Meet Kid Librarian Nathan!

Posted on by Bedford Youthservices

Meet our newest Kid Librarian, Nathan! Nathan is a rising 6th grader.

Nathan’s display, Fun Books for Older Kids, will be in the Children’s Room from July 14 – July 21.

Q+A

  • What’s your favorite thing about visiting the library?
    • I have really liked the activities in the meeting room. I especially liked doing the building activities with LEGO.
  • What are you reading right now?
    • I am currently reading Harry Potter and The Cursed Child.
  • What is your favorite book series? 
    • I really like reading the Percy Jackson series. It’s an exciting adventure series about heroes and Greek mythology.
  • What are your other hobbies besides reading?
    • I like building LEGO creations and using them to make LEGO stop-motion animations.

To see Nathan’s recommendations in our online catalogue, click here!

Meet Kid Librarian Audrey!

Posted on by Bedford Youthservices

Meet our first Kid Librarian, Audrey! Audrey is a rising 4th grader.

Audrey’s display, Animal Mysteries, will be in the Children’s Room from July 7 – July 14.

 audrey kid librarian display photo

Q+A

What are you reading right now?

I am reading Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Oliver’s Ghost, and Cinders and Sparks.

What is your favorite book or book series? What would you want to tell other kids about this book/series?

Fabio the World’s Greatest Flamingo Detective is my favorite series because animals get the chance to be detectives just like humans. It is funny too!

What is your favorite thing about Bedford?

My favorite thing about Bedford is it has everything a kid likes- a toy store, an ice cream shop, a farm with animals, and it is home!

To see Audrey’s recommendations in our online catalogue, click here!

Virtual: Armchair Travel India

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Tuesday, July 1st

2:00—3:00 PM

Online-Zoom.

Travel with Jack Holmes, the Traveling Photographer, along the popular Indian Touring Route that includes Delhi, Jaipur, Agri, and Varanasi. UNESCO sites abound in these cities. Visit the Gandhi Memorial, the Jaipur Astrological/Astronomical center, the Taj Mahal, and the Holy Ganges River. The food is amazing, and the culture is very different from what we experience in the USA. Holmes is the owner of “Images From Near and Far” at Western Avenue Studios in Lowell. A retired high school teacher, he previously served as President of the Greater Lynn Photographic Association and Gallery Manager of the Loading Dock Gallery in Lowell

 

Please register here.  In collaboration with the Tewksbury Public Library.  Thanks to the Friends of the Bedford Free Public Library.

RECORDING NOTE: This program will be recorded.  All registrants will receive the recording via email within 48 hours of the program.

 

Meet Kid Librarian Isabella!

Posted on by Bedford Youthservices

Meet our first Kid Librarian, Isabella! Isabella is a rising 5th grader.

Isabella’s display, The Best Graphic Novels for Summer, will be in the Children’s Room from June 27-July 6. 

graphic novels display 

Q+A

What are you reading right now?

Finally Heard and Not Quite a Ghost.

What is your favorite book or book series? 

My favorite book series is Hotel Flamingo by Alex Milway. I love the books Smile, Sisters, Ghosts, and Drama by Raina Telgemeier.

What is your favorite movie, TV show, or video game? What would you want to tell other kids about it?

My favorite movie is Coraline because it’s a bit scary and I like scary movies. One of my favorite TV shows is Are You Afraid of the Dark? because it is kids telling the ghost stories.

What is your favorite thing about Bedford?

My favorite thing about Bedford is Bedford Farms! Get the soft serve twist with sprinkles!

To see Isabella’s recommendations in our online catalogue, click here!

Lane School Required Summer Reading

Posted on by Nicole Monk

All students entering 3rd – 5th grade are asked to read one book chosen from a list of ten authors. We’ve created an Aspen List with some of the books from each author to make it easier for you, but it does not include everything. Click here for that list.

The authors are: 

  • Gordon Kormon
  • Lenore Look
  • Pam Munoz Ryan
  • Zanib Mian
  • Katherine Applegate
  • Nikki Grimes
  • Mike Lupica
  • Debbi Michiko Florence
  • Ron Roy
  • Saadia Faruqi

For information about Middle School and High School summer reading click here.

Kid Librarians: Display Makers

Posted on by Nicole Monk

APPLICATIONS HAVE CLOSED. Check back this summer for the great displays made by our kid librarians.

The Kid Librarian is a rising 3rd-6th grader who will curate 6-10 fiction and/or nonfiction books to be displayed in the Children’s Room. This could be based on a theme, topic, or just some of your favorite books. You’ll work with a librarian to build the display and write a short description that will encourage other kids to read the books you recommend. 
 
Optional: answer some questions about yourself and your display and we’ll feature them on our website and/or social media with a photo of your display, with or without you in it.
 
This program is only during the summer months. We will try to give everyone who applies a chance to participate, but space is limited.
 
 

Live Virtual Tour of Cusco, Peru

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Tuesday, March 11th

2:00—3:00 PM

Online-Zoom.

Join tour guide Jimmy Sotomayor for a live tour of Cusco, Peru. Cusco is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the Western Hemisphere. Formerly the capital of the extensive Inca empire, it retains much of its highly crafted early stone architecture, which is typically preserved in the foundations and lower stories of Spanish colonial structures. Located high in the Andes Mountains, Cusco was designated a UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) World Heritage site in 1983. 

Please register here.  In collaboration with the Tewksbury Public Library.  Thanks to the Friends of the Bedford Free Public Library.

RECORDING NOTE: This program will be recorded.  All registrants will receive the recording via email within 48 hours of the program.

 

Meet Local Author Jenn Bouchard !

Posted on by wpengine

Live in person event!

Tuesday, March 4th

7:00—8:30 PM.

1st Floor Meeting Room

Bedford Free Public Library

7 Mudge Way, BEDFORD, MA, 01730-2127

Head shot of a brunette woman

Bedford’s own Jenn Bouchard will be here to talk about her new book Considering Us.

About the Book: After an affair with a client’s husband leads to scandal, private chef Devon Paige is left with only one client in Boston, a reclusive professional basketball player with a craving for cookies. With no other choice, Devon lands on the doorstep of Rockwood, a boarding school on the New Hampshire seacoast, taking a job leading their dining services. She is shocked to soon discover Kyle Holling on staff, who she hasn’t seen in over fifteen years since a memorable night just before departing for college in different cities. Devon and Kyle must determine what their relationship looks like years later, all while dodging the cameras of an underground newspaper, dealing with the installation of a controversial campus sculpture, and grappling with the arrival of Devon’s former lover’s daughter as a newly-enrolled student.

When Devon meets a handsome paramedic named Heath, she ditches the possibility of romance with Kyle in favor of what appears to be a more straightforward relationship. But a trip to Los Angeles to keep her client well-fed ahead of his basketball game threatens to upend everything, forcing Devon to finally answer the one question she has been avoiding: is fifteen years too late to rekindle a one-night stand?

Jenn will have books to sign and to sell.

No Registration Required

March Reading Challenges

Posted on by Nicole Monk

Minute Madness & Community Reading Goal

Every year, libraries across Massachusetts compete to see what community can read the most (it’s weighted). Bedford has competed the last two years, and last year made it to the FINAL FOUR.

This year, we want to continue the fun even if we are eliminated from the competition. ENTER: the community goal. We are challenging Bedford residents to read at least 550,000 minutes in March! To make it more fun, the whole challenge is themed around The Wizard of Oz and we are “Reading our way to the Emerald City”. 

How it works: 

You can log three ways:

The competition portion ends every Friday so if you’d like Bedford to outread other libraries, make sure you submit your minutes by 10 AM each Friday.

Do you have a child participating in the school reading fundraiser? No need to log their minutes. We are partnering with BEST PTO.

Prizes:

Each week there is a small prize and raffles of gift cards to local businesses. We will have separate raffles for different age groups: kids, teens and adults. Anyone participating will be automatically entered.

Special Events: 

Book Tasting Kickoff: Saturday, March 1 at 10:30 AM

Kids, teens and adults are invited to sample books from different genres as you rotate tables for new books and snacks. There will be books for all age and interest levels.

Wizard of Oz Listen & Craft: Mondays at 4 PM: March 3, 10, 17 & 24

All ages are invited to join us to listen to approximately one hour of the Wizard of Oz audiobook each week for four weeks while coloring or completing another simple craft.

Silent Reading Book Club: Saturday, March 22 at 10 AM

Adults are invited to the meeting room for silent reading and light refreshments.

Wizard of Oz Movie Showing: Saturday, March 29 at 10:30 AM

Join us for a showing of the original Wizard of Oz. All ages welcome. Viewing at parent’s discretion.

Bestselling Author Elinor Lipman “Every Tom, Dick & Harry”

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Wednesday, February 26th

7:00—8:00 PM

Online-Zoom.

Bestselling author Elinor Lipman will discuss her new romantic comedy, Every Tom, Dick & Harry, in this installment of “Author Hour in Massachusetts.”

Please register here.  In collaboration with the Tewksbury Public Library.  Thanks to the Friends of the Bedford Free Public Library.

RECORDING NOTE: This program will be recorded.  All registrants will receive the recording via email within 48 hours of the program.

If interested, please click HERE to purchase a copy of this book from the event’s bookstore partner, Wellesley Books. Book sales will help support future virtual author events.

About the book: Every Tom, Dick & Harry: From the author of Ms. Demeanor—one of the most beloved comedic writers of our time—comes a charming, laugh-out-loud tale of love and criminality, a pitch-perfect romantic comedy. Taking over her parents’ estate-sale business is not the life’s work that Emma Lewis bargained for. Yes, she grew up helping them empty people’s nests, but nothing prepared her for her biggest and stickiest “get”–the grand, beautiful house of ill repute masquerading as a decidedly beddable B and B. Should Emma turn down potential clients in need of decluttering just because they are shady, escort-y, and proud of it? No. A girl must make a living. Around some hairpin turns Lipman ingeniously reveals a straight shot to happiness.

Please register via the Zoom link above.