From Our Blogs

Book and activity ideas for all ages.

  • Eating Like the Dulany Wives: Historic Missouri Food Traditions

    I last wrote about the first three wives of Daniel Dulany while illustrating my research process within the Columbia Public Library. Now I’m going to talk about Missouri foodway resources, and not only because of Jacintha, Mary and Ann. My own great-great-great grandmother, Barbara, was born in 1823 in Yancey County, North Carolina, in the … Read more

  • Nonfiction Roundup: January 2026

    New Year, new books! Below I’m highlighting some nonfiction books coming out in January. All of the mentioned titles are available to put on hold in our catalog and will also be made available via the library’s Overdrive website on the day of publication in eBook and downloadable audiobook format (as available). For a more extensive list of new nonfiction … Read more

  • Reader Reviews: Sun & Ssukgat

    I thoroughly enjoyed “Sun & Ssukgat: The Korean Art of Self-Care, Wellness & Longevity.” This book was just what I was looking for… a book about Korean culture with enriching insight to the Korean approach to well-being. I’ve enjoyed similar topics for other cultures (Japanese ikigai, Costa Rican pura vida, Swedish lagom, Danish hygge) and … Read more

  • Reader Reviews: Embassytown

    “Embassytown” is a really magnificent science fiction book. It is essentially about language and how it shapes culture and understanding. The book is set in the far future in Embassytown, a human colony on a far-away planet. This planet is home to aliens who use language itself in ways that are utterly foreign to humans, … Read more

  • Reader Review: True Biz

    The book “True Biz” is a fictional book about growing up Deaf from the perspective of Deaf children and teenagers. It explores Deaf history, disability rights activism, and the cochlear implant controversy with an engaging story line and lovable characters. The book includes educational snippets, almost like school worksheets, corresponding with the lessons one of … Read more

  • Staff YA Picks of 2025

    Young Adult books aren’t just for teens! In fact, many of our staff regularly read YA so we asked them what their favorites were this year. We asked them to describe their favorite books in three words and to rate them on a scale from 1 to 5 stars. Check out some of their picks … Read more

  • Reader Review: Wonder Cat Kyuu-chan

    “Wonder Cat Kyuu-chan” is a four panel manga (reminiscent of daily comic strips, as opposed to a volume length story, although the strips do build on each other) about a young professional who adopts a cat. It is a middle grade to young adult manga, but which adult amongst us does not need a few … Read more

  • Reader Reviews: A Captain’s Duty

    The book “A Captain’s Duty” is about the hijacking of the cargo ship Maersk Alabama by Somali pirates in 2009. Captain Phillips tells the story from his point of view, explaining how he handled the crisis and made tough decisions to protect his crew, even offering himself as a hostage to keep them safe. The … Read more

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