Blog Entries

Memorable Memoirs of Differently-Abled Experiences

When you visit the library this month, we hope you’ll stop by our book displays in the youth and adult areas featuring Disability Awareness Month. You’ll find books by, about, and for people who are deaf or hard of hearing or who have developmental, intellectual, mental, physical, or vision impairments. (Pro tip: Some of the featured books are perfect for the 12 to Try reading challenge category of memoirs by someone with neurodiversity or ability diversity. Find out more at amespubliclibrary.org/12totry.) Here are just a few of my recommendations!

“The Cou... Read Full Blog

In Taxing Times

The dreaded time has again: tax season. Fortunately, Ames Public Library offers access to a variety of tax-related resources to help make tax season just a little bit easier.

This year, Ames Public Library is hosting Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) tax preparation appointments in partnership with Iowa State University and the United Way of Story County. These appointments are being held at the library and are facilitated by certified volunteers, many of whom have offered tax preparation services at the library in previous years.

To schedule a... Read Full Blog

Audiobooks for Everyone!

Driving around with children of varying ages, whether for a carpool or a family vacation, can be a big challenge! If Car Bingo or the License Plate Game aren’t doing the trick, try an audiobook. Finding a book that bridges all the kiddos in your car may be easier than you think—they can listen to and comprehend audiobooks that are significantly above their reading level, and a tween may be more apt to listen to (and secretly enjoy) a book they wouldn’t normally pick up because it seemed “too baby-ish.”

Adventure and humor are generally crowd favorites, and... Read Full Blog

Celebrating 150 Years of Willa Cather

The acclaimed American author, Willa Cather, would have been 150 years old on December 7, 2023. On February 28, from 7-8 pm, join the Ames Writers Collective, the National Willa Cather Center, and Ames Public Library to honor Cather’s great life and works in the Library’s Auditorium, or on Zoom.

Some of Cather’s most popular works, like “My Antonia” and “O Pioneers!” were heavily influenced by her time spent in Red Cloud, Nebraska, now the home of the National Willa Cather Center. Ames Writers Collective Executive Director and foun... Read Full Blog

Adventurous Adaptations

Sometimes it feels like there are no new stories. I complain as much as anyone about the latest remake of a remake, but I have to admit to enjoying a few recently recycled stories. There are even some upcoming adaptations I’m looking forward to.

The biggest recent success story for my family was “One Piece.” As far as manga to anime to live action adaptations go, it was surprisingly good. (I keep my expectations low on these, because they often recreate the source material scene-for-scene without being particularly well done.) It was a fun watch with good pacin... Read Full Blog

Blind Date with a Book

If you visit the library during the month of February, you will find a display in Adult Services called "Blind Date with a Book." Step into the realm of mystery and excitement as you select a book solely based on its genre and intriguing first line. It’s like unwrapping a present, not knowing what awaits inside!

When you choose to go on a blind date with a book, you embark on an adventure where the story’s essence can captivate you, free from preconceived notions or biases. It’s a delightful journey of exploration, where each book holds the promise... Read Full Blog

Music: An Important Component of Early Literacy

If you know me, you know I love to write songs. (Technically speaking, I’m an award-winning songwriter. Though, to be sure, receiving commendations for songwriting from an educational theatre organization, however prestigious, feels a bit like little like winning “best dressed” at a swimming meet!)

I’ve been writing, singing, and playing in Iowa for years and have enjoyed playing at everything from Ames Main Street shops to the Des Moines Arts Festival. But one of my favorite gigs is getting to sing and play for toddlers at the Ames Public Library.

... Read Full Blog

Discworld

Like Katmai’s fat bears searching for salmon, we librarians stand in a river of literature. But catching the right book at the right time, pulling it glistening and shiny and fresh from the stream is more difficult than it seems.

“How hard can it be?” you say, “You just stand there and the books come to you,” and you’re right. But firstly, cracking open a new book is something of a commitment; it takes some trust that what I’m reading will entertain or educate, that it will feel right for my mood, and that it will only bore or shock me as much as I’m willing t... Read Full Blog

Eric Carle’s Caterpillar

Just over 50 years ago, a very hungry little caterpillar burst out of an egg and ate his way through all sorts of food on the way to transforming into a beautiful butterfly!  Author/illustrator Eric Carle’s “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” has been a perennial favorite among both children and adults. Now a stage production, the caterpillar and his friend, Brown Bear, will be visiting Ames’ Stephens Auditorium on Monday, February 12, 2024 at 6:30pm.

To celebrate Eric Carle and his caterpillar, Ames Public Library will be giving away one Family Pack of four ... Read Full Blog

What is BookTok? How can I become involved?

All who are on TikTok and have a passion for books, more than likely, have encountered this phenomenon called “booktok”. Yet, what exactly is it? Can I learn something from it? How are individuals coming up with a “booktok” book? What are the standards?

To answer your questions, I’ll share my own personal take on what booktok is, and how you can join this community of bibliophiles. So, to the first question, what is booktok? Booktok is a land of wonderful reads where fellow book lovers alike come on TikTok to discuss books. Popular, unpopular, “fashion-forwar... Read Full Blog

To Be or Not to Be…Read

My TBR (To Be Read) pile is out of control. Somehow, I always have more books that I want to read than time to read them. So, I’m looking for a plan for 2024.

I have already joined the 12 to Try Reading Challenge and am enjoying broadening my reading from “Ooh, this looks interesting.” And “I love everything else this author wrote.” to seeking out new perspectives and challenging myself to explore more broadly. I am particularly pleased that the 12 to Try challenge is so flexible and I can try things in any order. If you decide to join the challenge, you m... Read Full Blog

Reading Challenges to Get Through the Winter

It’s getting to be that time of year again. Winter holidays are here, the air is cold, night falls fast. People are spending more time inside, and coziness is a must. There is no better season to get some serious reading done.

The Icelanders have Jolabokaflod, a winter holiday tradition where people give books as gifts and spend Christmas Eve reading, hot beverage in hand. This practice originated during World War II because paper was one of the few goods not rationed for the war effort. Books became the default holiday gift and the trend has persisted. A... Read Full Blog

Reading Goals for the New Year

Creating New Year’s resolutions is a time-honored tradition for many people. There is a whole, fresh year ahead of us and the potential to start clean with a new outlook is motivating and encouraging. The hard part about resolutions is that they are often really hard to keep. Making large life-style changes takes a lot of work and can be very discouraging when progress isn’t immediately apparent.

This past year I had two separate friends decide to track how many books they read throughout the year. They set goals for some truly remarkable numbers (imagi... Read Full Blog

Holiday Gift Ideas from Ames Public Library

Shopping for holiday gifts at the library seems counter-intuitive, since, well… libraries let you borrow things for free! While you can check out armfuls of books, movies, music, magazines, games, puzzles and puppets for free, there are ways to do holiday shopping at Ames Public Library as well.

Literary Grounds is Ames Public Library’s bookstore, located on the first floor. You can shop for gently-used books, puzzles, and more. Most items cost between $1 and $5, and all proceeds benefit the APL Friends Foundation, which serves to enhance APL’s services,... Read Full Blog

Percy Jackson and the Read-Alikes

I’m not sure how many of you are aware, but on December 20th Disney will release a new TV adaptation for “Percy Jackson and the Olympians”. This has been a popular topic of discussion for the numerous youth and teens that come to the Library. And honestly, I have high hopes for it since the film adaptations were a let down, to say the least.

Anyway, I thought now might be a good idea to spread the word about Percy Jackson read-alikes. There is of course the Rick Riordan Presents series, which focuses on highlighting middle grade authors and their books abou... Read Full Blog