Our own Beverley Armstrong-Rodman, who worked in the Reference Department of the Victoria Avenue Library for many years, has been busy again, recently completing her fourth thriller, Secrets Can Be Murder. According to the author, it involves a lot of characters with a lot of secrets, and promises to deliver the same light, humorous and exciting read she has given us in the past. The book stars the same two heroines who have appeared in Bev’s first three novels (Murder is a Family Matter, Baa Baa Black Death, and I’ll Be Killing You…)....

Would you like to get more out of your camera? On Monday, September 20th, from 7:00 to 8:30 pm, the Niagara Falls Camera Club will be presenting a free “Introduction to Photography” workshop, for all those interested in getting some hands on tips and practical information. There will be a number of workstations manned by club members who have some expertise in various areas, including transferring photos from your camera to computer, using Photoshop and other computer software, and composition tips and tricks. There is no advanced registration required. You may bring your own camera or prints to be critiqued.

The Camera Club meets regularly in the LaMarsh Room of the Victoria Avenue Library on the 1st and 3rd Mondays of each month. For more information visit their website at NiagaraFallsCameraClub.org. New members are always welcome.

The Library has an extensive collection of materials to assist photographers of all levels. Check the catalogue or contact staff to discover what’s...

The Children’s Department had another successful and amazing summer of reading. The 3 children’s book clubs had 1065 children registered this summer. Ready to Read, “Sniff Out a Good Book” for ages 3-6 had 265 children enjoying books, puzzles, prizes and a great performance from “Music with Brian.” Our Rockin’ Readers, “Put Your Nose in a Good Book: Pick Me!” for ages 6-11, had 638 kids who picked, poked and pecked their way through hundreds of books this summer, enjoyed prizes, free popcorn and a movie at our end-of-summer parties. 162 Slammin’ Teen readers submitted over 600 ballots for prizes in our Summer Breezes Teen Program. All finishers in our Kids Book Clubs received a free book of their choice this year. We listened to hundreds of daring Dora adventures, dripping vampire stories, and shared the thrilling adventures of wimpy kids. Staff provided support and encouragement to kids and their wise parents who understand the value of maintaining literacy levels through the long summer months, and also, the...

In 1965, UNESCO proclaimed that September 8th be celebrated as International Literacy Day – to remind the world community of the status of literacy globally. Studies verify the clear connection between poverty, health problems and prejudices in countries with high rates of illiteracy. In today’s world the concept of literacy has moved beyond the simple set of reading, writing and numeracy skills to one that involves multiple layers or dimensions of these competencies. We need to also be “computer literate” today! It seems fitting that as the kids return to school on Tuesday, we mention the importance of literacy to individuals themselves and to the communities they live in. Around the world more than 75 million children are not in school and many more attend only irregularly. One in five adults are not literate. How lucky we all are to be in a...

Do you use Twitter or maybe you are a little baffled as to what Twitter actually is? Twitter originally began as an experiment in 2006 in order to provide short, quick shared communications at events such as conferences or even during earthquakes. Just like Topsy it grew and in 2007 it was registered as Twitter Inc... So, how exactly does Twitter work? It lets you write short, pithy messages of up to 140 characters and send them to multiple people (known as followers) at the same time, wherever they might be. If you just have to know everything about your favourite celebrity then you will have to become a “follower” in order to receive all of their updates. Twitter is not only for cell phone users, you can also use it on a computer. You will need to download and install the free program, and then create an account for yourself. Twitter can be used to ask questions,...