We hope you enjoy our latest VPL Newsletter; to subscribe, email library@vintonia.gov. See you at the library!

• 'Don't Let the Devil Ride' by Ace Atkins
• 'Husbands & Lovers' by Beatriz Williams
• 'Tangled Up in You' by Christina Lauren
• 'A Daughter of Fair Verona' by Christina Dodd
• 'Familiaris' by David Wroblewski (2024 Oprah Book Club)
• 'Flashback' by Iris Johansen and Roy Johansen
• 'The Year of What If' by Phaedra Patrick

• 'All Colors of the Dark' by Chris Whitaker
• 'Resurrection' by Danielle Steel
• '15 Summers Later' by RaeAnne Thayne
• 'Killers of the Flower Moon' DVD

In this latest offering from Freida McFadden's Housemaid series, several of the usual characters are again present. Until I was into this book, #3, I didn't realize that I had missed the first two volumes, 'The Housemaid' and 'The Housemaid's Secret.' However, it was easy to catch up with a little guesswork, since the background was explained in quick flashbacks and references. I wish I had read the series in order, as I might have seen certain events coming in the foreshadowing. As it was, I suspected certain events before they happened, but was never quite sure ahead of time until the 'voila' moment!

The story is creepy in a good way, and includes three houses on a quiet cul-de-sac, inhabited by mysterious people. One middle-aged lady keeps her ten-year-old son on a leash, and in another home the wife has a deep and blatant desire for the third family's husband/father.

In reading this latest installment of McFadden's series, I began to enjoy her books a little bit more and can't wait to get more involved! Get your name on the reserve list because this one is going to be wildly popular! Happy reading! My thumb is WAY up for this one!

~Connie B., Library Assistant at VPL

I have a tendency to stay away from YA Fiction (does that make me old?!) but am kind of smitten with Kate Alice Marshall lately. "Rules for Vanishing" is a YA Horror novel by Kate Alice Marshall available on the Libby app and it had all the trappings of an easy weekend read:

1) Two missing girls

2) A mysterious "Road" that appears and disappears that no one ever returns from!

3) A game with a sing-song legend that needs played to find the missing girls.

4) Just scary enough that I didn't need to sleep with the light on but kept me up all night!

"In the faux-documentary style of The Blair Witch Project comes the campfire story of a missing girl, a vengeful ghost, and the girl who is determined to find her sister—at all costs." ~Goodreads.com (3.76 rating) Check it out on the Libby app today! Happy reading, friends!

I loved this book! 'Family Family' by Laurie Frankel is one of my favorite kind of stories, stories that bring you into the experience of others, that welcome you into their world, and leave you with a deeper understanding of humanity. This novel looks straight into the eyes of several people whose lives have been touched by adoption and never blinks. It is honest, funny, and insightful. This is my first time reading this author, and I will definitely be reading more in the future. 'Family Family' currently has 4.1/5 stars on goodreads.com.

Happy reading!
~Kelly Henkle, Library Director.

Fans of Leif Enger and Annie Proulx should dive head-first into 'Clear' by Carys Davies! Such a tender and atmospheric novella delving into the history of the Scottish Clearances in the 1840's. 'Clear' is a true character study that illuminates how isolation and loneliness can alter our moral compass.

"John, an impoverished Scottish minister, has accepted a job evicting the lone remaining occupant of an island north of Scotland—Ivar, who has been living alone for decades, with only the animals and the sea for company. Though his wife, Mary, has serious misgivings about the errand, he decides to go anyway, setting in motion a chain of events that neither he nor Mary could have predicted.

Shortly after John reaches the island, he falls down a cliff and is found, unconscious and badly injured, by Ivar who takes him home and tends to his wounds. The two men do not speak a common language, but as John builds a dictionary of Ivar’s world, they learn to communicate and, as Ivar sees himself for the first time in decades reflected through the eyes of another person, they build a fragile, unusual connection.

Unfolding in the 1840s in the final stages of the infamous Scottish Clearances—which saw whole communities of the rural poor driven off the land in a relentless program of forced evictions—this singular, beautiful, deeply surprising novel explores the differences and connections between us, the way history shapes our deepest convictions, and how the human spirit can survive despite all odds."

~Goodreads.com 3.95 rating

VPL Note: We have the three-book Young Adult series available in regular type. These books have been adapted into a Netflix series.

Holly Jackson is the author of the #1 New York Times bestselling series A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, an international sensation with millions of copies sold worldwide as well as the #1 New York Times bestseller and instant classic, Five Survive, and her forthcoming novel, The Reappearance of Rachel Price. She graduated from the University of Nottingham, where she studied literary linguistics and creative writing, with a master’s degree in English. She enjoys playing video games and watching true-crime documentaries so she can pretend to be a detective. She lives in London.

Source: https://penguinrandomhousesecondaryeducation.com/author/?authorid=2159079

Meet another July Kid Librarian! Come check out Madison's display!

These guys are working as a team and have read 100 books. Way to go!

Meet Olivia, our July Kid Librarian! Come check out her books!

It's nearly the end of June and we're reading more than ever! So far, our readers in 3rd grade through Adult have logged 68,188 minutes in Beanstack! Kindergartners through 2nd grade have logged 1,334 books! Remember that by enrolling in our challenges and logging your reading, you earn prizes! It's not too late to sign up; our summer challenges run through July 31st. Happy Reading!

Meet one of our July Kid Librarians. Come check out Jackson's display!

Do we think he is dreaming of his favorite book characters or the future book he plans to write?

Here's what our patrons are saying about our library!

If you're downtown tonight for Vinton Parks & Recreation Department Party in the Park, be sure to say Hi to Laura! She's a member of our newly formed Friends of the Vinton Public Library, and she is riding our new bicycle powered bookmobile! For information on joining Friends, call or email us today! library@vintonia.gov

July is Disability Pride Month & our latest display showcases both Fiction and Nonfiction titles! Stop in & check them out!

Stop by Jaycee Park Mondays at 11 am for Storytime. The bike trailer is loaded with books to check out!

This friend has read 300 books. Way to go!

Thank you to everyone who completed our annual community survey! Your feedback will be used to guide future programming here at the library!

This lil' guy is cruisin' along and has read 400 books!

This library friend has read 500 books, halfway there! Keep up the good work!

Thank you to the Lois Lenski Covey Foundation for supporting our bicycle-powered bookmobile! We have just received a grant for $1000 to purchase new books! Lois Lenski is the author and illustrator of the classic children's book 'Strawberry Girl' for which she was a 1946 Newbery medalist. Her Foundation supports bookmobiles within the United States. For more information, visit www.loislenskycovey.org.

Hours of Operation:

Mondays: 9a-5p

Tuesdays: 9a-6p

Wednesdays: 9a-5p

Thursdays: 9a-8p

Fridays: 9a-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