February Specials at the Second Saturday Bookshop

Fiction Book Donations Needed

The Second Saturday Bookshop is seeking donations of gently used fiction titles! Book donations can be delivered to any RPL location or to the Second Saturday Bookshop. Donated items are used in the monthly book sales at the Bookshop as well as the perpetual book sale sections housed in each RPL facility. All book sale proceeds support Rowan Public Library. To learn more, call 704-216-8240.

Go on a Blind Date with a Book

Calling all romantic comedy lovers! Do you love romance books with tropes like enemies to lovers, fake dating, marriage of convenience, and more? Do you crave a good romantic comedy set in a small town with two very different main characters? Stop by any RPL branch in the month of February to check one out to celebrate Valentine's Day!

During the month of February, visit any RPL branch to participate in a  Blind Date with a Book. Various romantic comedies will be wrapped in paper so readers won't be able to tell exactly which book they are choosing, but each wrapped title will have a tag with some basic information about the book. The tags will share a snapshot of the plot, any tropes, and any potential trigger warnings or teasers to let readers select their best "surprise date"!

For this program, checkouts will be limited to one wrapped book at a time to ensure there are plenty of books available for everyone. However, if patrons want to go on more than one “blind date” in February, they are welcome to do so. Stop by any RPL location to return your first book and select another!

This program runs in conjunction with the Virtual Author Talk with Tessa Bailey on Thursday, February 8 at 8 pm. Tessa Bailey is a #1 New York Times Bestselling romantic comedy author. Many of her books will be wrapped up for this program, so patrons will have a chance of going on a blind date with one of her books! To watch this Virtual Author Talk, visit bit.ly/RPLVirtualAuthorTalks. If you are unable to participate in the live author talk, a recording will be posted to view at a later date. Registration is optional. Library card numbers are not required to participate. To learn more about Virtual Author Talks or the Blind Date with a Book program, call 704-216-8243.

New Podcast Episode Upcoming

Be sure to stream episode number nine of Come Gather ‘Round Good People to hear an interview with and performance by local talent, Sue McHugh. Sue will tell all about her musical journey into folk and blues music and play one of the earliest songs she learned, the English ballad The House Carpenter. This new episode will be available for streaming on Monday, February 26 at 9 am. 

Listeners can stream the previous nine episodes of Come Gather 'Round Good People via RPL's Soundcloud channel. In January, a special episode themed around the We Built This exhibit aired. Music and architecture may seem like an unlikely duo, but in this special episode, titled Singing for a Building, podcast host David Lamanno examines the efforts of the Livingstone College Male Quartet to raise money for the J.C. Price Memorial Fund during the late 1920s. 

Visit the RPL Soundcloud channel at bit.ly/RPLSoundCloud. For more information, contact David at 704-216-8229.

Participate in RPL's Graphic Novel Survey

Calling all Graphic Novel and comic book readers! Young Adult Librarian Amanda Brill needs your opinions on the state of the Graphic Novel collection at Rowan Public Library. This is for the Graphic Novel Project, which seeks to genrefy the collection over the four RPL branches. Genrefying (also called genrefication) involves sorting books and other materials in reader-interest categories instead of using the Dewey Decimal System or by author's last name, which is the current system RPL uses to organize graphic novels.

Visit bit.ly/RPLGraphicNovels for more information and to take the survey. All answers are anonymous and benefit not only current readers, but future readers as well. The survey will be accepting responses through the end of February. To learn more, call Amanda at 704-216-8268.