April is Poetry Month!

Did you know that April is National Poetry Month? Started by the Academy of American Poets in 1996, National Poetry Month is now held every April, when schools, publishers, libraries, bookstores, and poets throughout the United States band together to celebrate poetry and its vital place in American culture. Thousands of organizations, including the Homer Library, will participate through readings, book displays, workshops, and other events.

The Homer Library will have books on poetry for all ages on display as well as copies of some of our favorite poems. Are you a poet? We'd love to display some works by local poets and are hoping to be able to display some of the poems done by Heritage students like we've done in the past. Are you a poet and just don't know it? Visit our poem activity table and have fun with poetry related mazes, word games, and drawing activities. And, of course, we will be encouraging patrons to check-out poetry books by offering a reading incentive prize drawing at the end of the month - every time you check out a poetry related book you can enter to win!

Arts 4 All!

Did you know that March 11-17th is Illinois Arts Education Week? It is a great time to appreciate all of the fine arts – dance, drama, music, and the visual arts! The library is a great place to discover the arts through books, movies, and cds.

There is a lot of information on the arts in the library for all ages and not just in the non-fiction collection. There are many Easy picture books that introduce young children to colors and textures and many books for children on how to do arts and crafts.

We also have some wonderful junior fiction books that incorporate the arts. One of my favorite is “Chasing Vermeer” by Blue Balliett. In this book, kids are able to explore a whole new world of adventure and art when a precious Vermeer painting disappears and eleven-year-olds Petra and Calder need to combine their talents to solve an international art scandal. You can even find the arts in the 39 Clues adventure series. In the book, “One False Note”, Amy and Dan Cahill are in the lead to find thirty-nine clues that safeguard a great power, and are in possession of a coded sheet of Mozart's music that will help them find the next clue while their relatives follow in close pursuit. Wouldn’t it be great if we could get every kid who reads this book to also check out one of our Mozart music cd’s?

We, of course, have a large collection of art and art history books in our non-fiction collection but we also have dozens of Great Courses lecture series in either non-fiction audiobooks or dvds. These include lectures on different musicians and musical genres, artists and art history, drama, and even courses on how to listen to and understand great music. We also have several award-winning musicals on dvd and a great collection of classical music on cd.

The arts don’t have to be intimidating – don’t forget that current movies are also part of the arts. This week we have both of our movie events. On Wednesday, March 13th we are showing The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel at 1pm and on Friday, March 15th we are showing Wreck It Ralph for our Free Family Movie. Come on out and enjoy some art at the library!

Knitting is coming to the library!

The library is partnering with some ‘crafty’ Homer area residents to offer knitting lessons. Starting in March, the Homer Craft Club with meet on the 2nd and 4th Fridays of each month at 6pm. The Club will offer a quiet place to meet and work on your crafts (all crafts - scrapbooking, jewelry making, knitting, crocheting, quilting, etc.), get new ideas, and maybe even get the motivation to start something new. AND, a couple of the members are willing to teach knitting as part of the library’s programming. The class will be open to all ages but we will have to limit the number of kids to make sure we have enough teachers. If we have anyone under 13 interested, just please call the library and sign up ahead of time.

For the first 45 minutes of the first 4 meetings, a member (or two) will be available to teach some basic projects. The first project will be making a hand-knitted wash cloth. These are great to use in the kitchen or give as gifts. Each participant will need to bring some yarn (a ball of Lily’s Sugar ‘n Cream cotton yarn is suggested) and a short pair of size 9 or 10 knitting needles. The supplies should not cost you more than $5-6. The library will try to have some supplies on hand for emergencies. We will also display some of our knitting books to get you motivated to try for even bigger and more complex projects! The first knitting class will take place on March 8th. We are looking forward to working with the Craft Club on other ventures. For more information on the knitting class you can contact the Homer Community Library at 896-2121 and for more information on the Homer Craft Club you can visit their FaceBook page at www.facebook.com/HomerVillageCraftClub.

Did you know the Library also has a Facebook page? Search for Homer Community Library and ‘like’ us for updates on programs, additions to our collection, and other fun library facts.

The Newberys Are Coming! (and a whole lot more!)

There's a lot happening at the library this week! The latest award-winning books for kids and teens have been announced and we have begun are annual reading incentive program to get kids and adults to check out and enjoy one of the many Caldecott, Newbery, YALSA award-winning books that we have at the library. Each time you check out one of these books you will have your name entered into a drawing for a pair of headphones. We will run this program until the end of April so come on in and pick up a Newbery! We will be getting in many of this year's winners over the next two months but have dozens of previous winners to choose from now.

This Saturday, February 9th is the second installment of our "Digging Deeper" gardening program. It is not too late to start attending if you are interested. The program will start at 10am and go for 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

We have both of our monthly movies showing this week. On Wednesday, Feb. 13th at 1pm we will be showing "The Lucky One" for our Monthly Movie Matinee. Based on a Nicholas Sparks book, U.S. Marine Sergeant Logan Thibault returns from his third tour of duty in Iraq, with the one thing he credits with keeping him alive--a photograph he found of a woman he doesn't even know. Learning her name is Beth and where she lives, he shows up at her door, and ends up taking a job at her family-run local kennel. Despite her initial mistrust and the complications in her life, a romance develops between them, giving Logan hope that Beth could be much more than his good luck charm. -- (C) Warner Bros

On Friday, Feb. 15th we will have our Family Friendly Movie Night. This month, in honor of the Newbery's, instead of showing a recently released family film, we are going back to one of my childhood favorites, "The Secret of NIMH". This movie, based on the award-winning book, "Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH" by Robert O'Brien, follows the story of some runaway rodents with an earth shattering secret. Mrs. Brisby, a mild-mannered mother mouse will do anything to save her family from Farmer Firtzgibbon's plow. Unfortunately, Mrs. Brisby will need an engineering miracle to save her home and for that she must face a mysterious rat, fend off a ferocious cat and claim a maic amulet! But when Mrs. Brisby discovers the astounding secret of NIMH it could change her life forever. A timeless tale of love, courage and determination, this movie will transport the whole family into an enchanting world where the bravest hearts live in the meekest of mice. I hope everyone enjoys this movie as much as I did and maybe it will inspire someone to pick up the book it was based on. I remember immediately re-reading this book when I first finished it because I became so involved with the characters I couldn't bear to let them go.

January 2013 Library Event Calendar

This month’s display of books includes two different displays of picture books and junior books – one featuring Pirates! and the other featuring winter and snow.

Jan. 8 7pm Library Board Meeting

Jan. 9 1pm Movie Matinee: Moonrise Kingdom

Wes Anderson makes films about small worlds in which big things happen: love, heartbreak, calamities, death. In his latest, the wondrous storybook tale “Moonrise Kingdom,” a girl and a boy, both 12, run off to a remote inlet on an island where most of the adults seem disappointed and more than a little sad. The girl and the boy are very serious — about love, their plans, books, life itself — and often act older than their age. She wears bright blue eyeliner; he puffs on a corncob pipe. You wonder what their hurry is, given that here adulthood, with its quarrels, regrets and anguished pillow talk, can feel as dangerous as the storm that’s hurtling toward the island, ready to blow it all down. — Manohla Dargis Rated PG-13 93min

Jan. 12 12:30-2 “Digging Deeper” Garden Program

This is the first of 3 programs. With guest speaker, Laura Wetzel, from Urbana, the group will meet at the Homer Village Hall on the second Saturday of January, February, and March from 12:30 - 2pm to learn more about growing annual veggies and perennial food crops. Topics of interest for beginner to advanced gardeners will include soil preparation, composting and fertilization, raised bed gardening, and much more.

Jan. 18 7pm Free Family Movie Night: Ice Age: Continental Drift

Scrat's nutty pursuit of the cursed acorn, which he's been after since the dawn of time, has world-changing consequences - a continental cataclysm that triggers the greatest adventure of all for Manny, Diego and Sid. In the wake of these upheavals, Sid reunites with his cantankerous Granny, and the herd encounters a ragtag menagerie of seafaring pirates determined to stop them from returning home. -- (C) Official Site Rated PG 1hr 34 min

Did you know you can search our card catalog from home?
Go to http://opac.libraryworld.com

It will ask for the library name, type in Homer Library

There is no password so just click on “Login” Now you can search our card catalog to see if we have a particular item andif it is available for check out. You can also ‘Request a hold’ and we will receive an email asking us to hold that item for you!

2013 Gardening Series is Coming!

We know it seems like winter has just begun but it is never too early to start thinking about spring!

The Homer garden group along with the Homer Community Library is preparing another three-part series of gardening programs.

With guest speaker, Laura Wetzel, from Urbana, the group will meet at the Homer Village Hall on the second Saturday of January, February, and March from 12:30 - 2pm to learn more about growing annual veggies and perennial food crops. Topics of interest for beginner to advanced gardeners will include soil preparation, composting and fertilization, raised bed gardening, and much more.

Come and join us during these dreary winter day to start planning your garden for 2013!

There Be Pirates!

Her Ladyship, Captain Linda, has arranged some spine-tingling, heart-chillin, swash-bucklin fun for ye.

Set yer sails for 500 E. 2nd Street in Homer on Friday, December 28th.

We'se be expectin ye to be here by 10:00 bells and ye can go back to yer lovely mums around noon.

We'll turn ye into a pirate before we're done or my name ain't Captain Linda!

Shiver me timbers, I forgot to tell ya, don't be late or you'll walk the plank for sure!

Remember - all young pirates are welcome to come even if ye don't live in Homer or have a library card. And if any of ye land-lubbin adults would have some time to spare that day, we'll be puttin ya right to work on one of these pirate activities. Call the library if ye think ye can help! 896-2121

Are You Ready For Some Football? Or Soccer... Or Basketball...

With the start of the school year also comes the start of fall sports! We just put up a new display of sports books. We have something for everyone – junior to adult, fiction and non-fiction. We’ve put out mostly fall sports books: soccer, football and some basketball (since I know they’ll be starting practice soon even if the season doesn’t start yet). We have plenty of books on other sports if you are interested – just ask!

Are you interested in soccer? Did you know that there is a new soccer club in the area? Prairie Fire Soccer Club is a new soccer club starting this Fall. It is based in Homer, IL but is not limited to Homer or Heritage School District. They are hoping to serve kids from all surrounding communities.

We have several books on our display to help our new soccer players and coaches. We have ‘The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Coaching Soccer’ and ‘Soccer Skills and Drills’ for the adults involved as well as a great book, ‘101 Ways to be a Terrific Sports Parent: Making Athletics a Positive Experience For Your Child”. This is a good book for parents with kids in any sport not just soccer. We also have several fiction and non-fiction books for the kids. We have some ‘how to’ sports books and several biographies on athletes in our junior section. And for the kids who prefer novels, Mike Lupika, Tim Green and Dan Gutman are among the favorite sports authors in our junior collection.

We have a really fun series of non-fiction sports books for the kids – the Sports Illustrated ‘How It Works’ series. These books discuss the science behind different sports moves and plays and discuss why they work and how to make them work. While that might sound rather scholarly and stuffy, these books use colorful, action photography and easy-to-understand descriptions to get kids engaged in the how’s and why’s of sports. Books in this series cover football, soccer, basketball, hockey, baseball, and skateboarding.

We hope everyone got off to a good start of the school year and good luck to all of you who are starting sports. Youth sports can be an important part of a child’s development. As our display says, “Sports: Good for the Body, Good for the Mind”!

It's Calendar Time Again! (Please Read - Lots of Changes)

Once again, in 2013, the Homer Library will produce the "Homer Community Library Calendar" as our primary fundraiser. The Calendar, which began in 1965 as a fundraising project for the Homer Lions Club, was given to the Library when the Lions disbanded in 2006. This will be the 48th year that the Calendar has provided essential civic support to the Village of Homer. And, now that the Library is the sole benefactor of Calendar sales, that support extends to all of the citizens of Heritage School District. That’s because they too are eligible for a Homer Library card (for a modest fee).

The Calendar is strictly a volunteer project, with all net proceeds—typically $4,000.00 a year— going to the Library. These funds supplement the income the Library receives from Village of Homer real estate taxes and State of Illinois per capita grants, which barely cover our payroll, online catalog service, and interlibrary loan fee. We also earn some income from fines, copying, and fax services. It is these sources, plus outright gifts and the Calendar income, that we use to pay for programs, new materials, and services for the Library.

For the past six years, more than a third of yearly Calendar income has been allocated to the “Reading Is Fundamental” (RIF) program. This now defunct federal program was designed to improve child literacy by giving, in our case, 400 to 500 books per year to kindergarten through fourth grade students in Heritage School District. Thanks to Calendar income, the Library has been able to continue this popular program on our own, although RIF was discontinued altogether last year. Even the RIF name is now gone—we’ve renamed our program “Reading is Fantastic Fun” or RIFF. Fortunately, our children’s book publishers were able to continue their RIF stipulated discounts this past year. BUT . . . we don’t know how much longer they will do so since their federal aid has also ended. For this reason alone, the Library staff hopes community support for this year’s Calendar will be exceptionally generous.

To improve our chances of having a banner year, the Homer Library Board of Trustees has approved several changes to the way the 2013 Calendar will be promoted. We are adding ten more advertisements to help pay for printing twice as many Calendars. That’s because this year the Calendar will be mailed to every household, business, and farmstead in the Village of Homer and South Homer Township! These mailings have been made possible by a new, low-cost U. S. Postal Service program that encourages direct mailings to every household in a given zip code.

We will be calling on the many new families that have moved into Homer the past few years as these folks have not been previously asked to contribute their listings to the Calendar. Listings consist of anniversaries and birthdays of Homer family members that are printed on the relevant dates of the Calendar, along with meetings of civic and religious organizations. The charges for listings are: one or two listings; just $6.00; additional listings are $1.00 each. If someone wants to acquire a Calendar, but doesn’t want to include their listings, we would appreciate a donation of $10.00.

Finally, we will send our previous patrons a double postcard which shows their 2012 listings. Receipt by the Library of the amount billed will confirm that the patron wants to resubscribe to the Calendar. The deadline for confirming listings is September 30, 2012. Payment checks, and changes or corrections to listings, may be sent to Homer Library, ATTN: K.C. Jones, 500 E. Second St., Homer, IL 61849. You may telephone K.C. at 531-7856; or email him at caseyjonz@comcast.net

By using the mail for bills and Calendars, the Trustees hope to substantially reduce the need for the 20 volunteers normally required for production, assembly, and distribution of the Calendar. In these difficult times, individuals with the time and resources to help are becoming hard to find. That’s no reflection on the dedicated volunteers who, for many, many years, have steadfastly donated their time, energy, and gasoline to the Calendar project. The Library staff and Trustees sincerely appreciate the efforts of those volunteers. And we will still need several of them to help assemble the Calendars and perhaps to make some deliveries.

Please help make this the best fundraising year ever for the Homer Community Library by adding your listings to the 2013 Calendar or by making a donation!

Voter Registration at the Library

This year is an election year - are you registered to vote?

In the effort to make voter registration as easy as possible, the Homer Library will be hosting a VOTER REGISTRATION EVENT on Tuesday JULY 10th from 4-7pm. If you recently moved or turned 18 come on out and register! The Champaign County Clerk will have a representative here to register you - just bring two forms of identification showing your name - one must show your permanent residence, such as an Illinois driver's license, hunting or fishing license, library card, student identification, copy of a lease or rent receipt showing your address, or any piece of mail delivered to you at your residence. If you receive mail at a PO Box, please include this information with your street address. Voter Registration closes 28 days prior to an election and opens two (2) days after the election. In order to register:

You must be a citizen of the United States.
You must be 18 years of age on or before the date of the next election.
You must reside in your precinct for at least 30 days prior to an election.

We recently added to our collection a great movie about the struggles that women went through to get the right to vote. Ladies - remember, 100 years ago you would not have been able to vote! Iron Jawed Angels, is an HBO movie depicting the struggles of the early suffragette movement, which eventually gave women in the United States the right to vote. Spanning the years from 1912 to 1920, it stars Hilary Swank as Alice Paul who led the fight with ultimate courage. At the time, it was a state-by-state decision as to whether or not women could vote. But Alice Paul wanted to make it a constitutional amendment. Alice Paul and many of her followers suffered dire consequences for their courageous actions.

If you are interested in learning more about this subject or about American history in general, please visit your local library. If we don't have what you are looking for on our shelves, we can get it for you!

Reading is Sooooo Delicious

This Tuesday was the first day of our summer reading program. We had a lot of fun with the 23 kids who came the first day! Our theme this summer is food - we will be talking about gardening, nutrition and food safety as well as playing lots of games and doing lots of crafts and other activities. This week everyone got to plant two different kinds of vegetable seeds and see some different vegetable plants (some with baby veggies already growing). While we really enjoy doing the 6-week Tuesday program, the main goal of our reading program is to keep kids reading through the summer. Many studies throughout the years have shown that elementary school aged kids lose a lot of their reading skills over the summer months if they don't continue to read. In order to help motivate kids to read, each child signed-up for the program receives a reading log with target goals. Once they meet their goals they receive small prizes. Even if your child cannot come to the Tuesday activity program, they can pick-up a reading log and earn prizes! The weekly activity program will be held each Tuesday from 1-2pm from now until July 17th. Kids can pick-up reading logs anytime during open hours at the Library. We are open Mon, Tues, Thur, and Fri from 2-7pm, Weds 9am-2pm and Sat 10am-2pm. We look forward to a great summer of food fun and facts!

Enjoy the Pleasure of Lifelong Learning!

The Homer Community Library has recently acquired 110 college-level courses published by The Teaching Company! This windfall was purchased using funds given to the Library in memory of Seaton and Elizabeth Hunter and through the generosity of the family of Robert S. Hunter of Quincy, Illinois. (It is only coincidental that the two families have the same surname—they are not related.)

These "Great Courses" bring engaging professors into your home or car on DVD, audio CD, and audio cassettes. Exemplary teachers from the Ivy League, Stanford, Georgetown, and other leading colleges and universities have crafted the lectures for lifelong learners like you. It's the adventure of learning without the homework or exams.

The following items have already been cataloged into our system and are available for check-out NOW. Many more will follow in the weeks to come. This is an extraordinary opportunity for you to become well-versed in topics that include literature, language, religion, science, mathematics, psychology, history, business, economics and several more. All Courses include a guidebook written by the lecturer.

Here are the titles we currently have cataloged. Keep in mind, most of these have multiple parts and the guide book to give you an in-depth understanding of each subject.

The Aeneid of Virgil

The American Mind

Analysis and Critique : How to engage and write about anything

The Art of Public Speaking : lessons from the greatest speeches in history

The Art of Teaching : best practices from a master educator

Bach and the High Baroque

Beethoven's Piano Sonatas

Building Great Sentences : Exploring the writer's craft

The Chamber Music of Mozart

Classical Mythology

Classics of British Literature

The Concerto

Dutch Masters : the age of Rembrandt

Economics

Effective Communication Skills

Elements of jazz : from cakewalks to fusion

Emerson, Thoreau, and the Transcendentalist Movement

Espionage and Covert Operations : A global history

From Monet to Van Gogh : a history of impressionism

Games People Play : Game theory in life, business, and beyond

Great American Music: Broadway Musicals

The Great Ideas of Psychology

Great Master: Liszt, His Life and Music

Great Masters: Beethoven, His Life and Music

Great Masters: Brahms, His Life and Music

Great Masters: Haydn, His Life and Music

Great Masters: Mahler, His Life and Music

Great Masters: Mozart, His Life and Music

Great masters: Robert and Clara Schumann, Their Lives and Music

Great Masters: Shostakovich, His Life and Music

Great Masters: Stravinsky, His Life and Music

Great Masters: Tchaikovsky, His Life and Music

Great Philosophical Debates : Free will and determinism

Herodotus : the father of history

A History of European Art

The History of the English Language

How to Listen To and Understand Great Music

The Iliad of Homer

The Life and Work of Mark Twain

Lifelong Health : Achieving optimum well-being at any age

London: A short history of the greatest city in the Western world

Masterpieces of Ancient Greek Literature

Masterpieces of the Imaginative Mind : Literature's most fantastic works

Meaning From Data: Satistics made clear

Medical Myths, Lies, and Half-Truths : What we think we know may be hurting us

Memory and the Human Lifespan

Meteorology: An introduction to the wonders of the weather

Museum Masterpieces: The Louvre

The Operas of Mozart

Optimizing Brain Fitness

The Passions: Philosophy and the intelligence of emotions

Philosophy of Mind

Pompeii: Daily life in an ancient Roman city

Psychology of Human Behavior

Representing Justice : Stories of law and literature

Shakespeare's Tragedies

The Symphony

Tocqueville and the American Experiment

Transformational Leadership : How leaders change teams, companies, and organizations

Understanding the Brain

Understanding the Fundamentals of Music

The World Was Never the Same : Events that changed history

Reserve your "Great Course" today by telephoning the Library at 896-2121. Or, you can reach us by email at: homerlibrarian@gmail.com To view our entire catalog, visit us at http://opac.libraryworld.com/opac/home

Puss In Boots at the Library!

Friday the 16th is Free Family Movie Night! We will be showing “Puss & Boots”, the DreamWorks animated movie starring Antonio Banderas. Everyone knows Puss in Boots from the "Shrek" films, but few know that years before meeting the green ogre, the swashbuckling feline had his own adventure. Learn the origin of this furry lover, fighter, and outlaw as he teams up with Kitty Softpaws and Humpty Dumpty to steal magic beans from the dastardly Jack and Jill in a castle guarded by giants so Puss can clear his name. This film is rated PG (for adventure action and mildly rude humor) and runs 90 minutes. We will start the movie just after 7pm.

A sharp-eyed patron noticed our next gardening program was scheduled for the Saturday of Easter weekend. We realized this was going to cause many of our regular attendees to be unable to join us so we have moved the April 7th gardening session to Saturday, March 31st. We hope that does not cause any inconvenience. The gardening sessions have been going really well and the March 31st session will focus on the pros and cons of direct seeding and transplanting, protecting your seedlings, crops that are (usually) easy to grow, companion planting and the importance of mulching. Help fend off cabin fever and join us!

Did you know that the Homer Community Library is on Facebook? Join us to find out more about upcoming events, new items and to read or add patron book reviews. Just search for Homer Community Library and ‘like’ us.

It's Time to Think Spring! (No, We're Not Crazy)

We realize it is still winter but it is never too soon to start thinking about your spring garden.
Do you want to learn how to garden but don't know where to start? Join us for a 3- Part Beginner Garden Program series at the Homer Community Library.

Laura Wetzel is a life-long gardener with a degree in botany. We discovered her and her garden series on the Common Ground Food Co-op website and are very excited to have her come to Homer as well to share her knowledge and joy of gardening! Sessions will be 12:30PM- 2:00PM on the first Saturday of the month February- March. Following is a brief description of each planned session. You can come to one or all!

FEBRUARY 4th- Planning Your Garden---Dream Time
The perfect time to plan a garden is when it is much too cold to plant! In the first two sessions of this series, participants will evaluate their garden space and learn to maximize it. We will start the process of deciding what to plant and where. If you have seed catalogs that you are willing to share, please bring them!

MARCH 3rd- When and Where to Plant
A continuation of evaluating each participants available space. Where sun and space are in short supply, we will look for ways to fit food crops into landscaping. Other topics covered will be early spring soil preparation, use of compost, cool season growers, succession planting and what to do if it just won't stop raining!

APRIL 7th- How To Plant
In this session we will talk about direct seeding, transplanting, protecting new plantings from animals, crops that are easy to grow (usually), mulch, companion planting, and how to find that all too illusive window of opportunity for planting. If you have extra seed, we invite you to bring it along for a seed swap.

Questions?? Call the Homer Library at 896-2121

New Reader Incentive!

You May Have
Seen the Movie –
Now Read the Book!



Read any book that has been made into a popular movie and enter our prize drawing!

Read a qualifying book that has not been checked out in at least 3 years and you will be entered twice!

Prizes include gift cards, tote bags, books and other misc. items.

All of the books currently displayed on our end-caps have been made into movies but these aren’t your only choices – there are many more qualifying books in our collection.
And, NO – watching the movie does not count!

Stories & Crafts & More at the Library!

Come on out for stories and crafts and other fun at the Homer Community Library on Wednesday, Dec. 28th from 10am – noon. We will learn about Chinese New Year and make some dancing dragons and hear some fun stories. Kids of all ages are welcome to attend. Come out for just a few minutes or the whole two hours!

Champaign and Urbana have their new cataloging system up and running so Homer Library card holders can being using the larger libraries again. Even if you had been using these libraries, you will need to re-register with them. You will need to be in good standing without any fines and your library card cannot be expired. You will need to bring your Homer Library card, a photo ID and fill out a short form. Champaign has instituted a new policy and will only allow our patrons to have two items checked out. The Homer Library allows up to 20 books at a time and our strictest limit is that only 3 DVDs can be checked out on a patron’s card.

Did you know that besides holding fun events and checking out books, the library offers many other services? We have several computers for the public to use and offer printing, copying, scanning and faxing services. We have a color printer available for public use and only charge 15¢ per page for prints, copies or FAXES – this is one of the cheapest rates around for faxing!

The Homer Library will be closed on Dec. 24th and 25th and again on Dec. 31st and Jan. 1st for the holidays.

It's Getting Cold Outside - That Means It's Time To Read!

We had a great turn out for Santa in the Library – thank you all who came to visit and to all who picked a wish-list ornament from our tree. We still have quite a few items left on our wish list if you would like to donate something to the library. Keep in mind, donations of money or new items to the library are tax exemptions. Just let us know, and we can give you a receipt letter for you tax records.

We just got in our latest stack of new releases. We have: V is for Vengeance by Sue Grafton, Shock Wave by John Sandford, Zero Day by David Baldacci, 11/22/63 by Stephen King, and Chasing Fire and The Next Always by Nora Roberts for our adult collection. We have Bloodlines by Richelle Mead and Witch & Wizard: The Fire by James Patterson for our Young Adult collection.

Don’t forget – Free Family Movie Night will be Friday, Dec. 16th. All ages are welcome to attend.

The Calendars Are Here! (and much more!)

If you ordered a Homer Library birthday calendar they are available for pick-up now at the Homer Library! We are open M, Tu, Th, Fri 2-7pm, Weds 9am-2pm and Sat 10am-2pm.

We keep filling our shelves with new book and DVD titles. Some of our most recent dvd additions are: Cars 2 and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2.

For adult fiction books we have added: The Litigators by John Grisham, Kill Alex Cross by James Patterson, Best of Me by Nicholas Sparks, The Priest’s Graveyard by Ted Dekker, Secrets of the Tudor Court by Kate Emerson, and Hotel Vendome by Danielle Steel.

For the juniors and teens we have in: Cabin Fever (Diary of a Wimpy Kid) by Jeff Kinney, Inheritance by Christopher Paolini, Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead, 1st Kill (a Vladimir Tod book) by Heather Brewer and Destined by PC Cast (the most recent House of Night novel). We have also been getting in some wonderful non-fiction for both kids and adults.

Have you read something wonderful lately? We are looking to start a display for “patron recommendations”. If you’ve read something that you think others might like, please let us know – we would love to pass along your recommendation. Just give us a brief description of what you liked about the book. You can do this anonymously if you prefer.

Want to keep up with the most current library news and events? Search for the Homer Community Library and ‘like’ us on Facebook.

Mango Language Demo!

Thursday Nov. 10th at 7pm the Homer Community Library will give a demonstration on how to use Mango, the on-line language learning program. There are about 45 different languages to choose from. We offer all of the common languages, such as French, Spanish and German but also offer Urdu, Slovak, Korean, Chinese, Farsi and many, many more! This is perfect for home schoolers who would like to learn a foreign language as well as anyone about to travel. You DO NOT need a library card to attend. If you are interested in a demonstration but can not attend this event, please contact the library and we can arrange something.

Meet Author Maureen Holtz on Nov. 12th

Meet author, Maureen Holtz and learn about,

Robert Allerton:
The Private Man & The Public Gifts


Most people know Robert Allerton only as the rich and mysterious man who built a mansion on many acres outside of Monticello. But few people realize that the main building of the Art Institute of Chicago is named after him, or that he's the son of the founder of the Chicago Stockyards, & the First National Bank of Chicago. Robert Allerton was also named Chicago's Richest Bachelor in 1906!

To find out more about this mysterious man and the connection between him and the town of Allerton, Illinois join us at the

Homer Community Library
Sat, Nov. 12th @ 1:30pm

The Homer Community Library is located at 500 East 2nd St., (the Homer-Catlin Rd), Homer, IL. For more information contact us at 217-896-2121 or homerlibrarian@gmail.com