It's a girl!

Baby Kiley arrived safely to proud parents Tandy and Chad at 8 am Tuesday, December 30.
9 lbs 1 oz.
Mom, Dad and Baby are doing fine!

Winter @ Grand Rapids Area Library

Enjoy the beauty of winter from inside the warm and friendly confines of GRAL. Hurry down while you can still see our neighbors at KAXE over the snowbanks - if just barely. Despite temperatures of (-25) the Mississippi River is still open - with the occasional ice flow moving downstream. Also, keep an eye out for a new visitor to GRAL - a Bald Eagle who regularly perches just across the river.

Overburden: Modern Life on the Iron Range

Check out this exciting book by local author Aaron Brown! Be sure to mark your calendar for Wednesday, January 28, 2009 when Aaron visits the Grand Rapids Area Library Men's Book Club at 7 p.m. To learn more about Overburden visit Aaron's blog at: http://www.minnesotabrown.com/

Library Closed for Thanksgiving

The Library will be closing at 5 pm on Wednesday, November 26 and will be closed on Thursday, November 27th, Thanksgiving Day. We will be open regular hours on Friday and Saturday, November 28th and 29th.

To Big Read or Not to Big Read

Marcia Anderson, Grand Rapids Area Library, Erin Smith, Fergus Falls Public Library, and Mary Lukkarila, Cloquet Public Library, presented a session at the Minnesota Library Association Conference on November 21. The panelists talked about the positives and negatives of receiving a "Big Read" grant from the National Endowment for the Arts for conducting a community read project.

twilight celebration

Teens 12-18

Celebrate the Twilight series

Saturday, November 22
2:30pm-4:00pm
Library meeting room

*Win movie passes
*Scavenger Hunt
*Trivia
*Make a bracelet
*EAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's Teen Read Week!

It’s Teen Read Week October 12-18! Books with Bite

Stop by to indulge your biting curiosity and check out books and graphic novels on animals, technology, cooking and even vampires! Pick up a page turner that you can read or listen to, just for the fun of it! Check out what’s happening at the library during Teen Read Week and Celebrate reading!

Teens’ Top Ten Book List

Here is a chance to have your voice heard. Check the list of 25 nominees, see what you’ve read, and vote for your favorites at www.ala.org/teenstopten or stop in the library to vote!

October teen drawing:

Enter the drawing in the Teen Universe room for your chance to win Halloween goodies by filling out a slip of paper about scary characters.

Give us your ideas!

We want to know what you think about the materials and services for teens. Complete a quick survey during the week and get a coupon for 5.00 off your library fines.

Ever wonder about self-publishing?

Thursday, October 16 at 2pm Young Adult author Anna Fajardo will reveal the steps to self-publishing her first novel “Chosen.” She will give tips on how to get a manuscript ready for publishing as well as give information about where to get published. There is no school that day.

View candidate forums @ GRAL

Grand Rapids Area Library has DVD videos of the Mayoral, City Council, and District 2 County Commissioner candidate forums. Stop by the library to view one of our reference copies in-house or check out a circulating copy and watch at home.

Nancy Pearl visits GRAL

Grand Rapids Area Library was proud to host librarian emeritus Nancy Pearl on September 10th. Stop by GRAL to check out Nancy's favorite titles and take away a copy of her reading list!

Blandin Turtles

Please be careful to watch for turtles!

Be advised that over the past several weeks library patrons and members of the public have reported sightings of several rare Blandin Snapping Turtles (Chelydra Serpentina Blandinis) on the walking path behind the library. Library Director - Marcia Anderson - reminds library users, fishermen, couples out for a romantic stroll, and the public at large to be mindful of these little treasures invading from the river bank. According to DNR Conservation Officer - Carl Linnaeus - Blandin Snappers usually range upstream from Grand Rapids, however the presence of Grand Rapids Area Library and KAXE Northern Community Radio make the area ideal habitat.

Periodicals: new titles and changes made

agazines keep us informed of whats going on in the world. From politics to Hollywood, to recipes to crafts, magazines are packed full of information. The Library has added a couple of new titles to the periodical collection and moved some favorite titles to different locations within the building.

Moved Titles: These titles were moved from the Children's Periodical Collection to the Young Adult Periodical Collection.
Muse
New Moon
Plays





Game Pro- is a new addition to the Young Adult Periodical Collection. Packed within the pages of each issue covers the hottest games for your console covering previews, reviews, stratigies, and tips. We are expecting our first issue very soon.

New York Times(Sunday only Large Print)- This newspaper will take over for our regular print edition of New York Times. The big difference, the print will be in large print. The Sunday issues will summarize the events of the past week. We are expecting our first issue to arrive very soon and can be found on the back table where the current New York Times is kept.

Added back to the collection, American Rifleman, is an NRA publication, covering gun reviews, ammunition, Second Amendment rights, and more. We are expecting our first issue to arrive very soon and you can find the current issue in the periodical area shelves.

FYI- If you would like to donate and/or sponsor a periodical title to the library's collection, stop in and speak with Tandy or send her an email.

Nancy Pearl: Great Books to Read, New and Old

Wednesday September 10, 1:30 pm
Nancy Pearl, author of Book Lust: Recommended Reading for Every Mood, Moment and Reason and Book Crush: For Kids and Teens- Recommended Reading for Every Mood, Moment and Interest, will talk about Great Books to Read: New and Old.
Bring a lunch and enjoy a great talk about books. Get ideas for good reads for yourself, your friends or your book club.

September is Library Card Sign Up Month!

If you don’t have a library card, come in to sign up for one.

Replacement library cards are free in September!
If you have lost yours, or if your card is getting worn, come in for a new one! It is much easier and faster for us to scan your card than to look up your name or type in a number. Save yourself time and help us out by replacing a lost or worn card, and always bringing it to the Library. New cards are always free!

Children who sign up for a new library card in September may choose a book from our prize cart. Also, all children may enter a drawing for a gift certificate from the Village Bookstore, by dropping their signed check out receipts in the “book” on the Children’s desk.

StoryCorps Sneak Preview

Wednesday, August 27th 7 pm at the Library
Find out what StoryCorps is all about and how it works.
Storycorps staff will provide background information, audio clips of interviews, and tours of the Airstream Trailer. (the mobile recording studio) They start doing interviews on August 29th. Check out KAXE’s web site at www.kaxe.org for more information, or call StoryCorps to set up an interview. 800-850-4406

Note: The Library will be closed Saturday, Sunday and Monday, August 30, 31 and September 1st for the Labor Day Holiday.

Events the week of August 17

Tuesday August 19th
10:30 am Storytime for kids and their families

2-4 pm. Traveling Pants Creativity: (for teens)
Teens: Celebrate the opening of the movie: “Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2” by creating something fun out of an old pair of jeans. Bring your own jeans, we’ll supply ideas and decorations.

7:30 Film Series: Independent film at the Reif Performing Arts Center is “Oslo, Hawaii.”

Wednesday, August 20th 7 pm How can we make our community more bicycle and walker friendly?
Bob Chauncy from the National Coalition for Biking and Walking will be in Grand Rapids on to work with community members on finding answers to that question. He will lead a workshop in the morning, sponsored by Get Fit Itasca, and do a much shorter presentation in the evening at the Library. Call the YMCA at 327-8801 for more information about the morning workshop.

Thursday Aug. 21
1 pm Let’s Go Fishing with MinnAqua:
Program for kids on fishing, water safety and aquatic ecology. (preregistration required)
6 pm Family Movie night: Swiss Family Robinson A shipwrecked family turns a desert island into a paradise, complete with a 3 story tree house and a menagerie of wild animals.

Teen Back to School Drawing

Teen Drawing
Win a back to school prize pack filled with pens, pencils, CD-Rs, combination lock, paper, folders, and CHOCOLATE!
All you have to do is stop in Teen Universe (teen room in the library), answer the question about your summer reading, and put your entry in the box. You can enter more than once!
2 winners will be drawn from the entries on Tuesday, August 26 at 4pm.

Bike Locks Available

We have added bicycle locks to our collection! They are available for check out and use while you are in the library. Ask at the circulation desk.

Two bicycles have been stolen this summer, so locking your bike to the bike rack is a good idea.

Library Events This Week

Tuesday, August 12,
10:30 am Storytime for kids and families at the Library

7:30 pm Forest for the Trees at the Reif Center
Independent film from Germany

Thursday, August 14,
7:00 pm Cyrus King and the Good Roads Movement
Brian Vroman talks about Cyrus King and the "Good Roads" movement. King was a pioneer living in Deer river around the turn of the last century and was a strong advocate for improvements in Itasca County.

Steve Keillor on Shaping Minnesota's History

Thursday August 7th at 7 pm: Steve Keillor will be presenting humorous anecdotes from his new history of Minnesota, Shaping Minnesota's Identity: 150 Years of State history, published in 2008 by Pogo Press. This book features a Greater-Minnesota perspective, as portrayed in the lives of ordinary Minnesotans, as told by themselves in their own memoirs and reminiscences.

Independant Film on Tuesday

This week's film is Aaltra from Belgium. (in French with English subtitles) Go to the Reif Center's old website to find the listings for the remaining independant Film series cosponsored by the library. 7:30 on Tuesdays.

There's Magic at the Library!

Aug 5th 2:30 pm The Amazing Fabulous Magician Star will perform extraordinary feats of Magic for your entertainment and amusement. Bring the entire family and be prepared to be awed and astounded by this daring performer!

Book Sale and Chair Sale

Book Sale! Friday Aug 1, 8-8, Saturday, 10-6, Sunday 10-4.
Shop for great books in Central Square Mall, South Entrance corridor.
Thank You! This is one of the fundraisers for the Grand Rapids Area Library Foundation, which supports programs and our book collection at the Library.
Watch for the Adirondack chairs around town also! Some will be on sale by the Library Foundation during Tall Timber Days. Others will be auctioned at an event August 9th.

August 9 Saturday 6 pm at the Rotary tent on the river behind KAXE
Chair Affair fundraiser for the Library Foundation. Silent and live Auction for Adirondack chairs painted by local artists, Food and music by Sam Miltich and friends. Tickets available at the library and from Library Foundation Board Members.

This Week at the Library

July 31st 7 pm Sugar Point: The Last Indian Battle, by Cece McKeig
The Battle of Sugar Point was fought in 1898 between the 3rd U.S. Infantry and members of the Bear Island Pillager Indians in a failed attempt to apprehend their chief. Ms McKeig will share highlights of this piece of Native American history and display some Native American items from the Cass County Museum.
Local Lore and Legends: Summer History at the Library is a speaker series on the History and Characters of Grand Rapids and Northeastern Minnesota. The complete schedule is on the Library’s web site at www.grandrapids.lib.mn.us

August 1 Friday 10:30 am Willy Welch
Texas storyteller, songwriter and author of Playing Right Field presents a program for kids filled with fun stories, songs and books!

Return Reading Logs for Book by July 26

Don't forget to return your completed summer reading log to the Library to receive a free book!

Saturday, July 26th is the last day to return the "What's Cookin' at Your Library" reading log. Don't stop reading, though, and don't stop coming to the Library! There are more programs for kids and adults coming up in July and August.

Movies, Movies Movies (Free!)

This week's movie selection for the Indies on Tuesday series at the Reif Performing Arts Center is Buddy. Made in Norway, Buddy is a "heart-warming story about hi jinks, crazy roommates and reality television." 7:3o pm on Tuesday, July 22nd. More details and the list for the rest of the summer series, cosponsored by the Library, at www.reifcenter.org
Meet the Robinsons is the family movie at the Library on Thursday, July 24 at 6 pm. Bring snacks, dinner or just your sense of humor for this story of a wacky family!

Bovey: They did what? Was that legal?

Don Boese will give a talk July 10 at 7 pm at the Library on: "John C. Greenway and the Bovey Detachment Election: A Town's changed Future"
Bovey, the first town on the western Mesabi, had its future changed when John C. Greenway arranged for a detachment election and with a close margin it passed, drastically changing the town's future. Was the election legal?
A complete list of the series: Local Lore and Legends, Summer History at the Library, can be found on the Library's web site.

Welcome Will Richter to the library!

Will Richter joins the staff of the Grand Rapids Area Library today as our new reference librarian. Will recently received his Master of Library Science Degree from Dominican University, and has been working in the Washington County Library system. Stop by and introduce yourself to Will and bid him welcome to Grand Rapids!

Free Film @ the Reif "Daybreak"

June 24, 7:30 pm Daybreak is the Independant Film showing at the Reif Performing Arts Center. The Indies on Tuesday series cosponsored by the Library and the Reif center continues all summer. For a complete list of all the films and descriptions, go to www.reifcenter.org

Kitchen Chemistry with Lee Ringdahl

See what fun things you can do in your kitchen! Monday, June 23 1 pm. (for children who have completed grades 2-5) limit of 20 students, so preregister by calling 327-8823

Welcome Tracy Kampa

Tracy Kampa began June 12th as the Children's Library Assistant. Stop and say hello and introduce yourself! Tracy brings several years' experience in the library at St. Joseph's School. Tracy and Darla Kirwin will make a great team in the Children's Library. Check the Children's page on the library's web site to see What's Cookin' @ your Library this summer. http://www.arrowhead.lib.mn.us/grawww/qtnews.htm

Say Bon Voyage to Rosalie!

Rosalie McLouden is retiring after spending many years with the Grand Rapids Area Library.
We're having a party to send her on her way!
Friday, May 30 1-5 pm
Cookies and Lemonade in the Children's Library.

Please come to wish her well on her next adventures, and to write a card with your memories.