June 4, 2013

June Picks

As the year starts to wind down, I wanted to share some Audio/Visual materials that I have purchased for the media center. These DVDs will be available through June and, of course, next year!


Non-Fiction

Desperate Crossing: The Untold Story of the Mayflower

From their self-imposed exile in Holland and perilous Atlantic crossing in the Mayflower to unimaginable hardships encountered in their new land, this is the definitive story of the Pilgrims and how they came to live--and ultimately prosper--in the harsh climate of an unfamiliar world. 


Liberty Kids: Complete Series 

History comes alive in this excellent Emmy Award-nominated 40-episode, animated series about the experiences of two young teens during the American Revolution. Far more than a simple chronicle of the battles and major events of the American Revolution, Liberty’s Kids tells the story of the cultural, scientific, political, and social forces that helped shape America’s fight for independence from the perspective of two young teens from very different backgrounds.


Modern Marvels: Mad Electricity

From wireless energy to remote controls to green power nineteenth-century inventor Nikola Tesla had an unprecedented impact on the way the modern world works. In this electrifying program get inside the complex mind of a man who amassed hundreds of patents in his lifetime--many of which affect our lives on a daily basis. Travel to Niagara Falls where in 1893 Tesla installed his new system of alternating electrical current (AC)--a revolutionary form of power that is now the global standard. At an abandoned site on Long Island Sound take a private tour of the forgotten ruins of Tesla's dream experiment--a huge tower he hoped would play a role in wirelessly powering the world. Finally learn how Tesla anticipated the possibilities of renewable forms of energy including geothermal and solar power more than a century ago.


Inventions that Shook the World 

From the airplane to the DNA fingerprint, science, history and pop culture come under the spotlight in this thrilling chronicle of the 20th Century's greatest inventions. Go on a decade-by-decade voyage of discovery through life-changing inventions; like the radio that made the world smaller; the machine gun that made it more dangerous; or the parking meter that made it more expensive. Meet the brilliant, often quirky minds that brought the inventions to life, including the smartest man on the planet and the high school dropout everyone took for a fool. Witness the discovery and creation of billion-dollar inventions and financial disasters - all players in the most innovative century the world has ever known. 


The Music of Williamsburg 

Music of Williamsburg (1960, 40 minutes) Music in eighteenth-century Williamsburg was a ritual of everyday life the accompaniment to everything from children's games to slave labors to marching militia. Even the simple sounds of an ordinary day seemed to mesh into a musical rhythm the beat of horses hooves, the rustling of the wind, the clinking of tavern glasses. The architecture, furnishings, costumes, and settings of this era stimulate the senses, putting you in tune with another time in American history. Extra Feature The Musical Instrument Maker of Williamsburg (1976, 54 minutes) Experience the pride and precision that went into every eighteenth-century instrument made in colonial America. Each part is handmade and carefully fitted by craftsmen as they create a small harpsichord, known as a spinet, and the period-popular violin. The instruments take shape under deft, steady hands that turn raw materials into works of art. 


Life in the Freezer

Life in the Freezer is a startling portrait of Antarctica as a dramatic, violent, yet ultimately poetic ecosystem. It's also a miraculously beautiful documentary that can stir an armchair adventurer, make one wish to be standing alongside host David Attenborough as he gazes at the dream-like enormity of glaciers ("glass-yeers," as Attenborough pronounces it) or visits one of the pristine, Georgian islands where seabirds flock during Antarctica's version of spring and summer. With its frozen mass subject to cyclical expansions and retractions, Antarctica's changes determine the feeding, mating, and habitat patterns of a wide variety of wildlife. Life in the Freezer's multi-episode format allows each of those changes to be explored in rich detail.


Nature Penguins: Penguins of the Arctic/ The World of Penguins 

There is much more to penuins than Happy Feet. Well-loved and well-dressed, the penguin is popularly known as awkward and comical. But the complete story is not so black and white. The closer you get to penguins in two fascinating episodes of NATURE, the more these "strange birds" will surprise you!. In "Penguins of the Antarctic," remarkable footage captures penguins as they cope with some of the harshest weather on the planet. "The World of Penguins" explores the unexpected places you'll find penguins, from the scorching deserts of South America and the forests of New Zealand to suburban streets. 


Liberty! The American Revolution 

"Liberty! The American Revolution" is a dramatic documentary about the birth of the American Republic and the struggle of a loosely connected group of states to become a nation. The George Foster Peabody award-winning series brings the people, events, and ideas of the revolution to life through dramatic reenactments performed by a distinguished cast.  



Biography: Henry Ford

He made the automobile accessible to the common man. The common man made him rich.Henry Ford was one of the great innovators of our time. When the car he invented became so popular he couldn't build them fast enough he came up with the modern assembly plant to meet demand. The rest is history. BIOGRAPHY profiles the life of the industrial giant who earned notoriety for his intolerance as well as his inventiveness. Interviews with former workers and family members point out his genius and eccentricities while automotive historians trace his monumental career from his first handbuilt car to saving his company with the introduction of the V-8 at an age when most men are long retired.This is the fascinating story of the driven man who changed the way we all live ironically spelling an end to the America he loved. 


The Magic School Bus: The Complete Series 

Seatbelts everyone! Sparks of discovery fly with this 8-DVD set containing all 52 episodes of the Emmy Award-winning animated science-adventure series. Based on the bestselling books, kids everywhere can get charged up about science with this collectible, first-ever THE MAGIC SCHOOL BUS COMPLETE SERIES. Ride with Ms. Frizzle, teacher extraordinaire, and her enthusiastic, inquisitive students as their Magic School Bus takes them on cliff-hanging field trips inside the human body, back to prehistoric times, far out into space, and everywhere else in between! Grab a seat and hang on for all four seasons of the longest-running kids science series ever! Inside find a full list of episodes, science topics, experiments and more!


 Fiction

Iron Will 

This snowy adventure about a boy and his dogs is charming, and entices the kids. Charismatic MacKenzie Astin plays a teenager trying to save the family farm by entering a 522-mile sled-dog marathon. Set against a lusciously scenic background, this films includes rousing scenes in the 1917 Winnipeg-to-St.-Paul sled race. 


Roald Dahl's The BFG

One moonlit night, little Sophie is snatched from her bed at Mrs. Clonkers’ orphanage by an awesome giant who whisks her away on a magical, thrilling and funny adventure. Roald Dahl’s enchanting, best-selling children’s book comes to life in this classic, animated musical feature by the award-winning Cosgrove Hall Studio, makers of Danger Mouse and The Wind in the Willows.  The BFG shows the most tender and dreamlike side of celebrated author Roald Dahl as he depicts the amazing friendship that grows between a little girl and a big-hearted Giant.


Sarah Plain and Tall

Set in 1910, the story follows Sarah's trial run as stepmother to the children of the widowed Jacob Witting (Christopher Walken). The tough part of the experiment is the conflicting expectations the would-be couple have over Sarah's role in the household. The kids, too, have their doubts about a substitute for their mother, and Jacob isn't ready, emotionally, for a new beginning. But in short order the strong-willed Sarah brings happiness and vitality into the house, and love and understanding eventually blossom between the two lonely adults. Everything is right about this Hallmark production, from a bright script cowritten by MacLachlan to Glenn Jordan's sensitive direction and a pair of first-rate leads making every moment worth watching. A wholesome tale from the heartland, this is a good movie for any viewing situation, from an audience of one to an entire family.