s as part of the Great Michigan Read with the excellent book, Arc of Justice, a Saga of Race, Civil Rights, and Murder in the Jazz Age by Kevin Boyle.
• March 6th - Dan E. Johnson, author of award winning mystery novels, The Detroit Electric Scheme and Motor City Shakedown. I have heard I should put these on my reading list.
• March 24th - Bruce and Bernadette Butgereit, Civil War Nurse Reenactment from Words of the Soldiers: The Story of Annie Etheridge.
• April 12th - Tess Grant, author of a teen suspense series, the first of which is Trajectories.
• November 8th - Nick Timmer, author of Forever Twenty, a World War II remembrance history.

Willard Public Library is hosting Helen Simonson on January 26th

I have been remiss in my posting lately and Willard Public Library has come to my rescue. They will be hosting Helen Simonson at the end of the month. Her debut novel, Major Pettigrew's Last Stand is on my list for reading. Booklist's review complimented it on being a sharply observed domestic comedy ... a dash of P. G. Wodehouse ... the perfect lens through which to view contemporary England" Not bad for a first time novelist. What a great choice. 

What are other libraries up to for 2012 plans and spring author visits?

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Willard Library in Battle Creek is pleased to present....author, Helen Simonson !

Thursday, January 26th, 2012
7:00 pm (doors open at 6:00 pm)
Burnham Brook Community Center

Helen Simonson's debut novel, Major Pettigrew's Last Stand, is one of two novels chosen for this year's Battle Creek Reads Program. For more information on the Battle Creek Reads Program & a complete schedule of events visit www.willard.lib.mi.us.

Maurice Sendak exhibit and related author events at Spring Lake District Library

We can't always get big name authors at our libraries, but that doesn't mean we can't have events related to them to draw in fans and create a tapestry of related topics and events. Spring Lake District Library is doing this with a Maurice Sendak exhibit and related events. I am a fan of having related events around the theme of an exhibit, a one book selection, an author visit, etc. I think it brings in people who might not have been interested in the main event a way to participate and for those who are busy (everyone these days) another chance to come if the main event is not at a good time for them.

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Libraries offer much more than books in today’s world. Spring Lake District Library will be offering the community a taste of Jewish history and culture from Dec. 28, 2011 to Feb. 24, 2012, the dates the library will be hosting “In a Nutshell: The Worlds of Maurice Sendak” “In a Nutshell” is a traveling exhibit about renowned children’s book author and illustrator Maurice Sendak...

The schedule of Sendak programs is as follows:

•             Thursday, Jan. 5 at 7:00 p.m.

Holocaust survivor Dr. Maria Orlowski, born Miriam Winter, shares her story of survival. Hear how 8 year old Miriam was turned over to a stranger on a train in an attempt to keep her safe in war-torn Poland during WW II. Copies of Maria’s book Trains: A Memoir of a Hidden Childhood During and After World War II will be available for purchase and signing following her presentation.       

•            Sunday, Jan. 8 from 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.                                            

Oompa! Live Klezmer Music featuring Heartland Klezmorim. Experience traditional Klezmer music at its best. Klezmer originated in the shtetl' (villages) of  Eastern Europe where Jewish troubadours known as 'klezmorim' performed at happy events such as weddings.

•             Monday, Jan. 16 at 7:00 p.m.

Brundibar: music and images from the children’s opera composed by Hans Krasa. This opera was performed 55 times by children in the Terezin concentration camp. Speaker Don Hoogenstyn Jr. shares the unforgettable history of the children’s opera. The opera was later the basis for the book Brundibar which was illustrated by Maurice Sendak.

•                 Thursday, Jan. 26 at 7:00 p.m.               

In the Night Kitchen: Traditional Jewish Cooking with Marla Tulett. Marla demonstrates how to make a traditional Jewish dish and provides samples for audience. 

Call 616.846.5770 to register or for more information.

Cromaine District Library's upcoming author events - Colleen Gleason & Robert Laura

Things get so busy at this time of year, that it is nice to step back and see what programming is going on in our libraries. These events would all be great ways to spend a few hours and may spark an idea for a visit in your library. While not an "author" visit, Cromaine is also doing a series on Harry Potter - one with a speaker about astronomy, another with an herbalist, one with medieval foods. It's a nice way to have a popular series without repeating the same topic.

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• Creating a New World with Colleen Gleason – for Writers and Readers

Thursday, February 2 at 6:30 pm

Colleen Gleason, acclaimed Livingston County author, has created very believable and very different worlds in the vampire slayer series set in Regency England and then in the post-apocalyptic series written as Joss Ware. Come learn as a writer and a reader what it takes to create a believable, but fictional, world. Books for sale and signing. Register – Village.

• Get Your Life in Order – Naked Retirement with Robert Laura

Tuesday, January 31 at 6:30 pm

Fun and creative approach to retirement that strips away the numbers and addresses everyday life in retirement. Learn how to replace your work identity, stay socially connected, and remain physically healthy, and more. Too many people start their first day of retirement with only financial plan and nothing else. Don't let this happen to you and avoid the dark side of retirement. Robert Laura’s book, Naked Retirement, will be given away to the first five registrants. Register – Village.

Michigan author Jerry Dennis at two libraries in November

Jerry Dennis is a favorite for author visits and his books are great choices to give to readers with an interest in Michigan's natural settings and history. He'll be in Traverse City and Grand Rapids this month. If you are in the area, take time out to see him speak. As the Peninsula Community Library listing notes, he's also been one of the Michigan Library Association authors of the year.

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• November 21 – Peninsula Community Library , Old Mission Peninsula, Traverse City, MI, 7-9 pm

Great Lakes Country

Bestselling author, Jerry Dennis, joins us Nov. 21 at 7 p.m. to talk about his new book, The Windward Shore:  A Winter on the Great Lakes.  Jerry has been a Michigan Author of the Year and calls Old Mission home.

• November 30 – Grand Rapids Public Library, Main Library, Grand Rapids, MI 7-9 pm

A Winter on the Great Lakes

Jerry Dennis will read from and discuss his powerful and insightful new book about winter in Great Lakes country. Grounded by a knee injury, Dennis learned to live at a slower pace while staying in accommodations ranging from a log cabin on Lake Superior's Keweenaw Peninsula to a $20 million mansion on the northern shore of Lake Michigan. Walking beaches and exploring nearby woods and villages, he muses on the future of the Great Lakes, the nature of time, weather, waves, agates, books, words for snow and ice, our complex relationship with nature and much more.  A book signing will follow the presentation.