On Hold

Lovely readers as you have noticed there haven't been any posts lately, this is because the blog has been put on hold until further notice. Thank you so much for sticking with us this far down the track. Please keep up your reading and Library visiting in the mean time.  Love Zinnia and Gwendoline.

Library News: Who Are Zinnia and Gwendoline?

When we first decided to start this blog we wanted to come up with some fun names that weren't ours so that our identity could remain a mystery, although if you have come to one of our workshops you will know who we are.  After a considerable amount of deliberation we decided on the names of antagonists, or villains, in some of our favourite childhood books.  If one of these ladies piques your attention, you could always find their books in the library!

Zinnia Wormwood is the name of Matilda's mother in Roald Dahl's Matilda and she isn't a very good mother to her.  The vain mother obviously doesn't take her role very seriously and never protects poor Matilda from the terrors that are her Father and her Headmistress at school, Miss Trunchbull.  The ditsy nature of the character is often the source of much comedy in the book and the movie based on it, with lines such as "You chose books and I chose looks.".  Her obsession with playing bingo and watching television soap operas makes us glad that it's poor Matilda and not us who have to have her as a mother.


The Malory Towers series by Enid Blyton is where we meet Gwendoline Lacey, a spoilt only child who is sent to live at the boarding school with the rest of the girls and is famous for having to brush her hair 100 times a day.  She isn't very widely liked as many of her classmates see her as lazy, selfish, a hypocrite and untruthful and throughout the book a rivalry forms between her and the other girls.  Gwendoline doesn't really have any true friends in the books, only posing as one when she has something to gain from someone.  Her actions did lead to a lot of antics in the story, like her playing tricks on another girl and trying to blame others for it!

So Zinnia and Gwendoline are the girls you love to hate, because really without them some of the books we so love to read would be totally boring.  We hope that throughout the year we have been a form of entertainment to you just like we have really enjoyed bringing new content to you each week.  Some really exciting things will be happening when school resumes in a couple of weeks time.  Until then you could spend the holidays catching up on all the posts you have missed throughout the year...  Zinnia and Gwendoline


Character: Mrs Wormwood [Image]. Retrieved from https://www.tumblr.com/search/character:%20mrs%20wormwood

What happened to Gwendoline Lacey [Image]. Retrieved from http://www.compulsiveconfessions.com/2014/04/what-happened-after-malory-towers.html

Movies you didn’t know were books first

There have been countless movies made based on books, for example Harry Potter, The Lord of the Rings and The Hunger Games. What you wouldn't believe is that there are some major movies based on books that you had no idea about. We read this really cool article that sums up 20 famous movies based on books. Since there are so many we thought we'd sum up the most shocking ones, so lets get right into it!

1. Clueless is a classic chick-flick, its an entertaining way to spend an hour. We always thought this was a fun loving movie not to be taken too seriously or that had much foundation. But did you know that its actually based on a book called Emma by Jane Austen, whose book we recently reviewed. 
2. Pitch Perfect is a great example for a famous movie that not many people know was based on a book called Pitch Perfect: The Quest for Collegiate A Cappella Glory. This one is a bit of a quirky case though, because its all about music and singing, you would think its simply a movie. None the less the book is a great read. 
3. Queen Bees and Wannabes: Helping Your Daughter Survive Cliques, Gossip, Boyfriends & Other Realities of Adolescence, I doubt you would be able to guess what movie was based off this book. MEAN GIRLS the next best chick-flick out. Of course the genius mind of an author would have conjured this up.


 

To end this mind blowing post we would like remind you all that we are having another workshop tomorrow so come along to have a good time and celebrate the joys of reading. Until next week Zinnia and Gwendoline :)

Special Event: Bookmark Colouring

The semester, and for those who aren't transitioning into the Australian school year system the year, is almost over.  We're also about to mark almost a year of posting on the gissLibraryBlog, so we thought to celebrate we would use the opportunity to reward our dedicated readers and maybe attract some new ones.  So let's all meet on Thursday the 16th of June in the big break at the library of course and we can all have a chat about what we love about reading over some therapeutic colouring.  We all know that calling it a day (or night) and having to put aside your book is quite possibly one of the more traumatising aspects of loving reading.  The only thing that makes it slightly better is having a fun bookmark to help you remember where you left off.  That's why your work of art can also double as a bookmark making it a fun, creative and practical activity, so what's holding you back?  We love these bookmarks by Dawn Nicole Designs and will have plenty of copies on hand on the day, but you're welcome to get a head start if you want to!  We can hardly wait to see you then!! Zinnia and Gwendoline

Find fun bookmark printouts here:http://bydawnnicole.com/2015/05/free-printable-coloring-page-bookmarks.htmlutm_campaign=coschedule&utm_source=facebook_page&utm_mediu
m=By%20Dawn%20Nicole&utm_content=Free%20Printable%20Co

You Don't Get Enough Sleep [Image]. Retrieved from https://media.bookbub.com/blog/2015/07/01/8-ways-reading-is-ruining-your-life/

Fiji

Hey guys,

you've probably been wondering why we didn't post last week. That's because we went to Fiji for 6 days. The purpose of our trip was to support an Organisation called a girl and her world. A girl and her world is an organisation that funds education for girls . 

in need. It was an absolutely rewarding experience. We visited quiet a few different villages and also had the pleasure of visiting two schools, both had libraries. Unfortunately one of the Libraries was badly affected by Cyclone Winston. Therefore we wanted to dedicate this post to appreciate our own library and not to take for granted how lucky we are to have such a large and extensive library that caters to all our students needs. We cannot stress enough how important reading is for the brains development and for a healthy imagination. One of the village elders told us that since he started encouraging the young children to read, it has helped their progression in school immensely. He said it is hard to come by books, because the village is so secluded it’s tucked away really. This is yet another reason to why we stress the fact that reading is important and how lucky we are to have our library. We are so happy that the Fijians agree with us
 

We are going to ask you lovely readers to go to the library or email us what your favourite things about our Library is and we can write it on the windows. This is a quick thing you can do to support our library and to show much you value it.

As always hope to hear from you and thank you for tuning in Zinnia and Gwendoline :) 

If you would like to support the Organisation you can donate at: https://www.gofundme.com/dbxnwnps

If you would like to learn more about the Organisation you can check out their site at:

http://agirlandherworld.org

Student's Opinion: Beneath the Dark Ice

Bobby Squiggles recommends ‘Beneath the Dark Ice’ by Greig Beck to our readers.  The gripping novel tells of a rescue mission to save the passengers of a plane that had crashed over Antarctica.  Losing hope as they struggle to find traces of survivors, they also meet scientists researching a possible oil reservoir.  But they soon discover that something more sinister may be lurking beneath the surface.  Bobby Squiggle enjoyed the read because of the interesting combination between horror, action and fantasy and thinks that readers between the age of 13- 25 would enjoy it too.  He browsing, on the lookout for something new to read he randomly found ‘Beneath the Dark Ice’.  The main character Captain Alex Hunter is the one he identified most, although Bobby described him as violent and badass or an ‘emotional teddy bear’.  So maybe next time you’re stuck for something fresh to read you can check out ‘Beneath the Dark Ice'. See you next week!  Zinnia and Gwendoline

7736474-beneath-the-dark-ice [image] .http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7736474-beneath-the-dark-ice

Author Related: Mary Pope Osborne

When we were younger we loved reading the 'Magic Treehouse' series, so when we found out it is the authors birthday next week we decided to learn more about her.

Mary Pope Osborne is obviously very creative, as her books take the two protagonists Jack and Annie all over the world and all through history.  The time traveling tree house takes the children to different places in a time the children wouldn't ordinarily get to see, as it is in the past or even in the future.

After one having looked at Osborne's life story it is clear that she herself has experienced many things that could have inspired her to write one of the many books in the series. 

As a child Osborne moved around the world a lot, since her family was in the military.  They moved around the United States and also Internationally.  Perhaps this is where she was inspired to write some of her stories, such as 'Moonlight on the Magic Flute' the 42nd book in the 'Magic Treehouse' series set in Austria.  Pope's family lived there for some time during her childhood, but she moved back to the University of North Carolina to study.  After studying cultures, mythology and religion she visited countries from Europe to Asia.  Osborne has always loved seeing new things, so the constant change of scenery wasn't a problem for her.

Another passion of Osborne's is drama, being very involved in her community theater, both on and off stage.  Her career has also been very varied, Pope has worked as a drama teacher, waitress, travel agent and more before finding her passion in writing.  Osborne is best known for the 'Magic Treehouse' series, although she has also written many other books, including research guides which supply background knowledge to the historical events happening in a certain 'Magic Treehouse' book.  The series is available in more than 30 languages, including English and German and we would definitely recommend the series to anyone who loves learning about the world and enjoying a good story while they're at it.  Find the series in the GISS library now! Zinnia and Gwendoline

N.A. (n.d.). Biography Mary Pope Osborne. Retrieved from http://www.kidsreads.com/authors/mary-pope-osborne
Mary Pope Osborne (2016). Biography. Retrieved from http://marypopeosborne.com/biography/
N.A. (n.d.). Mary Pope Osborne. Retrieved from http://www.famousbirthdays.com/people/mary-osborne.html
Special Program- Mary Pope Osborne [Image]. Retrieved from https://www.discoverpittsfield.com/event/special-program-a-visit-from-mary-pope-osborne/