Introducing Language Line

Hastings, Havelock North and Flaxmere Libraries are now participating in Language Line, along with the Hastings District Council. Language Line is a telephone interpreting service to improve communication between our patrons and library staff available from Monday to Friday 9am - 6pm.. There is no charge to patrons. Read more about Language Line on the Office of Ethnic Affairs website. Click here for a list of languages available.
See also our New Settler's page.

Ruapehu Eruption

Click here to go to GeoNet's Volcano Camera for images of Mt Ruapehu. Photos at half hourly intervals.

GeoNet provides real-time monitoring and data collection for rapid response and research into earthquake, volcano, landslide and tsunami hazards.

Fun and magic at the Libraries

Havelock North Library
Oh my goodness! Half the families in Havelock decided to come to the library on Tuesday morning to see Peter the Wacky Wizard. He wowed, zapped, clapped and had all in fits of laughter with his wacky escapades, including the parents. Many children (and a couple of mothers) had the honour of becoming Wizard Assistants during the show.

His amazing doves and rabbit (yes real!) were so well received he had trouble leaving the library after his show due to the amount of children lining up for a pat. Thanks Peter for a great morning.


Hastings Library
Remy from Ratatouille was the star on Wednesday, with a large group of children enjoying stories of his adventures.

Then it was down on the floor with crayons and scissors, and everyone made paper versions of Remy to take home. Photo: Monique with her Remy.

Rugby World Cup

Bonjour mes amis. Rugby World Cup is all over for another four years.
We have some new rugby books (and a DVD) in our libraries, all published in 2007.

• 101 moments of World Cup rugby by Wynne Gray.
• All Blacks : the authorised portrait edited by Ron Palenski
• Celebrity portraits : Andrew Mehrtens : a tribute to a rugby genius by John Matheson
• Inside the All Blacks (DVD)
• Jerry Collins' road to the World Cup with Tim Castle
• Magpie magic : Hawke's Bay rugby heritage : vol. 1 growing to glory (1875-1946) by Frank Long
• Paddy O'Brien's couch guide to rugby by Paddy O'Brien
• Quinn's quirks : the rugby wit and wisdom of Keith Quinn by ...Keith Quinn!
• The reign of King Henry : how Graham Henry transformed the All Blacks by Gregor Paul
• Rucking & rolling : 60 years of international rugby by Peter Bills
• The ultimate guide to weight training for rugby by Robert G. Price
• Unshaven jaws : sixty All Black test captains, 1903-2007 by Richard Lawrence ; foreword by John Hart
• Watching the Rugby World Cup by Spiro Zavos

2007 has been a busy year for publishing rugby books, and there will be a quite a few more before the year is over...

School Holiday Programmes

Above: Peter the Wacky Wizard, an unflappable dove, and just some of the hundreds of children trying to guess how he did his tricks - Hastings Library

We were thrilled with the response to the recent holiday programmes held in our three libraries. Watch Holiday Programmes for details, times and dates of future events. Of course the next big programme is the Summer Reading Programme! Where did that year go?

Talk Like a Pirate Day

Avast ye landlubbers! Today be Talk Like a Pirate Day. We here on the good ship Hastings Library be some of the first in the World to greet this day!

Dress of the day for library staff be their best pirate gear... or walk the plank. So thar be swaggering pirates on deck behind the desk and in the stacks. Beware! Fines must be paid in pieces of eight...or walk the plank. Busy plank.

Above: Vicious Viv, Boisterous Barb and Nasty Nige fighting over the Pirate display in the Children's Section.

Oh Aye..below be 'orrible 'annah on the Returns Desk deck. Landlubbers with overdues beat 'asty retreats - 'annah is very 'andy with her cutlass for a lass.

Read more...if you dare: http://www.talklikeapirate.com/

Adult Graphic Novels - New!

We have a new collection in Hastings Library - Graphic Novels for adults.

The collection started with 79 titles, and these issue for two weeks.

Have a look for the Graphic Novels collection in the Fiction Wing.

Sorry - no loans to junior members from this collection.

Hastings Blossom Festival

Hastings has celebrated Spring with a Blossom Festival since 1950.

During this year's Blossom Festival week (Sept 14-23) we had a display in Hastings Library showing the history of the festival, and featured copies of the Hawke's Bay Photo News from this era.

Please ask at the Reference Desk upstairs to see our issues of the Photo News. We do have some gaps in our collection, so if you have any copies of the Hawke's Bay Photo News we would love to have them.

See also the new page on the library website: http://www.hastingsdc.govt.nz/libraries/blossom_festival.htm

New Zealand Book Month - Flaxmere Library

Borrowers of New Zealand books in Flaxmere Library were able to go in the draw to win one of two copies of The Six Pack Two. Flaxmere also held a colouring competition for juniors. All through September there were changing displays of New Zealand books for both children and adults.

More on New Zealand Book Month>>

New Zealand Book Month - September

Celebrating NZ Books and NZ Writers

Havelock North Library
Havelock North Library held a preschool reading as part of their NZ Book Month celebrations. Lynette entertained a small but enthralled group of children with lovely New Zealand stories and sung songs. To welcome spring the children, with help from parents, made lovely spring flowers.

New Loyalty Cards for CDs, DVDs and Videos

We are very pleased to have new loyalty cards in the three libraries.

A new offer for CDs: pay for 5 music CDs, then get the sixth one for no charge. There are two of these offers printed on the one card.

For DVDs and Videos, the offer is the same as in the past: pay for the first 5 then the sixth one is free. There are also two offers printed on one card.

Author Visit - Heather Hapeta

Heather Hapeta, author of Naked in Budapest : travels with a passionate nomad spoke to an appreciative audience in Hastings Library on Tuesday 25 September.

After the deaths of her husband and son, she ran away from home at fifty and travelled around the world with a backpack, a youth hostel card, a sleeping bag, a year's work of savings and no plans. From Alaska to Zimbabwe, from cooking in Athens to an island monsoon - it's no wonder she reinvented herself as a travel writer.

Mr Pip in Booker Shortlist

New Zealand author Lloyd Jones' novel Mister Pip was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize for Fiction 2007. The winner turned out to be The Gathering by Anne Enright. The shortlist was:

Darkmans by Nicola Barker (Fourth Estate)
The Gathering by Anne Enright (Jonathan Cape)
The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid (Hamish Hamilton)
Mister Pip by Lloyd Jones (John Murray)
On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan (Jonathan Cape)
Animal’s People by Indra Sinha (Simon & Schuster)

More at: http://www.themanbookerprize.com/news/stories/82

Lloyd Jones was a guest author at the Hastings Library earlier this year.

New Zealand Book Month - September

Celebrating NZ Books and NZ Writers

Flaxmere Library

Held readings of some of our fabulous New Zealand books for children.

New Zealand Book Month - September

Celebrating NZ Books and NZ Writers

Hastings Library
Held storytime and activity for pre-schoolers
Readings from a selection of New Zealand children's authors