Day: 20 August 2014

Wallace Chapman: WORD Christchurch Writers and Readers Festival

DonnaLeave a comment

WORD Christchurch Writers and Readers Festival kicks off on 27 August. We’ve asked three quick questions of festival guests:

Wallace Chapman – tv and radio host, and writer

Cover of The InterestingsWhat (or who) are you most looking forward to at WORD Christchurch?

Meg Wolitzer, because I read her book The Interestings, and it was fabulous. What happens when your teen group of friends grow up together and form relationships.

What do you think about libraries?

Possibly one of the greatest gifts to Civic Life were Libraries. For a 1 year stretch when doing my own book, my Library card got a bigger workout than my EFTPOS card. They’re essential and ever changing.

Share a surprising fact about yourself.

I can put a needle into myself ( long story, but I can self infuse )

Walk, bike, or skate through the Lyttelton Road Tunnel – Sunday 31 August 2014

Donna3 Comments

You can go through the Lyttelton Road Tunnel on foot, by bike, or skateboard on Sunday 31 August, from 9.30am to 12.30pm. At the other end of the tunnel, there will be a market day in Lyttelton hosted by the Lyttelton Harbour Business Association. The library mobile van will be outside the Lyttelton Library, with storytelling for children.This occasion celebrates 50 years of the Tunnel, the opening of the new tunnel control building and national recognition for its engineering heritage. Read more: Triple celebration for Lyttelton Tunnel. NZ Transport Agency: Southern Region and Cycling in Christchurch.

Read the NZTA PDF with full details of how you get there and home etc.

On Monday 1 September at 7 pm Jack Smith, who was involved in the tunnel construction, will speak in the Lyttelton Library about his experiences and promote the book he has written as part of the Fletcher Construction history series, No job too hard.

The Lyttelton Road Tunnel opened 27 February 1964 creating a vital link between the city of Christchurch, New Zealand and its port Lyttelton. The tunnel complemented the long established Lyttelton Rail Tunnel. It is the longest road tunnel in New Zealand.

Opening of Lyttelton Road Tunnel
27 Feb 1964. People were invited to walk through the tunnel on opening day. Flickr: HW08-IMG-FE062

The Lyttelton Road Tunnel Administration Building at the Heathcote (Christchurch) end of the tunnel was designed by Christchurch architect Peter Beaven. The distinctive building was demolished in the aftermath of the Christchurch earthquakes.

NZTA reports the new $1.5 million tunnel control building, designed by Wellington-based Architecture Lab and built by local company Higgs Construction to 160 percent of the Building Code, signals a new era for the operation of the tunnel.

Ceiling panels being lifted into place during the construction of the Christchurch-Lyttelton Road Tunnel
Ceiling panels being lifted into place during the construction of the Christchurch-Lyttelton Road Tunnel. ca. 1963. Flickr: CCL-KPCD-11-035

It all adds up to Britannica SmartMaths Practice

ColleenLeave a comment

Go to Britannica SmartmathsI struggle to love maths. Distant memories of being made to stand in front of class and recite my times tables as a child still haunt me. Of course my maths learning took place in the dark old days when the most fun you could have was putting in certain numbers on your calculator and turning it upside down so it would spell  “BOOB”. We have moved on from there so  let me introduce you to something much more fun. Britannica SmartMaths Practice  aims to improve confidence in all areas of maths using a game like interface with six different levels depending on age and skill.  It covers topics such as:

  • Numbers: addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, fractions and percentages;
  • Shape and Space: curves, angles, quadrilaterals, triangles, circles and symmetry;
  • Algebra: elementary and complex equations;
  • Measures: length and distance, time, money, perimeter, area, volume and speed;
  • Data Handling: pictograms, block graphs, charts, statistics, probability, coordinate geometry.

It is aimed at those aged 6-14 years of age with activities and quizzes, but I can tell you as a grown up of a certain age it was a revelation to me too!  You can even earn badges and points that can be used to choose a different character to cheer you on. I don’t think maths would have been half as traumatic if I could have worked my way through a bright happy place such as this! Get those kids learning with this – and have a look yourself. You would be amazed at what you have forgotten!

“The sea! The sea!”

LisaLeave a comment

Ancient Greek historian Xenophon and the August nature and science newsletter seem to have a thing about the sea. Dive in and see if you are on the same wave-length. Catch the drift of the reading picks, if you don’t like one, there are plenty more fish in the sea. Get on board our sailing ship of great aquatic reads. Have a whale of a time with some sea-tastic snappers of a sea-related….nope, that’s it, I’m out.

Book cover: the power of the sea Book cover of The Reef Book cover: The empty ocean  Book cover: The secret world of red wolves Book cover of The urban bestiary Book Cover: Animal architecture

Science lovers may also want to check out the WORD Christchurch session featuring Michael Corballis, author of The Wandering Mind.

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Dr Davinia Caddy: WORD Christchurch Writers and Readers Festival

DonnaLeave a comment

WORD Christchurch Writers and Readers Festival kicks off on 27 August. We’ve asked three quick questions of festival guests:

Dr Davinia Caddy – senior lecturer at the School of Music, University of Auckland

Cover of Peace, power, and politicsWhat (or who) are you most looking forward to at WORD Christchurch?

 Maire Leadbeater.

What do you think about libraries?

 The concrete ones, I presume? One of the Wonders of the World (the 8th?), soon (sadly, at least to me) to be ancient in the digital age

Share a surprising fact about yourself.

Avid fan of Stoke City Football Club – The Mighty Potters!

Donovan Bixley: WORD Christchurch Writers and Readers Festival

DonnaLeave a comment

WORD Christchurch Writers and Readers Festival kicks off on 27 August. We’ve asked three quick questions of festival guests:

Donovan Bixley – illustrator and writer

Cover of The bright side of my conditionWhat (or who) are you most looking forward to at WORD Christchurch?

So much to look forward to. I’m a big fan of Charlotte Randall. I love historical fiction and the excitement of whaling and naval history – especially the period of the turn of the 19th century – so obviously I felt that The Bright Side of My Condition was written for me. I’m also an old fan of Kristin Hersh and I’m looking forward to her visit to NZ. It will be great to catch up with Melinda Szymanik as we are working on a book together and I’m also looking forward to finally meeting Dylan Horrocks.

What do you think about libraries?

I love just browsing the shelves and discovering new books (new to me that is). There’s never any pressure, if you don’t like it you can return it, and if you do like a book you can go back and get it again and again. Often you can find darling old books that you can’t get in the shops, and as a devoted book lover, I love that a lot of library books are original hardcover versions.

Share a surprising fact about yourself.

At school I used to draw cars and trucks to keep the school bullies on side. Nowadays I love to draw all sorts of things – except (for some strange reason) cars and trucks.

Cover of Monkey Boy Cover of The Three bears Cover of Dinosaur rescue

More free tickets to Plum!

VanessacclLeave a comment
Photo of Colin McPhillamy as Plum
Colin McPhillamy as Plum

Congratulations to the lucky winners of the six double passes to ‘Plum’:

  • Jane Craker
  • Jennifer Leahy
  • Sally Cox
  • Kirsten Rayne
  • Colette Lim
  • Graeme Smart

Did you miss out? Fear not – there is another chance to win!

Today, at 1pm at Upper Riccarton Library, Colin McPhillamy (the actor who plays P.G. Wodehouse in ‘Plum’) will present an illustrated talk on Wodehouse and will read excerpts from his writing career. Colin will also talk about the play and there will be time for a Q&A session at the end.

Three spot prizes of double tickets to ‘Plum’ and an autographed show programme will be given away during the talk.

It promises to be a very interesting presentation and, who knows, you could be one of the lucky spot prize winners. Make sure you don’t miss out!