Blog
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
Food Assistance
Lexington County Library local resources for those in need The library provides a list of local organizations that offer food assistance. Please contact each organization directly for information about eligibility requirements and service hours. Name Contact Address Beulah United Methodist Church 803-568-6722 1577 Old State Rd. Gaston, SC 29053 Blessing Bags of West Columbia […]
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.
Vampires
Regardless of whether they are the heroes or villains of their story, vampires captivate our imaginations. These blood-sucking fiends (or, in some cases, friends) hide in the shadows, cloaked in the darkness of night. While vampires may hide from the sun, let us metaphorically shine a light on these ferocious, fanged creatures of the night.
Celebrate Hispanic Heritage
National Hispanic Heritage Month, from September 15 to October 15, traditionally honors the cultures and contributions of both Hispanic and Latino Americans who have positively influenced and enriched our nation and society. To celebrate Hispanic authors, illustrators and creators this month (and every month) be sure to check out some excelente books written by Latinx authors.
Hispanic Heroes You Should Know About
America is a beautiful melting pot of cultures, experiences and stories. Included in our great American narrative is the Hispanic and Latin American community. From September 15 to October 15, our country celebrates National Hispanic Heritage month. Hispanic culture has enriched the American way of life along with the way of the world from spicy cuisine, to the vibrant sounds of bachata, salsa and merengue.
The Origins & History of Labor Day
For many of us, Labor Day signifies the end of summer and many of us celebrate it outside barbecuing. As we look forward to spending the holiday with our family and friends, we thought it would be interesting to look back and see how it was celebrated in the past.
Women, Their Rights & Nothing Less
Happy Women’s Equality Day. August 26 marks the anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment, the amendment to the United States Constitution that gave women the right to vote. This year is extra special, because 2020 marks 100 years since the ratification of that amendment.
