MPL Connect
                                  April 2023
From the Director:
 
I hope that everyone is enjoying our variable spring weather! MPL received news that, for the 9th year in a row, we have been awarded the Texas Municipal Library Directors Association (TMLDA) award for Excellence in Library Services. MPL was recognized for exhibiting the promotion of cultural, topical, and educational programming, providing literacy support, providing summer reading program, pursuing collaborative efforts, supporting workforce development and digital inclusion, and providing the latest staff training. “The McAllen Public Library continues to meet the evolving needs of our community members,” said McAllen City Manager Roel “Roy” Rodriguez, P.E. “Library director, Kate Horan, and her entire staff deserve this recognition for always promoting literacy, communication, and the exchange of knowledge and information, which is the mission of a true library,” he said. Only 73 of the 550 public libraries in Texas received this award. Thanks to our community for your patronage and to MPL staff who provide award-winning service with passion and dedication.
 
With spring comes Día de los Niños, a nationally recognized initiative that emphasizes the importance of literacy for children from all backgrounds. MPL’s annual Día celebration event will be on Sunday, April 30th at 2:00 pm. Children are encouraged to come dressed as their favorite book character. Families will enjoy storytelling with local author Eliza Garza, followed by a Book Character Parade. The family engagement will continue with music by Juan C. and the Key Limes, snacks, activities, FREE books and more! Tweens and teens are invited to register for a Cosplay Contest to win some cool prizes and enjoy gaming fun in our Gaming Room in the Meeting Rooms. Join us to celebrate Día de los Niños in promotion of literacy and family engagement! 
 
April is also the month that we anticipate replacing the A/C units at our Lark Branch and Palm View Branch, around the end of the second week of April. The work will entail a temporary interruption of service at our Branch Libraries, but we will be sure to keep you informed on our website at www.mcallenlibrary.net and on our Facebook page.
 
My very exciting news is that, as of April 23, MPL will no longer impose fines for overdue items for children and teen materials. What a great way to celebrate National Library Week, April 23-29! MPL joins a growing number of public libraries across Texas that are going fine free, especially for youth. I believe that fines represent a deterrent to the use of MPL, which is dedicated to free access of information to all. In eliminating fines for children and teens, MPL removes barriers to access the information young people need to succeed in school and life. Charges associated with lost items will remain in place. MPL is grateful to our great City of McAllen for their support of literacy and MPL’s mission!
 
Lastly, hold Saturday, September 30, 2023 for our annual Casino Night fundraiser! We will release details in the weeks and months to come, but I can promise that you will not want to miss this fun event! All profits go toward supporting our annual South Texas Book Festival, which brings the best in authors for children, teens, and adults to the RGV.
 
Kate P. Horan, MLS
Library Director
 
 
 
September 30th - Save the Date!
 
Current Hours of Operation 
 
Main Library
Monday - Thursday
9 AM - 9 PM
 
Friday - Saturday
9 AM - 6 PM
 
Sunday
1 PM - 9 PM
 
Lark & Palm View Branches
Monday - Thursday
10 AM - 9 PM
 
Friday - Saturday
10 AM - 5 PM
 
Sunday
1 PM - 9 PM 
 


 
 
The McAllen Public Library will be closed April 7th, April 8th, & April 9th
for Easter Weekend.  
 
Regular Library hours will resume on April 10th.
 
 








 
Children's Programs
 
For more information on children events, visit the MPLKids Facebook!
  
Program Highlights: Lark and Palm View Branch Easter Bunny Hunt 
April 4th starting at 6 PM
 
Mark your calendars! Lark Branch and Palm View Branch Libraries are hosting fun-filled Easter egg hunts for kids and teens on Tuesday, April 4th! It's going to be an amazing time for everyone!
  
 
                           
 
Children's Programs 
 
 
 
Baby Storytime
Mondays at 1 PM
 
Toddler Time 
Thursday at  10 AM 
 
Easter Fun 
April 2nd at 2 PM
 
S.T.E.M. Sunday 
April 16th at 2 PM  
 
Crafternoon 
April 20th at 5 PM
 
Saturday Storytime 
April 22 at 2 PM 
 
Bilingual Storytime 
April 27th at 5 PM
 
Crafty Kids
(Lark)
Wednesdays at 6 PM
 
Once Upon a Time 
(Lark) 
April 3rd ,4th, 5th, 10th , 11th, 12th,  17th, 18th, 19th,  20th, 
 24th, 25th, & 27th
at 11 AM
 
Coloring Day 
(Lark) 
April 3rd at 6 PM
 
 
Kids Lego Club 
(Lark) 
April 24th at 6 PM
 
Stay & Create
(Palm View)
Mondays  & Wednesdays
at 5 PM
 
Bilingual Storytime: La Hora de los Cuentos
(Palm View)
Tuesdays at 11 AM 
 
Toddler Time
(Palm View)
Thursdays at 11 AM
 
 
  
Teen Programs
 
For more information on teen events, visit MPLTeenFacebook!
  
Program Highlight: Open Mike Night 
Sunday, April 16th at 6 PM 
 
Teens, let your voice be heard! Bring your poetry, stories, comedy, music, or art to our Open Mic Night. All ages are welcome to celebrate National Poetry Month with us.
 
 
 
 
                    
Teen Programs
 
 
Movie Trivia 
April 5th at 6 PM
 
Homeschool Hangout Spring Formal 
April 12th at 6 PM
 
Mazes and Monsters Club 
April 13th & 27 at 6 PM
 
TAC Meeting 
April 15rh at 2 PM
 
Dia De Ninos 
April 30th at 2 PM
 
Book Swap 
(Lark) 
April 1st at 2 PM 
 
Easter Egg Hunt 
(Lark)
April 4th at 6:30 PM
 
 Teen Makers Club:
DIY Body Lotion 
(Lark)
April 11 at 6 PM 
 
Virtual Reality 
(Lark) 
April 18th at 6 PM 
 
Earth Day: Seed Bomb 
(Lark) 
April 20th at 6 PM 

Uno Tournament 
(Lark) 
April 25th at 6 PM

Gamers Unplugged 
(Palm View) 
Tuesdays at 4 PM 
 
Level UP! Club 
(Palm View)
April 13th & 27th at 4 PM 
 
Shape Poem
(Palm View)
April 19th at 4 PM
 
Adult Programs
 
For more information on adult events, visit the MPL Adults Facebook!
  
Program Highlight: PV Community Health Fair
(Palm View)
April 28th at 10 AM 
 
Celebrate National Library Week with FREE Health Screenings: blood glucose, high blood pressure, BMI, fatty liver. Join us for special programming: La hora de los cuentos & Cooking with Herbs & Spices! Raffle items, snacks & giveaways!
 
 
 
        
               
 
Adult Programs
 
 
 Region One ESL + Citizenship Class
Mondays & Wednesdays at 9AM
 
Evening with The Stars 
April 2nd at 5 PM
 
MPL Gaming Club 
April 11th & 25th 
5:30 PM 
 
Knitting Group
(Lark)
Tuesdays at 2 PM
 
Tech Help
(Lark) 
April 1st, 15th, 22nd, & 29th at 10 AM & 2 PM
 
Sketching Class 
(Lark)
April 4th & 18th at 6 PM
 
Adult Coloring 
(Lark) 
April 12th at 6 PM 
 
Virtual Painting Class
(Lark) 
April 21st at 2 PM
 
Adult Painting Class 
(Lark) 
April 22nd at 1:30 PM 
 
Poetry Month DIY Journal 
(Lark)
April 26th at 6 PM 
 
Basic Computer Classes
(Palm View) 
Mondays at 1 PM 
 
 Clases de Computación Básica 
(Palm View) 
Wednesdays at 1 PM
  
Smart Money Craft
(Palm View)
April 10th at 10 AM
 
Beaded Metal Bookmark
(Palm View)
April 25th at 1:30 PM  
   



All My Mother's Lovers by llana Masad

"Ilana Masad's debut is a queer tour de force. A tender look at love, relationships, motherhood, and how we oftentimes hurt the people we love most with our silence. Compelling and astonishing, All My Mother's Lovers is a novel with family dynamics at its heart.  This book goes hard and does not disappoint. Masad is a writer on the rise."
—Kristen Arnett, author of Mostly Dead Things
 
Registration is required for new members.
Contact reference at 956-681-3000 to register.
Reminders of Him by Colleen Hoover
 
 “An angsty, emotionally-charged novel about finding forgiveness and redemption for past mistakes, 
Reminders of Him took Colleen Hoover’s already evocative writing to a whole new level…
An intimate, sometimes painfully real, reading experience like no other.” ―Harlequin Junkie, Top Pick 
  
Registration required. Please call 681-3100 to register
The Book Thief by Marcus Zusal
 
"Brilliant and hugely ambitious…Some will argue that a book so difficult and sad may not be appropriate for teenage readers…Adults will probably like it (this one did), but it’s a great young-adult novel…It’s the kind of book that can be life-changing, because without ever denying the essential amorality and randomness of the natural order, The Book Thief 
offers us a believable hard-won hope…The hope we see in Liesel is unassailable, the kind
you can hang on to in the midst of poverty and war and violence. Young readers need such alternatives to ideological rigidity, and such explorations of how stories matter.  And so, come to think of it, do adults.”-New York Times
 
Registration required. Please call 681-3000 to register  
  Verity by Collen Hoover
 
“The energy and pace in this book are like a fun house at a carnival. It's ever-changing, and just when you think you know what to expect next, Hoover hits you with another turn. Up until the very final page, readers are mining for clues. Just when you thought you figured out the who, what, when, where, and why, it completely changes, leaving you gobsmacked.”
―BuzzFeed
  
Registration required. Please call 681-3000 to register
A Man Called Ove by Fedrik Backman 
 
“You will laugh, you will cry, as his heartbreaking story unfolds through the diverse cast of characters that enter his life, all uninvited. You will never look at the grumpy people who come into your life in quite the same way. A very memorable read."
― San Diego Union Tribune
 
Registration is required and limited seating is available. 
For more information, please call 956-681-3110
 
Thousands of books at your fingertips.
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Check out items from the comfort of your home. We have e-books, e-audiobooks, and reads for all ages and tastes, all available with a McAllen Public Library card.
 
Download the Libby app or visit mcallen.overdrive.com!
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Unlimited e-books selection for kids.
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Free online tutoring and more. 

Tutor.com combines online tutoring, homework help, test preparation, and career support with a variety of self-study resources to provide a well-balanced and flexible educational environment.
 
Login to the site here with your McAllen Public Library card!
Collection of guides listed by topic. 
Library Subject Guides
 
A wide variety of guides organized by subject featuring library and internet resources on topics of cultural, historical, literary, and local interest. 
 
 
Access the page here!
Free streaming shows with your library card.
 
 
 
Unlimited streaming shows and movies.
 
Educational, enriching, entertaining!
Stream hundreds of videos for free, brought to you by your library. 
 
Download the Kanopy app or visit mcallenlibrary.kanopy.com!
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Make the most of McAllen Public Library by following the Facebook pages that you're most interested in. All pages contain age-appropriate virtual content. It's one way MPL is keeping you connected!
  • For information about all library services and events: McAllen Public Library
  • For the parents of children birth up to 5th grade: MPL Kids
  • For teens from 6th grade through 12th grade and their parents: MPL Teens
  • For adults: MPL Adults
 
McAllen Public Library                                                        
4001 N. 23rd Street
McAllen, Texas 78504
Phone: (956) 681-3000E-mail: referencelibrarian@mcallen.netWebsite: www.mcallenlibrary.net

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