All library locations will be closed Thursday, November 28 and Friday, November 29 for Thanksgiving.
Let us find your next great read!
Read and listen to stories in over 50 languages.
Online tutoring for elementary through college students.
Animated, talking picture books online.
Posted on Monday, February 7, 2022 by Aimee
A hundred years ago, in 1922, our library was founded. On November 4 of that year, the tomb of the pharaoh Tutankhamen (commonly called King Tut) was opened for the first time in over 3,000 years. Among the many treasures discovered inside were four beautiful games of Senet, a popular game played by the ancient Egyptians.
Celebrate the library’s birthday and Tutankhamen’s rediscovery by making and playing one of his favorite games! Continue reading “Ancient Family Games: Senet”
Posted on Monday, January 31, 2022 by Julia Deters
January 31 is National Inspire Your Heart With Art Day, and while I know that is certainly a long holiday title, it is one worth celebrating with your own little artists. Art can look like a variety of things, ranging from painting to performing, so I have compiled a list of a few ideas to observe this holiday with your child.
The first way you and your child may want to choose to celebrate this holiday is through reading! Reading and literature on its own is an art form, but this list includes several books that celebrate and highlight different types of art and artists. Here are some biographies/works of pioneers in the art world that will inspire your child (and hopefully you as well):
Matthew Burgess’ “Drawing on the Walls” follows the life of Keith Haring as he fights to make art publicly accessible.
Posted on Thursday, January 27, 2022 by Amy
Here is what you will need to create your very own popsicle stick snowpeople. Make yours special by adding color, ribbons or any other favorite materials. The possibilities are endless!
Posted on Thursday, January 27, 2022 by Tess
‘Tis the season to be freezin’. But we’ve got just the cure. Make yourself DIY hand warmers to bring some warm and cozy into your cold and frozy.
Posted on Thursday, January 20, 2022 by Katie
Everyone has seen the different ways you can use peanut butter to stick birdseed onto pinecones, cardboard tubes or other small objects to create bird feeders. These are fun activities for little hands but can get messy quickly and are a concern for those with nut allergies. When I saw a recipe for a birdfeeder that does not involve peanut butter, I was pretty excited. This is a fun way to create bird feeders with little mess, almost no waste and young ones can be involved in almost every step.
Posted on Monday, January 17, 2022 by Megan
Every once in a while, you come across a fabulous cookbook or a wonderful picture book, but rarely are they one and the same! “Arab Fairy Tale Feasts: A Literary Cookbook” by Karim Alrawi is just such a book. Not only does it contain great recipes, but it also has a story to accompany each dish. The intro also gives the reader a bit of the history of cookbooks; did you know some of the earliest cookbooks date back to the tenth century and included recipes for soap? Continue reading “Cookbooks We Love: Arab Fairy Tale Feasts”
Posted on Monday, January 10, 2022 by Laura
After a busy couple of months jam-packed with holiday activities and get-togethers, I’m feeling more than ready for a good, long nap. Many Missouri animals, from bears and bats to snakes and frogs, take this sentiment a step further than we can and rest for weeks or even months at a time. This behavior is generally referred to as hibernation. But did you know that not every animal that disappears during the winter months is actually hibernating?
Let’s get technical! Bears, bats and small, non-migratory birds such as chickadees go into a state of torpor. Rather than one nonstop snooze, torpor is just a significant decrease in activity that allows these animals to survive the cold temperatures. Their naps can last days at a time, but these animals do wake up for a quick snack when their tummies start grumbling before returning to their nest or den. Continue reading “A Long Winter’s Nap: All About Hibernation”
Posted on Thursday, January 6, 2022 by DBRL Kids
Each year, the library sponsors a contest for first through sixth graders in our outlying communities, challenging them to design new covers for their favorite books. Thanks to all who participated! Here are this year’s winning entries. Continue reading “Book Cover Contest Winners 2021”
Posted on Thursday, January 6, 2022 by Adam
In a few short weeks, on January 25, it’ll be National Opposite Day! Rooted in the old children’s game, Opposite Day, the aim of this special day is to have fun saying the opposite of what you really mean. So you would say “Goodbye” when meeting someone and “Hello” when you part ways. And you would say, “Today is not Opposite Day,” when you really mean, “Today is Opposite Day” (which is a little confusing!). So in preparation for Opposite Day, here are some of the many books on opposites that we have here at the library:
Perfect for the littlest readers, “Opposite Surprise” is a fun, interactive board book that uses folded pages to let kids compare opposite concepts — small and big, one and many, hot and cold, curly and straight. (Picture book “Opposnakes” employs a similar method to show opposite types of snakes!) Continue reading “Opposite Day!”
Posted on Monday, January 3, 2022 by Grae
A new year brings with it a swirl of emotions, in keeping with the month of January’s namesake, the Roman god Janus, who symbolizes both entrances and exits, passageways and transitions. There’s excitement and perhaps a little trepidation in welcoming the glitz and glamor of the new, as well as the bittersweet pang of nostalgia “as the Old Year becomes past tense,” as poet Bobbi Katz writes in her poem “New Year’s Eve: A 21st Century Ball Drop.”
To help sort through the variety of feelings you and your family might be navigating this time of year—feelings of reflection, celebration, resolution, affirmation, gratitude, growing pains, grief, commemoration, heartache, hope and more—here is a list of poetry books and anthologies to get you through. May you find a poem or two in the books below to share as you encounter both the old and the new shapes of 2022!
“Every Month Is a New Year” by Marilyn Singer & illustrated by Susan L. Roth
Though the modern Gregorian calendar marks the beginning of each year on January 1st, in many places and cultural traditions around the world the year and its beginning is marked differently. Continue reading “Poetry to Ring in the New Year”
Let us find your next great read!
Read and listen to stories in over 50 languages.
Online tutoring for elementary through college students.
Animated, talking picture books online.
