October Fun at the Library

Online Crafts and Storytime

All through the month of October, we will be showcasing a different Halloween craft tutorial video each Friday at 3 pm on our Facebook page.

We also will continue to have our Facebook Live Storytimes on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays at 4 pm in English and on Tuesday and Thursdays at 4 pm in Spanish. Catch them live or watch the recordings later.

Art Display in the Teen Area

Stop by the library to see the lovely display of still life and watercolor paintings on the wall in the Teen area. The art was provided to us by the Seymour Rogers middle school art class. We are looking forward to adding to the display as the school year progresses.

Halloween Virtual Escape Room

Watch our Facebook page and website for an upcoming online event. We are developing a Halloween themed virtual escape room based on a popular scary movie. Follow the clues to escape the room before the villain catches you!

Online Library and Lunch

library and lunch November 2020

On Tuesday, November 10th at Noon, our book club will meet online to discuss “The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek” by Kim Michele Richardson.

A Spooky Book Display

If you’re in the mood for a scary book that will keep you up at night, or you prefer a Halloween themed cozy mystery, then check out our Halloween book display.

The Perfectly proper paranormal museum

The perfectly proper paranormal museum
by Kirsten Weiss

When Maddie Kosloski’s career flatlines, she retreats to her wine country hometown for solace and cheap rent. Railroaded into managing the local paranormal museum, she’s certain the rumors of its haunting are greatly exaggerated. But then a fresh corpse in the museum embroils Maddie in murders past and present, making her wonder if a ghost could really be on the loose.

Maddie grapples with ghost hunters, obsessed taxidermists, and the sexy motorcyclist next door as outside forces threaten. And as she juggles spectral shenanigans with the hunt for a killer, she discovers there truly is no place like home.

Death overdue

Death overdue
by Allison Brook

Carrie Singleton is just about done with Clover Ridge, Connecticut until she’s offered a job as the head of programs and events at the spooky local library, complete with its own librarian ghost. Her first major event is a program presented by a retired homicide detective, Al Buckley, who claims he knows who murdered Laura Foster, a much-loved part-time library aide who was bludgeoned to death fifteen years earlier. As he invites members of the audience to share stories about Laura, he suddenly keels over and dies.

The medical examiner reveals that poison is what did him in and Carrie is determined to discover who murdered the detective, convinced it’s the same man who killed Laura all those years ago. Luckily for Carrie, she has a friendly, knowledgeable ghost by her side. 

Haunted house murder

Haunted house murder
by Leslie Meier, Lee Hollis, and Barbara Ross.

Tricks and treats keep the Halloween spirit alive in coastal Maine. But this year the haunted house theme is getting carried a little too far . . .

Haunted house murder by Leslie Meier

Newcomers to Tinker’s Cove, Ty and Heather Moon have moved into a dilapidated house reputed to be a haven for ghosts. Now strange noises and flickering lights erupt from the house at all hours and neighborly relations are on edge. And when a local boy goes missing near the house, it’s up to Lucy Stone to unravel the mystery of the eccentric couple and their increasingly frightful behavior.

Death by haunted house by Lee Hollis

For the past two years, the house next door to Hayley Powell has sat abandoned after the owner died under mysterious circumstances. The Salinger family has recently taken possession of the property, but the realtor behind the deal has vanished—after a very public and angry argument with Damien Salinger. If Bar Harbor’s newest neighbors are murderers, Hayley will haunt them until they confess.

Hallowed out by Barbara Ross

With its history of hauntings and ghost sightings, Busman’s Harbor is the perfect setting for Halloween festivities. But when a reenactment of a Prohibition-era gangster’s murder ends with a literal bang and a dead actor from New Jersey, Julia Snowden must identify a killer before she ends up sleeping with the fishes.

20th century ghosts
by Joe Hill

Imogene is young and beautiful. She kisses like a movie star and knows everything about every film ever made. She’s also dead and waiting in the Rosebud Theater for Alec Sheldon one afternoon in 1945. . . .

Francis is unhappy. Francis was human once, but that was then. Now he’s an eight-foot-tall locust, and everyone in Calliphora will tremble when they hear him sing. . . .

John Finney is locked in a basement stained with the blood of half a dozen other murdered children. In the cellar with him is an antique telephone, long since disconnected, but which rings at night with calls from the dead. . . .

The past isn’t dead. It isn’t even past. . . .

Have a Spooky Halloween at the Library

halloween vampire and jack-o-lantern

Events This Week

  • Tuesday at 11 am Preschool Storytime  – We’ll have stories, songs, crafts, and more! Plus, every child gets a free book to take home at every storytime.
  • Wednesday at 11 am Lapsit Storytime – Storytimes for newborns to 2 year olds. We’ll have stories, songs, and rhymes. Also, every child gets a free book to take home!
  • Wednesday at 2 pm Spinning Yarns group – Hang out with other adults who share your interest in crochet, knitting, or other needlework. Bring your own materials. All are welcome.

  • Thursday at 5:30 pm Storytime – Evening Storytime is open to all ages. We’ll have stories, songs, crafts, and more! Plus, every child gets a free book to take home at every storytime.

  • Saturday at 1 pm Family Halloween Party – Everyone’s invited to our family Halloween party. There will be games, crafts and candy. Don’t forget to dress up in your best costume!

More Events

hocus pocus escape room

Escape Room: Hocus Pocus

If you haven’t experienced our Hocus Pocus themed Escape Room yet, this week is your last chance. The Escape Room is free and is open to ages 10 and older for groups of 2 to 5 people. Sign up is required, please call the library (620-626-0180) to reserve your spot! It is open from 2 pm to 7 pm Monday through Thursday, and 1 pm to 5 pm on Friday and Saturday.

Interactive Movie

On Monday October 28th at 6 pm, enjoy an interactive showing of a Halloween Disney movie. Teenage Max moves to Salem where he accidentally releases the Sanderson sisters, witches who lived 300 years ago. Max and his friends must stop them before it’s too late.

Recipe Swap

On Tuesday, October 29th at 6:30pm join us for Recipe Swap and share your favorite recipe with fellow patrons who share your passion for cooking. Every month is a different theme! This month’s theme is “Orange you glad you’re in Recipe Swap!”, any recipe with the color orange in it.

Halloween Bunco

On Halloween day at Noon, Wear your costumes and join us for for Bunco, the popular dice game! Registration is required, so register by phone, (620-626-0180), online at lmlibrary.org or in person. Adults only.

Teen Halloween Party

Teens in middle school and high school, come join us on Thursday, October 31st at 6 pm for a Halloween party just for you! We will have a costume contest, games, and snacks!

Beginner’s 3D Printing Workshop

Do you have questions about 3D printing? Come to our beginner’s workshop to learn how to use the library’s 3D printer.

On Monday, November 4th at 6 p.m., we will walk through the process of finding a print-ready file online that you can print as is or alter to fit your needs. The workshop is held every 1st Monday of the month at 6 p.m. All ages welcome. Signup online (http://lmlibrary.org) or at the front desk.

Spinning Yarns

On Wednesday, November 6th from 2 to 4 pm – join our Spinning Yarns group and spend time with other adults who share your interest in crochet, knitting, or other needlework! Bring your own materials and work on your ongoing projects. Beginners to experts, are all welcome.

Library and Lunch book discussion

For November’s book discussion, we asked our patrons to write down the names of authors they are most thankful for and we put them in a bowl for others to draw from. Come to the circulation desk to draw an author’s name and find a book in the library written by that author. We’ll meet on Tuesday, November 12th at 12 p.m. Bring your lunch and join the discussion.

Lunch with visiting authors Jodi Thomas and Linda Broday

What’s happening this week at the Library

  • Tuesday at 10 am Storytime – Listen to stories, sing songs, and do a craft. Storytimes are open to children of all ages.
  • Thursday at 6 pm Storytime – If you can’t make it to the morning storytime on Tuesday, you can come to the evening Thursday one instead.
  • Thursday at Noon Bunco – Join us for Bunco, a popular dice game. Seating is limited. Call 626-0180 or go to our website lmlibrary.org to signup.
  • Friday at 1 pm Games and a Movie – Play fun board and card games at 1:00 p.m. followed by a fun Halloween movie at 2:00 p.m.
  • Saturday at 2 pm Halloween Party – Make slime, play games, listen to spooky stories, and get candy! Fun for all ages.

Lunch with the Authors

Join us for lunch with NY Times and USA Today best-selling authors Jodi Thomas and Linda Broday on Wednesday, November 8th at Noon. Attendance is limited, so sign up on our website, by phone 626-0180, or at the library.

Linda Broday is a bestselling author of historical western romance. She lives in the Texas, where she grew up watching TV westerns and wishing that the cowboy got to marry the pretty woman he fell in love with, instead of riding away into the sunset all by his lonesome.

Her newest book, an anthology “Christmas in a Cowboy’s Arms” was released in early October. Another book “To Marry a Texas Outlaw (Men of Legend)” will be released in early November.

Jodi Thomas is a bestselling author of over 40 novels and 13 short story collections. Her stories travel through the past and present days of Texas and draw readers from around the world. Jodi Thomas enjoys interacting with students at West Texas A&M University in Canyon, Texas, where she currently serves as Writer in Residence.

When not working on a novel or inspiring students to pursue a writing career, Thomas enjoys traveling with her husband, renovating a historic home, and “checking up” on their grown sons and four grandchildren.

Western Romances

In honor of our visiting authors, we’ve put together a display of western romances, including books written by Jodi Thomas and Linda Broday as well as other authors. Here are two.

 Indigo Lake: A Small-Town Texas Cowboy Romance (Ransom Canyon)
by Jodi Thomas

From the Book Description
Blade Hamilton is the last of his line. He’s never even heard of Crossroads, Texas, until he inherits land there. Riding in on his vintage Harley-Davidson, Blade finds a weathered ranch house, an empty prairie and a dark river that cuts a decisive path between the Hamiltons’ land and that of their estranged neighbors.

When Dakota helps a stranger on the roadside, she isn’t prepared for the charisma of the man on the motorbike—or for the last name he bears: Hamilton, of her family’s sworn enemies, representing all she’s been raised to loathe. The problem is, it looks like Blade is in town to stay, and there’s something about his wolf-gray eyes she just can’t ignore.

Lauren Brigman feels adrift. Unhappy in work and unlucky in love, she knows she ought to be striving for more, but she’s never truly at peace unless she’s at home in Crossroads. If the wider world can’t satisfy her, is home truly where her heart is?

To Love a Texas Ranger (Men of Legend)
b
y Linda Broday

From the Book Description
Gravely injured on the trail of a notorious criminal, Texas Ranger Sam Legend boards a train bound for his family ranch to recuperate – only to find himself locked in battle to save a desperate woman on the run. Determined to rescue the beautiful Sierra, Sam recruits an unlikely ally. But can he trust the mysterious gunslinger to fight at his side?

Sam is shocked to discover his new ally is not only an outlaw, but his half-brother. Torn between loyalty to his job and love of his family, Sam goes reeling straight into Sierra’s arms. Yet just as the walls around his battered heart begin to crumble, Sierra is stolen away. Sam will risk anything to save her―his life, his badge, his very soul―knowing that some bonds are stronger than the law…and some legends were born to be told.

Beginner’s 3D Printing Workshop

If you’ve heard about the library’s new 3D printer and want to learn more about it, come to one of our beginner’s 3D printing workshops. They are held on the first and third Monday of every month at 6:00 p.m. Our next workshop will be on Monday, November 7th. Seating is limited. Signup in person at the library, online at http://lmlibrary.org, or by phone 626-0180.

What’s happening at the library this week

  • soup-and-breadTuesday at 6:30 pm Recipe Swap – Bring something you’ve made (along with the recipe) to share and enjoy everyone else’s creations! Every month is a different theme. This month’s theme will be “Bread and Soup”.
  • Tuesday at 6 pm Storytime – If you can’t make it to the morning storytime on Thursday, you can come to the evening Tuesday one instead.
  • Wednesday at noon Want to Write a Novel? – Get ready for November’s National Novel Writing Month and see a published novel written during NaNoWriMo! Fanfiction welcome!
  • Wednesday at 4 pm Lego Day – Kids, come use your imagination to build something great!
  • Thursday at 11:15 am Storytime – Listen to stories, sing songs, and do a craft. Storytimes are open to children of all ages.
  • Thursday at 4 pm Teen Video and Tabletop Game Club – Come play our Wii, Xbox, Ps4, or one of several fun board games.
  • Friday at 2 pm Movie – Kids, there’s no school on Friday so join us for a movie day.Saturday at 1 pm Family Halloween Party – Celebrate Halloween with games and a craft! Fun for the whole family!

Ghost Stories and Haunted Houses
There are all kinds of ghost stories; from spooky haunted house stories that make you want to sleep with the lights on, to stories about friendly spirits who need a little help crossing to the other side. Check out our book display to find a few ghost stories that appeal to you.

ghost-times-twoGhost times two
by Carolyn Hart

From the book description
Bailey Ruth Raeburn’s latest mission is to guide the happy-go-lucky spirit of a deceased young man named Jimmy to the next life. But Jimmy is determined to watch over his still-living girlfriend, Megan, whom he wants to be happy even without him–which is easier said than done.

As if being haunted by her late boyfriend wasn’t enough, Megan is dealing with an arrogant, manipulative senior partner who threatens to fire Megan’s vulnerable secretary if Megan accepts a partnership at another law firm. She’s in an impossible bind.

Since Jimmy refuses to move on while Megan is being blackmailed, Bailey Ruth agrees to help him. But after the partner turns up dead and Megan is found at the crime scene, Bailey Ruth and Jimmy have to find a way to uncover a killer before the love of Jimmy’s life is ordered to spend a lifetime behind bars…

the-greatcoatThe greatcoat : a ghost story
by Helen Dunmore

From the book description
It is the winter of 1952 when Isabel Carey moves to the East Riding of Yorkshire with her new husband, Philip, a medical doctor. While Philip spends long hours working away from home, Isabel finds herself lonely and vulnerable while she adjusts to the realities of being a housewife in the country.

One evening, while Philip is on call, Isabel is woken by intense cold. When she hunts for extra blankets, she discovers an old RAF greatcoat hidden in the back of a cupboard. Sleeping under the coat for warmth, she starts to dream and is soon startled by a knock at her window. Outside is a young RAF pilot wearing a coat the bears a striking resemblance to the one draped over Isabel’s shoulders. His name is Alec and his powerful presence disturbs and excites her as they begin an intense affair. Nothing though has prepared her for the truth about Alec’s life, nor the impact it will have on her own.

maybe-this-timeMaybe this time
by Jennifer Crusie

From the book description
Andie Miller is ready to move on with her life. She wants to marry her fiancé and leave behind everything in her past, especially her ex-husband, North Archer. But when Andie tries to gain closure with him, North asks one last favor. A distant cousin has died and left North the guardian of two orphans who driven away three nannies already, He needs someone to take care of the situation, and he knows Andie can handle anything.

When Andie meets the two children, she realized the situation is much worse than she feared. Carter and Alice aren’t your average delinquents, and the creepy old house where they live is being run by the worst housekeeper since Mrs. Danvers.

Then her ex-brother-in-law arrives with a duplicitous journalist and a self-doubting parapsychologist, closely followed by an annoyed medium, Andie’s tarot card-reading mother, her avenging ex-mother-in-law, and her jealous fiancé. Just when Andie’s sure things couldn’t get more complicated, North arrives to make her wonder if maybe this time things could just turn out differently…

Spooky New Books and Coming Events

Upcoming events this week

How to Crochet 101

Our first “How to Crochet 101” class will be held tomorrow.  The class will be led by Leslie Bissell, who will show us how to do four basic stitches and how to read a pattern. The classes will continue on November 2nd, 9th, and 16th at 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Unfortunately the class is already full, so we can’t take any last minute sign-ups.

Movie Night (Adults)

This Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. will be the Movie Night for Adults. Have a night out with other adults, enjoy a movie and discuss it afterward.

Family Halloween Party

The library will have a Halloween party this Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. It will be a chance for the kids to show off their costumes, collect some candy, play great games, and win prizes. We’ll have snacks and a chance to build your own monster!

 

Spooky New Books

Speaking of Halloween, here are a few spooky new fiction books for you to enjoy.

candy corn murderCandy corn murder
by Leslie Meier

From the book description

Halloween is coming to Tinker’s Cove, Maine, and local reporter Lucy Stone is covering the town’s annual Giant Pumpkin Fest for the Pennysaver. There’s the pumpkin-boat regatta, the children’s Halloween party, the pumpkin weigh-in…even a contest where home-built catapults hurl pumpkins at an old Dodge! But not everything goes quite as planned…

Lucy’s getting very annoyed that her husband Bill and his friend Evan have been working seemingly nonstop on their potentially prize-winning pumpkin catapult. But when the day of the big contest arrives, Evan is nowhere to be found…until a catapulted pumpkin busts open the trunk of the Dodge. Amid the pumpkin gore is a very deceased Evan, bashed in the head and placed in the trunk by someone long before the contest started.

Bill is on the hook for the Halloween homicide—he was the last one to see Evan—so Lucy knows she’s got some serious sleuthing to do…

 

ghost to the rescueGhost to the Rescue
by Carolyn Hart.

From the book description

When you wish upon a star, you get…Bailey Ruth? You do if you’re a little girl whose mom needs help and you touch the soft heart of Supervisor Wiggins at Heaven’s Department of Good Intentions. Granted it’s not the usual task of an emissary, but then again Bailey Ruth is not your usual emissary. So Wiggins dispatches the spunky spirit to her old hometown of Adelaide, Oklahoma, to help a single mother and struggling writer find some creative solutions to her problems.

Deidre Davenport is just about broke, trying to support her two children, and has her hopes pinned on getting a faculty job with the Goddard College English department. Jay Knox, who is in charge of the writer’s conference she’s participating in, will decide who gets the job, but he’s more interested in her body than her body of work.

Not long after his advances are rejected, Knox turns up dead—and Deirdre’s fingerprints are found on the murder weapon. Bailey Ruth knows Deirdre is innocent. Now she must find out who really knocked off Knox…if Deirdre and her family are ever going to have a happy ending.

 

 

fifth house of the heartThe fifth house of the heart
by Ben Tripp.

From the book description

Filled with characters as menacing as they are memorable, this chilling twist on vampire fiction packs a punch in the bestselling tradition of ’Salem’s Lot by Stephen King.

Asmodeus “Sax” Saxon-Tang, a vainglorious and well-established antiques dealer, has made a fortune over many years by globetrotting for the finest lost objects in the world. Only Sax knows the true secret to his success: at certain points of his life, he’s killed vampires for their priceless hoards of treasure.

But now Sax’s past actions are quite literally coming back to haunt him, and the lives of those he holds most dear are in mortal danger. To counter this unnatural threat, and with the blessing of the Holy Roman Church, a cowardly but cunning Sax must travel across Europe in pursuit of incalculable evil—and immeasurable wealth—with a ragtag team of mercenaries and vampire killers to hunt a terrifying, ageless monster…one who is hunting Sax in turn.

Halloween Happenings

halloween ghost-with-a-bagOctober is a great time for kids here at the library, as we have all sorts of fun stuff planned just for them this month!  We will have a Family Halloween Party on Saturday, October 31 starting at 10 a.m. in The Learning Center.  Kids can show off their Halloween costumes, play games, win prizes, make Halloween-themed crafts, and eat a snack.  The kids we have at our afterschool program really enjoy Bingo, so we’ll be playing a Halloween-themed Bingo for prizes.  Don’t worry, we’ll also have goodies to take home at the end of the party.  Feel free to come & go as you please, the party goes until the library closes at 1.

This week, kids can get their faces painted with a Halloween design on Thursday night at 6 pm or Saturday morning at 11 am.  Local artist Judy Yates will be sharing her face painting talents.  According to her website, Judy uses paints that are “hypoallergenic and especially designed for children’s skin.” Her website is at http://faceartbyjudy.com/ for those wanting to preview what her wonderful face paintings look like.

Also this week, school is out on Friday the 16th, so we will be showing a Family Movie and doing an easy craft at 2 pm.  There may be a family-friendly Halloween movie to enjoy with our friends.  Pass the snacks and lemonade!

And on Tuesdays throughout October at our afterschool club (4 pm – 6 pm in The Learning Center), kids can learn about Halloween costumes and makeup.  They’ll learn to make simple costume accessories and do their own Halloween-themed makeup.  Get some cool ideas and handmade costume items just in time to plan your Halloween costume!  And of course we always have other art projects, board games, and other activities at Afterschool, if you’d like a break from all the Halloween stuff.

At storytime for the rest of October, we’ll be sharing Halloween-season stories, songs, and crafts! Our storytimes are Tuesdays and Thursdays at 11:15 am, and Tuesdays at 6 pm.  All ages of kids (and their parents and caregivers) are welcome.  Make your own Frankenstein’s Monster, design the perfect paper Jack-o’-lantern, and more!

leonardo the terrible monsterThis week, we’ll be reading a book by one of my favorite authors, Mo Willems.  Willems used to write for Sesame Street, and his books are subtly hilarious.  This week, we’ll be reading his book called Leonardo, the Terrible Monster.  Along with some other great books about monsters, we’ll also be singing and enjoying monster-themed songs and making the aforementioned Frankenstein’s Monster.  But don’t be scared, he’s more cute than scary.

But grownups, don’t feel left out!  If you’re stressed, why not come enjoy some relaxation at our first Adult Coloring session, this Thursday at noon.  If you can’t come this Thursday, don’t worry, there will be another Adult Coloring session on Oct. 22 at 6:30 pm.  Take a break from work, kids, and/or real life and find some zen with quiet, soothing coloring.  We will provide the coloring pages and colored pencils.  Yes, there will be snacks, too.