Comic Books: Not Just for Kids

You’ve come a long way baby. What am I talking about? Comic books, of course. And what about Comic books today? Well, they certainly aren’t your dad’s comic books.

These days, comic books have an air of sophistication. They’re complex and deal with real life situations, but still capture the imagination and fantasy that we crave and desire, that allows us to escape from the real world.

Comic books have evolved from the simple drawings and dialogue to the lush and detailed artwork and thought-provoking conversations.

In days gone by, when I was a college freshman, comic books were big a part of my life. How can a college student still reading comic books? How immature can you get? They’re for little kids. That’s what my roommate thought. He told a friend of mine in those hushed tones, “He reads comic books.”

Fast forward 30 years and it wouldn’t be out of line to say that comic books are well accepted. You’ll probably find just as many adults as youngsters reading comic books. In fact, publishers will have one character with several comic book titles targeting different age groups from little kids to teens to adults. The spectrum of comic books has grown wide and diverse.

I also credit the surge in comic book popularity to the silver screen. From the blockbuster hits of Spider-man, Batman, Iron Man and Thor, they made superheroes cool to everybody.

One negative thing I will say about today’s comic books is that, at times, they try so hard to be sophisticated, that they become convoluted. Some stories become so complicated because of the twists and turns and plots and subplots that it makes your head spin. Yeah, sometimes the KISS formula does work – Keep It Simple Stupid.

Okay, enough of my comic book diatribe. Let’s get on to the important stuff. The Library will be celebrating Free Comic Book Day on Saturday, May 4 from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. And what do you do on Free Comic Day? Give away free comics, what else???!!

We had such a great turnout last year and it was so much fun that we decided to do it again. And just like last time, we’ll have drawings for special prizes along with giveaways and of course, there will be free comic books!!!

This is a great opportunity to introduce your kids or re-introduce yourself to the wonders of comic books and check out what you’ve been missing.  So come down on Saturday, May 4 to the Library and pick up your free comic books while supplies last. 

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Recipe Swap will be on Monday, April 29 at 6:30 p.m. in the Cooper Clark room.

Every month we’ll have a different topic or theme. This month we’ll be searching for a little sweetness in our recipes as take on desserts. We’ll be sharing our favorite recipes for sweet delights.

And even if you don’t have a dessert recipe one or not really interested in desserts (as absurd as that may seem), that’s fine. Come on down anyway and meet people who want to share their passion with you – cooking. Hope to see you there!

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Join us at the Library for “El dia de los niños – El dia de los libros” or Children’s day/Book Day on Tuesday, April 30 at 6 p.m.

There will be stories, songs and games in Spanish for this special night time story time.

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For the latest events and happenings at the Library, check out our webpage at www.lmlibrary.org or visit our Facebook page at facebook.com/lmlibrary.

Looking for Answers? The Library can Help.

What is a library? By definition, “it’s a place in which literary, musical, artistic, or reference materials (as books, manuscripts, recordings, or films) are kept for use but not for sale.”

What if you asked somebody on the street that question? The answer would probably be a place where you can read and check out books for free. Well, that was it back then. Nowadays, it’s probably more like use computers and the internet and check out DVDs.

But what I think people don’t realize is that we’re much more than that. The Library is a place of information and as librarians we’re here to help them get that information.

It seems that when people need help they turn to us. And it’s where people are directed to go when they need help.

And as one librarian said to me, “Well, duh! That’s what we’re here for.”

And I get it. We are here to help people.

It’s about people not knowing where else to go. It’s about people looking for help. It’s about people looking for answers. And that’s what we’re here to do. The Library will do the best it can to provide answers. A lot of people might be under the impression that the patrons looking for help are just lazy. They don’t want to do the work. They just want someone to do it for them.

There may be some that do, but most of them just want a helping hand. They may seem that they want you to do it all for them and they may not want to because they’re scared, but if you nudge them you’ll find that they actually want to learn how to use the resources the Library has to offer.

When you first get them started, it seems like they’re completely lost and they want you to do it for them. But then you realize that they simply need to gain confidence. They may look at you with a blank stare at first, but once you get them rolling, they realize they can do it themselves and they’re on their way.

Along the way, you’ll find that the patrons are patient and appreciative. They’ll start telling you about themselves and wanting to share their life with you. In the end, you’ll have they really don’t take you for granted. I think they really understand that the Library is a place where they can come in and get help. And the point above ties in to National Library Week and the Family Place Library.

We just celebrated National Library Week and wanted to show our appreciation to the community by giving out pizza for the teens and coloring books for the kiddies. We held events and drawings and gave away prizes.

We also continued with our Family Place Library program on Thursday. It was our second session of a five-week program. We had 15 families and 49 individuals join us for the workshop on “Parenting through Play”. The next session will be Thursday, April 25 at 6:30 p.m. with Kay Burtzloff, executive director of United Way.

These events point to the theme of National Library Week, which is “communities matter.” We want Liberal and the surrounding communities to know that you matter to us. And we hope that we matter to you.

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Recipe Swap will be on Monday, April 29 at 6:30 p.m. in the Cooper Clark room. Every month we’ll have a different topic or theme. This month we’ll be searching for a little sweetness in our recipes as take on desserts. We’ll be sharing our favorite recipes for sweet delights. And even if you don’t have a dessert recipe one or not really interested in desserts (as absurd as that may seem), that’s fine. Come on down anyway and meet people who want to share their passion with you – cooking. Hope to see you there!

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Don’t forget that Saturday, May 4 is Free Comic Book Day. It was so much fun last year that we decided to do it again. We’ll have drawings for special prizes and giveaways and prizes and of course, free comic books!!!

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And just a reminder, that we do have a Kindle Fire available for check out.

If you’ve always wanted to see what a tablet can do, here’s your chance to find out first hand. Here’s a great opportunity to check out the wonders of what a tablet can do. You can surf the web, read a book, watch a video and do so much more.

All you have to do is come down to the circulation desk and ask for the Kindle Fire. Borrowers have to be at least 18 years old and sign a borrowing agreement adhering to the Library’s policies and terms for the device. Once you’ve done all that, you’ve got 14 days to check out one of the coolest devices around. (And don’t forget, late fees do apply!)

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For the latest events and happenings at the Library, check out our webpage at www.lmlibrary.org or visit our Facebook page at facebook.com/lmlibrary

Parenting through Play at the Library

Just over three weeks ago (on the first day of a new job as the children’s librarian), I was told that the Liberal Memorial Library is a Family Place Library. I filed the information away in my brain (well, forgot about it). Last week when it was announced that the very first of our biannual five week parent/child workshops for parents and children from birth to five years of age was starting on Thursday, April 11th at the library. I immediately started to panic. How was I going to help to host a five week workshop for parents? I’m a mother, but that doesn’t make me a parenting expert. I had visions of lectures and PowerPoint presentations with kids struggling to sit still.

Then I learned more about what the Family Place Library workshops actually were. I discovered that they are not traditional workshops, but an opportunity for parents and caregivers to play with their children and to interact others in the community. Each week the library invites different local professionals to serve as resources and interact with other parents. Parents come to the library, and during the workshop they play with their children and have the opportunity to get parenting questions answered. If you don’t have any questions to ask, come for the toys and a solid hour of time to just sit down and play with your child.

Children get the chance to socialize with other children, while parents get the chance to share parenting ideas amongst themselves. The goals of the workshop are to facilitate early intervention, teach strategies for healthy child development and early literacy and to emphasize the role of parents as the first teachers of their children – all of which are done through play.

Most people don’t associate playing with the library, but as part of the grant, the library was able to purchase educational toys geared towards children from birth to age five. There are dolls, blocks role playing toys, puppets, building sets and more that children and parents can play with together at the library.

We’ve also been upgrading our parenting section, which is located in the children’s area of the library with new books. These books can answer any question that you might have that the local professionals or a fellow parent isn’t able to answer.

Registration is required for the five week parent/child workshop. It will be held at the library on Thursday, April 11th, April 18th, April 25th, May 2nd and May 9th at 6:30. Those wanting to sign up with their children from birth to age five can register at the library, by telephone (620-626-0180) or by email (childrens@lmlibrary.org).

Besides Family Place Library, Liberal Memorial is also happy to announce evening story time for children of all ages on Tuesday starting at 6:00. We still have our regular story times on Mondays for preschoolers, on Tuesdays for infants and Thursdays for the toddlers, all starting at 11:15. Registration is not required for any of the story times. I hope to see you at the library.