A young boy browses book shelves in the children's section of Nanaimo North LIbrary.

Happy New Year! January 2025

NEWS
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Top 10 titles of 2024

Did you know readers checked out 4.6 million digtial and physical items from the library last year? It's alot - and we've tallied up the titles readers borrowed the most. Whether it was a gripping thriller, a spicy romance or a page-turning mystery, there were some books everyone wanted their hands on.

Click on the link below to see if your favourites made the top 10 checkouts for adults, children and young adults, or get inspired for your next read. You can place a hold in our catalogue or borrow a digital book or audiobook on the Libby App. 

Show me the top 10 books
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Adult Winter Reading Club returns for 2025

Read for the chance to win during the Adult Winter Reading Club. 

Adult Winter Reading Club, a two-month long reading challenge, launches on January 2 and ends February 28 (although we will continue to accept draw slips until March 7).Get started anytime during the challenge by visiting your local branch to pick up a Adult Winter Reading Club package, print it off at home, or try the Beanstack online reading challenge platform.

Adult Winter Reading Club
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Author Chris Arnett leads popular learning series 

Learning with Syeyutsus, the popular Indigenous Learning series, is back on January 23 with author Chris Arnett.

The free virtual lunch-time series, a collaboration between Nanaimo Ladysmith Public Schools, UBC Press and Vancouver Island Regional Library, pulls together Canadian speakers on a wide-range of topics to spark conversation, ideas and deeper learning. 

The fifth season kicks off from 12-1pm with a discussion on rock art by Chris Arnett, author of Signs of the Time: Nłeʔkepmx Resistance through Rock Art. The book encapsulates over 30 years of his research on the pictographic rock art of the Nłeʔkepmx, an Interior Salish people.

Arnett is a registered member of Ngāi Tahu Whānui of Murihiku, Te Wai Pounamu, and a descendant of British and Scandinavian ancestors. Chris is also an archaeologist, researcher, and writer who lives on Salt Spring Island.

Register for the upcoming session and view other speakers by clicking the link below! The speakers' books are also available to borrow from your library. 

Register for Syeyutsus

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Services resuming after Canada Post strike 

Library services delayed or disrupted because of the Canada Post strike are starting up again.

Canada Post services started up in December following a strike, but delays were still expected into January. Following the announcement, we resumed Books by Mail deliveries on January 2,  and new requests for Interlibrary Loans will be accepted beginning January 10. 

Please note, there could still be delays for services like magazine subscriptions, BC One Card materials and for rural branches receiving materials from Canada Post.

Library service updates

 

 

Upcoming events 
A bird cage has been created from the pages of a book. It has little cutouts of birds and butterflies around it.

Photos for Fun Group  

If you enjoy taking photos and want more practice, our Nanaimo North Photos for Fun Group is for you! 

The group meets on the last Friday of the month, from 10am-12pm in the Nanaimo North Large Meeting Room. The focus is on creating images through practice, experimentation and positive feedback. Register by email or show up with a USB stick of three to five images on the month's theme. This month's theme is "interiors."

Send this link to a friend
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Sound & Stories at the Courtenay library

Have your voice heard on local radio. CVOX, the Comox Valley's community radio station is holding pop-up radio studio sessions at the library every other Wednesday. 

Stop by to chat or share your idea. Team members can help you develop your idea into an audio story and help you learn to use recording equipment and audio editing software. 

The next session is Wednesday, January 8, from 10am-12pm. 

Get the full schedule
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Pollinator Tea for Family Literacy Week

Celebrate this year's Family Literacy Week theme, "Learning to be Green Together," by joining the Campbell River library for a Pollinator Tea. 

Learn about pollinators, especially British Columbia's native bees, on Friday, January 31 from 3-5pm during the event. There will be teas, treats and information on how to support local pollinators. Families with kids of all ages are welcome.  

More from Campbell River

Want to find events near you? Check out our events calendar anytime.

Events calendar

Legit Library Hack 
Julie, a former circulation supervisor, holds a cell phone close to the camera. It shows a Freegal music list.

Learn a new language on the go 

Did you know you can tap into a free language learning resource with your library card? Mango Languages (available to download on your iOS or Android) gives you access to beginner-level instruction in dozens of languages from around the world. You can practice listening, speaking, reading and writing in a different language. It's the perfect way to practice after taking a language class or brush up on a language before a vacation. 

More about Mango Languages

Staff picks: Winter Reads 
Cover of the book In Charm's Way by Lana Harper
The book cover of Bad Cree by Jessica Johns.
The book cover of A Haunting on the Hill by Elizabeth Hand.


More book recommendations

Vancouver Island Regional Library | 90 Commercial St. Nanaimo BC | communications@virl.bc.ca