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As Teen Read Week 2008 approaches, the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) offers several tools aimed at helping librarians, booksellers, educators, and others promote events in their libraries, stores, schools, and communities. Teen Read Week will be celebrated Oct. 12–18 by nearly 5,000 libraries across the United States, with a theme of Books with Bite @ your library®.
 
YALSA offers several publicity tools on the Teen Read Week Web site, including sample press releases, proclamations and letters to the editor to encourage support for Teen Read Week. YALSA also offers scripts for public service announcements (PSAs) in both Spanish and English, which can be read during school announcements or given to the community radio station to be read on air. In addition, Nancy Cartwright, who plays Bart on “The Simpsons,” recorded three PSAs, which can be downloaded. All of these excellent tools, plus a podcast on tips to use them, are available by visiting http://www.ala.org/teenread and clicking “Get Publicity.”
 
Teen Read Week is a national literacy initiative aimed at teens, their parents, librarians, educators, booksellers and other concerned adults. The purpose of the event is to increase the number of teens who are regular readers and library users. It began in 1998 and is celebrated the third week in October. For more information or to register, visit the Teen Read Week Web site at http://www.ala.org/teenread.

> from Channel Weekly, Vol. 11, No. 4, October 4, 2008 - posted with permission

It's Banned Books Week! You've probably run across this video from AL Focus already, but just in case you haven't, take a look at I'd Like to Find *BLEEP*



Appleton Public Library director Terry Dawson has been blogging about Banned Books Week on his blog, the New Cybrary. Be sure to check out his thoughtful posts there. How have you been celebrating the freedom to read at your library? Share your stories or thoughts about the video in the comments.

> contributed by Beth

There are a variety of events coming up this Fall that you can promote at your library. Here's a gathering of a few with links to ideas and additional info.

Library Card Sign-up Month
September
The InfoSoup PR Committee sent out some cool posters to all OWLSnet directors to be posted in your community by September 1st to help celebrate this event. Please be sure to get the posters up, and if you need more, order some from Bradd. Read more about the Poster Campaign on the InfoSoup Info page.

AskAway Week
September 8-12
Help promote the Wisconsin Virtual Reference service AskAway. A press release, article, scripts, MP3 files, logo, and more are available for your use on the AskAway PR Wiki. 

Banned Books Week
September 27-October 4
Celebrate the freedom to read! Learn more about Banned Books Week, how to celebrate it at your library, and order promotional items on the ALA website. I also came across some great quotes to use via the PR-Talk discussion list. Here are a few:

• "Books and ideas are the most effective weapons against intolerance and ignorance." Lyndon Baines Johnson
• "We are not afraid to entrust the American people with unpleasant facts, foreign ideas, alien philosophies, and competitive values. For a nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people." John Kennedy
• "The ultimate expression of free speech lies not in the ideas with which we agree, but in those ideas that offend and irritate us." Chuck Stone
• "Don't join the book burners. Don't think you are going to conceal thoughts by concealing evidence that they ever existed." Dwight D. Eisenhower
  

Teen Read Week
October 12-18
This year's theme is Books with Bite@ Your Library! Read more about this event and how to promote it at your library on the YALSA website.

Will you be celebrating any of these events or others in your library this Fall? Let us know what you have in the works!

> contributed by Beth

The Wisconsin Statewide AskAway publicity committee is sponsoring a YouTube contest for teens.  This is a great opportunity for library youth groups to try something new, get some publicity, and prizes.  The committee is looking for original videos between 30 and 60 seconds long (can be longer) that depict the AskAway service in a positive way; why they use and like it.  A $150 first prize and a $75 second prize will be offered.   Additional details about contest rules and contest forms will be announced soon.

Everyone's help is needed to make this a successful contest.  Please talk to your young adult and/or children's librarians at your library.  If you are the youth services/young adult/children's librarians please consider having your young adult group enter.

The committee is looking for Young Adult librarians to be judges!  No experience necessary.  If you want to be a judge in the contest please contact Renee Ponzio at reneep@eauclaire.lib.wi.us.

Please visit the Wiki site at http://askaway.pbwiki.com/FrontPage where you will find tons of information, posters, and other materials to help your library promote AskAway to your patrons.  For more information about the contest, contact Renee Ponzio, Chairperson, Statewide AskAway Publicity Committee, at (715) 839-1683 or reneep@eauclaire.lib.wi.us.

From Channel Weekly, Vol. 10, No. 27, April 10, 2008

On March 18, 2008, Appleton Library Adult Programming hosted a gaming event using the Wii system available from OWLS.  Many people might assume that video gaming appeals primarily to teens and younger library patrons, but this event proved that gaming can easily cross generational and cultural boundaries – it was a bowling event for a group of Hmong elders.  19 people attended and, once they got the hang of the equipment, the elders seemed to really enjoy playing with the system.  In fact, as they were learning how to manage the controls, they began to coach each other.  After everyone had an opportunity to learn the system, the group broke into teams for a bowling tournament. 

(Photos by Michael Kenney, APL)




It was a definite success, and proves that thinking outside the box when it comes to programs can definitely pay off!  Many thanks to OWLS for providing the gaming system.

> contributed by Amy Stanwood, Adult Programming Assistant, Appleton Public Library

Get ready to celebrate the first annual Fox Cities Book Festival, April 16th-20th! The Festival will feature many national, state and local authors. Among the national writers coming to the Fox Cities: Billy Collins, Naomi Shihab Nye, Charles Baxter, Mark Nepo, Alice Hoffman, Alex Flinn, Michael Perry, and Minnesota Crime Wave.

On April 19th from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., there will be a Book Fair at the City Center Plaza in downtown Appleton. Check out the full list of events for other great sessions available throughout the 5 days of the Festival.

You can find more information about the Fox Cities Book Festival at http://www.foxcitiesbookfestival.org. Don't miss the wonderful opportunities available - show your support and help make this event a huge success!

> contributed by Beth