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Dive into Diversity: Most Popular YA of 2021

Dive into Diversity: Most Popular YA of 2021

In 2021, my Dive into Diversity posts about young adult books will focus on a different genre each month. I’ll highlight books with characters that represent a range of experiences and identities. I’ll also feature authors who share an aspect of their characters’ identity as much as possible. For the last post of 2021, I looked at the circulation data for the YA fiction collection to see which books checked out the most. I came up with this list of the top ten most popular YA fiction books published in 2021, written by authors with diverse perspectives. When You Look
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December 9, 2021 10:00 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, Featured, Homepage Teens, Library News, and Teens.
Tags: best of 2021, Dive into Diversity, staff recommendations, YA Fiction, and YA literature.

Winter Tips to Stay Healthy & Warm

Winter Tips to Stay Healthy & Warm

Winter is coming, you’ve all seen the meme. Here are some tips to stay healthy and warm through the winter. Healthy Diet: In the cold months we crave foods high in fats and carbs. Balance your diet and cravings with fruits and salads, even if they won’t make you feel warm inside. Wash Your Hands: There are lots of germs in the winter and they love your hands. So make trips to the sink after you cough or sneeze. Exercise Regularly: Laying on the couch under a ton of blankets is so inviting, but moving your body will keep you
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December 9, 2021 10:00 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Featured, Homepage Teens, Library News, and Teens.
Tags: life hacks, stay warm this winter, teen life hacks, and tips for teens.

Remembering Jesse Murry

Remembering Jesse Murry

Jesse Murry was a Black, gay art critic, curator and painter. He was born in 1948 in North Carolina and later moved to nearby Greenburgh to live with an aunt. As a youth he spent a lot of time reading at the White Plains Public Library and became friends with the director, Isabel Duncan Clark, who ended up becoming his legal guardian. He studied at Sarah Lawrence College and lived in a White Plains apartment in the 1970s before moving to New York City in 1979. In the last 14 years of his life he wrote for Arts Magazine, taught
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December 8, 2021 11:18 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, Featured, Homepage, Library News, and Local History.
Tags: Jesse Murry, library history, local history, and White Plains Public Library.

Tiny Art Exhibit

Tiny Art Exhibit

Thank you to everyone who picked up one of our Tiny Art Show Grab & Go kits and those who dropped off your submissions. Submissions are now on display in the Library's first floor Lobby. Stop by and take a peak at these wonderful tiny creations! If you haven't returned your artwork yet, you still can! Drop your art off at the Hub Desk on the first floor and fill out a submission form.
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December 7, 2021 3:18 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: Featured, Homepage, Homepage Teens, Library News, and Teens.
Tags: arts and crafts, crafts for adults, and crafts for teens.

Let’s Draw Cartoons

Let’s Draw Cartoons

Kids, teens, and families are invited to join nationally syndicated award-winning cartoonist Rick Stromoski virtually on Tuesday, December 28th at 2:00 p.m. for a fun workshop to learn how to draw cartoon characters! All participants will need is a stack of paper and something they like to draw with! Participants had a blast when Rick presented his Let’s Draw Monsters! program in October (see below for some examples of work created!) so don’t miss out on this fantastic program! Let’s Draw Cartoons! Tuesday, December 26, 2:00 p.m. Grades 3+, teens, families Access the program here. Note: a free, registered Zoom
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December 7, 2021 1:54 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, Events, Featured, Homepage Kids, Homepage Teens, Kids, Library News, and Teens.
Tags: cartoons, comics, drawing, drawing workshop for children, drawing workshop for kids in Westchester, learn to draw, and Rick Stromoski.

Tiny Tales: Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star

Tiny Tales: Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star

Tiny Tales are short “bite-sized” song and story videos. Watch one for a short early literacy break, or a few for a whole storytime! You can find our entire collection of Tiny Tales videos right here! Today’s video features Trove librarian Ms. Caroline presenting “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” Tiny Tales are made possible with support from the White Plains Library Foundation.
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December 7, 2021 1:35 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: Featured, Homepage Kids, Kids, and Library News.
Tags: library storytime recording, library storytime video, online library storytime, storytime, The Trove, Tiny Tales, video, videos, virtual library storytime, westchester libraries, westchester library storytime, white plains library, and white plains new york.

3D Printing and Design Class

3D Printing and Design Class

During the December Holiday school break, Librarian Erik Carlson will be teaching a class on 3D printing and design for students in grades 6-12. We start on Monday, December 27th and meet everyday through Thursday, December 30th, from 1:00-3:00 p.m. You must be able to attend all of the sessions otherwise you will miss some important info. We will be learning to use three different 3D design software programs (CAD and Mesh). You can create free accounts for all of these, just follow the links: TinkCad Leopoly Maker OnShape Education Each day will have a new lesson and design challenge.
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December 6, 2021 10:00 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Events, Featured, Homepage Teens, Library News, and Teens.
Tags: 3D design, 3d printing, events for teens, tech events for teens in Westchester, and technology classes for teens.

Science for Students

Science for Students

Join Science for Teens, a club created by local high school student Sophia DiFalco. Teens interested in science will connect with other teens virtually. A scientist with real life experience will be there to talk about their work and answer questions. Our first meeting will be with Keila Alves who is a lab manager at Micropath Pathology Laboratory, a gastroenterology lab. Keila will be joining us live from the lab! She will speak for 20-30 minutes, followed by 10-15 minutes of questions and answers. We hope you can join us for this exciting opportunity! The first meeting will be on
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December 3, 2021 9:37 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Events, Featured, Homepage Teens, Library News, and Teens.
Tags: events for teens in Westchester, science club, Science clubs in westchester, science clubs in White Plains, science for teens, STEAM, teen events, teens, and The Edge.

2021 Staff Favorites

2021 Staff Favorites

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 as well as a blurb on why staff enjoyed it. Books (Adults) Losing Mum and Pup: A Memoir by Christopher Buckley OverDrive & Libby: eBook / Audiobook An funny and touching account of the year writer Christopher Buckley
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December 1, 2021 12:11 pm | by | 2 Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, Featured, Homepage, Kids, Library News, and Teens.
Tags: staff favorites, staff picks, and staff recommendations.

Meet Author Scott Reintgen

Meet Author Scott Reintgen

Join us for virtual author visits with Scott Reintgen, author of The Nyxia Triad and the Talespinners series. Book Bunch Wednesday, December 1, 4:30-6 p.m. This event is for children and tweens in grades 4-8. Join librarians Ashley and Kat to discuss Saving Fable, the first book in Scott Reintgen’s Talespinners series. We’ll meet to chat about the book and make a list of questions for Scott, who will join us at 5 p.m. and stay for the rest of the program. The first 10 people to register here will receive a free copy of the book. Please list an
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November 29, 2021 1:13 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, Kids, Library News, and Teens.
Tags: author visits, book clubs for kids, book clubs for teens, book clubs in Westchester, book clubs in White Plains, book discussion, and Project Lit.

Tiny Art Show: Call for Submissions

Tiny Art Show: Call for Submissions

Did you pick up one of our Tiny Art Show kits earlier this month? Have you taken some time to paint a tiny canvas or try your hand at weaving on the mini loom? We're hoping to see what you've made! Bring your work to the Hub desk during library hours and we'll install it in our tiny art gallery for all to enjoy during the month of December. You can label your piece and we will return it to you in January. Please email Kat at kcarroll@whiteplainslibrary.org with any questions.
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November 29, 2021 1:12 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: Library News and Teens.
Tags: arts and crafts, crafts for adults, crafts for teens, and Grab & Go kits.

Library Achieves Green Certification

Library Achieves Green Certification

The Library is pleased to announce it has achieved Green Business Certification through the Green Business Partnership (GBP), a public-private partnership managed in part by Westchester County. GBP offers support to businesses and organizations who are interested in reducing their carbon footprint and making their operations more sustainable. The Library’s Green Team–led by Librarian Kathlyn Carroll–worked to evaluate the Library's current performance in a variety of areas, including water and energy usage, purchasing decisions, and waste management. Many changes were made to Library practices, including use of LED lighting, green purchasing, waste audit tracking, and a greenhouse gas inventory. Recent
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November 22, 2021 11:32 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Director's Corner, Featured, Homepage, and Library News.
Tags: Green Business Certification Green Business Partnership, Green Team, sustainability, and White Plains Library Green Team.

Peculiar Picks

Peculiar Picks

Peculiar Picks are a selection of odd, funny, interesting, curious, moving, irreverent, and otherwise wonderfully awesome, but perhaps not well known, reads. Peculiar Picks are books for younger readers and their grown-ups, handpicked by the Library's Youth Services Manager, Joshua Carlson. While the monarchs in these three books each may have outlawed certain activities, by royal decree I do hereby declare “You should read these books!” The Hair Scare by Jeffrey Fisher Library Catalog Much like Al the gnome in Go Big or Go Gnome (featured in Peculiar Picks for NoShave November last year), Radbert is blessed with the ability
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November 17, 2021 10:00 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, Featured, Homepage Kids, Kids, and Library News.
Tags: children's books, children's literature, No Shave November, Observances and Celebrations, Peculiar Picks, picture books, staff picks, and staff recommendations.

NaNoWriMo for Young Writers: Sharing Time

NaNoWriMo for Young Writers: Sharing Time

In September and October, we offered a NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) program for young writers in grades 4-12. We brainstormed ideas, learned about conflict and worked on character sketches and writing prompts. This month, we're hosting an hour of quiet writing time each week for young writers to work on their NaNoWriMo project, or to work from writing prompts. Next, in December we've set aside an hour for our young writers to get together to share and celebrate their work. All of the kids and teens who participated in our NaNoWriMo series from September through November are welcome to
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November 17, 2021 10:00 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Events, Featured, Homepage Kids, Homepage Teens, Kids, Library News, and Teens.
Tags: creative writing, NaNoWriMo, and National Novel Writing Month.

An Exhibition of Artist books by Marc Shanker

An Exhibition of Artist books by Marc Shanker

The Library will host an exhibition of Artist Books by self-taught artist Marc Shanker. The show runs from Monday, December 6th, 2021 through Friday, February 4th, 2022. “My books are words extended by images, and images extended by words. The physicality of books focuses attention and adds to their significance. Whether large or small, books exert a power unlike any other object,” states Shanker. The exhibition includes over thirty prints and eleven Artist Books. Shanker’s books include collage and mixed media adaptations of Aeschylus’ The Orestian Trilogy, and Looking into the Eye of Doom, The Diary of a Greek Soldier
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November 16, 2021 3:23 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: Featured, Gallery, Homepage, and Library News.
Tags: art, art exhibit in white plains, art gallery in white plains, artists, Library art gallery, Marc Shanker, and museum gallery.

Dive Into Diversity: Let’s Laugh

Dive Into Diversity: Let’s Laugh

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. National Comedy Day is held on November 7th. To celebrate, here are some humorous diverse book selections that may make you laugh! Sal and Gabi Break the Universe by Carlos Hernandez For children in grades 4-8. Library Collection: Print Hoopla: eBook
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November 16, 2021 2:55 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, Featured, Homepage Kids, Kids, and Library News.
Tags: children's books, children's literature, Dive into Diversity, humor, staff picks, and staff recommendations.

Dive into Diversity: Happy Winter Birthdays!

Dive into Diversity: Happy Winter Birthdays!

There are so many talented and diverse children’s authors and illustrators to recommend! To highlight them, I have continued with my series of celebrating their birthdays on a seasonal basis. I started with summer, I covered Autumn birthdays, and here we are now at Winter birthdays! I hope you enjoy the great titles below. A great resource to find even more diverse notable titles for kids is the Colours of Us website, The Colours of Us: All About Multicultural Children's Books. Happy Winter birthdays! Author and Illustrator Jason Chin, Birthday: December 5th Redwoods (Preschool – 2nd Grade) OverDrive hoopla Library
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November 16, 2021 2:33 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, Featured, Homepage Kids, Kids, and Library News.
Tags: books for children, children's books, Dive into Diversity, Observances and Celebrations, and winter.

Winter Holiday Grab & Go Kits

Winter Holiday Grab & Go Kits

The Trove will be celebrating the Winter holidays this year by creating Grab & Go kits for children ages preschool-2nd grade filled with activity sheets and a craft for Hanukkah, Shabe Yalda, Christmas, Navidad/Día de Reyes, and Kwanzaa. Kits will be available in the Library’s lobby on a first-come, first-serve basis while supplies last. Hanukkah is a Jewish festival commemorating the recovery of Jerusalem by the Maccabees from King Antiochus Ephiphanes and the subsequent rededication of the Second Temple in the 2nd century BCE. It is also known as the Festival of Lights, and is celebrated with family and such
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November 15, 2021 3:18 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: Events, Featured, Homepage Kids, Kids, and Library News.
Tags: Christmas, dia de reyes, Grab & Go kits, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Navidad, Observances and Celebrations, Shabe Yalda, and winter holidays.

Dive into Diversity: YA Humor

Dive into Diversity: YA Humor

In 2021, my Dive into Diversity posts about young adult books will focus on a different genre each month. I’ll highlight books with characters that represent a range of experiences and identities. I’ll also feature authors who share an aspect of their characters’ identity as much as possible. This month I've collected humorous YA books, from romantic comedy to dark humor. YA is not typically known for its comedies, so this was a bit of a challenge. While not all of the books below will be entirely positive or uplifting, all contain an aspect of humor. This month I read
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November 15, 2021 10:00 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, Featured, Homepage Teens, Library News, and Teens.
Tags: Dive into Diversity, staff picks, staff recommendations, teen books, teen literature, and YA humor.

Native American Stories

Native American Stories

In November we honor the peoples who have lived here before European colonization. Their presence continues to be felt and seen everywhere. From teaching the pilgrims how to survive those first bitter Northeastern winters, to the underappreciated part they played on the Underground Railroad, to the Code Talkers who helped us win World War II, there is a lot about them we still do not know. As we continue to know their stories, to share their wisdom, and learn from each other, we can take a moment to enjoy the titles below. You can also visit the Smithsonian National Museum
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November 10, 2021 10:34 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, Featured, Homepage Kids, Kids, and Library News.
Tags: children's books, National Native American Heritage Month, Native American Heritage Month, November, Observances and Celebrations, picture books, and The Trove.