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Slow Reading Spring Session

Slow Reading Spring Session

Library users may wonder about one of our newest reading groups: Slow Reading. “Slow reading describes my practice of looking at a text very closely in order to appreciate nuances of language and hence of meaning,” says Ellen Lambert, author (The Face of Love: Feminism and the Beauty Question) and White Plains resident, who holds a Ph.D. in English from Yale University. Lambert taught literature at Manhattan’s Dalton School for over 25 years (and intends to start a tutoring service for high school students.) “In our discussions of short fiction, we often read particular passages out loud. We then examine
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January 16, 2020 11:15 am | by | 4 Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, Events, and Homepage.
Tags: book discussion and slow reading.

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.

Book Club: The Future is Female

Book Club: The Future is Female

One of our newest book groups returns this month. The Future is Female, a mix of memoirs, short stories, novels, and poetry by and about interesting, talented, and inspiring women in history, the arts, sports, and everyday life. Led by Ellen O’Connell, the group will meet on the first Monday of every month, from 2:00-3:30 p.m. To place one of the readings on hold, simply click on the title. October 7: Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng (2014) a Novel — As part of the One Book, One White Plains program. “A moving exploration of family, history, and
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October 2, 2019 9:00 am | by | 11 Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, eNewsletter, Events, Homepage, and Library News.
Tags: book discussion, books by women, and feminist books.

Spanish Adult Literacy Classes

Spanish Adult Literacy Classes

The White Plains Public Library will be offering an adult basic education program that teaches reading, writing, math and life skills to native Spanish speakers. Classes begin Wednesday, September 25th and run until Wednesday, December 18th at 6:00 p.m. Class will not be held on November 27th. For more information please call Mariel Perez, 914 422.6982. Instructor Rocio Lopez has more than 20 years of experience teaching adult literacy in Spanish. She has been an Instructor for the last 6 years at the Community Resource Center.
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September 14, 2019 10:41 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Classes, eNewsletter, Events, and Homepage.
Tags: spanish literacy.

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.

Book ‘Em Fall 2019-Spring 2020

Book ‘Em Fall 2019-Spring 2020

Book ‘Em, our Mystery Book Group returns select Wednesdays at 2:30 p.m. beginning September 11th. This year we’re reading contemporary women authors—both first time novelists as well as the most acclaimed crime writers—with books that take us from Canada to Ireland to Japan. See the full list of dates below: September 11 (USA) Celeste Ng: Everything I Never Told You A huge mystery eats away at the center of the Lee family. October 16 (Ireland) Jo Spain: With Our Blessing Could a recent murder be linked to the notorious Magdalene Laundries? November 13 (Australia) Jane Harper: The Lost Man A
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August 28, 2019 5:16 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, Director's Corner, eNewsletter, Events, Featured, Homepage, and Library News.
Tags: Book 'Em, book discussion, and mystery.

New Playaway Launchpads

New Playaway Launchpads

We just added over 30 new Playaway Launchpads to the Trove's collection. The new ones are in two types – video content (blue Launchpads) and apps (orange Launchpads) on various themes. We added several that are language-learning focused (ESL, learning Spanish, and learning Chinese), STEM concepts, and early literacy. Every Playaway Launchpad is pre-loaded with high-quality, ad-free learning apps and games, providing hours of interactive learning and play. Apps are grouped onto Launchpads by subject area, theme, grade level, and age. Featuring popular characters and brands, apps content spans subject areas from math and science to critical thinking and creativity,
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July 30, 2019 5:51 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: eNewsletter, Featured, Homepage, Homepage Kids, Kids, and Library News.
Tags: launchpads.

Donations for Children & Teen Events

Donations for Children & Teen Events

The Trove and Edge are asking for donations of items to be used in their upcoming programs. All items need to be in good condition. Donations can be brought to the Trove any time during our hours of operation. Items needed: Barbies, Kens, and similar sized dolls, as well as doll clothes that fit those dolls Matchbox or Hot Wheels type cars Action Figures – any kind Board Games and RPG manuals Construx, Mega Blox, KNEX, always accepting LEGOs
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July 15, 2019 4:32 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: eNewsletter, Events, Evergreen, Featured, Homepage, Homepage Kids, Homepage Teens, Kids, Library News, and Teens.
Tags: donations.

Ransomware? Not Us.

Ransomware? Not Us.

You may have read in the media that the Westchester Library System has been attacked by a ransomware virus. Unfortunately, this is true. However, the White Plains Public Library is on a separate network from the Westchester Library System and our data has not been affected in any way. Access to the catalog and all other resources is unchanged.
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July 10, 2019 3:50 pm | by | 2 Comments
Categories: Director's Corner, Featured, Homepage, and Library News.

The Jewish Museum Pass Now Available

The Jewish Museum Pass Now Available

The White Plains Public Library is pleased to announce the addition of The Jewish Museum 1109 Fifth Avenue NYC to the Museum Pass Program.  The Library pass provides free admission for two adults of and all children 18 and under. Located on New York City’s Museum Mile, the Jewish Museum is a museum at the intersection of art and Jewish culture for people of all backgrounds. Founded in 1904, the Museum was the first institution of its kind in the United States and one of the oldest Jewish museums in the world. The Museum maintains a unique collection of nearly
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December 22, 2018 4:13 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: eNewsletter, Evergreen, Featured, Homepage, and Library News.
Tags: Jewish Museum and museum passes.

Automatic Renewal

Automatic Renewal

Here’s some good news: from now on, we will automatically renew your material before it becomes due. Why are we doing this? Because the number one reason most people don’t use the Library is that the loan periods are too short (and difficult to keep track of). And because when life gets hectic—and when isn’t it?—the first thing we forget to do is to renew our library books, movies, and music. Here’s how automatic renewal works: The day an item becomes due, you will receive an email stating: “The following items have been renewed for you (title, new due date).
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August 1, 2018 3:54 pm | by | 6 Comments
Categories: Director's Corner, Evergreen, Featured, Homepage, and Library News.

A Major Improvement to Our Overdrive Platform

A Major Improvement to Our Overdrive Platform

If you read eBooks or audiobooks using Overdrive, then there are some changes underway. Until recently, each public library in Westchester had its own Overdrive account. So too did the Westchester Library System (WLS). So if you were a White Plains cardholder, and were searching for a title, you had to check both our White Plains account and the WLS account. This week, the Overdrive collections from the 38 public libraries in Westchester, along with the WLS collection, have come together to share our digital books and become, effectively, one collection. Why is this a good thing? It means that
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June 27, 2018 11:54 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Featured and Homepage.

We’re Fine Free!

We’re Fine Free!

We want kids to read. So we are eliminating one of the biggest impediments kids face: late fees on children’s and young adult materials. A public library’s most important responsibility is to develop readers. And research has shown that having books in the home is a critical factor in becoming a reader. But the sad fact is, too many young people can’t borrow books because of outstanding fines. But even though we are removing fines, kids and their caregivers will still be responsible for returning all library material—or else risk having their account suspended. How this works: We expect all
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June 15, 2018 11:56 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Evergreen, Featured, Homepage, Kids, Library News, and Teens.

Café Opening

Café Opening

We're excited to announce that the Everyday Healthy Café will officially open on Wednesday, May 9th. (although if you are around next week take a look—they may open early.) In addition, this also brings us the new home of the Friends Bookstore as well as the completion of The Hub for adults, with the new Community Room. “When’s the café opening?” has probably been the number one reference question this spring. Some of you may be familiar with the Everyday Healthy Café since there are two located in White Plains Hospital. Part of Peter Herrero’s NY Hospitality Group (which includes
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April 27, 2018 1:49 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: Evergreen, Featured, Homepage, and Library News.

Stamford Museum & Nature Center Pass Now Available

Stamford Museum & Nature Center Pass Now Available

We're pleased to announce the addition of Stamford Museum & Nature Center in Stamford, CT to our Museum Pass Program.  The Library pass provides free admission for two adults of the same household and all children under 18 to the Museum and its grounds.  The pass also covers free parking and a 10% discount at the Museum Gift Shop. This 118 acre facility has much to offer: Heckscher Farm, a wonderful New England working farm; Heckscher WILD!, a live-animal exhibit; the Museum galleries; the Observatory; and over 80 acres of hardwood forest with miles of nature trails. To reserve a
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March 23, 2018 4:23 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: Evergreen, Featured, Homepage, and Library News.

New Movie Streaming Service Available: Kanopy

New Movie Streaming Service Available: Kanopy

We're excited to now offer Kanopy, a streaming movie service.  Kanopy offers a unique and compelling collection of films ranging from documentaries, indie and foreign films to must-see classics and blockbuster movies. But don’t take our word for it, go to the site itself and take a look. When you first access Kanopy, you must register with your name, email address and password. A verification message will be sent to the email address provided. It will contain a link that takes you to Kanopy to finish the registration process. At that point, you enter your library card number and PIN,
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January 10, 2018 10:00 am | by | 1 Comment
Categories: Featured and Homepage.

Introducing the New Local History Room!

Introducing the New Local History Room!

The White Plains Public Library has a Local History Room again! We now have a dedicated space for people interested in local history and genealogy to explore the White Plains Collection. We are having an opening event on Thursday, December 7th, from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM. We will open up the new space and highlight two local amateur historians. An exhibit created by Colleen Fay that documents the suffrage movement in Westchester will be on display and we will hear a presentation from Nate Levin about the historical narratives that compete to define the movement. We will have refreshments,
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December 4, 2017 5:55 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: Homepage and Local History.
Tags: archives, city directories, local history, local history programming, oral history, People & Stories, suffrage, white plains collection, white plains history, and White Plains History Roundtable.

Storm King Art Center Passes Now Available

Storm King Art Center Passes Now Available

The White Plains Public Library is pleased to announce the addition of Storm King Art Center at 1 Museum Road, New Windsor NY to the Museum Pass Program. The Library pass provides free admission for two adults and all children under 18 living in the same household. Widely celebrated as one of the world’s leading sculpture parks, Storm King Art Center has welcomed visitors from across the globe for over fifty years. Located only one hour north of New York City, in the lower Hudson Valley, its 500 acres of rolling hills, woodlands, and fields of native grasses and wildflowers
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October 13, 2017 11:02 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Featured, Homepage, and Library News.
Tags: museum passes and Storm King Art Center.