End-of-the-year booklists are here again, with their unattainable “3,000 Best Crime Novels of 2018,” designed, I feel sure, to make me feel under-read and inadequate. I am only one woman, and I cannot keep up with these professional bookworms. Also, these lists trigger my book-related FOMO, which leads to the inevitable realization that I am going […]
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Kids Read Picks, Vol. 9: Catwad
Kids Read Picks presents book reviews and recommendations from kids in Mesa County. Don’t be surprised if you can’t find some of these books at the library or in stores: kids who attend Kids Read Book Club on Tuesdays at 4:00 at the Central Library have access to books before they are officially published. Rating […]
Continue readingTeen Reviews: This Is Kind of an Epic Love Story
Callender, Kheryn. This Is Kind of an Epic Love Story. “Let me start by saying the title does not lie. Let me continue to say just how epic of a love story it really is. The main character, Nate, is relatable- A kid with insecurities, ones that make it hard for him to even […]
Continue readingLocal History Thursday: Downtown Grand Junction in Black and White Photographs
Historical photos can tell you a lot about a building or setting. They can show you how structures or places have changed over time in addition to helping identify where something was located if it no longer stands. Historical photos can also give you an idea of how people dressed, the transportation that they used, and […]
Continue readingTeen Reviews: Girl at the Grave
Black, Teri Bailey. Girl at the Grave. “Fantastic book! Your mind teleports into the characters’ shoes and it flows easily. It absorbs you and makes you want to be angry/ happy for the characters if they do something wrong. It was great, filled with cliffhangers keeping me up till 1:00 am.” Rating: 5 -Celeah, […]
Continue readingLibrary now offers Mango Languages
Want to learn a new language? Mesa County Libraries now offer Mango Languages, a convenient resource for language learning that’s easily accessible and downloadable on mobile and other devices. Mango Languages features user-friendly instruction in more than 70 languages, including Spanish, French, German, four types of Arabic, two types of Chinese, Latin, Cherokee, and more. […]
Continue readingTeen Reviews: Shadow of the Fox
Kagawa, Julie. Shadow of the Fox. “The story is very intriguing. It is a good book for people who don’t know much about Japanese Folklore because it explains enough of the folklore to understand.” Rating: 3 -Foxx Teen Reviews presents book reviews by teens in Mesa County. Don’t be surprised if […]
Continue readingBravery during the Blitz
In Dear Mrs. Bird, by A.J. Pearson, Emmeline Lake, age 22, dreams of being a journalist, and when she sees an ad for a position at the London Evening Chronicle, she immediately imagines a fabulous career ahead of her as a Lady Wartime Correspondent. In early 1940s London, during the Blitz, Emmy and her friend, […]
Continue readingLas Posadas: a Latin American Christmas
Families pray, children play, and everyone feasts. Endless spreads of ponche, tamales, champurrado, pozole, and buñuelos appear before hungry crowds. And, of course, there is the piñata! With sparklers in hand, kids watch and wait for the piñata to be bashed into surrendering its hoard of candy. Las posadas is a nine day Latin American […]
Continue readingLocal History Thursday: Old Slang
Since long before I was a young whippersnapper, there have been some interesting slang expressions thrown around the Grand Valley region. The Mesa County Oral History Project is full of interviews with original settlers to this area. Indulge in a listen, and you may pick up on some ways of speech that inspire confusion, […]
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