3rd Eye Paranormal Investigations – Sceptics v Believers

Join 3rd Eye Paranormal Investigations (from Sky Channel showcase 201) at Widnes Library for an evening of debate and discussion about the paranormal and the chance for 2 people from the audience to join the team on one of their future televised investigations 

3rd Eye Investigators include sceptics, believers and a medium who will put forward their arguments for the existence, or not, of the paranormal and will be sharing some of their own experiences.

The team will be showing some of their footage captured on past investigations including their latest, shot at Bodelwyddan Castle that recently shown on SKY and now available on DVD.

The event is at Widnes Library on 20th September from 7 to 9pm.  It's free  and no booking is required.

Halton's Reading Families - The Smith Family

Charlotte

Two beautiful reviews from Charlotte aged 7 who, with her Mum, is taking part in our Reading Families project.  We think they are wonderful. Thank you Charlotte :)

The Library Lion by Michelle Knudsen and Illustrated by Kevin Hawkes

I like this book because it has a lion that visit’s the library. How the lion likes to listen to the stories at the library with the children, and that they like to cuddle the lion, especially when he is sad. The lion has feelings just like us.

I like the pictures as they look like they have just been drawn. I like the way the lion is drawn big and cuddly, and the way he is shown roaring. I like the colours, especially on the books, and how the lions tongue is drawn where he licks the stamps.

Every library should have a lion.

The Minpins by Roald Dahl and Illustrated by Patrick Benson

I like this book because of the small minpins that live in the trees and fly on birds.  I don’t like the gruncher that breaths fire and is scary.  He tries to eat the little boy and the minpins.  I like the swan that Billy flies on.

I like the way the pictures show the dark and light between the forest and where Billy’s house is.  How it shows how small the minpins’ rooms are in the trees, and all the pretty birds.  Even though I don’t like the gruncher I like the way the smoke and fire hides him in the trees.

I’m glad the gruncher doesn’t live in the woods any more.

Halton's Reading Families - The Smith Family

Here are the latest reviews from our Reading Families

Tracy’s Book Reviews

Tracey

Band of Brothers by Stephen E. Ambrose

The author put a lot of sensitivity and thought into the narration of a complex living story of a company of men that truly became a ‘band of brothers’; that had so much to tell and gave so much.

The emotion, passion and camaraderie that brought these men together is told with such sensitivity and understanding that you truly feel a part of them.  You feel for them; the horror of war, the loss, resentment and fear.  It showed them to be very brave men indeed.

A piece in the book, left out of the film, tells the story of a Fritz Niland.  His story looked to be the basis of the film Saving Private Ryan.  How Fritz lost 3 brothers in the war and was sent home by the army to his mother.

This book is interesting, insightful and emotional living every minute of the battles and trials the men went through and how the lucky few survived.

Genesis by Karin Slaughter

From the start of this book the author draws you into the story and grips you with the horror of the opening scene; you are then hooked.

You are made to feel every emotion and fear of the characters as they discover the ‘house of torture’, and the journey of discovery and shock to catch the person practiced in the art of pain.

The scenes are set dramatically and you are then hit hard by a roller coaster ride of gripping narration that leaves you breathless and begging for more.  It is a read you’ll find hard to put down, like all of Karin’s books.

Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden

I was recommended this book by a friend. I thought it wouldn't be my type of book.  How wrong I was.

This novel is a wonderful read about the life of a geisha from 1929 to the post-war years of Japan’s history.  It is sensitive, emotional and an engaging read that is both spellbinding and surprising.
It is a book you’ll want to read again and again as you are educated in the half-hidden world of formality, intimacy, exploitation and degradation in the geisha’s world.  How they achieve their beauty, etiquette and standing in society; and where it leads them. A truly fascinating read.

Halton's Reading Families

Andy Stamp from one of our Reading Families sent us this review of Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom. 

"Mitch Albom tells the story of meeting up with his professor from college. His professor, Morrie, has been diagnosed with a fatal illness that is slowly making his body weaker. Morrie however is looking at the illness as a chance to live his life and look at everything he has and everything that is important. Tuesdays with Morrie was recommended by a colleague and is one of the most emotionally driven yet entertaining books I have ever read. 

Morrie is an incredible person, purely through the positives he uses looking at life and I have learnt so much in developing myself and my relationships through him.The book is written from Albom’s point of view and as the book progresses Mitch is learning and we as readers learn with him. 

The book is pleasant, dramatic, heart warming and thoughtful and I would recommend it to anyone"

Runcorn 'then and now'

Would you like to join us for a Slideshow of local photographs with commentary and discussion from local historians Charles Ford and Alex Cowan?  The event is at Halton Lea Library on Wednesday 12 September between 2 and 4pm.  It’s completely free and refreshments are provided.

Admission is by ticket only – to book your place please call Halton Lea Library on 0151 511 7744 or email Sally. 

Hogwarts Hysteria at Halton Lea library

Families enjoyed, colour, cut and stick activities based on Harry Potter characters, adding their own innovations such as a very woolly-faced Crookshanks the cat. Fun was had with some games, pin the tail on scabbers, Ron’s musical chess board (variation on musical chairs), and team game of keeping the golden snitches (golden balloons) in the air. 

Reading Families - The Davies Family

Meet the next of our Reading Families The Davies family from Widnes :John,Hazel,Steph,Jonathan and Ruby.
The family gave us a list of their thirty favourite reads and these are now on display in Widnes Library.

DAVIES FAMILY BOOK CHOICES

Frances Hodgson Burnett The Secret Garden
Victoria Hislop  The Island
Jane Eyre         Charlotte Bronte
Jodi Picoult Perfect Match

Kim Edwards Memory Keepers Daughter
Joanne Harris Chocolat
Charles Dickens Bleak House
Thomas Hardy Tess of the D'urbevilles
Louisa May Alcott Little Women
Phillips         World Atlas
Rudyard Kipling Just So Stories
David Attenborough Life on Earth
Jane Austen Pride and Prejudice
David Guterson Snow Falling on Cedars
Kathryn Stockett The Help
Gabriel Garcia Marquez Love in the Time of Cholera
Salman Rushdie Shame
Oscar Wilde The Importance of Being Earnest
Oliver Jeffers The Heart in the Bottle
Julia Donaldson Room on the Broom
Sam McBratney Guess How Much I Love You?
Michael Morpurgo Why the Whales Came
JK Rowling Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
JR Tolkein The Hobbit
Terry Pratchett The Colour of Magic
Robert Louis Stephenson Treasure Island
Charles Darwin On the Origin of Species
Margery Williams The Velveteen Rabbit
Daniel Defoe Robinson Crusoe
Hans Christian Andersen Fairy Tales