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Children's Newsletter July 2026 |
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| The Pitkin County Library will be closed Saturday, July 4, in honor of Independence Day. |
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Summer Reading at the Library |
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ASL Storytime with Anisa Lavender
Children's Room Wednesday, July 1 | 10:30-11:00am
Join us for a special ASL (American Sign Language) Storytime in partnership with educator Anisa Lavender! |
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Denise Gard: Storycreations
with Joey and Kira Dunaway Community Room
Thursday, July 2 | 10:30am-12:00pm
When a time machine lands in Denise Gard's backyard, Joey and Kira decide to travel back in time to when dinosaurs roamed the earth. Will Joey's dream of chewing on dinosaur bones come true or will he and Kira become dino-food? Find out in this interactive program full of dog tricks!
This event will take place in the Dunaway Community Meeting Room. |
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Ann Lincoln: FOAM PARTY!
Galena Plaza | Monday, July 6 | 2:00-3:00pm
Monday, July 27 | 2:00-3:00pm
Get ready to get lost in mounds of foam at our annual foam party! Come dressed in bathing suits or clothes you feel comfortable getting wet in and wear non-slip shoes.
This event will take place outside the Library on the Galena Street Plaza. |
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Children's Dinosaur Movie Night:
Ice Age (2002) Children's Room
Tuesday, July 7 | 4:30-6:00pm
Join us for a special movie night at the Library! This month we will be watching Ice Age (2002).
"Twenty-thousand years ago, Earth was a wondrous, prehistoric world filled with great danger, not the least of which is the beginning of the Ice Age. To avoid a terrible frostbite, the planet's majestic creatures - and a few small, slothful ones - begin migrating south. The story revolves around sub-zero heroes: a woolly mammoth, a saber-toothed tiger, a sloth and a prehistoric combination of a squirrel and rat, known as Scrat." (Rotten Tomatoes)
This event will take place in the Children's Room and light snacks will be provided. |
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Special Musical Storytime
with Dinosaur O'Dell Dunaway Community Room
Wednesday, July 8 | 10:30-11:00am
Join us for a special storytime with storyteller and musician Dinosaur O'Dell!
About the Dinosaur O'Dell Show:
Travel back 550 million years to explore the history of life on Earth! Through music, storytelling, and audience participation, Dinosaur O’Dell guides audiences from ancient ocean creatures to dinosaurs and mammals—discovering evolution, extinction, and the asteroid that changed our planet forever. |
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Special Bilingual Dinosaur Yoga Storytime with Diana Laughlin
Dunaway Community Room | Wednesday, July 15 | 10:30-11:15am
Practice kid-friendly yoga, mindfulness, breathing, stories, and songs in English and Spanish at a dinosaur-themed yoga class. Bring your own yoga mat or borrow one from us. Recommended for ages 4 - 10; all ages and families are welcome. Registration is not required for this event and there are no minimum or maximum group sizes. |
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Special Snowmastadon ACES Children's Storytime with Denali Barron
Children's Room | Monday, July 20 | 10:30-11:00am
This summer we are joined by Denali Barron from ACES to discuss mastodons in honor of the Summer Reading Program. |
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Youth Services Recommends... |
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Noelle (Children's Collection Developer)
The Lions' Run
"Petit éclair. That’s what the other boys at the orphanage call Lucas DuBois. Lucas is tired of his cowardly reputation, just as he’s tired of the war and the Nazi occupation of his French village. He longs to show how brave he can be. He gets the chance when he saves a litter of kittens from cruel boys and brings them to an abandoned stable to care for them. There he comes upon a stranger who is none too happy to see him: Alice, the daughter of a horse trainer, who is hiding her filly from German soldiers. Soon Lucas begins to realize they are not the only ones in the village with secrets. The housekeeper at the German maternity home and a priest at the orphanage pass coded messages; a young mother at the home makes dangerous plans to keep her baby from forced adoption; and a neighbor in town may be harboring a Jewish family.Emboldened by the unlikely heroes all around him, Lucas is forced to decide how much he is willing to risk to make the most courageous rescue of all. Perfect for fans of Alan Gratz, this brilliant, accessible novel illuminates a little-known aspect of World War II history."
Check out this book here... |
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Rachel (Young Adult Collection Developer)
Daughter of the Deep by Rick Riordan
"New York Times #1 best-selling author Rick Riordan pays homage to Jules Verne in his exciting modern take on 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. Ana Dakkar is a freshman at Harding-Pencroft Academy, a five-year high school that graduates the best marine scientists, naval warriors, navigators, and underwater explorers in the world. Ana’s parents died while on a scientific expedition two years ago, and the only family’s she’s got left is her older brother, Dev, also a student at HP. Ana’s freshman year culminates with the class’s weekend trial at sea, the details of which have been kept secret. She only hopes she has what it’ll take to succeed. All her worries are blown out of the water when, on the bus ride to the ship, Ana and her schoolmates witness a terrible tragedy that will change the trajectory of their lives. But wait, there’s more. The professor accompanying them informs Ana that their rival school, Land Institute, and Harding-Pencroft have been fighting a cold war for a hundred and fifty years. Now that cold war has been turned up to a full broil, and the freshman are in danger of becoming fish food. In a race against deadly enemies, Ana will make amazing friends and astounding discoveries about her heritage as she puts her leadership skills to the test for the first time. Rick Riordan’s trademark humor, fast-paced action, and wide cast of characters are on full display in this undersea adventure."
(Disney-Hyperion)
Check out this book here... |
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Ginny (Head of Circulation and After School Wednesdays Wizard Extraordinaire)
Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library
"When Kyle Keeley learns that the world’s most famous game maker, Luigi Lemoncello, has designed the town’s new library and is having an invitation-only lock-in on opening night, he’s determined to be there! But the tricky part isn’t getting into the library—it’s getting out. Because when morning comes, the doors stay locked. Kyle and the other." (Penguin Random House)
Check out this book here... |
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Shannon (Head of Youth Services)
Games of Deception
"From the New York Times bestselling author of Strong Inside comes the remarkable true story of the birth of Olympic basketball at the 1936 Summer Games in Hitler’s Germany. Perfect for fans of The Boys in the Boat and Unbroken. On a scorching hot day in July 1936, thousands of people cheered as the U.S. Olympic teams boarded the S.S. Manhattan, bound for Berlin. Among the athletes were the 14 players representing the first-ever U.S. Olympic basketball team. As thousands of supporters waved American flags on the docks, it was easy to miss the one courageous man holding a BOYCOTT NAZI GERMANY sign. But it was too late for a boycott now; the ship had already left the harbor. 1936 was a turbulent time in world history. Adolf Hitler had gained power in Germany three years earlier. Jewish people and political opponents of the Nazis were the targets of vicious mistreatment, yet were unaware of the horrors that awaited them in the coming years. But the Olympians on board the S.S. Manhattan and other international visitors wouldn’t see any signs of trouble in Berlin. Streets were swept, storefronts were painted, and every German citizen greeted them with a smile. Like a movie set, it was all just a facade, meant to distract from the terrible things happening behind the scenes. This is the incredible true story of basketball, from its invention by James Naismith in Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1891, to the sport’s Olympic debut in Berlin and the eclectic mix of people, events and propaganda on both sides of the Atlantic that made it all possible. Includes photos throughout, a Who’s-Who of the 1936 Olympics, bibliography, and index." (Penguin Random House)
Check out this book here... |
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Grace (Early Literacy Librarian)
Bark, George
"From acclaimed author-illustrator Jules Feiffer, Bark, George is a hilarious, subversive story about a dog who can't . . . bark! This picture book geared for the youngest readers is perfect for those who love Mo Willems's Pigeon series. When George's mother tells her son to bark, George goes "Meow," which definitely isn't right because George is a dog. When she asks him again, he goes "Oink." What's going on with George? Readers will delight at the surprise ending!" (HarperCollins Publishers)
Check out this book here...
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Lily (Young Adult Programming
and Publicity Librarian)
Bog Myrtle
"From the Eisner-nominated creator of The Wolf Suit comes another weirdly hilarious, masterfully thought-provoking, and lushly painted early reader graphic novel. Two sisters, one stubbornly cheerful (Beatrice) and one relentlessly grumpy (Magnolia), live in a drafty old house with a family of helpful spiders. When Beatrice is gifted magic yarn from a giant forest spider obsessed with sustainability named Bog Myrtle, she and the spiders set to work knitting up a perfectly warm sweater.
But greedy Magnolia sees only the opportunity for profit, and quickly converts the old house into a magic sweater factory. The exhausted spiders are driven to strike, and Bog Myrtle is not pleased . . . Bog Myrtle is a witty modern folktale that touches on themes of capitalism, environmentalism, labor rights, and being a nice person." (Annick Press)
Check out this book here... |
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Sierra (Children's Programming
and Publicity Librarian)
The Haunted Mask (Goosebumps Graphic Novel #1)
"The beloved Goosebumps series is now a full length graphic novel! When Carly Beth puts on her Halloween mask, she's in for the scare of her life when the mask won't budge at the end of the night!" (Scholastic)
Check out this book here... |
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| 1000 Books Before Kindergarten |
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Start healthy, early literacy habits by helping your child read 1,000 books before they start kindergarten! Sign up in person to receive an activity book and receive prizes for every 100 books read together.
Find out more... |
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| Check out our StoryWalk on the Hunter Creek Extension Trail! |
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All-Ages
Children's Storytime | Join us in the Children's Room at the Library for stories, songs, and more!
Wednesday, July 1 | 10:30am-11:00am*
*Special ASL Storytime with Anisa Lavender
Thursday, July 2| 10:30am-12:00pm*
*Denise Gard: Storycreations with Joey and Kira
Wednesday, July 8 | 10:30am-11:00am*
*Special Musical Storytime with Dinosaur O'Dell
Thursday, July 9 | 10:30am-11:00am*
*Tunes and Tales
Wednesday, July 15 | 10:30am-11:15am*
*Special Bilingual Dinosaur Yoga Storytime with Diana Laughlin Thursday, July 16 | 10:30am-11:00am*
*Tunes and Tales
Wednesday, July 22 | 10:30am-11:30am
*Special Storytime with Officer Rick Magnuson
Thursday, July 23 | 10:30am-11:00am*
*Tunes and Tales
Wednesday, July 29 | 10:30am-11:30am
Thursday, July 30 | 10:30am-11:00am* *Tunes and Tales |
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| Book Recommendations |  |
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