Library News

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October 1-7 is Banned Books Week, an annual event celebrating the freedom to read. The week spotlights current and historical attempts to censor books in libraries and schools. It brings together the entire book community — librarians, booksellers, publishers, journalists, teachers, and readers of all types — in shared support of the freedom to seek and to express ideas, even those some consider unorthodox or unpopular.


This year's theme is "Let Freedom Read" and the Arlington Heights Memorial Library offers several ways to show your support during Banned Books Week 2023:


Read from our Banned and Challenged Books Reading List


What better way

The library's Makerplace rolled out the party banner for its 2nd Anniversary on Sunday, September 17, noon- 3 p.m., at 112 N. Belmont Ave. The community was invited to drop in for an afternoon of celebratory making and was treated to hands-on activities like laser engraving pint glasses, suburban sketching, trying out some of the Makerplace's newest (and coolest!) equipment added in 2023 and enjoying a homemade sweet inspired by the this year's One Book, One Village title. Plus, our experts in 3D printing, quilting, costuming and more were on-hand to answer maker questions and casual curiosities.   


Learn more about the Makerplace here.


Make a Custom Bookmark at the Makerplace 


Throughout the month of September, the Makerplace invites

Each September since 2008, the Arlington Heights Memorial Library has ushered in a brand-new season of Dann and Raymond’s Movie Club, our popular monthly cinema history program featuring Daily Herald film critic Dann Gire and film historian and author Raymond Benson. This month, we do it again with one notable exception. The dynamic duo has decided to call it a wrap, and Thursday, September 14 marks the first of the final four installments of Dann & Raymond’s Movie Club in the library's Hendrickson Room.


We recently sat down with Dann and Raymond to talk about movie club and what has made it

Help the community and raise awareness during Hunger Action Month with our Community Food Drive, located on the first floor of the library from September 8-30. The Arlington Heights Memorial Library and Palatine Public Library have proudly teamed up with Faith Feeds Food Pantry to bring this event to the community. We welcome all non-perishable items that you can contribute.
Faith Feeds Food Pantry is a coalition of First United Methodist Church of Arlington Heights, All Saints Lutheran Church (Palatine), St. Thomas of Villanova Catholic Parish (Palatine) and Holy Family Catholic Community Parish (Inverness). They operate in Arlington Heights, Palatine

Illinois Libraries Present (ILP) kicks off a brand new season Wednesday, September 6, 7-8 p.m. on Zoom, with two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning author Colson Whitehead. The #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Underground Railroad, The Nickel Boys, Harlem Shuffle and the recently released Crook Manifesto, is the first in a series of distinguished authors and speakers who will headline ILP's lineup through May of 2024. 


The Arlington Heights Memorial Library is proud to be a co-founding member of ILP, an award-winning, statewide collaborative that began in 2021. ILP delivers premier virtual events and connects communities and audiences across Illinois. ILP events cover a variety of topics and genres and are presented on Zoom. Many are recorded and

The results are in! The Arlington Heights Memorial Library has been voted the #1 Library in the Daily Herald's 2023 Readers' Choice Best of the Best! This annual contest naming the Best of the Best began in the spring when Daily Herald readers and followers were asked to nominate their favorite local businesses and places to visit. 


The top five nominees in each category, including Best Library, were identified and presented to the general public for an online vote beginning in June through early July. Winners were announced earlier this month.


AHML is truly grateful for the honor of being selected as the Best Library for 2023 and looks forward to continuing to

The Arlington Heights Memorial Library celebrated its seventh annual FanCon on Sunday, July 16. More than 900 people of all ages stopped by the library for the popular comic book and pop culture event. 

“It’s my first year coming. I have a 7-year-old son so there’s been a lot of great stuff for him to do here,” said Andrew Ryzner who showed up from Rolling Meadows for his family’s first ever FanCon. “Having particularly something that’s free to come to like this for the video game, comic book kind of crowd, is great.” 

Ryzner said he was most excited about

 
 
My library has WHAT?!? A giant Connect 4 game, a massive outdoor movie screen, musical instruments and more! One of the library's most exciting and diverse collections, the Library of Things, is full of the unexpected – from board games and guitar pedals to a sewing machine and wireless hotspots. The library has received many requests for non-traditional items in recent years, and this new collection allows customers even more ways to learn, create and save money at the library.
 
•              Capture your next snowboarding or snorkeling expedition with a GoPro.
•              Beachcomb on Lake Michigan

The bookmobile was on a roll at this year’s annual Fourth of July Parade, where we celebrated with a custom-built birthday cake float for the bookmobile’s 50th anniversary. Our parade entry also included library wristbands as giveaways. The parade float and the giveaways were made possible by the generous support of the Friends of the Library. 
Special thanks to all of the library staff and volunteers, library board members, the Foundation, the Friends of the Library and our Summer Volunteer Squad who helped represent the library during the parade and passed out wristbands to thousands of parade goers. A big

Arlington Heights Memorial Library Youth Services staff recently accepted an award recognizing the Hub and the Arlington Heights Memorial Library (AHML) as a Safe Space for Youth. Awarded by Kenneth Young Center and Communities for Positive Youth Development's Youth Advocates for Change (YAC) group, the recognition is especially meaningful since the nomination and award come directly from the teen customers the library serves every day. 


Last month, area high school students and members of YAC were asked to nominate an organization, club or business that they see as exceptionally affirming, encouraging and safe. Out of the ten safe spaces for youth selected after the