Archives for Featured

Girl Power in Picture Books

Girl Power in Picture Books

White Plains is a wonderfully diverse community! Parents, children and teens have expressed an interest in titles that reflect the diversity in the community, and Ashley, Kathlyn, and Raquel's “Dive Into Diversity” column will spotlight noteworthy children's and teen titles that are inclusive, diverse and multicultural to fulfill that interest. Raquel's portion is aimed at readers up to Grade 3. A good web resource for book ideas to celebrate Women’s History Month is the A Mighty Girl website, which “features over 3,000 girl-empowering books.” Here are a few of the great picture books for young readers to celebrate Women’s History
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February 27, 2020 10:00 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, eNewsletter, Evergreen, Featured, Homepage Kids, Kids, and Library News.
Tags: picture books and womens history month.

Peculiar Picks: Narwhal and Jellyfish Series

Peculiar Picks: Narwhal and Jellyfish Series

Peculiar picks are a selection of odd, funny, interesting, curious, moving, irreverent, and otherwise wonderfully awesome, but perhaps not well known, reads. Picture books for younger readers and their grown-ups, handpicked by the Library's Youth Services Manager, Joshua Carlson. Many of the books in this column are ones that my wife and I have read with our daughter. Our experiences of trying to find books to keep up with her insatiable love of books, while also keeping us interested in reading them, lead to a lot of the choices in this column. The Narwhal and Jellyfish books by Ben Clanton
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February 27, 2020 10:00 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, eNewsletter, Featured, Homepage Kids, Kids, and Library News.
Tags: Ben Clanton, book recommendations, Peculiar Picks, and picture books.

Pointers 4 Parents: The Breaking News

Pointers 4 Parents: The Breaking News

Lauren's “Pointers 4 Parents” column features tips, tricks, and resources for caregivers with a specific focus on children with special needs. In light of all the terrible news that we see daily, be it on the news, social media, or in real life, here are some resources to help you talk to your children. Caroline Knorr of Common Sense Media suggests tips for talking to kids about violence, crime, and war at different ages. Common Sense Media is an amazing online resource for parents in general, not just for this topic. It gives parents information about nearly everything media related
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February 27, 2020 10:00 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, eNewsletter, Evergreen, Featured, Homepage Kids, Kids, and Library News.
Tags: book recommendations and pointers 4 parents.

New Book Group: Facts, Not Fiction

New Book Group: Facts, Not Fiction

New to the Library is “Facts, Not Fiction,” a discussion series centered around three nonfiction books. White Plains resident Mark Tracten—the U.S. representative of Great Britain’s Crown House Publishing (which he formerly headed along with Brunner/Mazel Publishers)–will lead the discussion. Here is the schedule: ♦ March 12: The Boys in the Boat, by Daniel James Brown (Penguin Books, 2013). ♦ April 9: The Lost City of the Monkey God, by Douglas Preston (Grand Central Publishing, 2017). ♦ May 14: 1776, by David McCullough (Simon & Schuster, 2005). The Thursday discussions will be in the Library’s first-floor Community Room at 6:00
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February 17, 2020 9:00 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, eNewsletter, Events, Featured, Homepage, and Library News.
Tags: book discussion, book groups, and Nonfiction book group.

Life Hacks: Journaling

Life Hacks: Journaling

Erik‘s Life Hacks column gives teens advice on adulting. Journaling is a really great way to keep track of ideas, reminders, emotions, decisions, and goals. Keeping a journal will help you organize your life, relieve stress and remember important events. Here are some tips to get you started and things to write about: • Buy a cheap notebook, no need to make this an expense early on. • Keep it with you, or have it easily accessible. • Set time at the end of the day to write. It’s important to jot things down all throughout the day, but set
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February 14, 2020 2:48 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: Evergreen, Featured, Homepage Teens, Library News, and Teens.
Tags: adulting, journaling, and life hacks.

Writing Tips for Young Writers: Writing Blocks

Writing Tips for Young Writers: Writing Blocks

Caroline's “Writing Tips for Young Writers” column will feature fun writing prompts/props to motivate students in grades 3-6 to pursue creative writing. This month's column is “Writing Blocks: Find a Writing Buddy!” Do you find yourself hitting a writing block—a feeling of not being able to write—even if you have to work on an assignment? Do you love to write for fun but feel as if you are climbing Mount Everest with each blank page? As someone who loves to read and has been published, I still feel intimidated by the blank pages that await me. However, I’ve learned that
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February 7, 2020 11:22 am | by | No Comments
Categories: eNewsletter, Evergreen, Featured, Homepage Kids, Kids, and Library News.
Tags: creative writing and writing tips.

Dive Into Diversity: Black History Month for Grades 4-6

Dive Into Diversity: Black History Month for Grades 4-6

White Plains is a wonderfully diverse community! Parents, children and teens have expressed an interest in titles that reflect the diversity in the community, and Ashley, Kathlyn, and Raquel's “Dive Into Diversity” column will spotlight noteworthy children's and teen titles that are inclusive, diverse and multicultural to fulfill that interest. Ashley's portion is aimed at readers in grades 4-6. Author and educator Zetta Elliott put together this incredible list of middle grade and young adult books published in 2019 by black authors. Below are a bunch of them that I’m especially looking forward to reading! New Kid by Jerry Craft
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February 5, 2020 9:00 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, Featured, and Kids.
Tags: black history month, children's books, Dive into Diversity, juvenile fiction, Observances and Celebrations, staff picks, and staff recommendations.

Dive into Diversity: Celebrating Black History Month with Picture Books

Dive into Diversity: Celebrating Black History Month with Picture Books

White Plains is a wonderfully diverse community! Parents, children and teens have expressed an interest in titles that reflect the diversity in the community, and Ashley, Kathlyn, and Raquel's “Dive Into Diversity” column will spotlight noteworthy children's and teen titles that are inclusive, diverse and multicultural to fulfill that interest. Raquel's portion is aimed at readers up to Grade 3. A great resource for parents and educators looking for the newest, excellent titles for children by African-American writers and illustrators is The Brown Bookshelf’s 28 Days Later: A Black History Month Celebration of Children’s Literature at 28 Days Later. Highlighted
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February 1, 2020 10:37 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, eNewsletter, Evergreen, Featured, Homepage Kids, Kids, and Library News.
Tags: black history month, children's books, Dive into Diversity, diverse reads, Observances and Celebrations, picture books, staff picks, and staff recommendations.

Con Edison Maker Camp for Teens

Con Edison Maker Camp for Teens

Our first School Break Mini-Camp held at the end of December was a great success. Teens worked with Ashley Perez (engineering major at the University of Buffalo), and Louis Grassi (student at White Plains High School). They worked on a variety of projects showing different ways of creating energy, from bio-fuels to solar panels and wind turbines to perpetual motion. Our second School Vacation Maker Camp—held February 18-21—will focus on Robotics. Teens will participate in a variety of no tech to hi tech activities that will teach basic skills in Engineering, Coding, Design Thinking, and Computational Thinking. Some of the
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January 30, 2020 12:00 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: eNewsletter, Events, Featured, Homepage Teens, Library News, and Teens.
Tags: Con Edison, Maker Camp, science, STEAM learning, STEM, STEM learning, and teen programs.

Changes to Trove Time and Mother Goose

Changes to Trove Time and Mother Goose

Mother Goose Play Time, the Trove’s early literacy program for little ones up to 24 months with a caregiver, and Trove Time, our storytime and socialization/play program for ages 2-4 with their caregivers, are two of our most popular programs. The demand for the Mother Goose program has far exceeded its current once per week scheduling, so in February some changes will be taking place. Mother Goose Play Time is now Trove Time: Tiny Tots and will take place on both Monday and Friday mornings at 10:30 a.m. It will be the same early literacy rich program with songs, finger
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January 27, 2020 5:06 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: eNewsletter, Events, Featured, Homepage, Homepage Kids, Kids, and Library News.
Tags: Mother Goose, Trove Time, and Trove Time: Tiny Tots.

Weekly Tech Topics

Weekly Tech Topics

Keeping up with the rapid pace of modern technology is not easy. Luckily, starting Monday nights in January you'll have the chance to learn about the latest digital trends from our Digital Media Specialist, Austin Olney. In these one-hour, weekly sessions, a variety of topics relating to the so-called “Fourth Industrial Revolution” will be broken down. From self-driving cars to bitcoin, join in on learning something new! The January & February schedule of topics are listed below. Registration is recommended; click on the date(s) you wish to attend to register online, or call us at (914) 422-1480. Programs run from
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January 27, 2020 10:13 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Classes, Events, Featured, Homepage, and Library News.
Tags: computers and technology.

Celebrate Chinese New Year

Celebrate Chinese New Year

This event has already taken place. To learn more about Chinese New Year, click here. Chinese mythology tells us the order of the animals on the Chinese Zodiac was decided according to the order of arrival on the Great Race, organized by the Jade Emperor a long time ago. The Rat won the race and earned first place on the zodiac. The Year of the Rat is then a year of beginnings and renewals. Join us as we welcome the Year of the Rat with a family storytime on Wednesday, January 29th at 7:00 p.m. For children 3+ and their
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January 26, 2020 10:26 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Events, Featured, Kids, and Library News.
Tags: Chinese New Year and storytime.

Fantastic Nonfiction for Fourth to Sixth Graders

Fantastic Nonfiction for Fourth to Sixth Graders

There are so many amazing books published for fourth to sixth graders. Each month in Ashley's column “So You Want Your Fourth to Sixth Grader to Read Fantastic Books,” recommendations of great stories will be given to caregivers that will have their kids begging to visit the library to check out more awesome books! If you'd like to place this book on hold, simply click on the title or cover. Freaking Fantastic Nonfiction: Torpedoed: The True Story of the World War II Sinking of “The Children's Ship” by Deborah Heiligman I’m surprised I picked a nonfiction book to start off
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January 23, 2020 9:00 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, Evergreen, Featured, Homepage Kids, Kids, and Library News.
Tags: book review, Deborah Heiligman, SS City of Benares, and staff book review.

Film Screening: Mildred Pierce

Film Screening: Mildred Pierce

This post has expired. Visit our online calendar for current film screenings. “Film noir” was a 1940s-1950s Hollywood phenomenon that combined “Whodunit” mystery with intrigue and romance in a dark, black-and-white setting. Two fine examples of the genre were the Warner Bros. 1945 drama Mildred Pierce along with its star, Joan Crawford. Both will be featured with a screening on Thursday, January 16 at 2:00 p.m. in Galaxy Hall on the second floor of the Library. The film, which is open to all, concludes the Library’s Fall 2019 short story discussion series led by librarian Barbara Wenglin, which explored selections
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January 16, 2020 11:00 am | by | No Comments
Categories: eNewsletter, Events, Featured, and Library News.
Tags: film screening.

SCORE at The Library

SCORE at The Library

We are pleased to announce that SCORE Westchester has moved its offices to the Library. Their new home is located on the mezzanine level (ask at the Welcome Desk for directions.) SCORE Westchester, the local chapter of a national, nonprofit, volunteer organization, is a natural fit with the Library, and dramatically expands what we can offer the business community. SCORE is focused on providing mentoring and workshops for the small business community. While the mentoring will be conducted at the Library, SCORE's robust programming schedule includes events at the Library as well as locations across the county. David Kellogg, Chairman
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January 8, 2020 2:25 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: Director's Corner, eNewsletter, Evergreen, Featured, and Library News.
Tags: business mentoring and SCORE.

2019 Staff Picks

2019 Staff Picks

The White Plains Library Staff have assembled their picks for the year, featuring cookbooks, DVDs, music, audiobooks, and plenty of plain old books. It's a wonderfully wide-ranging list, full of lots of surprises, and should help with your holiday shopping or just some entertainment for yourself. Enjoy! Below you'll find a list with links to the catalog or resource where they're available (simply click on the title) as well as a blurb on why staff enjoyed it. Gluten-free Baking at Home by Jeffrey Larsen (Cookbook) “Why I liked it: Because of the mix of classic recipes like carrot cake and
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December 11, 2019 3:30 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, eNewsletter, Evergreen, Featured, Homepage, Homepage Kids, Homepage Teens, Kids, Library News, and Teens.
Tags: best books of 2019, book recommendations, books, staff picks, and staff recommendations.

Macmillan, eBooks, and Access

Macmillan, eBooks, and Access

If you are looking for a new eBook published by Macmillan and can’t find it in our collection, it’s because the publisher, Macmillan, has taken the unprecedented act of limiting public library access to their eBooks. In response, the White Plains Public Library has decided to suspend the acquisition of all eBooks published by Macmillan. Macmillan, one of the country’s five largest publishers, includes such well-known brands as Farrar, Straus & Giroux, St. Martin’s Press, Picador, Tor, and more. This fall, Macmillan announced that it would make eBooks available to libraries under a new model: a library may purchase one
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November 20, 2019 2:54 pm | by | 2 Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, Director's Corner, eNewsletter, Evergreen, Featured, Homepage, Homepage Kids, Kids, Library News, and Teens.
Tags: eBooks, Macmillan, and publishers.

New Service: Acorn TV

New Service: Acorn TV

Just in time for the cold weather, we’re launching a new streaming service: Acorn TV. Acorn is best known for their TV and film offerings from the United Kingdom, but they also host content from Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Spain. You’ll find cozy mystery series like Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries, the droll Doc Martin, the hard-boiled London Kills, the classic Vera, and the popular Midsomer Murders, among others. Twenty-five degrees and three inches of snow? No problem. Just provide a couch, a dog or cat (or both), a pot of tea, plenty of flannel, and binge to your
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October 23, 2019 2:07 pm | by | 6 Comments
Categories: Director's Corner, eNewsletter, Evergreen, Featured, Homepage, and Library News.
Tags: acorn tv, murder mysteries, tv, tv streaming, and video streaming.

Plaza Grand Opening Photos

Plaza Grand Opening Photos

Great news! The Library Plaza officially opened this past Saturday. Suddenly we have a new, beautiful space in downtown White Plains to enjoy. The Plaza offers great environments to spend time with friends, read and relax, explore the native plantings, or enjoy lunch from the Library's Everyday Healthy Cafe. View a collection of photos from the event below. If you have any photos you would like to share from the event, upload them here. Click on an image to enlarge and open the gallery.   Photos by Paul Schwarz and Kristen Thornton-De Stafeno
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September 17, 2019 3:36 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: Director's Corner, eNewsletter, Evergreen, Featured, and Library News.
Tags: City of White Plains and library plaza.

A Year in Review

A Year in Review

Sometimes it's good to pause and take a look at where you've been—and where you're going. In June, at the end of the Library's fiscal year, we put together a Year in Review that summarizes many of the changes the Library has gone through in the past year, from the completion of The Hub, the opening of the Everyday Healthy Cafe, to new programs and services. Download and view the PDF here, or if you prefer to read in print, pick up a copy the next time you are in the Library. Thanks go to the Mayor and Common Council
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September 4, 2019 3:12 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: Director's Corner, eNewsletter, Evergreen, Featured, Homepage, Kids, Library News, and Teens.
Tags: annual report.