Posted in Get Connected

Tell Your Story

Jamberry by [Degen, Bruce]

My water story goes something like this: Growing up, my sister, our cadre of cousins, and I bopped around from one relative’s home to the next. While we may have gotten into a few pickles, our summer story was mostly sweet.

When the berries ripened on the Seattle river banks, all of our relatives from my granny to my aunts and uncles to the tiniest of cousins would pile into a variety of boats and barges and float down the river, stopping along the way to harvest the wild berries. When our buckets were filled, we returned to Granny’s house for an intense jam session. It wasn’t unusual to see bramble-scraped arms, berry-stained mouths, and paraffin-dipped fingertips. And smiles. Dozens of smiles that lasted all year long as we popped open our coveted jars of summer-fresh jam.

It might be why I can recite Bruce Degen’s Jamberry, as if it were a Shakespeare original.

Do you have a unique or interesting water story? Or one steeped in tradition like a good cup of tea? Has water (or the lack thereof) played an important role in your life? If so, Meinders Community Library would love to hear from you.

As a host community for the traveling exhibit of We Are Water MN this summer, we are gathering stories that convey your relationship to water. We are looking for 10-15 individuals who would like to share their water-related experiences through an interview that may make up part of the exhibit.

The interviews will take place between Wednesday, February 26 and Friday, February 28, and should be scheduled by the end of next week.

What are we looking for? Ways water has impacted you. If you are interested in sharing your story, please fill out the form below and let us know how to best reach you. If we can make it work, we will schedule you for an interview. Your voice is important to us, and your stories matter–no matter how big or small, or sweet or sour they may be.

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Thank you for your response. ✨

Posted in Alerts

We Are Open

Despite the wind that’s whipping across the country roads, the library is open until 8:00pm. If the weather deteriorates, however, we may run on shortened hours.

Stop back on our blog, check the Kelo closeline, or follow us on Facebook to stay up to date on library closings. You can also call to double check our status before driving out.

Have a safe and warm day.

Posted in Book Talk

New Books for Your Winter Reading

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Did you know that it’s not too late to sign up for Meinders Community Library’s Winter Reading Program? Participants who read twelve books January 1st through March 31st get a prize. To inspire your winter reading, here are some of Meinders Community Library’s new adult fiction and genre titles.

Adult Fiction

  • The Bromance Book Club by Lyssa Kay Adams
  • A Long Petal of the Sea by Isabel Allende
  • Followers by Megan Angelo
  • Love Her or Lose Her by Tessa Bailey
  • Husband Material by Emily Belden
  • Lady Clementine by Marie Benedict
  • The Confession Club by Elizabeth Berg
  • Big Lies in a Small Town by Diane Chamberlain
  • Not the Girl You Marry by Andie J. Christopher
  • Africaville by Jeffrey Colvin
  • American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins
  • We Met in December by Rosie Curtis
  • Westering Women by Sandra Dallas
  • Twenty-One Truths About Love by Matthew Dicks
  • Good Girls Lie by J. T. Ellison
  • Twisted Twenty-Six by Janet Evanovich
  • The Wives by Tarryn Fisher
  • How Quickly She Disappears by Raymond Fleischmann
  • Thief River Falls by Brian Freeman
  • Bound for Murder by Victoria Gilbert
  • Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talie Hibbert
  • Careless Whiskers by Miranda James
  • The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell
  • Meg & Jo by Virginia Kantra
  • The Museum of Desire by Jonathan Kellerman
  • When We Were Vikings by Andrew MacDonald
  • Blitzed by Alexa Martin
  • Long Bright River by Liz Moore
  • Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano
  • You Were There Too by Colleen Oakley
  • Lost by James Patterson & James O. Born
  • The Missing American by Kwei Quartey
  • Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid
  • Golden in Death by J. D. Robb
  • Reputation by Sara Shepard
  • A Madness of Sunshine by Nalini Singh
  • Moral Compass by Danielle Steel
  • Ruby & Roland by Faith Sullivan
  • The Dead Girls Club by Damien Angelica Walters
  • All the Ways We Said Goodbye by Beatriz Williams, Lauren Willig, & Karen White
  • Would Like to Meet by Rachel Winters
  • Treason by Stuart Woods

Inspirational

  • Memories of Glass by Melanie Dobson
  • Poor Mrs. Rigsby by Kathy Herman
  • Day of Reckoning by Kathy Herman
  • Lake Season by Denise Huner
  • In a Doctor’s Arms by Lisa Mondello
  • A Long Time Comin’ by Robin W. Pearson
  • Anna’s Return by Marta Perry
  • Forever Hidden by Tracie Peterson
  • The Way of the Brave by Susan May Warren

Large Print & Western

  • Scarlet Fever by Rita Mae Brown
  • Gunfighter’s Revenge by James Clay
  • The Daughter’s Tale by Armando Lucas Correa
  • The Shape of Night by Tess Gerritsen
  • Her Deadly Secrets by Laura Griffin
  • Empire of Lies by Raymond Khoury
  • Death Rattle by Sean Lynch
  • The Peppermint Tea Chronicles by Alexander McCall Smith
  • Pursuit by Joyce Carol Oates
  • Deadwood Ambush by Lauran Paine
  • Ride into Trouble by R. W. Stone

Science Fiction and Fantasy

  • Interference by Sue Burke
  • Highfire by Eoin Colfer
  • Come Tumbling Down by Seanan McGuire
  • The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern
  • The Deep by Rivers Solomon

-Emily

Posted in News

US Highway 75 Too Bumpy?

Filling out your census form may help.

Census PrepGetting a solid head count on who lives where helps the government disperse funds appropriately. According to our training on the 2020 Census, Minnesota receives $15 billion per year for programs such as Medicaid, the State Children’s Health Insurance Program, and Federal Transit Grants.

Even your local library is supported by Federal dollars that are distributed to communities based on Census data.

An under-count of our population means fewer dollars for our area, leaving some programs underfunded. It can also mean decreased representation in Washington, D.C., and fewer businesses willing to move to town, thus impacting our economic health.

Counting every individual in our community is crucial. As a Questionnaire Assistance Center for the 2020 Census, Meinders Community Library can help you navigate the ins and outs of the Census.

As the Census can be filled out online, we are hosting an informational session tomorrow night from 6pm-8pm. During this time, any community member can stop in and ask us questions about how the Census will work, what information you will need to fill out the Census, and why completing the Census is important to your community.

In addition, we will help you navigate the internet so you can be prepared for answering your Census online. This may include finding the right website, learning how to access information in a variety of different languages, or basic computer use such as using a mouse.

If you know anyone who could benefit from advance help with the Census, please share this information. Over the next six months, we will continue to host sessions and provide updated information to help make sure that our community is counted.

stay connected~ jody

Posted in Get Connected

Say Cheese!

Say Cheese

Have you ever wondered how to make a beautiful meat and cheese board? To learn how, come to Meinders Community Library on Monday, February 3rd at 6:30pm. Registration requested so we have ample supplies for participants.

Posted in Book Talk

Youth Media Awards

89201777-3E37-4614-B4EB-B40886DE0E39This morning, the Youth Media Awards were announced at the American Library Association’s Midwinter Conference in Philadelphia. This event is basically the library world’s version of the Oscars and I eagerly await this day every year. Here are some of the award-winning books available at Meinders Community Library.

  • New Kid by Jerry Craft—Newbery Medal and Coretta Scott King (Author) Book Award
  • The Undefeated written by Kwame Alexander, illustrated by Kadir Nelson—Caldecott Medal, Newbery Honor Book, and Coretta Scott King (Illustrator) Book Award
  • Genesis Begins Again by Alicia D. Williams—Newbery Honor Book, Morris Honor Book and Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe New Talent Author Award
  • The Field Guide to the North American Teenager by Ben Philippe—Morris Award for a debut Young Adult book
  • Sal and Gabi Break the Universe by Carlos HernandezPura Belpré Author Award
  • Hearts Unbroken by Cynthia Leitich Smith—American Indian Youth Literature Award for Young Adult Book
  • Where the World Ends by Geraldine McCaughrean—Printz Honor Book
  • Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me written by Mariko Tamaki, illustrated by Rosemary Valero-O’Connell—Printz Honor Book
  • Ordinary Hazards by Nikki Grimes—Printz Honor Book and Sibert Informational Award Honor Book
  • Frankly in Love by David Yoon—Morris Honor Book and Asian/Pacific American Young Adult Honor Book
  • A Thousand Sisters: The Heroic Airwomen of the Soviet Union in World War II by Elizabeth Wein—Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults Honor Book

-Emily

 

Posted in Just for Fun

Closed But Full, PAS a Hive of Activity on MLK

If you ventured out on the north west side of Pipestone this weekend, you probably noted swirling drifts blocking the roads, doors, and parking lots of the school and library. Quite honestly, it looked like a post-apocalyptic landscape scrubbed clean of all human activity. The abandoned vehicles a mere reminder that we did not belong there.

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Well, all of that has changed. Despite being closed today, the school and library parking lots are full. This time with cars instead of snow.

PAS teachers are hard at work, finishing the first semester and preparing for the next. The success of their students a priority that benefits not only our youth, but also the future of our community.

Speech students will overtake the library, preparing for the upcoming season, and gaining skills that will last them a lifetime.

I don’t  have confirmation, but if history repeats itself, the Arrow Bots will be busy building a new robot for the Firts Robotics season under the expertise of Mr. D.

At 3:00 PM, Reggie Gorter will direct the One Act play. This public performance, postponed from Saturday night, is free and open to the public. You are invited to support our budding thespians today, as they take the stage ahead of Saturday’s subsection competition.

Rounding out the day’s activities is a series of boy’s basketball games against Dawson-Boyd beginning at 4:45pm.

If you are able, today’s holiday is a great opportunity to stop by the school and support the youth in our community. The roads are clear, but my hope is to keep those parking lots full.

~jody

Posted in Alerts

Meinders Open Shortened Hours Today, Closed Saturday

The library is open from 10am-2pm today (Friday, January 17). If roads start closing, we will close earlier. If in doubt, please call ahead.

Also, we currently have no snow removal services, so wear your boots if you don’t want snow in your shoes!

Meinders Community Library will be closed Saturday, January 18, due to blizzard warning now in place. If you still need blizzard books, check out our digital platforms as found on our quick links page.

You do not need to stop out to renew your items or return them to the drop box. Simply call or email and we can take care of that for you.

Stay safe and warm, and have a wonderful weekend!