The Library will be closed on Thursday, November 28 & Friday, November 29, 2024, in observance of Thanksgiving.

LAPL Blog

Latest Posts

Author Emily C. Hughes and her first book, Horror For Weenies: Everything You Need to Know About the Films You're Too Scared to Watch
Photo of author: Oliver Scott Photography
Daryl M., Librarian, West Valley Regional Branch Library, November 21, 2024

Emily C. Hughes (she/her) wants to scare you. Formerly the editor of Unbound Worlds and TorNightfire.com, she writes about horror and curates a list of the year's new scary books. You can find her writing elsewhere in the...

Pages

Flash Fiction book covers

Flash Fiction: Telling the Whole Story in 1500 Words or Less

Sheryn Morris, Librarian, Literature & Fiction, Wednesday, April 15, 2020

If you are having trouble staying focused these days, you’re not alone. Your concentration may not be what it was, so this is a good time for flash fiction, a genre of very, very, very short stories.


a librarian using a library photo as virtual background

Library Backgrounds for Your Next Zoom Meeting / Tu biblioteca como fondo de Zoom

Madeline Peña, Principal Librarian, Community Engagement and Outreach, Tuesday, April 14, 2020

Are you using Zoom to communicate with colleagues, family, and friends while staying safe at home? Here's a gallery of library photos you can display as virtual backgrounds during your next meeting.


Planting tomatoes

Grow Something: Gardening Indoors or Outdoors

Sheryn Morris, Librarian, Literature & Fiction, Monday, April 13, 2020

You do not need a “green thumb” to be a successful gardener. Start small, with one plant. Pick the most forgiving plants; ones that take a lot of water (such as pothos, ivy, spider plant), or ones that need hardly any water (such as a cactus or succulent).


Looking up at the dark, starry night sky with a telescope

Stargazing: Looking Up

Jack Stephens, Librarian, Science, Technology & Patents Department, Monday, April 13, 2020

Remember to look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Stephen Hawking


Peter Swanson and his latest book, Eight Perfect Murders

Interview With an Author: Peter Swanson

Daryl M., Librarian, West Valley Regional Branch Library, Friday, April 10, 2020

Peter Swanson is the author of six novels, including The Kind Worth Killing, winner of the New England Society Book Award, and finalist for the CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger and Her Every F


Book covers

What Novels Were We Reading 100 Years Ago?

Robert Anderson, Librarian, Literature & Fiction Department, Thursday, April 9, 2020

Like the current year, 1920 was an eventful one for the United States. The “Spanish Influenza” epidemic of the previous two years, which we’ve heard a lot about recently, had taken 675,000 American lives, including more than half of the 116,000 who died while serving in World War I.


a man and his giant record collection

You’re the DJ! How to Make and Share Your Own Freegal Playlist

Daniel Tures, Adult Librarian, Edendale Branch Library, Tuesday, April 7, 2020

Way back in the 1980s, for that BFF or pen pal or special someone, you would make mixtapes. The perfect set of songs, lovingly curated to express your eternal friendship, your inspiration, the dark abyss of your misunderstood heart, your super coolness or your tender feelings.


illustration by Basil T. Blackwood shows a seated audience looking attentive

From Lewis Carroll to John Lennon: The Irrational Magic of Nonsense Verse

Christa Deitrick, Librarian, Literature & Fiction Department, Monday, April 6, 2020

According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, nonsense verse is defined as “humorous or whimsical verse that differs from other comic verse in its resistance to any rational or allegorical interpretation.


Books made to film adaptations

Read it First: At Home Edition

Elizabeth Graney, Librarian, Literature & Fiction Department, Friday, April 3, 2020

Movie theaters may be closed and many films delayed, but fear not!


three of the book jackets featured

Daring Women: On Foot, on a Camel, in the Sky, on a Bicycle...

Sheryn Morris, Librarian, Literature & Fiction, Tuesday, March 31, 2020

As Women’s History Month ends, we would like to offer you a few e-books and e-audiobooks about intrepid, adventurous women who traveled for the sheer joy of doing something different, to escape from others, to see the world, or to take on a challenge.


Pages

Top