Newscolumn

Cinco de Mayo

Celebrated in parts Mexico, primarily in the state of Puebla, Cinco de Mayo is known as El Día de la Batalla de Puebla (The Day of the Battle of Puebla). It commemorates the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862, when an outnumbered Mexican army defeated the invading French.

In the United States, where it is a much bigger holiday, Cinco de Mayo has grown to be a celebration of Mexican culture and heritage.

Liberal’s Cinco de Mayo community celebration is being held on Saturday May 10th. There will be a parade at 1:00 p.m., traveling north up Western Avenue to end at the fair grounds and followed by the Liberal Rodeo Fiesta held there at the Seward County Fair Grounds.

The library has several children’s books about the holiday, including:

Cinco de mayo : celebrating the traditions of Mexico
by Diane Hoyt-Goldsmith

Book Description
A young Mexican American from California learns about her heritage and celebrates the holiday with her friends, family, and community.

Max celebrates Cinco de Mayo
by Adria F. Worsham ; illustrated by Mernie Gallagher-Cole.

Book Description
Join in the celebration of Cinco de Mayo as Max is invited to a fiesta at Jose’s house which includes food, music, dancing, and a parade as part of the fun.

Star Wars Day – May the Fourth be with you

Some of you may not know this, but today, May 4th, is a holiday as well. It’s an unofficial, fan-created, holiday, but a holiday none the less. The day was chosen based on a pun, “May the Fourth be with you”.

It’s said that the first use of the pun was on May 4, 1979, the day the former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was elected. There was ad in the London Evening News proclaiming, “May the fourth be with you…” Since then is has become an internationally celebrated holiday.

This year’s celebration is bound to be a big one, with so much talk about the new movie, “Star Wars Episode VII”, floating around on the internet. It’s going to be a day for fans worldwide to break out their Darth Vader helmets and Wookiee costumes or maybe grab their lightsabers to show off their dueling skills.

If you’re like me you might want to go a little more low key and have a Star Wars party and movie marathon with a few friends. The Library has all of the Star Wars movies available for checkout, episodes one through six, plus “The Clone Wars” an animated adventure from 2008 which is meant to take place between episodes two and three.

The library also has just shy of a hundred Star Wars books, ranging from fiction to non-fiction; adult to children’s books; Lego books to comic books. There are print books and audiobook versions. Here are just a few of the newer ones:

William Shakespeare’s The empire striketh back : Star Wars part the fifth
by Ian Doescher
This is the second in the William Shakespeare’s Star Wars trilogy, with the third book soon to follow in July.

Book Description
Many a fortnight have passed since the destruction of the Death Star. Young Luke Skywalker and his friends have taken refuge on the ice planet of Hoth, where the evil Darth Vader has hatched a cold-blooded plan to capture them. Only with the help of a little green Jedi Master—and a swaggering rascal named Lando Calrissian—can our heroes escape the Empire’s wrath. And only then will Lord Vader learn how sharper than a tauntaun’s tooth it is to have a Jedi child.

Art2-D2’s guide to folding and doodling
by Tom Angleberger.
This is part of a popular children’s series, “Origami Yoda”.

Book Description
Kellen and the kids from McQuarrie Middle School – with some help from Art2-D2 – present this guide to mastering over seventy-five activities inspired by the bestselling Origami Yoda series, including: doodling, folding, and more! May the doodles by with you!

The wildlife of Star Wars : a field guide
by Terryl Whitlatch and Bob Carrau.

This field guide catalogs some of the some of the amazing creatures that inhabit the Star Wars universe. It is organized by planet, from Tatooine through to Coruscan with a helpful index in the back.

Star Wars. Kenobi
by John Jackson Miller
This book takes place before the events of episode four.

Book Description
Ben—Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, hero of the Clone Wars, traitor to the Empire, and protector of the galaxy’s last hope—can no more turn his back on evil than he can reject his Jedi training. And when blood is unjustly spilled, innocent lives threatened, and a ruthless opponent unmasked, Ben has no choice but to call on the wisdom of the Jedi—and the formidable power of the Force—in his never-ending fight for justice.