‘Blue Oaks Amphitheater’: Information sought and provided

On Jan. 24, a reader asked me for leads on information about the Blue Oaks Amphitheater, formerly at Yuba Community College’s Clear Lake Campus.

‘Strega Nona’ and lesson in Integrity

Strega Nona’s magic pot with spaghetti spilling out of it

I work as both web editor for the Rogue Valley Unitarian Universalist Fellowship and as administrative coordinator for its Religious Explorations program. When I post announcements about R.E. activities to the church’s blog, these two positions’ responsibilities intersect.

During Religious Explorations classes on Sunday, the pre-kindergarten to second grade had a lesson in Integrity through the story of “Strega Nona” acted out and expressed through art. While Strega Nona is away, her assistant uses her magic pot to make spaghetti. But he can’t make it stop and the spaghetti overruns the town. After Strega Nona gets her magic pot to stop, her assistant must make things right by cleaning up the mess he made.

‘Red: The True Story of Red Riding Hood’

I never tire of reading contemporary fiction based on European fairy tales. So often, authors come up with a fresh angle of presenting the traditional story.

Liesl Shurtliff has done exactly that with Red: The True Story of Red Riding Hood (Random House Children’s, April 12, 2016). As readers may expect, Red sets out to visit her grandmother’s house — but while a wolf howls in the woods, it doesn’t dress up as Granny. Instead, Granny disguises herself as a wolf to deter nuisance visitors.

Granny’s reputation as a witch attracts various people who want spells and potions.

‘On the Edge of Gone’ by Corinne Duyvis

Minutes before a meteor strikes the earth, Denise and her mother are granted temporary shelter aboard a “generation ship,” designed for a journey that will take several lifetimes to travel to distant planets.

Before the meteor, Denise cared for cats at an animal shelter. She attended neighborhood events that were organized by her sister Iris. But before it even struck the earth, the meteor’s arrival changed everyone’s life irrevocably.

Now ships like this are one of humankind’s few hopes for surviving the meteor’s impact.

Bellview Elementary School library ‘Top 10’

Bellview Elementary School library ‘Top 10,’ Jan. 19, 2016
from Cynthia M. Parkhill

Featured titles in this year’s Oregon Battle of the Books continue to hold all 10 slots on the Bellview library “Top 10” list. About once per month, I create a flier showcasing the books most often checked out by students from Bellview library.