With the decline in physical media and the rise of the digital format, so goes how we consume our books. Thankfully, the library provides digital resources for both our entertainment and educational literary needs. Overdrive, funded by the Huntsville Library Foundation, serves as an online library where you can check out digital copies of library books for a set amount of time. Currently, patrons check out up to 10 eBooks or audiobooks at a time and place up to 10 holds on items not currently available. A newer addition to our library, Hoopla Digital allows library users to check out not just ebooks, but audiobooks, movies, tv episodes, and music without having to wait on an available copy! Users can check out up to 5 titles total per month. What's so great about using these digital sites is that you can download the titles to your computer, phone, or Ipad using the apps.

In honor of Asian & Pacific Islander Heritage Month I've put together a few of my favorite titles spotlight characters and creators of Asian and Pacific Islander descent- I even tried to select a good mix of fiction and non-fiction offerings. It's a great opportunity to branch and and try something new and learn about different cultures, mythologies and ways of life and broaden your mind and your own experiences!

Almost American Girl by Robin Ha

New on Hoopla 

The following twenty titles were added to the Hoopla collection in April 2021. (This list of recently added titles includes 185 titles new to Hoopla.) Searching each title on JustWatch, a site that lists every streaming platform a film is available on, the films selected for this list are all new releases and are only available to stream for free only on Hoopla. (The synopsis for each film is courtesy Hoopla.)

Nevermind May the Fourth, It's All About Revenge of the Fifth

Music in Huntsville and North Alabama has always had strong roots and a far-reaching legacy. WC Handy, Mervyn Warren, Rose Maddox, Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section, Jim Nabors, Spooner Oldham, GMANE, Rick Hall, Brittany Howard, Patterson Hood, Jason Isbell, Dave Anderson, Susanna Phillips, the Oakwood Aeolians. These names and so many more represent just a fraction of the talent that has come out of North Alabama and continues to be a gift to the world.

Supported by the Marguerite Cartwright Hawthorne endowment bequeathed to HMCPL, we are proud to announce the launch of Blast, a platform built specifically for our library to showcase and stream local music.

I may not be a teen anymore, but that won't stop me from reading books marketed to them.  Young adult books often get a bad reputation, in my opinion, by people outside the teen demographic. But since their skyrocket to popularity in the early 2000s, teen books continue to be at the forefront of inclusivity, creativity, and mindfulness for the world around them. I've included in this blog ten of the most influential, popular, and well-written YA books to have been published since the year 2000. This, of course, does not include all of the titles I think are great. I'd end up writing a whole book on all the titles that I'd want to include, but alas, this is a blog and I'm no writer (just an avid reader). Also, this list is in no particular order of the books I think hold the most influence or popularity.

The new North Huntsville Library is now open!

The City of Huntsville debuted its latest public amenity on Sparkman Drive to benefit residents living in North Huntsville.  

Mayor Tommy Battle and District 1 Council Member Devyn Keith hosted a ribbon-cutting on April 7 to open the Dr. Robert Shurney Legacy Center, an eleven-acre campus featuring the new North Huntsville Library and recreation facilities. The $11 million project was funded by the City of Huntsville and donations from private and government partners.  

“We are so glad to be investing in such a worthy project for our community,” said Mayor Tommy Battle. “Transforming this site and creating live, learn and play facilities are among the best ways we enhance quality of life.” 

What do you think of when you think of poetry? It can mean a variety of things to different people, but generally speaking poetry is a work of literature expressing emotion through the use of distinct rhythm and style. Learning to express emotion is not often prioritized and why many of us (me included) have such a hard time understanding and enjoying poetry. Instead, we are told as kids to dissect a poem for hidden meanings and intellectually find its message. But what if we approached poetry differently? Many of the first books read to us as children are rhythmic poetry. Picture books are often in verse. Their purposes are not only to help kids learn, but to emotionally engage with a story's ideas through rhyme. As children get older, rhyming seems to be emphasized quite a bit less in favor of other means of learning.

Hungry for something good to read? A glutton for comics and graphic novels? Today I'm cooking up some of my favorite foodie books throughout all three of our graphic collections to satisfy even the most discerning appetite.

Juvenile

Music fans rejoice! April is Jazz appreciation month and it's time to spend some quality time with the syncopated rhythms of Billie Holiday, George Gershwin, Duke Ellington, and more. As you listen to the distinctly unique sounds of jazz, there are many library books to learn about these musicians and the history of jazz as an American export.  For an overview of the time period, kids will enjoy checking out What Were the Roaring Twenties? The book describes many aspects of American life during the decade including not just music, but politics, fashion, and the Stock market crash that concluded the decade.