The Library will be sponsoring the summer reading program as usual, but with an international twist this year and going for eight weeks!!  We are putting out a challenge to not only kids, but the entire community to beat former library reading records.  There will be fun and interesting community rewards for achieving 50% and 100% goals.  We also are happy to announce all the performers that will be making West Liberty a stop, one of the biggest being Dan Wardell!!  Registration will open May 1st online or at the Library.  Moms, Dads, and the entire community......w

Finding nonfiction that all types of readers can enjoy is a challange.  Recently, I am happy to say, it has gotten easier.  Here are some nonfiction titles that have gotten rave reviews not only from reviewers, but from our own community members as well.

Little Princes by Conor Grennan.  An interesting look at orphanged children of Nepal.  What began as an adventure for the author turned into a personnal mission to help children through what seems like insurmountable odds.

Winter isn't over yet... Are you making plans to stay home during the predicted storm and read, but not sure what? Give The Bronze Horseman a try written by Paullina Simon. A Russian based novel set in World War II Leningrad. It not only transports you to war torn Soviet Russia through vivid descriptions, but includes a powerful set of characters in a time of hopelessness. The story doesn't end, but takes you to the second book which focuses on Soviet defections to the West, not only during the war but at the end of World War II.

I follow many book discussions on the Internet, some I read, some I just read the comments made by fellow readers. I found this particular link interesting to a short story in which one group read....though it was written with Thanksgiving in mind I think it works for the entire holiday season. I encourage you to follow the link and read this very short story of the Circle, http://talesetc.com/thanksgiving.htm.

Do you have old fines that have stopped you or your family from visiting the library? Well, no more! The Library Board as of November has eliminated the fines on materials. If you have overdue materials, you may not use the computers or check out more materials, but you will not accrue fines. Digital materials automatically go inactive and are never "late".

What is Tumblebooks? It is the newest service offered through our website which allows kids to listen and view a wide variety of books and interact with them via games and "extra" information. Tumblebooks includes both picture and chapter books and is geared for infants-3rd grade. Many books include teacher information, games, and "extra" things for kids to enhance their reading experience. Just click on Tumblebooks from our main page! Let us know what you think, we value your feedback.

Whether you like heavy duty literature or just books with meaning the 2010 National Book Award Finalist List has something for you. This week I recommend Lockdown by Walter Dean Myers from the Teen List. The sixth graders this yea rread Holes by Louis Sachar and the 8th graders last year read Monster by Walter Dean Myers. Why did I bring this up? Because all three of these titles deal with the "not so nice" side of growing up, getting in trouble, uninvolved parents, and the over use of authority...and in the end....there are people who care.

Sing them Home by Stephanie Kallos was announced as the new All Iowa Reads Book for 2011. The book is available in audio book format via WILBOR and in print. I have already had the chance to enjoy this book full of trials and grief. How do you cope as a child with the loss of parent, and not only the loss but the way one is lost? When do you give up hope when you have no closure? What impacts your entire life and makes you the person you become? These are the questions this novel will ask you as you follow this family through their troubled lives.

As you drive by the library or make a stop in you may see some more work being done on the building. We are doing some repairs, so please be patient with us! Our services are the same and at this time we are not anticipating any closures or cut back on services. So stop in and check out the new things that are hitting our shelves this fall!

The Library will at the Children's Festival on the 25th promoting and have a good time with the Percy Jackson series. In October a Halloween Party for the Prk-3rd and in November a Diary of a Wimpy Kid Party!..

For those who want some great reads for the fall, give some of the new World War II fiction a try. One I particularly enjoyed was The Violin of Auschwitz. It is a beautiful short story of music and survival during a time of brutality.