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(Contest closed) Teen Writing Contest: Spooky Stories

Write a spooky, scary, or just plain unsettling story fit for Halloween. Submissions open October 1–31, 2020 Prizes 2 winners will be selected from each age group. Winners will be announced the first week of November. 1st Prize: $50 to Lake Forest Book Store Runner-up: $25 to Lake For...

Making a Card in Shutterfly

Making a Card in Shutterfly By Kristin Ashley Media Lab Assistant If you are like me, you have a number of card-giving occasions throughout the year including birthdays, anniversaries, holidays and weddings. I find it is a hassle to stop by the store for just one card, especially ...

(Past event) 2020 Lake Forest Art Stroll

Jump to a section: About the Arts Stroll Kristin Ashley Artist’s Statement Library resources for artists and about the arts Upcoming library events for creative types and art enthusiasts Viewing and learning about art at the library About the Arts Stroll The...

Lit Lorie Loves

Nonfiction Recommendations for Kids

(Contest closed) 2020 Lake Forest Reads: Ragdale Writing Contest

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2020 Annual Book Sale Canceled

We miss all our volunteers and supporters and hope everyone is doing well and keeping safe. On Saturday, June 20, 2020, the Board of the Friends of Lake Forest Library decided to cancel the Annual Book Sale in September due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We are sad to miss this annual tradition and ho...

Theater's Approach to Decision Making

By Patrick Villanueva, Media Lab Assistant The GOTE Technique is a practice from Theater and is a strong complement to Design Thinking. When used practically, it can help with a more focused process. How Theater is Practical While taking some business classes many years ago, it ...

Lit Lorie Loves

Picture Books Recommendations

Kathy Previews New August Children's Chapter Books

The Only Black Girls in Town by Brandy Colbert In a predominately white California beach town, the only two black seventh-graders, Alberta and Edie, find hidden journals that uncover family secrets and speak to race relations in the past. Kiki’s Delivery Service b...

Executive Summary of the CIP through July 2020

Posted July 30, 2020. The Library Board and Library administration began working on the Library Capital Improvement Project in 2016. May 2017 marked the one-year anniversary of a new operational strategy for the Library, reflecting a more open and welcoming library created by loosening of lending rules and increasing invitations to come to the building for additional programming and community gatherings. The Library Board was interested both in learning the Lake Forest community’s opinion of this new operational strategy and better understanding how the Library building created challenges to its effectiveness.

What to read next after "American Overdose"

Two public health emergencies The opioid epidemic was declared a public health emergency in 2017. Between 2017 and 2018, prescription-related opioid overdose deaths dropped 13.5 percent according to the CDC. Since then, the isolation, shutdowns, social distancing, and joblessness resulting from t...

Making a Creative Collage in Pixlr

July 27, 2020 By Kristin Ashley
Media Lab Assistant As a creative person, I’ve been enjoying using the Pixlr app for a few years now. I use it for editing and customizing my images, but my favorite thing to do with this app is to get creativ...

Hints of Herbs: in the Kitchen with Kate

Summer is a great time to explore new ways of using the fresh produce so readily available. Adding herbs is an easy way to perk up a salad, a main course or a starter. Fresh herbs are available at your local Farmer's Market (Lake Bluff on Friday morning), in your local grocery store and at your...

Applied Design Thinking

By Patrick Villanueva, Media Lab Assistant From experience, you could say I know a thing or two about the whole creative process. That is another way to describe design thinking. Design thinking is more than something art-related, and that's important to understand. It's a un...

How and why to read more diversely

What does "reading diversely" mean? Reading Diversely means making an intentional decision to include works from BIPOC (black, indigenous, people of color) and LGBTQ authors as a part of your normal reading throughout the year, in addition to occasionally picking a book from outside your com...