'Big Read,' kites among Library Week activities

COEUR d'ALENE - Coeur d'Alene Public Library is drawing outside the lines April 11-17 for National Library Week - that is it is opening its door for activities before and after regular hours.

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

Programs begin Sunday, April 11, from 1-2 p.m., with the "Big Read." Learn about the library's new Virtual Book Clubs. Refreshments and tours of the library, at 702 E. Front Ave., will be provided.

The "Big Read" includes two book choices: "The Art of Racing in the Rain," a novel by Garth Stein, a story told in the voice of a dog looking back over his life, or "The Big Burn," by Jeanette Ingold, which looks at the historic 1910 fire that consumed forests in North Idaho and western Montana.

Twenty copies of each book will be available for check out and the library staff can also reserve copies through the Cooperative Information Network catalog. These titles will also be available in the future as a book-club bundle.

On Saturday, April 17, at 10:30 a.m. come to the library Community Room for a "Kite Workshop and Festival." All materials will be provided free of charge to construct a kite during the family workshop taught by kite enthusiast Gary Fleshman-Kubodera. After the workshop, fly your kites in McEuen Field while listening to the music of the Taiko Drummers of Spokane.

Saturday evening, the library will be open for a program exclusively for teens in grades 7 through 12 scheduled for 5-8 p.m. Participants are asked to use the lower entrance off McEuen Field. This event will feature pizza and sodas, door prizes, and karaoke in the Community Room with a professional DJ.

Teens will have private access to the library and Teen Central and will be able to check out books. Teens planning to attend should preregister by visiting the library's Web site www.cdalibrary.org and clicking on the "Exclusively for Teens" link on the right side of the page.

National Library Week programs are funded by the Friends of the Coeur d'Alene Public Library and supported by business sponsors Fred Meyer, Donut House, Jamba Juice, and Gooey's at The Resort.