Autism awareness - Meet Donna Williams

When Donna Williams was growing up her behaviour was described as ‘psychotic’ it was not until adulthood that she was diagnosed with autism.

Donna has achieved amazing things as an author, artist, musician and film maker. Author of the best selling biographies Somebody Somewhere and Nobody Nowhere Donna will be showing her award winning documentary Jam Jar followed by a question and answer session on autism.

When: Monday 12th April 7pm
Where: Ringwood Library, 4 Ringwood Street Mall, Ringwood
Cost: Free event or cost
Bookings essential phone 9870 0177 

Cheers, Maryanne

A taste of .... Antiques - An appraisal session with Lester DeVere

During Heritage Week auctioneer and antiques expert Lester DeVere introduces you to the world of collecting. Lester has over 25 years experience as an antique dealer, auctioneer and commission agent. Participants are invited to bring an item for Lester to appraise. One item per person please.

When: Monday 12th April 12noon - 1:30pm
Where: Montrose Town Centre, 935 Mt Dandenong Tourist Rd, Montrose Melways 52 D7
Cost: $15 each, lunch included
Bookings essential phone 97619133

Cheers, Maryanne

Junction Journeys

As part of the Annual Crank-Up, Upper Yarra Historical Society and Yarra Junction Library invite you to join Frank Colverson at Yarra Junction Museum for a leisurely walk through the Junction of the 1950's.
When: Sat 10th April & Sun 11th April 2pm-4pm
Where: Meet at Yarra Junction Museum, Old Railway Station, Yarra Junction, concluding with refreshments at the library

Cost: $5 - all proceeds to Upper Yarra Historical Society and Museum.
Bookings essential phone 59671588

Cheers, Maryanne

Branch & mobile hours over Easter

All Eastern Regional Libraries branches and mobiles will be closed on the following days for the Easter break:

Friday 2nd April, Saturday 3rd April, Sunday 4th April & Monday 5th April

Branches and mobiles will resume normal hours on Tuesday 6th April. This includes Yarra Junction Library, which will re-open after their recent refurbishment.

You will be able to return items through the bookchute during this time. Note: Croydon bookchute is closed.

If you know the PIN on your card you can renew your items via the library catalogue. Follow the instructions in the Catalogue Tutorials.

Cheers, Maryanne

Growville Growers: All about herbs

All about herbs with Judith from the Herb Society, including growing and different uses. Selection of herbs, Herbal oil and creams for sale.
When: Friday 9th April 2pm
Where: Rowville Library, Stud Park Shopping Centre, Stud Road, Rowville
Cost: Free event
Bookings essential phone 92941300

Cheers, Maryanne

Photography focus

Get the best out of your camera!  What are the elements of a good picture? Ian Patterson from the Knox Photographic Society will present a practical talk and answer your photography questions.

Refreshments provided.

When: Thursday 8th April 2pm
Where: Ferntree Gully Library, 1010 Burwood Hwy, Ferntree Gully
Cost: Free event
Bookings essential phone 92948140

Cheers, Maryanne

The Eastern Regional Library Show 17th March & 24th March 2010

Library staff members Lesley Conway and Pia Butcher run a radio show each Wednesday 12:05pm-12:45pm on Eastern FM 98.1 called The Eastern Regional Library Show. Tune in Wednesday for a great show.

On Wed 17th March's show

A message from the clouds : a biography of Robert Graham Carey is the story of one of Australia's aviation pioneers. The names of Kingford Smith and Nancy Bird are well known, but the story of Carey's adventurous spirit and entrepreneurial energy was new to me. Robert Carey's grand-daughter Edith Martin was our guest on the radio today, and spoke of the task of bringing research by Des Martin and recollections of her mother Bertha Carey together into an interesting narrative. The book is jam packed with both information about the growth of aviation in Australia from the early 1900's and with the story of an amazing man.

Carey's life span took him form ownership of livery stables to running a Ford car dealership, to flying the same model Bleriot bi-plane which was the first plane to fly across the English Channel. His enthusiasm for new challenges and adventure seem to have passed down the family line, and we will invite Edith back to the program to talk about her own travels, and more about the writing, researching and links with the world of aviation.

On Wed 24th March's show

Lots of new music has been coming through this year, including 'best of' CD's and compilations. Today we played tracks from Chris Isaak : live in Australia, The best of the Easybeats and James Taylor : greatest hits. Some other wonderful music I have been listening to lately is the 3 seperate volumes of Ella Fitzgerald's A-tisket, A-tasket which include a lot of tracks not so well known; Come out swinging (a double CD compilation of great swing songs) and So Frenchy, so chic : the unofficial soundtrack to the 2009 French Film Festival.

CD is the recording medium of the moment, and aside from music our libraries have a wonderful selection of audio books on CD. The readers are professional actors for the most part, and do a wonderful job of bringing the stories to life. Our members relate how they like to listen on long road trips, in the car on the way to work, while ironing, even while having  a long soak in the bath.

I also mentioned that there is some wonderful comedy on DVD in our collections, and one comedian I particularly enjoy Danny Bhoy : live at the Sydney Opera House and Danny Bhoy live at the Atheneum. Low key and about everyday things, yet funny enough to have you laughing till you cry.


---- Lesley

Easter Italian style

Help us to celebrate Easter in the Italian tradition with hostess, our very own Italian diva, Federica! Tastings guaranteed

When: Thursday 8th April 2pm
Where: Rowville Library, Stud Park Shopping Centre, Stud Road, Rowville
Cost: Gold coin donation
Bookings essential phone 92941300

Cheers, Maryanne

Reading Café – Meet Alison Wong

Alison Wong is both a poet and author. Her initial studies and career were in mathematics and IT, however literature is her passion.

In 1996 Alison was awarded a Reader's Digest NZ Society of Authors Fellowship in the Stout Research Centre, and in 2002 the Robert Burns Fellowship at Otago University.

Cup, an anthology of Alison’s poetry was published in 2006.  As the Earth Turns Silver (2009) is her first novel and draws on her Chinese heritage.

Alison Wong is the winner of the 2009 Janet Frame Award for fiction.

When: Thursday 8th April 12:30pm
Where: Ringwood Library, 4 Ringwood Street Mall, Ringwood
Cost: $10 includes lunch
Bookings essential phone 98700177

Cheers, Maryanne

Wire jewellery workshop

Join Melita as she guides you in making a pair of earrings. A great class for adults and teens aged 13+
When: Wednesday 7th April 11am
Where: Croydon Library, Civic Square, Croydon
Cost:  $6 (to be paid on the day)
Bookings essential phone 92945640

Cheers, Maryanne

Armchair Travellers: All aboard for New Zealand

Cruise the South Pacific Ocean and discover some of the many beautiful places to be seen on the North and South islands of New Zealand.

What happens on a Cruise? Step aboard and Lyn will introduce you to Cruising and New Zealand with its Maori culture, enchanting beauty and stunning natural landscapes.

Come and join us to discover the ideal setting for rest, relaxation and a little touch of paradise. Choccies and coffee afterwards

When: Thursday 1st April 2pm
Where: Mooroolbark Library, 7 Station Street, Mooroolbark
Cost: Free event
Bookings essential phone 97268200

Cheers, Maryanne

Let's Cook! competition

Do you love to cook? If you can create a main course that takes one hour from preparation to presentation then this is the competition for you.

Let’s Cook! will run until the 28th May. You may enter as many times as you like. Recipes should be original and not have been previously published or entered in previous cookery competitions.

For more details check out our Lets Cook! blog

Download the entry form (PDF 306KB 2 pages)

Cheers, webgurl

Mobile phone lessons

Are you struggling to use your mobile phone? Telstra Shop in conjunction with Rowville Library are running two sessions with volunteers to assist you in the use of your phone.

Find out how to text, set the alarm or lock the keypad. Book in and bring along your phone to the session. The sessions will be run in small groups.


When: Tuesday 30th March or Tuesday 6th April 2pm
Where: Rowville Library, Stud Park Shopping Centre, Stud Rd, Rowville
Cost: Free event
Bookings essential phone 92941300

Cheers, Maryanne

Bonsai @ the library

Want to know how to look after your bonsai plant? The Yarra Valley Bonsai Group is coming to the library to pass on lots of handy tips & knowledge.

When: Saturday 27th March  10:30am-12noon
Where: Boronia Library, Park Crescent, Boronia
Cost: Free event
Bookings essential phone 97624099

Cheers, Maryanne

Literary Lunch - Meet Ann Creber

Ann Creber is not only a food writer, journalist, stylist and editor, she hosts The Good Life on 3MDR. She spent many years as a regular on ABC programs and still has a slot on Radio National. The Good Life is a sought after program for authors to wanting to talk about their books. Ann attracts many of Australia’s best known names as her guests.

This talk is a must for people wanting to hear about some of the latest names on the Australian literary scene.

When: Thursday 25th March 12:30pm
Where: Belgrave Library, Reynolds Lane, Belgrave
Cost: $10 includes lunch
Bookings essential phone 97547266

Cheers, Maryanne

Full Steam Ahead, Model Trains

Come along to the first of our Antiques and Collectables talks for 2010.  Listen to Steve from Branchline talk about Model Railways and all that they involve, their care and value.

Refreshments provided. 

When: Wednesday 24th March 7pm
Where: Croydon Library, Civic Square, Croydon
Cost: Free event
Bookings essential phone 92945640

Cheers, Maryanne

Let's Cook! Launch - Allan Campion

Celebrate the launch of the ERL Let's Cook Competition with one of Melbourne's most celebrated 'foodies', chef, reviewer, author and tour guide, Allan Campion.

Allan will demonstrate how you can create a fabulous family meal with a minimum of effort. For this afternoon's session Allan will be preparing roast duck rice paper rolls and a delicious prawn noodle salad.

When: Thursday 18th March 2pm *still some places left*
Where: Mooroolbark Library, 7 Station Street, Mooroolbark
Cost: $5
Bookings essential phone 97268200

Cheers, Maryanne

No more Chatterbook

I've just been advised that Knox Library have cancelled the monthly Chatterbook meetings.

If you're looking for a bookchat group there are several meeting in our libraries. perhaps the nearest are:

Rowville Book Chat
When: 1st Monday of the month 2pm
Where: Rowville Library, Stud Park Shopping Centre, Stud Rd, Rowville

Thursday @Your Library
Join our Bookchat group. Learn about new authors, and browse some of the latest titles.
When: Third Thursday of each month 1pm
Where: Ferntree Gully Library, 1010 Burwood Hwy Ferntree Gully 3156. 9294 8140

Regards, webgurl

Cultural Diversity Week & Harmony Day at Ringwood Library

Join us at Ringwood Library to celebrate Cultural Diversity Week and Harmony Day.

Program:

• Maroondah Mayor Cr Alex Makin will open Harmony Day at 11:15am
• Facepainting
• Sudanese dance & song
• Multicultural storytime at 11:30am & displays
• World music
• Henna painting
• Hair braiding
• Cultural dance
• Launch of the Cultural Partnership for Harmony funded by the Department of Immigration and Citizenship

When: Thursday 18th March 11am-3pm
Where: Ringwood Library, 4 Melbourne Street Mall, Ringwood
Cost: Free event, no need to book
Enquiries phone 98700177

Cheers, Maryanne

Sissys Gourmet Delight

Sylvia is going to conduct a 2 hr demonstration including colouring of easter eggs, textured chocolate  and hollow eggs & figurines and also solid eggs. The demonstration includes sampling and some will try their hand at pouring eggs.

When: Wednesday 24th March 7pm
Where: Boronia Library, Park Crescent, Boronia
Cost: Free event
Bookings essential phone 9762 4099

Cheers, Maryanne

Harmony Day morning tea

Join us for a morning tea to celebrate our cultural diversity. All welcome, no need to book.

When: Saturday 20th March from 10:30am
Where: Rowville Library, Stud Park Shopping Centre, Stud Road, Rowville
Cost: Free event

Cheers, Maryanne

Easter Entertaining - A Cook's Kitchen event

Join Jill Hess for some great ideas for simple, light, savoury and sweet goodies for Easter entertaining.
When: Thursday 18th March 1:30pm
Where: Healesville Library, 231 Maroondah Highway, Healesville
Cost: $5
Bookings essential phone 59624423

Cheers, Maryanne

Our Monster Book Sale

What's bigger than an elephant?

Eastern Regional Libraries 
Monster Book Sale

Ex-library and donated fiction, non-fiction and children’s books at bargain prices. All proceeds from the sale will go back into the purchase of new library books. Be sure to bring plenty of bags to carry your bargains or buy a library bag on the day.



When: Saturday 13th March 10am-3pm
Where: Croydon Library, Civic Square, Croydon (Map of Croydon Library in Google maps)

Cheers, Maryanne

Edible and other useful weeds

Those of you who enjoyed his recent talks on Heritage Fruit Trees & Heirloom Vegetables will not want to miss Graeme George, of Earthcare Permaculture, speaking on edible & other useful weeds.

Did you know, for instance, that Nettles are a great source of Vitamin C? That Dandelion Tea can help improve liver function?  To find out more about this fascinating topic book your place now.


When: Tuesday 16th March 1pm
Where: Montrose Library, Cnr Mt. Dandenong Tourist Road & Swansea Road Montrose
Cost: Free event
Bookings essential phone 97284224

Cheers, Maryanne

Mt Evelyn cooking club - recipe swap

We know we have some fantastic cooks in our cooking club so now we open the floor to you. Please bring your recipe and if you would like, cook a sample to share.

When: Monday 15th March 2pm
Where: Mt Evelyn Library, 50 Wray Crescent, Mt. Evelyn
Cost: Free event
Bookings essential phone 97363851

Cheers, Maryanne

Need a few more booking for Stars talk at Knox

What are the stars? Why do they shine? Why are they different colours? How do they begin and how do they end?

Discover the answers to these and more questions in a talk by Dr James Murray, professional astronomer and science presenter.

When: Friday 19th March 12noon
Where: Knox Library, 425 Burwood Highway, Wantirna South
Cost: $4
Bookings essential phone 98011422

Cheers, Maryanne

Boronia Library update

I have just heard the news from Boronia Library staff that they are set to re-open today at 10am.


Cheers, Maryanne

Boronia Library

Boronia Library is currently closed due to the weekend storm damage. We expect to have the library re-opening tomorrow.

Cheers, Maryanne

Rowville's Chinese New Year party a great success

A New Year party for the Chinese Frienship Group was held at Rowville Library on the Friday prior to Chinese New Year. The room was beautifully decorated and about 40 people attended the session.Nick Wakeling, MP attended for the third successive year to present a cheque for the Sing Tao newspaper subscription.

Following the presentation we did Auld Lang Syne in the friendship circle with the 4 English speakers singing in English, then the Chinese speakers sang the same song in Chinese. They sang some more songs in Chinese whilst we all clapped along and then it was time to eat - amazing and different foods including some black jelly which they told me was 'grass'. Later on I found out it was 'grass from the sea' - what an opportunity to join in with this celebration.

The Chinese Friendship Group comprises people from many countries including China, Taiwan, Malaysia, Hong Kong and so on. They come to the group because of their common language and to see them all together with the 4 Aussies, singing, dancing and talking - what a great cultural event!

Cheers, Rowvillian

Knox Library has no Internet Monday 1st March

Just letting everyone know that Knox Library has no Internet today. We hope to have the Internet up and running there as soon as we are able tomorrow. Apologies for any inconvenience. Nearby branches at Boronia, Ferntree Gully and Rowville libraries have Internet.

Cheers, Maryanne

Yarra Junction Library is closed for refurbishment

Just a reminder that Yarra Junction library is closed for refurbishment from Monday 1st March and will re-open on Tuesday 6th April at 10am. Library services will be available via the the Ranges Mobile Library at the rear of Yarra Junction library on the following days: Monday 1st, 15th, 22nd, 29th March
10:30am-1pm.

The bookchute will remain open. You may also return items to any other branch of Eastern Regional Libraries.

I'll organise a Flickr account for them and advertise it here on the blog so everyone can stay updated with the refurbishment progress.

Cheers, Maryanne