Saturdays at 11 am in English and 11:30 in Spanish
Mahjong
Are you interested in learning a new game to play with family and friends? Every Wednesday at 10 am and Friday at 1 pm, we will get together for a fun game of Mahjong here at the library. Learn the rules of this traditional Chinese game and play some Mahjong. No experience necessary. For adults only.
LEGO Play Day
Kids, unleash your imagination! On Tuesday, November 21st at 4 pm, join us for free-play with LEGO bricks galore.
Closed for Thanksgiving Holiday
Have a happy Thanksgiving everyone! The library will close early at 1 pm on Wednesday, the 22nd and will be closed Thursday and Friday. We will reopen on Saturday at 9 am.
Teen Club
Are you in middle or high school? On Wednesday, November 29th at 4 pm, come hang out with your friends to do crafts, watch anime, and decompress from the stresses of life.
Holiday Open House
On December 7th starting at 6 pm, we are having a holiday celebration at the library. There will be cookies, musical performances, and a special visit from Santa. Bring the kids to listen to Santa tell stories and to take their pictures with Santa.
hoopla BingePass
A hoopla BingePass gives you unlimited access to great online content for seven days – with a single borrow! hoopla is available FREE with your Liberal Memorial Library card.
If you haven’t tried hoopla yet, it is an all-in-one media service where you can borrow titles in six different formats—audiobooks, eBooks, comics/graphic novels, full music albums, movies, and TV.
Borrow up to 6 titles (also called borrows) per month. You can access the titles you borrow instantly on your computer, tablet, or smartphone. With hoopla, there are no holds or waiting!
To register, please visit your device’s store and download the hoopla digital app, or visit www.hoopladigital.com and go to “Sign up Today”. Enter your email address and create a password for hoopla. After that choose Liberal Memorial Library from the list of nearby libraries.
It will ask for your Library Card Number and Library PIN (password) to finish creating a hoopla account. If you are unsure of your library card number or password, please call us at 620-626-0180 and we will be happy to help. After you are finished, you will log in to hoopla with your email address and the password that you created.
Also available on
If you choose to use one of your borrows on a BingePass, you can access all of the content in that collection free for seven days. Here is a list of the currently available BingePasses
Empowers kids to be active participants in every story. Your child can enjoy skill-building activities and hands-on fun for seven days, at no cost to you.
Note: You must download the Hellosaurus iOS or Android app to your mobile device to play this content. No signup is required.
Looking for an easy way to encourage your emerging reader? With Read-Along eBooks, young readers can explore independently or with narrator support and word highlighting.
Does your child love Highlights magazine? Now they can check out fun, interactive content straight from the magazine’s publisher — including puzzles, videos, activities, and more.
Bring story time to your home or take it on the go! With this BingePass, you can view The Reading Corner’s entire collection of more than 900 videos. Designed for kids of all ages.
Saturdays at 11 am in English and 11:30 in Spanish
Facebook Storytimes in English and Spanish
Hogwarts House Appreciation Week
Join us for a week of activities and show your Hogwarts House Pride!
Monday 3/20 @ 4:30 pm: Hufflepuff Day-Herbology Class: Make your very own baby Mandrake
Tuesday 3/21 @ 4:30 pm: Slytherin Day-Divination Class: Find what the future holds for you
Wednesday 3/22 @ 4:30 pm: Gryffindor Day-Dueling Club: Challenge your friends and foes to see who is the best
Thursday 3/23 @ 4:30 pm: Ravenclaw Day-History of Magic Class: Test your knowledge of the Wizarding World
Friday 3/24 @ 4:30 pm: Hogwarts Spirit Day-Party in the Great Hall
Books, Coffee & Donuts
On Wednesday, April 5th starting at 9 am, come to the library to chat with our staff over coffee and donuts about new releases and new events happening that month.
Closed for Good Friday
The Library will be closed on Friday, April 7th and Saturday, April 8th for Good Friday and Easter. We will reopen on Monday at 9 a.m.
Teen Volunteer Work Day
Teens, do you need to earn some volunteer hours before prom and graduation? During the month of April, the library will have Teen Volunteer Work Days every Monday starting at 4:30 pm. Volunteer for different creative tasks that will help you achieve your needed volunteer hours.
Library and Lunch
OnTuesday, April 11th at Noon, our book club will meet to discuss “The house in the Cerulean Sea” by T.J. Klune. Bring your lunch and join the discussion.
Poetry Night
On Wednesday April 12th at 6 pm, share your favorite poem or an original piece at our poetry night, open for all ages.
Teen Otaku Club
Do you love anime and manga and are in middle or high school? Then come to our Teen Otaku Club meeting.
On Wednesday, April 19th at 5 pm we will watch & discuss the anime “Sk8 the Infinity”!
Sign up in advance to get a free sticker at the meeting! Join us for your chance at an anime door prize, snacks, a craft/activity and fun anime/manga discussion.
“The Book was Better” book display
Come to the library to check out our display featuring movies along with the books that inspired them. Here are just a few.
The Glass Castle is a remarkable memoir of resilience and redemption, and a look into a family at once dysfunctional and uniquely vibrant. When sober, Jeannette’s brilliant and charismatic father captured his children’s imagination, teaching them physics, geology, and how to embrace life fearlessly. But when he drank, he was dishonest and destructive. Her mother was a free spirit didn’t want the responsibility of raising a family.
The Walls children learned to take care of themselves. They fed, clothed, and protected one another, and eventually found their way to New York. Their parents followed them, choosing to be homeless even as their children prospered.
The Glass Castle is truly astonishing—a memoir permeated by the intense love of a peculiar but loyal family.
The memoir was also made into a movie in 2017 starring Brie Larson, Woody Harrelson, and Naomi Watts.
Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Khalil was unarmed.
Soon afterward, his death is a national headline. When it becomes clear the police have little interest in investigating the incident, protesters take to the streets and Starr’s neighborhood becomes a war zone. What everyone wants to know is: what really went down that night? And the only person alive who can answer that is Starr.
But what Starr does—or does not—say could destroy her community. It could also endanger her life.
A critically acclaimed movie of the same name was released in 2018.
Bernadette (played by Academy Award winner Cate Blanchett in the movie), is a frightfully intelligent wife and mother with an intense allergy to Seattle specifically, and to people in general. When her daughter Bee insists on a family trip to Antarctica as her reward for getting perfect grades in middle school, Bernadette is faced with the daunting prospect of actual human interaction.
The timing could not be worse. Bernadette is already on the brink of a breakdown. Throw in a feud with her neighbor over Bernadette’s rampant blackberry bushes, the scandal that erupts when she runs over another mother’s foot at the school’s drop-off, and a class fundraiser gone disastrously awry – and it is all too much. Bernadette vanishes, leaving her Microsoft-guru husband, a horde of angry parents, and questioning police officers to pick up the pieces.
Desperate to find her mother, Bee probes her emails, invoices, school memos, and other evidence. Conjuring out of those shards a portrait of a woman she never knew before – and a secret that could explain everything.
On the hottest day of the summer of 1935, thirteen-year-old Briony Tallis sees her older sister Cecilia (played by Keira Knightley in the movie) strip off her clothes and plunge into the garden fountain at their country house. Watching Cecilia is their housekeeper’s son Robbie Turner (played by James McAvoy), a childhood friend who along with Briony’s sister, has recently graduated from Cambridge.
By the end of the day the lives of all three are changed forever. Robbie and Cecilia become victims of the younger girl’s scheming imagination. And Briony commits a dreadful crime, the guilt of which will color her entire life.
In Atonement Ian McEwan takes the reader from a manor house in England to the retreat from Dunkirk in 1941; from London’s World War II military hospitals to a reunion of the Tallis clan in 1999.
Saturdays at 11 am in English and 11:30 in Spanish
Facebook Storytimes in English and Spanish
Closed for Presidents’ Day
The Library will be closed on Monday, February 20th for Presidents’ Day. We will reopen for normal hours on Tuesday, 21st – 9:00 a.m.- 8:00 p.m.
Pokémon Day 2023
All ages are encouraged to participate in this year’s Pokémon Day activities:
All month long, come to the library and vote in our best Pokemon bracket and try out our Pokemon scavenger hunt.
From the 22nd through the 27th, stop by anytime for grab & go Pokemon craft.
On Monday, February 27th at 4:30 pm, we will host our first Pokemon Training Camp with games and activities. Go up against other trainers in a series of games that test your knowledge and skill and compete for prizes!
Game Day
On Thursday, February 23rd at 4 pm, come to the library and play video games, board games, and card games. This event is open to all ages, bring a friend or family member to try out a new game!
Books, Coffee & Donuts
On Wednesday, March 1st starting at 9 am, come to the library to chat with our staff over coffee and donuts about new releases and new events happening that month.
Library and Lunch
OnTuesday, March 14th at Noon, our book club will meet to discuss “The Measure” by Nikki Erlick. Bring your lunch and join the discussion.
Teen Otaku Club
Do you love anime and manga and are in middle or high school? Then come to our Teen Otaku Club meeting.
On Wednesday, March 15th at 5 pm we will watch & discuss the anime My Hero Academia!
Sign up in advance to get a free sticker at the meeting! Join us for your chance at an anime door prize, snacks, a craft/activity and fun anime/manga discussion.
Saturdays at 11 am in English and 11:30 in Spanish
Facebook Storytimes in English and Spanish
Closed for Thanksgiving Holiday
Have a happy Thanksgiving everyone! The library will close early at 1 pm on Wednesday, the 23rd and will be closed Thursday and Friday. We will reopen on Saturday at 9 am.
Holiday Open House
On December 8th from 6 to 8 pm, we are having a holiday celebration at the library. There will be cookies, musical performances, and a special visit from Santa. Bring the kids to listen to Santa tell stories and to take their pictures with Santa.
Library and Lunch
OnTuesday, December 13th at Noon, our book club will meet to discuss “Seven Days of Us” by Francesca Hornak. Bring your lunch and join the discussion.
Polar Express Party
Kids, wear your pajamas to our Polar Express party on December 15th at 5:30 pm. We will have snacks and hot chocolate while we watch a movie. You can also bring along a pillow and blanket to be more comfortable.
Game Day
On Thursday, December 22nd at 5 pm, come to the library and play video games, board games, and card games. This event is open to all ages, bring a friend or family member to try out a new game! We will also have occasional tournaments on Mariokart and Super Smash Bros.for those interested.
Movie Time
On Friday, December 16th at 4 pm, Come to the library and enjoy a movie and free popcorn! An eight-year-old troublemaker must protect his house from a pair of burglars when he is accidentally left behind by his family during Christmas vacation.
hoopla BingePass
Here is something else to binge after you have finished your holiday feast.
A hoopla BingePass gives you unlimited access to great online content for seven days – with a single borrow! Hoopla is available FREE with your Liberal Memorial Library card.
If you haven’t tried hoopla yet, it is an all-in-one media service where you can browse 950,000+ titles in six different formats—audiobooks, eBooks, comics/graphic novels, full music albums, movies, and TV—and instantly borrow, then download or stream, the titles of your choice!
Borrow up to 6 titles (also called borrows) per month. You can access the titles you borrow instantly on your computer, tablet, or smartphone. With hoopla, there are no holds or waiting!
To register, please visit the Apple or Google Play store and download the hoopla digital app, or visit www.hoopladigital.com and go to “Get Started Today”. Enter your email address and create a password for hoopla. After that choose our library from the list of nearby libraries.
It will ask for your Library Card Number and Library PIN (password) to finish creating a hoopla account. If you are unsure of your library card number or password, please call us at 620-626-0180 and we will be happy to help. After you are finished, you will log in to hoopla with your email address and the password that you created.
If you use one of your borrows on a BingePass, you can access all of the content in that collection free for seven days. Here is a list of the currently available BingePasses:
hoopla Magazines – Read current and recent issues of popular and in-demand magazines.
Curiosity Stream – Watch high-quality and engaging documentaries and nonfiction series.
Great Courses Video – Access to hundreds of the most popular Great Courses Library Collection courses. Use one borrow to access one or multiple courses – whatever you choose.
The Highlights Collection – Delights kids with its positive messages, puzzles, and “things-to-do.”, with more than 200 multimedia series including the Timbertoes, Listen & Learn, Tex and Indi, and Ask Arizona.
Read-Along 2 Learn – Read-Along eBooks allow young readers to explore independently or with narrator support and word highlighting. With topics like sports, animals, emotions, STEM, and more, kids can dig into the world around them at their own pace.
Kids’ Books in Action – As their favorite picture books come to life, kids will get excited about reading while watching the events of their favorite stories unfold in movie form.
KidzVidz – This collection of movies and TV series covers animals, inspirational children in history, and the planet, plus a how-to-draw animals series to jumpstart their creativity!
Hellosaurus – Incredibly engaging, interactive, and educational, Hellosaurus puts kids ages 2 to 8 in their favorite shows. Featuring popular titles like The Wiggles and Love, Diana, children develop life skills independently and safely by having fun. One borrow gets all the Hellosaurus they want for 7 days.
You must download the Hellosaurus iOS or Android app to your mobile device to play this content. No signup needed.
Tuesday at 11 am PreschoolStorytime – We’ll
have stories, songs, crafts, and more! Plus, every child gets a free book to take home at every storytime.
Tuesday at 5 pm Library Closing Early – The library will close at 5 pm for a Staff
Appreciation Dinner on Tuesday, December 17th. We will reopen for normal hours
on Wednesday, December 18th at 9 a.m.
Wednesday at 11 am LapsitStorytime – Storytimes
for newborns to 2 year olds. Come listen to stories, sing songs, and develop
key literacy skills. 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.
Thursday at 6 pm Movie Time – Watch a fun new movie at the library. After
discovering a Yeti on the roof of her apartment building, teenage Yi and her
two friends embark on an epic quest to reunite the magical creature with his
family. We’ll provide popcorn and drinks or you can bring your own drinks.
Friday at Noon Ugly Sweater Party – Wear an ugly Christmas sweater for this fun
party for adults! Participate in a White Elephant gift exchange (bring a gift
costing $10 or less), play games, and eat snacks. Adults only. Seating is
limited. Sign up online at lmlibrary.org or at the front desk.
Saturday at 1 pm Last Minute Make & Take Holiday Gifts – Don’t know what to get
your friends or family this holiday season? On Saturday, December 21st
from 1 to 3 pm, join us to make something with your own hands that they are sure
to enjoy! We will have several different craft gift options to choose from, you
are welcome to make one or make them all. This event is free but supplies will
be limited.
More Events
Food for Fines
Food
for Fines is still going on until the end of the year. Donate canned vegetables,
any nonperishable food items, new toiletries (toothpaste, soap, toilet paper,
etc.), or socks to the library and we will waive your overdue fines! All
donated items will be given to local charities. (No expired or used donations,
please.) Donate to a worthy cause and get your overdue fines forgiven.
This
works for overdue fines only, fines for lost or damaged items will not be
waived.
Video & Board
Game Day
Kids
out for Christmas break? On Monday, December 23rd between 1 and 4 pm, come on
down to play video and board games at the library! We have all kinds of games
that will keep them entertained.
Closed for Christmas
Holiday
The
library will be closed for the Christmas holiday on Tuesday, December 24th
through Thursday the 26th. We will reopen for normal hours on Friday the 27th from 9:00
a.m.to 6:00 p.m.
Bad Art Kids Craft
Kids, are you bad at art, but love
to do it anyway? On Friday, December 27th at 2 pm, come to Bad Art: Kids
Edition, where the worst art is the best! We will be making art out of leftover
craft supplies.
Indoor Snowball Fight
Kids & teens don’t be bored at
home, come to the library and join in on our indoor snowball fight! On Monday, December
30th at 1 pm, we will be crafting our own marshmallow shooters and will have a
“snowball” fight with them.
Noon Year’s Eve Party
Starting at 10:30 am on Tuesday,
December 31st, we’re counting down to Noon for our Noon Year’s Eve party. Kids
can celebrate of the coming New Year with fun and games without having to stay
up until midnight!
Library Closed for New Year’s Eve and Day
The library will close at 1 pm on
Tuesday, December 31st and will be closed on Wednesday, January 1st for New
Year’s Day. We will reopen for normal hours on Thursday the 2nd from 9:00 a.m.
to 8:00 p.m.
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, January 6th 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, January 8th
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
In January, we will discuss “The
Mother-in-Law” by Sally Hepworth. We’ll meet on Tuesday, January 14th
at 12 p.m. Bring your lunch and join the discussion.
Tuesday at 11 am Storytime – Stories, songs, crafts, and more! Plus, every child gets a free book to take home at every storytime. Story times are open to children of all ages.
Wednesday – Library closes at 1 pm
Thursday and Friday – Library closed for Thanksgiving
Saturday at 2 pm Movie – Come to the library to see a new animated movie about a family full of superheroes. Free popcorn! Feel free to bring your own soda and even a pillow, blanket, or chair to be comfortable!
Recipe Swap – Cookie Swap
We won’t have a Recipe Swap in November, but on December 4th at 6:30 pm we will have our annual Cookie Swap. Bring two dozen of your favorite homemade cookies to share, along with the recipe, and take home a sample of other people’s creations!
Gingerbread House Decorating
Signup for the annual gingerbread house decorating at the library begins Monday after next on the 26th. Signup in person or online at http://lmlibrary.org.
There will be two sessions on Saturday, December 15th. One at 12:30 pm and another at 2:30pm. Children ages 4-11 and their parents are invited to come decorate a gingerbread house! Frosting and all kinds of toppings will be available. Seating is limited, so sign up as early as you can.
Holiday Meal Planning
If you have family coming for the holidays and you’re looking for some inspiration about what to serve them, you could try checking out some of the library’s cookbooks. The Library has all kinds of cookbooks available for checkout. Here are a few:
Talk Turkey to Me is an informative, entertaining read featuring caller’s questions answered by a former Butterball Turkey Talk-Line expert. The book also features recipes for more than 80 dishes to accompany your turkey – everything from appetizers to desserts – to help you cook up a good time in the kitchen anytime!
From the book description
Inspired by a diversity of cuisines, Raghavan Iyer’s passion for potatoes shines through in his continent-by-continent celebration of the amazing potato and the tastiest ways you can cook it – including soups, salads, gratins, tarts, and the Ultimate French Fries.
From the book description
Take a delicious seasonal tour of pies. Pies can be enjoyed year-round. Join Ashley English as she walks you through a calendar year of making pies, using the freshest seasonal ingredients possible.
From the book description
The wonderful aroma of home-baked cookies is part of the enduring magic of Christmas. Now you can celebrate the holidays with The Christmas Cookie Book, a mouth-watering collection of more than ninety recipes gathered from the family, friends, and neighbors of authors Judy Knipe and Barbara Marks.
More than a collection of recipes, The Christmas Cookie Book is also a practical guide to the basics of cookie baking, equipment, and techniques. A special section called “Cookies to Go” is devoted to gift-giving, with charming ideas for packing and wrapping your cookies. A veritable feast of terrific recipes, gift ideas, and cookie-lore, The Christmas Cookie Book is sure to please cookie lovers of all ages.
Tuesday at 11am Storytime – Stories, songs, crafts, and more! Plus, every child gets a free book to take home at every storytime. Story times are open to children of all ages.
Tuesday 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 is “Make ahead and freeze” recipes.
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.
Friday and Saturday Closed – The Library will be closed for Good Friday and Easter. We will reopen on Monday for our regular hours.
March Book Madness
This is the last week of our March Book Madness contest. Right now we are down to just two book contestants in each of the tournaments, Adult, Teen, and Children’s Books.
You decide who will be the winner. Vote for your favorites, either on our website http://lmlibrary.org or in person at the library.
We will tally the votes and discover which books will be the 2018 books of the year. Normally we do this on Friday, but because the library will be closed for Good Friday, we will tally our votes and do our last prize drawing on the next Monday instead.
So, if you don’t get a chance to vote in person before Thursday night, you can still vote online over the coming Easter weekend. Remember, each time you vote, you’ll be entered into our fun prize drawings, one for each tournament, Adult, Teen, and Children’s Books.
New Releases
Here are some of the library’s newest books on the adult side.
From the Book Description
Cassandra Bowden is no stranger to hungover mornings. She’s a binge drinker, her job with the airline making it easy to find adventure, and the occasional blackouts seem to be inevitable. She lives with them, and the accompanying self-loathing. When she awakes in a Dubai hotel room, she tries to piece the previous night back together. She quietly turns over in bed, careful not to aggravate her already pounding head, and looks at the man with whom she spent the night. She sees his dark hair. His utter stillness. And blood, a slick, still wet pool on the crisp white sheets.
Set amid the captivating world of those whose lives unfold at forty thousand feet, The Flight Attendant unveils a spellbinding story of memory, reckless self-disregard, and of murder far from home.
From the Book Description
Since retiring as head of a famous New York City private school, Maggie Detweiler is busier than ever. Chairing a team to evaluate the faltering Rye Manor School for girls, she will determine whether the school has a future at all.
At a reception for the faculty and trustees to “welcome” Maggie’s team, no one seems more keen for all to go well than Florence Meagher, a star teacher who is loved and respected in spite of her affliction—that she can never stop talking.
Florence is one of those dedicated teachers for whom the school is her life, and yet the next morning, when Maggie arrives to observe her teaching, Florence is missing. Two days later, Florence’s body is found in the campus swimming pool.
Maggie is asked to stay on to coach the very young and inexperienced head of Rye Manor through the crisis. She is soon joined by her madcap socialite friend Hope, who is jonesing for an excuse to ditch her book club anyway, before she has to actually read Silas Marner.
What on earth is going on in this idyllic town? Is this a run-of-the-mill marital murder? Or does it have something to do with the school board treasurer’s real estate schemes? And is it possible that someone killed Florence just so she’d finally shut up?
Come to the library and enjoy these books or find some other type of books to read. Have a Happy Easter and don’t forget to vote for your favorite book!
Tuesday at 6:30 pm Recipe Swap – Join us for Recipe Swap and share your favorite recipe with fellow patrons who share your passion — cooking! Every month is a different theme! This month’s theme is “anything red, white and/or blue”.
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.
Thursday at 11:15 am Storytime – Listen to stories, sing songs, and do a craft. Storytimes are open to children of all ages.
We will be closed on Monday the 29th for Memorial Day.
Books in honor of Memorial Day
Speaking of Memorial Day, here are a few of the books the library has to offer that are written by or about the soldiers we honor.
From the book description
This book is the first major oral history of the Vietnam War in the last twenty years. In these pages, veterans from the Marines, Army, Air Force, and Navy talk about the war, their roles in it, and how they came out the other side. These eyewitnesses to this historic conflict have opened their hearts and souls to us.
When the war ended, everyone wanted to forget it. It was not a good war to remember. But forgetting was impossible for the men who fought there. In The Soldiers’ Story these veterans speak their minds for the first time about the war and their roles in it.
From the book description
In The Blog of War, Burden presents selections from some of the best of the military blogs, the purest account of the many voices of this war. This is the first real-time history of a war, a history written even as the war continues. It offers a glimpse into the full range of military experiences in Afghanistan and Iraq, from the decision to enlist right through to homecoming. There are powerful stories of soldiers in combat, touching reflections on helping local victims of terror and war, pulse-racing accounts of med-evac units and hospitals, and heartbreaking chronicles of spouses who must cope when a loved one has paid the ultimate price.
The Blog of War provides an uncensored, intimate, and authentic version of life in the war zone. Dozens of voices come together in a wartime choir that conveys better than any second-hand account possibly can what it is like to serve on the front lines.
From the Book Description
Brian Castner served three tours of duty in the Middle East, two of them in Iraq as the commander of an Explosive Ordnance Disposal unit in Iraq. Days and nights he and his team would venture forth in heavily armed convoys from their Forward Operating Base to engage in the nerve-racking yet strangely exhilarating work of either disarming the deadly improvised explosive devices that had been discovered or picking up the pieces when the alert came too late.
But The Long Walk is not just about the battle itself. It is also an unflinching portrayal of the toll war exacts on the men and women who are fighting it. When Castner returned home to his wife and family, he began a struggle with a no less insidious foe, and unshakable feeling of fear and confusion and survivor’s guilt that he terms the Crazy. The Long Walk will hook you long after its final gripping page has been turned.
Both poignant and inspiring, these are the moving stories of men and women who met amid the chaos of the most devastating war in history and became the loves of one another’s lives.
They met in many remarkable ways, some in the briefest of chance encounters, and their love endured heart-rending ordeals of long separation and the constant threat that a husband or lover might not return. As these couples reflect on the profound experience of the war, the stories they most like to tell are of the deep bonds they forged during that tumultuous time, bonds so strong that they lasted a lifetime.
Here’s what’s coming up at the library for the rest of May:
The library is seeking donations of fleece (pieces no smaller than 1 yard) to make blankets for the Comfort for Critters charity organization. Donations can be dropped off through May 31.
Monday the 15th at 6 pm, come to our Beginner’s 3D Printing Workshop. We will walk you through the process of finding a print-ready file online that you can print as is or alter to fit your needs. Sign up online at http://lmlibrary.org/blog/2017/04/18/beginners-3d-printing-workshop-may/
Bunco, our popular dice game for adults, will be on Thursday, the 18th at noon. Registration is required, so talk to Shannon if you’re interested in playing! Adults only, snacks provided.
We have Storytimes for kids twice weekly, Tuesdays at 6 pm and Thursdays at 11:15 am!
We’re building a better library in our Children’s Room, so that area of the library will be closed for renovations on Friday & Saturday, May 19th-20th. The Children’s Room is being transformed into a beautiful storybook forest.
Recipe Swap will be on Tuesday the 23rd at 6:30 pm. Bring something you’ve made along with the recipe and enjoy everyone else’s dishes! This month’s theme is red, white, and/or blue food.
Don’t forget, the library will be closed Monday, May 29th for Memorial Day.
Looking forward, our Summer Reading Program starts on June 1! You can sign up your kids and teens now on our website, http://lmlibrary.org/
Today is the day we celebrate Mother’s Day! Thank you to all the moms out there, whether you are raising kids now or your kids are all grown. Thank you also to those who have acted as “moms,” whether grandmothers, aunts, or others. I have a few recommendations for good kids’ books that celebrate mothers:
Mom School by Rebecca Van Slyke: A child imagines what lessons are taught at Mom School, which cover everything from pitching a ball slowly enough for a child to hit it to building a fort out of couch cushions. School Library Journal calls it, “An appealing addition to read at Mother’s Day and throughout the year.”
What Mommies Do Best by Laura Joffe Numeroff: Mommies can do lots of things, like teach you how to ride a bike, sew a loose button on your teddy bear, and read you a cozy bedtime story. But what do they do best? The answer is made perfectly clear in this irresistible celebration of parents and the everyday things they do. School Library Journal says this book is, “A perfect cuddly bedtime or storytime read-aloud choice.”
My Mommy Is Magic by Carl Norac: Is there anyone more magical than Mommy? She can kiss a booboo and make it better. She can chase monsters away after a bad dream. And she can make a delicious cake appear right out of thin air! This charming book captures a toddler’s love and admiration for her mother with warmth and humor. It’s the perfect way to celebrate mothers – those everyday magicians who not only do it all but make it look so easy. Booklist Reviews says, “This warm picture book encourages kids to notice and feel the small family moments that add up to love.”
From the book description
To overcome her painful past, baker Shelby Gilmore goes on the hunt for a friend—a male friend—to convince her stubborn psyche that men can be trusted. But where in a town as small as Fool’s Gold will the petite blonde find a guy willing to not date her?
Dark, charming Aidan Mitchell puts the “adventure” in Mitchell Adventure Tours…and into the beds of his many willing female tourists. Until he realizes he’s inadvertently become that guy—the one-night Casanova—and worse, everyone in town knows it. Maybe Shelby’s boy/girl experiment will help him see women as more than just conquests so he can change his ways and win back his self-respect.
As Aidan and Shelby explore the secret lives of men and women, the heat between them fires up the Fool’s Gold rumor mill. If no one will believe they’re just friends, maybe they should give the gossips something to really talk about!
From the book description
Being mugged at the Louvre is not what she had in mind for her long-awaited trip to Paris. Until Will Maguire comes to her aid, and she finds herself completely distracted by the handsome stranger in the Notre Dame sweatshirt.
Kelly can’t seem to resist the world’s most romantic city or Will, who is determined to show her all its treasures, from the top of the Eiffel Tower to strolls along the Seine.
But will their love last when they’re back in plain old South Bend, Indiana, or will they end up blaming their breathless fling on the city of love?
From the book description
“Hello, Ms. Vivian . . . it’s been a long time.”
And with those words, Vivian Leigh Rochet nearly melted. It’s been years since she last saw Henry Whitley-Shuler. She was a teenager scrubbing houses for a living. He was the gorgeous son of rich parents, not fit for the likes of her.
Vivian had vowed to get out of Charleston, become a big Hollywood star, and stick it to the snooty girls who made her cry. She got what she wanted—and more—but why does her glamorous life seem so trivial?
Henry got out too . . . making it all the way to Wall Street, until a heart attack forced him to trade in his cufflinks for a good set of hand tools.
Making furniture soothes his soul, but escaping the Whitley-Shuler heritage is nearly impossible. And now he’s come face-to-face with the one who got away. He’s not looking for love. He’s not even looking for sex . . . so why is resisting her the hardest thing he’s ever done?
What’s happening at the library this week
Tuesday at Noon Library and Lunch – Our monthly book club is meeting on Valentine’s Day this month. We will be discussing “Redeeming Love” by Francine Rivers, a heartbreaking romance set in the California Gold Rush of the 1800s.
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 5 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.
The Library will be closed for Presidents’ Day on Monday, February 20th.
Events This Week
March Book Madness
What’s happening this week
Tuesday at Noon Library and Lunch – Our monthly book club is meeting on Valentine’s Day this month. We will be discussing “Redeeming Love” by Francine Rivers, a heartbreaking romance set in the California Gold Rush of the 1800s.