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Monday, November 27, 2006

Basketball Schedules

The basketball schedules for the junior and senior teams are now posted here.

The school website will be getting revamped over the next little while since it is out of date, but until then feel free to refer to this page for basketball schedule updates.

Also a reminder that PRHS is hosting the Division 4 boys' volleball provincials this weekend (December 1-2). Make sure to catch a game or two!

Friday, November 24, 2006

A wonder of the web: Worldmapper

Worldmapper is a website out of the University of Sheffield in Britain that has dozens of beautiful and fascinating maps of the world - dozens because the cartographers (people who make and study maps) mapped the world according to things other than geography and political boundaries. Below is a screenshot of their homepage, and note the different looks of the maps:


Click on the image above to view the Worldmapper homepage.

Don't look like your usual maps of the world, do they?

This site currently has 227 maps of everything from Land Area to Tourist Destinations to Cars Exports (check out how massive and distorted Japan is!) to Forest Loss. Each map is linked to a descriptive webpage that outlines exactly what the map is about and contains a PDF poster that contains further information and can be printed out and displayed. Check it out!

Wednesday, November 22, 2006

New Orca Soundings books

Six new Orca Soundings books have come in the library, much to the delight of some students who have read all of the other OS books in the library! Wow.

Saving Grace by Darlene Ryan

Chill by Colin Frizzell

Tell by Norah McClintock

Battle of the Bands by K. L. Denman

Charmed by Carrie Mac

Home Invasion by Monique Polak


Check them out in the New Book display in the library.

Monday, November 20, 2006

A wonder of the web: LibraryThing


LibraryThing has become my new favourite internet toy, and it does some really interesting things with books.

First of all, people from all over the world log on and enter books that they own or that they have read into their "library," or personal collection of books. They also use tags in order to help find their books, like Flickr uses tags for photos. You can look at the tag cloud for PRHS's account to see what tags can look like.

After people have entered books into their libraries (and there are now over 8 million books in LibraryThing), LibraryThing can do some analysis and find out things such as:
- how many people own a certain book
- what books you might like based on what you've already got in your library or a book you've already read - this is the Book Suggester feature.
- and what books you might NOT like if you enjoyed a particular book - this is the Book Unsuggester.

I also use LibraryThing to generate those lists of new books that you see on the right side of this page if you scroll down.

What do you think of LibraryThing? Leave a comment and let me know!

Wednesday, November 15, 2006

If you liked the Spiderwick Chronicles, you might like...

Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer












The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke











Over Sea, Under Stone by Susan Cooper











A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle











The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau











Inkheart by Cornelia Funke










Search the catalogue to see if they are checked in at the PRHS library.

Tuesday, November 14, 2006

Adventure books - virtual display

Airborn by Kenneth Oppel


Set in an imaginary past where giant airships rule the skies, Airborn is the story of Matt Cruse, the 15-year-old cabin boy of the 900-foot luxury airship Aurora. Hundreds of feet over the Pacificus Ocean, Matt fearlessly performs a dramatic rescue to save an old man from his crippled hot-air balloon. Before he dies, the stranger tells Matt about the fantastic, impossible creatures he has seen flying through the clouds. Matt dismisses the story as the ravings of a dying man, but when a beautiful, bold girl arrives on the Aurora a year later, determined to prove the story true, Matt finds himself caught up in her quest. But can he and Kate solve the mystery before pirates, shipwreck and frightening predators end their voyage forever? - from the publisher.

Read a review.

Visit the Airborn website.

Crispin: the cross of lead by Avi

"Asta's son" is all he's ever been called. The lack of name is appropriate, because he and his mother are but poor peasants in fourteenth-century medieval England. But this thirteen-year-old boy who thought he had little to lose soon finds himself with even less -- no home, family, or possessions. Accused of a crime he did not commit, he has been declared a "wolf's head." That means he may be killed on sight, by anyone. If he wishes to remain alive, he must flee his tiny village. All the boy takes with him is a newly revealed name -- Crispin -- and his mother's cross of lead.

His journey through the English countryside is amazing and terrifying. Especially difficult is his encounter with the juggler named Bear. A huge, and possibly even mad, man, Bear forces the boy to become his servant. Bear, however, is a strange master, for he encourages Crispin to think for himself.

Though Bear promises to protect Crispin, the boy is being relentlessly pursued. Why are his enemies so determined to kill him? Crispin is gradually drawn right into his enemies' fortress where -- in a riveting climax -- he must become a different person if he is to save Bear's life and his own. - from the publisher.

Read a review.

About Crispin on Avi's website.

Iceberg by Clive Cussler

Crawling into the heart of an iceberg, Dirk Pitt discovers the charred remains of a lost luxury yacht, its crew, and its owner, an Icelandic mining magnate. Missing is its secret, priceless cargo.

Targeted for death, Dirk Pitt goes under cover in Iceland to get to the heart of a secret plot that threatens the world! From a lethal party in Reykjavik to a deadly visit to Disneyland, he races to stop a ruthless international conspiracy before it's too late.


Into thin air by Jon Krakauer

When Jon Krakauer reached the summit of Mt. Everest in the early afternoon of May 10, 1996, he hadn't slept in fifty-seven hours and was reeling from the brain-altering effects of oxygen depletion. As he turned to begin the perilous descent from 29,028 feet (roughly the cruising altitude of an Airbus jetliner), twenty other climbers were still pushing doggedly to the top, unaware that the sky had begun to roil with clouds...

In this definitive account of the deadliest season in the history of Everest, Jon Krakauer takes the reader step-by-step from Katmandu to the mountain's deadly pinnacle, unfolding a breathtaking story that will by turns thrill and terrify. - from the publisher.

Read a review.

Animated flyover of Everest on Discovery Channel website.



Peter and the Starcatchers by Dave Barry and Ridley Peterson.

Don't even think of starting this book unless you're sitting in a comfortable chair and have lots of time. A fast-paced, impossible-to-put-down adventure awaits as the young orphan Peter and his mates are dispatched to an island ruled by the evil King Zarboff. They set sail aboard the Never Land, a ship carrying a precious and mysterious trunk in its cargo hold but the journey quickly becomes fraught with excitement and danger. Discover richly developed characters in the sweet but sophisticated Molly, the scary but familiar Black Stache, and the fearless Peter. Treacherous battles with pirates, foreboding thunderstorms at sea, and evocative writing immerse the reader in a story that slowly and finally reveals the secrets and mysteries of the beloved Peter Pan. -from the publisher.

Read a review.

Peter and the Starcatchers website.

Friday, November 10, 2006

Remembrance Day

Remembrance Day is upon us, so check out these sites to learn more.

Did you know that some Nazi prisoners of war (PoWs) and Jewish refugees were kept in the same camp near Fredericton, NB? CBC Archives - Conflict and War has links to dozens of CBC audio and video clips relating to both World Wars, the Holocaust, women in war, and other conflict-related topics.

Canada Remembers allows you to search for clips of veterans speaking of their experiences, including Mr. Alexander McInnis from Port Hawkesbury.

Veterans Affairs also has summaries of lots of different battles like the Battle of Vimy Ridge and the disastrous Dieppe raid.

We Were There, a project of Library and Archives Canada, tells the stories of people who experienced World War One first-hand, including a nurse, an infantry soldier, and the Minister of Militia.

The Virtual War Memorial is a registry of over 116,000 Canadians who died serving their country and often includes information on where they are buried. This is a big help if you are searching for memorial or burial information on a relative - I found out where my great-great-uncle is buried just by knowing his first and last names and where he was born.

Finally, listen to Terry Kelly's song A Pittance of Time, or watch the video.

Monday, November 06, 2006

New book of the week: B for Buster

Nicknamed after his hometown of Kakabeka, Canada, Kak dreams of flying with the Allied bombers in World War II. So at 16, underage and desperate to escape his abusive parents, he enlists in the Canadian Air Force. Soon he is trained as a wireless operator and sent to a squadron in England, where he's unabashedly gung ho about flying his first op. He thinks the night ops over Germany will be like the heroic missions of his favorite comic-book heroes. Good will vanquish evil. But his first time out, in a plane called "B for Buster," reveals the ops for what they really are--a harrowing ordeal. The bombing raids bring searchlights . . . artillery from below . . . and night fighters above hunting to take the bombers down. One hit, Kak knows, and "B for Buster," along with him and his six crewmates, could be destroyed.

Kak is terrified.

He can't confide his feelings to his crew, since he's already worried that they'll find out his age. Besides, none of them seem afraid. Only in Bert, the slovenly caretaker of the homing pigeons that go on every op, does Kak find an unlikely friend. Bert seems to understand what the other men don't talk about--the shame, the sense of duty, and the paralyzing fear. As Kak seeks out Bert's company, he somehow finds the strength to face his own uncertain future. - from the publisher

Read a review.

About the Canadian Bomber Squadrons.

Wednesday, November 01, 2006

Remembrance Day virtual display

And no birds sang by Farley Mowat.

In July 1942, Farley Mowat was an eager young infantryman bound for Europe and impatient for combat. This powerful, true account of the action he saw, fighting desperately to push the Nazis out of Italy, evokes the terrible reality of war with an honesty and clarity fiction can only imitate. In scene after unforgettable scene, he describes the agony and antic humor of the soldier's existence: the tedium of camp life, the savagery of the front, and the camaraderie shared by those who have been bloodied in battle. - from the publisher.

Author Spotlight at Random House.




The sky is falling by Kit Pearson.

During World War II, thousands of British children were evacuated to Canada. Many would spend the war years in the homes of complete strangers. In her award-winning novel for middle readers, The Sky Is Falling, Kit Pearson tells the story of one war child whose Canadian visit was far from happy. Norah has no wish to leave her village home in the English countryside. And she certainly doesn't want the responsibility of looking out for her five-year-old brother Gavin. When it becomes clear that the wealthy Toronto widow who sponsored the two siblings really only wanted a boy, Norah retreats into a secret world of books and truancy, deserting Gavin to the overbearing attentions of his newly appointed "Aunt Florence." - from the publisher.

Teen book review.



Turned away: the World War II diary of Devorah Bernstein by Carol Matas.

January 9, 1911: A letter arrived from Sarah, again tucked in with the mail from Uncle Nathaniel.

Chere Devorah,

Our worst fears came to pass. Three huge bangs on the door. Maman ran to my room and told me to keep the door closed and not to come out. Within minutes she came back and sank down on my bed weeping. "They've taken him," she said. "To Drancy. Arrested."

I can barely sleep anymore. I keep hearing that pounding on the door. Sometimes I feel the sound will explode in my brain. Chere Devorah, what is wrong with the world? I don't understand any of this. Do you?

Your loving cousin, Sarah.

The letter from Uncle Nathaniel told of being arrested, but little else, except another question about how the visas are going. I could hear Mommy crying from her bedroom. - from the publisher.

Carol Matas' website.



Hana's suitcase by Karen Levine.

In 2000, a suitcase arrived at a children's Holocaust education center in Tokyo, Japan, marked Hana Brady, May 16, 1931, and "Waisenkind"--the German word for orphan. In a suspenseful journey, Fumiko, the center's curator, searches for clues to young Hana and her family. -from the publisher.

Hana's Suitcase website, including an interview with George Brady.

Watch a TV clip about Hana's suitcase.

Listen to the radio documentary that inspired this book.



Winning the Ridge: the Canadians at Vimy Ridge, 1917 by N. M. Christie.

"On April 9th, 1917, for the first time in the war, all four Canadian Infantry Divisions attacked side by side. Their capture of the 'impregnable' German bastion of Vimy Ridge brought instantaneous, world-wide recognition. For the first time in the war, the Allies had won something tangible.

"With the capture of Vimy Ridge, the reputation of the Canadian Corps as the most effective fighting machine on the Western Front, and of Canada itself, was sealed." - p. vii.

Many historians point to the Battle of Vimy Ridge on Easter Monday, 1917, as the beginnings of Canada's national identity. With almost 11,000 casualties this identity came at a high price, and Vimy is the site of the only Canadian National Historic Site outside of Canada's political boundaries.

Read more about Vimy.

Watch veteran eyewitness accounts of Vimy.

Read about the Vimy Memorial in France.

Watch a Historica Minute vignette about Vimy.

New book of the week: Night


Night by Elie Wiesel recounts the true story of his experiences in Nazi concentration camps. When he was a young teenager, Wiesel and his family were taken from their home in Transylvania and sent to Auschwitz, where he and his father are separated from his mother and younger sister. Wiesel then spent many months as a prisoner before the Allied troops liberated his camp.

The following excerpt tells of his trip to Auschwitz crammed in a train's cattle car with almost one hundred other people:

"Lying down was not an option, nor could we all sit down. We decided to take turns sitting. There was little air. The lucky ones found themselves near a window; they could watch the blooming countryside flit by.

"After two days of travel, thirst became intolerable, as did the heat.

"... There was still some food left. But we never ate enough to satisfy our hunger. Our principle was to economize, to save for tomorrow. Tomorrow could be worse yet."

Night is available for borrowing from the PRHS library.

Reviews written by teenagers: Review #1, Review #2.

Book's website.