What is Juneteenth and why does it matter? It’s a little-known part of the history of emancipation from slavery, and part of the twisted, delayed, and elusive process of African-American freedom. There are other, more historically significant dates in emancipation history: Sept. 22: the day Lincoln issued his preliminary Emancipation Proclamation Order in 1862 Jan. […]
Continue readingIQ by Joe Ide
If you read IQ, by Joe Ide, and are reminded of Sherlock Holmes, you’re not wrong. Ide grew up in South L.A. and devoured the Conan Doyle stories. His creation, Isaiah Quintabe, is a young black man almost destroyed by grief and rage when his older brother/surrogate parent Marcus is killed by a hit-and-run driver. […]
Continue readingTeen Reviews: Anger is a Gift
I picked up this book thinking it was going to be about how anger can be used as a power. When I started reading I was surprised about what it was about. It is about a boy who lives in a run down town and has to deal with police brutality in schools. I could […]
Continue readingLocal History Thursday: Renaissance Man Al Look
What didn’t Al Look do? In his life, the longtime Grand Junction resident homesteaded near Dove Creek, Colorado, worked as an advertising manager for Durango and Grand Junction newspapers, wrote a popular column for The Daily Sentinel, became a knowledgeable amateur archaeologist, geologist and paleontologist who was involved with important dinosaur and Paleo-Indian digs in […]
Continue readingTeen Reviews: Ivy Aberdeen’s Letter to the World
This book was something beautiful. It’s hard to find a good LGBT+ book, but this one really, really is. Ivy is relatable, she’s someone with problems and needs, she’s someone who smiles when she thinks she should, even though she doesn’t want too. She’s figuring out who she is, just like all of us. When […]
Continue readingBilingual Latinx Board Books
If you love bilingual books, Latin American culture, and music then the books being published by Lil’ Libros will warm your heart. In an effort to promote early biliteracy and bilingualism, Patty Rodriguez and Ariana Stein founded Lil’ Libros in order to publish board books about topics that many Latinos would find familiar and non-Latinos […]
Continue readingMy personal summer reading program
It’s June now, and some misguided busybody will probably tell you to get outside, be active, and soak in the summer rays. Please do not listen to them; you will only become sweaty and demoralized. To maximize comfort and optimize reading time, here are a few tips from The Laziest Woman in Town: Find a nice, […]
Continue readingQuench your True Crime Thirst
I have always been drawn to true crime, mostly because the whodunit of it all makes me feel like a Mystery Gang member (zoinks). I usually satisfy my true crime need with documentaries, TV shows, and podcasts. But with the recent arrest of a suspect in the Golden State Killer case a few months after the release […]
Continue readingThe Colorado National Monument turns 107
We can thank the great and eccentric John Otto for the Colorado National Monument; when he came to the area in 1906 and discovered the red rock canyons, he wrote, “I came here last year and found these canyons, and they feel like the heart of the world to me. I’m going to stay and build […]
Continue readingHelp choose America’s favorite book at May 22 launch of The Great American Read
Join Mesa County Libraries and Rocky Mountain PBS in helping choose America’s favorite book as part of The Great American Read. Gather with fellow readers to watch the launch event of the national program from 6:15-9 p.m. Tuesday, May 22, 2018, at the Mesa County Libraries Central Library, 443 N. 6th St. in Grand Junction. […]
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