Library notes [December 31, 2009]  After School Homework Helpers return -- The after-school tutoring service will resume on Jan. 11. It is available Monday through Thursday from 3:15 to 4:45 p.m. in the Annex. Tutors are students from Lincoln Christian University who provide this free service to ages 8 and up. Children attend on an as-needed basis. Lego tournament The library will have a Lego tournament on Jan. 30 from 9 to 11 a.m. for kids, teams and families. Registration deadline is Jan. 25. Bring your own Legos or use those provided by the library. Refreshments and prizes are planned. Register and pick up guidelines in the Youth Services Department in the Annex.

The Lincoln Public Library is located at 725 Pekin St., with adult nonfiction and reference materials in the historic Carnegie Building. In the Annex Building directly behind are adult fiction and the Youth Services Department. All library events are free and open to the public. On the Web, visit www.lincolnpubliclibrary.org. Hours are Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.; Tuesdays and Thursdays, 9 a.m.-7 p.m.; and Saturdays, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Phone [phone] for adult services and 217-732-5732 for youth services.

Items needed

The Youth Services Department is accepting donations of Lego blocks for the above event. Also, any unneeded chiffon scarves can be donated for the youngest Story Time group to use for sensory development. Please drop off any of these donations in the Youth Services Department in the Annex.

Miss Lou's blog

Louella Moreland, youth services librarian, has a blog that can be found through a link on the library's Web site. She discusses new books, introduces library programs and takes polls. Tell her your ideas and suggestions.

Upcoming events

There will be a Youth Advisory Council meeting at 3:30 p.m. on Jan. 13. Any teen is welcome to attend to plan future teen events.

NoveList

The library's Web site has links to NoveList, an online database of fiction titles for adults, and NoveList K-8, specifically for elementary and middle school children. Logging in with your Lincoln Public Library District card number will let you search for books by author, title, series or description of a plot. Click on "Author Read-alikes" to help you find authors who write in a similar genre that you enjoy reading. Also investigate "Award Winners," "Book Discussion Guides" or "Feature Articles" for a wealth of information. You can even establish a file to keep lists of titles for future reading, as you are sure to find more titles than you can read at one time.

[Text from file received from Marlene Perry, Lincoln Public Library]