Game of Thrones Season 6 is coming!

[Game of Thrones contains mature themes in all formats. Viewer and reader discretion is advised.]

Season 6 premieres on April 24!  If you haven’t already seen the official trailer, start here.

The internet abounds with fan analyses of the trailer's content. If you’re curious about the different interpretations, try this academic article from Time Magazine, this saucy British YouTube commentary, and this lite pop culture take.

The biggest question for this season is whether or not Jon Snow is actually dead. To voice your opinion, you can vote in The Hollywood Reporter’s poll. The cast members have been dodging this question with a variety of ways running the gamut from cryptic to confrontational.


In his most recent interview, the actor who plays Jon Snow insists that his character is dead and will not be resurrected in the upcoming episodes. But fan speculation dismisses this as mere subterfuge.

If you need a refresher for the television series, the Game of Thrones Wiki provides a season by season, episode by episode recap as does the Internet Movie Database. You can also check out the previous seasons on DVD for a binge-watching marathon.

Do you have trouble keeping the characters straight? There are several online character encyclopedias that can help you keep track of who is who and their complex series of interrelationships.

The fan site Westeros breaks down characters by television season, fictional region, and alphabetically by first name. The Game of Thrones wiki sorts character entries alphabetically and by popularity and includes a variety of subcategories by subject. The Tower of the Hand offers information on the different houses and provides handy family trees. 

If you’re interested in a character’s strictly literary life, a Wiki of Ice and Fire has entries categorized by point of view, affiliation, and region as well as organized alphabetically.

If you want to reread your favorite characters' story lines in anticipation of the sixth season or sixth book, a Wiki of Ice and Fire has created tables of contents for all five published novels. For each book, there is a list the point of view characters along with the corresponding page numbers for the hardcover, paperback, and eBook formats. And don't forget KHCPL has the entire series available in print, on eBook, on audio CD, and on audio download.

George R. R. Martin announced that The Winds of Winter, the upcoming book in the series, will not be finished before Season 6 airs as he had previously hoped. Disappointed fans who are tempted to lash out in anger over this turn of events may want to revisit Neil Gaiman’s legendary blog post on this very subject. But not to despair, Martin has promised readers that he is working exclusively on The Winds of Winter and will not write anything else until he has finished it. He even released a chapter excerpt as a teaser. 

Following up on his word of warning about the divergence between the novels and the television series, Martin revealed that the plot twist in The Winds of Winter will involve a character who, while still alive in the books, had been killed off in the television show. 

See who wins and who dies as they play the game of thrones!

Time to Think about SPRING!

Time to Think about SPRING!
 

The first official day of spring for the Northern Hemisphere falls on March 20th with the vernal equinox, which will occur at 12:30 AM Eastern Daylight Time. With the vernal equinox, the days will continue to gradually lengthen until the longest day of the year on summer solstice.

The term "equinox" means "equal night" in Latin. During an equinox, the sun is directly above the earth's celestial equator. As a result, day and night are of equal length nearly everywhere on the planet.

You can keep up with changes in the sky with NASA Earth Observatory, the national weather at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the local forecast at the National Weather Service for Northern Indiana.

For many, the start of spring is the time to bring their gardens back to life. KHCPL carries a variety of gardening magazines, such as Fine Gardening and Indiana Gardening, both in print and online through Zinio and Overdrive.

 

If you’ve never gardened before, a good book to start with would be with The First-time Gardener by Pattie Barron. Expand your knowledge with The Anxious Gardener’s Book of Answers by Teri Dunn Chace or The Backyard Problem Solver by Jerry Baker.

If your landscaping is looking scruffy, check out Pruning Plant By Plant by Andrew Mikolajski. Does your vegetable patch need a facelift? Building Raised Beds will take your garden to the next level. To add more bloom to your flowerbeds, some favorite flower guides include Daylilies for the Garden by Graeme Grosvenor, Peonies by Allan Rogers and, for advice on everyone’s favorite flower, Foolproof Guide to Growing Roses by Field Roebuck. For advice on the go-to shade perennial, try Hostas by Andrew Mikolajski.

If last year’s dream garden didn’t materialize, you may need to check out Improving Your Soil by Keith Reid before you plant. If you want to recreate this year's masterpiece, The Seed Garden by Micaela Colley will tell you how to save seeds for the years to come.

KHCPL has a gardening collection geared specifically towards our local climate. To find out what would grow best here, check out Midwest Fruit and Vegetable Gardening by Katie Etzer-Peters, The Midwestern Native Garden by Charlotte Adelman and Bernard L. Schwartz, and Growing the Midwest Garden by Edward Lyon.

Get your kids involved with Kid’s Garden Adventure by Don Burke and The Book of Gardening Projects for Kids by Whitney Cohen. And don’t forget your pets! Check out Dog Friendly Gardening by Karen Bush.

If you want to share your expertise with others through a community garden, Start a Community Food Garden by LaManda Joy provides a step-by-step guide.

Whatever your SPRING interests are, explore your opportunities at KHCPL!

Valentine Reads

A Valentine’s Day Poem

Roses are read.
Violets are blue.
Valentine’s Day is coming, 
And you don’t know what to do.

KHCPL has some suggestions that might be a help.



Perhaps you want to get in the mood for love.
Why not try:

Be My Valentine by Debbie Macomber


A Catered Valentine’s Day by Isis Crawford


How to Knit a Love Song by Rachael Herron


Love Overdue by Pamela Morsi

Maybe a tune will do the trick.
Why not try:

Now That's What I Call Love Songs


The Greatest Love Songs of All Time by Barry Manilow


Crazy Love by Michael Buble



Would you like to make your love a gift?
Why not try:

Crochet Love: 27 Sweet & Simple Zakka-Inspired Projects by Jenny Doh

Cooking with Love: Comfort Food That Hugs You by Carla Hall

Cristina Ferrare's Big Bowl of Love by Cristina Ferrare

100 Best Love Poems of All Time

Knitless: 50 No-Knit, Stash-Busting Yarn Projects by Laura McFadden


Maybe love just isn’t your thing.
Why not try:

Dates from Hell: True Stories from the Front by Katherine Ann Samon


Evil Eye: Four Novellas of Love Gone Wrong by Joyce Carol Oates


Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn



We hope this helps.
If not don’t fret,
Ideas we have them.
Come see us, and we would LOVE to share them.

New Year's Fitness Resolutions

After the over indulgence, and over stimulation of the holidays, we turn to January and the new year to get us back on track.  For many of us the resolution that tops our list involves losing weight, exercising more, or just getting healthier. Most people don't associate a library with losing weight, but we are the perfect place to start.  Libraries have books, videos, great selections of music, audio books, and we even occasionally offer library programs involving fitness or food.

If you are considering dieting or starting a new fitness regimen, our first piece of advice is to spread the word. In many diet books, and even on fitness videos, you will often see a warning to first consult your doctor. This is actually great advice for two reasons. First, your doctor will make sure that you won't be doing anything that could harm your health, and they may also have suggestions to help you get started. Secondly, the act of telling someone will commit you to your goal. You will often find that telling your doctor, your family, and your friends about your intentions will help you stay motivated further down the road. You have created an expectation and you won't want to let anyone down--including yourself.

Your next stop can be the library where you can check out our great collection of diet books and diet cookbooks. You can find a lot of diet books for whatever style diet you or your doctor have in mind.  Some of our most popular diet books include:

 

 

Believe me there are many more where those came from! Just ask a librarian and they can show you to our section of diet books. 

Sometime we don't need a full fledged "diet" to solve our weight and eating woes. Sometime all we need is a gentle reminder about what we are putting in our mouths. Some of these books include tips and studies on how mindfulness can help us with our goals.

While we are on the topics of diets, check out some of these healthy cookbooks. They can help you cook healthier meals for yourself and your family.

A couple of my favorites include the Hungry Girl cookbooks because they feature food you can find in our local stores and large portions for those of us who are always hungry on our diets.  She even has one that is all about desserts! YUM!

If we are looking to add more exercise to our lives, we have books and videos for that too! Just adding a little more movement to our day can help us achieve a healthier lifestyle. 

 

We also have DVDs and downloadable workouts on Hoopla! 

  

If you find yourself needing some new tunes to exercise to, be sure to check out our wonderful CD collection. If you are worried about getting them back on time, you can always choose to download some free tunes you get to keep from Freegal! (Free legal music downloads with Freegal--you can't beat that deal!)

 

Just remember we are here to help you with your New Year's Resolution. Stop by any of our locations and we would love to get you started.  

If you are interested in losing weight and living healthier, one of the best things you can do is to keep track of the food you eat and your exercise. This goes back to being mindful. Our new KHCPL Tech for You blog will give you some great suggestions for using your smart devices and apps to help you with these goals. Visit our Food and Fitness for the New Year:  Apps to Help You Track article on our new blog to find out what apps you can use to help you with your goals!

Don’t Let the Grinch Steal Your Christmas!

Grinch-like characters are often the center of holiday stories. Often these grumpy characters find some redemptive quality that changes his/her perspective on Christmas as well as mankind. The original Grinch was from the lively imagination of Dr. Seuss and was first published in the 1956 children's book How the Grinch Stole Christmas. The 1966 animated special is a long standing tradition in many households; a show that brought us the classic Christmas song, "You’re a mean one Mr. Grinch." In 2000, Ron Howard directed a full length feature film version of How the Grinch Stole Christmas starring Jim Carrey as the Grinch.

The Whos in Whoville didn’t let the Grinch steal their Christmas. They showed the Grinch that “Christmas doesn't come from a store, maybe Christmas perhaps means a little bit more....” You can celebrate “Grinchmas” with 25 days of doing good deeds. There are many fun ideas at Home for the Who-lidays. Maybe your heart will “grow three sizes”.

The Grinch wasn’t the original grouchy character in a Christmas story. Who can forget the ever familiar “Bah Humbug!” uttered by Ebenezer Scrooge in A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens? Many sources credit the Dickens tale with reviving the Christmas spirit through generosity and family celebrations. It is also credited with making the phrase “Merry Christmas” popular. In A Christmas Carol, Scrooge also had a life changing experience after visits from three Christmas spirits. He goes from “Bah Humbug!” to “I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year. “― Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol.



You might start the tradition of reading a version of this tale to the family as you snuggle down in your new Christmas pajamas. Or your whole family can enjoy Jonathan Winters as he brings the characters to life in the NPR production on CD.

Many versions of The Christmas Carol are also available on film. Some try to stay true to the Dickens story. Such as:

A Christmas Carol (1951)

A Christmas Carol (1938)

A Christmas Carol (1999)

Christmas Carol: the Movie (2001)

Less traditional but fun movie adaptations are can also be found.

Mickey's Christmas Carol

The Smurfs. A Christmas Carol

A Flintstones Christmas Carol

A Sesame Street Christmas Carol

Thomas' Christmas Carol

Not only did Jim Carrey play that “mean one Mr. Grinch” but he also played the miserly Scrooge in Disney’s 2009 version of The Christmas Carol.

A Christmas Carol (2010)

 
If you are a mystery lover, a fun twist on Dickens tale can be found in Leslie Meier’s book, Christmas Carol Murder: a Lucy Stone Mystery. 

The one exception to a character changing for the better was Mr. Potter in the movie It’s a Wonderful Life. This 1946 Christmas classic was based off the short story "The Greatest Gift: A Christmas Tale" by Philip Van Doren Stern. Mr. Potter never seems to change his hard heart. But he couldn’t keep a good guy like George Baily down. When George Bailey, the main character, falls on hard times he needs reminded that “Each man's life touches so many other lives. When he isn't around he leaves an awful hole, doesn't he?” – Clarence (the angel)

James Stewart, the down to earth actor, was a natural to portray George Bailey in It's a Wonderful Life. Another natural fit was “girl next door” actress, Donna Reed portraying his wife Mary. Lionel Barrymore, who had portrayed Mr. Scrooge on a radio broadcast, portrayed believable villain, Mr. Potter. Lovers of this movie might be surprised to find that it was not initially a box office success. It has since become a staple in many households during the Christmas season with yearly airings on TV. You and your family might enjoy the 60th anniversary DVD that has special features including “The Making of It’s a Wonderful Life” 

Children might enjoy the picture book with a slightly different tale. George and Mary Baileys son Tommy gets some help from Arthur, an angel in training in It's a Wonderful Life for Kids. 

You can find the TV airing times and dates for How the Grinch Stole Christmas, A Christmas Carol, It’s a Wonderful Life as well as many of your favorite Christmas movies and shows at Countdown Until Christmas.

If you want to snuggle up with a good book check out Goodreads' Christmas book lists for an extensive list of Christmas books for all ages. Then bring your Christmas book wish list to the library.

“And it was always said of him (Scrooge), that he knew how to keep Christmas well, if any man alive possessed the knowledge. May that be truly said of us, and all of us.” – Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol