Answer a question and win

Imagine you could meet any author you choose (alive or dead - it might involve some time travel). You can spend an hour or two with them, perhaps enjoying a meal in a good restaurant in their company.  Who would you most like to meet? We'll talk about why you might like to meet them or what you would ask at our next meeting.

Fill in your answer on the Google Form and be in to win a brand new book. Open to Kāpiti District residents only. The winner will be drawn at the next Wrappers meeting on Friday 6 May. 

The Midwife's Apprentice by Karen Cushman

One frosty evening, a girl who knows no home, no parents, and no name but Brat finds shelter and warmth in a farmer’s dung heap.  There Jane the village midwife finds her.  So it is that Brat, now called Beetle by her new mistress – begins her career as a midwife’s apprentice.

It’s not a soft life.  Jane is a hard woman with a sharp glance and a sharper temper.  Still, Beetle makes a place for herself, adopting a cat and befriending one of the village boys.  By secretly watching Jane work, she learns some of the skills the midwife greedily tries to hid.  Beetle even gives herself a real name at last: Alyce.

Then one day she fails at an important assignment. Alyce runs away, believing she is too stupid to be of use to anyone. Is she truly Brat, a know-nothing who belongs nowhere? Or is she Alyce, the midwife’s apprentice, a person with a name and a place in the world.

The Midwife’s Apprentice is an award winning book and a rather odd but enjoyable read. It’s a glimpse into Medieval life and some of the fascinating beliefs around childbirth but it’s also much more than that for such a short read.  There are plenty of quirky characters and interesting events but it’s also a universal story of overcoming adversity and developing self-belief and confidence.  

Character Development and Hollandaise

Award winning author Mandy Hager led a writing session with the Wrappers at the last meeting. Her expertise in both writing and the teaching of writing was invaluable as she took the Wrappers through the steps to develop a character with depth and realism.  By the end of the session 'Hollandaise' from the sauce making family seemed to come alive and a plot outline was beginning to develop.

Does anyone want to develop that story?  It would be great to read the story of Hollandaise now she has been created.The character description is below. 

Teen Book Sale

Grab a bargain! We are weeding the teen book collection at Paraparaumu Library at the moment and selling the cancelled books. If you'd like to grab yourself a bargain keep an eye on the sales table beside the stairs. You can fill a bag for $1! 

Answer a question and win

'Never judge a book by it's cover'. It's a saying that has been around for years and it has some merit when choosing a book you've never read.  Imagine the wonderful story you could miss out on if you only judged a book by it's cover.

Now think of it differently. What if you know the story and had to choose the cover?  Take Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone for example. It has been published with several different covers over the past 20 years. Take a look at five of the covers below and make your choice. Which cover do you like best?

Fill in your answer on the Google Form and be in to win a brand new book. Open to Kāpiti District residents only. The winner will be drawn at the next Wrappers meeting on Friday 1 April. 

One by Sarah Crossan

Grace and Tippi. Tippi and Grace. Two sisters. Two hearts. Two dreams. Two lives. But one body.
Grace and Tippi are conjoined twins, joined at the waist, defying the odds of survival for sixteen years. They share everything, and they are everything to each other. They would never imagine being apart. For them, that would be the real tragedy.
But something is happening to them. Something they hoped would never happen. And Grace doesn’t want to admit it. Not even to Tippi.
How long can they hide from the truth—how long before they must face the most impossible choice of their lives?

This is a beautiful and emotional read.  It is written in free verse style which was surprisingly easy and quick to read. The story is told from the point of view of one conjoined twin, Grace, and through her we learn both of her individuality and her powerful bond with Tippi.  It’s also a story of a family facing several challenges and how they are coping individually and as a family.  A revealing insight into life as a conjoined twin and a deeply moving story. 

Talking about books with teens in Russia

The Wrappers met some Russian teens via Skype and talked with them about favourite books. Luckily for us the Russian students learn English so we could understand each other.  We didn't know many of their favourites and they didn't know many that the Wrappers had picked as their individual choices.  However there were some popular books they both knew and liked, especially books that appear on 'best seller' and 'most borrowed from the library' lists in New Zealand. Those books included the Divergent series, the Fault in our Stars and Harry Potter.