Author Mary Kay Andrews is Library's Summer Celebrity

Parkland Community Library's annual Summer Celebrity will be author Mary Kay Andrews, who will speak on Thursday, Aug. 9, at 7 p.m. in the Parkland High School auditorium. Reservations are requested at 610-398-1361. Andrews is the author of the New York Times bestselling novels "Spring Fever," "Summer Rental," "The Fixer Upper," "Savannah Breeze," "Blue Christmas," "Deep Dish," "Hissy Fit," "Little Bitty Lies" and "Savannah Blues." She also wrote 10 critically acclaimed mysteries, including the "Callahan Garrity" mystery series, under her real name, Kathy Hogan Trocheck. Her mysteries have been nominated for the Edgar, Anthony, Agatha and Macavity awards. A native of St. Petersburg, FLA, Trocheck earned a bachelor's in journalism from the University of Georgia in 1976. She started her professional journalism career in Savannah, GA, where she covered the real-life murder trials that were the basis of "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil." She left journalism after a 10-year stint as a reporter for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. She is a frequent lecturer and writing teacher at workshops including Emory University, The University of Georgia’s Harriette Austin Writer’s Workshop, the Tennessee Mountain Writer’s Workshop, and the Antioch Writer’s Workshop. She will sign copies of her books, which will be available for purchase. The event is sponsored by Parkland Community Library.

What's New at Parkland Community Library

There is a lot of excitement at the Parkland Community Library! New public laptops, new databases, an updated catalog (coming soon), and new toys for kids! The Parkland Community Library received a grant from Praxair in the amount of $2,000, which it used to purchase new laptops for the public to use while in the library and also to update software, including Microsoft Office 2010. Need reliable information online? New databases by Gale are accessible both in the library and outside the library with your library card number and PIN. These databases include Career Transitions, for finding a job, building a resume, practice interviewing with an interactive interview simulation, and more; Gale Virtual Reference Library, which contains searchable and downloadable reference works covering biographies, business, education, environment, history, law, literature, medicine, multicultural studies, nation & world, religion, science, & the social sciences; InfoTrac Newsstand, with over 2500 publications with full-text search capabilities including the New York Times; and Testing & Education Reference Center, with practice tests and ebooks for high school, college, & adult learners and career tools are also included. In the future, the library’s catalog will also be getting a facelift and will be available not only on your home computer with enhanced features, but also on your smartphone so you can access it from wherever you are! Bringing your kids to the library? Stop by the Children’s Department and let them try out the new puzzles and toys.

New York Times Best-Selling Novelist coming to Allentown!

Join us for Jennifer Weiner's Author Talk & Book Signing on Thursday, May 10th at 1pm.

Held at Temple Beth El, 1305 Springhouse Rd, Allentown, PA.

Five lucky attendees will receive galleys of Ms. Weiner’s The Next Best Thing(coming 7/3) via random drawing!

Books will be available for purchase.

Free and open to the public!

Reservations requested-610-398-1361

Ms. Weiner's novels include GOOD IN BED (2001); IN HER SHOES (2002), which was turned into a major motion picture starring Cameron Diaz, Toni Collette and Shirley MacLaine; LITTLE EARTHQUAKES, (2004); GOODNIGHT NOBODY (2005); the short story collection THE GUY NOT TAKEN (2006); CERTAIN GIRLS (2008), the sequel to GOOD IN BED, BEST FRIENDS FOREVER (2009); FLY AWAY HOME (2010); and THEN CAME YOU (2011).

You belong @ your library® this National Library Week, April 8-14

Whether you are a job seeker looking for resources to land a new job, a parent looking for free activities for children or a student searching for your next favorite book, you belong @ your library.

Today’s libraries help level the playing field by making both print and digital information available and accessible to all people. Libraries provide cultural heritage and genealogical collections, materials in print and electronic formats, job seeking resources, English as second language and citizenship classes and many other creative and resourceful programs.

Libraries have historically served as our nation’s great equalizers of knowledge. The strength of libraries has always been the diversity of their collections and commitment to serving all people. This National Library Week, join our nation’s libraries and librarians by celebrating the place where we all belong.

The Parkland Community Library is celebrating National Library Week by raffling an iPod for everyone.

For adults and families, the library is hosting a Night at the Movies on Tuesday at 6:30pm and The Titanic: a Salute through Dance on Thursday at 6:30 at the Family Center, Jordan Lutheran Evangelical Church, 5103 Snowdrift Rd, Allentown, PA 18069. This Commonwealth Speakers presentation is a program of the Pennsylvania Humanities Council, supported in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities. The Pennsylvania Humanities Council, a nonprofit organization, inspires individuals to enjoy and share a life of learning.

For kids, there is Daddy & Me storytime on Saturday at 10:30am for ages 2 to 5 years and shelf talkers for teen books.

“Today's libraries provide a wide range of opportunities for people with diverse needs and interests,” says Executive Director Debbie Jack. “That means providing their communities with tailor made collections and services for people of diverse backgrounds, language abilities and technological skills.”

First sponsored in 1958, National Library Week is a national observance sponsored by the American Library Association (ALA) and libraries across the country each April.

For more information, visit the Parkland Community Library at 4422 Walbert Avenue, Allentown, Pa 18104, call 610-398-1361 or see the library’s Web site at www.parklandlibrary.org. Libraries hours are Monday-Thursday 10am to 9pm & Friday-Saturday 10am to 5pm.