We are so thankful to all of you who attended the opening of the new Fairfield Area Library. More than 2500 citizens visited the library on Sunday, and checked out over 1100 books. We are honored to have the support of our community, and we look forward to serving you in this beautiful facility for years to come. Read on for more of the day’s highlights!

Life would be completely different if we weren’t able to choose what we want to read. Banning and challenging books takes away that choice. Today is the start of Banned Books Week and we are celebrating our freedom to read at the library!

You’ve logged your last book in our summer reading program, packed a backpack full of pencils, and headed back to school. After all, it’s September, which means school is back in session! Just because summer has come to an end, it doesn’t mean that fun at the library is over. HCPL has a number of programs in September to help you transition into the new school year or take your mind off your looming homework.

Summer Reading officially ended on August 31. We hope you had as much fun as we did this summer, visiting the library, learning new things at some of our programs, and reading so many great books!

Ancient prophecies, brave heroes, otherworldly locales, and just a splash of magic! It is no doubt that fantasy is one of the most beloved literary genres of all time (it certainly holds a special place in my heart). So pick up one of these books and prepare for an adventure!

Birding, or birdwatching, is an activity the whole family can participate in to discover the abundance of wildlife diversity in our own backyards. We’ve found the best places for birdwatching in our libraries, and set up birdwatching stations with all the tools you need to get started. Visit the children’s departments of Twin Hickory, Tuckahoe, and Varina to check them out!

What makes a book a “classic?” Does it have to be published before, say, 1900? Or maybe it has to be recognized as a “classic,” part of the canon of great literature? Perhaps some feel “classics” must be at least 500 pages, hard to summarize, and boring to most people. Not so! Classics are books that endure beyond the time of their creation and, usually, their creators.

On July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin did the impossible. They landed a spacecraft on the Moon and took a step that will be forever remembered. However, their monumental accomplishment would not have been possible without the collective efforts of many thousands of people.

Learning doesn’t stop just because school is out! Keep learning this summer by exploring the solar system, practicing your engineering skills, or creating music with coding at the library.