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The Women’s Prize for Fiction, one of the most respected, celebrated and successful literary awards in the world, showcases the very best writing by women. Get a great book at your library, or on your device using Libby or Hoopla! #SCLRecs
Just finished watching Under The Banner of Heaven? Or were you a fan of the book that inspired it? Check out these similar books at a library near you! #SCLRecs #UnderTheBannerOfHeaven
Love the Heartstopper graphic novel or TV series? Check out these other titles! #HeartStopper #SCLRecs
A fan of Our Flag Means Death, or just wacky wholesome adventures on the high seas? Check out these reads! #OurFlagMeansDeath #SCLRecs
Towel Day is an annual celebration on the 25th of May, as a tribute to the late author Douglas Adams (1952-2001). On that day, fans around the universe carry a towel in his honor. #TowelDay #SCLRecs
April 7 is National Beer Day! It marks the day of the Cullen–Harrison Act, which allowed the sale of 4% ABV beer and led to the end of Prohibition. Celebrate responsibly with a pint and/or a book. #SCLRecs
Talking about race and racism can be difficult. Sometimes, it's hard to know where to begin. These books offer some guidance for thinking clearly and talking productively about race. Visit your local library to pick one up! #SCLRecs
Happy St. Patrick's Day! March is Irish American Heritage Month - get these and more at your favorite library location.
#SCLRecs #IrishAmericanHeritageMonth
Did you love Encanto? Explore these tales set in our world, filled with magic, unique locations, and intergenerational connections! Ask any librarian for help getting these in your preferred format. #SCLRecs #Encanto
Bridgerton Season 2 lands in March, but if you can't wait, try these series with all the drama and romance you love! #Bridgerton #SCLRecs
It's Black History Month! Check out these books and many others at your favorite Springfield City Library location! #BlackHistoryMonth #SCLRecs
Looking for a fun Valentine read? Check one out from the library! And don't forget about our Romance Book Club, it meets this Saturday! https://www.springfieldlibrary.org/library/romance-book-club/
#SCLRecs #ValentinesDay
Challenged books are all over the news right now - here are some you can find at your favorite library location. #SCLRecs
It's Groundhog Day! Instead of celebrating Phil (we didn't love his prediction today 😠) let's celebrate with these time loop movies and books! #GroundhogDay #SCLRecs
Ordained as a monk aged 16 in Vietnam, Thich Nhat Hanh soon envisioned a kind of engaged Buddhism that could respond directly to the needs of society. He was a prominent teacher and social activist in his home country before finding himself exiled for calling for peace. In the West he played a key role in introducing mindfulness and created mindful communities (sanghas) around the world. His teachings have impacted politicians, business leaders, activists, teachers and countless others. He died on Jan 22 at the age of 95. (- Plumvillage.org) Check out an item from the library to learn more. #SCLRecs #thichnhathanh #ripthichnhathanh
Letter Writing Week is here - how better to spend an hour inside, when it's so cold outside! Warm someone else up with a personal letter to someone you care about. You can even get books about letter writing from the library! #LetterWritingWeek #SCLRecs #LetterWriting
The first Black performer to win the Academy Award for best actor, for ''Lilies of the Field,'' he once said he felt ''as if I were representing 15, 18 million people with every move I made.'' Sidney Poitier, whose portrayal of resolute heroes in films like ''To Sir With Love,'' ''In the Heat of the Night'' and ''Guess Who's Coming to Dinner'' established him as Hollywood's first Black matinee idol and helped open the door for Black actors in the film industry, died on Thursday night at his home in Los Angeles. He was 94.
(Grimes, William. "Sidney Poitier, 94, Pioneering Black Oscar Winner, Dies." New York Times, 8 Jan. 2022, p. A1(L). Gale In Context: Biography) #SidneyPoitier #RIPSidneyPoitier #SCLRecs
Desmond Tutu, 1931-2021, was an archbishop in the South African Anglican church who helped dismantle the racist system of apartheid and then served as the leader of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission to document apartheid's worst abuses and crimes. Balancing clear-eyed assessments of social injustice with a passionate commitment to nonviolence, Archbishop Tutu was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1984. Read more about the wisdom and courage of Desmond Tutu in these books, available through your library. #SCLRecs #DesmondTutu #RIPDesmondTutu #DesmondTutuRIP
Joan Didion proved herself one of the most acute observers of and commentators on American life in the latter half of the twentieth century and into the twenty-first century. Her novels, along with her essays, gave laconic voice to the disillusionment and pessimism that is the other face of the radicalism of the 1960s. (St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture Online. Gale.)
#SCLRecs #JoanDidion #JoanDidionRIP #RIPJoanDidion
Writer, professor, and social critic bell hooks was undeniably one of the most successful "cross-over" academics of the late twentieth century. Her name, as well as the criticisms of racism and sexism that she penned, were central to many academic discussions, and they were also read widely outside of the educational arena. On December 15, 2021, hooks died at her home in Berea, Kentucky; she was 69. ("bell hooks." Contemporary Black Biography, Gale.) #bellhooks #ripbellhooks #SCLRecs
Anne Rice wrote best-selling novels that combined horror with sensuality in lavish historical settings. Ever popular, remind yourself why by picking up a book of hers at the library. #AnneRice #SCLRecs
Library News
Free Summer Meals for Kids in Springfield Offered at Library Branches (WWLP)
Free lunch for children under 18 will be offered from 12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. starting Monday, June 27th through August 25th at the following branches: East Forest Park, Forest Park, Indian Orchard, Mason Square, and Sixteen Acres.
Increasing Community Internet Access: Introducing Chromebooks
The Library will circulate Google Chromebook laptops for those in the community that do not have computer access at home.
Library Commission Announces New Façade Lighting for Central Library (WWLP)
The Springfield Central Library has installed lighting on State Street to not only illuminate the historic 110-year-old building but to also increase safety on State street.