Posted in Explore and Discover on August 17, 2017 at 6:00 am
by Nathaniel Youmans Shortly after 10am on Monday, August 21, 2017, a terrific spectacle of light and darkness will leave millions of people suspended in awe. It has happened before (most recently through the Pacific Northwest states back in 1979), but on this morning many will witness the first total solar eclipse since 1918 to […]
Tags: adults, astronomy, books, events, family, kids, math, mathematics, moon, mythology, myths, parents, partial solar eclipse, science, sky, solar eclipse, stars, STEM, Sun, technology, teens, total solar eclipse, tweens
Posted in Explore and Discover on August 15, 2017 at 6:00 am
by Debbie Rhodes I woke up wandering into my living room thinking why wasn’t I at work? My husband looked at me strangely and in a very uneasy tone asked, “How many children do you have?” I replied, “Why are you asking me such a stupid question?” It turned out he had a very good […]
Tags: adults, books, education, Fast, health, health concerns, heart disease, hoopla, parents, recovery, spot a stroke, stroke, stroke recovery, stroke victim, TIA, Transient Global Amnesia, Transient Ischemic Attack
Posted in Explore and Discover on August 8, 2017 at 6:00 am
By Gwendolyn Haley My eyes are bigger than my freezer and pantry. Every year, I plant a little garden, only to be overwhelmed when everything starts to ripen at once. My family starts to groan and say, “No more… beans, tomatoes, squash” and so on. Each spring, I underestimate just how much produce will come […]
Tags: backyard bounty, bounty, community, food, fruit, garden, gardening, produce, produce swap, vegetables, veggies
Posted in Explore and Discover on August 1, 2017 at 6:00 am
By David Wyatt “Lesson 9: Be kind to our language. Avoid pronouncing phrases everyone else does. Think up your own way of speaking, even if only to convey that thing you think everyone is saying. Make an effort to separate yourself from the internet. Read books.” For obvious reasons, this may have been one […]
Tags: adults, Aldous Huxley, booklists, books, J. K. Rowling, Neil Gaiman, On Tyranny, Philip Roth, Ray Bradbury, reading, Timothy Snyder, tyranny
Posted in Explore and Discover on July 25, 2017 at 6:00 am
By Jane Baker Call it what you want—downsizing, minimalism, a trending fad, or decluttering—it is a state of mind that seems to be crossing the generations. Lifestyle websites catering to Millennials promote experience over things. Baby boomers and Gen X are inheriting housefuls of lifetime collections into their already full houses. TV shows l […]
Tags: Baby Boomers, clutter, declutter, donating, downsize, downsizing, Gen x, generation x, hoarder, hoarding, inheritance, inheriting, junk, millenial, minimalism, recycling, stuff
Posted in Explore and Discover on July 18, 2017 at 6:00 am
By Stefani Miller Rev your engine with these steamy, fast-paced motorcycle club romance series. They are perfect for a seasoned romance reader who is looking for the next guilty pleasure read or someone new to romance who likes books both steamy and action packed. These men may be outlaws, but you won’t mind it when […]
Tags: heartbreak, love, motorcycle clubs, romance, steamy
Posted in kids on July 11, 2017 at 6:00 am
by Melanie Boerner Grab your spy glass and let’s dust for prints! Here are some great mystery reads for tweens to investigate this summer. The Graveyard Book, by Neil Gaiman Nobody “Bod” Owens is the only living resident of a graveyard and has been reared by the ghostly inhabitants since infancy, after his parents […]
Tags: 59:Escape Room Adeventures, books, escape room, investigative, late night at the library, mysteries, mystery, mystery books, summer programs, tween
Posted in kids on July 6, 2017 at 6:00 am
By Sheri Boggs If there’s one thing I’ve learned from being responsible for stocking the sections for “Kids Books to Go” at the Library District, it’s the perennial popularity of comic book heroes and their antics. “Kids Books to Go” is a bookstore-style display of multiple copies of high interest titles. Since its launch, year […]
Tags: Babymouse, booklists, books, CatStronauts, Dog Man, Dork Diaries, graphic novel hybrids, graphic novels, kids, Kids Books to Go, Narwhal and Jelly, parents, reading, tweens, Wimpy Kid
Posted in kids, News on June 29, 2017 at 6:00 am
By Erin Dodge We’re ready for comedy, creativity, audience participation, and outrageously amusing songs this summer. And we hope you are too! Eric Herman performs his cool tunes at our libraries, July 17–21. I reached out to Eric with a few questions and learned a bit about how Siri, poets, and kids influence his music. I […]
Tags: events, family, kids, music, parents, summer, summer performers, summer programs, Summer reading, young learners
Posted in Explore and Discover on June 27, 2017 at 6:00 am
by Susan Goertz For me, there is no question that dystopian author Philip K. Dick was a visionary. And interestingly, the physical appearance of his female characters tends to have a direct correlation to their level of intelligence (I’ll let you discover which way the correlation falls out). Reading his novels and stories for a […]
Tags: adults, booklists, books, dystopian, female protagonist, graphic novels, hoopla, movies, overdrive, reading, women