By Karen Kelly | Special to the Times Vedette

Another Li-BOO-ary bash is in the books, and it was a great success. Two-hundred-sixty children and their caretakers attended the event. Boo bash attendees took photos in front of our Halloween backdrop, walked through the “spooky” tunnel, and explored sensory bins where they found Halloween treats. Each child left with candy and a Halloween toy. Thank you to CW Thomas, Vicki Crannell and Lorrie Stringham for the donations to our sensory bins. 

Friends of the Library Bake Sale

Friends of the Library will be doing a bake sale on Thursday, Nov. 7 from 5-8 p.m. during the Holiday Showcase. The bake sale will be set up in the park next to Dowd Drug.  

Clubs

Between the Covers Book Club will meet on Tuesday, Nov. 12 at 3 p.m. The group will be discussing “Remarkably Bright Creatures” by Shelby Van Pelt. 

Card Making Club will meet from 9-11 a.m. on Thursday, Nov. 21. For a $5 fee, all needed supplies are provided to create beautiful, one-of-a-kind greeting cards. Come and create.

On Thursday, Nov. 21, the Cookbook Club will meet at 6:30 p.m. The group will make recipes to share from “175 Essential Slow Cooker Classics” by Judith Finlayson. Stop by the library to choose a recipe to share with the club.

November Storyhours

The MJB Library offers preschool story hours each Friday beginning at 10 a.m. On Friday, Nov. 8, the theme will be birthdays. On Nov. 15, sharing will be the topic while Thanksgiving will be the focus of Nov. 22. There will be no story hour on Nov. 29 as the library will be closed for Thanksgiving. 

Festival of Trees

It’s time to sign up for the Festival of Trees. We would ask that trees go up between Nov. 16-27. This year’s theme is Christmas Stories. Vendors, please contact the library to sign up for our Holiday Vendor Fair on Saturday, Dec. 7 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

_________________________________________________________________

Boo Bash photos:

Special to the Times Vedette

Get ready to embark on an enchanting journey through Washington Park, Chicago with Montgomery “Monty” Carver in Montgomery and the Case of the Golden Key, by debut author Tracy Occomy Crowder. Residents in Guthrie Center/Guthrie County in Mary J Barnett Memorial Library service can experience this nostalgic adventure with Big Library Read, the world’s largest digital book club. From Nov. 7-21, Tracy Occomy Crowder’s “Montgomery and the Case of the Golden Key” is available for free as an ebook and audiobook on the Libby app through Mary J Barnett Memorial Library. Library card holders can join thousands of others around the globe in reading the digital book without waitlists or holds and access lesson plans and discussion guides from TeachingBooks.netfor facilitating age-appropriate conversations about story writing, cultural representation, and historical fiction. A fabulous family read, “Montgomery and the Case of the Golden Key” promises to captivate readers of all ages with its delightful story of discovery, resilience, and the power of community.

This Big Library Read novel is available through more than 22,000 libraries around the world, including approximately 90% of public libraries in North America, and hundreds of thousands of readers are expected to participate. The program is facilitated by OverDrive, the leading digital reading platform for popular ebooks, audiobooks and magazines, and the creator of the Libby app.

“The staff and I are excited to share this thrilling tale with our patrons here at the Mary J. Barnett Memorial Library. We look forward to hearing all the positive feedback about the Big Library Read and Libby,” Library Director Jerri Hawkins states.

Allow us to set the stage for this heartwarming middle-grade novel: It’s 2008 in Washington Park, an African-American community on Chicago’s South Side, which is the center of the universe that summer. We are introduced to Monty, a 10-year-old boy who likes to use the scientific method to prove just about everything. As Monty unravels the origins of a mysterious golden key he and his friends find in their backyard, he discovers the true essence of community, and the power of curiosity, and uncovers the rich history and heritage of his Chicago neighborhood. From the legacy of famous Black jockeys to the excitement surrounding Barack Obama’s run for the presidency and the potential arrival of the Olympics in 2016, Monty’s summer adventure becomes an exploration of his community’s past, present and future. 

“As a community leader and new author, I want young readers to walk away with two clear messages, the importance of learning about the rich histories in our neighborhood, especially around Black history and culture, and building our communities,” Occomy Crowder said. “There is a lot developing for Monty in this novel, and I believe many kids can relate to one, two, or all aspects of his summer adventure.”

Tracy Occomy Crowder was the recipient of the 2019 New Visions Award for Montgomery and the Case of the Golden Key. This award is given annually by Tu Books, an imprint of LEE & LOW BOOKS INC., to a middle-grade or young adult novel by an unpublished writer of color or Indigenous/Native writer. 

“I felt like it was important to expand the adventure/mystery genre to include more books with Black boys like my son as protagonists,” Occomy Crowder said. “My goal is to write mysteries that involve different periods of Black history and aspects of Black culture as the backdrop for characters who experience the funny little occurrences and tensions of everyday life.”

Legler Regional Library in Chicago, Illinois will be hosting a live event on Nov. 21 from 5-7 p.m. CDT, with Occomy Crowder attending for a live reading, audience Q&A, and story writing activity from 6-7 p.m. Any readers who are interested in attending virtually can register via the Legler Regionals website.

Big Library Read is an international reading program that connects readers around the world with an ebook through public libraries. Montgomery and the Case of the Golden Key is the 35^th selection of this program which began in 2013 and takes place three times per year. 

Montgomery and the Case of the Golden Key was published as an ebook by Lee & Low Books and an audiobook by Recorded Books. The title can be read without waitlists or holds on all major computers and devices through Libby or libbyapp.com, including iPhone®, iPad®, and Android™ phones and tablets. Through Libby, readers can also “send to Kindle®” [U.S. libraries only]. The title will automatically expire at the end of the lending period, and there are no late fees.

Download Libby, use Libby in the browser (libbyapp.com), visit http://bridges.overdrive.com, or stop by a local library branch to get started. Montgomery and the Case of the Golden Key is available wherever books are sold, including Bookshop, Barnes & Noble, and Amazon.

Find more information about Big Library Read.

By Karen Kelly | Special to the Times Vedette

Friends of the Library have many plans and can use your help. On Nov. 7, Friends of the Guthrie Center Library will hold a bake sale from 5-8 p.m. to coincide with the Holiday Showcase at the park by the corner of Dowd Drug. Contact the library for additional information if you want to bake and donate items for the bake sale. 

Mary J. Barnett Library is taking registrations for trees to be set up for the library’s annual Festival of Trees. The theme this year is Christmas Stories. Please call the library or register online if you want to decorate a tree for this event.  

In conjunction with the Festival of Trees, the Friends will be hosting a Holiday Vendor Fair at the MJB Library on Saturday, Dec. 7 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The vendor cost to register for a table at the vendor fair is $20. Contact the library at mjblib@guthriecenter.lib.ia.us or by phone at 641-747-8110 to register and get additional information. 

Trivia Night is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 8. Get the date on your calendar and round up your team. 

Friends of the Library is still taking donations to update the donor tree mural in the children’s section. You can pay for the cost of a square foot of painting with an $18 donation. 

The regular meeting of Friends of the Library will be at 6:15 p.m., Monday, Nov. 4. Anyone who would like to have more information about becoming a Friend of the Library, please email, call or come to our November meeting. We welcome everyone who would like to join. 

Boo Bash

The fifth annual Li-BOO-ary Bash, a not-so-scary Halloween celebration at the MJB Library, will be on Thursday, Oct. 31 from 5-7:15 p.m. Stop by our family-friendly event featuring games, a photo booth, a “spooky walk” and a treat at the end. 

Iowa Libraries Adventure Pass

The Friends of the Library sponsor the Adventure Pass for local library patrons. Currently, we have adventure passes for Blank Park Zoo, Science Center of Iowa, and Des Moines Children’s Museum. Library patrons 18 and older may use their library card to check out a pass to participating locations through the library’s website. Check out our website for more details. 

Story Hour

Our preschool Story Hour is every Friday at 10 a.m.; this Friday’s story hour will feature turkeys. On Nov. 8, we will celebrate birthdays. Sharing is the theme for Nov. 15. Thanksgiving is the focus for Nov. 22. There will be no story hour on Nov. 29, as the library will be closed. 

Programs

On Saturday, Dec. 7, Michelle Cowan, an Iowa author, will present a book talk at 10 a.m. Cowan will discuss her book “Better, Not Bitter,” which is currently available to check out at the MJB Library. 

Cookbook Club

Cookbook Club featured recipes from the newly released, “Good Lookin’ Cookin’ ” by Dolly Parton and Rachel Parton George this past Thursday. The top two favorite recipes were the: Family Favorite Meatloaf and Au Gratin Potatoes. Stop by to check out this treasured cookbook to help plan your next family menus. “Good Lookin’ Cookin’ ” by Dolly Parton and Rachel Parton George is filled with more than 80 delicious dishes as well as photographs of Dolly and Rachel cooking and hosting all year long. Want to join our next meeting? Stop by the library to pick out a recipe from the upcoming cookbook “175 Essential Slow Cooker Classics” and join us on Thursday, Nov. 21 with your dish.  

Holiday Closures for November

A reminder that the library will be closed on Monday, Nov. 11 in honor of Veteran’s Day. We will also be closed on Thursday, Nov. 28, and Friday, Nov. 29, in celebration of Thanksgiving.

By Karen Kelly | Special to the Times Veedtte

As the year unfolds, many of us set out to read a specific number of books, whether at the start of the year or with daily reading targets. How’s your reading journey for 2024 going? Have you explored any new authors? Which titles have you enjoyed or not liked as much?

I’m pleased to say I’m on track to meet my yearly goal. I based my target this year on last year’s reading habits, adding six more books to my list. Finding time to slow down, unplug from life’s hustle, and get lost in a good book can be tough, but I’ve discovered some fantastic new authors and writing styles. So why not turn off the TV, pick up a great book, and treat yourself to a relaxing day of self-care?

I most often read on my Libby app with my MJB Library card; on Libby, I have access to thousands of eBooks, audiobooks and magazines. 

To help local readers, here are the Top 30 most popular adult fiction books of 2024 here at the MJB Library. Stop in and check them out. 

• “The Women” (Hannah, Kristin)
• “The Teacher” (McFadden, Freida)
• “Things We Never Got Over” (Score, Lucy)
• “The Coworker” (McFadden, Freida)
• “The Women: A Novel” (LP) (Hannah, Kristin)
• “Yellowstone” — Seasons 1-4  (DVD)
• “The housemaid” (McFadden, Freida)
• “Twisted Love” (Huang, Ana)
• “The Housemaid’s Secret” (McFadden, Freida)
• “You Shouldn’t Have Come Here” (Rose, Jeneva)
• “The Paradise Problem” (Lauren, Christina)
• “The Unhoneymooners” (Lauren, Christina)
• “Never Lie” (McFadden, Freida)
• “Remarkably Bright Creatures” (VanPelt, Shelby) Funny story (Henry, Emily)
• “Darling Girls” (Hepworth, Sally)
• “Too Late” (Hoover, Colleen)
• “Lone Oaks Crossing” (Dailey, Janet)
• “The Worst Best Man” (Score, Lucy)
• “The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell” (Dugoni, Robert)
• “First Lie Wins” (Elston, Ashley)
• “Mind Games” (Robert, Nora)
• “The Little Liar” (Alborn, Mitch)
• “The Friendship Club” (Carr, Robyn)
• “The Edge” (Baldacci, David)
• “The Housemaid Is Watching” (McFadden, Freida)
• “Rock Bottom Girl” (Score, Lucy)
• “Hidden Pictures” (Rekulak, Jason)
• “The Cliffs” (Sullivan, J Courtney)

Save the Date

Friends of the Library are planning events: 

• Holiday Showcase Bake Sale: Nov. 7, 5-8 p.m. Looking for Bakers to bake and donate items to Friends to sell. Contact the library with your name and for more information. 
• Holiday Vendor Fair at MJB Library Festival of Trees: Saturday, Dec. 7, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Vendors $20 to reserve a table. Contact the Library by email: mjblib@guthriecenter.lib.ia.us or by phone 641-747-8110.
• Trivia night fundraising event – Feb. 8.  Start rounding up your team and put the date on the calendar. More information will be coming soon. 
• Golf Tournament in June 2025. Watch for more details to come. 

Happy National Friends of Libraries Week

Oct. 20-26 is National Friends of Libraries Week. This is a pretty important week for any library, and this is the case for the Mary J. Barnett Memorial Library. We want to thank the members of the Friends of the Guthrie Center Library for their steadfast support of our library. Anyone who would like to have more information about becoming a Friend of the Library, please email, call or stop by the library. We welcome everyone who would like to join. 

Story Hour

Our preschool Story Hour is every Friday at 10 a.m.; this Friday’s story hour will feature Halloween with a witch hat decorating.  

Iowa Libraries Adventure Pass

The Friends of the Library sponsor the Adventure Pass for local library patrons. Currently, we have adventure passes for Blank Park Zoo, Science Center of Iowa, and Des Moines Children’s Museum. Library patrons 18 and older may use their library card to check out a pass to participating locations through the library’s website. Check out our website for more details. 

Programs

On Saturday, Nov. 9, Michelle Cowan, an Iowa author, will present a book talk at 10:00 a.m.  Cowan will discuss her book “Better, Not Bitter,” which is currently available to check out at the MJB Library. 

Cookbook Club

Cookbook Club featured recipes from the newly released, “Good Lookin’ Cookin’ ” by Dolly Parton and Rachel Parton George on this past Thursday. The top two favorite recipes were the: Family Favorite Meatloaf and Au Gratin Potatoes. Stop by to check out this treasured cookbook to help plan your next family menus. “Good Lookin’ Cookin’ ” by Dolly Parton and Rachel Parton George is filled with more than 80 delicious dishes as well as photographs of Dolly and Rachel cooking and hosting all year long. Want to join our next meeting? Stop by the library to pick out a recipe from the upcoming cookbook “175 Essential Slow Cooker Classics” and join us on Thursday, Nov. 21 with your dish.  

Boo Bash

The fifth annual Li-BOO-ary Bash,  a not-so-scary Halloween celebration at the MJB Library, will be on Thursday, Oct. 31 from 5-7:15 p.m. Stop by our family-friendly event featuring games, a photo booth, a “spooky walk” and a treat at the end. 

By Karen Kelly | Special to the Times Vedette

Oct. 20-26 is National Friends of Libraries Week. For any library, this is an important week, and this is the case for the Mary J. Barnett Memorial Library. We want to thank the members of our Friends of the Guthrie Center Library for their steadfast support of our library.  

For those of you who don’t know much about the Friends of the Library, the group is composed of people from our community who value our library and want to support it any way they can. What this often means is fundraising to allow the library to acquire things that are above what we have the budget to provide. Sometimes the friends volunteer to help with special projects like decorating for our festival of trees, straightening shelves, or handing out treats at our annual Boo Bash. The Friends are the monetary sponsors for the library’s Iowa Libraries Adventure Pass.

Because of their fundraising, the library has acquired the electronic message board on Fifth Street. They matched funds with a Guthrie County Community Foundation and Grow Greene Grant to allow us to update computers for public and staff use. The very building that houses our library is in large part here because of their fundraising and dedication. Currently, the friends are fundraising to repaint the donor mural in the children’s section of the library.  

Those of us who use the library appreciate the Guthrie Center Friends of the Library daily, but we want to take this time to thank all former, current and future Friends of the Library for your contributions to our community through our library.  

Anyone who would like to have more information about becoming a Friend of the Library, please email, call or stop by the library. We welcome everyone who would like to join. 

Story Hour

Our preschool Story Hour is every Friday at 10 a.m.; this Friday’s  story hour will feature spooky books and crafts. Halloween will be the focus of Oct. 25.  

Iowa Libraries Adventure Pass

The Friends of the Library sponsor the Adventure Pass for local library patrons. Currently, we have adventure passes for Blank Park Zoo, Science Center of Iowa, and Des Moines Children’s Museum. Library patrons 18 and older may use their library card to check out a pass to participating locations through the library’s website. Check out our website for more details. 

Programs

On Saturday, Nov. 9, Michelle Cowan, an Iowa author, will present a book talk at 10 a.m. Cowan will discuss her book “Better, Not Bitter,” which is currently available to check out at the MJB Library. 

Cookbook Club

Thursday, Oct. 17 at 6:30 p.m. will be the regular Cookbook Club meeting. This month’s featured cookbook is “Good Lookin’ Cookin’ ” by Dolly Parton and Rachel Parton George. Stop by the library to choose a recipe

Boo Bash

The fifth annual Li-BOO-ary Bash,  a not-so-scary Halloween celebration at the MJB Library, will be on Thursday, Oct. 31 from 5-7:15 p.m. Stop by our family-friendly event featuring games, a photo booth, a “spooky walk” and a treat at the end. 

By Karen Kelly | Special to the Times Vedette

“The Wild Robot” movie is out and filling up theaters, but did you know that before it was a movie, it was a book? The Mary J. Barnett Library has a three-book series written by Peter Brown that follows Roz, a robot who finds herself on a remote island with no idea of how she got there. After surviving a storm and a bear attack, she realizes that she must adapt if she is to survive. Before long, the island begins to feel like home, until one day, she begins to recall her past. 

This No. 1 New York Times bestselling illustrated middle-grade novel from a Caldecott Honor winner tells an extraordinary story full of action and thought-provoking questions as a robot learns to survive — and live — in the wilderness. Not only do we have the series in print, but we also have it on Playaway audiobooks. Come in and check the books out because you know the book is always better than the movie.

We have other new books that will appeal to upper elementary and middle school students including the 12th “Spy School” book and “The New Girl” graphic novel by Cassandra Calin. 

For young patrons who love non-fiction, we have a new book from National Geographic Kids entitled “Weird But True, World 2024.” Discover Earth’s strangest natural wonders, animals, festivals, ancient architecture, news and more in this annual compendium of everything “Weird But True!” fans love… and then some. Readers will journey across the seven continents, dive into the ocean, and even blast off into space to discover a whole wide world of weird. From volcano-surfing in Nicaragua to a beach in Japan where the “sand” is shaped like stars to extreme ironing competitions in the United Kingdom, “Weird But True! World” offers an unparalleled adventure-filled exploration of our world’s amazing uniqueness.

And speaking of kids, we are working to update our children’s section of the library. Above is the before and after plan for the donor tree in the juvenile section of MJB Library. If you would like to support this project, you can pay for a square foot of the mural for $18. The old donor tree leaves will be repurposed to create the beautiful butterflies pictured in the new design. Please make checks payable to the Guthrie Center Friends of the Library to contribute. Donations of a foot or more are greatly appreciated. Checks or cash may be dropped off at the library during library hours.

Story Hour

Our preschool Story Hour is every Friday at 10 a.m.; the theme will be pumpkins on Friday, Oct. 9. On Oct. 18, story hour will feature spooky books and crafts. Halloween will be the focus of Oct. 25.

Programs

Donald Todd, Jr. will present his program entitled “A Tale of Two Soldiers” on Saturday, Oct. 12 at 11 a.m. The encore performance of this program will chronicle the story of how his father, Dr. Donald Todd, Sr., and Dr. Herbert Neff came to start a medical practice in Guthrie Center that thrived for decades.

On Saturday, Nov. 9, Michelle Cowan, an Iowa author, will present a book talk at 10 a.m. Cowan will discuss her book “Better, Not Bitter.” 

Cookbook Club

Thursday, Oct. 17 at 6:30 p.m. will be the regular Cookbook Club meeting. This month’s featured cookbook is “Good Lookin’ Cookin’ ” by Dolly Parton and Rachel Parton George. Stop by the library to choose a recipe

Boo Bash

The fifth annual Li-BOO-ary Bash, a not-so-scary Halloween celebration at the MJB Library, will be on Thursday, Oct. 31 from 5-7:15 p.m. Stop by our family-friendly event featuring games, a photo booth, a “spooky walk,” and a treat at the end.