Here at Smiley Library, we’re looking forward to the day we can safely reopen the Library’s doors to the public. Plexiglass is being installed at the service desks, we’re stocking up on masks and gloves, and other safety precautions are being put in place. Once we get the go-ahead, we will reopen with new safety procedures. The well-being of our patrons is our top priority.
In the meantime, you can keep up with your reading by using our Books to Go service. Just place your holds online at www.akspl.org, call us at 909-798-7565, or email us at circ@akspl.org with your requests. You can check out books, audio books, CDs, DVDs, and magazines. Once we receive your request, we will collect your items and call to set an appointment for you to pick them up curbside. When you arrive, ring the temporary doorbell on the table in front of the Vine Street entrance and we will bring your items outside and place them on the table for you. Please be sure to wear a face covering and practice social distancing when picking up your items. When you’re finished, you may drop your items off in the book drop. All returned items go through a three-day sterilization/quarantine process before being put back into circulation.
You can also use your library card to access eBooks, popular magazines, streaming movies, databases, and newspapers including the New York Times and the Redlands Daily Facts. You can also explore your genealogy using Ancestry or even learn a new language with the Pronunciator database. Just grab your library card, log on, and start exploring. There’s something for everyone!
Kanopy is currently featuring films about racial and social injustice. Inspiring documentaries like “The Talk: Race in America,” “P.S. I Can’t Breathe,” and many others can help contribute to a more open dialogue about race relations in modern America.
The Great Courses include such titles as “How to Read and Understand Shakespeare,” “Big Questions of Philosophy,” and “Masterpieces of the Ancient World.” You can also learn to meditate, play the piano, and even train your dog using the Great Courses.
One of our Kanopy staff favorites is “Party Girl,” a 1995 dramedy starring Parker Posey as Mary, a free-spirited young woman who goes to raves and parties her money away. Following an arrest, Mary finds herself without bail money, so she gets a loan and takes a job as – gasp – a library clerk! Mary worries that working in a library will cramp her style, and she can’t make heads or tails of the Dewey Decimal System. No spoilers, but let’s just say Mary learns how to enjoy library life while staying true to her party girl nature. Of course, here at the Smiley, we already knew that library folks know how to party.