Mercer County Library Blog

For as long as I can remember, my parents have been finding ways to give back to their community, from leading food and clothing drives to opening their own home to recently arrived refugees. When we were kids, they made sure to involve me and my brothers in this work whenever possible. My mom helped to start an after-school club at my elementary school called “Roving Readers,” where we would visit nursing homes and read to the seniors there. Each year, we would collect pledges from friends and family to join a CROP Hunger Walk , with the donated money going to fight hunger. Much of our family service work was done through our temple—we would bring tzedakah donations of money and canned goods to religious school each week. We hosted unhoused families at the temple on a rotating basis with other local religious institutions through the Interfaith Hospitality Network (now HOME of Somerset County ), and host families would take turns staying at the temple overnight with the guests and se...

As the weather warms and we recover from a very cold and snowy winter, adults and children alike are excited to get outside and enjoy the great outdoors. Warmer weather means playing, exploring, and enjoying the amazing natural world around us. Going for walks, digging in the garden, and smelling the flowers help kids engage with nature and each other. Whether your child loves getting muddy in the backyard or prefers looking for flowers, there are so many ways to encourage a love of the outdoors. Children can get messy, smell the breeze, and explore the sensory feast of a backyard walk while sparking their curiosity. Whether you plan to stick close by or go further afield, Mercer County Library System can get your family’s outdoor experiences jump-started at your local branch. Books like  The Wildest Thing  by Emily Winfield Martin celebrate children who love the wild and immersing themselves in wild exploration.  Fairy Walk  by Gaia Cornwall offers a story of whol...

Have you ever found yourself in a “reading rut"? Finished one book and can’t move on to the next? This can happen to readers of any age, and I am currently in a reading slump right now. Try as I might, I cannot get interested in a book enough to want to read it. This is a common problem that can happen to both readers and non-readers alike. I find it especially difficult for my non-reading children to get out of it. When reading is a struggle to begin with, it can be hard to figure out what to read next after finishing a book or series. Maybe they finished a favorite series and aren’t excited to read anything else. Or maybe reading is just always a struggle. I’ve dealt with both situations as a parent and a librarian, and it can be frustrating in any circumstance.   Here are some ideas if your child (or yourself!) needs help breaking through a reading slump… Browse New Books At the Lawrence Branch, our new books are very easy to browse. Most are facing out so you can check ...

In May 2025, my youngest (adult) child graduated from college. After living with us for the summer, she moved into her first apartment in September. Our older daughter went to school in Washington, D.C., and has been living down there for the three years since she graduated. My spouse and I are now officially empty nesters! Although apparently, some people are now calling this situation “free bird” instead of “empty nest” https://www.shelovpsychologygroup.com/blog/free-bird . This newer term is intended to emphasize the positive aspects of having more freedom, and to avoid some of the negative associations with being an empty nester. Our younger daughter lives about twenty minutes away from us, and one of her jobs is in our town, so she has been stopping by our house regularly. Honestly, right now we see her more often than we did when she was in school! But it is probably just a matter of time before she moves further away and my husband and I will see her less. Of course, technology ...

Children often don’t encounter standard-sized fonts (like Times New Roman 12-point) until third or fourth grade, since early elementary books usually use larger print. I was a student at the top of my class, but something had happened to me as soon as the fonts became smaller. Some of my issues midway through elementary school included:      ■  Falling asleep after 15 minutes of reading, particularly if I did not find the book meaningful, fun, or interesting;      ■  Taking too long to read due to a combination of re-reading the same lines, eye strain, and headaches;     ■  Never finishing any books as an elementary school kid except for Captain Underpants by Dav Pilkey, Running Out of Time by Margaret Peterson Haddix, and The Giver by Lois Lowry;     ■  Feeling sad when adults said to me, “You’re really smart; you must read a lot!” because my options seemed like I could lie and nod my head at their belief, or explain...