Between the Lines Reads The Tobacco Wives

Do you LOVE to read? Do you love trying new books and discussing them with friends? Pick up your book for the next Between the Lines Book Club today!

This March, BTL is reading The Tobacco Wives by Adele Myers, a historical drama about the cost of friendship and secrets.

Maddie Sykes is a burgeoning seamstress who’s just arrived in Bright Leaf, North Carolina—the tobacco capital of the South—where her aunt has a thriving sewing business. After years of war rations and shortages, Bright Leaf is a prosperous wonderland in full technicolor bloom, and Maddie is dazzled by the bustle of the crisply uniformed female factory workers, the palatial homes, and, most of all, her aunt’s glossiest clientele: the wives of the powerful tobacco executives.

When a series of unexpected events thrusts Maddie into the role of lead dressmaker for the town’s most influential women, she scrambles to produce their ornate gowns for the biggest party of the season. But she soon learns that Bright Leaf isn’t quite the carefree paradise that it seems: A trail of misfortune follows many of the women, including substantial health problems. Although Maddie is quick to believe that this is a coincidence, she inadvertently uncovers evidence that suggests otherwise.

Maddie wants to report what she knows, but in a town where everyone depends on Big Tobacco to survive, she doesn’t know who she can trust—and fears that exposing the truth may destroy the lives of the proud, strong women with whom she has forged strong bonds.

Follow this riveting tale of the power of truth along with your fellow readers this March.

We have added a new meeting to our schedule to better suit your life! In addition to our March 30th meeting at 1:00 pm at the Aurora Public Library, we will also be meeting on April 4th at 6:30 pm at the Aurora Public Library! As always, we will be meeting at the Dillsboro Public Library on March 31st at 1:00 pm. Please feel welcome to attend any meeting that you wish, and keep an eye out for some delicious themed treats coming to your meeting this year!

We cannot wait to see you there! You can check out a BTL book at the Aurora or Dillsboro Public Libraries with a library card.

Margaret Peterson Haddix Visits!

Calling all readers! Acclaimed and world-renowned author Margaret Peterson Haddix is stopping by the Dillsboro Public Library on April 4th @ 6 pm to meet you all!

Margaret Peterson Haddix grew up on a farm near Washington Court House, Ohio. She graduated from Miami University (of Ohio) with degrees in English/journalism, English/creative writing and history. Before her first book was published, she worked as a newspaper copy editor in Fort Wayne, Indiana; a newspaper reporter in Indianapolis; and a community college instructor and freelance writer in Danville, Illinois.

She has since written more than 40 books for kids and teens, including Running Out of TimeDouble Identity; Uprising; The Always Warthe Greystone Secrets series; the Shadow Children series; the Missing series; the Children of Exile series; the Under Their Skin duologyand The Palace Chronicles. She also wrote Into the Gauntletthe tenth book in the 39 Clues series.  Her books have been honored with New York Times bestseller status, the International Reading Association’s Children’s Book Award; American Library Association Best Book and Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers notations; and numerous state reader’s choice awards. They have also been translated into more than twenty different languages.

Haddix and her husband, Doug, now live in Columbus, Ohio. They are the parents of two grown kids.

Want to read more by Margaret? Just search “Margaret Peterson Haddix” in our catalog or follow this link. You can also read her novel, The Summer of Broken Things with the Teen Book Club in March! Everyone ages 13-19 is welcome to attend Teen Book Club and you can check out your copy of the March Selection at either library today!

Want to meet Margaret? Registration is not required, but is recommended for this event. Margaret can’t wait to meet you!

Teen Book Club Reads The Summer of Broken Things

Meet up with book lovers just like you for a discussion of The Summer of Broken Things by Margaret Peterson Haddix on Tuesday, March 21st @ 4 pm. We’ll be reading this book to get ready for Margaret’s author visit to the Dillsboro Public Library on April 4th @ 6 pm! Free snacks and drinks will be provided. Stop by the Aurora or Dillsboro Library to pick up your copy today!

Fourteen-year-old Avery Armisted is athletic, rich, and pretty. Sixteen-year-old Kayla Butts is known as “butt-girl” at school. The two girls were friends as little kids, but that’s ancient history now. So it’s a huge surprise when Avery’s father offers to bring Kayla along on a summer trip to Spain. Avery is horrified that her father thinks he can choose her friends—and make her miss soccer camp. Kayla struggles just to imagine leaving the confines of her small town.

But in Spain, the two uncover a secret their families had hidden from both of them their entire lives. Maybe the girls can put aside their differences and work through it together. Or maybe the lies and betrayal will only push them—and their families—farther apart.

Everyone ages 13-19 are welcome to attend! We can’t wait to see you there!

Teen Book Club – Fangirl

Do you end up saying “just one more chapter” every night? Or maybe you haven’t read a book in forever. Either way, our new Teen Book Club is perfect for all young adult readers!

This month, we will be reading Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. This coming-of-age story introduces Cath, the quintessential, modern-day fanatic, and her journey through college, growing up, and worst of all, real-life boys who aren’t Simon Snow.

Cath is a Simon Snow fan. Okay, the whole world is a Simon Snow fan, but for Cath, being a fan is her life–and she’s really good at it. She and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it’s what got them through their mother leaving.

Reading. Rereading. Hanging out in Simon Snow forums, writing Simon Snow fan fiction, dressing up like the characters for every movie premiere.

Cath’s sister has mostly grown away from fandom, but Cath can’t let go. She doesn’t want to.

Now that they’re going to college, Wren has told Cath she doesn’t want to be roommates. Cath is on her own, completely outside of her comfort zone. She’s got a surly roommate with a charming, always-around boyfriend, a fiction-writing professor who thinks fan fiction is the end of the civilized world, a handsome classmate who only wants to talk about words . . . And she can’t stop worrying about her dad, who’s loving and fragile and has never really been alone.

For Cath, the question is: Can she do this?

Can she make it without Wren holding her hand? Is she ready to start living her own life? Writing her own stories?

And does she even want to move on if it means leaving Simon Snow behind?

Our next book will be selected by YOU, the reader! Our meeting will be at the Aurora Public Library on February 28th at 4 pm. Everyone ages 13 to 19 is welcome to attend. Registration is recommended but not required.

Books will be available for pickup at the library soon! We hope to see you there.

Chapter Chat Reads “Drama”

So you love reading, but have no one to gush about books with… Look no further! The Aurora Public Library has the answer for you: The Chapter Chat Book Club at the Aurora Public Library, meeting every month to talk books with kids just like you.

In January, Chapter Chatters are reading Drama by Raina Telgemeier! This story follows Callie, a theatre fan who wants to put on the best production her middle school has ever seen, but drama on and off-stage creates chaos aplenty.

Callie loves theater. And while she would totally try out for her middle school’s production of Moon over Mississippi, she can’t really sing. Instead she’s the set designer for the drama department’s stage crew, and this year she’s determined to create a set worthy of Broadway on a middle-school budget.

But how can she, when she doesn’t know much about carpentry, ticket sales are down, and the crew members are having trouble working together? Not to mention the onstage AND offstage drama that occurs once the actors are chosen.

And when two cute brothers enter the picture, things get even crazier!

We are meeting in February at the Dillsboro Public Library on February 11th at 10:30 am and at Aurora Public Library on February 15th at 4:00 pm. Snacks, drinks, and fun, themed activities will be provided.

Registration is recommended for everyone ages 9 and up! You can pick up your book at either location. We look forward to seeing you there!

Between the Lines Returns!

Do you LOVE to read? Do you love trying new books and discussing them with friends? Pick up your book for the next Between the Lines Book Club today!

This January, BTL is reading Seven Days of Us by Francesca Hornak, perfect for reading in this cozy holiday season.

It’s Christmas, and for the first time in years, the entire Birch family will be under one roof. Even Emma and Andrew’s elder daughter—who is usually off saving the world—will be joining them at Weyfield Hall, their aging country estate. But Olivia, a doctor, is only coming home because she has to. Having just returned from treating an epidemic abroad, she’s been told she must stay in quarantine for a week…and so too should her family.

For the next seven days, the Birches are locked down, cut off from the rest of humanity—and even decent Wi-Fi—and forced into each other’s orbits. In close proximity, not much can stay hidden for long, and as revelations and long-held tensions come to light, nothing is more shocking than the unexpected guest who’s about to arrive…

See how the Birch Family’s holiday plays out in this delightful domestic family drama.

We have added a new meeting to our schedule to better suit your life! In addition to our January 26th meeting at 1:00 pm at the Aurora Public Library, we will also be meeting on January 31st at 6:30 pm at the Aurora Public Library! As always, we will be meeting at the Dillsboro Public Library on January 27th at 1:00 pm. Please feel welcome to attend any meeting that you wish, and keep an eye out for some delicious themed treats coming to your meeting this year!

We cannot wait to see you there! You can check out a BTL book now at the Aurora or Dillsboro Public Libraries with a library card.

January’s Chapter Chat

So you love reading, but have no one to gush about books with… Look no further! The Aurora Public Library has the answer for you: The Chapter Chat Book Club at the Aurora Public Library, meeting every month to talk books with kids just like you.

In January, Chapter Chatters are reading The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani, now a hit Netflix Motion Picture! Of course, the book is always better than the movie, but see for yourself by checking out your book today at the Aurora Public Library!

With her glass slippers and devotion to good deeds, Sophie knows she’ll earn top marks at the School for Good and join the ranks of past students like Cinderella, Rapunzel, and Snow White. Meanwhile, Agatha, with her shapeless black frocks and wicked black cat, seems a natural fit for the villains in the School for Evil.

The two girls soon find their fortunes reversed—Sophie’s dumped in the School for Evil to take Uglification, Death Curses, and Henchmen Training, while Agatha finds herself in the School for Good, thrust among handsome princes and fair maidens for classes in Princess Etiquette and Animal Communication.

But what if the mistake is actually the first clue to discovering who Sophie and Agatha really are?

We are meeting in January at the Dillsboro Public Library on January 14th at 10:30 am and at Aurora Public Library on January 18th at 4:00 pm. Snacks, drinks, and fun, themed activities will be provided.

Registration is recommended for everyone ages 9 and up. You can pick up your book at either location. We look forward to seeing you there!

Chapter Chat: Bring Your Own Book

Bring your own book, or B.Y.O.B., is the theme for the November Chapter Chat! Bring a favorite book from home or one you enjoyed reading at the library. We’ll participate in a few icebreaker games, have some snacks, and discuss our favorite books.

Chapter Chat is our tween book club, open to all young readers who are in fourth grade or older. Selections for the club will mostly be picked from our Juvenile Fiction selections at the Dillsboro and Aurora Public Libraries, but for this special meeting in November, you are welcome to bring your own favorite book!

We will be meeting at the Aurora Public Library on November 9th at 4:00 pm and the Dillsboro Public Library November 12th at 10:30 am. We look forward to seeing you there! Just bring yourself and your favorite book, or bring some of your friends!

#BigLibraryRead with Libby!

This fall, get ready to cozy up with a great new book without holds, waitlists, or overdue dates thanks to Libby! Overdrive, Libby’s parent company, is starting another #BigLibraryRead this November, providing all Libby users with free simultaneous reader access to A Snake Falls to Earth by Darcie Little Badger.

Nina is a Lipan girl in our world. She’s always felt there was something more out there. She still believes in the old stories.

Oli is a cottonmouth kid, from the land of spirits and monsters. Like all cottonmouths, he’s been cast from home. He’s found a new one on the banks of the bottomless lake.

Nina and Oli have no idea the other exists. But a catastrophic event on Earth, and a strange sickness that befalls Oli’s best friend, will drive their worlds together in ways they haven’t been in centuries.

And there are some who will kill to keep them apart.

Join in the conversation with other readers from around the world by visiting biglibraryread.com and selecting the discussion forum. Make a social media post about your reading adventures with the hashtag #BigLibraryRead to be entered for a chance to win a blanket, a new tablet, and some cool Libby swag!

Start reading November 2nd by logging onto Libby and checking out the title. It’s that simple! Not sure how to start reading e-books and e-audiobooks on Libby? Just ask a librarian or give us a call to get set up. This book club ends November 16th, so check out this title as soon as you can!