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 Welcome to Your Library News
Welcome to this month's Library newsletter. This August we are bringing you a curated collection of exciting updates, upcoming events, book recommendations, community spotlights, and much more. Whether you're an avid reader, a passionate learner, or simply love the welcoming atmosphere of our libraries, this newsletter is tailored just for you.
Stay connected, inspired, and discover new opportunities to feed your love for books and knowledge. Get ready to embark on a literary journey as we share the latest news and treasures from our libraries right to your inbox.
 The Summer Reading Challenge Is In Full Swing!
Have you signed up yet? If not, do not worry, there is still plenty of time to join in. Pop along to your local library and ask to join The Summer Reading Challenge. This years theme is Read to the Beat but you can read, listen to and share whatever books you like. The choice is yours. Collect stickers and prizes in your booklet and get a certificate and medal once you've completed the challenge. Read four books to complete the challenge and six to be entered into our amazing prize draw. It's fun, it's free and it's local, we can't wait to see you there!
W&F Libraries Read Together
Last Friday of each month at 3 pm on Facebook
W&F Libraries Read Together is a new monthly digital book club for the National Year of Reading, and everyone is welcome. Every month, a Book of the Month will be selected from BorrowBox spotlight titles, which are available for simultaneous borrowing of eBook and eAudiobook downloads on BorrowBox. Augusts chosen book is Fulvia by Kaarina Parker. Available in eBook and eAudio now on Borrowbox. Let's read together. Join us on the last Friday of each month at 3 pm on Facebook to chat about the chosen book in the comments!
Borrowbox is free for library members
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 Out and About @ Dino Day
Our wonderful outreach officers have been out and about in the community celebrating The National Year of Reading. They loved taking part in Dino Day and The Festival of Transport, which saw thousands of people descending on Barrow to meet the dinosaurs and see an amazing array of vehicles in displays. They promoted the library, letting everyone know about everything we have to offer, shared stories, ran craft tables, fun design competitions and gave away free books kindly donated from The National Literacy Trust. Much fun was had by all. If you love dinosaurs and transport then you can Go All In at your local library and read all about them.
 The Summer Reading Challenge School Visits
Thank you to all the schools across Barrow, Kendal and Penrith, who brought their lovely children to the library and welcomed us to their assemblies and classes this summer term. Our teams have been working really hard to let as many children as possible know about the library and encourage them to sign up for the summer reading challenge. We now that the long summer holidays are a perfect time to consolidate all those amazing reading skill and get ready for a successful return to school in September. Reading for pleasure is so important in help our young people become confident, passionate readers and the library is the perfect place to try new things and find a new favourite book.
Summer of Science at Penrith Library
We were really pleased to welcome a sellout crowd to our Summer of Science events at Penrith Library. This project was a collaboration with Family Hubs and saw library and Family Hubs staff working together to deliver fun and informative sessions over the summer. Children were delighted to delve into dinosaurs and the magic of chemistry and physics. Thank you to all who supported these events. We are hoping to deliver more partnership work with our friends at Family Hubs in the future.
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 Paper Sisters Author Event
Kendal Library author talk with local writer Rachel Canwell was extremely well received, with all attendees saying they enjoyed the event and that it met their expectations. Feedback highlighted Rachel’s enthusiasm, engaging presentation style and the fascinating insight she provided into her writing process, story development and the journey behind her book, Paper Sisters.
Audience members said,
"Very Good. I enjoyed it very much."
"Excellent talk and very good value event!"
"So interesting and enjoyable. Thank you, Rachel and Kendal Library."
 Your Favourite Book Characters
We asked who your favourite book characters are and the response was so interesting and varied. I wonder what a dinner party with all these characters would be like? Why not check out some of these great suggestions? You never know you might find a new favourite person to spend time with amongst the pages.
 Julia Rausing Trust Grant
Westmorland and Furness Library Service are among one of 50 authorities chosen to receive funds from the Julia Rausing Trust through the Reading Agency to help boost outreach for the Summer Reading Challenge in 2026.
The Julia Rausing Trust is a major UK charitable grant-making fund that focuses on Health and Welfare, Education, and Arts and Heritage. The aim of the grant is to expand the impact of the Summer Reading Challenge and reach thousands of new families through targeting disadvantaged communities. One difficulty we often encounter when delivering the Summer Reading Challenge is that children from rural communities sometimes sign up to the challenge but are unable to complete it because they are not able to travel to a library during the summer holidays. We decided to reach out to rural schools whose pupils might otherwise find it difficult to visit a library over the summer holidays and deliver books to the school rather than expecting the children to visit a library.
In June and July we worked with 5 small rural schools across across Barrow, Kendal and Penrith. Each child in the school was encouraged to get a library card and then agree to take part in the Summer Reading Challenge. Then library staff delivered bags of books to the school – one for each child. Each bag contained 3 books, the Read To The Beat Summer Reading Challenge sticker folder, the first sticker, a Storytime Read To the Beat magazine full of stories, puzzles and reading challenges and some colouring sheets.
The children listened to a story or poem which counted as their first book and meant that they could stick the first sticker in their Summer Reading Challenge folders. A craft activity such as designing and colouring in some ‘Rock star glasses’ to keep in with the ‘Read to the beat’ theme was also enjoyed by the children. The children were able to take the bags home with them so that they can read the books over the summer.
In September we will visit the schools again to celebrate the success of children completing the challenge and award a medal, certificate, stickers and incentives and to collect the books of course.
Last Year grants to libraries from the Julia Rausing Trust in the Summer Reading Challenge expansion project helped reach more than 113,000 additional children, welcomed almost 16,000 new library members and supported the borrowing of over 1.4 million books. It is great that Westmorland and Furness Libraries will be able to play their part in this expansion project and help even more children to enjoy reading over the summer holidays.
 Green Libraries Book of The Month!
The Future We Choose by Christiana Figueres
Discover why there's hope for the planet and how we can each make a difference in the climate crisis, starting today. Humanity is not doomed, and we can and will survive. The future is ours to create: it will be shaped by who we choose to be in the coming years. The coming decade is a turning point - it is time to turn from indifference or despair and towards a stubborn, determined optimism. The Future We Choose is a passionate call to arms from former UN Executive Secretary for Climate Change, Christiana Figueres, and Tom Rivett-Carnac, senior political strategist for the Paris Agreement.
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 Anime-zing
Do you love Anime? Then why not read the Manga that inspired so many of your favourite shows? Manga covers every genre and type of story you could think of, for all ages. Vampires, romance, horror, sports? There really is something for everyone. This year of reading, why not explore Manga, beautiful artwork and stories all in one? What more could you ask for? Find our picks on Borrow Box here.
Holoearth Chronicles Side:E by Yamato Phantasia
Your favorite Hololive VTubers like you’ve never seen them before! Tasked with tracking down a group of missing children, Fubuki and Mio make their way to the Oeyama mountain range, where they’re attacked by a powerful oni named Nakiri Ayame. As the two kami engage their foe in battle, they make a discovery that turns the case on its head! Were the children really kidnapped…or were they simply taken to someplace safer than their own homes?
Explore eBooks here.
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Wet Sand by DOYAK
The must-read BL webtoon by DOYAK is now in print! In this mature-rated comic three men collide in a tangled web of love, power, and crime.
When a chance encounter brings earnest photographer Jo into the orbit of the aloof and gorgeous Ian, Jo falls hard. An undeniable attraction simmers between them, and Jo is determined to break through Ian’s indifferent façade. But Ian’s life isn’t made for romance. As he works to free himself from his past life as a high-profile member of a dangerous gang — and from TJ, his on-again, off-again lover — a power struggle threatens to erupt within the crime syndicate. If Ian isn’t careful, events might spiral out of control, dragging him back into a world of corruption and murder.
Explore eBooks here.
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Daemons of the Shadow Realm by Hiromu Arakawa
Hiromu Arakawa, award-winning manga creator of the best-selling smash hit Fullmetal Alchemist, draws readers into an intricate new web of magic, intrigue, and life-or-death stakes! In a world where certain humans command mighty supernatural duos called Daemons, it is the birthright of “the children who sunder day and night”—twins Yuru and Asa—to rule over these powerful entities. Separated from a young age and unaware of the truth of their birth, brother and sister must fight to make their way back to each other, claim their birthright, and save the world…
Explore eBooks here.
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 Kick off reads
If you love football, then why not read about it? Discover biographies of all your favourite stars, get the scoop on all the background to your favourite teams, and what really goes on in the changing rooms and boardrooms of this multimillion-pound sport. Relive the history of our biggest sporting triumphs and uncover the truth about our favourite stars. Find our picks on Borrow Box here.
eBooks on BorrowBox
So many fantastic eBooks to borrow for free with your library card.
All In by Mary Earps, World Cup Fever by Simon Kuper, The Story of Football in 100 Objects by National Football Museum, The Blueprint by Simon Bajkowski and Nowhere to Run by Jonathan Sayer.
Explore eBooks here.
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eAudio on BorrowBox
Listen to the stories that inspired what you love. Our BorrowBox collection includes so great examples including,
Last Boy of ’66 by Geoff Hurst, A Beautiful Game by Sven-Göran Eriksson, Inshallah United by Nooruddean Choudry, Ten Hag by Maarten Meijer and Anything Is Possible by Gareth Southgate.
Explore eAudio here.
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ePress on BorrowBox
Did you know that we have a huge collection of digital newspapers and magazines all available with your library account through BorrowBox. If you love football there is a great choice including,
World Soccer, FourFourTwo UK and Late Tackle.
Explore ePress here.
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Online Author Event with Matt Haig
7th September 10am
In association with Borrowbox we are delighted to offer free access to this amazing author event to all W&F library members.
BorrowBox is thrilled to announce that Matt Haig, bestselling British author of the award-winning page-turner, The Midnight Library, will be joining BorrowBox content expert, Natasha Boyd, for an in-depth online discussion and Q&A session in our next exclusive online author event.
Register here.
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Regular Events and Activities
Explore a world of fun and learning! Are you ready for an exciting spring filled with captivating events and activities? Look no further than Westmorland and Furness Libraries! Did you know that alongside our exciting events, we offer a variety of regular groups and activities that cater to different interests and promote lifelong learning. Many of these regular groups are completely free, including Baby Bounce and Rhyme, Lego Club, Craft Club, Storytime, Knit and Natter, Chess Club, and many more.
Explore the wonderful opportunities available to you!
Check out our regular groups and activities. 👇
Barrow Group Libraries - Walney, Roose, Askam, Ulverston, Dalton & Ormsgill
Penrith Group Libraries - Alston, Appleby, Kirkby Stephen & Shap
Kendal Group Libraries - Ambleside, Grange, Kirkby Longsdale, Milnthorpe, Sedbergh & Windermere
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Follow Us on Social Media
Stay connected with us on social media! Did you know that Westmorland and Furness libraries can be found on across social media. Pop on over to your chosen platform to keep up to date and informed about all the latest happenings at Westmorland and Furness Libraries!
Join our growing online community and be the first to know about the engaging activities and resources we have in store for you.
Don't miss out - follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram today!
👉 Follow us on Facebook
👉 Follow us on Instagram
👉 Follow us on tiktok
👉 Download the library app
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