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You Can't Spell 'Library Book' Without 'Boo'

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By MEGAN HUSSEY, Tribune correspondent

Published: October 14, 2007

For families seeking educational, children-friendly alternatives to Halloween, the Pasco County Library System is offering a variety of options this year.

Books and art will be the focus of Halloween activities at Centennial Park Branch Library, 5740 Moog Road in Holiday.

Elementary school-age children are invited to come in costume for a storytelling event Oct. 27.

'I don't think Halloween should be scary. I think it should be fun,' said Cindy Benson, the library's youth services provider. 'So we're picking stories that are scary in a funny way.'

Fully costumed staff members will act out one of the stories, 'The Little Old Lady Who Isn't Afraid of Anything.'

'Whenever kids see adults acting goofy just for them, they're much more interested in the story,' Benson said.

'This is another way to interest kids in books and the library,' Benson said.

On Oct. 30, teens will create their own Halloween masks at the library. The activity is aimed at encouraging them to develop their creative skills.

Both the storytelling and mask-making events will offer trick-or-treating.

At South Holiday Branch Library, 4649 Mile Stretch Drive in Holiday, elementary-age children are invited to watch a scary movie at the library Oct. 27.

In picking the films, library staff members look for a recent release that's not too scary and, preferably, is based on a book.

'Whenever we show a movie based on a book, we put the book on display,' branch manager Sandra Abini said. 'The kids run to check it out after the movie. It makes them so excited to read the book.'

That same day, the Land O' Lakes library, 2818 Collier Parkway, will transform its children's room into a haunted house where elementary-age children can enjoy interactive storytelling, games, face-painting and educational crafts.

'We want kids to come and enjoy themselves and also practice skills they learn in school,' said children's librarian Alicia Moon-Wan. 'They might even learn something they haven't learned before, in a relaxed atmosphere.'

In Zephyrhills, New River Branch Library, 34043 State Road 54, is focusing more on the fall season than on Halloween.

At the Fall Festival Storytime, children ages 1-5 will compete in a costume contest and hear seasonal stories Oct. 31.

'We pick books about the coming of fall, instead of those with a Halloween theme,' branch manager Dotty Chandler said.

'We have this contest each year, and I always see one baby pumpkin,' Chandler said, with a chuckle.

The library will offer a costume contest Oct. 25 for teens, challenging them to dress up as characters from their favorite books and movies. The best can win $50 gift cards. The library also will screen a monster movie.

In planning the event, library staff relied on its teen advisory board, which chose the films and helped with other aspects of the planning.

'Kids are more likely to participate in and enjoy an event that they made happen,' librarian Paul Stonebridge said. 'Our theory towards the kids is 'You create it. We make it happen. You participate.''

For information, call (727) 861-3040.

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