License to Chill

Tues, Dec 9 drop in 5:00 -7:00 pm

Take a break from the hubbub of winter with an evening of fun indoor activities at the Campbell Library!  Warm up with a hot cocoa, try an escape room, make winter art with Jill Levene, check out the winter sensory play room, and enjoy some live music. Sensory friendly hour from 5 - 6 pm 

Counting Winter

by Nancy White Carlstrom 

Easy CARLSTROM 

One red fox walks across the white snow, quietly stalking winter. Two ravens croak and gurgle, raucously talking winter. Three snowshoe hares hop on big paws, silently tracking winter. Wherever you look, another creature is making its mark on the snow-covered season.

Little Women

by Louisa May Alcott 

Junior ALCOTT 

For generations, children around the world have come of age with Louisa May Alcott's March girls: hardworking eldest sister Meg, headstrong, impulsive Jo, timid Beth, and precocious Amy. With their father away at war, and their loving mother Marmee working to support the family, the four sisters have to rely on one another for support as they endure the hardships of wartime and poverty. We witness the sisters growing up and figuring out what role each wants to play in the world, and, along the way, join them on countless unforgettable adventures. 

It’s Winter!

by Renee Kurilla 

Easy KURILLA 

Pull out your warmest coat, mittens, and scarf! It's time for sledding, skating, and snowmen! And don't forget the hot chocolate, decorations, and special time with family and friends, it’s winter! 

Freddie the Farting Snowman

by Jane Bexley 

Easy BEXLEY 

Did you know that snowmen fart? It's true! Follow Freddie the Farting Snowman to learn the hysterical kinds of farts that are a part of snowman life. The Arctic Blast, the Farticle Collider and many more will have you bursting with laughter! 

Explore more snowy winter reads in our catalog!

If you need help accessing any of these titles or using front door pickup, email or call us and we will be happy to assist you!

Check out new arrivals in our catalog: Books | Audiobooks | DVDs | Videogames | Library of Things | Libby

While some people might think of any use of tropes as something that hurts an author’s writing, they may be surprised to find that almost every story utilizes them. They can be incorporated into a story to set up a character type, be creatively used to complicate a journey, or just used for some feel good content. If you’ve ever been waiting for a love triangle to unfold, you will either want to pull your hair out in frustration or be at the edge of your seat in anticipation. Coffee shop settings with romantic tension are either your cup of joe or make you yawn. Essentially, everyone connects with and favors some tropes over others. Here are a few books that incorporate some of my favorite tropes.

Found Family:

One of my all time favorites is the “Found family/Chosen family” trope. In these stories, a group of misfits find a home in the company of others in the group. They learn to confide, trust, and protect each other on their journey to complete a mission. It's a great way to create character arcs in a work of literature, when a ton of exposition for a large ensemble may feel out of place or unnatural. Over time we can see more of a character’s personality and background come out when they encounter difficulties. It’s also a reminder to readers that your family is made up of people that care about you, not necessarily the family you were born into.

Some books that incorporate this trope well are:

The House in the Cerulean Sea

by TJ Klune

When a group of children in an orphanage have the power to destroy the world, it’s up to Linus to investigate how dangerous they really are. Along the way, he may have to choose between saving his newfound family, or the world. Science Fiction KLUNE

Six of Crows

by Leigh Bardugo

Six dangerous outcasts. One impossible heist. Kaz's crew is the only thing that might stand between the world and destruction--if they don't kill each other first. Junior BARDUGO

Artemis Fowl Series

by Eoin Colfer

(Slow build over the entire 8 book series) Artemis is a young boy genius with a mantra to guide him through life: “Gold is Power”. When this leads to elaborate and risky schemes to maintain his family’s wealth, those he once considered enemies will turn out to be more than he ever expected. Junior COLFER

The Hobbit

by J.R.R Tolkien

A homebody Hobbit is reluctantly swept up into an epic journey by a wizard and thirteen dwarves. Science Fiction TOLKIEN • ebook

Enemies to Lovers:

When it comes to romance, “enemies to lovers” books are particularly fun to read. In these stories, people who see the worst in the other person grow to find themselves lost without them. Snarky humor and heartfelt moments of character growth? What more can you ask for!

Red,White and Royal Blue

by Leigh Bardugo

Alex Claremont-Diaz--America's Goldenboy First Son--has a beef with Prince Henry across the pond. And when the tabloids get hold of a photo involving an Alex-Henry altercation, U.S./British relations take a turn for the worse. Heads of state devise a plan for damage control: staging a truce between the two rivals. What at begins as a fake, Instragramable friendship grows deeper, and more dangerous, than either Alex or Henry could have imagined... and could possibly upend two nations. Fiction MCQUISTON

The Unhoneymooners

by Christina Lauren

For two sworn enemies, anything can happen during the Hawaiian trip of a lifetime—maybe even love—in this romantic comedy. Olive Torres is used to being the unlucky twin: from inexplicable mishaps to a recent layoff, her life seems to be almost comically jinxed. When her eternally lucky tiwn sister Ami gets married, Olive, is forced to spend it with the best man (and her nemesis), Ethan Thomas. Fiction MCQUISTON • ebook

Pride and Prejudice

by Jane Austen

At the end of eighteenth-century England, spirited Elizabeth Bennet copes with the suit of the snobbish Mr. Darcy while trying to sort out the romantic entanglements of two of her sisters, sweet and beautiful Jane and scatterbrained Lydia. AUSTEN • ebook

If you are curious to find out more about the patterns found in media, try looking up a book on Tropedia. You may find yourself surprised by the list of tropes a single novel contains, and even more surprised to see if there is a trend connecting all your favorite books.

Recently I found myself scrolling through all of the newest book adaptations available on Netflix. Young adult novels are really having a moment--which got me thinking about some of my favorites. Some readers may argue with some of my choices but polling my coworkers on their picks was entertaining because we all appreciate different genres and their adaptations

So what movies made it onto the good list?

• Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton
• Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier
• James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
• A Time to Kill by John Grisham
• It by Stephen King
• Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

What about the bad?

The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne was filmed in 1995 with Gary Oldman and Demi Moore, in one word: embarrassing. The adaptation miserably failed to portray the suspense and restraint behind this forbidden love story. Eragon by Christopher Paolini hit the big screen in 2006 and despite having seasoned actors and a well established production company, it left the fans much to desire. The costumes, the special effects and the dialogue did not match the thrill we felt when reading the novel for the first time.

The Island of Dr. Moreau by H.G. Wells received a second screen adaptation in 1996 with Marlon Brando, Val Kilmer and David Thewlis playing titular characters. Filming and production on this movie was notorious for setbacks and crew disagreements; did the heat from filming on location render them unproductive? The movie lacks the ability to demonstrate the horror that is a man toying with nature to create hybrid creatures. While the story is supposed to be disturbing, this remake leaves much to be desired. Every time I think of Marlon Brando wearing white face paint and a giant kaftan I face-palm.

What about those adaptations that have inconsistencies with its novel counterpart but are still worth seeing in the movie theatre?

Here are some recommendations:

• World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Max Brooks
• The Fellowship of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
• To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Watch them and compare! Decide for yourself and become a fan of the book and the movie!