By Carole Howard | PREVIEW Columnist, and the library staff
Your library has just what hikers, campers and bikers need to help you and your family enjoy the outdoors for the rest of the summer and into the fall — backpacks and a bike repair toolkit available for free checkout.
Thanks to a partnership between Colorado Parks and Wildlife and the Colorado State Library, we have two backpacks for free checkout that contain a state park pass, binoculars, a wildlife guide, a trees and wildlife guide, a book about the 42 state parks and more. The backpacks can be checked out for a full week and renewed for an additional week. They cannot be placed on hold. Consider it a “Lucky Day” pickup item, meaning that if you come in and it’s available, you can check it out.
Also, we have a bike repair toolkit available for free check out. This toolkit includes a handbook entitled “Essential Road Bike Maintenance Handbook” by Todd Downs and a toolbox filled with the essential tools needed for basic bicycle repairs. The handbook covers topics such as frame, pedals, brakes and more. We also offer a variety of other bicycle resources for people of all ages including maps, guidebooks and historical information.
Children’s Spanish class today
Join us today, Thursday, Aug. 18, from 11 a.m. to noon for the second session of a new Spanish class for kids aged 6 to 11. Miss Josie and Miss Ruby will help you learn and improve your Spanish.
Dungeons and Dragons today
Today, Thursday, Aug. 18, from 3 to 5 p.m., is our ongoing virtual Dungeons and Dragons game free for teens and young adults, available every other Thursday on Discord. Contact claire@pagosalibrary.org to learn how to join.
Enjoy free all-ages video gaming on the Xbox 360 Kinect tomorrow, Friday, Aug. 19 from 2:30 to 3:45 p.m.
Kids, tweens and teens are invited to a free Makerspace session on Saturday, Aug. 20 from 11 a.m. to noon, when we’ll provide the materials so you can build, design and create.
You are invited to two more events this month in our free Library Speakers Consortium series featuring New York Times bestselling fiction and nonfiction authors giving live, professionally moderated book discussions you can view on your computer, tablet or smartphone with Internet access. You also will have an opportunity to ask questions.
Aug. 22 at 7 p.m. features Michele Harper, author of “The Beauty in Breaking,” a memoir about what it means to be a doctor; and Aug. 25 at 10 a.m. showcases Liz Wiseman, author of “Impact Players: How to Take the Lead, Play Bigger and Multiply Your Impact,” a guide to leadership.
To register for the consortium, click on the link on your library’s home page at https://pagosalibrary.org. If you cannot view the presentations live, the recorded events will be available afterward at our website.
Join us next Tuesday, Aug. 23 from 1-2 p.m. for this free session when we’ll provide materials for you to crochet a personal bookmark using colorful yarn.
Next Wednesday, Aug. 24 from 11 to 11:45 a.m., you are invited to come to the library for a free visit with a certified therapy dog. It’s a great way to relax or boost your day. The visits will be limited to 10-15 minutes — just the right amount of time to pet the dog, read to the dog or just say “Hi.” This activity is for all ages.
Teen writers from fourth through 12th grade are invited to your library next Thursday, Aug. 25 from 4 to 5 p.m. Stories, poetry, graphic novels, fan fiction — it’s all welcome.
In response to popular demand, Mark has doubled the number of his free PALS sessions to Tuesdays and Thursdays from 5:30 to 8 p.m. to help with high school equivalency, GED, college prep, financial aid, tutoring and more. No registration is required. This service is in great demand and is used by many people, so we are very happy to make it more available.
A new all-ages writing challenge will be posted Aug. 22 on the library’s Facebook page. We hope you will challenge your creativity by participating in this free activity.
StoryWalk now takes place at a new location. We are pleased to partner with the Town of Pagosa Springs to bring the StoryWalk to the Riverwalk downtown. It starts at the Ross Aragon Community Center and heads north toward the growing domes. Aug. 15-31 features the classic fable “The Lion and the Mouse” that celebrates the power of kindness.
Wednesdays from 10 to 11 a.m., join us for free in-person children’s stories, games and plenty of reasons to get up and move. Special guests Lisa Baker and her friend Fluffy Dog will provide puppets, storytelling and silly fun on Aug. 24.
Free in-person evening classes take place on Tuesdays and Thursdays, with 4-5 p.m. reserved for beginners and 5-7 p.m. for both intermediate and advanced students. Please help us spread the word about these classes to others in our community who would be interested, and contact us by phone or email if you have any questions.
“Symbol & Synchronicity” by Julie Loar is a guide to learning the soul’s language in dreams and waking life via ancient wisdom, modern science discoveries and practical instruction. We also have six other books in our collection by this local author.
Large print mysteries and thrillers
“The Darling Dahlias and the Red Hot Poker” by Susan Wittig Albert is a Darling Dahlias mystery. “My Wife Is Missing” by D.J. Palmer begins when a wife and two children disappear from a New York City hotel room. “When She Dreams” by Amanda Quick focuses on a psychic advice columnist being blackmailed. “Nightwork” by Nora Roberts is the beginning of a new mystery series featuring a thief. “It All Comes Down To This” by Therese Anne Fowler tells of three sisters and an ex-con. “Hidden Pictures” by Jason Rekulak features a young child whose drawings become more sinister.
“Every Cloak Rolled in Blood” by James Lee Burke has its hero drawn into a network of villainy. “Cold, Cold Bones” by Kathy Reichs is a Temperance Brennan forensic anthropologist mystery. “The It Girl” by Ruth Ware starts with new evidence in a murder conviction. “The House Across the Lake” by Riley Sager is a murder mystery set in Vermont. “The Messy Lives of Book People” by Phaedra Patrick features a housekeeper asked to complete another’s novel. “Point Last Seen” by Christina Dodd opens with a woman pulled from the California surf. “Death Under the Perseids” by Teresa Dovalpage is book three in the Havana, Cuba mystery series.
“Ralph Compton Counterfeit Lawman” by Jackson Lowry is part of the Gunfighter western series. “Perilous Frontier” edited by Hazel Rumney contains short stories by four western authors. “Dead River” by William W. and J.A. Johnstone is book four of the Jackals series. “Bad River” by Ralph Cotton is a Ranger Sam Burrack western.
“Tom Clancy: Zero Hour” by Don Bentley is a Jack Ryan Jr. adventure set in Korea. “The Homewreckers” by Mary Kay Andrews features a woman involved with a beach house renovation. “Clive Cussler’s Dark Vector” by Graham Brown is a NUMA adventure involving cyberwar. “Tracy Flick Can’t Win” by Tom Perrotta tells of an assistant principal hoping to be promoted to superintendent. “The Boardwalk Bookshop” by Susan Mallery is a romance story about three women who own a bookstore. “Meant to Be” by Emily Giffin is inspired by John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette’s ill-fated romance.
“Drive My Car” by Japanese director Ryusuke Hamaguchi won a 2022 Academy Award for best foreign language film. “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” is a Marvel Studios film. “Minamata,” based on actual events, stars Johnny Depp in a story about a war photographer investigating a chemical spill in Japan.
“21st Century Monetary Policy” by former Federal Reserve chair Ben S. Bernanke is an explanation of the bank’s economic policy decisions. “Battling The Big Lie” by Dan Pfeiffer discusses how to combat political disinformation and propaganda. “The Monster’s Bones” by paleontologist David R. Randall looks at the discovery of T. Rex and how it changed the world of paleontology. “Business As Mission In a Nutshell ” by C. Neal Johnson offers a road map for Christian entrepreneurs starting or buying a business or owning a franchise.
We are grateful to Keith Jacobson for his generous in-kind donation, and to Bob and Carole Howard for their materials donation.
Material donations are accepted for the Friends of the Library at the front desk (not through the outside returns slot at the library or the drop box at City Market, please) when we are open. The Friends take fiction published in 2012 or newer and nonfiction that is 2017 or newer. Limited workroom space means we can only accept one or two small boxes at a time.
“I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand.” — Chinese proverb.
For more information on library books, services and programs – and to reserve books, e-books, books on CD and DVDs from the comfort of your home – please visit our website at https://pagosalibrary.org.
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