Sutherland Shire Libraries News

What happens when you've caught up on all your favourite author's books? Or finally plowed through the eclectic pile beside your bed?

Do you stop reading?........NO!

You could come in to one of your library service's eight locations and spend some time allowing serendipidous discovery to direct you to a title which is just what your were looking for.

You could pester your friends for their favourites and borrow those, only to be quite surprised by the numerous shades of grey, you get and what that might say about the one who suggested it!

Or you can use one of these online Reader's Guides, to find a title or two which matches your reading preference of the moment, check the library has it, request it and then briefly drop in to pick it up at the library location of your choice. All from the comfort of your own lounge.

What could be easier than looking up your favourite author, (for the argument's sake) Matthew Reilly, in

Who Else Write's Like...?








THEN use the Author A - Z to browse OR the Search bar
 










CHOOSE a new author to investigate in the library catalogue from the information provided

























To find a book by it's content, use Novelist







ENTER your key elements for a great read OR browse through the
lists provided





















CHECK title availability in Sutherland Shire libraries catalogue.
SHORTEN a results list using the appeal factors on the left.
















Be left with just what you are looking for!












TIP: If the Check the Library Catalogue search does not find the title
do the search yourself just using the Author's name. Titles of the same
book often differ between publishers or editions.
If it is still not held by Sutherland Shire Libraries and you really want it,
please take advantage of the InterLibrary Loan service.

For more information about these services please ask our staff in person or by phone.

It’s dark, bleak and lonely. The protagonists are often flawed, fractured characters with damaged souls. These are some of the ingredients of Scandinavian-noir, a sub-genre of crime writing popularised by writers such as Stieg Larsson (Swedish), Jo Nesbo (Norwegian) and Henning Mankell (Swedish).

My first encounter with Scandi-noir was via the author Asa Larsson, who I mistakenly borrowed in the place of Stieg in the prime of his popularity. Larsson continues to be a favourite of mine in the genre, her sparse prose borders on the poetic, and the atmosphere she creates of Kiruna in far-North Sweden is visceral and raw. Asa Larsson and the other writers on this list may be lesser known, but they are no less powerful.

Note: This list contains both writers of stand-alone novels and writers of series. It is also not an exhaustive list but rather those I most recommend.
 
Alvtegen, Karin (Swedish)

Arnaldur Indridason (Icelandic)

Blaedel, Sara (Danish)

Bohman, Therese (Swedish)

Edwardson, Åke (Swedish)

Enger, Thomas (Norwegian)

Eriksson, Kjell (Swedish)

Fossum, Karin (Norwegian)

Heivoll, Gaute (Norwegian)

Hjorth, Michael (Swedish)

Høeg, Peter (Danish)

Holt, Anne (Swedish)

Jungstedt, Mari (Swedish)

Kallentoft, Mons (Swedish)

Kepler, Lars (Swedish)

Larsson, Asa (Swedish)

Nesser, Håkan (Swedish)

Ohlsson, Kristina (Swedish)

Persson, Leif G. W. (Swedish)

Roslund, Anders (Swedish)

Tursten, Helene (Swedish)

Yrsa Sigurðardóttir (Icelandic)

Let us know what you think of these writers or of Scandi-noir in general!
(Dasha - Cronulla library)

We know you've been waiting for them and now they're here. The first test New Items Lists are now available.  Thanks for your patience while we worked on these lists and now we'd really like to hear what you think.

Initially we've only created a couple of lists.  Once we've heard your feedback we will create more new items lists for different types of materials.

The first set of lists for New Adult Fiction, New DVDs and New Mills & Boon titles are available now on the Library's catalogue at
http://webpac.sutherlandshire.nsw.gov.au/

A bit more about the New Items Lists...

These new lists work a bit differently to the lists you may have been familiar with on our old system.  Where previously the library produced a self-contained list each month, for example new fiction in July, in the new system the lists are updated daily and cover the previous month.

For instance, the New Adult Fiction list will show adult fiction titles received by the library in the past 4 weeks.  Each day new items added to the collection are then added to the list, while items older than 4 weeks will drop off the list.  Some lists may cover a different period, but all will work on the same continuous rolling model.

In addition, we have added the ability to subscribe to email updates for each list.  If you are interested in new DVDs, for example, you can sign up to receive a daily email listing the new titles added that day.  If there are no new DVDs added that day, no email.  And for any fans of RSS, there's also a feed for each list.


The list of new items in each category are coming from a direct query on our system database. Unfortunately, the items aren't really sorted in any useful order such as title or author. Also, the links to each title point to our 'classic catalogue' and not our main discovery interface (Encore), however, you can still perform all the actions you would otherwise have available (reserve, add to list, etc.)

Ideally we would change those two aspects if we could but it's just not possible.


Check these lists out and leave us a comment with your thoughts and questions or suggestions for other lists you'd like created. We can't promise anything now but we will look at your suggestions and requests and see what we can do.

Have you ever read every single book by your favourite author and then wondered 'What's next?'.

Well, now you won't have to. Sutherland Shire Libraries have just subscribed to the online version of the popular book, Who Else Writes Like . . .?

This new database lists over 2000 authors and suggests other authors that 'write like' them. You can browse by author or genre or search by author, series, character, occupation or environment. Once you've found an author you like, click on the link to find more information including the genre and series they write, a link to their website, a list of prizes they've won and, of course a long list of suggested other authors.

It also has a list of various literary prizes and their winners, so you can check out some of the greatest novels of our time (and see if the judges got it right).

So check it out now and find your new favourite author today. The database can be accessed from home (using your Library card number) and in any Sutherland Shire Library (excluding Bundeena).

Valentines Day is a time to spend with that special someone in your life. You could share a romantic dinner, walk hand in hand along the beach or  . . .

Give that special someone the flick and love your Library instead.

That's right, February 14th is Library Lovers Day and to celebrate, Sutherland Shire Libraries will be decked out with fabulous displays on authors we love and play host to events that celebrate loving your Library. Here's some of whats on:

Elisabeth Storrs - Author Talk

Sydney author Elisabeth Storrs will be giving a free talk on her debut novel. The Wedding Shroud is a beautifully written and thoroughly researched novel on love, life and ancient culture in Italy.

Elisabeth Storrs has long had a passion for history, myths and legends of the ancient world. She graduated from the University of Sydney majoring in Arts (English) / Law and currently lives with her husband and two sons. The Wedding Shroud was researched and written over a period of 10 years. Elisabeth was inspired to write the novel after finding a photo of a 6th Century BC sarcophagus of a husband and wife. The image of the lovers remained with her prompting her to ponder questions about ancient cultural views of women, sensuality and fidelity. Discovering the answers to these questions led her to the decadent and mystical Etruscan civilisation and the little known story of war between Rome and Veii.

When: Monday 14th February 10.30am - 11.30am
Where: Cronulla Library
Cost: Free!
RSVP: Call 9523 4980

Introduction to Romance Writing

Unleash your inner Romeo and Juliet with the help of talented authors Annie West and Cathleen Ross in this exciting and intriguing romance writing workshop. Bring along a pen, notepad and an amorous imagination.  The workshop will cover:

• What is a romance?
• Constructing a hero? Participants can suggest what makes the 'perfect man'
• Conflict in romance
• How to start a romance novel - the importance of the hook
• Participants will write a hook for a romance novel and gain feedback from other participants

Afternoon tea will be provided and bookings are essential, so secure your spot today.

When: Monday 14th February 2pm - 3.30pm
Where: Miranda Library
Cost: $5.00 (sorry no refunds)
Bookings: Call 9524 8217

Library Lovers Day Raffle

To celebrate this fun filled day, all Sutherland Shire Libraries will be holding a free raffle. You can win a great gift basket to share with your loved one . . . or keep it all to yourself. To enter the draw just fill out a ticket at any Sutherland Shire Library. Winners will be drawn on Monday February 14th. Good luck!

So now there's no excuse to stay home on Valentines Day. Come to the Library, get inspired and discover a new love.

Happy Library Lovers Day!

Photo : Getty Images

Writers across Australia have united to raise funds for the Queensland Flood Relief Appeal. Enter Writers on Rafts to win some great prizes donated by over 150 authors including Kate Moss, Rebecca Sparrow, Marcus Zusak, Mem Fox, Morris Gleitzman, Kathy Lette, Anita Heiss, Larissa Behrendt, Melina Marchetta, Kate Morton, Nick Earls and Poh Ling Yeow.
There are four categories of prizes:

• Author visit: have a local, participating author drop into your book club, school or writers group.
• Writer support: have your own work professionally developed.
• Character name: have a character named after you in a participating author's new work.
• Book Pack: receive a selection of signed books by author or genre

You can enter each category as many times as you like and a winner from each state is picked per category. Tickets are $5.00 each. The fundraising goal is $20000 and prizes are drawn on 25th February so get in early to win great prizes.

If you're a budding writer you might like to donate an original short story to the 100 Stories for Queensland anthology. 100% of sales from this anthology will go towards the Queensland Premier's Flood Relief Appeal. Submissions are now open for stories of any genre or for any age group that range from 500-1000 words. Submission deadline is Friday 28th January at 11.59pm so get your story in now.

Have you ever been caught in a rip? Stuck in the current? Dragged under by waves that seemed so much smaller from the shore?

Well now you can learn how to avoid those sticky situations with award winning scientist, university lecturer and published author Dr Rob Brander (aka 'Dr Rip'). Dr Rip will be holiding a free educational seminar and book launch aimed at helping you and your family keep safe in the surf this summer.

For Kids - Mirror by Jennie Baker. This book gives an insight into the lives of two boys and their families: one from inner city Sydney and the other from a remote village in Morocco. There are some great pictures with a great contrast between two cities. Adults will enjoy it too.

For Teens - A waltz for Matilda by Jackie French. This story is rooted in the words of our most famous national song. It is told from the points of view of those who had no vote in 1901: the women, indigenous people, the Chinese market gardeners and Afghan traders. It's a fantastic historical fiction read showing true guts and adversity of the young protagonist.

For Adults - Kitchen : recipes from the heart of the home by Nigella Lawson. This is a nice accompaniment to the show just screened on the lifestyle channel.

Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel. This is the story of King Henry VIII and those around him including Thomas Cromwell. A riveting, beautifully written book whose final sentence left me keenly anticipating the sequel.

The maze runner is my new favourite Young adult novel. (replacing the "Tomorrow when the war began" series. It is a great dystopian book, combining adventure and suspense that keeps you guessing right up to the last page. I am now devouring the second in the series "Scorch trials"- awesome reading!

So do you have a favourite book of 2010?

Let us know by leaving a comment. We're always looking for new books to recommend and we'd love to hear from you.

See you in 2011!

Ruth Park, the author of classic Australian novels and children's books has died in Sydney, aged 93.

Born in Auckland in 1917, Park spent much of her childhood living in tent camps in remote regions as her father worked as a road and bridge builder. Park later reflected that this early exposure to nature influenced her sense of belonging in the adult world.

Park later attended the University of Auckland and became a journalist with the Auckland Star. She moved to Australia in 1942 and married Darcy Niland, a journalist and author most famously known for The Shiralee. Together they raised five children.