Roll into the library in the New Year

Happy New Year! The library has exciting programs in the works this year.

 The next Library and Lunch will be held on Tuesday, January 15 at 12 p.m. “A gift of hope” by Danielle Steel will be discussed. In this non-fiction work, Steel shows how she transformed the pain of losing her son into a campaign of service that enriched her life beyond what she could imagine.  For eleven years she took to the streets with a small team to help the homeless of San Francisco.

While you're at the library this year, make sure to go on a blind date with a book. Grab a title that you wouldn't normally take off the shelf whether it is non-fiction, fantasy, science fiction, or mystery. Try something new.

Book Chat will meet on Thursday, January 17 at 6:30 p.m. Come down to discuss what books you are currently reading and discover what new books have hit the shelves.

The Kansas Center for the Book pick this year is “Then We Came to the End: A Novel” by Joshua Ferris. The characters in this wickedly funny, big-hearted novel about life in the office cope with a downturn in the time-honored way: through gossip, secret romance, elaborate pranks, and increasingly frequent coffee breaks.  By day they compete for the best office furniture left behind and try to make sense of the mysterious pro-bono ad campaign that is their only remaining ‘work’.  The library will be having a special book discussion sometime this year. Stay tuned.

The Gardening Club resumes this month on Tuesday, January 15 at 6:30 p.m. They meet every third Tuesday of the month.  Someone who has not come up with any New Year Resolutions this year is curious to hear the group’s suggestions on growing kitchen herbs.

A new program this month Recipe Swap will hold its first meet on Monday, January 28 at 6:30 p.m. Join us at the library to share your favorite recipe with fellow cooks and bakers. Whether you are a newbie or a veteran to the kitchen world, come down and share your experiences with others who share your passion.

The next session for middle and high schoolers will be a Teen Pizza Party on Thursday, January 24 at 4 p.m. Stop by the library to hang out after school.

For the latest library programming take a peek at the library website or grab a newsletter from the circulation desk. Stay tuned and connected through our social media pages. If you have any questions or suggestions about books or programs don't hesitate to ask. Make a resolution to visit your library this year!

Saunter into the library this September!

The kids are back in school.  Autumn is slowly approaching. The library has a lot of activities planned for September.

Teens looking for activities after school can stop by the library on Thursdays. Chess classes run every two weeks.  They will be held on Thursday, September 6 and 20 from 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.  Teen Gaming will be on Thursday, September 13 and 27 from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.  for video games, board games, and card games.  Snacks and refreshments will be served.

The library will be holding a Knit In on Saturday, September 8 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. for the Kansas Children's Service League Period of PURPLE Crying. Come and knit purple baby caps for newborns across the state.  The library's goal is 100 hats! Purple skeins and light refreshments will be provided. The gals at the circulation desk are furiously working on their hats through looming.  It is remarkably similar to knitting.  Some of us are trying our hand at it for the first time and bring our mistakes for our master expert Debbie to fix until we learn how to fix them ourselves.

Our weekly NASA program for middle schoolers will commence on Monday, September 10 at 4 p.m. with Space Rocks! A Giant Meteorite Board Game where students assume the roles of meteorites and learn about meteors, meteoroids, and meteorites competing to get to Antarctica! On Monday, September 24, a speaker from the Cosmosphere will be at the library for a Life in Space program detailing what an orbit is and how it is achieved, what micro-gravity is and how it affects human physiology and function and how an astronaut spends a typical day in space…  still harboring dreams of becoming an astronaut.

We will be hosting a Mexican Independence Day Carnival at the library in Cooper Park on Saturday, September 15 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Entertaining activities will include: raffles, bingo for books, musical chairs, soda toss, basketball toss, piñatas, chicken chuck, fishing, kissing booth, fortune telling, tortilla toss, beauty salon, and many more! 

The Library and Lunch gang is growing!  The next meeting will be on Tuesday, September 11 at noon.  The book “Gone Girl” by Gillian Flynn will be discussed.  A husband comes home and discovers his wife missing… Trying to avoid spoilers from patrons at the circulation desk until my copy comes in utilizing a lot of shushing.  The book has been making its rounds on the New York Times Bestseller list. 

The Gardening Club meets every third Tuesday of the month.  The next meeting will be on Thursday, September 18 at 6:30 p.m.  Discover what autumn and winter plants and activities are in store for the group.

Book Chat will be held on Thursday, September 20 at 6:00 p.m.  Come down to discuss what books you are currently reading and discover what new books have hit the shelves!

Out in the community, the library will have a booth at the Duck Races on Saturday, September 22. So before you get a duck, stop by the booth and say hello!

The final stages of programs are in the works for a lot of excitement for all age groups this coming fall so stay tuned!

For the latest library programming take a peek at the library website or grab a newsletter from the circulation desk. Stay tuned and connected through our social media pages.  If you have any question or suggestions about books or programs don’t hesitate to ask.  See you at the library this coming month!

Spring in the library!

Spring is in the air. People are eager to get out and move around.  Have you started your spring cleaning yet?  According to a recent article in a national newspaper, due to rising temperatures and spring-like days, spring cleaning now frequently starts in early March.   The library catalog has  great books on spring cleaning, decluttering, and environmentally friendly solutions to your cleaning needs (all found in the 600s!). Remember to spring ahead this weekend!

It’s also a great time to get outdoors!  The Library Lads and Lasses are participating in Kansas Walk this year! There’s a rumor that they will win.  Our gamut includes everything: walking, jogging, running, zumba, and pilates. Two new acquisitions in the exercise department include “101 muscle-shaping workouts & strategies for women” edited by Joe Wuebben and “The Blood Sugar Solution: The Ultrahealthy Program for Losing Weight, Preventing Disease, and Feeling Great Now!” by Mark Hyman.

Events at the library over the next few weeks include a book signing by local author Zach Carpenter. He will be at the library for a book signing on Monday, March 26 at 6 p.m. of his novel “Soul Hunters”.  He started writing the book at the age of 16 and received his official publication date while enrolled at SCCC/ATS.  He is currently busy at work on “Soul Hunters II”.

The book groups are active! We had a good ol’ chocolate fun last month during the For the Love of Chocolate discussion.  March’s Library and Lunch will be held on Tuesday, March 20 for Paul Theroux’s “Murder in Mount Holly”.  Paul Theroux is a popular author known for his travel books and fiction. This book is different from his other works as an off-beat story set in the 1960s. 

The Book and Movie Series pick for the month of March is Vile Bodies by Evelyn Waugh. Come join the discussion on Thursday, March 22 at 6 p.m.  The book is about a group of young people from London’s bright young generation in the 1930s.

The Teen Advisory Committee meets at the library every two weeks.  The group is for teenagers ages twelve to eighteen, a chance for them to meet and hang out at the library.  The next meeting will be on Thursday, March 22 at 5 p.m. for a Hunger Games themed gathering just in time for the film release of Suzanne Collins’ first book in the trilogy.  In case you’re really curious, my Hunger Games name is Limet J. Hoppetunia. Those attending will get a chance to enter to win a Hunger Games poster and two tickets to the show!

There will be a Chess Workshop for Tweens on Tuesday, March 27 at 4:30 p.m.  The class will be taught by Emile Darga. All skill levels are welcome.  The players will cover the basics of how the game works, how to play, they will study game chess openings, and end game tactics.  Then, there will be a face-off amongst players. A duel at the library!

For the latest library programming take a peek at the library website or grab a newsletter from the circulation desk. Stay tuned and connected through our social media pages. The library is now on GoodReads! Make sure to join the library group to see what we’re discussing each month and engage in the art of books. If you have any questions or suggestions about books or programs don't hesitate to ask. Hope to see you at the library this spring break!

Make a stop at library this holiday season

Vacances heureuses mes amis. C'est un beau temps pour visiter la bibliotheque!

The Fancy Nancy Splendiferous Brunch and Soiree will be held on Saturday, December 3 at 9:15 a.m. for gals and lads ages four to eight. Reservations (are required and) can be made over the telephone or by stopping by the library as spaces are limited. Gals and lads are invited to come bedecked in their most festive holiday attire for a marvelous holly jolly time.

This will be the third year for this wildly popular event. Last year's attendees arrived sporting frills, tiaras, and feather boas. The event features exceptional Fancy Nancy stories, extraordinary crafts, and exquisite refreshments. From years past, everyone has a glamorous time. The bedazzled program looks magnifique!

The library is excited to once again welcome the Redskin Singers for their annual holiday appearance on Thursday, December at 7 p.m. in the library. This year, we welcome one of our staffers as part of the singing entourage. Light refreshments will be served.

Library and Lunch will be held on Tuesday, December 13 at noon for Debbie Macomber's Call Me Mrs. Miracle. Emily Merkle works in a toy department at Finley's a family owned department store in the Big Apple and her boss is none other than the owner's son. The family needs a miracle to keep the business afloat. Holly Larson on the other hand needs a miracle for her eight-year-old nephew Gabe, whose father won't be home for Christmas. Maybe Mrs. Miracle (Emily Merkle) will play a role in bringing the two together.

A current New York Times bestseller will be the first Library and Lunch pick for the New Year. Plenty of time to stop by and pick it up. The book discussion of The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes will be held on Tuesday, January 9 at noon. The English author had been short-listed for the Man Booker Prize three times in the past and became the winner this year for this particular book. It is narrated by Tony Webster who recalls how he and a circle of friends met Adrian Finn at school and vowed to be friends for life. He reflects on the paths he and his friends have taken.

The library invites young adults to Teen Gaming/Teen Reader's Advisory meetings on Thursday nights which will run every two weeks at 4 p.m. Upcoming dates include December 1, December 15, and December 29.

Book and Movie will take a brief hiatus during the month of December. The group will be back in full force the third Thursday in January for Didier van Cauwelaert's Hors de moi/Out of My Head translated from the French by Mark Polizzotti. There is a 2011 thriller film based on this 2003 French novel directed by Jaume Collet-Serra and starring Liam Neeson, Diane Kruger, January Jones, Aidan Queen, Bruno Ganz, and Frank Langella. Dr. Martin Harris awakens after a car accident in Berlin to discover that his wife suddenly doesn't recognize him and another man has assumed his identity. With the help of a young woman he sets out to prove who he is.

As always, for the latest library programming take a peek at the library website or grab a newsletter from the circulation desk. Stay tuned and connected through our social media pages. If you have any questions or suggestions about books or programs don't hesitate to ask. Hope to see you at the library this holiday season!

Drop by the library this fall

Autumn is slowly yet surly approaching.  The library has lots of activities planned over the next few months.
Our newest book display in the adult and young adult area is "Crafting". A scarf for cold weather, grab a knitting book! A quilt to adorn a sofa, grab a quilting book!  See if there’s a book on the display just calling your name.

The young adults are busy hanging out at the library every two weeks (this past week being a Teen Advisory Committee meet day) and the next being Teen Gaming on Thursday, September 29 at 4 p.m. The current project is for a prospective spring performance featuring a musical play.  The plans are in the works.  There may also be something in the works for the holiday season.  The group is slowly growing with an exuberant mix of young adults.

Lidia Hook-Gray will be at the library for a book signing on Tuesday, September 20 at 6 p.m. Her book entitled "Liberal and Seward County" was published on August 22.

The Library and Lunch book discussion will be held on Tuesday, October 11 at 12 p.m. The book "The Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet" by Jamie Ford will be discussed.  The novel is a debut for Ford whose plot revolves around Henry Lee, a Chinese-American in Seattle who's lost his wife and he finds out that the belongings of Japanese immigrants interned during the WWII have been found in a hotel basement.  The story shuffles between the present 1986 and the 1940s chronicling the losses of old age and the bewilderment of youth.

Book and Movie Series will meet on Thursday, October 20 at 6 p.m. for "Doubt" by John Patrick Shanley. Winner of the 2005 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, Shanley also directed the film version of the play starring Meryl Streep, Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams, and Viola Davis. Shanley is the writer behind the classic 1987 romantic comedy titled "Moonstruck".

What’s new in the library? As of this upcoming Wednesday, the Kobo eReader will be available for check-out to library patrons.  E-readers are portable electronic devices designed for one to read digital books and periodicals. The Kobo uses an electronic ink screen so the screen tries to depict ordinary ink on paper.

There are over seventy different varieties of e-readers out on the market.  Stop by and see if a Kobo might be one for you.  E-readers are perfect for someone who travels.  There is less space taken up by books.
There are many classics downloaded on the library device for perusal including The "Velveteen Rabbit" by Margery Williams which I read for the first time on the Kobo.  Pages may be more colorful in paper format or in another version of device.  See for yourself.

As a still quite devoted physical book aficionado whether in everyday life or whilst traveling (paperbacks for discovering new authors like Ian McEwan prior to his "Atonement" fame on a long flight years ago) one might see the advantage of eventually reading Tolstoy's War and Peace in an e-reader format.

As always, for the latest library programming take a peek at the library website or grab a newsletter from the circulation desk. Stay tuned and connected through our social media pages. If you have any questions or suggestions about books or programs don't hesitate to ask. Hope to see you at the library this fall