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January 2021 Books & Beyond |
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Welcome 2021 - The Library Turns 50!
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Dear Library Members, On December 13th libraries were among the services provincially mandated to close as part of the ongoing effort to limit the spread of COVID-19. Fortunately, we are able to continue offering curbside pickup, online programs and provide you with access to a plethora of e-resources 24/7. Though it is disappointing that our building remains closed to the public at the start of this new year, as we finally turn the page on a very challenging 2020, we are excited to share some happy news. The Canmore Library has an important anniversary this year—2021 marks the Library’s 50th birthday! In terms of our Library’s early history you may be interested to learn that in August 1971, Town Bylaw 96 was passed and provided for the establishment of a municipal library in Canmore. The Canmore Library opened in its first location in the basement of the Catholic Church that December. It had a collection of 500 books on 2 donated shelves, it was open 8 hours a week and was run entirely by volunteers. Many years and several moves later, the Library is now housed in a custom-built space over 11,000 ft2, has a collection over 66,000 items and more than 20 staff. We intend to celebrate this milestone throughout 2021 and look forward to starting the next 50 years of library service in Canmore. We hope you will join us! Wishing you all the best, Michelle Preston Library Director |
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The New TRACpac App is Here!
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We are so excited to announce that the brand new TRACpac app is officially live! It is now easier than ever to discover titles, manage your account, check library hours and more. With the new TRACpac app you can check to see if a book is available for free from your library before making a purchase, place holds and renew books in a flash, and link family accounts for easy family card management. Access your library 24/7 from your phone or tablet - download the TRACpac app today! Have the app downloaded and looking for a little guidance? Find videos on how to navigate the app on Marigold's Youtube channel here.
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From the Friends of the Canmore Library
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We are continuing to work on plans to hold a book fair in 2021. While we wait for safer times we also continue to work to support our library with other initiatives One of our other fund raising efforts is the bottle collection. We have raised as much as $400 a month with donations. Imagine all that could be done for our library if we could increase that amount over the next few months. Help us to double that amount by taking your bottles to the Boulder Crescent Recycling Centre at 115 Boulder Crescent and putting your bottles in the designated bins in the corner beside the compost bin. You can also take your bottles to the bottle depot and ask for the refund to be applied to the Friends of the Library's account. |
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Staff Name: Marie Allard Where are you from? Winnipeg, with almost 10 years on Vancouver Island. How long have you been at the Library? Five years this past April. What do you do at the Library? Along with the "daily" tasks of working in the library, I also deliver books to Origin and Bow Valley Lodge as part of our Outreach program. What is the best part of your job? Seeing all the new books come in and seeing what our patrons are reading. What is your favorite food? Pizza. And bread. And chocolate. Marie’s Staff Pick: Box Hill by Adam Mars-Jones. A beautiful and heartbreaking coming of age story. |
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We know you miss browsing the library shelves. We miss meeting you in the aisles when you discover your next read. Let us assist you. Fill out our online form with as much detail as you would like. Our Next Read team at the library will follow up with any additional questions. After we get in touch with you, we’ll compile a list of specially selected books for you. Are you looking for some new books for the young readers in your life? We have preselected bags of books available, curated by library staff, for a range of age groups. Phone the library for more details and to request a grab and go bag! If you're looking for other ways to browse for books on our website, head over to our Staff Picks page to see what the staff have read and loved. We read a lot here, so you can be sure that these lists will be updated frequently! In addition to our Staff Picks, you can also check out our new Community Picks page! We've been collecting book recommendations from the community via our social media channels, e-mails and conversations at the front desk and have compiled them into lists for our website. Head on over to see what books the people in your community have been loving, and check back often for new and updated lists. For even more next read inspiration, you can visit the New and Notable page on our website for monthly top ten lists. We love to share the book love! |
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Did you know that there are over 100 authors who call Canmore their home? We are so excited to shine the spotlight on local authors for our newsletter subscribers! We are thrilled to introduce Nancy O'Hare as this month's Local Author Spotlight. Nancy typically writes about our world's most unique destinations alongside her husband whose photography exposes remarkable landscapes and intriguing cultures. She earned an executive MBA in London, United Kingdom and held a Chartered Professional Accountant designation for nearly twenty years before voluntarily giving it up in good standing when she became an author. She published two travel books, Dust in My Pack and Searching for Unique. Her two latest books are straight-forward guides to personal finance. From Wages to Riches is for young adults getting started and Reclaim your Financial Wits is for adults who have lost their way. Were you a young writer, a late bloomer, or something in-between? My writing would be no more than a vague pile of soggy clippings without the experiences I have witnessed. So I guess that puts me in the late-bloomer category. I was past forty when I even contemplated writing a book. By that point, I had lived and worked on five continents and travelled to over seventy countries. After trekking to communities with no other tourists in far-eastern Bhutan, walking among monks at dawn before they inaugurated young boys into monastic life or exploring cities in Cuba far from any resorts, I decided these unique destinations had stories to tell. My latest books have veered from my typical travel perspective and focus on key lessons of personal finance. Once again, I could not have written these handbooks earlier in life. In fact, no matter what I write about, the reason is the same—to capture the most meaningful experiences. What is the best investment you ever made in your writing? Practice. Malcom Gladwell’s book titled Outliers first introduced me to the concept of 10,000 hours of practice as the reason people excelled at their craft above natural talent. His message triggered something for me. Although an avid reader, I had always seen myself as a consumer of books rather than a creator. Outliers opened my mind to even consider writing. Does writing energize or exhaust you? Honestly, it does both. When I get into a flow, hours can disappear. Most of the time; however, I need to push myself to draw the story out. Each word and every sentence demands effort. Between rewording, deleting, digging deeper and shifting phrases around, it becomes an exhausting process. But once I finish and every paragraph feels right, then I feel energized. What is your favorite time to write, and why? My mind is most creative either during the morning or when I am travelling and feel invigorated by some unexpected occurrence. I also tend to come up with new ideas when out for a morning run or walk. This was actually when I came up with the concept for my latest books. I was thinking about my nieces who have started to ask about saving and investing. That afternoon, I started writing a short guide of the most important lessons that I had learned about personal finance. Give a shout-out to a fellow author.
André Alexis’ Fifteen Dogs conveyed a surprisingly fresh perspective. Roaming Toronto’s streets through the eyes of dogs created a world within our ‘normal’ world. I loved the re-take on life that this book offered. What aspect of writing have you most improved in over time? What resources helped you most in this area? Although this question asks about 'improved' as a concept already achieved, for me this challenge is more of an ongoing battle. Lately, I am trying a completely different way of writing. At this point I am drafting a third chapter and based on feedback about the first two, I am cautiously optimistic that my new approach is working. I won’t say too much other than I start with random, often chaotic bits and pieces that eventually come together into a rounded and more thought-provoking style of travel writing than I have done before. My next travel book will not only explore lesser-visited destinations, but focus on connections, signs of history repeating and, most importantly, lessons relevant in today’s world. Whether I succeed and actually improve - well, you will have to wait for my next travel book and decide for yourself! Check out Nancy's brand new book, From Wages to Riches. It can be found at Café Books in Canmore as well as the standard bookstores such as Indigo, Amazon, iBooks, and Kobo. |
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Author Presentation - Doug Latimer
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Join us on Tuesday, January 19th for a FREE Online Author Talk event via Zoom with Canmore local and author of Avalanche! The Guide’s Guide to Safer Travel in the Mountains Doug Latimer The first fully interactive eBook produced for avalanche safety, Avalanche! The Guide’s Guide to Safer Travel in the Mountains has been recently released by Doug Latimer. The content, based on current best practices in the avalanche industry, applies to all recreational mountain travelers. The book is designed to cover all the major skills needed to support safer decisions in avalanche terrain. Latimer says his new eBook is a resource for all those heading out into the backcoutry and for those who need to know more about the danger of avalanches. Doug's interactive eBook contains over 100 colour images, 80 videos (over 2.5 hours of content) and an extensive list of internet links for safer trip planning. You can watch a demo video of the eBook on Youtube here. Visit our website for further details. If you already have questions for the author, please email them to info@canmorelibrary.ab.ca ahead of time and we will be sure to address them in the presentation. |
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Adult Activity Kit - Gratitude Journals
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 “True gratitude comes from knowing that you belong in the infinite dance of life .” -Deepak Chopra Have you always wanted to start a gratitude journal but weren't sure how to get started? Reserve one of our Gratitude Journal Adult Activity Kits and we'll help you get on your way! Complete with a journal, writing prompts, and a list of reasons why practicing gratitude is good for you, this kit has everything you need to start practicing gratitude daily. Quantities are in limited supply so be sure to visit our website and reserve your kit today! Kits will be available for pick up at the library starting January 11th. |
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Your Adult Activity Kit Creations
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Thank you to everyone who has sent in pictures of their beautiful creations from past Adult Activity Kits. Below are just a few examples of what our lovely patrons have been able to create with one of our kits! We love seeing your talent and creativity. Please keep the pictures coming! |
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Miss seeing your favourite Library staff? Come to our drop in Virtual Reference Desk. Every week, join one (sometimes two) of our library staff as we answer YOUR questions on Zoom. Drop in any time during the hour. You can stay and chat or leave after finding your answer - the choice is yours! Our cameras will be on, but your camera is optional. We will be able to screen share so you can see the resources we are using to find your answer. Feel free to ask for demonstrations as we go along. But what types of questions can you ask? To get started, consider... - "How do I borrow a book from Libby?"
- "Do you have any suggestions for a good mystery novel?"
- "Where is the registry office in Canmore?"
- "Which eResources have digital magazines?"
- "Does the library have any books on tigers? I'm writing a report for school."
- "What's the airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow?"
If we cannot provide an answer right away, we will get back to you. If you have a question specific to your library account or personal device, please contact the library directly. Our Virtual Reference Desk will be open Wednesday's from 2:00-3:00pm via Zoom starting September 16th. You can find all the details on our website here. |
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Our Winter session starts January 5th and runs through until March 25th! Please see our website for details on how to access these storytimes. Beyond the Book Storytimes For our Winter session, we will be offering two Beyond the Book Storytimes. Join Miss Rhonda AND Miss Lyndsey on Zoom for a live, hour long storytime that will take you beyond the book! Babies and Tots
Tuesdays January 5th- March 23rd
9:30am - 10:30am Ages 0-2 A mix of board books, bounces, nursery rhymes, and music, this storytime is perfect for bouncing babies and wiggly tots. This program is designed to assist in the acquisition of language and to promote parent/child bonding. Toddlers & Preschoolers
Thursdays January 7th - March 25th
10:30 – 11:30 a.m. Ages 2-5 A mix of picture books, rhymes, activities and music, this storytime is perfect for older toddlers and preschoolers who are ready for longer stories, interactive games and even some crafts. Please visit our website for a list of all the exciting things planned and how to participate from home!  Storytime On Demand New Videos Uploaded Fridays 2:00pm Can't make it to our live, online storytimes? Not to worry! Check out our Storytimes on Demand on our Youtube channel. Every week a new Storytime on Demand will be uploaded on Friday at 2:00pm. There will be videos tailored for everyone: babies, toddlers, preschoolers, kindergarten kids, and even some done en français - so be sure to check back often! |
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Via Zoom, our next meeting will be held on Tuesday, January 26th from 4:00 – 5:00 p.m. January is BYOB (Bring Your Own Book) month! Bring your most recent or a favorite read to share! |
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While the library doors remain closed to the public, Contactless Curbside Pickup will continue to run 6 days a week by appointment only.  Curbside Guide: 1. Place your holds. - Click here to go the TRACpac catalogue and login to your account.
- Alternately, you can email or call us for assistance at 403-678-2468 Monday through Saturday between 9:00 am and 4:00 pm.
2. Wait for notification that your items are ready. - You will receive notification by email, text, or phone (as per your library account) that your hold requests are available for pickup.
- We are experiencing longer than normal delivery times, so your requests may take awhile to arrive. Please be patient.
3. Go online & schedule a pickup appointment (please wait until you have received notification that your holds are ready). - Visit the Canmore Public Library website and click on the Program & Events tab.
- Select the date you wish to pickup your material.
- Complete the registration form (you should receive a confirmation email for your booking).
4. Pickup your items: - Attend the library during the 2-hour time period on your selected date.
- Please follow the library signage, ensure you maintain proper social distancing (2 meters) and have your library card or photo ID ready.
- Line begins at the base of the ramp. Pickup of bagged items will occur outside the library’s Program Room door. Watch our video How to curbside pickup here.
5. If you have any questions or concerns please call or email us as we will be unable to assist you at the curb. For more information, please click here. |
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Have you checked out our 'Kids Corner' playlist on our YouTube channel? Here you will find all of our Corner videos. These are prerecorded videos for you and your little ones to enjoy on demand. With videos tailored for a range of age groups - babies, toddlers, preschoolers and kindergarten kids - as well as some done en français, you're sure to find something to suit your storytime needs! |
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Prerecorded Author Talk - Bruce Kirkby
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Did you miss our Online Author Talk with Bruce Kirkby on December 8th, 2020? Did you catch it live but want to see it again? You can now watch a recording of it on our YouTube channel! |
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If you know of someone who doesn't currently have a membership, but should, send them to our website to register for one today!  |
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Follow us on social media to stay up to date on our programs and other Library offerings, fun tips and tricks, staff picks and great posts like these: |
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Stay safe, stay healthy and feel free to call us at the Library if you need any help and aren't comfortable visiting us in person. Staff are onsite from 9-5, Monday, Wednesday and Friday and 9-8 on Tuesday and Thursday to help you access all the resources we offer! |
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Covid-19 Links and Resources
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The Town of Canmore has an excellent information site for all your Covid-19 questions.
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