October Programs at the Library

Chick 'n' Pug Meet the Dude

He's taller than the Chrysler Building. He drools more than a teething baby sucking on a piece of Jello. Dog people will recognize him as a Great Dane. Chick and Pug know him only as . . . The Dude.

When the larger-than-life Dude ambles into Pug's territory and steals Pug's favorite chew toy, Chick is ready to take down the slobbering scoundrel. However, that would require making Pug get up first. . . . Will Chick save the day? Will Pug nap through all the best parts? And will we ever see what's at the top of The Dude's incredibly long legs? Stay tuned!

Meet The Dude yourself in Chick 'n' Pug Meet the Dude by Jennifer Sattler here!

Bedtime Math

Our mission: to make math a fun part of kids’ everyday lives.

We all know it’s wonderful to read bedtime stories to kids, but what about doing math? Many generations of Americans are uncomfortable with math and numbers, and too often we hear the phrase, "I’m just not good at math!" For decades, this attitude has trickled down from parents to their kids, and we now have a culture that finds math dry, intimidating, and just not cool.

Bedtime Math wants to change all that. Inside this book, families will find fun, mischief-making math problems to tackle—math that isn’t just kid-friendly, but actually kid-appealing. With over 100 math riddles on topics from jalapeños and submarines to roller coasters and flamingos, this book bursts with math that looks nothing like school. And with three different levels of challenge (wee ones, little kids, and big kids), there’s something for everyone. We can make numbers fun, and change the world, one Bedtime Math puzzle at a time.

Find out how to make math approachable with Bedtime Math by Laura Overdeck here!

Planet Thieves

The Planet Thieves is the first thrilling installment of a new middle-grade series by Dan Krokos.

Two weeks ago, thirteen-year-old Mason Stark and seventeen of his fellow cadets from the Academy for Earth Space Command boarded the SS Egypt. The trip was supposed to be a short routine voyage to log their required spacetime for summer quarter.

But routine goes out the airlock when they’re attacked by the Tremist, an alien race who have been at war with humanity for the last sixty years.

With the captain and crew dead, injured, or taken prisoner, Mason and the cadets are all that’s left to warn the ESC. And soon they find out exactly why the Tremist chose this ship to attack: the Egypt is carrying a weapon that could change the war forever.

Now Mason will have to lead the cadets in a daring assault to take back the ship, rescue the survivors, and recover the weapon. Before there isn’t a war left to fight.

Check out The Planet Thieves by Dan Krokos here!

An elephant in Muskegon?

In the summer of 1908, in Muskegon, Michigan, a visiting troupe of vaudeville performers is about the most exciting thing since baseball. They’re summering in nearby Bluffton, so Henry has a few months to ogle the elephant and the zebra, the tightrope walkers and — lo and behold — a slapstick actor his own age named Buster Keaton.

The show folk say Buster is indestructible; his father throws him around as part of the act and the audience roars, while Buster never cracks a smile. Henry longs to learn to take a fall like Buster, "the human mop," but Buster just wants to play ball with Henry and his friends. With signature nostalgia, Scott O’Dell Award–winning graphic novelist Matt Phelan visualizes a bygone era with lustrous color, dynamic lines, and flawless dramatic pacing.

Check our Bluffton: My Summers with Buster Keaton by Matt Phelan here!

"Pollyanna in a parka"

"A warm tale set in an Alaskan gold-mining town in 1929-30 . . . Bo is an endearing Pollyanna in a parka." -- Kirkus Reviews

It's the 1920s, and Bo was headed for an Alaska orphanage when she won the hearts of two tough gold miners who set out to raise her, enthusiastically helped by all the kind people of the nearby Eskimo village.

Bo learns Eskimo along with English, helps in the cookshack, learns to polka, and rides along with Big Annie and her dog team. There's always some kind of excitement: Bo sees her first airplane, has a run-in with a bear, and meets a mysterious lost little boy.

Here is an unforgettable story of a little girl growing up in the exhilarating time after the big Alaska gold rushes.

Take a step back in history with Bo at Ballard Creek by Kirkpatrick Hill, illustrated by LeUyen Pham here!

Tween Book Club

Have you read City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau?

Join us for our very first Tween Book Club

Wednesday, July 17th @ 5pm

when we will talk about the book!