Spend spring break here! 
You don't have to fly to Cancun to have an awesome spring break (though it helps!). The Wallkill Public Library has a week packed with programs and activities to entertain every age, including:

Monday: The Egg & Nest Workshop. Ages 5 and up are invited in at 1 p.m. to transform a simple, brown papier-mâché egg into a colorful work of art, and then to create a nest in which to rest it.

Tuesday: The Textile Tuesday Brunch will take place between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. in the community room of Town Hall. Quilters, sewers, knitters, and other crafters are invited to bring a covered dish, a favorite project, and spend some time with your fellow hobbyists. At 3:30 p.m., the Teen Library Club meets. If you haven't had time to attend these sessions before, join us now and help prepare for future library programs wile earning community service hours.

  • Wednesday: Family Story Time takes place at 11 a.m. All ages are welcome to enjoy stories, activities, and a craft. The Junior Book Club for grades 2-4 meets at 1 p.m. to discuss Like Pickle Juice on a Cookie, by Julie Sternberg. A craft and refreshments will follow. The Teen Anime Club meets at 3 p.m. for a movie and discussion. At 4:30 p.m., Read to Zoe will feature a visit from one of our tail-wagging tutors. Drop in and read a short book to our furry friend! At 5 p.m., the Teen Art Program will feature string art.
  • Thursday: LEGO fans will be thrilled to hear that our friends from Play-Well TEKnologies will be visiting from 1-3 p.m. Grades K-6 are welcome to explore concepts in physics, engineering, and architecture with the help of their favorite building block. This is a preview of the summer camp that will be returning again this year. At 6:30 p.m., the Knit and Crochet Club meets to work on their projects.
  • Friday: The 2PartArt Club will meet at 4 p.m. to finish the printing process projects they began last week.
  • Saturday: The Lion's Club will be hosting their annual Easter Egg Hunt on the library lawn at 9 a.m. No registration is required - just come with a bag or basket and be ready to have fun!

Happy Spring Break, everyone! 
Oxford University Press offers freebies
In honor of National Library Week, Oxford University Press is offering free online products to all!
From April 13-19, log in to the OUP site with the username and password, "libraryweek" (sans the quotes), and you'll gain access to a rich assortment of educational offerings.
The American Library Association started National Library Week in 1958, out of concern that the radio and TV programs beginning to dominate pop culture would render books obsolete.
Today the library is obviously much more than a place to pick up the latest bestseller - it's also a vibrant community center, educational and technical resource, and much more. Tweet us and let us know how the library has impacted your life!
Time's running out to win a new iPad!
The Impact Survey Wallkill Public Library's conducting - you know, the one that puts you in the running for a new iPad or Sony Xperia just by taking it - will be over April 12. That means if you've yet to fill out the brief online questionnaire, now's your chance.
The survey will help the library determine how our patrons use public technology resources, in an effort to provide the best and most relevant services to our community.
The survey takes just 10-15 minutes to complete and is totally anonymous and confidential.
Best of all, everyone who takes it (with the exception of library staff and trustees) will be eligible to win an Apple iPad Air or Sony Xperia Z. Good luck!
 
Food for Fines lasts for one more week
If those late fees have crept up on you - or ambushed you (which pricier DVD fines have a tendency to do) -  you have one more week to rid yourself of them while still saving money and giving back to the community!
Food for Fines is being offered now through April 18. During this time those with late fees are welcome to bring in food donations for the local Loaves and Fishes Pantry in exchange for having their fines waived.
One food item per fine is required. Examples of what the pantry needs include soup, canned fruit and vegetables, dinner rolls, pasta and sauce, juice, rice, and cookies.
Through the rest of the month, patrons can also replace their library cards - for free - with Wallkill's newly designed set (which includes a standard card and key card). The $3 fine for lost cards will be waived during this offer, so be sure to take advantage of it before the month is up!
Clean Sweep chance to teach awareness
Earth Day is April 22, and this year the area's Clean Sweep event will follow four days later, on Saturday, April 26. What better way to teach your kids not only the joy of volunteering, but the importance of caring for the environment?
Volunteers are needed for the event, which will take place from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. that day (rain date is April 27). Participants will meet at the Wallkill Public Library, where they'll pick up the orange bags they'll need to clean the streets around the area.
Boaters and kayakers are also needed to clean the river of any visible debris.
Light refreshments will be available and a lunch will follow at noon at Popp's Pavilion.
Those interested in taking part in the effort can call 256-0446 or email cleansweepwallkill@yahoo.com.
 
Matthiessen's book dark, yet enlightening
Prize-winning author Peter Matthiessen died last Saturday at the age of 86, only days before the release of his latest and last book, In Paradise.
Author of more than 30 books and the only winner of the National Book Award for both fiction and nonfiction, Matthiessen - a Zen Buddhist -  was known for eloquently wrestling with dark, complicated themes. In Paradise, released Tuesday, keeps with these themes, centering around a conference held at Auschwitz in 1996.
Inspired by Matthiessen's own Zen retreat to the Nazi death camp, the novel is an exploration of man's capacity for cruelty. "Man has been a murderer forever," the author writes.
The book was receiving rave reviews well ahead of its release, and is available now at the Wallkill Public Library.
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