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Members of the  Seneca Free Library Book Club meet on the third Tuesday of each month to discuss the latest book on their list. They do not meet in the months of November and December. If you’d like to join in the discussion, contact the library and we’ll give you more information!

Here are the books they have read since 2003!

2017 List: A Spool of Blue Thread by Anne Tyler—-The Light Between the Oceans by M.L. Stedman—-Capital Dames by Cokie Roberts—-The Lightning Thief by Rick Riodan—-The Boys in the Boat by Daniel Brown—-Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand by Helen Simonson—-The Kitchen House by Katheen Grissom—-Rules of Civility by Amor Towels—-The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware—-All the Light we Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

2016 List: Ogallala Road by Julene Bair—-Wedded to War by Jocelyn Green—-The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kid—-Left Neglected by Lisa Genove—-The Rosie Project by Graaeme Simsion—-The Husband’s Secret by Liane Moriarty—-A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park—-Every Day by David Levithan—-Leaving Time by Jodi Picoult—-Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

 2015 List: Orphan Trains by Christina Baker Kline—-The Chaperone by Laura Moriarty—-Where’d You Go Bernadette by Maria Semple—-Prisoner 88 by Leah Pilegic —-2030-The Real Story of What Happens by Albert Brooks—-In Broad Daylight by Harry MacLean—-What She Left Behind by Ellen Wiseman—-Care and Management of Lies by Jacquelin Winespear

2014 list:  Time’s Shadow by Arnold Bauer—-Still Alice by Lisa Genova—The Aviator’s Wife by Melanie Benjamin—-The Romanov Conspiracy by Glen Meade —-Defending Jacob by William Landay—-The Taylor’s Daughter by Janice Graham—-Judgment by James Patterson—-Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer—-Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn—-Lemon Orchard by Lou Ann Rice—-Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter

2013 list: Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis—Art of Racing by Garth Stein—Sarah’s Key by Tatiana de Rosnay—-Hotel at the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford—-Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese—-The Devil’s Rooming House by M. William Phelps—-Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout—-Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

2012 list: Our Boys by Joe Drape—-Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot—The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins—-Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah—-Mary Poppins by P.L. Travers—-The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton—-Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See—-Esther’s Pillow by Marlin Fitzwater—-A Daughter’s Walk by Jane Kirkpatrick—-Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

2011 list: What Kansas Means to Me by Thomas Fox Averill—-Escape, The Carolyn Jessop Story by Carolyn Jessop—The Help by Kathryn Stockett—The German Bride by Joanna Hershon—Woods Runner by Gary Paulson—Lark and Termite by Jayne Ann Phillips—Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks—The White by Deborah Larson —Eternal on the Water Joseph Monninger—Twilight by Stephanie Meyer

2010 list: Audacity of Hope by Barack Obama—-P.S. I Love You by Cecilia Ahern—-Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by Mary Ann Shaffer—-Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl by Harriet Jacobs—-Angels Rest by Charles Davis—-Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares—-Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson—-The Old Man and the Sea or For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway—-Book of Joe by Jonathan Tropper—Enemy Women by Paulette Jiles

2009 list: Virgin of Small Plains by Nancy Pickard—-I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou—-The White Cascade by Gary Krist—-Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini—-Born on a Blue Day by Daniel Tamnet—-Family Tree Barbara Delinsky—-Air Ball: My Life in Brief by Lisa Harkrader—-For One More Day by Mitch Albom—-Change of Heart by Jodi Piccoult

2008 list: In Cold Blood —-Memory Keeper’s Daughter—-Year of Magical Thinking—-Time-Traveler’s Wife—-My Last Days as Roy Rogers—-The Book Thief—-Ladies No. ! Detective Agency—-Innocent Man—-Water for Elephants—-Fahrenheit 451

2007 list: The Learning Tree—-Widow’s War—-Life of Pi—-Chronicles of Narnia—-Up from Slavery—-Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man—-The Notebook—-The Outsiders—-Confessions of a Shopoholic—-The Glass Castle

2006 list: The Kite Runner—-The Devil in the White City—- Summer of the Monkeys— Snow Falling on Cedars—-Trail of the Spanish Bit—-The Pearl—-Rex Stout Mystery—-Memiors of a Geisha—The Joy Luck Club—-Leap of Faith- Queen Noor

2005 list: Leap of Faith: Queen Noor—-Bull Whip Days: The Slave Remembers—-At Home in Mitford—– The Good Earth—-Secret Life of Bees—- Letters from Rifka—-Lovely Bones—-Eudora Welty—-Girl with the Pearl Earring

2004 list: Seabiscuit—- Song of Solomon—- House of Spirits—-Don’t Lets go to the Dogs Tonight—-Miss Julia Speaks Her Mind—- Crossing to Safety—-Reversible Errors—-The Giver—-A Tree Grows in Brooklyn—- Five People You Meet in Heaven

2003 list: Persian Pickle Club— Branded with Love—- Katie Mediator—-To Kill a Mockingbird—- Red Tent—Anthem—- Seaman: The Dog who went with Lewis & Clark—-Peace Like a River—-Amy Fleury, Poet

The Seneca Free Library is joining NExpress, a regional shared catalog service of the Northeast Kansas Library System. Seneca Free Library will be one of over 30 libraries currently participating in the shared catalog.

The transition from the current library circulation system to the new Koha system will take place over the Thanksgiving holiday.

The library will close at 8:00 p.m. on Wednesday, November 25, and reopen on Monday, November 30, at 10:00 AM with a new library circulation software system called Koha, an advanced open-source integrated library system, used by thousands of libraries worldwide.

Once our library is on the new system, Koha will:

• allow patrons to renew materials, place requests and view checkouts, holds, and fines online with a secure username and password
• enable requests for materials delivered to the patron’s home library from the shared collection of almost 500,000 items—movies, books and audiobooks
• allow patrons to place multiple titles in a Cart for easy, one-step request processing, and create personalized lists
• permit patrons to view their complete reading and checkout history
• notify patrons via e-mail when holds are available for pickup and when materials are due

Library patrons will need a new NExpress library card to access the system. Talk to a librarian today if you don’t have your new card.

The Winter Reading Program for Adults is here again. Last year was our first year to try an adult reading program and more than 50 people signed up to read for fun and prizes.

Sign up begins Jan 12, you can begin returning books Jan. 19. The last day to turn in books and get your name in for prizes is March 3. That gives you 7 weeks to read (or listen to) at least 3 books. After reading each book, you’ll be asked to fill out a short form about the books you’ve read. Those forms will then go into a container and we’ll be holding a drawing for prizes each week! This program is for patrons 18 years and older.

Now you know why the kids look forward to summer reading.  The more you read, the more chances to win a prize!

Our first Winter Reading Program for adults was a great success. Over 50 people signed up for the 7 week program.  Those who signed up had tickets put into a drawing for a prize February 22.  Patrons were asked to fill out a short form about each book they checked out.  Those forms were stuffed into a container and each week we drew out a lucky person’s name.

The Winter Reading Club will definitely be back next year.  Surveys were taken at the end of the program this year so we hope next year will be even better!

Winners were Brandy Weber, Mary Lindeen, Kathleen Fischer, Vi Megill, Loyola Engelken, Barb Chilson, Irene Koelzer and Connie Taylor.

Monday morning, January 14, we looked out the front window of the library and there was a man out picking up all those annoying little sticks left on the ground after the ice storm.  The big limbs and fallen branches had been gathered up and carried off by the City Crew a long time ago.  We just hadn’t decided who to get to do the dirty work of raking all those little sticks.

Our problem was solved when Virgil Engelken decided he needed something to do on a frigid winter morning, so he came to the library, not to pick up a book to read, or a movie to watch, but to clean up our yard!  Thank you, Virgil, we really appreciate your hard work.  Virgil’s wife Loyola sits on the library board of directors.

 

Want to try something different than the books you ususally read? Here is the list of books our Book Club members will be reading this year:

January In Cold Blood – 2008 Kansas Reads book

February  Memory Keeper’s Daughter – F

March Year of Magical Thinking – Bio

April  Time-Traveler’s Wife – F

May  May Last Days as Roy Rogers – Black History

June  The Book Thief – Young Adult

July  Ladies No.1 Detective Agency – Mystery

August  Innocent Man – True Crime

September  Water for Elephants – F

October  Fahrenheit 451 – Classic

The Seneca Library Book Club meets the third Tuesday of each month. Contact the library if you are interested in joining the book discussion group.

By Karen Holthaus, Director

People from outside the area come into the Seneca Library everyday and comment on what a wonderful library Seneca has.  Local residents often come in and tell the staff how proud they are to have such a great library in our community.  The whole community has supported and helped make the library what it is today.

Now everyone in Seneca knows it too!  Seneca Free Library is number one in its size category based on a rating index for the entire state.  Out of 45 libraries across the entire state with a population of between 1500-2499, Seneca Free Library is at the top of the list.  Number One.

The Kansas Public Library Rankings for 2005 were made public in October 2006.  The rating is based on many factors, including resources and usage in the library.  These factors include components such as staff, number of collection materials, collection expenditures, and the number of hours open per week.  Also included are usage factors such as number of items checked out each year, number of materials borrowed from other libraries for patrons, information requests, attendance at children’s programs each year and number of electronic resources, including the internet and computers.

Each library receives a resource score, a usage score and a final composite score, upon which the library is ranked.  The resources make up 50% of the final score with usage data making up the remaining 50%.  This rating is based on the National Hemmen Index, which compares 9000 libraries across the nation.  Seneca has scored in the top ten in this index twice in the last 7 years.

The Kansas Puclic Library Ranking Index is an improvement over the national ranking because it does not include weighted scores.  The data in the Kansas Index is based on the same number of points for each data element.  Seneca and the surrounding area has always been there to help support and improve the Seneca Free Library.

This number one rating shows that everyone has done a wonderful job of being there for the library and has made it an important and vital part of the Seneca community.