Library Card Sign Up Month!

September is National Library Card Sign Up Month!  While this year may look pretty different from past years, and your library experience may look different as well, there are still ways to celebrate all the wonderful resources you and your family can access with a library card.

If you live here in New York, you can get a Brooklyn Public Library eCard that works for electronic resources. With a library card, you can access digital materials like e-books and e-audiobooks for the whole family.  You can also access databases to help with remote learning activities, or even answer a question that just has you curious. We have virtual programs for all ages throughout the day.

Some branches of the Brooklyn Public Library have reopened for lobby service, where you can pick up materials you’ve placed on hold.

While we’re very proud of everything Brooklyn Public Library has to offer :-) we also want to take this time to recognize some of what makes libraries so amazing and wonderful all around the world.

Libraries of the World

Fun Facts:

• The world’s oldest still-running library is the St. Catherine’s Monastery in Sinai, Egypt. It was built in the mid-6th century C.E.
• The U.S. Library of Congress houses over 150 million items as the world’s largest library. This accomplishment takes up to 830 miles of shelves. Here’s a virtual tour of the Library of Congress.
• The smallest library in the United States is in Tennessee. Measuring 6x5 feet, it’s not a place too many people can browse at once!

These days, we’re all about opportunities for virtual travel and exploration. Here are some beautiful libraries around the world offering virtual tours of their spaces and collections:

• The Bodleian Library at Oxford College in England (you might also recognize it from Harry Potter.
• Seattle’s Central Library looks cool and futuristic.
• The Innerpeffray Library in Scotland has a virtual tour that includes staff reading from some of their favorite books.
• Here’s a virtual tour of a Sourdough Library in Belgium. Yes, sourdough, as in the bread many people made during quarantine earlier this year.
• And here’s the staff of the Nashville Public Library having a great time singing.

Books and more for Library Lovers

What better way to show your love for the library than using your BPL card to browse some of our books. Whether you put them on hold for lobby pickup or read something wonderful electronically, here’s a great booklist to get you and your family started.

You can celebrate your love of books and libraries by making bookmarks! Here are some ideas:

• Superhero Bookmarks: Draw and color your favorite superhero on a craft or (clean) popsicle stick to use as a bookmark.
• Shark Fin Bookmarks: Top a craft stick with a shark’s fin, and sink your teeth into a good book.
• Duct Tape Bookmarks: For older kids, bookmarks made of duct tape can be bright colored fun
• Kindness Bookmarks: Use markers to write positive messages like “Happy reading!” or “Have a great day!” on construction paper or heavier cardstock paper. These make great gifts for friends and family... or you could leave a positive message in a book when you return it to the library!