Welcome back to Behind the Stacks! We would like to extend a huge thank you to the City Council members, State Representatives, board members, patrons, and staff who showed up to celebrate the unveiling of our brand-new state-of-the-art Bookmobile! This 40-foot vehicle has a collection of books to browse and check out, Wi-Fi, and space for patrons to utilize internet access and on-location reference help. Keep your eyes peeled for us all around town and please stop by when you see us!
Summer may be over, but the library still has plenty of activities for kids of all ages to participate in as we head into the fall season. Children ages 4 and under can enjoy music, dancing, bubbles, and fun with all their toddler friends as Music and Motion returns to the Main Library on September 21st! Later that evening, grades K through 4th can celebrate the new school year with a fun evening at the Ora Mason Library! Enjoy a back-to-school story, play a silly round of school-themed, “Would You Rather?,” and decorate your own pencil pouch to take home. It’s the perfect way to celebrate the start of a new school year while creating creative and having fun with friends.
Children ages 5 through 12 can celebrate Hispanic Heritage month with a Fiesta Scavenger Hunt at the Main Library. Search the Graham Room for items you need for a fiesta or party. Solve the puzzle and win a prize! The scavenger hunt will run from Sept. 28 to Octo. 10. Of course, we can’t forget our older youths, grades 6 through 12! On September 29th, teens can paint or decoupage their own personalized light switch cover to add a creative touch to their room!
Adults are invited to join the library for a special presentation on Sept. 22–Exploring the Archive: Fieldwork with Derek Piotr. Derek is a folklorist, researcher and performer whose work focuses primarily on the human voice. His work covers practices including fieldwork, vocal performance, preservation and autoethnography; and is primarily concerned with tenderness, fragility, beauty and brutality. In this lecture, Derek will walk you through the process of journeying everywhere from Iceland to Appalachia to record these songs from non-musicians, as well as the organization and development of the Archive as a web-based repository.
This month, we will begin hosting a monthly a suicide prevention and mental health support group for young adults coordinated by the National Alliance on Mental Health (NAMI). This group is a peer support space for individuals experiencing thoughts of suicide and will meet on the last Tuesday of every month at 6:00pm. Use this safe space to connect with others who understand, share experiences and feelings, build coping skills and resilience, and explore pathways towards healing, hope, and purpose. No registration is required.
As many of you may have noticed, the parking lot at the Main Library has recently undergone some repairs. Because of this, the Friends of the West Haven Library have chosen to postpone their Fill-A-Bag book sale until Oct. 3. Now that the lot is back to full capacity, the sale is scheduled to be held outside, behind the library–weather permitting! Fingers crossed for clear skies, as the volunteers need to have good weather during hours of set up. The sale will run from 10am to 2pm, with the price of bags dropping from $10.00 to $5.00 during the last hour of the sale. In the event of inclement weather, the sale will be postponed until Oct. 17. We hope to see many of you there!