Christmas & New Year Opening Hours

It's almost time for Christmas! We look forward to welcoming you to our libraries throughout December and into 2024, so here's a heads up about our festive opening hours. Normal opening times apply on all other days except for:

• Monday 25th December 2023 - CLOSED
• Tuesday 26th December 2023 - CLOSED
• Monday 1st January 2024 - CLOSED

The opening hours for Killamarsh, Melbourne, and Woodville Libraries may vary slightly from this due to management of the buildings over the holiday period, but please check their individual pages for more information and contact details.

With that, may we wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Christmas Family Activities

There will be activities happening in libraries throughout Derbyshire over the festive period, and we hope you'll be able to pop along to you local library to join in with them! We'll post updates on Facebook and Twitter as new events get announced, and we encourage you to pop into your local library to talk to them directly about the fun they've got in store. 

Why not visit Staveley Library on Saturday 9th December from 10.30-11.30am for Christmas Crafts for 4+ year olds? Or please do accept Holmewood Library's invitation to their Christmas Celebration with Rykneld Homes on Thursday 7th December, 4-5.30pm, with storytelling, games and crafts.

There's festive fun to be found for families all over Derbyshire this December!

World Nursery Rhyme Week

World Nursery Rhyme Week took place from the 13th-17th November and many of our libraries joined in with special Rhymetimes. Amongst them, 15 children and 10 adults celebrated at Ilkeston Library with a resounding 'YES!' when asked whether they'd enjoyed it, and our wonderful volunteer Josie entertained families at Clay Cross Library with lots of the featured rhymes for her fantastic session.

Many of our libraries hold regular Rhymetimes and Storytimes , all are free and all good fun. Details can be found on our website.

Charlotte Marsh @ Ashbourne & Wirksworth Libraries

During half term the author Charlotte Marsh hosted two events in Ashbourne and Wirksworth libraries, which coincided with her new book “Susie Sloth and her Secret Superpower”. The events were hugely enjoyable for all parents and children who went along. Charlotte read from the book and involved the children in the breathing and Pilates techniques that underpin the story.

The book, which is illustrated by Charlotte Watkins, is available from our libraries.

One parent at Ashbourne left this comment:

“Charlotte’s Susie Sloth Pilates and story time was imaginative, informative and playful, it was accessible to a wide age range and kept all the children engaged, enjoying both the story and the movement aspect of the workshop. There were simple but powerful movements and breathing exercises for both children and adults to engage in together. Charlotte shared her passion for these important techniques through her creative book, clear demonstration and great story telling.”

Mindfulness Colouring

It can be a very stressful time of the year, so if you're looking for a relaxing way to unwind and take a bit of a breather why not join us at Somercotes Library to do some colouring in? 

It's good for relaxation and mental health, is free to join in, and takes place every Thursday from 4.15-5.00pm. Ring 01629 533970 for more info.

Derbyshire Record Office

Picture the Past for original Christmas gifts!

Are you struggling to find that perfect Christmas gift? If you’re looking for something different then take a look at the Picture the Past website. Do you know someone who would like a beautiful Derbyshire landscape, a picture of their own village or a quirky image of a hobby or pastime? Pick from hundreds of photographs and then choose one to have framed, or have it turned into a set of coasters or a cushion. We came across this one, perfect for any cyclists out there.

Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, Threads and Facebook.

(Image: Bill Joynes of Ripley Clarion Cycle Club on his Penny Farthing, 1923)

Work Continues at Buxton Museum and Art Gallery During Temporary Closure

Peak Buildings, which house Buxton Museum and Art Gallery, has been temporarily closed for building structure investigations by Derbyshire County Council’s Property Services. Museum staff are currently removing 1,500 artefacts from display so the investigations can continue. Many of these items have been in Derbyshire for hundreds or thousands or even millions of years so every care is being taken to ensure they get packed and moved safely.

At the moment, it is difficult to estimate how long the building will need to be closed for, but regretfully investigations and remedial work are likely to take some time to complete.

Further information can be found here, or follow the blog, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Book Prize News

We've got a few announcements to make about recent Book Prize winners! Check them out below and request your copies on our online catalogue.

The Booker Prize winner has been announced as Paul Lynch for his novel Prophet Song, which we have available in branch and on Borrowbox. Heralded in one review as ‘a crucial book for our current times’, Prophet Song captures some of the biggest social and political anxieties of our age, from the rise of political extremism to the global plight of refugees.

The Polari Prize winners have been announced. The Prizes celebrate the best in LGBTQ+ writing . Jon Ransom won the First Book Prize for ‘The Whale Tattoo’, a powerful story of love and sorrow set by the sea. Julia Armfield continues the nautical theme by taking home the Polari Book Prize for ‘Our Wives Under the Sea’, a haunting horror-romance played out in the bowels of the oceans.

‘Fire Weather: A True Story from a Hotter World’ by John Vaillant  has won this year’s Baillie Gifford Prize for the best non-fiction title of the year. Vaillant’s book looks at how in 2016, Fort McMurray, the centre of Canada’s oil industry, was consumed by wildfire causing a firestorm and multi-billion disaster that drove thousands from their homes, and how we must prepare for more instances of this as the world gets hotter.

Halik Kochanski was named the winner of the Wolfson History Prize 2023, for her sweeping history of resistance in wartime Europe: 'Resistance: The Underground War in Europe 1939–1945'.

Finally the William Hill Sports Prize 2023 winner has been announced as 'Good for a Girl' by Lauren Fleshman. Now in its 35th year, the William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award is the world’s longest established and most valuable literary sports-writing prize. The 2023 winner is the first women's memoir to receive the prize, and is about the US Champion's career, as well as a manifesto for the future.

Derbyshire Adult Community Education

Reserve your spot for DACES upcoming courses next year!

🎄As the festive season approaches, we're sending warm wishes your way. This year has been full of exciting learning opportunities. And you can now book your spot for our early 2024 courses from Monday 4 December.

When you begin learning, you're not only thinking about the present, but also about your future. Learning new skills can help you gain qualifications. This can improve job opportunities and help you move forward in your career. Education is more than work. It boosts confidence and makes you feel good about yourself. What you learn can also help your children and benefit your whole family.

📆 Learning is one of the 5 steps to mental wellbeing, so put it on your list for January!

This holiday season, consider giving yourself the gift of self-improvement. It's a way to reach new goals and make a positive impact on those around you.

Secure your spot from Monday 4 January.

Wishing you a joyful holiday season!

New Adult Books Coming in December

We’ve chosen to highlight three books published in December for you to enjoy. You can reserve them via our online catalogue.

Sepulchre Street by Martin Edwards

London, 1930s: Rachel Savernake has been invited to a private view of an art exhibition at a fashionable gallery. The artist, Damaris Gethin, known as 'the Queen of Surrealism', is debuting a show featuring live models pretending to be waxworks of famous killers. Before her welcoming speech, Damaris asks a haunting favour of the amateur sleuth: she wants Rachel to solve her murder. As Damaris takes to a stage set with a guillotine, the lights go out. There is a cry and the blade falls. Damaris has executed herself. It is now left to Rachel to question why Damaris would take her own life - and just what she meant by 'solve my murder'.

The Vintage Village Bake Off by Judy Leigh

Now in his 70s, Robert Parkin is stunned to find himself the unlikely sex symbol of the village gardening club. Living in happy solitude with his cat Isaac Mewton in the Devon village of Millbrook, entertained by his mischievous chickens and goats, Robert has never figured out the rules of romance. But as the local ladies vie for his company, it soon becomes clear that Robert's Victoria Sponge cake is the lure, and as his baking prowess grows, so does his confidence. His scone recipes are inspired and soon come to the attention of the local media. Which county does the best cream tea - Devon or Cornwall? It's time for an age-old debate to be settled with a competition. Robert's sisters Bunty and Hattie are both at crossroads in their lives, so news of the baking competition is the perfect excuse to bring them to Millbrook. A summer of scones may just light the way to long-lasting happiness for them all.

Endurance: 100 Tales of Survival, Adventure and Exploration by Levison Wood (editor)

Explorer and bestselling author Levison Wood has gathered 100 of the most fascinating accounts of human endurance throughout history. From the heroism of Antarctic explorers to pioneering women in the Middle East; from record-breaking athletes to survivors of war and torture, this wide-ranging collection embraces both classics of the genre, as well as new and neglected voices. The extracts are organised around a range of themes; you will find those who sought out new frontiers, or who purposely tested their physical limits in full knowledge of the dangers or risks they might face, but also those who endured persecution and suffering, or were thrust into life or death situations yet defied the odds to survive.

Multi Use titles 

Every month we get a new selection of titles on our BorrowBox app of both eBooks and eAudiobooks that can be taken out by multiple users at one time. These stay multi-use for 60 days, so if you have a book club and you're looking for your next title then one of these could be your next choice! 

You can find these titles on the main BorrowBox page, identified as a collection with 'No Waiting!' or 'Available Now!'

Titles available from December are:

In Both eBook & eAudiobook:

• Daughter of Darkness by Katharine & Elizabeth Corr
• The Christmas Murder Game by Alexandra Benedict
• The Empire by Michael Ball

eBook Only:

• The Vanishing of Margaret Small by Neil Alexander 
• The Christmas Postcards by Karen Swan 

eAudiobook Only:

• Virtually Christmas by David Baddiel
• The Twelve Topsy Turvey, Very Messy Days of Christmas by James Patterson & Tad Safran

This Month We Recommend You Read...

One of our favourite things to do is recommend amazing children's books to you! This month we recommend you check out these titles:

Bunnies in a Sleigh: A Crazy Christmas Story - Philip Ardagh (Author) & Ben Mantle (Illustrator)

It's Christmas Eve and Santa's elves have fallen suspiciously unwell (who gave them all those candy canes?), so it looks like Santa needs some help. Luckily, our gang of vehicle-loving bunnies are here to the rescue. Cue chaos at every turn - hopping in and out of chimneys, getting stuck in snow, stuffed in stockings, and having the time of their lives on Santa's sleigh. It's a crazy Christmas, but it's so much fun.

How Does Santa go Down the Chimney - Mac Barnett (Author) & Jon Klassen (Illustrator)

When Santa arrives at a child's house on Christmas Eve, does he go down the chimney feetfirst or headfirst? What if he gets stuck? What if there's no chimney? Maybe he slides under the door, as thin as a piece of paper? Or is it possible he pours himself through the tap? What happens once he's inside? Mac Barnett's iconic talent for earnest deadpan humour and Jon Klassen's irresistibly funny art honour this timeless question with answers both ridiculous and plausible, mounting in hilarity as the night continues.

We Disagree About This Tree - Ross Collins (Author & Illustrator)

Bear and Mouse have finally overcome their differences and are living together in perfect harmony - until it's time to decorate the Christmas tree! Bear wants dazzling lights, while Mouse prefers gigantic baubles - and, wait a minute, did Mouse just put a manatee on the top?! A topsy-turvy tree is definitely the last straw and it looks as if Christmas is ruined. But maybe, just maybe, Bear and Mouse can reach a compromise in time? 

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