Need A Passport?

Will you need a passport for class trips and summertime holidays?

Call soon to schedule your passport application appointment! Both the Woodbourne Library and Centerville Library will join the Department of State in celebrating Passport Day in the USA 2012, a national passport acceptance and outreach event on Saturday, March 10, 2012 from 10:00 am until 3:00 pm to provide passport information to U.S. citizens and to accept passport applications.

Currently our passport application appointments are booked almost two weeks ahead of time. Add to that the the 4-6 weeks routine processing time and you'll want to schedule your appointment soon! Expedited service takes only 2-3 weeks but costs an extra $60 dollars.

Our convenient evening and Saturday hours make the library a preferred passport application venue for  families and those who work during the day. Where else can you apply for your passport and then borrow travel guides and DVD's, brush up on a foreign language with CD's, phrasebooks, or databases, and use the library's WiFi or Internet to search for flights and hotels?

Whether your travel dreams and budget runs from down-home to exotic ports-of-call, our research professionals and passport agents can help you get ready for the vacation of a lifetime!

Can We Talk?

Can We Talk?

By: Georgia Mergler, Community Relations Manager

Washington-Centerville Public Library
           Quick, what was the last really good book you read? You know the one that you could not put down; the one that kept you up way past bedtime; the one that made you forgo all domestic and child rearing responsibilities so you could read just one more chapter! If you are like me, when I finish with a book like that, I simply must tell others. I become the ‘unpaid’ promotional agent for the book. And if I can find another soul who has also read the book, whoa! Well, let’s just say it’s heavenly.

That’s the great thing about books. Not only do they stretch our minds and our imaginations but they give us a platform for connecting with one another. I’m sure people know that Washington-Centerville Public Library offers plenty of reading material, but did you know we offer several opportunities to share reading experiences with other readers, including:

            
            Book Discussion Groups – Whether you prefer face to face discussions or discussing books online, the Library has something for you. Our monthly Page Turners book discussion meets the third Tuesday of the month at 1 PM. March’s discussion is The Submission by Amy Waldman.

Not available during the day? Unwind with a glass of wine and a lively discussion of books at our newest evening book discussion, Uncorked. This discussion, which takes place at Rumbleseat Wine in Washington Township, will host its first meeting on March 19^th at 7 PM to discuss The Family Fang by Kevin Wilson. 

If you prefer to discuss books in the comfort of your home (maybe while in your jammies), visit our Facebook page www.facebook.com/pages/Washington-Centerville-Public-Library/59572487505 Monday nights from 7-9 PM. There are no assigned books to read. Simply get online and chat about books you’ve read with fellow book lovers.

If you have your own book club or are considering starting one, you might want to attend our Book Club Open House on February 28^th, at 7 PM. We’ll share all the ways the Library can help you have a successful book club.

Author Events – Sometimes I finish reading a book and I wish I could pick the author’s brain. Why did you kill off the hero? Was the heroine based on anyone in particular? If you’ve felt similarly, you might enjoy author events. On March 8^th at 7 PM we are hosting breakout author Julie Cross. Cross’s time travel meets romance and adventure novel, called Tempest, is being praised by critics and has already been optioned for a major motion picture by Summit Entertainment (the same folks who did a little movie called Twilight). I’ll be doing an interview with Julie for my next column so stay tuned!

In April we will be hosting J. Patrick Lewis, the current U. S. Children’s Poet Laureate. More details on that in a later column.

So don’t just read books and keep all those juicy opinions to yourself. Share, and consider doing so at a Library event! For more information on book discussions visit: http://www.wclibrary.info/bookdiscussion/index.asp.

New Services for Area Book Clubs!

Washington-Centerville Public Library will be hosting a Book Club Open House in the Centerville Library program room at 7 PM on Tuesday, February 28^th.

This is the perfect opportunity to meet members of other area book clubs and learn how the library can help you have a successful book club discussion. 

When you register your book club with the Library you'll receive information about these and other services:
·         Book Discussion kits
·         Interlibrary loan
·         Recommendations of ‘discussable’ books
·         Author visits and book-related events
·         New ideas from other book clubs

Fill out the registration form here and click to email the form back to the library, or print off the form, fill it out and mail it to:

Debe Dockins

Washington-Centerville Library

111 W. Spring Valley Road

Centerville, OH 45458

Leap Into a Good Book

By: Georgia Mergler, Community Relations Manager

Americans today are busier than ever. We are working longer hours, taking fewer vacations and generally feel the need to jam pack our daily schedules. Time is the great leveler, however. The clock doesn’t care if you are rich, brilliant, or fantastically gorgeous. Everyone gets the same 24 hour day, and 365 day year. Unless of course, it’s a Leap Year, as it is this year. Then we all get a bonus day.

Now if you aren’t up on your Leap Year facts, let me break it down for you. The ancient Egyptians first figured out that the solar year and the man-made calendar year didn't always match up. Why? Because it takes the Earth a little longer than a year to travel around the Sun — 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, and 46 seconds, to be exact. Those extra hours add up, resulting in an extra day added to the calendar every 4 years.

So, for everyone who has ever wished for “just a little more time”, consider the wish granted. I, for one, am not going to squander away my bonus day by catching up on housework, or doing laundry. No, I’m going to leap into a good book. And so should you. Not sure which book to choose? Washington-Centerville Library can help! Whether you are in the library or visiting us online, you can take advantage of these reading suggestion services:

Ask a Staff Member – To say my co-workers are well read would be an understatement. Ask them what they recommend and be prepared for a litany of suggestions.

Subscribe to an newsletter –Delivered straight to your inbox, these newsletters not only give you reading suggestions, but provide you with direct links to our catalog so you can place items on hold. There are over a dozen different enewsletters covering different genres and interests so you are sure to find something you’ll like. Subscribe by visiting http://www.wclibrary.info/goodreads/optin.asp

Read the Fine Print – This is the library’s reading related blog. Each week, our staff posts multiple reviews of books they have read recently. It’s a gold mine for those looking to branch out of a reading rut.

Discuss a Book – Attend our monthly Page Turners book discussion the third Tuesday of the month at 1 PM. February’s discussion is on: Don’t Let’s Go to the Dogs Tonight by Alexandra Fuller.

So in 2012, you get 366 days instead of 365. Use those extra 24 hours wisely, if not indulgently, by leaping into a good book! For more information on Washington-Centerville Public Library and readers advisory services visit www.wclibrary.info .