Imagine Your Story runs through Saturday, Aug. 8, just around the corner! All ages can sign up and participate just by logging books they have read (or listened to) and the ICPL programs individuals participate in.
Didn't sign up earlier in the summer? No problem! You can always log that series you tore through in June, a program you participated in, and that epic you listened to while cleaning in early July.
Sign up via Beanstack and record participation by utilizing their app, on the site, or by printing out and completing the PDF of the summer reading log and returning to us at the Library. Upon completing the program, participants will be entered into grand prize drawings that will take place in August. Individuals can also repeat the program three times as bonus levels for additional entries into the drawings.
All ages can also participate in a wide variety of programs this summer online. Find all programs for kids, tweens, teens and adults on our calendar of events or on our social media channels.
For more information including our Summer Reading video, virtual program fun, and more for all ages, check us out at srp.icpl.org!
Interested in using the Beanstack app? Download the app to learn more:
At the end of June the Iowa City Public Library announced a new ongoing reading program, Read Woke. Provided in partnership with Beanstack, the online platform we use for all our reading programs, and activist librarian Cicely Lewis, Read Woke is designed to challenge people to educate themselves about others through deliberate, thoughtful reading. Started in 2017 as a way to help her Georgia high school students, Lewis determined that in order to be Woke a book must meet one of the following criteria:
Challenge a social norm
Come from the point of view of an oppressed group
Provide information about a group that has been disenfranchised
Seek to challenge the status quo
Shed light on an issue that many may not be aware of or perceive as important
The Read Woke challenge can be accessed through ICPL’s Beanstack website. All reading done for Read Woke counts for our current Summer Reading and 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten programs as well.
Participants earn a digital badge for each book read from one of ten different diverse voice categories. Earn three badges from each category to complete the program!
Keep watching the online Staff Picks webpage for new lists and titles added weekly.
Looking for recommendations on what you should check out next? Library staff are here to help! Let us support your discovery of new titles and authors, whether you’re looking for something similar to things that you have loved in the past or something entirely different.
At ICPL, we understand the feeling you get after you’ve devoured a favorite series and want to find something similar to satisfy your need for more. We understand when you fall into a reading rut and are eager to try something new or unfamiliar. The good news for you is that we have a staff full of reading, movie, and music enthusiasts with varying interests and points of view. Tell us what you are interested in, and our team will use our collective experience to recommend materials that are just for you.
Ready to get started? Fill out the form, tell us about what you are looking for and give us a little bit of insight into things that you have liked or disliked in the past. Library staff will get back to you with 3-5 different recommendations that we think you will love!
The Iowa City Public Library has been doing Curbside Pickup of materials for almost 2 months! Time flies, and we have really loved being able to get materials out into the community again.
This still relatively new service allows Library Card holders to place holds on materials and when they are notified they are available can then make an appointment for pickup. More than one person's holds to pickup? Make a note of the other person's card number and we'll bundle them together! Want something from our Art-to-Go collection? Browse the catalog and find something to upgrade your space. Hold notice delivered after you already made an appointment? We'll include it, but please check your bag to make sure everything is there.
Curbside pickup appointments are available Mondays through Fridays from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Library materials are also available for free delivery through US Mail. Packages are mailed Monday through Friday. Please allow 3-10 business days to receive your items through the mail.
For more information, go to icpl.org/holds or call the Library Monday through Friday, between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. at 319-356-5200.
