(Lit)erary
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Open Hour with a Librarian
In the early days of the pandemic, when the library made the difficult choice to close its doors and offer services remotely, we received a lot of comments on social media from customers who were also struggling with how to navigate life in quarantine. A common theme that came up was wanting to know what…
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Our History Speaks Volumes: A Visit from Helen Thomas
This month, Orange County Library System welcomes Kelly Link, author of Pretty Monsters, for an event kicking off our NEA Big Read series. However, she is not the first esteemed author the library has welcomed in its history. OCLS has a long tradition of hosting compelling and best-selling writers dating as far back as the…
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Short Stories Can Be Big Reads
The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) has encouraged communities across the country to read through their Big Read program. Showcasing a diverse range of books reflecting many different voices, the initiative aims to inspire conversation and broaden our perspective of the world. Since 2006, the NEA Big Read has funded more than 1,600 programs,…
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Fun Riddles and Brainteasers to Wrap Your Mind Around
Typically when someone asks another person a riddle, they are left with dire consequences should they fail to answer correctly. You get eaten if a sphinx asks you and you fail. If Gollum from J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit asks you and you fail, you’ll get eaten as well. If you fail to answer the riddles on…
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Five Great Graphic Novels for Teens and Adults
There exists an unwanted stigma around graphic novels. They are too dark and gritty, some say. The format of this art style does not match with the serious tone of dark narratives, some say. Graphic novels are just comic books with blood, language, and mature themes, some say. None of these three descriptions fully capture…
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#OCLSReads Books for Summer
Summer has arrived once again and it’s the best opportunity to catch up on some new and popular books as suggested by three of Orange County Library System’s Collection Development Librarians. Most of the suggested titles are available as e-books, digital audiobooks or through the library’s books-by-mail service (or all three!), so you can enjoy a…
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DIY: Pride Film Festival
June is Pride Month in commemoration of the Stonewall Uprising in June of 1969. In recognition of this occasion, we have selected eight films for you to create a Pride film festival in your own living room or wherever you may be. No need to stop with our suggestions, there is a wealth of LGBT+…
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The Adventure Comes to You!
While our Summer Reading Program looks a bit different this year, staff are as committed as ever to putting their talents and creativity toward our new Virtual Summer Reading Program. Typically, we would encourage our families to come into our libraries to make crafts with us, to dance and sing with us, and to make memories with us over the summer. But given the still-present concerns about COVID-19, we are…
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Self-Care Inspiration from the Library
Some of us intend to implement new, healthier habits while staying home, but there still aren’t enough hours in the day. Others have personally been affected by the pandemic, or the past month has led to feelings of loneliness, anxiety or depression. Whatever your situation, self-care will not make everything perfect, but healthy living tends…
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10 Short Books to Help Boost Your Annual Reading Goal
We’re nearly through half of 2020 and it’s safe to say the year isn’t turning out how any of us envisioned. We are all working together to try to flatten the curve of a global pandemic. It’s the sort of situation we would prefer to encounter in a thick Stephen King book or on the big…
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From book recommendations to pop culture discussions, the Orange County Library System wants you to join the conversation with library staff about the world around us.
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