Although there are still a few areas marked off with caution tape, full public access has now been restored to Central Library’s second floor collections.
Temporary repairs have been made to the ceiling area believed damaged by last winter’s heavy snowfall, and full repairs are to be completed in the next few months.
Thank you very much for your patience and understanding. More info on the ceiling repairs can be found on our original news post.
The numbers from our record-breaking summer reading program are in! An astounding 5,305 youth participated in Get Caught Reading 2010, including:
906 preschoolers
3, 518 elementary-aged kids
852 middle and high school students
The number of books these kids read? At least 24,782! In fact, they probably read even more, since many exceeded their reading goals. That’s amazing – a big tip of the hat to Arlington’s young readers!
And a huge thank you to the Friends of the Arlington Library. They provide 100% of the program and prize support for summer reading. We literally couldn’t do it without them.
Relive all the fun with this video recap…..
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cpsxOoNkA4U?fs=1]
A section of Central Library’s second floor will not be available to the public for the next few days.
During recent routine maintenance, engineers found some ceiling area damage, which is believed to have been caused by last winter’s heavy snowfall. The area is scheduled for repairs, but public access to the space below the damaged ceiling will be restricted as part of standard safety practices.
Are your children interested in robotics? 
Anthony Nunez, president of Infamous Robotics, will demonstrate an I-SOBOT and a dinosaur robot in the Central Library Children’s Room on the following dates:
Nunez will be offering a new Robotics 101 class for kids ages 7-12 through Arlington County Parks and Recreation, which will start on September 22 – here’s your chance to get a taste of what it will be about! You can also visit the Parks and Recreation website for registration information, or email questions about the class to info@InfamousRobotics.com
During the month of September the Central Library is exhibiting a group show by the Arlington Artists Alliance called “La Femme,” which features a wide variety of images of women.
You can view a selection of the works on display on our flickr page.
The Arlington Artists Alliance is a non-profit organization serving and supporting artists in Arlington County. The Alliance works with participating local businesses, churches, and educational institutions to hold art shows in their spaces.They also provide a support network to members, allowing regional artists to share ideas.
Visit our Art Exhibit page to find out more about Library art shows.
One of the busiest areas of Arlington can be found in Clarendon, where Washington Boulevard, Wilson Boulevard and Clarendon Boulevard all meet. In the early 1900s, the presence of the trolley in Clarendon led to an outgrowth of merchants and businesses in that neighborhood.
Although the names, owners and buildings themselves may have changed over time, what has remained constant is the steady parade of shoppers, pedestrians, and commuters that flock to the businesses and restaurants in Clarendon. Long before malls and multiplex cinemas became the mainstays of the present day consumer, customers packed the Ashton Theater, Little Tavern, Sears, and numerous other businesses in Clarendon.
Clarendon Circle was conceived around the time of the onset of World War I, when a parcel of land donated by Arthur J. Porter was used to make the circle. Sometime in the late 1920s-early 1930s, the American Legion began construction on a War Memorial Monument in the center of the circle, supposedly using stones from a retaining wall from the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, which was being dismantled at that time. After its dedication on November 11, 1931, the memorial remained at Clarendon Circle until 1940, when concerns about the structure being a possible traffic hazard resulted in its relocation to the Court House that same year. Eventually, in 1986, the memorial was returned to a spot very near its original location.
Book Whisperers, at Westover Branch Library, read quite a variety of books
over the summer. Here we share some of what patrons and staff read:
What a great list to generate new reading!
In September Book Whisperers will be reading My Life in France, by Julia Child. All are welcome to our Tuesday night meeting on Sept. 28 at 7pm, or Wednesday Sept. 29 at 2pm.
Do you like art with a graffiti edge? Come check out the the new artwork on display at the Columbia Pike Branch Library.
Kevin Irwin, aka Jazi Rock, has several pieces on display on the 2nd floor of the library. Kevin also graciously spruced up the Juvenile section on the 1st floor with some bright and beautiful color.
Thanks Kevin – we really love having your work all around us!
The Aurora Hills Branch Library is currently in the process of shifting all large type books from their current location between the non-fiction and the fiction sections to their very own section to make them more visible and more easily accessible to our patrons!
So next time you visit Aurora Hills check out our large type collection which can be found right next to the entrance adjacent to the audiobooks. You might be surprised what titles you find there!
On August 30th the Aurora Hills Branch Library will celebrate Frankenstein author Mary Shelley’s 213th birthday!
Mary Shelley is best known for her gruesome and tragic tale about Victor Frankenstein’s obsession with reanimating dead tissue and the horrible consequences that came from taking it a step too far. However she was a prolific female writer for her time producing, novels, short stories, essays, biographies, and plays. Arlington Public Libraries has many of her publications so check out a few and spend these last hazy days of summer enjoying the beautiful weather and reading a good book!