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Recent Reads

The recent rainy weather has given me time to race through a few great reads! Scarlet Clark is a great professor. She's also a great killer. When she's not teaching literature classes at Gorman University, she's planning her next kill. Each year she finds the most awful man on campus and makes sure he pays for his sins. But the administration is beginning to find the number of campus deaths suspicious. Meanwhile, student Carly Schiller is just trying to survive her freshman year. She is relieved to be away from her emotionally abusive father, but can't seem to find her place on campus. ...

National Library Workers Day

This past week was National Library Week, an annual celebration highlighting the valuable role libraries, librarians, and library workers play in transforming lives and strengthening our communities. National Library Workers Day was Tuesday, April 21. I would like to use this opportunity to recognize the excellent work of my coworkers and the ways they make the library a community resource for all. Our librarians use their expertise to build a well-rounded collection of materials that will appeal to our wide range of users, from babies to seniors, from romance readers to New Ulm history ...

Battle of the Books and Books

The Traverse des Sioux Library Cooperative will host its Tween and Teen Battle of the Books on August 8, 2026, at the St. Peter Community Center. Battle of the Books is now accepting participant applications. You can apply at the New Ulm Public Library or on our website at www.newulmlibrary.org. Just scroll down on the library’s home page and click on the poster for the event in your age range. You have until May 29 at noon to apply and space is limited. Tweens (ages 9-12) and teens (ages 13 -18) who are accepted will receive four books to keep. You will be notified when your books ...

Recent Reads

I’ve been on great reading streak lately. Here are a few of my recent favorites. I loved “Seasonal Work,” a collection of short stories by Laura Lippman. She cleverly spins tales of spouses wronged, book thieves, scamming stepfathers, and more, with devilishly surprising conclusions. Some of these characters are downright rotten, but many more are recognizably human; the kind of people you might interact with daily, but who have just reached their limit. Lippman plays with the idea of “seasonal work,” whether that might be a detective solving a small-time case, or a woman ...

Do Your Best Work

The library offers books and resources to support professional development, work and business. Perhaps you want to improve your workplace culture, change a facet of your business, build stronger teams or bolster your emotional intelligence to become a stronger leader. Maybe you are curious about what cutting-edge organizations are doing to be successful. There is always something new to learn when you work with other people and the library can help. In addition to finding books at the library, check the library website at www.newulmlibrary.org to access digital resources including ...

Planning for spring

“Spring is the time of plans and projects.” — Leo Tolstoy As I’m writing this, the weather outside is sunny and 80 degrees. It is one of those spectacular bonus days we sometimes get in early spring. The shorts and sandals have come out, and everyone is outside enjoying the weather. The promise of spring has me thinking about gardens, so here are a few of the new library books about growing flowers and vegetables. Step by Step Greenhouse Gardening for Beginners: Easy DIY Setup Anywhere, Eco-Friendly Tips to Grow and Protect Plants in Every Season, and Harvest Produce Like a ...