Fan Art Showcase

As some of you probably know if you were there, at the last Yuma LibraryCon on May 4th, 2019 we hosted an art contest sponsored by the Friends of the Yuma County Library store. Three of the artworks were chosen as first, second and third place winners by the friends, but we thought all the art was great and the artists deserved to be recognized for their effort, so here are all the runner up entries that we received for the competition:

Clock Work by Emma Ablanalp

Deku Villain AV by Clarisa Lujan

The Doctor by Devin Culver

Fire Breather by Damian Thompson

Goofy by James Meier

Hell Boy by Azellia Olmos

Jaidenanimation by Elisabeth Schweda

Kakashi Sensei by Jacqui Lawson

Kanna by Takara Rose

I'm a 9 Year Old by Nicole Galaviz

The Royal by Erick Martinez

I Love Sally VwV by Sarah Hernandez

In All Might's Shadow by Freddy Gomez

Sign of Peace by Gisela L. Coronado

Something Else YT & Odd is Out by Isabel Scweda

Sylveon by Vivian Benedict

Wilson, The Gentleman Scientist by Danielle Leon

Featured Artist: Dani

One of our favorite artists, Dani, sent in this original creation she calls Webber, the spider person. We love it! Thanks Dani!

Summer Reading is Almost Here!

In case you did not know, the Teen Summer Reading Program starts on June 1st. Here's everything you need to know about it this year:

• The theme this year is "A Universe of Stories," which means a lot of our programs are going to be space-related in some way. This could mean actual science or science fiction. 
• To sign up for the teen program you have to be 13 and can't be older than 17. If you are still 12 you have to sign up for the kids program, and if you are already 18, you have to sign up for the adult program.
• You have until July 13th to finish the program, and we won't accept any reading logs after that date.
• To finish, you have 4 options:
• Read 8 books.
• Read 7 books and come to 1 library program.
• Read 6 books and come to 2 library programs
• Read 5 books and come to 3 library programs.
• You can turn in 2 full reading logs and claim a prize and a raffle ticket for a $25 Walmart gift card drawing. After 2 logs you can keep reading to get more raffle tickets, but you can only claim a max of 2 prizes. 
• You don't have to read library books, but you DO have to read books that are at your reading level.

This summer we are also trying to break last year's reading record. Last year the teens read a total of 655 book across the county. This year we want to try and read 700 books. Even if you don't read 8 books and finish a whole log, you can still count books read towards the goal and be entered into a special, separate raffle. 

So, what kind of programs will be offering? All kinds!

We'll have Virtual Reality games that have space themes, and every other week a Beat Saber tournament on the PS4 and Oculus Virtual Reality Systems. 

There will be all kinds of space themed crafts. 

We'll show space-themed movies for both Retro Movie day and New Movie day.

There will be a 3D print design contest where you can create your own aliens. 

And all kinds of other fun things to do in the teen rooms around the county. 

To see what is happening at the library closest to you, click this link for the ONLINE CALENDAR.

See you at the library!

What's New at the Library - Early May 2019

Looking for your next great read? Here are some books that have just arrived at the Yuma County Library District and why we think you should check them out today!

The Devouring Gray by Christine Lynn Herman: The very first book in a brand new series by a brand new author, The Devouring Gray centers around Violet, a girl whose family has moved her from the big city to a tiny town in the middle of the woods. As Violet struggles to make friends, she gets the feeling that some people in town are kind of afraid of her. Her family assures her it's only because her ancestors founded her new home town and so the locals are just treating them with old-fashioned respect... and then the first body is found. This book keeps getting compared to both Stranger Things and Riverdale, so if you like either or both of those shows, chances are you're going to love this one!

Heroine by Mindy McGinnis: Looking for a book that will gut punch you right in the feels? Pick this one up... and don't expect rainbows and butterflies. Mickey is an athlete with a chance to make history on her softball team until a car crash leaves her hurt and in tremendous pain. When she is prescribed pain killers, at first she feels great because the pills help her get back to her team, but where do you draw the line between taking medicine to feel well and taking it just because it feels... good. Where is the line between need... and addiction? And how do you stop yourself once the line is crossed and the downward spiral starts?

The Red Scrolls of Magic by Cassandra Clare and Wesley Chu: Fans of Mortal Instruments and Infernal Devices FINALLY have what they have been waiting for: a new book by Cassandra Clare! Co-written by the lesser know but not any less awesome Wesley Chu, this opening to a brand new series (called The Eldest Curses) centers around Magnus and Alec (from Mortal Instruments) who kind of just want a vacation. Of course, when you're a Shadowhunter, there's really no such thing, and their romantic Europen trip quickly turns into a fight against a deadly cult. If you ship Malec... you really can't NOT read this one, you know?

The Verdict Is In: Cheesecake is...

In the month of April, we asked teens to tell us what they thought about our question of the month: "is cheesecake really cake or is it pie?"

April question of the month.

People had VERY strong opinions about this, and voiced their thoughts on Intagram, Facebook and in person in the teen room. After we counted the votes, the decision is that Cheesecake is actually... both? The votes were EXACTLY divided down the middle with 7 people voting cake, 7 people voting pie, and a couple of people having completely weird answers like:

"It is neither."  - C. Howard.

"Cheesecake is cheesecake" - anonymous

"It's pudding" - anonymous



BUT, just in case you were wondering, according to dictionary.com, cheesecake really IS a cake. This is because the definition of pie tells us that in order for something to be a pie, it has to have a filling, and it has to have a crust made of pastry. Since cheesecake crust is cookie crumb, not pastry, it doesn't fit the definition.

So now you know!

We don't care if it's cake or pie, it's delicious either way!

Yuma LibraryCon Is Coming Soon!

I know you all wait for it every year! The 6th annual Yuma LibraryCon is just a few days away! This year it will be on May 4th from 10AM to 4PM in the Main Library. We have all kinds of amazing panels and guests coming, and of COURSE the Cosplay Contest! We hope you all can make it, it's seriously going to be the best one ever!

From northern Mexico, Hysterot Cosplay will be our special judges for the Cosplay Contest!

Author, puppet maker and video game character designer Matt Gardner will be here. 

We're accepting art for an art show at the Con. 

Fan-Quest Comics and Games are this year's comic book sponsor, which means you get free comic books!

April Poetry Contest!

April is National Poetry Month and to celebrate, the Main Library is hosting a poetry contest! Details are in the image below, but in case you can't see it well, here are the basics:

It's open to anyone ages 13-18.

The poem can be any style and doesn't have to rhyme. 

The poems can't be longer than 20 lines. 

You can turn in a poem that is either typed out or written by hand, but make sure we can read your handwriting if it's hand-written. 

You can pick up an entry form at the Main Library Teen desk.

Once poem will be featured on this blog each week, and one poem will be chosen as "best poem" by an anonymous vote. 

If your poem is chosen as a featured poem you will win a small prize. 

If your poem is chosen as the best poem you will win a slightly bigger prize. 

Get your entries in early! No poems will be accepted after the 26th. Voting opens in the teen room on the 29th of April and ends on May 4th, after Library Con.