Do you ever find yourself looking for something good to read that is not related to your studies, but just for fun? Check out the After Class collection in the library. The After Class collection is located on the main level, in the lounge area at the front of the library. Here you’ll find a mixture of current fiction and non-fiction books, many of them bestsellers. It’s a great place to browse when you’re just looking for something entertaining to read. Relax with your book in the library, or check it out with your MVCC ID card. A few titles from the current collection are shown above. To find out more about these titles, or to see all the books in the collection click here.
Do you have kids? Are you taking a children’s literature course? Or do you just like reading children’s or young adult books? In any case, did you know that the library has a children’s book collection? It is a small, but growing section in the lower level of the library near the men’s bathroom. The best way to browse titles virtually is to do a search for “juvenile” in the library catalog. Once you get results, use the menu on the left to refine by the location “juvenile”.
Do you prefer electronic books? We have access to children’s e-books as well. The best way to find the children’s e-books is to start at the library catalog. Search for “juvenile”. Once you get results, then use the menu on the left to refine by “juvenile fiction” and/or “juvenile nonfiction” and then under “format” choose “Ebooks” (see screenshot below).
This week is National Library Week. It’s great time to stop in and grab a book. Here are just a few of the titles you’ll find in the New Book collection in the library right now. Click on the link or the image to read more.
A stay at home order was issued in Illinois. Life quickly got strange and scary due to Covid-19. Bread was made, toilet paper hoarded, and friendships continued in online spaces.
Inviting a friend over to visit in spring 2020 via the game “Animal Crossing”. I remember thinking “Welp, I guess this is how we have friendships now”.
The early part of the pandemic looked different to different people and it can be strange to look back at that time and remember some of the drastic life changes we endured.
The graphic novel Covid Chronicles: A Comics Anthology looks back at those early days and the impressions it left on all of us. Containing 64 short comics compiled between April and October 2020, it examines our responses to illness, isolation, social justice, economic insecurity, politics, and more. Each comic represents a unique style and perspective, many written about relatable and emotional stories. This anthology does an excellent job of capturing one of the most impactful times of recent history.
The One Book One College selection this year, All We Can Save, takes a look at the threat of climate change. When we think about climate change, we often focus on energy use. That is important, but it’s not the whole picture. A huge contributor to the problem is agriculture. It’s a triple threat. Plowing releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Fertilizing is a source of nitrous oxide. Cattle release methane. All of these together amount to about a third of all the greenhouse gases leading to human-caused changes in climate.
The food choices that we make matter a lot. And big changes need to happen in the agriculture industry. The New York Times released the first video today that is part of a series called “We’re Cooked.” Part 1, “Meet the People Getting Paid to Kill Our Planet,” takes a hard look at the agricultural lobby in the US. You can watch all of the videos as they are released here. And don’t forget to sign up for your free subscription to the New York Times through the MVCC Library.
This season is full of great pop culture events. New York Comic Con was last month, San Diego Comic Con will be in-person next week, and Chicago’s own C2E2 will be in-person in December. So many awesome shows!
Maybe you’re one of the lucky ones attending this year, or maybe you feel the time isn’t right. Either way, the library has graphic novels, cosplay resources, artists, and more to connect you with the pop culture community!
Check out some of the resources below in our Comic Convention Companion, and visit the library in the near future to see some of our staff’s best graphic novel and manga recommendations for your holiday break! Click the image below to view the collection:
Halloween is almost here. Getting to dress up in costumes is only part of the holiday fun. Because let’s face it, Halloween is also about the candy. Did you know that a lot of the candy that fills trick-or-treaters’ buckets has a history in Chicago?
Tootsie Rolls, M&Ms, Snickers, Brach’s, Wrigley, Lemonheads, Red Hots, Baby Ruths, Butterfingers, Jolly Ranchers, Milk Duds, Cracker Jack, the list goes on and on. These candies and many more are Chicago products. Even Hershey owes its start to Chicago, since it was at the1893 Chicago World’s Fair that Milton Hershey got the idea to start his own chocolate company. Chicago has long been known as the Candy Capital of the World, having been throughout most of its history the producer of one third of all the candy made in the United States.
The Frida Kahlo exhibit that spent the summer at nearby College of DuPage was impressive and drew visitors from all 50 states and 42 countries. In case you were unable to enjoy the event in person, or would like to revisit some of what you experienced, this virtual tour is a great way to connect with the exhibit. Through exhibit photos and narrative, the curator walks us through Frida’s difficult life and then helps the viewer engage with a few of the paintings on display. We also see reproductions of Frida Kahlo’s garden and house. Frida Kahlo Timeless Virtual Tour
To engage even further with the life and works of the artist, check out the MVCC Library’s collection on Frida Kahlo.
This year’s One Book One College selection is All We Can Save, a collections of essays by women leading the fight against climate change. Thinking about climate change and the environment can be really stressful, but getting out into and enjoying nature can have some really positive benefits.
You might have heard of “Forest Bathing“, the concept of immersing yourself in a natural environment as a form of stress relief. While participants do not actually bathe or even enter into water, sounds, smells, textures, and even tastes of nature are explored and enjoyed.
To find the After Class book collection, turn right after you enter the library
If you’d like to get out in nature and learn about it at the same time, check out some of the Library’s upcoming public events. We have a couple opportunities for members of the MVCC community to learn more about the natural areas on campus! Register for events on our Events page. Events are always FREE!
MVCC Prairie Tour (Weds 9/29 and Thurs 9/30) Join earth science faculty member, Jana Svec, for a tour of MVCC’s own prairie. Learn about the geography, plants and animals that are in our own backyard, right on campus.
Native Plants: Foundation of Our Ecosystem (Online Event 10/6) We will discuss how native plants, insects and birds interconnect to maintain our food supply, water, air quality, climate etc. The significant decline in birds and insects is largely due to habitat loss and lack of native plants. We will show what the individual can do to reverse this trend. This discussion will be presented by Catheryn Bryla, Sag Moraine
Prairie Seed Collection Event (Tues 10/12 and Thurs 10/14) Help us protect MVCC’s prairie! Join us and Jana Svac, earth science faculty member, in collecting seeds from native plants to ensure that our prairie remains healthy for the future. This is a chance to get outside and make a difference.
Finally, if you want to dig deeper into the native plants and wildlife of Illinois, check out this librarian-curated list of websites, field guides, and books! Click on the image below to browse!
