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Homework Help: Art, Music, and Literature.

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Need a little help finding what you’re looking for? The Robins AFB Library would like to provide you with a few resources suitable for students of all ages to help you get started.

Here are some links, resources, and interesting sites pertaining to the Arts…

The U. S. Copyright Office – The rules, forms, and instructions for how to file for a copyright. And a database you can search for registered copyrights.

The Copyright Primer – An interactive tutorial that serves as a nice introduction to the issues and laws concerning copyright ownership and the uses of information.

When Works Pass Into The Public Domain – A handy cheat sheet provided by the University of North Carolina to help determine if a work has passed into the public domain.

Copyright Terms and the Public Domain – Just as it says, an extremely comprehensive chart for understanding when a work will pass into the public domain, including a timeline and terminology.

Art:

Artcyclopedia – Users can search database by artist, artwork, movement, medium, or nationality to find information about that work of art as well biography and news about the artist.

ArtLex Art Dictionary – Featuring over 3,600 terms and their definitions used in discussing/reviewing art/visual culture, as well as thousands of supporting images, pronunciation notes, quotations, and references.

The Artist’s Toolkit – Providing the basic concepts of art appreciation and creating art.

The Smithsonian Institute – The Smithsonian is the world’s largest museum and research complex, consisting of 19 museums and galleries, the National Zoological Park, and nine research facilities.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art – Established in 1870, the Met has over 2 million works of art from all over the globe, from ancient times to modern, in its permanent collection, and almost 7,000 of them can be viewed online.

The Museum of Modern Art – MoMA offers an unparalleled overview of modern and contemporary art, including works of architecture and design, as well as drawings, paintings, photography, sculpture, film, electronic media, as well as papers and files on individual artists.

The National Museum of Women in the Arts – The website for the only museum in the world exclusively dedicated to recognizing the contributions of female artists.

Arts Edge – A free digital resource to help teaching and learning about the arts, as well as offering materials that help to creatively use technology as a way to integrate the arts into other academic fields. Provided by the Kennedy Center.

Film & Television:

The Internet Movie Database – The IMDB is one of the greatest resources available online. You can search for movies and TV shows by title, cast/crew and character information. A great spot for determining all the above information plus runtime, genre, cast overview, year of release, plot overview. Also provides links to user and professional critic reviews, among many other cool features.

Rotten Tomatoes – A top resource for keeping track of information about movie and DVD releases, and finding dependable critical reviews from the nation’s top print and online film critics.

Teen Movie Critic – Reviews of films for teens written by teens.

Backstage – a great online resource for actors, providing insides, advice, and casting news.

The Oscars – The homepage for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Motion picture/film lessons and resources – A very comprehensive set of links, provided by the Media Literacy Clearinghouse.

TV.com – Providing recaps, episode guides, cast bios, and schedule listings for your favorite shows.

The Movie Spoiler – Called “the most fun you can have at the movies without being there.” Provides detailed synopsizes of films.

Television Without Pity – Extremely humorous and snarky recaps, spoilers, and message boards centered around your favorite shows.

Hulu – Speaking of your favorite shows, never miss an episode and watch in streaming video. Some content free, with time limits, and partially subscription-based.

Memory Alpha – An extremely detailed and comprehensive wiki for all things Star Trek.

The Movie Cliches List – A humorous list of stereotypes and flaws in logic constantly recurring in movies.

Performing Arts:

Performing Arts Encyclopedia – A guide to the music, theater, and dance resources, collections, and exhibitions available through the Library Of Congress.

The Monologue Archive – A nice collection of monologues from many famous playwrights, as well as a very hand set of theatrical and dramatic links.

The Costume Page – Extensive online resources dealing with the art and history of costuming for live dramatic theater, dance performances, opera, sports, as well as film and television.

NPR’s Performing Arts page – A nice collection of links to stories and interviews dealing with actors, dramatists, and the theater, as well as audio archives for stories about the performing arts on National Public Radio.

The Internet Broadway Database – Similar to the IMDB, but an archive of Broadway theater information, providing interesting facts and statistics about different productions.

Dramatist Play Service – A subscription database that lets users search and browse plays by their title and author, buy books, and purchase rights. Represents both new and established playwrights.

Warner Robins Little Theatre – Local community theater house/company who has been entertaining central Georgia for almost 50 years.

The Perry Players Community Theatre – Located in beautiful downtown Perry, this community theater house/company has been providing high quality entertainment and cultural activies for the past 30 years.

National Forensic League – The NFL promotes debate, oratory, and public speaking for high school and middle school students as a means of helping them to become effective communicators and ethical individuals and to develop strong critical thinking.

Music:

Pandora – Create an online streaming radio station based on songs, genres, eras, or artists. Completely free and also available as an app.

Last.fm – Free streaming radio and also lets you effortlessly track what you listen to from any player or device and recommends more music and artists to you based on your taste.

8 Tracks – Create your own streaming radio station or playlist, share with your friends, or listen to station and playlists from users from around the world.

Playlist.com – Listen to songs, build a playlist, and share with your friends around the world via all of your favorite social networks: Facebook, Twitter, Blogger, etc.

Art of the Mix – Devoted to the art form that is making a good mix tape or CD. Read thousands of others’ track lists and share your own.

The Public Domain Information Project – Information on and searchable database for songs and music in the public domain.

All Music Guide – A comprehensive listing of music information, and great for finding any song, artist, album, or genre.

Ultimate band list – As advertised, you can probably find information on any band or group here.

Song Facts – Search by artist, song title, or genre, and find fascinating music trivia, song meanings, behind the scenes info, and lyrics.

Song Meanings – Lyrics to your favorite songs, as well community provided stories about what they mean to others, and allowing you to share what a particular song means to you.

Lyrics World – Search for the lyrics from your favorite songs, provided in an alphabetical list.

The Archive of Misheard Lyrics – Check out common and commonly hilarious misconceptions in song lyrics.

From The Top – Offering education events as well as a showcase of America’s best young musicians. Also a show on both NPR and PBS.

All About Jazz – A very informative advocacy website for Jazz enthusiasts, dedicated to raising awareness of jazz music as well as defining it, and providing reviews and history of jazz artists.

Music Theory – An interactive website that provides less, exercises, and tools for learning musical theory.

Pollstar – A nice resource for tracking touring information and concert reviews for your favorite bands and artists.

Billboard – The online site for Billboard magazine, which provides daily music news, reviews, and chart reports, as well as much more.

Rolling Stone – The online site for Rolling Stone magazine, which offers primarily features and reviews of music, as well as covering subjects such as film, television, and politics.

Literature:

The Hub – A blog from YALSA, the Young Adult Library Services Association, a part of the American Library Association (ALA). “Your connection to Teen Reads.”

The Newbery Medal homepage – Information and a list of winners for the annual John Newbery Medal, which recognizes distinguished contributions to American literature for children and young adults.

Bartelby – The online literature project offers classic works of fiction and poetry, along with verses and references, for free.

Project Gutenberg – Providing over 38,000 classic works of literature as free ebooks, available for download for just about every device, or readable online.

Spark Notes – Providing study guides and plot summaries to classic works of fiction, as well as resources to help study for tests and prepare for college.

60 Second Recap – An educational video project providing short, interesting video summaries of classic literature titles as well as contemporary titles.

Shmoop – Offering literature learning guides and teach resources, and showing students how writing and learning and more relevant than ever in the digital age.

Free Book Notes – A search engine for literary study guides, pulling from Cliffs Notes, Spark Notes, BookRags, and Wiki summaries, and many others.

Book-A-Minute Classics – A very cool, very fun site that summarizes large works of literature into just a few sentences.

The Shakespeare Web – News and reviews of the Bard and productions of his work.

Shakespearean Insult Generator – Randomly returns insults from the Bard’s works. Fun for you, your friends, and your teachers.

The Complete Works of Shakespeare – An online catalog of all of Shakespeare’s plays and poetry, free to read online.

The Jane Austen info page – Contains a hypertext version of Pride And Prejudice, as well as excerpts from Austen’s other novels as well as literary criticism.

The Jack London online collection – A nice resource featuring the novels, short stories, and letters of the famous author, as well as images, bibliographies, and literary criticism.

Literary Criticism resources – Provided by the Internet Public Library, this is an extensive and wide ranging collection of links to critical and biographical websites about authors and their works

Encylopedia Mythica – A searchable database of detailed information about gods and goddesses from both ancient and some modern religions.

Poetry 180 – A poem a day (for the 180 days of a school year) for American high schools, provided by the Library of Congress.

No Flying, No Tights – A nice blog providing reviews for comic books, graphic novels, anime, and manga.

The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund – The CBLDF is an organization designed to protect the First Amendment rights of creators of comic books and graphic novels, as well as their publishers and retailers.

Favorite Teen Angst books – Celebrating and reviewing books about teenage angst and personal discovery.

YA books in series and sequels – A nice searchable database that helps you keep track of the books in your favorite series.

Rutgers – A vast collection of literary resources from around the internet, provided by Rutgers University.

Geek The Library – A library advocacy site presented by OCLC, the Online Computer Library Center.

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Blogs and websites by authors:

Laurie Halse Anderson.

Jay Asher.

Holly Black.

Libba Bray.

Meg Cabot.

Rachel Cohn.

Melissa De La Cruz.

Sarah Dessen.

Neil Gaiman.

John Green.

Brent Hartinger.

John Hodgman.

Maureen Johnson.

Justine Larbalestier.

David Leviathan.

Carolyn Mackler.

Jaclyn Moriarty.

Daniel Nayeri.

James Patterson.

J. K. Rowling.

Sara Shepard.

Ned Vizzini.

Scott Westerfeld.

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Are we missing something? Please let us know!

For other subjects and resources please see our main Homework Help page.

New and Featured Books for 03/29/2012:

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Come and check out these and some of the other new books and materials (or at least new to us) added to our library collection…

FICTION:

State Of Wonder by Ann Patchett

The Descendants by Kaui Hart Hemmings

This is the novel that was adapted into the Oscar nominated film (the screenplay adaption won an Oscar) directed by Alexander Payne and starring George Clooney. The movie is very good, and we’d definitely recommend the book to anyone who likes funny and poignant character-driven stories, and who likes to read the book before the movie. Check out a review of the book in The New York Times, and the author’s website.

Paradise by Toni Morrison

Red Inferno: 1945 by Robert Conroy

The Fallen Angels by Bernard Cornwell and Susannah Kells

The Valcourt Heiress by Catherine Coulter

100 Bullets: The Deluxe Edition, Book 1 by Brian Azzarello and illustrated by Eduardo Risso

Like the cover blurb says, Azzarello and Risso’s long running comic book series from DC/Vertigo comics was “one of the greatest works of crime fiction in any medium,” telling some very hard-boiled pulp/noir stories in a very modern way. And this is where it began with it’s very simple initial premise: A mysterious man named Graves would visit people who had been the victim of a serious wrong and present them with evidence of who it was that was responsible for their plight. In the vein of revenge he’d then offer them a handgun and the eponymous 100 bullets, all untraceable by the police. And a lot of very interesting and very dark and very complex stories would spin out of that. Here are reviews of the series at Wired, The Comics Journal, and Pop Matters, and an interview with writer Brian Azzarello at The Onion AV Club.

The Glass Rainbow by James Lee Burke

NON-FICTION:

Women Pilots Of World War II by Jean Hascall Cole

Playing With Trains: A Passion Beyond Scale by Sam Posey

Forged: Writing In The Name Of God – Why The Bible’s Authors Are Not Who We Think They Are by Bart D. Ehrman

Harriet Tubman: Myth, Memory, And History by Milton C. Sernett

Marie Antoinette by Antonia Fraser

Unfamiliar Fishes by Sarah Vowell

This is a very fun and informative look at history by journalism, essayist, social commentator, and This American Life contributor Vowell, who looks at America’s imperialist desires and manifest destiny ideals at the end of the 19th century, and which lead to America annexing Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Guam, and invading Cuba and the Philippines. Vowell also talks about the culture clash as Christian missionaries swiftly moved in and tried to convert the far more laid back native Hawaiians to the American way of life. Here’s an interview with the author, and you can find interesting reviews of the book at The Los Angeles Times and in The New York Times.

And here’s an odd fun fact for you: Sarah Vowell, seen above, voiced the character Violet in Disney/Pixar’s The Incredibles.

This Is Your Brain On Music: The Science Of A Human Obsession by Daniel J. Levitin

Raw Basics: Incorporating Raw Living Foods Into Your Diet Using Easy And Delicious Recipes by Jenny Ross

The Intimate Lives Of The Founding Fathers by Thomas Fleming

The Reading Promise: My Father And The Books We Shared by Alice Ozma

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Please note that books could be checked out between the time they end up on the blog and when you come to check them out. If you don’t see the items you’re looking for then please come up to the front desk and we’ll put your name on the reserve list for when the item returns.

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Previous New/Featured books for Adults:

03/01/12.

02/02/11.

01/27/12.

12/27/11.

And for Young Adults:

03/20/12.

03/06/12.

02/21/12.

02/09/12.

And for Kids/Juvenile Readers:

03/27/12.

03/13/12.

02/28/12.

02/23/12.

New and Featured Books for Kids/Juvenile Readers for 03/27/2012:

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Come and check out these and some of the other new books and materials (or at least new to us) for younger and juvenile readers added to our library collection…

EASY READING:

A Year In The City by Kathy Henderson and illustrated by Paul Howard

Always In Trouble by Corinne Demas and illustrated by Noah Z. Jones

Families by Ann Morris

Cool Cat by Nonny Hogrogian

Jamaica And The Substitute Teacher by Juanita Havill and illustrated by Anne Sibley O’Brien

My Brother Is Autistic by Jennifer Moore-Mallinos and illustrated by Marta Fabrega

The Bookshop Dog by Cynthia Rylant

Shibumi And The Kitemaker by Mercer Mayer

Betsy Ross by Becky White and illustrated by Megan Lloyd

Told in extreme brevity with some lovely illustrations, this is a nice retelling of the Betsy Ross myth, often rhyming, but with no evidence towards proving the tale. But that’s okay, since that may not be something you really need for the age level this book is aimed towards. All in all, a nice read for younger readers, and possibly a good spark towards conversation about the flag, the beginnings of America, and patriotism. Check out a review of the book over at The Wielded Pen.

FICTION:

Glory Be by Augusta Scattergood

This is a nice bit of historical fiction with a great protagonist. Set during 1964, firmly placed in the battle for civil rights and desegregation and change, the book has been described as “The Help for kids,” but the book really has so much more to offer a younger reader. Definitely recommended. Check out a nice interview with Augusta Scattergood at NPR, and the author’s blog.

Where I Live by Eileen Spinelli and illustrated by Matt Phelan

Andrew North Blows Up The World by Adam Selzer

The Story Of Mankind by Hendrik Willem Van Loon, and updated by John Merriman

Roland Wright: Future Knight by Tony Davis

NON-FICTION:

The San Francisco Earthquake by John Dudman and illustrated by Richard Scollins

About Penguins: A Guide For Children by Cathryn Sill and illustrated by John Sill

Mary Cassatt by Susan E. Meyer

Baby Mammoth Mummy: Frozen In Time! – A Prehistoric Animal’s Journey Into The 21st Century by Christopher Sloan, with photography by Francis Latreille

The prehistoric world comes into the modern world, or the “Ice Age meets the Technology Age,” as one review put it, this is definitely a good example of a fun and informative non-fiction book for the younger reader. It’s the story of a nicely preserved mammoth, discovered in Siberia 31,000 years after her birth, and the various fields of science, including radiology, palaeontology, and forensic investigation, that have allowed researchers to investigate this find.

Dogku by Andrew Clements and illustrated by Tim Bowers

Women Who Reformed Politics by Isobel V. Morin

Women In The Military by Sandra Carson Stanley

Secrets Of A Civil War Submarine: Solving The Mysteries Of The H. L. Hunley by Sally M. Walker

The Blues Singers: Ten Who Rocked The World by Julius Lester and illustrated by Lisa Cohen

Lucy Maud Montgomery: A Writer’s Life by Elizabeth MacLeod

Crocodiles & Alligators by Seymour Simon

You’re A Grand Old Flag by George M. Cohan and illustrated by Warren Kimble

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Please note that books could be checked out between the time they end up on the blog and when you come to check them out. If you don’t see the items you’re looking for then please come up to the front desk and we’ll put your name on the reserve list for when the item returns.

* * *

Previous New/Featured books for Adults:

03/01/12.

02/02/11.

01/27/12.

12/27/11.

And for Young Adults:

03/20/12.

03/06/12.

02/21/12.

02/09/12.

And for Kids/Juvenile Readers:

03/13/12.

02/28/12.

02/23/12.

02/16/12.

New and Featured Books for Young Adults for 03/06/2012:

Posted on

Come and check out these and some of the other new books and materials (or at least new to us) for Young Adults added to our library collection…

FICTION:

Goddess Of Yesterday by Caroline B. Cooney

Gyakushu! vol. 1, written and illustrated by Dan Hipp

Saint Louis Armstrong Beach by Brenda Woods

Historical fiction about how Hurricane Katrina effects an 11 year old boy, dealing with the struggles of evacuation and the strength of a people determined to survive in their city. The review from Kirkus Reviews sums it up nicely: “A small gem that sparkles with hope, resilience and the Crescent City’s unique, jazz-infused spirit.”

Hooked by Catherine Greenman

The River by Gary Paulsen

Girl Parts by John M. Cusick

Flawless by Sara Shepard

Fallen by Lauren Kate

Nation by Terry Pratchett

Re-Gifters by Mike Carey and illustrated by Sonny Liew and Marc Hempel

Saving Zoë by Alyson Noël

Angry Management by Chris Crutcher

What They Found: Love On 145th Street by Walter Dean Myers

The Demon’s Lexicon by Sarah Rees Brennan

An Abundance Of Katherines by John Green

Another novel from author and vlogger, John Green, and his second book. As I’ve said before, Green is extremely popular with our young adult (and adult) readers, and it’s not hard to understand why when you read one of his books. They’re sweet, but they’re quirky and unique, and they’re smart, and the characters are memorable, especially the characters in this book, which is about a boy with an affinity for girls with the name Katherine, and his friend who accompanies him on a road trip. Check out reviews for the novel done by The Young Folks and The New York Times.

My Boyfriend Is A Monster, vol. 1: I Love Him To Pieces by Evonne Tsang and illustrated by Janina Görrissen

Great tagline: “Can love survive the zombie apocalypse?” This is a fun graphic novel. It’s boy meets girl, and of course they come from two different worlds: she’s a jock, and he’s a nerd. And then the zombie outbreak happens. It’s got horror, romance, and the art by Janina Görrissen is just wonderful. Here’s a review from The Ninja Librarian.

NON-FICTION:

Web Design For Teens by Maneesh Sethi

The Brave Escape Of Edith Wharton by Connie Nordheilm Wooldridge

A fine biography of Edith Wharton, author of books like Ethan Frome and The House Of Mirth, who was born into a priveleged, wealthy New York City family during the Gilded Age, and her escape into a more creative life. Connie Nordheilm Wooldridge‘s book is very interesting in that it focuses much more on the life of Wharton, rather than her works, which makes it very insightful for anyone who’s read her books or is looking to discover them. Check out The New York Times‘ review.

Cool Tech: Gadgets, Games, Robots, And The Digital World by Clive Gifford, with consulting by Mike Goldsmith

How Cool Is This? An Up-Close Inside Look At How Things Work

Tattoos And Secret Societies by Jason Porterfield

The Influencing Machine: Brooke Gladstone On The Media by Brooke Gladstone and illustrated by Josh Neufeld

Brooke Gladstone is a journalist and media analyst, and an expert on trends in the media, and she hosts NPR’s On The Media. She has called this book, a graphic novel illustrated by cartoonist Josh Neufeld to be a “a treatise on the relationship between us and the news media,” and the story utilizes an illustrated version of Gladstone herself taking the reader through the history of the American press. It is a very interesting book. You can find reviews at Slate and NPR, and an interview with Gladstone at Newsarama. Check out the trailer below:

Wild At Heart: The Story Of Joy Adamson, Author Of Born Free by Anne E. Neimark

Come Back To Afghanistan: A California Teenager’s Story by Said Hyder Akbar

The Big Idea Science Book: The Incredible Concepts That Show How Science Works In The World

Georgia O’Keeffe: The “Widenss And Wonder” Of Her World by Beverly Gherman

Wheels Of Change: How Women Rode The Bicycle To Freedom (With A Few Flat Tires Along The Way) by Sue Macy

Very interesting. Features a brief memoir section of author Sue Macy‘s childhood reminiscences of bicycle riding and then moves into a very informative history of the bicycle and how women were able to use it as innovative technology to cycle out of repressive conditions in the past and closer to independence. There’s also a nice foreword by Leah Missback Day, the founder of World Bicycle Relief. Check out reviews from Booklist and Read Kiddo Read.

Pre-Algebra And Algebra Smarts! by Lucille Caron and Philip M. St. Jacques

Celebrating A Quinceanera: A Latina’s 15th Birthday Celebration by Diane Hoyt-Goldsmith and with photographs by Lawrence Migdale

Tricky Mindtrap Puzzles: Challenges The Way You Think & See by Detective Shadow

Raggin’ Jazzin’ Rockin’: A History Of American Musical Instrument Makers by Susan VanHecke

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Please note that books could be checked out between the time they end up on the blog and when you come to check them out. If you don’t see the items you’re looking for then please come up to the front desk and we’ll put your name on the reserve list for when the item returns.

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And please don’t forget to check back here tomorrow to find out more about our Survey/Trivia contest.

And for info on other future contests we’ll be doing, you can always check out our CONTESTS page.

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Previous New/Featured books for Adults:

03/01/12.

02/02/11.

01/27/12.

12/27/11.

And for Young Adults:

02/21/12.

02/09/12.

01/31/12.

And for Kids/Juvenile Readers:

02/28/12.

02/23/12.

02/16/12.

01/28/12.