April "Total Reads" Blog

 

April is National Poetry Month and we (okay, Rhonda) love(s) poetry.  This year we’ve combined our love of poetry with the celebration of America’s 250^th birthday to focus on American poetry. We have several passive activities you can take part in at any time you come to the library this month. We will also be hosting two programs that we would love for you to attend.

The first program is a Poetry Jam on Friday, April 10, 2026. This program will be held in the Youth Services room but is intended for all ages.  Come recite or read a poem in celebration of poetry. The flyer for this program is on the blog following this post.

The second program is local poet Harry Moore reading and discussing his book, We the People: Confessions of a Caucasian Southerner. The program will be Thursday, April 16^th, at 6:00pm in the main area of the library. If you haven’t read his poetry before, now is a perfect time to become familiar with his work. You can find copies of his previous books in our collection to read this month as you celebrate National Poetry Month.

Poem in Your Pocket Day will be held on Thursday, April 30^th this year.  We have some poems by American poets available for you to pick up-one for your pocket and/or one to give to a friend. You can find our poetry collection on the mezzanine. American poetry is in the 811s and English poetry is in the 812s. We’re sure you can find a poem that speaks to you if you try reading poetry this month.

If you have signed up for the Adult Reading Challenge this year, you can get an extra name in the drawing for prizes by participating in the Poetry Jam or blacking out your poetry BINGO card. For all the details see Rhonda or Stephanie in the Marketing and Outreach office. (You have to sign up to be part of the Poetry Jam by Thursday, April 9th.)

The April task for the Adult Reading Challenge is an either/or this time. There is something for the sports fans and/or something for the drama enthusiast. You must either read a book with a sport that is played in quarters (basketball or football) or a play in four acts.

Happy Reading!

 

Don't Miss the Poetry Jam at DPL

 

March "Total Reads" Blog

 

This month we have an educational day for the entire family planned for Thursday, March 19^th, from 9:00am until 12noon in Delano Park. We are partnering with the Delano Conservancy and Decatur Parks and Recreation to provide a fun-filled day of learning about the birds and trees in the beautiful Delano Park. The Delano Conservancy is hosting the 4-H Science School Raptor Trek program, Ms. Zoie will do Story Time under the big Oak, we will have a scavenger hunt, and give away free books to the kids. There will be tables set up with Leave No Trace, the International Crane Foundation, and the North Alabama Young Birders group, who will also lead a bird walk. There will be a photo opportunity with Tansy the Meadow Princess from Magical Memories AL. The Tree Lady will be talking to kids about the trees and will also be available for pictures with the little ones. We hope you can join us for some outdoor fun while learning about the birds and trees who live in Delano Park.

We will also host another FYI program with Jetaun Bailey, LPC-S, CSC. This month will be “When Perfect Isn’t Peace: How Perfectionism Fuels Anxiety and Blocks the Spiritual Practice of Love and Forgiveness”. Please mark your calendar to join us on Wednesday, March 25^th, from 12noon to 2pm in the Community Room for this program. You don’t want to miss this free and insightful program.

If you are here for the Total Reads task this month, we hope you are able to join us on Thursday, March 5^th, at 12noon in the Community Room for Book Club. If you are new to the Challenge or have been playing for a while, we would love to talk books with you at the monthly book club meetings. We know not everyone can make the Thursday, middle-of-the-day book clubs, so once a quarter we host a Sunday afternoon club. The next one of these will be in April. We will email more information about Sunday Book Club to everyone who is signed up for the Challenge this year, closer to time.

The task for March is to read a book with a dual timeline. This means the book must have two distinct time periods that are tied together by a common character or theme that comes together for a resolution.  Books that have flashbacks do not count. There must be two distinct story lines in different times that come together in the end to resolve both stories.

Happy Reading!

February "Total Reads" Blog

 

Welcome to the blog for the Adult Reading Challenge at Decatur Public Library. This year’s title is “Total Reads” and all of the clues are based on all types of numbers: GPS coordinates, the Dewey Decimal system, dates and times, addresses, statistics, and Alabama Criminal Justice Information Center Radio Communication Codes.  As always there are 3 levels to achieve a chance to have your name entered into the drawing for one of the prizes. However, if 5 books are a challenge for you, we are happy to have you be part of the fun! Join us this year as we read books based on clues and tasks inspired by the world of numbers.

You can sign up by coming by the Marketing and Outreach office at Decatur Public Library. We encourage you to call or email first to make sure we will be available to meet with you. Part of our job is Outreach and Adult Programming so we may be out of the building or hosting a program and not in the office to assist you. You can call the office at 256-340-5780 or email us at StephRhonda@myDPL.org to make an appointment. Generally, we are available Monday through Thursday 10am until 5:30pm and Friday 10am until 5pm.

The first book club this year will be Thursday, February 5^th starting at 11:30am until 2pm in the Community Room.  Immediately after book club, there will be a program with local author Betty Bolté called “Discovering Mary Katharine Goddard”. This program is part of our yearlong celebration of 250 years of American history. Come learn all about the woman who printed and signed the Declaration of Independence.

We will also host an FYI program this month on Wednesday, February 25^th, at 12noon in the Community Room. The first FYI program this year is called “Stress Less, Live More: Practical Tools for Everyday Calm” and will be presented by Jetaun Bailey, LPC-S, CSC. This practical, skills-based session will focus on recognizing stress and learning simple tools to manage everyday stress.

At the end the month (Saturday, February 28th, at 3:30pm) we will host author Sharon Udasin for a discussion of her book Poisoning the Well: How Forever Chemical Contaminated America. The book concerning forever chemicals polluting the Tennessee River from chemical plants, features Decatur and Courtland. She will speak and then answer questions from the public. She will also have some of the local people she interviewed for the book with her for the question-and-answer portion of the program.  This program is made possible by the Friends of Decatur Public Library. Books will be available for purchase from Brown Books and More.

The first task for the Challenge this year is to read a 2026 debut book. This means it has to be the author’s first book ever published. I noticed on a few of the book promotions I receive, publishers pushing books as “her adult debut” if the author is an established children’s author. These do not work for the sake of this task. It must be the very first book published by the author and it must be copyrighted 2026.   It must also be a book found in the adult section of the library. Juvenile titles do not work for this task.

Happy Reading!

 

November "Reading Eras" Blog

 

There is a lot of HVAC work going on at DPL this fall. Phase I ended last week so fiction and non-fiction are now open again. Phase II began Monday, October 27^th, and because of this, we have made the decision not to host a Quilt Show this year. The work for the HVAC in phase II could take up to 18 weeks so the library will be a little noisy and perhaps dusty during this time. There will be different areas of the library that we have to close off for an hour or a couple of days at a time, and we will not know where or when until the time comes. Please have patience with the staff and the workers as the much-needed repair work is done so that the library will have heat and air conditioning in the future.

For the Adult Reading Challenge we will accept reading logs starting Monday, November 10^th, at 10:00am. The last day to turn in your reading log will be Wednesday, November 26, at 5:00pm. This year if you do not turn in your reading log during the time frame given you will not be invited to the Finale. We need the reading logs on time in order to determine the stats for the reading challenge, the winners of each level, and how many people to plan for at the Finale. When you turn in your reading log make sure your name, phone number, and library card number are on the front. We will give you a ticket for the Finale when we accept your reading log. You must bring the ticket with you to the Finale. It is required for admission and it will be your ticket for the door prize. If we are not in the office when you come to turn in your log you can slip it under the door. We will contact you via the phone number on your reading log about picking up your ticket for the Finale. 

If you want to be entered for a prize drawing here are the requirements for each level:

©      ❤    Trend Setter: 15 books total and 5 of them must be monthly tasks from the blog

©      ❤    League of Your Own: 30 books total and 7 of them must be monthly tasks from the blog

©      ❤    Phenom: 60 books total and 9 of them must be monthly tasks from the blog

If you have questions about any of the rules or the challenge itself, please reach out to us. We are in the office most days 10am until 5:30pm, you can email us at stpenhonda@myDPL.org, or call our office at 256-340-5780. If you want to make sure we are available when you are coming to the library, please call or email ahead of time to schedule a meeting.

The inspiration for this year’s look back at all of the previous adult reading challenges came from Taylor Swift and her Eras Tour. For the final task read a book about a strong independent female solo artist in the music industry. You can find a couple of books on The Life of a Showgirl herself in our catalog or one on any other woman who made it in the music industry on her own terms. Artists who made it in a band or group do not count for this task.

Happy Reading!

October "Reading Eras" Blog

 

This is the busiest time of year for Outreach at Decatur Public Library. We have 6 community events we will be attending to give away books and candy this month. We hope you can join us for one or more of them if you have little ones. The list of all programs at DPL and all Outreach events can be found at www.myDPL.org/events .

If you’ve been in the library lately, then you know we are getting our much-needed HVAC repair work done. At this moment in time, the mezzanine area (non-fiction), is closed due to the work. We expect that the fiction area will be closed starting some time next week. If you are a reader and come to the library regularly to check out books, you might want to stock up on fiction and check out extra this week.  Books can be renewed online once you sign into your account or you can call Public Services and we will renew or extend your check out period while the work is taking place.

The 44th Annual Quilt Show at DPL is on hold until the repair work is finished and we can get the library cleaned up. We will have a quilt show, but for now we cannot set a date. If you would like to reserve a space for a quilt or two, please contact Rhonda in the Marketing and Outreach office. We will contact the quilters who have reserved space in the show as soon as we have more information on dates for the show.

If you are taking part in the Adult Reading Challenge, there are only 2 more clues to be released. As we are closing in on the end of this era, let’s read something from the year Taylor was born. The October clue is to read a book either set in 1989 or first published in 1989. 

Happy Reading!

September "Reading Eras" Blog

 

September is going to be a little chaotic at DPL this year and we want our patrons to be aware of the repair work that will take place.  The mezzanine will be closed after Saturday, September 6^th, to prepare for the HVAC work starting on September 15^th.  The work will begin on the mezzanine so non-fiction books will be temporarily unavailable. Because some of the ceiling tiles will have to be removed along with the cassettes in the ceiling all books on the mezzanine will be covered until work on that floor is complete. Select titles will be moved downstairs to the shelves on the far side of the elevator wall.
If you are planning on reading non-fiction, please come check them out this week. The work is estimated to last 4 to 6 weeks and we do not know how long the majority of our non-fiction collection will be unavailable.

We have one all-day event for the family planned for Friday, September 19^th.  DPL will celebrate “Talk Like a Pirate Day” with special guests the Crewe O’ Ye Crooked Goat. These fierce and fun pirates will be roaming the library and doing story time in the Youth Services room. For this event they will also allow land lubbers to tour their life-size pirate ship, which will be parked in our Cherry Street circle drive.  If you always wanted to be a pirate-here’s your chance!  Dress up as a pirate and join us any time from 10:00am ‘til 4:00pm for a fun filled day in the library.

This year’s reading challenge is based on the idea behind Taylor Swift’s Eras tour. She celebrated all of the eras of her music, so we are reliving all of the past eras of the Adult Reading Challenge. You can’t look at the internet, television, or turn on the radio without hearing all about Taylor and Travis Kelce getting engaged last month. With that in mind, the task for September is to read a book where the main characters get engaged.

Happy Reading!