Guest speaker Dr Frank Brennan - a Sydney physician, will relate hopeful and compassionate stories from his writings which are based on caring for sick and terminally ill people at Orange City Library on Wednesday 25 November from 6pm - 8pm. Frank worked for the Aboriginal Medical Service in Redfern, as a paediatrician in South Africa, and for the Sacred Heart Hospice before specialising in palliative care. Refreshments will be served. Please RSVP to the Library on 6393 8132. All welcome.

So far mother nature has smiled rays of sunshine upon us for our Pre-Schooler Storytimes in Cook Park. We are taking part in the Orange Blossoms Garden Festival by hosting Pre-Schoolers Storytime next to the Fernery in Cook Park (Clinton Street side) rather than the normal Library location. Join in at 11am on the following days: 17, 18, 19 November and 24, 25, 26 November. If the weather's bad Storytime will be held in the Library. Storytime is a fun way to encourage children under 6 to be interested in books. Come along and enjoy reading in Cook Park then feed the ducks, play on the swings or have a picnic.

Good luck to our regional poetry slam heat winners Alan Fragar, of Cowra, and Josh Simpson, of Bathurst. They will be performing their original poems on Friday night at the State Library of NSW, Sydney, in the Australian Poetry Slam 09 State Final. Then the NSW winners will perform on 3 December, battling against state and territory winners for the coveted national title at the Sydney Opera House. All heat contestants are given a microphone, a live audience and just two minutes to impress the judges with their original spoken word poetry. Five judges are picked randomly by the MC throwing gifts into the audience. Whoever catches the gift is a judge. The judges' decision is final! So it is up to the audience to decide who wins. Good Luck guys!!!!! Wish them well everyone.

A big thank you to all the locals and visitors from around the state and Queensland who came along to the Lost in Black Sheep Weekend hosted by the Society of Australian Genealogists, Central West Libraries and Orange Family History Group. More than 70 family historians enjoyed the guest speakers, meals, venue, Library, Orange, book sales, prize draw (won by a Parkes delegate), socialising, family history advice and discovered a wide range of resources to help find ancestor records. Pictured above is Society of Australian Genealogists Executive Officer Heather Garnsey at the seminar book sale table. Read more about the seminar in today's Central Western Daily. http://www.centralwesterndaily.com.au/news/local/news/general/out-on-a-limb-to-trace-ancestors/1672817.aspx

Central West Libraries and Orange Family History Group in association with the Society of Australian Genealogists is thrilled to be hosting the Lost in Black Sheep Weekend (7 & 8 November, 2009) and welcomes family history buffs to Orange for this event. We expect more than 70 visitors for the two-day family history weekend being held at the Orange Civic Theatre Forum, Byng Street, Orange. We hope everyone enjoys the range of expert speakers to help further their research. Welcome to Orange.

More than 30 people attended Forbes Library recently to be among the first Australians to see a rare book by Galileo and hear Senior Curator Paul Brunton talk the book purchased by the State Library of NSW. Galileo was a mathematician, astronomer and philosopher who lived in Italy from 1564 to 1642. He is also regarded as the father of modern science for his improvements to the telescope and astronomical observations. The rare Galileo book is titled Dialogo dei massimi sistemi [Dialogue on the two chief world systems], Galileo's celebrated defence of the Copernican system, published in Florence in 1632. By casting Pope Urban VIII as the simple-minded Aristotelian Simplicius in the book, Galileo brought upon himself arrest, trial by the Inquisition and life imprisonment. The sentence was commuted to permanent house arrest, while the printing of any of his works was forbidden. Paul Brunton spoke about the origins of the book, how it was purchased and went into detail about Galileo's life. Surprisingly Galileo was not a rich man, despite his genius. Pictured above is: Barbara Cowled, Maud Morris and Glad Johnson from Jemalong Retirement Village, with Senior Curator of the State Library of NSW Mr Paul Brunton, at the talk and rare book display. Pictured below is the front of the book showing Aristotle, Ptolemy and Copernicus - note the candle burn on the side.

The Take Time Take Ten Literacy Program celebrates a milestone – handing out its 5,000th book to a newborn since the program began in 2002. The nuts and bolts of literacy are established in childhood and that's why this program is so important. Presenting newborns with a book is the first stage of our ongoing programs for children, we also have our Baby Rhyme and Read program for toddlers, Storytime for pre-schoolers and library resources for school students. We would like to thank the Take Time Take Ten volunteers - Orange Base Hospital Blue Ladies, Orange Base Hospital Maternity Ward, Margaret Schwebel at Book City for purchasing the books and our sponsors. Orange Credit Union has allowed us to purchase books for the 900 or so children to be born in Orange this year. The lucky family receiving the 5,000th Take Time Take Ten book was Amanda and Mark Paterson, of Orange, and their newborn daughter Amelia Jane. Pictured above is the Take Time Take Ten team: Margaret Schwebel of Book City, Blue Ladies President Cheryl Lobsey, Blue Ladies volunteer Mary O'Hare, Orange Credit Union Marketing Coordinator Noelle Cornish and Orange City Librarian Elizabeth Barry. Pictured below is Amanda and Amelia receiving the 5,000th book (and flowers) in the Take Time Take program from current sponsor Noelle Cornish from Orange Credit Union.

Join in talks by author Libby Gleeson and local illustrator Freya Blackwood when they tell school children about their latest book Clancy & Millie and the Very Fine House. The book is published by Little Hare Books and was launched just this month. It is about a little boy called Clancy who has moved to a new house that is huge and unfamiliar. He is missing his old house terribly - the new house is much too big and much too lonely. How will he ever make it his home? As despair takes hold Clancy hears a small voice. Soon, Clancy with the help of his new friend Millie is building towers to the sky and trains to the street outside, and together they build the home that Clancy thought he had lost forever. Libby Gleeson and Freya Blackwood will be talking about their new book Clancy & Millie and the Very Fine House at Orange City Library on Friday 30 October at these times: 9.30am – 10.30am; 11.30am – 12.30pm; 1.30pm – 2.30pm. Come along and sit in on one of the talks by this award-winning team. The event is supported by Boomers Bookshop & ABC Centre.

You are invited to join Central West Libraries and the Society of Australian Genealogists on a Lost in Black Sheep Family History Weekend to be held at the Orange Civic Theatre Forum, Byng Street, Orange on Saturday 7 and Sunday 8 November 2009. If your ancestors were 'black sheep' - divorced, destitute, or spent time in gaol or an asylum, they probably left behind a wonderful paper trail. Come along for the two day seminar featuring experts on State Records NSW, Divorce Records, Bankruptcy Records, Local Studies and Family History, Corrective Services, Greater Western Area Health Service and take a guided walking tour of Bloomfield Hospital and learn more about its records. Registration: $85 SAG members and Orange Family History Group Members; and $95 non-members includes two-day seminar, lunches & morning & afternoon teas. On the Saturday evening a casual dinner will be held for participants in a local restaurant in Orange. If you'd like to attend the dinner please let us know at the time of booking. Cost will be approx. $50 plus drinks per person, payable on the evening.

For more details and to book your place, please call (02) 9247 3953 or visit www.sag.org.au

What a night! Can you believe we were fully booked with 100 people coming along to see Kim McCosker – 4 Ingredients cookbooks author. Co-author Rachael Bermingham couldn't make it on the night but as girls do – Kim called her beautiful mum Jennette and she did a fantastic job helping with food preparation and supporting Kim. The 4 ingredients team have such an inspiring story to tell. They are both busy mums but believed in their idea to provide simple recipes with 4 ingredients or less to get people out of the kitchen and spending time with their families – and who doesn't want that?. Kim spoke enthusiastically about the whole writing recipe and book production process. The audience asked questions and sampled Gluten Free recipes from their latest book - including dips, fruit cake and biscuits. The event was supported by Angus & Robertson Bookstore. Kim is pictured above signing books and entertaining the large audience.