Blog
Books in Verse
Roses are red, violets are blue, we recommend reading novels in verse, as something you should do. Novels in verse are not a new invention; if you haven’t experienced this thriving genre — now is the time, after all, April is National Poetry Month.
Women’s History Month
Women’s History Month is dear to me because I admire females who refuse to be confined by a patriarchal system. I’m inspired by strong female leaders who don’t hold back — they speak their minds.
Get Creative & Crafty
March is National Craft Month. There’s no question that healthy people’s lives include creative outlets — a way to express themselves constructively so there’s less anxiety and stress from within.
The Power of a Good Snooze
It doesn’t matter if you’re for or against daylight saving time, we can all agree that changing the clocks is much easier than convincing our bodies that it’s 6 AM even though it’s screaming back, “Nope, it’s 5 AM according to my time.”
Your Library On-the-Go
Take the library with you anywhere using our new app, MyLIBRO. The MyLIBRO app puts your online library account just a tap away. You can:
Black History Month
Every February, we celebrate the achievements and history of African Americans as part of Black History Month. Literature in particular has been a space for black authors to tell their stories and bookworms seeking good reads can choose from an array of …
Coretta Scott King Book Awards
February is Black History Month. It’s a time to bring more awareness and recognition of African American authors and illustrators whose work bespeak an appreciation of African American culture.
Board Games Aren’t Just for Fun
Board games aren’t just for fun — they’re learning tools. Cooperation, strategy, math, science, literacy, critical-thinking … there’s a game for that. From classic to brand new, here are some board games to play with your family.
The State Newspaper’s Free With Your Library Card
Read today’s headlines from The State — FREE using your library card. You can view and read a digital image of today’s newspaper from anywhere. Search for past news articles back to 1987 and browse web articles that were published on the newspaper’s website.
Beating the Winter, Back to Reality Blues
Winter is a beautiful and peaceful time of year, where life seems to slow down a bit for the holidays leading into the new year. When the new year arrives however, life tends to kick into overdrive. It’s a new semester at school, new projects at work and you’ve vowed this is the year to be healthy — all while dealing with everyday things, like catching up with your inbox and managing family schedules — and winter means shorter daylight hours and longer nights. It can be a lot of pressure to feel like there’s enough time in the day to get everything done without feeling overwhelmed.
Pilates & Yoga
Both yoga and pilates are spiritual and physical disciplines that use exercise and meditation to improve your overall health and happiness. While yoga has a 5,000 year history in Ancient India, pilates was not developed until the 1920s. Both disciplines focus on technique, breathing and alignment. However, the cornerstone of yoga is the spiritual connection you gain while flowing through the poses. Meanwhile, pilates is all about strengthening your core to improve balance and movement.
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
“Bah, hum bug.” Ebenezer Scrooge, an elderly, cantankerous miser, made his way into the homes and hearts of many people in the 1800s and has remained steadfast for decades. Charles Dickens wrote the classic tale A Christmas Carol, and published his work on December 19, 1843. Hoping to write his way out of a financial slump, Dickens penned this work as a commentary on how Victorian society treated the poor, as well as, the importance of goodwill towards all human beings. What better time to show goodwill than Christmas, right?
Native American Heritage Month
November is Native American Heritage Month and to celebrate we have some facts about Native American history. However, please note that “Native American” encompasses many, many, many different cultures across the country — so for the purpose of this writing we have purposefully been very broad and focus largely on general Native American history. If you would like to learn more about a specific tribe and Indigenous history, visit any of our locations or go to Ask A Librarian for more information.
Fall Into Winter Reading
The days are getting colder and the nights are getting longer — but reading always brightens up our day — so we’re challenging you to Fall Into Winter Reading. We realize you’re busy, so we made it simple.
Kindness Project
We invite you to join in spreading kindness throughout the month of November. The library offers a series of activities encouraging local residents to be kind to others, be kind to ourselves, be kind to animals and be kind to the earth.
It’s NaNoWriMo Time
Fall is finally here. That means football, pumpkin spice, temperatures below 90 degrees and — for the month of November — NaNoWriMo. NaNoWri—WHAT? National Novel Writing
Witches
Witches (and wizards) wield magic with a wave of a wand, a wiggle of a nose and the snap of a finger. Whether they are from Oz, Camelot, the Discworld — or the most magical land of all, Scotland — witches and wizards have made us spell-bound.
Werewolves
Who’s afraid of the big, bad wolf? Not us. Werewolves are one of the world’s most famous shape-shifters, and have enthralled us in stories — both in print and on screens. Below the glow of a full moon, werewolves frolic and stalk the night. But what else do you know about werewolves? Read these hair-raising facts, and become a shape-shifting scholar.
Mermaids
Mermaids swim and splash through our imaginations in a flurry of shells, seaweed and scales. They give us mental images of gorgeous beaches, serene lagoons, sunken pirate ships and underwater cities made of coral. Not to mention grottos full of human treasures such as gadgets, gizmos, whozits, whatsits and thingamabobs galore. The secretive nature of these elusive men and women of the sea leave us with many questions. Surf through these awesome Mermaid facts and feel free to shell them out as you “sea” fit.
Phantom of the Opera
This weekend I started reading The Phantom of the Opera, the classic mystery/horror novel by French author Gaston Leroux. Having grown up in the 80s and 90s, I am of course familiar with the hit musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber and have been singing it for days in anticipation of reading the novel for Irmo’s Multimedia Book Club. Almost immediately upon beginning my read of the classic novel, I was struck by a distinct impression: Ya’ll, this is going to be GOOD.
