November: Make Your Own Category
This month we invite you to create your own category! You may be inspired by some of the suggested categories below, but please share your chosen category when you report your monthly activity via Beanstack, email, or phone call. Your idea may appear in future Reading Challenges.
• A Book Set on a Train
• A Book about the Environment
• A Book That Makes You Laugh
• A Biography about an Artist
• A Memoir about a Person You Admire
• A Non-fiction Book about Animals
• A Book about Reaching Across the Aisle
• A Book of Poetry from the 15th Century
• A Book Written by Someone Born in the 21st Century
• A Cookbook Featuring a Different Cooking Style
• A Book about a New Hobby
• A Book about a Different Religion
• A Historical Novel about Witchcraft
• A Book about Mythology
• Folk Tales from a Foreign Land
Planning for Paradise
/in Blog, Special Interest, Staff Picks/by Katie, Circulation Desk ClerkThere’s a fine line between not enough vacation planning and too much. You don’t want to waste precious time at your destination getting lost, but you don’t want to be tied down to a rigid schedule, either. On a recent trip to Key West, Florida, I created itineraries for several “days” that didn’t have to […]
The Silents: Falling Into Film’s Original Era
/in Blog, Curiosities, Special Interest/by Jan, Reference AssistantI don’t remember my first silent film, but I remember the feeling: the strangeness, the engrossing quiet, the sense of entering a world unknown as I stared, transfixed. In an age of superficial surplus and sensory overload, where the distinction between entertainment and distraction has become so blurred, here was something that quietly invited my […]
Space Is the Place for the Hopeful Sci-Fi Folks
/in Blog, Curiosities, Library Events, Special Interest/by Bradley, Reference CoordinatorIt’s May, and we all know what that means! May the Fourth be with you! It’s also the time for our celebration of space exploration which is celebrated nationally as Space Day on May 6th. To celebrate, we have created a display of space-themed non-fiction books by the likes of Neil deGrasse Tyson and Stephen […]
Books a Taurus Would Love
/in Blog, Staff Picks/by AshleyTaurus season is upon us, and I think we should all take a collective breath. Ready? Ok, let’s do this together: breathe in deeply, hold for three, and release. Now didn’t that feel good? Taurus season, April 20 to May 20, is smack dab in the middle of spring and is the perfect time to […]
Springtime, As Told By Greek Mythology
/in Blog, Curiosities, Special Interest, Staff Picks/by April, CirculationWhile perhaps unintentionally, T.S. Elliot captured the spirit of Wisconsin winter brilliantly when he said: “April is the cruelest month”. That is to say, April is a cruel month as it can project hints of spring, renewal, and hope during warmer days. Then, it can tear it all away again with sudden cold temperatures. If […]
At a Garage Sale Long, Long Ago
/in Blog, Staff Picks/by Mike Paulus, Digital Services & Marketing SpecialistAh! Welcome to what many people call their favorite time of year. ‘Tis the season of new discoveries, when our cities, towns, and neighborhoods are suddenly filled with amazing pockets of life, where people might gather to gaze upon the colorful wonders the world has set before their eyes. Yep, it’s garage sale season. As […]
The Deeper Roots of Gardening
/in Blog, Library Services, Special Interest/by Libby, Community Resources SpecialistThis time of year is beautiful to me; I know that sunshine and warm days are right around the corner and it makes the chilly and murky days more bearable. I find myself coming out of hibernation and becoming more active around my house – cleaning, exercising, planning my garden for the year. This last […]
Basement Blues No More
/in Blog, Curiosities, Special Interest/by Charlie, Reference AssistantLiving in an older home the last 28 years, our basement has always been a bit of a pit. No uniform paint on the brick walls or cement floor. Unfinished yes, but also dirty, dingy, and poorly lit. Especially our ‘laundry room’, which was the worst, and yet where we spend most of our time […]
A Very Polite Volcano
/in Blog, Curiosities, Special Interest/by Katie, Circulation Desk ClerkIf you had told me a year ago that I would spend countless hours staring at rocks three thousand miles away via a live webcam, I would have questioned your sanity. Yet on March 19, 2021, a new volcano was born in western Iceland that would end up mesmerizing me until its last lava welled […]
National Write Your Story Day
/in Blog, Special Interest/by Janelle“A Journey is a person in itself; no two are alike.” – John Steinbeck March 14th is commonly known for being Pi Day, but it is also National Write Your Story Day. It is a day to celebrate who you are and where you came from via the written word. It does not matter if […]