Earth Hour 2010 takes place today, Saturday 27 March at 8.30pm (local time) and is a global call to action to every individual, business and community all over the world. It is an initiative started by the WWF in 2007, in Sydney, Australia. That year, 2.2 million residents participated. In March 2009, hundreds of millions of people took part in the third Earth Hour. Over 4000 cities in 88 countries officially switched off to pledge their support for the planet, making Earth Hour 2009 the world’s largest global climate change initiative, to date.

It is a call to stand up, to take responsibility, to get involved and lead the way towards a sustainable future. Iconic buildings and landmarks from Europe to Asia to the Americas will stand in darkness. People across the world from all walks of life will turn off their lights and join together in celebration and contemplation of the one thing we all have in common – our planet. Our local City Council Councillor, Jim Diodati made a motion confirming the participation...

The winner of the CBC’s 2010 Canada Reads was Nikolski" by Quebec author Nicolas Dickner. It has received several awards for the French-language edition including the Prix des libraires 2006, and Prix Anne-Hébert 2006 (Best first book). The story revolves around 3 young people, born thousands of miles apart who all are now in Montreal in 1989. The story charts the curious and unexpected courses of personal migration, and shows how they just might eventually lead one “home”. Over the following ten years, Noah, Joyce and the unnamed narrator, will sometimes cross paths and sometimes almost meet each other within the neighbourhood of Montreal they inhabit. Dickner creates a wonderful sense of place as they all experience the city. Their journeys seem haphazard, more often guided by the prevailing winds than personal will, yet their stories weave in and out of other wondrous tales — stories about such things as fearsome female pirates, urban archaeologists, unexpected floods, fish of all kinds, a mysterious book...

March Break is upon us. It is always a very busy week for our staff providing Children’s Services. Programming is planned at all locations, and registration has been open for several weeks. Some of the activities are already full, however at this time (Monday morning), there is still space available in the Top o’ the Morning Story Time, Dan the Music Man, Mad Hatter’s Tea Party, and the Flowers for you programs. Refer to the website www.nflibrary.ca to register online, or call the Library for any last minute information. All are invited to visit the Library during March Break regardless of whether or not you are attending programs with the children. Books, DVD’s, videogames are all available to entertain and fill the spare time. Why not plan a visit with the family, especially if it has been a while since you where here!

The next presentation in our Exploring World Cinema Sunday afternoon series features the film Kolya (Czech, 1996). Starring Zdenek Sverak, who we have seen last fall in “The Empties”,...

The annual Ontario Library Association Super Conference took place in Toronto last week, and several of our staff took the opportunity to attend the meetings and workshops to glean new ideas and programs, and to catch up on the latest trends and resources available. It is truly amazing to behold – more than 4,500 “library people” in one place over the conference days. All sectors of libraries in Ontario are represented – Academic, Special, Board Members and Public. Usually we meet the end of January and the event is renowned for the fact that there is always a snowstorm which we expect in January, but can you believe it – we still had one, even with the date change!

One of the highlights is always the excellent slate of speakers the organizers schedule for the plenary sessions, and this year we were not disappointed with the likes of LGen the Honourable Romeo Dallaire (Retired), a true hero and outspoken leader for the 21st century. His talk had the audience mesmerized, as he shared his vision of...