Children's Bestseller List Now on Cauli 4 Kids Blog

Looking for the current best-selling children's books?  Look no further than my Cauli 4 Kids blog.

Click Image to Bigify

When you visit Catch It @ MPL (Cauli 4 Kids), just scroll down until you see the MPL Logo, next to which is a box listing the current top 40 best-selling children's books.  You may sort the titles according to the age of the intended audience.

Pretty cool!  After you find the books you're interested in reading, visit our Evergreen Indiana online catalog to see if they are available.  You might also visit OverDrive to see if any of these titles are available to download to your digital reading devices.  Of course, you'll need your Evergreen Indiana library card handy.

Advising Readers Since 9 A.M. This Morning,

Cauli Le Chat

MPL Roving Reporter

Young Readers Advisory News Beat

I Appreciate That

Thanks to the alertness of my pal Sparkle the Designer Cat, I'm reminded that February is Cat Appreciation Month.  What should my Library do to celebrate all things Cauli?  I mean, all things feline?  Well, I have some ideas, but I'd appreciate your suggestions in the comments section of this posting.

I Appreciate a Head Scratch (Purr, Purr)

Maybe Boss Lady should select a day in February to be declared Cauli Le Chat Day at MPL.  Patrons could receive buttons featuring my picture, puzzle games for the kids, authentic pawtographs from moi, and other valuable goodies.  I get the kitty snacks, however.

Let me know your ideas, and I'll post them in an upcoming blog.  Certainly, canned tuna-in-oil will be involved.



Thanks, Sparkle, For the Heads-Up,

Cauli Le Chat
MPL Roving Reporter
Holiday News Beat

P.S.  Petula Clark released "The Cat in the Window (The Bird in the Sky)" (1967) as a single.  The song was also covered by the Turtles (see below).  Clearly, producer Sonny Burke was aiming toward the "easy listening" audience in the song's orchestration and overall mood.  It peaked at #26 on Billboard's Hot 100 Pop Singles Chart.

P.P.S.  Compare Petula's version with the Turtles' cover of "The Cat in the Window (The Bird in the Sky)," which was included on the album Wooden Head (1969), an LP collection of single B-sides, rarities, and previously unreleased material.  Which version do you prefer?  Comments, please and thanks.

Sew-Sew (More Rwandan Travel Log)

by "Flat" Cauli II
MPL Flat Feline Foreign Correspondent

My Rwandan travel log continues.  On Tuesday, January 3, 2012, we visited Burema, a small village about nine miles from Kigali.  We met with Father James, who oversees the St. Joseph's mission (of the Evangelical Orthodox Church [EOC]) in Burema.  Fr. James began cultivating a variety of crops--including maize, beans, and sorghum--as well as garden vegetables during the past couple of years here.  But what caught my feline eye was his rabbits, or "hopping dinners," as Cauli Le Chat calls them.  [All January 2011 (or older) photos are courtesy of the EOC missionRwanda website.]

Fr. James' Rabbit Project

(Started in January 2011)

Father James began by raising three rabbits, which have now multiplied to 92 rabbits!  He is hoping to have up to 300 when the project reaches full capacity.  As a protein source, rabbits would be in high demand, and so this could become a staple provider to the local meat diet.  Father James served one of his rabbits to my travel group for lunch, and I must admit it was quite tasty.  (I hope this doesn't offend my friend Morgan the Library Bunny.)  Personally, however, I'm with the real Cauli--I prefer canned tuna-in-oil.

Frank Sewing Association, Burema, Rwanda

(January 2011 Photo)

Next we visited the Frank Sewing Association, which was created in January 2010 to provide employment for the first graduating class of the Peace Arts Training Center.    I was accompanied by Carol, who demonstrated the use of embroidery hoops to the head sewing school ladies.

"Students Patricia Musabyeyezu and

Angelique Mutuyimana at their classwork"

(January 2011 Photo)

The Frank Sewing Association has 22 sewing stations, each equipped with a sewing machine and supplies.  The sewing machines are manually operated by treadles (hence, they are called treadle machines).  Each seamstress learns a variety of sewing techniques with different types of fabrics.  Most recently, students have made clergy shirts for sale.  Could this have been in anticipation of the three EOC bishops who were visiting?  That's the entrepreneurial spirit!  With such well-attuned marketing instincts, the students' business success is assured.

Knitting is Another Valuable Seamstress Skill

(January 2011 Photo)

Standing Outside the Entrance to the

Peace Arts Training Center

(January 2012)

Carol also demonstrated a new design for a Czech-style baby blanket to the staff and students.  I have no idea about the correct spelling, for which I apologize, but the blanket is called a czavinavacha.  I was even allowed to model one for the class!

Moi Modeling a Czech-Style Baby Blanket

Called a Czavinavacha (sp?)

(January 2012)

Anyone who can sew, embroider, or use other craft-making skills to create beautiful items out of a vast array of materials, is truly amazing.  They are artists of the highest order, in my opinion.  Cats are better at playing with yarn than making clothing or other household items--this is particularly true for "flat" felines like moi--so I was quite impressed with the students' work.  It is another example of the terrific educational endeavors being undertaken by the Rwandans, with the assistance of generous charitable efforts by organizations such as the EOC.

My EOC travel buddies finished our Rwandan trip with many important meetings, organizing future projects and coordinating continuing cooperative enterprises with many Rwandan communities.  While this was going on, I usually just absorbed the local sights and sounds.  I had fun learning several intriguing games from the children.

Sadly, it was time to leave my new Rwandan friends and return to America.  But I have fond memories of a friendly, gracious, and caring people who welcomed us into their homes with open arms.  It was a wonderful traveling adventure, and I hope someday that I might return.  Maybe Father James will have his 300 rabbits by then.  Just saying.

Your "Flat" Feline Foreign Correspondent on the Go,

"Flat" Cauli II

Reporting for Cauli Le Chat

More "Flat" Cauli Rwandan Adventures

by "Flat" Cauli II
MPL Flat Feline Foreign Correspondent

Last time, I reported about my arrival in Rwanda and some of the exhilarating activities that filled our first few days of exploration and adventure.  Let's return to Kigali and the home of the Mugabo family.  [All January 2011 (or older) photos are courtesy of the EOC missionRwanda website.]

Mugabo Family Home

Shared With the Peace International School

in Kigali, Rwanda (January 2011)

Students Sharing Desks at the

Peace International School

(January 2011)

Bishop Denis Mugabo and his wife, Dativa, founded the Peace International School.  Following the horrific days of the genocide (1994), they wanted to help improverished families educate their children.  As of last year, over 100 orphans and poor children attended the school, which includes the grades equivalent to an American elementary school.  Without facilities such as the Mugabo's Peace International School, most Rwandan children could not afford the cost of basic education.  Much of the school's funding is provided through charitable contributions from members of the Evangelical Orthodox Churches.

Teachers at Peace International School

(January 2011)

Seven teachers were hired at a monthly salary of $100 (excluding three months when they are not instructing students).  Donations and other funding provide students with materials, uniforms, and other resources.  Students demonstrate a burning desire to learn.  Like their teachers, students are enthusiastic, hard-working, and highly motivated to succeed.  Much of school routine is daily recitation, as this is a cost-effective learning regimen (particularly when writing materials can be expensive).  Students love music and crafts.

Students at Peace International School (2008)

Dativa Mugabo is the school's administrator, and her dedication and commitment to her staff and students are evident.  One example will illustrate.  Before 6:00 a.m., Dativa  begins preparations for the day's learning, and she hits the streets to ensure that her students arrive safely.

"Students are Eager and Alert"

(January 2011)

School sessions run from January through March, mid-April through June, and mid-August through October.  Students receive an impressive education despite limited resources.  Everyone does her or his best to guarantee that the learning experiences will be productive and fun.

Students learn English in school, but citizens also speak French and Kinyarwandan (i.e., Rwandan) as the country's national languages.  There are regional dialects, of course, such as Kirundi (or Rundi), and some Swahili is spoken.

In 2011, construction began on a new building for Peace International School.  It was planned to be part of a multi-structure educational complex.  Thanks to charitable contributions from EOC members, this project will provide vastly superior facilities for many more Rwandan students to receive a quality education.

The Mugabo family, too, have enjoyed much-needed home improvements.  They now have electricity and running water into their house, which makes everyday living vastly easier. My American readers might take such amenities for granted, but in Rwanda, many people do not have such conveniences, the absence of which makes daily life more challenging and difficult.

In our next installment, we will visit Peace Arts Training Center in Burema, Rwanda.

Your "Flat" Feline Foreign Correspondent on the Go,

"Flat" Cauli II

Reporting for Cauli Le Chat

Not a Good Sleeping Spot For Moi

Where'd this display case come from?

I found it last Saturday in my Library's Youth Services Department.

I immediately assessed the situation with my shrewd feline observational powers.

• It was empty--utterly devoid of kitty snacks or soft fabric or blankets for cat napping.
• It was illuminated by a fluorescent lightbulb.
• It has doors to keep non-felines out.

I wonder how comfortable this would be as a snooze-spot?

Not a Good Snoozing Spot For Moi

I wonder what Broadway Gal has in mind for this display case?  What should she put in there?

Great display, Broadway Gal!  These are old classic children's books from our juvenile collections, and--you'll like this--the books circulate, if you have an Evergreen Indiana library card.

So, how old are these books, you may ask?

Hey, Broadway Gal.  Some of these books are older than, say, Boss Lady, Scowl-Face, CircMaster, Cataloger Queen, or CompuGal.  Some are even older than the Decorinator or Office Meister.

So, now I'll get in trouble for making some of my colleagues seem as ancient as Methuselah.  Hey, age is a venerated trait.  These folks should have statues erected in their honor because they have acquired the wisdom that comes with maturity.

I bet that didn't extricate moi from hot water.  Well, none of my senior colleagues is old.  Working in my Library keeps everyone young in mind, heart, and spirit.

Drop by the MPL Youth Services Department to check-out one of these wonderful classic books.  Read like your grandparents used to do when they were your age, youngsters!  That was back when chapter books had more words than pictures.

Just Kidding About the Whole Age Thing,

Cauli Le Chat

MPL Roving Reporter

Library Collections News Beat

P.S.  "Golden Years," by David Bowie, might be an appropriate musical closer for this posting.  Then again, maybe not.  The song was initially released as a single (1975) but was subsequently included on Bowie's LP Station to Station (1976).

"Flat" Cauli's Rwandan Adventures

by "Flat" Cauli II
MPL Flat Feline Foreign Correspondent

As you might recall, Cauli Le Chat blogged earlier about my trip to Rwanda.  Recently, I returned to the Library with many exciting adventures to report.

Let's begin by thanking my friends at the Evangelical Orthodox Church (EOC) (particularly Bishop Joshua, Carol, and Kathy) for taking moi along on this trip of a lifetime.  I may have gotten a little confused about dates, so please bear with moi if my calendar is slightly off.  (Come to think of it, I guess I'm slightly off anyway because of the way I tilt when standing upright.  We "flat" Caulis tend to lean a bit to one side.)  I have taken the liberty of borrowing a few photos from the EOC Rwanda website so you may see some of the fine work being done by EOC to help the people of Rwanda.  (Remember to click the photos to "bigify" them, as my pal Tober the Library Cat says.  Well, he spells it "biggify," but I think both spellings are correct.)

Bp. Denis & Dativa Mugabo, with family & friends, January, 2011

When we arrived in Kigali, Rwanda on Friday night (Dec. 30, 2011), we were welcomed at the home of Bishop Denis Mugabo and Dativa Mugabo. They are a large family, and so we had to take several photos for everyone to pose with moi.  

 "Flat" Cauli II with the Mugabo Family (January 2012)

The Mugabo family were most hospitable.  Dativa served a scrumptious meal, and we exchanged gifts with the children.  Everyone seemed curious about moi and my travelling as a "flat" Stanley-type character from Mooresville Public Library.  I enjoyed learning about the interesting, fun games the children played, and also what they learned in school and how they worked around their home and community.

Hoe Farming Near Byumba, Rwanda

(Hillside Terrace Cultivation Methods)

On Sunday, January 1, 2012, our travel group visited Byumba, Rwanda, which is in the mountains.  The air was cool and refreshing.  Terrace farming is common on the hillsides in this area.  Tea is a major cash crop. We enjoyed a wonderful lunch of beef, cooked bananas, rice, "chips" (i.e., fried potatoes), cheese, other potatoes, and beverages.  The Rwandan people are most gracious hosts, and they go to great lengths to make us feel welcome and comfortable.

On Monday, January 2, we traveled to Akagera National Park to see some African wildlife.  I'm hoping to have some photos soon to post (our group's official camera operator has been sending them to CircMaster). There were many amazing animals.  It was exciting to see them in their native habitats rather than just in zoos like "Flat" Cauli III, Cauli Le Chat, and minions saw when visiting the Indianapolis Zoo before Christmas last month.

In our next posting, we'll talk more about the Peace International School that operates at the Mugabo home in Kigali.

Your "Flat" Feline Foreign Correspondent on the Go,

"Flat" Cauli II

Reporting for Cauli Le Chat

P.S.  Please enjoy this video by Terra Incognita Ecotours showcasing Akagera National Park.

Omigosh!

Wild Thang (Miss Jaymi) and Sammy the Toucan have produced their latest early literacy video (and blog posting) for the letter O o.  Omigosh!, as Sammy would say (and Wild Thang actually does say in this video).  It's fantastic.  But that's the high standard they have set, so we've come to expect it.

More exciting news from the early literacy front.  Broadway Gal and Wild Thang are doing a video to try to win a partially-funded trip to the Public Library Association (PLA) annual conference bigbash (March 13-17, 2012) in Philadelphia.  Want details?

Click to Bigify

(Not My Fault If It Doesn't)

GOOD LUCK to Broadway Gal and Wild Thang!  We hope your video wins a spot in the top five (but, more importantly, wins the cash for the trip).  If we may help in any way, please don't hesitate to ask, and I'll have my minions get to work immediately.  Just one suggestion, however.  Don't let Scowl-Face handle the camera without a tripod.  Just saying.

O Could Be For Omelette--Just Saying, But Now I'm Hungry,

Cauli Le Chat
MPL Roving Reporter
Early Literacy News Beat

P.S.  Let's revisit Woodsy Owl, who does those snappy public service announcements (PSAs) for the U.S. Forest Service (U.S. Department of Agriculture).  This one's short-and-sweet.

P.P.S.  Have we already used "Night Owl," by Gerry Rafferty, from the album by the same name (1979), as a musical closer?  I don't think so.  Well, it fits this posting too well to pass up.

P.P.P.S.  Naturally, we must include "Octopus's Garden," by the Beatles, from the LP Abbey Road (1969).

 

Dream Big, My Porcine Pal

Dream Big, Little Pig! by Kristi Yamaguchi (illustrated by Tim Bowers), is a wonderful early readers' book that adults and young children will enjoy reading together.  I've blogged before (maybe twice) about this book, but we have an updated book trailer, so it deserves a reprise.

The book trailer was a joint enterprise between Mooresville Public Library (MPL Video Productions) and GPL (i.e., Beatrix) Butterfly Productions (Greenwood Public Library).  The video was created by the Lady With the Red Hair, and the Music Man composed the soundtrack.  Scowl-Face put the MPL logo at the beginning as a "bumper."

The book is available in our online Evergreen Indiana catalog.

Perseverance Pays,

Cauli Le Chat
MPL Roving Reporter
Young Children's Readers Advisory News Beat

P.S.  Songs about perseverance abound in pop music, but I'm partial to "Get It Right Next Time," by Gerry Rafferty, from his album Night Owl (1979).  Rafferty is shown here recording the song in the studio.

Another Savvy Book Trailer

Savvy, our new MPL Young Adult Librarian, has created an excellent book trailer featuring the young adult novel, The Season, by Sarah MacLean.  The book is available in our online Evergreen Indiana catalog.

Click Image to Play Book Trailer

Great Work, Savvy,

Cauli Le Chat

MPL Roving Reporter

YA News Beat

P.S.  Speaking of seasons, there are a bajillion songs about the four seasons (as well as a 1960s pop group by that name).  A favorite is "A Summer Song" (1964), by Chad & Jeremy.  "Summer Breeze," by Seals & Crofts, is another fine seasonal song, which was included on the LP by the same name (1972).  Both of these folk-rock hits were performed by duos, and both reached #7 on Billboard's Hot 100 Pop Singles Charts.  How's that for coincidence?

Friday Features -- Sledding Treasures and Prehistoric Critters

This week's Friday Features shows what's currently hot on the MPL YouTube Channel.  Drum-roll, if you please . . .

Click to Bigify

New to the current top ten list is our book trailer for the children's classic Snow Treasure, about which we have previously blogged in my Cauli 4 Kids blog.

Click Image to Play Book Trailer

The Lady With the Red Hair randomly selected #89 (out of our 142 current book trailers) to showcase in today's Friday Feature.  I wonder which video that is?  I only remember the important videos (i.e., those about moi.)

Click Image to Play Book Trailer

My Library blogged about this book trailer, too.  Watch out, though--it's a Scowl-Face snooze-post.

Are these books available in our online Evergreen Indiana catalog?

Thanks For Watching Our YouTube Videos,

Cauli Le Chat

MPL Roving Reporter

YouTube Video News Beat

P.S.  Our musical closer today is the I-P Alphabet Song video that Wild Thang (Miss Jaymi) created for her early literacy programs, blog, and YouTube channel.  It, too, has climbed this week's top ten hit parade.

Breaking Library News, a Century Ago

Scowl-Face has put together a dandy historical snapshot of library news from October, 1911 through January, 1912, as part of my Library's 100th anniversary celebration this year.  Want to read it?  You're brave souls indeed.  You know where to click.

Be sure to put a pillow near where your head will fall when you nod off.  This is Scowl-Face's writing we're talking about, remember.  There's no better insomniac aid on the market.

Celebrating a Century of Library Service,

Cauli Le Chat

MPL Roving Reporter

Library Anniversary News Beat

P.S.  Last time we talked about our 100th anniversary celebration, I closed with a fan's video interpretation of "I Never Thought I'd Live To Be a Hundred," by the Moody Blues, which appeared on the album To Our Children's Children's Children (1969).  This time, the video above shows the band members  against the soundtrack of the song and its reprise, "I Never Thought I'd Live to Be a Million," which also appeared on the same album.  The photos appear to be mostly from the late 1960s/early 1970s, at least during the first video segment; during the second segment, the photos are much more recent (last decade or so?), because the group is, frankly, much older, too.  Ask the Lady With the Red Hair sometime about her experience seeing the Moody Blues live in concert at Purdue University back in the 1980s.  Trust moi, it's worth it.

Virtual Cauli At Your Service!

2014 UPDATE:  This Google Blogger gadget stopped working, and so we had to remove it.  Sorry.

Thanks to the creative folks out there in cyberspace (and the marketing people at Google/Blogger) for posting the "Virtual Cat" gadget among their various blog page accoutrements.  I've added Virtual Cauli Le Chat just beneath the "About Me" section (on the right side of the blog, beneath "Blog Archive").

Virtual Cauli Le Chat

The image above is just a picture, so nothing will happen there.  But if you point your mouse cursor on and around Virtual Cauli on the live blog, watch and listen.  Something's bound to happen.

This gadget came complete with hyperlinks about SOPA and PIPA (that's okay--it's important to educate ourselves about such legislation), as well as icons linking to some online vendors.  The advertising was not my idea, I can assure you, but it's embedded in the code by Blogger/Google, and, so, there it is.  Click or avoid those extras at your discretion.

Virtual Cauli is mighty cute.  Not as cute as the original, of course.  Some things are beyond obvious.

Rub My Belly, Willya?  Just Asking,

Cauli Le Chat

MPL Roving Reporter

Blogger Gadgets News Beat

A Children's Cat Classic

Whiskers & Rhymes, by Arnold Lobel (HarperCollins, 1988) is a cat-lover's delight.  Recommended for readers ages 4 and up, it is the kind of early readers' book that you youngsters will read yourselves (or your folks will read to you), and then, when you're grown-up, you will read aloud to your children, and, years later, to your grandchildren, and, even more years later still, to your great-grandchildren.  It is witty, funny, engaging, and simply wonderful.

Guess what?  Savvy, MPL's new Young Adult Librarian, has made a book trailer that will tell you all about this charming book.  As book trailers go, Savvy has created a wonder to behold.

Just Click the Image Above to Play the Book Trailer

This book is available in our online Evergreen Indiana catalog.  But you knew that it would be, right?

As you know, we really enjoy making book trailers and other videos at my Library.  So we welcome talented staff with open paws.  We can't wait to have Savvy start making videos at my Library!  We're so excited that we might need an extra can of tuna-in-oil just to calm ourselves.  Better make that three cans.  I had a light lunch.

Fantastic Video, Savvy,

Cauli Le Chat

MPL Roving Reporter

Library Video News Beat

P.S.  Savvy has a couple of YouTube Channels of her own, which I'd like to blog about in a future posting, but I'd probably better ask her first if it's okay.  Is it okay, Savvy?  That's moi, asking nicely.

Lithuanian Adventures, Continued

by "Flat" Cauli IV

Flat Feline Foreign Correspondent

AND

Shay Laws

English Teaching Assistant
Vincas Grybas Gymnasium
Luksiai, Lithuania

While playing a pick-up basketball game with my new Lithuanian friends, I pulled a paw muscle, which sounds worse than it actually is, but it prevents moi from typing this report.  By the way, I scored eight points (including two dunks), had 12 assists, and pulled down nine rebounds.  I'm short, but I can really jump high!

Miss Shay came to my rescue by offering to type an "open letter" to my eager readers around the globe.  She concisely captured the excitement of our adventures around her school with her students.  So, without further ado, I turn the blog over to Miss Shay.

Labas, friends at the Mooresville Public Library! 

My name is Shay, and I am so excited to be hanging out with Flat Cauli and showing her around Lithuania! She arrived the other day and spent a few days recovering from jetlag (it's a long trip all the way from Indiana to Lithuania! I think Flat Cauli said that she was on the plane for over seven hours! Wow!) 

Now that she is nice and relaxed, Flat Cauli is ready to start going on some adventures. To begin her trip, she came to Luksiai Vincas Grybas Gymnasium with me to meet some of the students who sent their friends Flat Geidre, Flat Aiste, and Flat Dovydas to visit her in Indiana. The students showed her around the school and told her a little bit about its history and what it's like to be a student there today.

Here is a picture of our school. In Lithuania, "gymnasium" is usually the name given to a school that has grades 9-12 (like an American high school). Our school is a little different because we have an elementary school and middle school partnered with the gymnasium. That's why our school has students from 2nd grade to 12th grade (children in Lithuania go to Kindergarten until they are 6 or 7; that's why elementary schools start in the 2nd grade). Flat Cauli is hanging out mostly with the students in the 8th grade, but she's making friends with everyone. You can see in the picture that it has been snowing here. Usually in the winter, there is a lot of snow. It has been pretty warm here, though, this year, and this is the most snow we've seen yet!

Here is Flat Cauli visiting the students and making new friends.

Some of the students showed Flat Cauli around school.  Here she is next to the trophy case.  Our students are very accomplished. There are some awards for basketball tournaments that the school has won, music awards won by the choir, dance trophies from different competitions, and academic awards from when students won Olympiad and Informatics competitions.

Not only do our students win competitions for sports, music, and academics, but they are also great artists.  Student art decorates the halls of our school.  Here Flat Cauli is with one of her favorite pieces.

Flat Cauli likes all of the plants that we have around our school. It is very popular for people in Lithuania to have plants in their houses and offices, so of course we have a lot of plants throughout the school. Here is Flat Cauli playing in one of them!

Flat Cauli  took a break in the computer lab to check her email.  Then she went to watch some basketball. 

Flat Cauli isn't our only visitor right now.  We also have Flat Kiana from Las Vegas visiting us.  They wanted to go outside and play in the snow, but we had to tell them that they'd have to wait until after school.  We had to get back to our lessons! Here they are by the big windows so that they could look at the snow!

That was our first day at Luksiai Vincas Grybas Gymnasium together! We can't wait to go on more adventures! 

Talk to you soon,

Shay

Now that, my friends, is how you write a travel log.  Many thanks, Miss Shay, for filling-in for moi as special correspondent while my paw recovers.  Maybe it was dunking the basketball that strained it.

"Flat" Cauli IV

Flat Feline Foreign Correspondent

Reporting for Cauli Le Chat

P.S.  How huge a sport is basketball in Lithuania?  Check out this amazing finish in a game between Zalgiris and Lietuvos rytas.  That's some fantastic playing!  Are all basketball games in Lithuania this exciting?