Welcome to July's instalment of the Library newsletter.

Matariki Public Holiday

All QLDC and CODC Libraries will be closed on Friday 14 July to observe the Matariki public holiday.

Growing Stars

We were delighted to host the first ever Growing Stars workshop in the Whakatipu in June. The workshop was a great success and we'd love to know if we should organise another one, or one in the Upper Clutha. Click here to register your interest and if we organise another one, we'll be in touch!

Growing Stars is a workshop that helps children aged between 6 and 12 years to understand and manage the emotional impact of living with a learning difference. It includes a parent workshop as well as ongoing support for parents after the workshop.

LOTE4Kids App Launch

We are excited to announce the official arrival of the highly anticipated LOTE4Kids App. Available on both iOS and Android for your mobile devices.

Download the LOTE4Kids App to access thousands of engaging picture books in 60+ languages in a more convenient way on mobile phones and tablets - all you need handy is your library card!

Have Your Say

Queenstown Lakes District Council have teamed up with the Three Lakes Cultural Trust to develop an Arts, Culture and Heritage Strategy for our district with the help of the local community. 

We are keen to hear from all the different voices across the district regardless of your level of involvement in the arts, culture or heritage scene. 

Have your say here by 5pm, Sunday 30 July 2023.  

Matariki is the Māori name for the cluster of stars, that rises in midwinter and for many Māori, heralds the start of the new year.

The return of the constellation is commemorated by Te Rā Aro ki Matariki 2023, which happens on Friday, July 14, this year. Early in the morning, just before dawn, is the optimum time to view the Matariki cluster.

The theme for 2023 is Matariki Kāinga Hokia | Matariki calls you home.

This year, we encourage everyone to return to their whānau and their people, wherever and whoever that might be. We want people to journey back home and celebrate, feast and be with whānau and friends.

Furthermore, the theme is also underpinned with important environmental messages. The various stars in Matariki invite you to return to where you are from and reconnect with the mountains, rivers, ocean and land. It reminds us of our responsibility to the places we call home.

Our libraries will be celebrating Matariki this year with several events for adults, teens and children, check them out below (click on each one for more information):

Matariki Stories & Celebrations for preschoolers:

• 7 July - Frankton Library @ 10.30am
• 10 July - Wānaka Library @ 10.30am
• 11 July - Queenstown Library @ 10.30am

Matariki Stories & Celebrations for primary school children:

• 7 July - Frankton Library @ 2pm
• 10 July - Wānaka Library @ 2pm
• 11 July - Queenstown Library @ 2pm

Ngā Pūrākau o Matariki | The Stories of Matariki an evening of storytelling for teens and adults:

• 6 July - Frankton Library @ 5.30pm
• 20 July - Wānaka Library @ 5pm
• 27 July - Queenstown Library @ 5.30pm

Matariki Public Holiday:

• 14 July - All of our libraries will be closed to observe the Matariki holiday

New Fiction

New Non-fiction

Staff picks

Welcome to this month's Staff Picks, where our librarians share some of the great books they've read recently. Discover hidden gems, popular titles, and diverse recommendations that will captivate your imagination and enrich your reading experience. Click here for the entire list.

Meet Librarian Paulina

Kia ora! I’m Paulina and I started working as a Circulation Assistant at Frankton Library in November last year. Honestly, the best opportunity ever! Talking to people, surrounded by books, and getting closer to our community are only a few things that I absolutely love about being here.

I’m originally from Chile and came to Queenstown on a Working Holiday Visa in September 2018. As many of you, the bubble trapped me and here I am calling this wonderful place home.

I’m originally an actor, who after working for 4 years in theatre in Chile, decided to travel the world. Away from the stage and the lights for the following 4 years, I missed the arts in all its forms, so I started reading fiction books to immerse myself in new worlds and to extend my vocabulary in English. Fun fact about me and my imagination: worlds from books are in different colours if I read them in Spanish or in English. Kind of like putting a filter to them! (Curious if this happens to anyone else? Come to the library and chat with me!)

I truly believe that whatever one reads is amazing and shouldn’t be judged. There are so many diverse kinds of books as humans are in this planet, as long as you love it or are interested in it, it won’t matter if you take 2 days or 5 months to read it. You have made it yours and that’s all that matters.

Ahora, para toda mi comunidad Latina: ¡vengan a conversar de libros a la biblioteca! Sé lo difícil que es empezar a leer en otro idioma, si necesitan recomendaciones de libros para empezar, yo feliz de ayudarlos. Y si no quieren leer en inglés, recién comenzamos una nueva colección de “World languages” y hay un par de libros en español esperando por ustedes.

If any English speaker is curious to know what did I say above, pop into the Library and I will happily translate and teach you a few words!

Below are some books and series of books that I have enjoyed lately:

Digital Spotlight

Did you know you have access to three great online streaming services with your library card? We think they're even better than Netflix and they're free with your Library card!

• Beamafilm is a unique and carefully curated collection of award-winning documentaries, independent features, and festival favourites.
• Bloomsbury Video Library brings together award-winning international film and video across a wide range of interdisciplinary subjects in the Arts and Humanities.
• Drama Online is an award-winning digital library that combines exclusively available playtext content and scholarly publications with filmed live performances, film adaptations and audio plays.

How do I watch? 

You can access Beamafilm, Bloomsbury Video Library, and Drama Online directly through your web browser on your preferred device. Beamafilm also has an app that is downloadable from the Google Play or Apple App Stores. All you need is your library card and password and you're ready to go!

Check out some of the great titles on offer:

Children & Young Adult
Staff Picks

Each month our passionate children's librarians handpick the most delightful, heartwarming, and engaging books for young readers. Below is just a taster but head to our blog for the entire list. Happy reading, little bookworms!

What's on at the library

Special Events

The Adult Reading Challenge for 2023 continues! There's still time to get involved and your winter reading could be very rewarding with entry into a prize draw on completion of the challenge. The reading challenge started on Thursday 1 June and ends Thursday 31 August and you can download a challenge card here, or pick one up at your local library.

In celebration of Plastic Free July, let's ditch cling film and single-use plastics. Come and join us learn on how to make your own awesome reusable beeswax wrap with the team from Wastebusters!

Beeswax Wrap Workshops are being held at Frankton on 5 July, Hāwea on 5 July, Queenstown on 6 July, and Wānaka on 4 & 11 July.

Grab your friends and family and join us for a good old-fashioned BINGO at Queenstown Library on 13 July.

Join us at Queenstown Library on 20 July for an author talk with acclaimed New Zealand writer, Caroline Barron. Caroline’s debut novel, ‘Golden Days’, has been making waves since its release in February this year and we are thrilled to have her share her literary journey with us.

The Matariki school holiday programme for the July school holidays is jam packed! QLDC Libraries are excited to be celebrating Matariki during the school holidays with a series of crafting sessions and some very special sessions with Matua Darren and the team at Kip McGrath.

Death Café is a global social movement which is all about raising our awareness of death in order to help us make the most of our lives.

Come and join a hosted conversation about death and dying over a coffee at Frankton Library on 13 July.

Ngā Pūrākau o Matariki | The Stories of Matariki an evening of storytelling for teens and adults:

• 6 July - Frankton Library @ 5.30pm
• 20 July - Wānaka Library @ 5pm
• 27 July - Queenstown Library @ 5.30pm

Adult Programmes

Frankton

• Meditation in the Library at Frankton Library is on Saturday 1 July.
• Pages & Purrs is on every Monday from 17 July.
• Frankton Library Knitting Club is on Thursday 13 July.
• The next session of the Financial Literacy Workshops is on Thursday 13 July - the topic is "Getting Savvy with Savings".
• Origami Club is on Saturday 29 July.

Queenstown

• Social English Group @ Queenstown is on weekly on Thursdays.
• Virtual Reality is on Saturday 8 July.
• Queenstown Creative Writing Group is meeting on Thursday 13 and 27 July.

Wānaka

• Wānaka Library Book Club is on Thursday 20 July.
• The last two Steph Holloway writing workshops are on:
  • Friday 21 July - Workshop 4: Selecting imagery for press, promo’s, book covers using body language messaging.
  • Friday 28 July - Workshop 5: Re-writing Copy Writing

Book & Writing Clubs

• Queenstown Creative Writing Group is meeting on Thursday 13 and 27 July.
• Wānaka Library Book Club is on Thursday 20 July.

Children & Youth Programmes

Join us at Queenstown Library on Monday 24 July or Frankton Library on Friday 28 July for Te Reo Māori Storytime.

Our regular children's programmes are on during term time. Join us for Reading to Dogs, Wriggle & Rhyme, LEGO® Club, Storytime, STEAM Club and more!

Check out the What's On page of the website or as your local librarians for details.

Digital Classes

Digital Help Drop-ins are always available by appointment in Queenstown.

• Hāwea Digital Help Drop-ins are every Tuesday.
• Wānaka Digital Help Drop-ins are on every Thursday.

To keep up to date with all of our events, check our What's On page, follow us on social media, download a copy of our calendars, and keep an eye out for event posters and flyers when you're next in the library.

NZ Sign Language Dictionary

thank
appreciate, appreciative, grateful, thank you, thanks

mihi
interjection; verb

We hope you found the latest instalment of the library newsletter interesting. Stay warm and catch you next month!

Kā mihi,
- Your Libraries Team.