• 'The Perfect Divorce' by Jeneva Rose
• 'Mrs. Plansky's Revenge' by Spencer Quinn
• 'Trouble in Queenstown' by Delia Pitts
• 'Midnight in Soap Lake' by Matthew Sullivan
• 'Strangers in Time' by David Baldacci
• 'Great Big Beautiful Life' by Emily Henry

• 'The Next Day: Transitions, Change, and Moving Forward' by Melinda French Gates
• 'Mothers are Made: How One Mom Overcame Perfectionism, Self-Doubt, Loneliness and Anxiety and Became a Better and Happier Parent' by Danielle Sherman-Lazar
• 'Make Your Living Trust' by the Editors of NOLO
• 'The Magnolia Bakery: Icebox Desserts' by Bobbie Lloyd

As a recommendation from one of our patrons I checked out the book 'The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife' by Anna Johnston. This is a funny, heartfelt story about the dynamics of family and the many stages we live through.

Frederick Fife is an easy-going, kindhearted soul of a man who is grateful for this one last opportunity in his life. “Would you mind terribly, old boy, if I borrowed the rest of your life? I promise I will take excellent care of it.” With this promise Frederick sets out to live life again within The Wattles River Nursing Home. Here he is guaranteed a comfortable room and warm meals as long as his look-alike Bernard never turns up.

Denise is a middle-aged mom and caregiver trying to navigate life with a daughter’s health concerns and a crumbling marriage. Wounds run deep for her. Will the suspicions of Frederick's kindness grow and her distrust in men grow even stronger?

I found myself laughing out loud while reading this feel-good novel about grief, forgiveness, and finding family. 'The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife' is a definite yes and I highly recommend it.

Happy Reading Folks,

Lisa

I recently read 'The Perfect Divorce' by Jeneva Rose. This is the second book of the "Perfect" series. I loved 'The Perfect Marriage' and couldn't wait to hear more about Sarah Morgan. This story picks up 10 years after the death of Kelly Summers, filling in holes from the first book. Written in four different perspectives and shorter chapters, the book keeps the story moving along quickly. Jeneva Rose knows how to throw in entertaining conversations, mind games and twists! This is a must read!

~Kellie

April is National Poetry Month & I couldn't let it slip past without reading a new poetry collection. 'A Little Daylight Left' by Sarah Kay is a connected poetry anthology exploring themes of aging, love, self-reflection, and grief. As soon as I read her second poem in this collection, 'Raccoon,' I was sold. Kay is known for her spoken word poetry, but I haven't had the chance to listen to her reading her poetry yet. If you love poetry, I recommend checking her out. Happy reading, friends! ~Heather

#librarylife #librarylovers #poetry

We love it when Virginia stops into the library to tell us what she's reading! Check out her latest recommendation, 'Greenteeth,' by Molly O'Neill.

From the back cover: "From a charming new voice in cozy fantasy comes a tale of fae, folklore, and found family that is just as delightful and warmhearted as the charismatic lake-dwelling monster who tells it."

Happy reading!

How does a life of joy coexist with the pain and suffering in the world? Have you found yourself pondering this question? A pair of budding friends discuss this and more through mailed correspondence in Kim Fay’s latest novel, ‘Kate & Frida.’

This book is utterly delightful. It is a celebration of literature, life, friendship and food, while capturing the global landscape of the early 1990’s Bosnian War. Kate is a bookseller in Seattle, and Frida is a budding journalist living in Paris who aspires to report on war from the front lines. Their letters begin with a practical transaction; Frida writes to Kate’s bookstore in search of a book. The pair begin to trust each other with truths from their lives that they’ve previously kept to themselves. The personal growth they experience both as individuals and friends is authentic and reads like a breath of fresh air. The author’s dedication reads ‘…and for all of us tender dreamers at the Elliott Bay Book Company during those precious years before the internet changed everything.’ I’ve never worked at the Elliott Bay Book Company, but Fay has found a fellow ‘tender dreamer’ in me.

‘Kate & Frida’ currently has 4.11/5 stars on goodreads.com.

Happy reading!

~Kelly Henkle, Library Director

Kids, come join us at the Youth Community Garden this May! We're having a special Youth Garden storytime on the following dates/times:

• Monday, May 5th, 2025, at 3:30pm
• Monday, May 12th, 2025, at 3:30pm
• Monday, May 19th, 2025, at 3:30pm

The Youth Community Garden is located on the corner of East 2nd Street and 4th Avenue, near the Vinton Fire Station, in Vinton.

Join us for our monthly book club where you pick the book! This month you can choose a book about an interesting time in history! We have two meeting times for you to pick from; choose the one that works best for you!

• Thursday, May 15th, 2025, at 11:30am
• Thursday, May 15th, 2025, at 6:00pm

What event could have bubbles, balloons, music, egg shakers, and cereal.....? Toddler Prom, of course! So much fun was had at VPL.

We love seeing all of the springtime blossoms around Vinton this time of year! The library's front lawn is boasting some beautiful blooms of our town!

The Vinton Shellsburg High School prom is this weekend! This has inspired us to look back on local prom celebrations in the yearbooks in our library’s archive room. Each photo tells a story, and we’d love to hear yours! Send us your prom pictures along with a story about your special night, and we’ll share it with our readers! Email khenkle@vintonia.gov to share your story today!

Thank you to the Vinton Lutheran Home for the beautiful flowers! Connie visits readers at the Lutheran Home Assisted Living every Tuesday at 1:30pm for book club. Together they all enjoy books, stories and laughter!

Have you signed up for the Vinton Public Library Children's Summer Reading Program yet? Sign up in the Beanstack app or at the library today! Thanks to our friends at Tootsie's all kids that sign up get a coupon for a free ice cream cone! Don't like ice cream? Then get a small order of french fries instead! Happy reading!!

The heart of our library and our community lies in our shared stories. This prom season we begin a new photographic storytelling feature; enjoy this story from one of our readers!

Isn't this puzzle striking?! Our community puzzle changes frequently; why not make plans to meet a friend at the library for some puzzle time?

Congratulations to Shelly R. on winning our DIY Tie Dye Prize Pack! Yay!

Let's celebrate our library friend who has read 600 books!

Adult readers have logged 29,155 minutes in the Beanstack app for this month's April Library Love Reading Challenge! It's not too late to sign up; we have paper copies in the library as well.

We want to cheer for this library friend who just completed the 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten Challenge! Using the #Beanstackapp makes challenges fun and easy!

VPL Team Members have started scattering positive messages throughout the library using game tiles; the next time you stop into the library, see if you can find one!

Meike T. won our High School outreach book raffle! Congrats, Meike!

Mondays: 9a-5p

Tuesdays: 9a-8p

Wednesdays: 9a-5p

Thursdays: 9a-8p

Fridays: 7a-4p

Saturdays: 9a-Noon

Sundays: Closed

Copy services: $0.20 per black and white, $0.25 per color

Fax services: $1.00 for 1-2 pages, $2.00 for 3+ pages

Notary services: No charge, call 319-472-4208 for availability

Free Wifi

Boardroom available at no charge; reservations required

Email: library@vintonia.gov
Website: vinton.lib.ia.us
Location: 510 2nd Avenue, Vinton, IA, USA
Phone: (319) 472-4208
Facebook: facebook.com/heartofvinton