(DLA Las Piñas HS LRC) July Book of the Month - Jonathan Livingston Seagull

The much acclaimed spiritual novella is about a seagull learning about life and flight. It was written by Richard Bach, known for his love of flying and for his books related to air flight and flying in a metaphorical context. Bach's books also espouse his philosophy that our apparent physical limits and mortality are merely appearance.

The book tells the story of Jonathan Livingston Seagull who is bored with the daily squabbles that his fellow seabirds have over food. Seized by a passion for flight, he pushes himself until finally his unwillingness to conform results in his expulsion from his flock but this only leads him to live a peaceful and happy life. The story is divided into four parts.

Listed as one of 50 "timeless spiritual classics" in a book by Tom Butler-Bowdon (most notable for his 50 classics series of books, which provide commentaries on key writings in psychology and philosophy), the Australian non-fiction author even went to say that "it is easy now to overlook the originality of the book's concept and though some find it rather naïve, in fact it expresses timeless ideas about human potential."

The production of a motion picture of the same title was inspired by the story and it was made many years before computer-generated effects were available. In order to make seagulls act on cue and perform aerobatics, they had build radio-controlled gliders that looked remarkably like real seagulls from a few feet away. However, Bach was so unimpressed with the treatment of the film that he sued the film company for negligence.

Jonathan Livingston Seagull is shelved at the fiction section of the HS LRC. If you have any concerns, don't hesitate to approach any of the present librarians or staff.

(DLA Las Piñas HS LRC) July Author of the Month - Meg Cabot

Meg Cabot (born Meggin Patricia Cabot on February 1, 1967 in Bloomington, Indiana) is an American author of romantic and paranormal fiction for teens and adults and used to write under several pen names, but now writes exclusively under her real name. She has written and published over fifty books, and is best known for The Princess Diaries, later made by Walt Disney Pictures into two feature films of the same name.

Meg's books have been the recipients of many awards. She has also had numerous No. 1 New York Times bestsellers. Cabot has more than fifteen million copies of her books — children's, young adult, and adult—in print worldwide.

After she graduated from Indiana University, Meg moved to New York City, with the original aim of pursuing a career as an illustrator in 1991. However, she soon quit this job and started working as an assistant manager of the freshman dormitory at New York University. Meg Cabot married financial writer and poet Benjamin D. Egnatz on April 1, 1993.

Their wedding date, April Fool's Day, was a deliberate play on her husband's belief that only fools get married in the first place. The wedding was actually an elopement in Italy. Her novel Every Boy's Got One is loosely based on her own elopement. She has two cats, Henrietta (a one eyed cat) and Gem, about whom she often blogs.

After living in Indiana, California, New York, and France, she now splits her time between New York, Key West, Florida and Bloomington. The High School Learning Resource Center in Divine Light Academy Las Piñas currently has ten (10) of her books and is still planning to acquire more. For any questions, you can always ask any of the librarians or staff members available. We'll be so glad to be of help!

Find out more about Meg and her books at her official website.