Penelope’s Poetry Parlor: June

Our theme for the library this year is What a Wonderful World, and to that end, we’re focusing on seeing the wonder in our world. Usually, every month at the desk, we have an article available for patrons to read and discuss with Julie, our library director, but this year, we’re handing out poems instead. Our trusty library goose is also helping us pen a monthly column that focuses on some of the gems in our poetry collection.

Book Buzz: Therapeutic Phones, Disappointing Weddings, Haunting Circuses, and Chess Champions

Every month, we’re profiling new-ish releases that are getting critical and commercial buzz. For June, we’re looking at a tender piece of literary fiction about mourning, an entertaining thriller/mystery set in Ireland, a darkly fantastical historical romance about 1920s circuses, and a drama about a chess prodigy.

Movie Review: Minari

It’s not often that a movie with a Northwest Arkansas setting generates Oscar buzz, but last year’s Minari not only did so but also won one (Best Supporting Actress for Youn Yuh-jung). As a result, I’ve been looking forward to reviewing the movie as soon as we received the DVD at the library, and I’m so excited to post this because it’s been one of the best new movies I’ve watched in a long time!

What A Wonderful World: June

This year, our theme at the library is What A Wonderful World. We’re focusing on a different color for each month, and June’s is promising pink. To that end, we’re highlighting books at the library with that color (or something close to it) on the cover!

Want to Help Us Raise $15,000 for a New Library This Summer?

Hey, everybody, it’s summer, which means it’s time for, well, summery things, like the library’s summer reading program. 🙂

Last summer, we had a blast with our reading challenge through Beanstack, pandemic be darned. We also raised over $15,000, well ahead of our $10,000 goal. Since then, we’ve had a few more challenges, including for watching movies and just donating in general, and we are always so pleased and humbled by the enthusiastic response we receive.

And thanks to the Squires family and their generosity, we can do this again this summer. They will be matching a dollar for every hour read between June 7 and July 30, as long as we hit the goal of 15,000 hours.

Want to participate? Of course you do! Keep reading to find out how.