The Virtual Loft

Evanston Public Library's Online Teen Space

Friday Falcon Report & Clue #7 (Clues Recently Updated!!) August 7, 2009

Filed under: The Loft — loftzoe @ 12:35 pm
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Me at the 4th of July Parade

Me at the 4th of July Parade

Hello my wise fellow detectives, it is I, Detective Percival Falcon. This is the last Friday Falcon Report. I have enjoyed mentoring you amateur detectives, and I have no doubt you will go on to solve great mysteries. Don’t miss out on the Neil Gaiman book talk next week or the Friday afternoon gaming. Now for a little mystery of my own creating. What is my favorite children’s book? You’re going to have to do some more clue unscrambling. You’ll have to unscramble book titles from the 2009 Teen’s Top Ten Nominations. The letters that end up on the colored lines will unscramble into the title my favorite children’s book. As you well know I’m a tricky detective so just because a letter is in the first word of scrambled letters doesn’t nessesarily mean it’s in the first word of that book title. To complete the task you have to email, meebo, or give the librarians the answers to the book titles and the final clue.

1) rilegancg

——————

2) yabublmays otela

———————    ——

3)  elmonis stetng

—————    ————

4) nobioleld

————

5) hoti ya cefs

——    ——    ————

6) shianvir werl enee

———————    ———    ——

My favorite children’s book is:

——    ————    —— ——— ————————

 

Friday Falcon Report & Clue #6 August 6, 2009

PercivalatParadeI know you faithful detectives have been asking about what’s up with me. I was visiting my Falcon cousins in Acadia National Park in Maine. I know I’ve been late on a couple reports, but us Falcon Detectives have summer vacation too. Summer in the Loft seems to be winding down and several programs have ended. But there are going to some exciting things happening in the fall, like a celebration of Catching Fire, the second Hunger Games book, when it comes out, and a sci-fi movie tricks workshop. Now for a little mystery? What book am I reading? For this week you’re going to have to do some clue unscrambling. You’ll have to unscramble book titles from the Abraham Lincoln Illinois High School Book Award 2010 List. The letters that end up on the colored lines will unscramble into the title of the book I’m reading. I’m a tricky detective so just because a letter is in the first word of scrambled letters doesn’t nessesarily mean it’s in the first word of that book title. To complete this task you have to email, meebo, or give the librarians the answers to the book titles and the final clue.

1) hok   iteb   efoht

— —     —  —    —  — — —

2) dgy   maycn

— —       — —

 

3) ikdlvl   wceoey

— — — — —    — — — 

4) gardvea   linaisep

— — — — — —    — — — — — —

5) iyob  es  fonct

—  —         —    

What book am I reading?

— — —    — — — — — — —    — — — 

 

Friday Falcon Report July 25, 2009

Filed under: The Loft — loftzoe @ 1:24 pm
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FalconledgeHello this is Detective Percival Falcon reporting in, with my friend The Doorman. The Doorman is starring in this week’s production of I Am the Messenger based on the award winning book by Marcus Zusak.  The play will be Saturday at 7:30 and Sunday at 3:00. It’s recommended for everyone ages 12 and up because of intense content. And it’s FREE so you have no excuse not to come. Click here to register and if you check in with Loft staff you can get an extra prize. 

The Doorman

The Doorman

 

Now for your weekly quest: On the Virtual Loft page go to the Summer Programs link. Your clue: Chic and recyclable.  Which program am I talking about?

 

Friday Falcon Report July 21, 2009

Filed under: The Loft — loftzoe @ 2:56 pm
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Watch out for this ocelot, she is dangerously villianous

Watch out for this ocelot, she is dangerously villainous.

It is I, Detective Percival Falcon, and yes I am aware it is Tuesday rather than Friday. I apologize profusely to all of you young crime fighters, but on Friday and this weekend I was rather preoccupied as my archnemesis the villainous Dr. Octavia Ocelot, was attempting to take over the library so that the only books people could check out would be about cats and related species. I challenged her to a game of Scrabble, it lasted for four days, finally I won, and we are safe from her devious schemes…for now.  This week is a very exciting one in the Loft, as it is the last Teen Advisory Board (TAB) meeting of the year and we are saying goodbye to our graduated seniors.  Also, there will be two performances of the stage adaptation of I Am the Messenger by Markus Zusak on Saturday and Sunday of this week.

Now for a little mystery: On the Virtual Loft site go to reading recommendations, find the list that is directly below the Mystery list. I really like books about the human brain, especially ones with slightly creepy covers, find a book I’d enjoy. Detective Percival Falcon over and out.

 

Friday Falcon Report & Clues #4 & #5 July 11, 2009

Filed under: The Loft, Young Adult Books — Christie @ 4:57 am
Tags: , ,

FalconledgeGreetings my fellow detectives, it is I, Detective Percival Falcon. You all have probably already deduced that because I didn’t write a falcon report last Friday, I am including two clues with this week’s report. And you are correct! You all have brilliant minds, someday you will be brilliant private eyes, but I don’t know if you could ever find a detective agency as excellent as the Loft. Where was I last Friday, you wonder, that I was incapable of penning my weekly report? Was I hot on the tail of an evil villain, minutes away from finally closing a case that no one had been able to solve for years? No. I was preparing for my part in the Fourth of July parade. It doesn’t sound as exciting as cracking a case, but just as important. Perhaps you saw me in the parade; many people remarked that I looked quite regal and dignified despite the rain that dampened my feathers. But enough about me! Let’s get back to the library. I have observed many things such as teens signing up for programs like creative writing and Cook it and Book it, the cooking book club held at Whole Foods. The last session is August 5th. They will be reading and discussing Hot Lunch by Alex Bradley. I have also seen large groups of teens enjoying the loft computers and books.

Now, two clues to solve.

1)      Go to reading recommendations. Go to the readalikes list for an author who had a couple of books adapted into a movie that Mandy Moore starred in. Find the author of the book on that list that shares a title with an ice-cream store.

2)      Go to the catalog on the epl.org website. If you wanted to take out the Adventures of Indiana Jones, how long could you keep it for and where would you find it in the library? 

 

Bonechiller by Graham McNamee
Chinese Handcuffs by Chris Crutcher
The Demon’s Lexicon by Sarah Brennan
Ghostgirl: Homecoming by Tonya Hurley
I Am the Messenger by Markus Zusak
Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer
Jim Butcher’s The Dresden Files: Storm Front by Mark Powers
Killer by Sara Shepard
Sleepaway Girls by Jen Calonita
Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler
Uglies by Scott Westerfeld
The Waters & the Wild by Francesca Lia Block
Zoe’s Tale by John Scalzi

 

Friday Falcon Report & Clue #3 June 26, 2009

DetectivePercivalFalconandSprite Hello my fellow detectives! The Loft just seems to get more and more exciting by the day. New programs are happening right and left. There is a video making workshop going down right now. Registration just opened for the video game design workshop and it’s almost full. The first “book it & cook it” workshop was a huge success with homemade cheese and pizza making & eating; July 8 is the date for the second “Book it & Cook It” class. There is also now a beautiful dry erase board ad for I am the Messenger, the story by Markus Zusak that will be performed by The Loft’s theatre troupe in late July. New actors, especially male ones, are still welcome to join this summer theatre program.

 

Now, my private eyes, I have a bit of a quest for you. Take the title of the book review on The Virtual Loft of the book that has a blue cover with conversation hearts on it. Open the library’s online catalog, type the title in and hit “search words or phrases.” Click the first title that shows up; then click more by this author. Where in the library would you look to find the book that is en Español? Tell a librarian on the meebo or discreetly pass it off to them in the Loft. Percival Falcon out.

Just a few of the books passing under this raptor’s beak this week:

Aldoreadytofly
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen
Blade: Playing Dead by Tim Bowler
Chew on This by Eric Schlosser
The Dead and the Gone by Susan Beth Pfeffer
Leonardo’s Shadow by Christopher Grey
Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer
Punkzilla by Adam Rapp
The Reckoning by Michael Owen Carroll
The Year of the Bomb by Ronald Kidd

And a Few of the CDs…
The Angel Experiment
by James Patterson
Sabriel by Garth Nix
The Sorceress by Michael Scott

 

Friday Falcon Report & Clue #2 June 19, 2009

Filed under: The Loft, Young Adult Books — Christie @ 7:40 pm
Tags:

Falconsonledge

Hello there my fellow detectives, it’s your good friend Detective Percival Falcon reporting in for duty. With school just having ended this week it’s been very busy in the Loft. I have discovered that there are a plethora of programs that teens can sign up for from a cooking book club, held at Whole Foods, to game nights and movie showings.  Also there are new displays of recommended books, as well as new reading lists on the website. Can you, my fellow dectectives, figure out what book I want to read next? I’ll give you a few clues and when you think you’ve figured it out message the answer to a librarian on the meebo online or write it on a piece of paper and slip it into their hands in person. A book on the Summer Adventures reading list caught my eye. Here are your hints: Submerge, Down Low

 

These are just a few of the books I spied leaving the loft:

 

Before We Were Free by Julia Alvarez
Ranma 1/2 by Rumiko Takahashi
Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen
Shark Girl by Kelly Bingham
Dunk by David Lubar
Alabama Moon by Watt Key
Rumors: A Luxe Novel by Anna Godbersen
A Long Way Down by Nick Hornby
Oscar Wilde’s A Picture of Dorian Gray: A Graphic Novel by Ian Culbard
Love You Hate You Miss You by Elizabeth Scott
Funny How Things Change by Melissa Wyatt
Daemon Hall by Patrick Nance
North of Beautiful by Justina Chen Headley
Sunrise Over Fallujah by Walter Dean Myers

 

I’m happy to report that all four chicks have fledged!!

 

Friday Falcon Report & Clue #1 June 12, 2009

Filed under: Programs, The Loft, Young Adult Books — Christie @ 5:46 pm
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Falcon in the egg chairDetective Percival Falcon, reporting in for duty. This is a message for my fellow operatives at the No.1 Loft’s Detective Agency.

 

I have observed many people wandering  around the Loft hoping a good book will spring off the shelf. I think I have scouted out a tool that will make finding good books easier. Go to reading recommendations (green widget to the right, click on the second link directly under books). Find a book from a booklist that has “ten” in the list title. IM (using the meebo directly to the right of this post) the Loft staff and let them know the name of the list and a title from the list (or stop by and tell one of the Loft’s detective staff).

 

Detective Percival Falcon: My list of  books leaving the Loft this week was 199 pages long!!!!!!! So I’ve decided to feature the below books only:

 

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver (Book it & Cook it Program next Wednesday, June 17, 5-7 pm)

The Big Splash by Jack D. Ferraiolo (Book Discussion on Tuesday, July 14, 4 pm)

Chew on This by Eric Schlosser (Book it & Cook it Program on July 8, Wednesday, 5-7 pm)

I Am the Messenger by Markus Zusak (Summer Theatre Performance, July 25, 7:30 & July 26, 3 pm)

 

(all of the above titles are books that are featured in our exciting summer programming)

Ean & Elinor fledged!! See FalconCam.

 

Friday Falcon Report June 5, 2009

Filed under: The Loft, Young Adult Books — Christie @ 11:12 pm
Tags: , ,

Falcon in the egg chair

Not only were things hopping in the Loft all week, but Loft staffers were spotted visiting these 4 schools: Bessie Rhodes, King Lab, Chute, and Nichols. Some of the titles that were part of the lively booktalking that transpired are: Hunger Games, The Graveyard Book, Deadline, Nation, Savvy, Chew on This, The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, Batman: Death Mask, Rapunzel’s Revenge, After Tupac & D Foster, Baseball Stories, and Shark Girl. Register for the summer reading program here!

 

Featured booklist of the week: TeensTop Ten.

 

Images from the Loft’s Falcon webcam reveal the following books leaving the Loft this week.

 

Bill Gates by Marc Aronson

Bonechiller by Graham McNamee                                 

Courtin’ Jayd by L. Divine

Finding Nouf by Zoe Ferraris

Fray by Joss Whedon

Kin by Holly Black

Lovestruck Summer by Melissa Walker

Max: A Maximum Ride Novel by James Patterson

Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan

Simpsons Comics Unchained by Matt Groening

Sharp Teeth by Toby Barlow

My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult

Operation Storm City by Joshua Mowll

The Real Real by Emma McLaughlin

Reality Check by Peter Abrahams

The Sorceress by Michael Scott

The Stepsister Scheme by Jim Hines

The Unnatural Inquirer by Simon Green

Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson

 

Friday/Sunday Falcon Report May 31, 2009

Hovering on Banding Day

Our fine and feathery offspring were banded last Wednesday at the Evanston Public Library! That’s Nona (proud Mama) to the left, hovering frantically as the humans hold her chicks hostage, sticking them with needles and such (below to the right). There’s discussion amongst the falcons that we should band some humans for our falcon-led human study, but the current thinking is that a wire tap would provide more useful information. One of the strangest and most prevalent habits we’ve observed is that of humans walking around town (not to mention the library) talking to themselves with some electronic device protruding from their ear. Or mouth. Our scientific research has shed preliminary light on this incredibly odd behavior, and it’s linked to something the humans call “blue tooth.” Or “cell phone.” We will report back on any interceptions of note.  Ouch

 

The following books have been spotted leaving the Loft this past week.

 

Be More Chill by Ned Vizzini

Bec by Darren Shan

Being Nikki by Meg Cabot

Bram Stoker’s Dracula: The Graphic Novel by Gary Reed

Cashay by Margaret McMullen

The Devil’s Breath by David Gilman

Does My Head Look Big in This? by Randa Abdel-Fattah

Fullmetal Alchemist by Hiromu Arakawa

H.I.V.E. : Higher Institute of Villainous Education by Mark Walden

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

I’d Tell You I Love You, But Then I’d Have to Kill You by Ally Carter

Jerk, California by Jonathan Friesan

Keeping You a Secret by Julie Anne Peters

Melting Stones by Tamora Pierce

Mexican Whiteboy by Matt de la Peña

Rainbow Boys by Alex Sanchez

Rapunzel’s Revenge by Shannon Hale

Shark Girl by Kelly Bingham

Undine by Penni Russon

Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marrilier

 

Featured YA bibliography of the week: The Living Dead

 

Congratulations to the Evanston Township High School Class of 2009!!