Children can register for the reading club and pick up the Excavation Site Map @ any MCPL location.   For every 15 minutes children read, visit the library, attend a library program and complete a suggested activity, they cross off or color a rock.  When all 7 rocks are colored, the site map can be brought to the library and children can claim their treasure.  Children will need their maps to get their treasure.   Children can complete as many digs as they want and claim treasure for completion of each one.

Along with the reading club, we have many great performers lined-up that are sure to delight the whole family and even sneak in some learning as well. 

·         Musician/storyteller, Stuart Stotts will be presenting “Dig in and Dig It: Songs and Stories to Celebrate Reading” with songs about a magical cavern, the Underground Railroad and more.

·          The Truly Remarkable Loon will amaze us as he “Read(s) Books and Juggles Everything Else” including juggling spinning plates. 

·         Jack Zolkowski and his amazing Soda Pups Dogs will steal your heart and keep you smiling all day.  His dogs are named after soft drinks—Ginger Ale, Sierra Mist, Squirt, Dr. Pepper, and RB (Root Beer).  Sierra Mist even rides in a remote-controlled Hummer and you won’t want to miss the Green Bay Packer trick!

·         Magician Rob Halbrook is back as Professor Marvel, but this year he will be taking us on an amazing Archeological Adventure involving Merlin and the Goblet of Fire and lots more book-related magical adventures.

·         With Professor Oops we will be “Dig(ging) Into the Underground World” and exploring creatures underneath the ground as only he can present it,  with lots of humor and fun.

·         David Stokes and his “Creatures Under the Earth Surface” program will help us discover creatures that hug the earth.

Discover, imagine and create @ your library this summer and Dig Into Reading.  Special Summer Library Programs are also available for teens (Beneath the Surface) and adults (Groundbreaking Reads).  For more information and schedules: http://www.mcpl.us/events/slp/

]]> Sharyn Heili, Children's Services Thu, 23 May 2013 16:46:31 GMT http://engagedpatrons.org/Blogs.cfm?SiteID=1769&BlogID=112&BlogPostID=13077
Starting June 3, adults and teens will have the opportunity to vote, online or in person, for their favorite fiction and nonfiction books. During the first four weeks, two matchups per week will be offered. After that, there will be one matchup per week. Customers can vote online (www.mcpl.us), on Facebook (www.facebook.com/MCPL.Wausau) or on paper ballots available at all library locations.

Among the candidates are novels such as "The Great Gatsby," "Animal Farm," "Harry Potter," "1984" and "To Kill a Mockingbird." Nonfiction titles include "Silent Spring," "Diary of a Young Girl," "In Cold Blood" and "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings."

The final smackdown will run from August 12-16 pitting the favorite fiction title against the winning nonfiction title. The grand champion title will be announced on August 18.

So, mark your calendars for June 3, send in your votes and help choose THE most influential book ever in Marathon County! 



 

]]> Mike@ Reference Thu, 23 May 2013 06:13:32 GMT http://engagedpatrons.org/Blogs.cfm?SiteID=1769&BlogID=112&BlogPostID=13039 Summer is coming, and with it the Summer Library Program at MCPL!

The next couple of weeks the Wausau Headquarters children's department will be busy with school tours, so there will be no story times May 12th through June 9th at the Wausau Headquarters library. 

Book Babies, Tales for Tots and Preschool Story Times will continue through summer with an adjusted schedule.

Beginning June 10th, join us for Sweet Dreams Story Time.
This story time will be offered every Monday evening at 6:30 p.m. throughout the summer. Come join the summer fun!

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]]> Marissa/Library Services Tue, 07 May 2013 16:10:55 GMT http://engagedpatrons.org/Blogs.cfm?SiteID=1769&BlogID=112&BlogPostID=13027
Kathy comes in consistently each week to help. She is dependable, and a great volunteer at the Hatley branch.

Thank you, Kathy, for all of your hard work and dedication to Marathon County Public Library. {{2013-5-31}} 

]]> Taylor W.-MCPL Library Services Sat, 04 May 2013 09:22:12 GMT http://engagedpatrons.org/Blogs.cfm?SiteID=1769&BlogID=112&BlogPostID=13019
Hearing Loops are a type of Hearing Assistive Technology that work in conjunction with hearing aids or cochlear implants. They pick up the staff person's voice via a microphone and transmit it wirelessly to the hearing aid or implant worn by the customer. The customer thus receives a direct, clear signal that is not garbled by distance or background noise.

These devices will enable staff to better assist customers with hearing loss while maintaining customer privacy.

]]> Mike@ Reference Thu, 02 May 2013 14:25:11 GMT http://engagedpatrons.org/Blogs.cfm?SiteID=1769&BlogID=112&BlogPostID=13001
However, both the Internal Revenue Service and Wisconsin Department of Revenue are increasingly emphasizing that tax-filers file electronically. In recent years, both agencies have limited the number and variety of tax forms MCPL can order for the public.

It is very conceivable that, in the near future, one or both agencies may stop providing tax forms to outlets like the Marathon County Public Library. 

In light of this, local tax filers should be aware of other avenues of help with tax forms. 

The Internal Revenue Service website offers a ‘Free File’ service (http://www.irs.gov/Filing). Alternately, all Federal forms are available for downloading at the IRS website. See the ‘Forms and Publications’ section (http://www.irs.gov/Forms-&-Pubs).  Forms can also be ordered via telephone (800-829-3676) or by mail (Internal Revenue Service, 1201 N. Mitsubishi Motorway, Bloomington, IL 61705-6613).

 All Wisconsin tax forms are available at the State's Department of Revenue website (www.revenue.wi.gov). Forms and publications can be ordered via telephone (608-266-1961) or by mail (Forms Request Office, Wisconsin Department of Revenue, P.O. Box 8949, Madison, WI 53708-8949).

MCPL staff can help guide customers to the appropriate websites and demonstrate how to copy off needed forms. (Staff cannot help prepare actual forms).

There also are several local options in terms of tax preparation help. One source of free tax preparation help is the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program provided by the University of Wisconsin Cooperative Extension. The VITA program is geared to taxpayers with income less than $49,000.00 without business ownership, capital gains or rental property.

Likewise, the local AARP office offers free tax prep help for middle and low income people, especially those 60 and older.

Watch for future updates on the tax forms issue.

]]> Mike@ Reference Wed, 01 May 2013 12:47:04 GMT http://engagedpatrons.org/Blogs.cfm?SiteID=1769&BlogID=112&BlogPostID=12975 Pulitzer Prize winners, honoring journalism and the arts, were recently announced and include many authors whose work is available in MCPL's V-Cat system.

This year's top prize in fiction was awarded to Adam Johnson for his novel "The Orchard Master's Son," an adventurous and moving tale of a journey into the depths of totalitarian North Korea. Finalists in the fiction category include Nathan Englander for his novel, "What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank" and Eowyn Ivey for her novel "The Snow Child."

Fredrik Logevall's historical account of the Vietnam War, "Embers of War: The Fall of an Empire and the Making of America's Vietnam" took the top prize in history, while Bernard Bailyn's book, "The Barbarous Years: The Peopling of British North America: The Conflict of Civilizations, 1600-1675" and John Fabian Witt's book "Lincoln’s Code: The Laws of War in American History" were nominated as finalists.

In the biography/autobiography category, Tom Reiss took the top prize for his account of Alexandre Dumas' father and the story behind the Count of Monte Cristo, "The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo. Michael Gorra's "Portrait of a Novel: Henry James and the Making of an American Masterpiece" and David Nasaw's "The Patriarch: The Remarkable Life and Turbulent Times of Joseph P. Kennedy" were finalists for the prize.

Sharon Olds' book of poems, "Stag's Leap" received the 2013 Pulitzer for poetry, while Jack Gilbert's "Collected Poems" and Bruce Weigl's "The Abundance of Nothing" received finalist designations.

Finally, the general non-fiction prize was awarded to Gilbert King for his book "Devil in the Grove: Thurgood Marshall, the Groveland Boys, and the Dawn of a New America." Katherine Boo is a finalist for her book "Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity," as is David George Haskell for his book, "The Forest Unseen: A Year's Watch in Nature."

]]> Chad Dally / Library Services Mon, 22 Apr 2013 15:02:38 GMT http://engagedpatrons.org/Blogs.cfm?SiteID=1769&BlogID=112&BlogPostID=12944 Kids- Vote for your Favorite in the Children’s Choice Book Awards!  Who do you think should be “2013 Author of the Year?”  Jeff Kinney?  Rick Riordan?  Which book do you think should be “2013 Book of the Year?” Pete the Cat?  Bad Kitty?  Dork Diaries? Celebrate Children’s Book Week, May 13-19, by choosing your favorites!  From now thru May 9^th kids can vote for their favorite author, illustrator and book.  Your voice counts!  To vote, use the link below and start by choosing your age category and vote for your favorites.  Then visit the MCPL Wausau children’s department and receive your very own “I Voted” sticker.  And join us on May 20^th for a Children’s Book Week celebration at 10:30am!

http://www.bookweekonline.com/voting
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]]> Abby Beyerl- Library Services Mon, 15 Apr 2013 13:46:04 GMT