Mercer County Library Blog

Some people describe reading as a hobby. Then there are true bibliophiles, for whom literature is an obsession, something without which life is unimaginable. People’s attitudes towards whisky could be categorized these same ways. As literature can be divided into forms and genres, so too can whisky be divided by style. Single malt whisky is distilled exclusively from malted barley. Single pot still whisky is made from a mash of both malted and unmalted barley. Single grain whisky is made from a mash which might include any combination of grain, often corn. And while many American whiskies technically fall into this single grain category, in Ireland and Scotland single grain whisky is typically used for blending with single malt or single pot still to make a more affordable bottle. Single pot still is perhaps the most iconically Irish style, while the best whiskies from Scotland are certainly single malts. If you’re looking for a recommendation from your neighborhood librarian, I espec...

I have often visited the big tourist cities of the world like Venice, Rome, and London. But I also like to escape the crowds when I’m travelling by going to the odd, forgotten, and out-of-the-way places neglected by other tourists. If you’re tired of art museums and group tours, you can find your way to little corners of obscurity in even the most visited places in the world. One way to escape the crowds is to visit the most peaceful places in the urban jungle – cemeteries. Roaming through a cemetery may seem an odd way to get to know a city, but they contain as much art and history as some of the greatest museums, as well as being calm and pleasant spaces. And you get the chance to visit a lot of celebrities, although they probably won’t be able to sign an autograph for you. Some of my favorite travel memories are seeing the tombs of famous people like Oscar Wilde and Marcel Proust in the Pere Lachaise cemetery in Paris, and Stravinsky in the cemetery island of San Michele in the Ven...

Since its launch in 2020, the MyMCLSNJ app has evolved to better serve our library community. After the outage of 2023-2024 (which was due to a contract dispute between the primary vendor and the software provider over the underlying software behind many other public library apps, “BLUEcloud Mobile”), the app has now been upgraded to the latest version — “BLUEcloud Mobile2”. This update brings improved functionality, enhanced performance, and a more seamless user experience. I’ll provide a quick overview of the most common features: Home Screen Upon logging in, you’ll land on the Home screen. At the top, you’ll see a friendly welcome message. In the middle, you’ll also see “Library Locations” with relevant branch addresses, social media links, and approximate distance from your location—useful if you’re deciding which branch to visit. At the bottom is your current account summary—fines and fees, the number of holds, and any current checkouts. This is a good at-a-glance summary if yo...

The Mercer County Library Teen Advisory Board is an active group of high school students who complete projects throughout the year to promote books and reading. Please enjoy this book review by Teen Advisory Board member Sharon, a high school junior with a passion for mystery books and a library full of them. SPOILER ALERT! Do you ever feel pressured by so many different factors that you just want to take a break from all the stress? That’s exactly how Chinese-American girl Lydia Lee felt in Everything I Never Told You . The book begins with the heartbreaking news that Lydia is declared dead by drowning in a nearby lake. A star student with plans to follow in her mother's dreams, Lydia’s death was unforeseen by her peers. Her parents, Marilyn and James, as well as her siblings, elder brother Nathan and younger sister Hannah, never see life the same again as they find different ways to cope and recover from this tragic event. Each one has their own theories as to what happened: Nat...

If you stop by the Robbinsville Branch on a Wednesday evening, you may walk by a room with children learning how to play chess. The room is filled with chess boards on tables, children sitting at chairs in front of the boards, high school student volunteers perched at the ends of tables monitoring games and instructing how to play, and parents sitting around the sides of the room or up close watching their child’s game. Children, ages 5 and up, pair up and play a game and then look for another open game when they finish. Sometimes a child is able to play up to three games in one program, or sometimes they may not even finish one game, depending on how the pieces are moved. The Queen’s Gambit Netflix show in 2020 sparked a renewed interest in chess. Children have told me that they learned chess from Bluey and insist on calling the rooks castleheads (it’s Season 3, Episode 10, titled “Chest” if you’d like to watch it). But chess is a timeless game. People have been playing it for 1,500...

One of my colleagues at the library went on vacation last summer and told me about a cool activity she and her family tried – railbiking! I was intrigued. As you may know from reading other posts I’ve written, I’m a big hiker. I used to bike a lot when I was younger but have gotten out of the habit – this sounded like a way I could do some biking but in a completely new way. A railbike looks a lot like an old-fashioned railroad handcar – one of those things you might remember seeing in Westerns or cartoons. Instead of having to pump a handle to move, you and one-to-three of your friends sit in a recumbent bike position and peddle. The railbike has special wheels – like what’s on a train – so it can ride on railroad tracks. There are many railbiking companies around but the one I used is Revolution Rail in North Creek, New York. They also have a railbike tour in Cape May, New Jersey . Once railbiking was decided upon, the next step was to build a trip around that activity. North Cree...

This may sound a little cliché, but Great Britain always has a special place in my heart. It’s not because I’m an Anglophile or a big fan of the Royal family, but more because of my dad and connections to my family. My dad grew up in England, so I was exposed to the history and culture of the land more times than I can count. I will be going on a trip to England and Scotland in the latter part of March with my older sister. This wouldn’t be the first time I’ve been there, as I’ve been to England a few times over the years. The last time, I went to Stratford-Upon-Avon, home to the famous bard, William Shakespeare. I also went to Whitby, whose abbey features in the Bram Stoker classic, Dracula. This is the first time I’ll be going to England without my dad and the first vacation I’ll be taking with just my sister. While we’re there, we will visit family members, go sightseeing, and have a good time eating the local cuisine. My sister went full steam ahead on planning this trip (funn...

Here are some of the events and programs from around the Mercer County Library System for the month of March. For a complete list of events at your local branch, visit the MCLS Events Calendar , and check out the flyers in this post! Women’s History Month Events From craft sessions honoring influential artists like Alma Thomas and Georgia O’Keeffe to discussions on women’s achievements in civil rights, literature, and science, there’s something for all ages. Movie screenings, poetry readings, and hands-on activities offer engaging ways to celebrate women’s history’s long-lasting impact. For Kids Crafternoon: Paint like Alma Thomas Monday, March 3, 2025, 4:00 pm Tuesday, March 4, 2025, 4:00 pm Hopewell Branch Paint Like Faith Ringgold Monday, March 3, 2025, 7:00 pm Hickory Corner Branch Women’s History Paper Circuits Sunday, March 9, 2025, 2:00 pm Lawrence Branch School‑age STEAM: Space Shuttle Project & Mae Jemison Monday, March 10, 2025, 5:00 pm Hickory Corner Bran...

How to Draw With Help From MCLS By Julia @ the Lawrence Headquarters Branch Every year as the “Drawing Party” program continues to develop, participants work on pushing themselves to try new techniques. As a library, we are lucky to have numerous resources for learning how to draw, including books and DVDs. I helped the Drawing Party group utilize some of those resources this past year, and I wanted to share them with the Mercer County Library System community for anyone looking to further hone their artistic skills. My primary style is realistic art, so normally in class we work on landscapes, flowers, animals or things that can be photographed. In addition to challenging the patrons with new drawing styles, I wanted to challenge myself by trying out one type of cartoon style known as anime, or Japanese animation. This popular style of art is also featured in many Japanese graphic novels known as manga. To try out this style, I utilized the book Cute Creature Art Class: Enchanting A...

Last year, I took a four-session class on ikebana, the Japanese art of flower arranging. With no previous experience in any kind of flower arranging, it was a revelation to pay close attention to curve of stems, the direction the flowers faced, and the harmony achieved (I tried to, anyway). Ikebana has its origins in the sixth century, when flower arrangements were used as temple offerings to Buddha. Centuries later in the Muromachi period (late 14 th to early 16 th century), Tatebana (“standing flowers”) arrangements were popular with aristocrats and the samurai class. In the centuries since, schools formed and distinct styles developed. During the Meiji period (1868-1912), women began to be taught the previously male-only artform. As Western flowers were introduced to Japan, practitioners used them in the Moribana (“piled-up flowers”) style. Worldwide, there are now several hundred schools that teach the ikebana. During class, we all crowded around the teacher while she arranged ...