The Greenbush Bookmark for Adults  
January 2021

In This Issue: Winter Reading Challenge, Writing Contest, 
Service Changes, Book Bundles, Bingo and Trivia!
 
At long last, it's 2021! We're starting the year off with high hopes for a great year ahead. We hope that our slate of January activities and reading recommendations will get your year off to a good start, too.
 
Read on to learn more about Winter Reading 2021, Grab-and-Go Book Bundles for adults in a variety of genres and themes, upcoming programs including the Pen to Pandemic writing contest and the return of virtual trivia night, and, of course, staff picks reading recommendations. 
 
The library has made some changes to our services due to the rapid rise in COVID-19 cases in our area. Details are in the special Safety Update section below.
 
Happy New Year and warm wishes from your Adult Services Librarians,
 
~ Elizabeth, Catherine, Jody, Barbara, & Lauren       
 
 
Safety Update
In response to the continuing surge in COVID-19 cases, the library will rollback services and capacity limits will be reduced.
  • The building capacity (the number of visitors allowed in the building at a time) has been reduced from 20 to 5. 
  • Visits are limited to a maximum of 15 minutes. Patrons are requested to limit their in-person visits to one person per household, per day.
  • In-person computer use, and notary services are suspended.
  • Copy/Scan/Fax/Printing is limited.
We encourage the community to prioritize the use of Book Bundles for Kids & Teens and Personalized Reading Recommendations & Book Bundles for adults and use our contactless pick-up service at the drive-through window.
 
Online library resources are available 24-7, and our staff will continue to work behind the scenes to ensure we continue to operate with meaningful ways to serve the community beyond the walls of the library.
 
There is no substitute for the relationships we have developed with all of you, and we can’t wait to restore full library services as soon as we can do so safely.
 
 
New for January
Pen to Pandemic: A Short Story Competition in the Time of COVID-19
 
The East Greenbush Community Library, in partnership with the Town of East Greenbush and the Hart Cluett Museum, is hosting a short story competition.
  • Stories must be works of fiction set in Rensselaer County during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Any genre.
  • Word count 1,500 to 2,000 words.
  • Submissions due by March 15, 2021.
  • All stories must be previously unpublished, original stories.
  • Judging will be done by a joint committee.
  • Entrants must be at least 18 years of age.
We will host a public reading for the winners to read their stories, and winning stories will be published by the library. 
 
Registration for the contest begins online January 15th. To express your interest and register for the competition, use the registration form on our Pen to Pandemic web page (form will become available on the page on January 15th). You will need a name for the story to register.
 
For rules and further details, please see our Pen to Pandemic web page.
 
Now Available: Book Bundles for Adults
 
Book Bundles for adults, themed groupings of 3-5 books bundled together for quick and easy checkout, are here. Pop in and grab one today!
 
Book bundle themes/genres include:
  • Fantasy
  • First in a Series
  • Heartwarming & Upbeat
  • Historical Fiction
  • Humorous Memoir
  • Just for Laughs
  • LGBTQIA+ Fiction
  • Literary Fiction
  • Mystery Must Reads
  • Romance
  • Science Fiction
  • Spy Games
  • Steamy Romance
  • Tech Talk
  • Thrills & Chills
  • True Crime
  • Well-Researched & Issue Oriented
  • Woman’s Fiction
Adult Winter Reading Challenge
 
The theme for the 2021 Adult Winter Reading Challenge is FUN & GAMES, or, "Just Roll with It!" We hope to keep you entertained this winter with great books, programs, games, and prizes!
 
Register today on our website to participate online through Beanstack, which allows you to track your reading, complete challenge activities, and enter raffle drawings, all in one place.
 
Earn a raffle ticket for each activity you complete. Raffle prizes include $25 gift cards to Applebee's, Best Buy, HomeGoods/Marshall's, and Ulta Beauty. Complete 20 of the 24 activities to earn your completion badge and be automatically entered into the grand prize drawing for a fun & games prize basket.
 
If you prefer our traditional printed reading challenge game card, copies are available in the library or at the drive-thru window during library hours. Please note you can participate either online or on paper, not both.
 
The Winter Reading Challenge is open to adults 18+ who live in Albany or Rensselaer Counties. While most of the challenge activities can be done without a library card, some do require one. If you live in Albany or Rensselaer County, click here to sign up for a library card. See our website for more winter reading details.
 
 
Upcoming Programs
Monday Night Book Chat
Weekly. Monday evenings, 7:00-9:00 pm
Facebook 
What have you been reading lately? Join our Monday night Facebook book chat to tell us about it and gather recommendations from librarians and other readers.  
Grab-and-Go Craft: Fresh Start Artsy Journal
 
Register to reserve this month's craft kit, "Fresh Start Artsy Journal." Kits include a blank notebook, decorative tape, adhesive picture corners, felt-tip pens and directions to create a "bullet" journal & other types of creative journals.
 
Registration opens to East Greenbush and Schodack card holders on January 9th, and to others on January 16th. Registrants will be notified when kits are ready for pick-up at the drive-thru window. Be sure to register before picking up your kit.
Monday Morning Book Discussion
Monday, January 18, 10:00-11:00 am
Zoom
This month we will discuss Kitchens of the Great Midwest by J. Ryan Stradal. Copies of the book are available for checkout at the library drive-thru window, or digitally through Overdrive.
 
Please register in advance by 1/15 to ensure that you receive an emailed link participate in this Zoom discussion. (Ongoing participants do not need to register.)
 
Monday Evening Book Discussion
Monday, November 16, 7:00-8:00 pm
Zoom
Join the Monday Evening Book Group/Good Buy Book Club to discuss This Tender Land by William Kent Krueger. Copies are available for checkout at the library drive-thru window, or digitally through Overdrive or Hoopla.
 
This discussion will take place online as a Zoom meeting.  Register with your email by 1/15 to ensure you receive a link to the meeting.
 
A Night of Music Trivia
Wednesday, January 20, 7:00-8:30 pm
Zoom
Join us for a Virtual Trivia Night on Zoom. Teams are encouraged! Chose a captain and a fun and unique team name and register your team. (Only one person should register for each team.)
Adult Bingo: Great Reads of 2020
Wednesday, January 27, 7:00-8:00 pm
Zoom
Celebrate Great Reads of 2020 with Virtual Bingo for Adults!
You must register for this program to reserve your bingo card, which can be picked up at the drive-thru window starting January 20th. We will use the same card throughout the program. Gather pennies, candy, or just pieces of paper to mark off your squares. In the spirit of fun, we will hold a raffle for one event winner. 
Registration is limited to East Greenbush and Schodack patrons until January 15th. 
Let's Get to Work Workshop Series
Multiple dates, Winter and Spring 2021
Online
The Upper Hudson Library System has teamed up with librarian and technology trainer Nate Heyer to offer a series of career and technology class. Visit our Education & Employment page to see the full class list with descriptions, and register here. All sessions are offered free of charge and online through GoToMeeting.
 
Classes include:
  • Grow Your Business with YouTube
  • Power Your Job Search with Google Tools
  • Introduction to Excel
  • Introduction to Windows 10
  • Digital Organization Sampler
  • And more!
 
Reading Recommendations
Staff Picks: Recent Reads that Library Staff Loved!
 
And every morning the way home gets longer and longer : a novella
by Fredrik Backman

From the New York Times best-selling author of A Man Called Ove comes a portrait of an elderly man's struggle to hold on to his most precious memories, and his family's efforts to care for him even as they must find a way to let go.
 
Recommended by Marianne | Available on Overdrive
Can't even : how millennials became the burnout generation
by Anne Helen Petersen

Argues that the millennial generation is experiencing burnout and looks at the cultural shifts that caused it, the pressures that sustain it and the need for drastic change.
 
Recommended by Lauren | Available on Overdrive
Days without end : a novel
by Sebastian Barry

Entering the U.S. army after fleeing the Great Famine in Ireland, 17-year-old Thomas McNulty and his brother-in-arms, John Cole, experience the harrowing realities of the Indian wars and the American Civil War between the Wyoming plains and Tennessee. 
 
Recommended by Catherine | Available on Overdrive & Hoopla
Things in jars
by Jess Kidd

Bridie Devine, female detective extraordinaire, is confronted with the most baffling puzzle yet: the kidnapping of Christabel Berwick, secret daughter of Sir Edmund Athelstan Berwick, and a peculiar child whose reputed supernatural powers have captured the unwanted attention of collectors trading curiosities in this age of discovery. Winding her way through the labyrinthine, sooty streets of Victorian London, Bridie won’t rest until she finds the young girl, even if it means unearthing a past that she’d rather keep buried.
 
Recommended by Elizabeth | Available on Overdrive
Wintering : the power of rest and retreat in difficult times
by Katherine May

An intimate, revelatory book exploring the ways we can care for and repair ourselves when life knocks us down, which, for author May, happened when her husband fell ill, her son stopped attending school, and her own medical issues led her to leave a demanding job. Wintering explores how she not only endured this painful time, but embraced the singular opportunities it offered. A moving personal narrative shot through with lessons from literature, mythology, and the natural world, May's story offers instruction on the transformative power of rest and retreat. Ultimately Wintering invites us to change how we relate to our own fallow times. 
 
Recommended by Catherine
Staff Picks: The Best of 2020
Here's our absolute favorites from 2020. We hope you enjoy them, too!
Click on the image below to expand, then click on a title to be brought to the catalog, where you can check availability or request a copy.
 Find More Reading Recommendations 
  • East Greenbush Community Library Staff Picks
  • NoveList reading recommendations  (requires valid East Greenbush or Schodack library card)
  • Library Reads: Top 10 books published each month as voted on by librarians 
  • Personalized Recommendation Service for Readers (requires valid East Greenbush/Schodack library card)
 
 
From Our Partner Organizations
AARP Driver Safety
 
AARP Smart Driver Course is available online. No in-person courses are currently scheduled.
Get a 25% discount by using discount code: DRIVINGSKILLS
 
AARP TaxAide

We are sorry to announce that TaxAide services will not be offered in our area this year. As an alternative, you may try AARP's online tax assistance help resource, available here.

 
 E-Resource Roundup
NoveList Plus
Book database and reading recommendations
*Requires an East Greenbush/Schodack card 
 Overdrive & Libby
Ebooks, audiobooks,  magazines*
 Hoopla
Ebooks, audiobooks, movies, music, comics
*Requires an East Greenbush/Schodack card
Tech-Talk
Learn technology skills!
User & PW: eglibrary
 
 
Webucator
Self-paced tech classes. Call the library for access code.
 
Research Databases
Search for journal, magazine, encyclopedia, and newspaper articles
*Please note: Flipster digital magazine service is no longer available and has been replaced by the increased number of digital magazines that are now available through Overdrive.
 
 
Contact / Hours of Operation
 Call
(518) 477-7476
 
Our phones are answered: 
Tu, Th, Fri 11 am - 6 pm
Wed 11 am - 7 pm
Sat 10 am - 2 pm
 
Other times, leave a message and we'll return your call.
 Email
eglibraryinfo@eglibrary.org
 
Email us anytime.
We will reply on weekdays within 24 hours.
Online
https://eglibrary.org
 
Visit our website,
or find us on social media:
 
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Pinterest
 
Grab-and-Go
15-Minute Library Browsing
Tu, Th, Fri 11 am - 6 pm
Wed 11 am - 7 pm
Sat 10 am - 2 pm
 
Item Returns
 
Items may be returned to
the bin in the library entryway during the following hours. (Drive-thru returns unavailable)
 
Mon-Fri, 11 am - 6 pm
Wed 11 am - 7 pm
Sat 10 am - 2 pm
 
 
Drive-Thru
Holds Pick-Up
 
Tu, Th, Fri, 11 am - 6 pm
Wed 11am - 7 pm
Sat 10 am - 2 pm
See details

East Greenbush Community Library
10 Community Way
East Greenbush, New York 12061
518-477-7476
eglibrary.org