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Teens, admit it. You are an avid reader of this column. Every week, you check the newspaper, desperate to find the latest Young Adult (YA) book reviews. I am sure of this! This is typical teen behavior. How despondent you must feel on the off-weeks when other library materials are reviewed. I can see it clearly: you, huddled in a corner of your room, howling inconsolably when you have discovered you must live another day deprived of a new YA book review. 

Teens, howl no more. Today, I’m going to share where to find fresh YA book reviews any day of the week. And the best part? These YA book reviews aren’t written by crusty old hags…no! They are written by crusty old teens!* And you will laugh hysterically when you find out how easy it is to access them 24-7 (book reviews clearly get you very emotional). 

Simply approach an Internet-connected device (phone, computer, tablet, whatever you’ve got). Then visit www.akspl.org/teens/teen-underground-book-reviews. It’s that easy! Next thing you know, your eyes will feast on a gloriously long string of YA book reviews, written by fellow teens.  

Are you in the mood for a twisty spy novel set in 1850s London, like “A Spy in the House” by Y.S. Lee? You’re not sure? Read the review! Curious about the “One Piece” manga series by Eiichiro Oda, but don’t know if it’s worth your time? Read the review! In need of a futuristic dystopian tale set in Taipei (in which poverty and disease have ravaged the world) that blends “culture, action, romance, espionage, and sci-fi elements all in one book,” but you don’t know where to find one? Read the review of Cindy Pon’s “Want,” and your oddly specific desires may be fulfilled. 

Reading YA book reviews for teens, by teens, is one thing, but here’s another: you can write your own YA book reviews for A.K. Smiley Public Library’s Teen Underground and simultaneously earn community service hours. It’s a real win-win situation, teens. You choose a book to read for fun (not a school assignment), available from our physical or digital Young Adult collection, read it, and then let your pen fly. Email us at yrr@akspl.org for more details if you’re interested, and we’ll share everything you need to know about how you can save another teen from a terrible book (because bad book reviews are fun to read too). 

And of course, I can’t leave you without telling you about the latest book that kept me up all night. It’s Tiffany Jackson’s “Weight of Blood,” part horror, part social commentary, which the author herself describes as an homage to Stephen King. A bloodbath occurs at Springville’s first integrated high school prom, and all eyes point to Maddy Washington. Did biracial outcast Maddy burn it all down, or was someone, or something, else to blame? Teens, there’s only one way to find out. Come on in and check it out…but before you do, why not visit us virtually at www.akspl.org/teens/teen-underground-book-reviews and get some ideas for your next great read? We promise, your days of YA book review deprivation are over. 

*No offense to our trusty teen book reviewers. To my knowledge, none of them are actually crusty. 

2023 has arrived and A.K. Smiley Public Library is here to help you make, and hopefully, keep your New Year’s resolutions. Regardless of your optimistic plans for the year, we have books and other resources for you!

Do you want to read more, save money, and enjoy some free programs? Visiting the Library can help with all of these! We have books, e-books, audiobooks, and movies available for check out, and free wi-fi. California State Library Parks Passes are also available for check out that will allow you free parking at many of the California State Parks. There are some excellent databases to utilize in the Library, or from home with your library card. Review our databases on the e-databases tab at www.akspl.org. There you will find access to newspapers, magazines, job searches and skills, medical information, computer skills, research sites, movie streaming, DMV practice tests, Ancestry, foreign language instruction, and more.

There is a section in the Library with books and audiobooks for learning foreign languages, and books for reading in foreign languages. There are also selections for adults, children, and babies to learn sign language.

Our Adult Literacy Program helps adults who need to improve their reading and writing skills. There are opportunities for adults to tutor learners in this program, as well.

Our Youth Services Department offers free programs for young readers and teens. There are story times, reading rewards programs, movies, book clubs, crafting, and other fun events. Teens should watch for upcoming Virtual Reality events. Stay informed by frequently checking the Young Readers’ Room webpage.

Adult programs include special presentations in music, history, computer classes, and more. There are book clubs and reading rewards programs. The Friends of the Library has a book store downstairs for purchasing gently-used books, movies, CDs, and other items. Operated by volunteers, money raised by the Friends of the Library help sponsor many of the Library’s programs, and provides funding for our new book purchases.

The Heritage Room and Lincoln Memorial Shrine are available for research and have special events relating to regional history, Abraham Lincoln, the Civil War, and the nearly completed Museum of Redlands.

Whether your resolutions have to do with self-improvement, exercise, mental health, eating healthier, a new hobby, travel, gardening, entertaining, religion, getting your finances or affairs in order, or more playing and laughing, we have books and other resources for that, and more!

Happy New Year!

2023 is literally a week away, and what better way to wrap up 2022 than with a list of staff recommendations. One of the many things I enjoy about working in a library is that if I am ever in a reading slump, I can always ask one of my colleagues for a book recommendation. So, here is a list of books that library staff really enjoyed reading this year. The following titles can be found here at A. K. Smiley Public Library.

Fiction:

Book Lovers, by Emily Henry

The Dead Romantics, by Ashley Poston

House of Sky and Breath, by Sarah J. Maas

What Moves the Dead, by T. Kingfisher

White Horse, by Erika T. Wurth

Blacktop Wasteland, by S. A. Cosby

An American Marriage, by Tayari Jones

The Cabinet, by Kim Un-su

Lesser Known Monsters of the 21^st Century, by Kim Fu

Non-Fiction:

I’m Glad My Mom Died, by Jeanette McCurdy

Everyone You Hate is Going to Die, by Daniel Sloss

Happy-Go-Lucky, by David Sedaris

The High Desert: Black. Punk. Nowhere., by James Spooner

Some New Kind of Kick, by Kid Congo Powers

Wishing everyone a happy holiday season!

 

 

Attention all crafty people! Do you enjoy calligraphy, jewelry making, or photography? Are you writing your first novel, but need some instruction? A.K. Smiley Public Library’s online resource Craftsy provides over 3,000 hours of free video lessons taught by skilled makers for diverse crafts such as painting, cooking, cake decorating, and woodworking. Available through the Libby app, it’s the perfect way to take an online course and find out which crafts will inspire your creativity. It’s available to all Smiley cardholders and best of all, it’s FREE.

To access this resource:

1. Download the free Libby, by OverDrive app, available in your app store, onto your mobile device. You can alternately use Libby’s desktop site for computers if you’d like to take the course on a bigger screen. Screen users, start here: https://libbyapp.com/library/scdl.
2. Choose A.K. Smiley Public Library and sign in with the barcode on the back of your library card and your PIN number – the last four digits of your phone number.
3. Once you are signed into your Libby account, head to the home screen by clicking the Library Building icon on the bottom navigation bar. Scroll down to the Extras tab, click on Craftsy, then Get. One more click on Get a 7-Day Pass and you’re set. When this pass expires, just get another one.

This will route you to the Craftsy website where you’ll be logged in, ready to browse the collection and take a free course. No need to sign up for an extra account through Craftsy. My husband took the Make Quality Doors course and learned quite a bit. Of course, now I’m expecting him to upgrade our cupboards, so choose wisely.

Smiley Library also has a great selection of crafting books available in the library to check out. Some of our newest titles are: “Classic Calligraphy for Beginners : Essential Step-by-Step Techniques for Copperplate and Spencerian Scripts” by Younghae Chung, “Handmade Clay Jewelry” by Meghan Allen, “Watercolour Landscapes for the Absolute Beginner” by Matthew Palmer, “Crochet in a Weekend” by Salena Baca, “Macrame Made Easy” by Harumi Kageyama, and “Handmade Woodworking Projects for the Kitchen” by Larry Okrend.

Happy Holidays to you all and have a Craftsy New Year!

Two AmeriCorps members have joined the Redlands Adult Literacy leadership team. The California Library Literacy Services (CLLS) and Literacyworks, a nonprofit that supports literacy programs, recently collaborated with California Volunteers/AmeriCorps to build capacity in adult and family literacy programs throughout the state of California. Through the CLLS AmeriCorps Initiative, A.K. Smiley Public Library was awarded two part-time AmeriCorps members for one year to help enhance literacy programs in Redlands.

AmeriCorps is often referred to as the “Domestic Peace Corps” as its members are engaged in service to local communities. AmeriCorps members help communities prosper and bring Americans together by working with communities to ensure that people have access to the help they need.

The mission of AmeriCorps closely aligns with the Redlands Adult Literacy Program’s goal to provide one-on-one tutoring to adults who are working to improve their reading and writing skills in order to improve their and their family’s lives. The AmeriCorps members are working under the direction of Diane Shimota, Adult Literacy Coordinator, to provide additional tutoring, assist with tutor training, promote continuing education, and expand literacy outreach efforts within Redlands.

Ann Sandin is a literacy tutor who joined AmeriCorps because she wanted to apply her background as an educator in a new, more community-based manner. She began her AmeriCorps service at A.K. Smiley Public Library on November 1^st.  In addition to tutoring two adult learners, she provides drop-in tutoring on Saturday afternoons for adult learners who are waiting for tutors or who want a little extra help with computer basics. Her goals are to help expand literacy services throughout the Redlands community, make tutor training more interactive, and to deepen her own understanding of the literacy challenges facing so many adults.

AmeriCorps member Melany Chong has been active in the family literacy program at Smiley Library for over a year. The family literacy program is designed to involve parents enrolled in the adult literacy program with the opportunity to help enhance their children’s learning by providing educational experiences and books that encourage reading. The parents’ involvement with family literacy highlights the value of education in these families.

Melany is a college student who plans to become an elementary school educator with an emphasis in bilingual literacy. She provides creative input during the planning of monthly family literacy meetings and co-leads the meetings by reading books aloud, leading program activities, and patiently teaching crafts to children. Melany joined AmeriCorps because of her desire to gain real-world experience and be more involved in the Redlands community, where she grew up. She said, “I like to see how the children progress meeting after meeting and witness the growth of their enthusiasm for literacy.”

The Redlands Adult Literacy Program focuses on the goals of individual adult learners and their families.  Program speakers are available to meet with organizations that are interested in learning more about the Redlands Adult Literacy Program. Please call Diane Shimota, Adult Literacy Coordinator, at (909) 798-7565 ext. 4138 or email literacy@akspl.org if you are interested in learning more about the adult literacy speaker program.

The Redlands Adult Literacy program relies on its wonderful volunteer tutors to provide free instruction in reading and writing. Contact Diane Shimota if you are interested in attending the next volunteer tutor orientation scheduled for Tuesday, January 17, 2023, at 6:00 pm in the Library Assembly Room. If you know of someone who needs help in reading and writing, please encourage them to contact Diane Shimota at A. K. Smiley Public Library. All literacy services are free and confidential.