Dublin City Libraries launched a Children’s Literacy Project in Croke Park in cooperation with the Dublin GAA County Board for 6th class children from schools in the Dublin City Council area.
Get Reading! Now that school is over you can still spark your imagination, join in activities and take part in our exciting Summer Stars challenge. This year you can do a marathon read, a sprint read or a read from your couch; if you would like to register for the Summer Stars reading challenge, contact your local library.
The section’s main aim is to go out into the community and let people know about all the amazing things available in their library, both in branch and online.
This spring children in Dublin are urged to keep their eyes peeled for mysterious aliens at their local library as Bumpfizzle – the Best on Planet Earth by Patricia Forde, has been chosen for the 2019 Citywide Reading Campaign for Children.Bumpfizzle is an alien, sent to Earth from Planet Plonk on a research mission. Or is he really just a ten-year-old boy who is feeling a bit disgruntled at all the attention his parents are lavishing on The Baby? It is up to readers to make up their own minds. The author, Patricia Forde, has published numerous books for children in English and in Irish, two plays, in addition to several television drama series for children and teenagers. She has worked as a writer on both English and Irish language soap operas. In another life, she was a primary school teacher and the artistic director of Galway Arts Festival.The illustrator Elīna Brasliņa is an illustrator from Riga, Latvia. She has illustrated fifteen titles to date, most of them picturebooks, children’s books and young adult novels. Her work has been nominated for many local awards as well as the prestigious Kate Greenaway Medal. She has twice received the Zelta Abele Award for Book Design, as well as the Janis Baltvilks Baltic Sea Region Award (2017).This is the eighth year of the city wide reading initiative. Previous books selected for the Citywide Reading Campaign in previous years include; Arthur Quinn and the World Serpent by Alan Early, The Nightmare Club series featuring Annie Graves, The Powers by Kevin Stevens, Danger is Everywhere by David O’Doherty and Chris Judge, The Book of Learning by E.R. Murray, Knights of the Borrowed Dark by Dave Rudden and last year’s book was Making Millions by Erika McGann. The aim of the campaign is to encourage children to read for pleasure. There will be author visits to many Dublin City Council branch libraries as well as city-centre based events in bookshops, the National Library of Ireland and Dublin City Gallery – Hugh Lane. The campaign ends with fun events based on the book, as part of the St. Patrick’s Festival’s in Merrion Square. Copies of the book are available in all Dublin City Public Libraries as well as in all good bookshops. Dublin City Council Library stock can be borrowed from libraries nationwide.Key Events;• Author visits to Dublin City Public Library branches between January and March. Class visits booked locally at branch libraries.• Cabra Library, Navan Road, Dublin 7, Tuesday 29th January at 3.30pm (Booking Essential; [email protected] or ph. 8691414).• The National Library of Ireland, Kildare St, Dublin 2. Thursday 7th February at 10am (Booking required: Contact Bríd O’Sullivan [email protected])• Dublin City Gallery - The Hugh Lane, Charlemont House, Parnell Square North, Dublin 1 Saturday 16th March 11am-12pmAuthor Patricia Forde says: “I am delighted and very excited that Bumpfizzle The Best on Planet Earth is the 2019 Citywide Read. Bumpfizzle is an alien- which may attract some funny business from other planets - but I think Dublin children are up for that. I sincerely hope so. We may need heroes before this is over.”(Dublin City Public Library Staff, Patricia Forde and Kids at Launch)(Photo Credit Fennell Photography)You can download a Reading Guide to the book, suitable for teachers and parents at http://www.dublincityofliterature.ie/projects/citywide-read/The campaign is run by Dublin UNESCO City of Literature and Dublin City Council Public Libraries, in partnership with Little Island Books, and is funded by Dublin City Council’s Public Library Service and the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht.
We invite children to delve into the world of Ebony Smart, a 12-year old girl whose world has just changed forever - a new home in Dublin that is full of secrets, a magical book that unlocks the mystery to her past and a mysterious boy called Zach who befriends her – for the Citywide Reading Campaign for Children 2016.The campaign is run by Dublin UNESCO City of Literature and Dublin City Public Libraries, in partnership with Mercier Press, and runs from January to March 2016.The Book of Learning by E.R. Murray is a story of mystery and adventure, and will appeal to both girls and boys of 9 years and older. There will be author visits to branch libraries as well as city-centre based events to promote the campaign, which encourages children to read for pleasure. The book features many well known Dublin landmarks such as Glasnevin Cemetery, the Botanic Gardens, the Natural History Museum, the National Library and Saint Stephen's Green.An t-Ardmhéara Críona Ní Dhálaigh said: "The Book of Learning is a book that will enchant and engage boys and girls from aged 9 upwards, and I encourage children and their parents all across the city to read it and to visit their local Dublin City library to find out more about the fun events taking place. Is scéal draíochtach é a bheadh taitneamhach do éinne thar 9 mbliana d’aois.""I'm delighted The Book of Learning has been chosen for this year's Citywide Reading campaign, especially since Dublin is so central to the story." says E.R. Murray. "I wanted to capture the city's essence in an adventure story that was both magical and mysterious – so get ready for wildcats, enchanted books, underground lairs, and shark submarines! I can't wait to meet lots of young readers at events in the New Year – after all, it's the readers that bring stories to life and make writing so worthwhile."Details of the campaign will be available in early January here and at www.dublincityofliterature.ie. The project is funded by Dublin City Council's Library Service and the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht.
Fiona from Dog's Trust brought her friend Jake the dog to Pearse Street Library on Wednesday, 8th July 2015, where she (Fiona that is, not Jake!) showed the children all they needed to know about looking after a pet.Fiona and Jake are also appearing in Ballymun, Phibsboro', Pembroke, Pearse Street and Raheny during the same week. Check our Events' Listing for details.Above: Jake got a little tired from all the effort at Pearse Street Library. Bless him!We have a wide ranging selection of books and other material on pet care, just some of which you can see in the photo below taken from a recent display in Pearse Street Library. Jake insisted the following list of just some of the titles you can borrow have a heavy emphasis on dogs, his favourite subject (!) (with links to the catalogue):Cats and DogsOwning a Pet DogHow to Look after Your Pet DogLucy the Dog100 Facts on Dogs and PuppiesMy Pet PuppySmall Pet CareYour Ultimate Pet Guide(Click image above to see larger version)
Have you ever wondered is your teacher a vampire or is your pet cat in fact a dangerous tiger? This spring we are inviting boys and girls in Dublin to become qualified ‘dangerologists’ by reading Danger is Everywhere by David O’Doherty as part of our Citywide Reading Campaign for Children. This fun book, which is similar in style to the Wimpy Kid books, points out the dangers of everyday objects from your schoolbag and pet cat to the dangers of having a party or brushing your teeth.This book has great illustrations by Chris Judge and will appeal to both girls and boys of mixed reading abilities. There will be author and illustrator visits to public libraries as well as city-centre based events to promote this campaign. The final event of the campaign will take place as part of the St. Patrick’s Festival. More details will be available over the coming months.The Citywide Reading Initiative is run by Dublin UNESCO City of Literature and Dublin City Public Libraries, in partnership with Puffin Books and encourages children to read for pleasure. The campaign runs from January to March 2015.Remember to log onto www.dublincityofliterature.ie where you can find out more details about this exciting campaign. You can borrow Danger is Everywhere from Dublin City Public Libraries and other public libraries.
At a lecture on children’s literature some years ago, the speaker asked his audience to turn to the person on their right and tell them the story of Little Red Riding Hood. Most of us were getting along quite well – red hood - little girl on the way to her grandmothers’ house - don’t stray from the path - big bad wolf. As we got closer to the end of the story, hesitations and deviations began to creep in. Did the wolf eat the grandmother and the little girl? Were they rescued by the woodcutter/huntsman or did Little Red Riding Hood trick the wolf so that he ends up in the boiling pot on the fire – or was he cut open and filled with stones?The reason for our confusion is of course that there are so many variants of the story. Based on folk tales and myths of werewolves which were common in France in the 16th and 17th centuries, the tale evolved through oral history, Charles Perrault and the Brothers Grimm to become a warning tale in a more sanitized form than the originals.The Perrault and Grimms’ versions are the most widely known, but many other writers have attempted their own stories, from James Thurber to Angela Carter. The history, interpretation and literary analysis of fairy tales is a fascinating subject and well worth a look – author Jack Zipes has written extensively on the subject.'Children's and Household Tales' by the Brothers Grimm celebrates the 200th anniversary of its publication this year. There are many examples of their work in our libraries and we are celebrating Grimms' Fairy Tales during Children’s Book Festival with storytelling, film screenings.
