In order to provide relief to Libraries and to provide more content to Patrons during this difficult time of sheltering at home, we are proud to announce the hoopla Bonus Borrows Collection with more than 1,100 top titles and hoopla favorites.

When a patron borrows these titles now through April 30, each patron will be debited ZERO borrows from their monthly hoopla borrows and that circulation is FREE to libraries. Click here for a link to the entire Bonus Borrows Collection. Scroll down for some curated collections to help you find the perfect video, book, TV show, audiobook, and more.

Take Time for You

A thoughtful collection of self-help titles on hoopla that encourage you to take a breath and think about what you want to work on - for you. Enjoy this hoopla Bonus Borrows Collection without using your monthly borrows.

Read, Watch, and Listen for Adults

Everyone could use a mental break from time to time. Slip into a great story, get fit with a video, or just listen to some music and relax with great titles in this multi-format collection.

Books Kids Love

Looking for ways to entertain your young readers? Here is a collection of popular fiction titles on hoopla kids will have fun reading during their time at home. Enjoy this hoopla Bonus Borrows Collection without using your monthly borrows.

At-Home Fitness

Turn your living room into your sanctuary of sweat and relaxation when you stream or download these popular fitness television series on hoopla. Enjoy this hoopla Bonus Borrows Collection without using your monthly borrows. 

Get an online library card for immediate access to our digital content like eBooks,eAudiobooks, music, movies, TV shows, eComics, online learning, geneaology, games for kids, craft classes, language learning, and way more.

This is available to residents who reside in the FRVPLD and have never had a library card -- including children!

Here's how:

• Visit https://ccs.polarislibrary.com/polaris/logon.aspx?ctx=23.1033.0.0.36&Header=1. 
• Click on "If you are not registered for library services, click or tap here to register now" and follow the easy prompts.
• Fill out the online application.
• A six-digit number that starts with PACREG will appear immediately.
• Use the number to immediately download, stream, and access online content.
• Come in and get the physical card when the library reopens.

If you have any trouble, please email libraryhelp@frvpld.info. We have limited staff available, but we are responding to these emails as soon as possible.

Not only is March 17 St. Patrick’s Day, but the whole month of March is Irish-American Heritage Month in order to coincide with holiday. What better time than this to dive into some Irish fiction? For a relatively small country, Ireland is a hub of culture so these books are just a tiny sampling of the great literature about and coming out of the country. Literary fiction, comedy, cozy mysteries, grittier mysteries, historical- there’s something for everyone.  

• Ulysses by James Joyce- Maybe *the* book to represent Dublin. It’s certainly a challenge, but Joyce’s experimental and beautiful language brings the city to life. Inspired by The Odyssey, the story follows Leopold Bloom as he makes his way through the city to get home to his wife, Molly.
• Normal People by Sally Rooney- One of the biggest books of 2019, Normal People follows a pair of teenagers from their school days in rural Ireland to their college days in Dublin and beyond as their social statuses shift and they fall in and out of each other’s lives.
• Circle of Friends by Maeve Binchy- Benny and Eve have been best friends since childhood and expand their circle when they get to university. Love and loss follow, and this book is often described by fans as the ultimate “comfort food”. 
• Skippy Dies by Paul Murray- Teenage Skippy dies and the novel explores the mystery of what led to his death, linking the pupils of a school, teachers, and parents in unexpected ways. Which doesn’t sound like it would be funny, but it is. 
• In the Woods by Tana French- Each book in French’s Dublin Murder Squad series is worthy of its own place on this list but if you want to dive in, In the Woods is the first book and a great place to start. A young girl is found murdered and there is suspicion that her death could be linked to the disappearance of 2 other children 20 years earlier.

• When All Is Said by Anne Griffin- 84 year old Maurice Hannigan sits in a hotel bar and drinks a toast to the 5 people who have been most important to him. Through the tales of how each of these people shaped him, Maurice tells the story of his life.
• This Is Happiness by Niall Williams- A coming of age tale in the small Irish parish of Faha, which hasn’t changed much in a thousand years until the events of this book. The traditions and relationships of this tightknit community anchor this story. 
• Beyond the Pale by Clare O'Donohue- In this thriller, married college professors are asked by Interpol to help procure a priceless rare book in Ireland, but things take a wrong turn when the couple’s contact in Ireland doesn’t show and they are faced with a potential death threat.
• The Spinning Heart by Donal Ryan- The financial collapse in Ireland leads to rising tensions in an Irish town, leading to violent outbursts as people’s lives are affected by everything they’ve lost.
• An Irish Country Doctor by Patrick Taylor- In the first book of the Irish Country series, newly minted doctor Barry Laverty moves to the Northern Irish countryside and begins work assisting the old village doctor. Through the new man in the village, the series introduces the reader to the colorful inhabitants of Ballybucklebo.

• Murder in an Irish Village by Carlene O'Connor- The opener to this series of cozies set in County Cork focuses on the O’Sullivan siblings as they fun the family bistro inherited after their parents are killed in a car accident. When a man is found murdered in the bistro, their livelihood is on the line and oldest sister Siobhan is determined to solve the mystery and save her family.
• Actress by Anne Enright- Norah tells the intertwined story of herself and her mother, Irish theater legend Katherine O’Dell. Norah attempts to discover who her mother was apart from the public actress and learn what led to the bizarre crime for which Katherine is best remembered.
• The Secret Scripture by Sebastian Barry- Told through journal entries from Roseanne, a psychiatric patient nearing her hundredth birthday, and Dr. Grene, her psychiatrist. A tale of love, loss, religion, and memory, Roseanne’s story becomes a stand in for Ireland’s history.  
• The Last Storyteller by Frank Delaney- Ben MacCarthy views storytelling as a means of existence, and he tells his story, weaving it in with Irish myth and legend, and the history of the country as well. The Irish tradition of oral storytelling is explored well here.
• The Princes of Ireland by Edward Rutherford- Part 1 of 2 in Rutherford’s Dublin Saga, this epic spans 11 centuries of Irish history, from its pagan roots to Vikings and St. Patrick to medieval culture. Part 2 brings the story up to the formation of the modern, free Ireland in the 1920s.

Bonus content: Irish movies in case you want to celebrate but don't have time to commit to a book

Local artist Jean Pechtel returns to the Ruth Wendt Gallery, and this time has brought fellow artists Jane Erlandson and Nancy Guthrie with her. The new collection is a colorful burst of images using the oil and cold wax medium. As Pachtel explained, cold wax is a mixture of beeswax, alkyd resin, and mineral spirits, and has a thick consistency. Mixed with oil paints, it permits a buildup of texture and allows the artist to scrape through to reveal layers beneath. It is also used to make transparent glazes. The artist uses a combination of techniques to produce rich textured paintings with a lot of depth. It is often used in an abstract fashion, but can also be used in other styles of painting. 

About the artists:

Jean Johnson Pechtel

I have worked extensively in oils and in soft pastels. My oil and cold wax paintings are more impressionistic. I have been experimenting with the medium to stretch myself as an artist. The buildup of layers gives depth and variation to the colors, and the wax itself provides texture. Contact me at (847) 977-4288, or visit my website:  www.jeanjohnsonart.com.

Jane Erlandson

My 2D artwork has been primarily in film photography of late, but in the past I’ve done a fair amount of brushwork. After taking a couple classes in oil painting, I’ve wanted to do more, but haven’t rushed to the brush. Then I did a  workshop  adding in the cold wax and therein found the freedom to paint in the moment abstractly. While a beginner with this medium, I love it; it’s a very personal and meditative medium. There really are no rules, just advice - take advantage of layers, experiment with tools, use pigments in addition to oils.  Contact me at (505) 264-3757, or visit my website: www.janeerlandson.com.

Nancy Guthrie

The Cold Wax medium was my first experience in abstract image. The process is the art and is so alive, adding and removing layers, varying marks and tools. The piece is truly never finished and seems to only improve as worked.  Many other mediums are “less is more” and about “knowing when to stop”. Cold wax is very freeing. Contact me at: (847) 997-4101.

Mental illnesses are medical conditions that disrupt a person’s thinking, feeling, mood, ability to relate to others, and daily functioning. Just as diabetes is a disorder of the pancreas, mental illnesses are medical conditions that often result in a diminished capacity for coping with the ordinary demands of life.

Serious mental illnesses include major depression, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), panic disorder, post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and borderline personality disorder. The good news about mental illness is that recovery is possible.
Mental illnesses can affect persons of any age, race, religion, or income. Mental illnesses are not the result of personal weakness, lack of character, or poor upbringing. Mental illnesses are treatable. Most people diagnosed with a serious mental illness can experience relief from their symptoms by actively participating in an individual treatment plan.

In addition to medication treatment, psychosocial treatment such as cognitive behavioral therapy, interpersonal therapy, peer support groups, and other community services can also be components of a treatment plan and that assist with recovery. The availability of transportation, diet, exercise, sleep, friends, and meaningful paid or volunteer activities contribute to overall health and wellness, including mental illness recovery.
Here are some important facts about mental illness and recovery:

• Mental illnesses are biologically based brain disorders.  They cannot be overcome through “will power” and are not related to a person’s “character” or intelligence.

• Mental disorders fall along a continuum of severity. Even though mental disorders are widespread in the population, the main burden of illness is concentrated in a much smaller proportion — about 6 percent, or 1 in 17 Americans — who suffer from a serious mental illness. It is estimated that mental illness affects 1 in 5 families in America.

• The World Health Organization has reported that four of the 10 leading causes of disability in the US and other developed countries are mental disorders. By 2020, Major Depressive illness will be the leading cause of disability in the world for women and children.

• Mental illnesses usually strike individuals in the prime of their lives, often during adolescence and young adulthood. All ages are susceptible, but the young and the old are especially vulnerable.

• Without treatment the consequences of mental illness for the individual and society are staggering: unnecessary disability, unemployment, substance abuse, homelessness, inappropriate incarceration, suicide and wasted lives; The economic cost of untreated mental illness is more than 100 billion dollars each year in the United States.

• The best treatments for serious mental illnesses today are highly effective; between 70 and 90 percent of individuals have significant reduction of symptoms and improved quality of life with a combination of pharmacological and psychosocial treatments and supports.

• With appropriate effective medication and a wide range of services tailored to their needs, most people who live with serious mental illnesses can significantly reduce the impact of their illness and find a satisfying measure of achievement and independence. A key concept is to develop expertise in developing strategies to manage the illness process.

• Early identification and treatment is of vital importance; By ensuring access to the treatment and recovery supports that are proven effective, recovery is accelerated and the further harm related to the course of illness is minimized.

• Stigma erodes confidence that mental disorders are real, treatable health conditions. We have allowed stigma and a now unwarranted sense of hopelessness to erect attitudinal, structural and financial barriers to effective treatment and recovery. It is time to take these barriers down.

From the Kane County Behavioral Health Council's website  https://www.wesupportmentalhealth.org/faq/:

If you are struggling with mental illness or know someone who does, please attend the Layperson's Guide to Mental Illness on Thursday January 30th, 2020 from 7:00-8:30 pm. Get educated so you can make informed decisions on treatment. You can register by clicking here https://www.frvpld.info/laypersons-guide-mental-illness

With the outside temperatures feeling more like winter, now is the time to read some books featuring snow, frigid settings, and characters in survival mode. These titles cover a mix of genres: adventure, horror, contemporary fiction, mystery, and, in some cases, romance. 

Alone by Cyn Balog
Seda, sixteen, feels her invisible childhood nemesis, Sawyer, growing stronger just as a group of stranded teens takes shelter from a blizzard in the dilapidated mansion Seda's mother inherited.

Avalanche by Melinda Braun
After an avalanche hits, a group of skiers in the Rocky Mountains must survive Mother Nature and a life-threatening injury to one of their members in order to make it out of the mountains and find help.

The Chaos of Standing Still by Jessica Brody
Ryn, eighteen, trapped by a massive blizzard in the Denver airport, meets some unique characters who help her cope with survivor's guilt on the first anniversary of her best friend's death.

Black Ice by Becca Fitzpatrick
Britt goes hiking in the Grand Tetons of Wyoming with her ex-boyfriend Calvin, but trouble arises when she is caught in a blizzard, taken hostage by fugitives, finds evidence of murders, and learns whom to trust and whom to love.

The Edge of Everything by Jeff Giles
Holed up in their missing neighbors' cabin in a Montana blizzard, Zoe and her little brother are rescued from an intruder by X, a bounty hunter sent from the Lowlands to claim the souls of evil men. X is forbidden from revealing himself to anyone other than his prey, but breaks the rules for Zoe. Together they begin to question the past, their fate, and their future.

Survive by Alex Morel
A troubled girl is stranded in an arctic winter terrain after a plane crash and must fight for survival with the only other boy left alive. It was recently announced that streaming service Quibi is making a series starring Sophie Turner and Corey Hawkins based on this book.

Before I Let Go by Marieke Nijkamp
When Corey moves away from Lost Creek, Alaska, she makes her friend Kyra promise to stay strong during the long, dark winter, and wait for her return. Just days before Corey is to return home to visit, Kyra dies. The entire Lost community speaks in hushed tones, saying her death was meant to be. And they push Corey away like she's a stranger. With every hour, Corey's suspicion grows. Lost is keeping secrets-- but piecing together the truth about what happened to her best friend may prove as difficult as lighting the sky in an Alaskan winter.

Trapped by Michael Northrop
Seven high school students are stranded at their New England high school during a week-long blizzard that shuts down the power and heat, freezes the pipes, and leaves them wondering if they will survive.

The Starlight Claim by Tim Wynne-Jones
Four months after Nate's best friend, Dodge, disappeared in a boat accident on Ghost Lake, Nate is still having nightmares. The boys had planned to go up to camp together that winter--their first trip without Nate's survival-savvy father. When Nate decides to make the treachorous journey to his family's remote camp at Ghost Lake alone, it's half pilgrimage, half desperate hope he'll find a trace of his lost friend when no one else could. Instead he finds his family's camp occupied by strangers--men who've escaped from a maximum-security prison. How could they have known about the cabin? Nate's survival now depends on both his wits and his skill as an outdoorsman. As the situation spirals out of control, Nate finds himself dealing with questions even bigger than who gets to leave camp alive.

At Randall Oaks, we wanted to know what our fellow readers enjoyed most this year so we asked our patrons about their favorite books released in 2019. See something you missed on here? Start 2020 with one of the best of the previous year! 

FICTION:

NON-FICTION:

SPECIAL MENTIONS: Books read in 2019 that were loved so much we're ignoring the earlier, non-2019 release dates.