News, Information, and Fun Things to Do
from the
Middleborough Public Library
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Library Lines
July 22, 2020
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Have you heard? We're open to the public again! Curbside Pickup is still available (see below) but you're now able to come inside for a brief visit to select your own items.
Computers will be available for 45-minute time slots. Please check the large signs at the main door and the entrance into the Children's Room for more details about available library services.
You'll see that we've made quite a few changes, (re-opening guidelines are
here
) due to COVID-19 safety protocols, and ask for your patience and understanding as we all navigate this new library world together.
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Genealogy Room Now Open By Appointment Only
Please call or
email Reference Librarian Libby Fox if you'd like to make an appointment to use the resources in our Genealogy Room.
508/946-2470 ext. 1213
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NEW:
Make Your Own Appointment for Curbside Pickup!
You can now schedule your own Curbside Pickup appointment using your SAILS library card number and PIN. Start
here,
log in, and choose an available date and time to pick up items you have waiting for you at the Library. (You'll need to wait until your holds are ready for pickup before making an appointment.)
Once booked, you may change your appointment
if nee
ded, and can even check in with us when you've arrived at your scheduled time.
Please note: appointments must be scheduled at least an hour in advance of your desired pickup time to give staff adequate time to prepare your materials.
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Click
here
to read our full curbside pickup guidelines.
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Book Bundles for Kids
The Children's Room offers book bundles for kids, so if you want to borrow books about a certain subject and don't have specific titles in mind, our librarians will select them for you. Fill out the
"book bundles" form
, and we'll be in touch to work out all the details.
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Your Online 2020 Summer Reading Program is Underway!
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The "Imagine Your Story" virtual summer reading programs are now underway. Kids, teens and adults can register and participate any time until
Thurs., August 13.
Prizes for reading and participating in a variety of online and at-home activities will be awarded for all ages.
Try the new Beanstack mobile app for tracking your reading time.
We've also added the ability to create accounts for the entire family, making it easier than ever to join in the fun.
For patrons without access to the internet at home, or for those looking for a screen-free activity, you can request a packet of print materials from the Library.
Please contact Amanda Meyer, Children's Librarian, at 508/946-2470.
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DOWNLOAD THE BEANSTACK MOBILE APP
New this year is the Beanstack Tracker mobile app where you can participate right from your mobile device.
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Imagine Your Story
Summer Reading programs are sponsored by the Massachusetts Library System, the Boston Bruins, and the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners, and supported through the generosity of the Friends of the Middleborough Public Library. The Beanstack summer reading platform is made possible by the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners with funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services and with the assistance of the Massachusetts Library System.
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Don't Miss these Upcoming Kids Programs!
Tiny Tots Online
For families with babies and toddlers; siblings always welcome. Miss Amanda leads this four-week program on
Thursdays at 10:30 a.m.
starting
July 23
. Hear stories, sing songs, join in movement activities and work on early literacy skills. Tired, fussy and hungry kids are all welcome. Families must register for the Zoom link
here
.
Lego Week, August 3-6
Calling all builders! Get out your Legos, Duplos, or building blocks and visit the
Library's Facebook
page for a new challenge each day. Participate by either posting or emailing
Miss Amanda
pictures and videos of your creations. They'll be entered into a drawing for a library prize bag filled with summer fun items.
Sign up
for a Zoom meet-up on
Thurs., August 6 at 1:00 p.m
. and share your creations.
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Parents' Corner
Read to a Dog Anytime
Do you have a child who misses reading to Vi, Ms. Marilyn's certified therapy dog, at the Library? Are you looking for a way to encourage your child to participate in Summer Reading? Then be sure to check out our YouTube Channel where kids can virtually read to Vi! Follow Vi's prompts to read for 15 minutes. Then add that time to your Summer Reading log. You can do this over and over again to rack up those virtual tickets.
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DID YOU KNOW...
...if you missed one of Miss Amanda's Crafternoons or Fairytale STEAM Storytimes, you can view it anytime on the Library's Youtube channel?
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Craft kits also are still available for pickup. Call
508/946-2470
to see what we have and reserve yours today.
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Do you have a child going into Kindergarten this fall? Are you looking for ways to continue learning with your preschooler this summer?
Register for this informational and interactive virtual program, taking place on
July 28 at 6:30 p.m
.
Miss Amanda will read a story and lead music and movement activities. Carol Carver from Self Help, Inc.'s Coordinated Family and Community Engagement program will provide resources for families to encourage learning through play. A representative from the Memorial Early Childhood Center will also be present.
All families that attend will receive materials to use at home.
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Spotlight on New Teen Titles
Check out these new teen releases. Click on the title in red to place a hold on a print copy, or click the link below the book summary to see if an ebook or downloadable audio book is available.
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Dutifully embracing her faith while tirelessly caring for her younger siblings, a teen who is unaware that she lives within a strict cult meets an Outsider boy and begins to question what is and is not a sin. Grades 8-12.
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Soraya, a princess cursed to be poisonous to the touch, has lived 18 years in the shadows but as her twin brother's wedding approaches, she faces choices with unimaginable consequences.
Grades 8-12.
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While spending a summer with her famous mother and her criminal boyfriend, Sydney Reilly, age 15, finds love with Nicco but her premonition of something bad coming proves dreadfully accurate. Grades 9-12.
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A story for a new generation of Maximum Ride fans! Max's 17-year-old daughter, Hawk, is living under the radar in post-apocalyptic New York City until a destiny that is perilously close to her mother's forces her to take flight. Grades 7-12.
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Hoping for a new start when she accepts a summer nanny job in the Hamptons, Anna is drawn into the disappearance case of a local teen who she eerily resembles while a local podcaster searches for answers, in a tale of suspense inspired by Daphne du Maurier’s
Rebecca
. Grades 8-12.
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While spending a summer with her famous mother and her criminal boyfriend, Sydney Reilly, age 15, finds love with Nicco but her premonition of something bad coming proves dreadfully accurate. Grades 9-12.
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WHAT TO READ NEXT
Need a book suggestion? Here's where you can get started:
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If you're participating in a Summer Reading program, check out the many book lists we've created under the "Recommendations" link on the top-right of your Beanstack account page.
Don't forget to try
Novelist Plus
, a free book recommendation site that Middleborough cardholders can use for book suggestions by age, subject, and genre.
The Library staff can assist you in finding a book that interests you. Stop in or email Teen Librarian
Chris Dargelis
for a suggestion.
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Everything You Always Wanted to Know About OverDrive and the Libby App But Were Afraid to Ask
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The "Big Library Read" (BLR) dates have changed!
This session's selection is
The Darwin Affair
,
by Tim Mason, and runs from
August 3-17.
The scene is London, June 1860. When an assassination attempt is made on Queen Victoria, and a petty thief is gruesomely murdered moments later--and only a block away--Chief Detective Inspector Charles Field quickly surmises that these crimes are connected to an even more sinister plot. Was Victoria really the assassin's target? Are those closest to the Crown hiding something? And who is the shadowy figure witnesses describe as having lifeless, coal-black eyes?
Mason has created a rousing page-turner that both Charles Dickens and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle would relish and envy.
You can read a letter from author
Tim Mason
about his latest work, and review a Discussion Guide
here.
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Please note: the book will appear to have a waiting list in Overdrive until the first day of the BLR,
Mon., Aug. 3.
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The BLR provides a chance for
all library card holders to read the same digital title at the same time without any wait lists or holds.
It's like a worldwide digital version of a local book club.
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If you're new to borrowing e-books and digital audio books
from the Library's Overdrive collection, start at the
"Help"
pages.
and she'll get back to you and try to help.
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"Book Blurbs" -- What We've Been Reading
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Every few weeks, we bring you a brief Book Blurb from the staff about what we've been reading. Today, we offer a trio of Staff recommendations.
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Submitted by Library Technician Sharon Davis
I just finished this book, which is a collection of four "short" stories ("short" for King is 100-300 pages).
Although he may be one of the most prolific writers of our time, he hasn't yet run out of ideas and these stories don't disappoint. The title story features Holly Gibney, whom King fans will remember from
The Outsider
and the
Mister Mercedes
trilogy. I enjoyed them all but these stories are better read at night rather than at the beach. Word is that all four are being adapted for the big screen but as we all know, the book is almost always better, and King's style is effective in pulling the reader into his strange and sometimes terrible world.
If you're a fan, you won't want to miss these and if you're not, these stories would be a good introduction to his work, although they're not so short and definitely not sweet!
Click on the title
to place a hold for either the e-book or audio book edition in Overdrive.
Click on the book cover
to place a hold for the print copy.
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Submitted by Library Technician Sharon Davis
Koontz is a favorite author of mine with a prodigious vocabulary. Anyone who loves dogs would love this novel. Koontz dabbles in the supernatural, his villains are often insane as well as homicidal, and his heroes are unlikely. While well-crafted in building suspense, his stories are hopeful. Good always conquers evil but not without a sacrifice.
Devoted
takes the bond between man and dog to another level, one that benefits both. Those readers familiar with his work will recognize some similar elements but I recommend this as a great summer read.
Click
here
to place a hold for the print copy.
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Submitted by Children's Librarian Amanda Meyer
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Theodora reveals what appears to be a Renaissance masterpiece under her late grandfather's painting. She takes you on an adventure to find out whether it was stolen from the Metropolitan Museum of Art and if her grandfather was not who she thought he was. I love art-based books and this is great for anyone who enjoyed
Chasing Vermeer
or
From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
. Best for ages 8-12 and grades 3-6.
Click on the title
to place a hold for the e-book edition in Overdrive.
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Musical Moment of the Week
Here's another incredible online musical collaboration, created in spite of the limitations of social distancing.
For the first time ever, people from more than 300 churches and other religious organizations representing every county in Ireland have joined together to sing an ancient Irish blessing.
Sit back, relax, and enjoy the incredible creativity, skill, and technology that made this possible.
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This Week's Marvelous Museum Passes
Maybe you noticed that the quotation marks don't appear in this week's headline for the first time since March. That wasn't a typo on our editors' parts -- we really do have two passes, that aren't for online attractions only, available again. "Woo Hoo!" you might say, and we'd agree.
Passes for both Massachusetts Parks and the Heritage Museums & Gardens in Sandwich are available again, with a few new twists.
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Heritage Musems & Gardens
Your discount for Heritage now comes in the form of a 50% off promo code that you don't have to check out or handle.
- You'll receive the code online at the time of your reservation. No visit to the Library is necessary.
- Simply save the code and use it at the time of your online ticket purchase through the Heritage website.
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MA Parks
The MA Parks Pass will work the same:
- You may pick up the pass any time during the three days leading up to your visit.
- Passes are due back the day after your visit (but will never be due on a Friday or Sunday).
- You'll need to fill out the agreement form in the parking lot (if picking your pass up curbside) and hand it back to us after showing staff your library card.
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COVID-19 Critical Content
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We know you've got lots of sites where you can go to get information on the Coronavirus pandemic, so each week, we'll provide links to a few trusted and respected sources.
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1. Check out the
COVID-19 Dashboard
,
compiled by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. Scroll through this data-rich document for stats from the number of cases, hospitalizations, and tests performed each day to cases per county and cases per age group.
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2. Advice is constantly being updated as scientists advance almost daily in their knowledge of coronavirus. Check the
CDC website
for a self-checker guide on "What to Do If You're Sick."
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