Nobel Prize winning author Kazuo Ishiguro was born on this day in 1954. Ishiguro was born in Japan, but moved to the U.K. with his parents when he was five years old. He grew up to become one of most critically acclaimed authors in the English language, winning a variety of prestigious awards including the Booker Prize in 1989 for his novel, The Remains of the Day, and, for his entire body of work, the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2017.
Find out more:
One of the most famous and influential songs of the antiwar movement of the 1960s and early 1970s is “Ohio”, written by Neil Young and performed by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young. So many aspects of youth counter-culture, protests against the Vietnam War, and deep divisions within American society came together tragically as four university students were shot dead, and nine more wounded, at Kent State University in Ohio when the National Guard opened fire against student protestors. Neil Young wrote “Ohio” in reaction to the tragedy at Kent State, and the song was released in June of 1970. It has grown to become known as one the anthems of protest and antiwar activism.
November is Peace Month at your School Library.
Other “Songs of Peace” in this series:
“Zombie” by The Cranberries was released in 1994. Led by the late Dolores O’Riordan (1971-2018), The Cranberries were one of Ireland’s greatest alternative rock bands, especially during the 90’s.
Zombie is an anti-war song written to protest the ongoing violence of “The Troubles,” sectarian conflict in Ireland with its roots going back deep into Irish history and continuing to rear its ugly head even into the 1990’s.
Other “Songs of Peace” in this series:
Maurice Sendak was born on this day in 1928 in Brooklyn. Sendak is the author of one of the most beloved children’s picture books of all time, Where the Wild Things Are. Maurice Sendak died in 2012.
Come into the School Library to check out our newly established Indigenous Peoples Collection. This section of the School Library is devoted to titles from authentic indigenous writers.
All titles in the Indigenous Peoples Collection are designated with spine labels bearing the “IPC” prefix. Sublocations in the IPC include:
and more…
June is National Indigenous History Month in Canada.
Swedish writer Fredrik Backman was born on this day in 1981. Backman is the author of many novels, including A Man Called Ove, published in 2012.
American writer Michael Chabon was born on this day in 1963. Chabon is the author of such books as The Yiddish Policeman’s Union, The Wonder Boys, and Summerland.
Surrey Teens Read has some amazing books to check out. Here is one of them, On the Hook.
Come down to your school library to have a look at all ten of this year’s Surrey Teen Read selections, including by Francisco X. Stork’s On the Hook.
William Shakespeare, arguably the greatest writer in the English language, was born on this day in 1564.
Maybe. We are not sure. In fact, there is much we don’t know about Shakespeare. Some don’t think that he wrote the plays that are attributed to him, or that he even existed,. This might not even be a picture of him.
Learn more about Shakespeare and the debate surrounding his identity.
More importantly, take the opportunity to enjoy the plays that he wrote, (maybe?) . You can read the plays in school, but to really enjoy them to need to see them performed. Best of all, go to see the plays live and in person, to fully experience the wonder and joy of Shakespeare.
Come down to your School Library to find out more about Earth Day and all the issues that we face in terms of protecting life on this planet.
If you are looking for a quick introduction to the scientific understanding of the issues of climate change, this is a great place to start: This is Climate Change: A Visual Guide to the Facts: See for Yourself How the Planet is Warming and What it Means for Us, by David Nelles & Christian Serrer.
What they (the authors) were hoping to find was a book that explained the nuts and bolts of climate change and presented the scientific evidence in a way that was concise and enjoyable to read. After a long and fruitless search, they eventually gave up and instead decided to write it themselves.
“Who’s Behind the Book”, Nelles and Serrer, 128)
An excellent feature of the book is the comprehensive bibliography that can be reached by QR code or by using the given URL. Go here to see the Bibliography.
Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary School Library 