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Library News and Events

expect interruptions to library service: 

The week of August 22 - 27, 2022

Hi Everyone, 

In April, the library flooded several times throughout the month. Restoration work will begin soon and interrupt our service hours.

To install an internal waterproofing system, we're expecting the following schedule: 
 
  • Monday, August 22: The library will offer pickup window service only. 
  • Tuesday, August 23 - Thursday, August 25: The library will be closed to the public while an internal waterproofing system is put in place. 
  • Friday, August 26 and Saturday, August 27: We hope to offer pickup window service again. It is contingent upon the waterproofing work going as planned. 
Please check back here for any adjustments. Thank you for your patience. 

Cook County community read: Firekeeper's daughter

Going on now. Won't you join us?
  • Facilitated by Gwen Danfelt of Drury Lane Books
  • Read now! Books are available for purchase at Drury Lane Books. Books, audiobooks, ebook and eaudio are available through the Library.
  • Free potluck and discussion on September 29 from 5:30 PM - 7:30 PM at Cook County Higher Education.
Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley is an electrifying thriller layered with a rich exploration of the modern Native experience, a reckoning of current and historical injustices, and a powerful celebration of community.

The stories we read have the power to connect us with experiences beyond our own. This story takes place in Sault Ste. Marie, but it could be Cook County. Besides being a relaxing hobby, reading can create space for self-reflection and give us an effective way to have real conversations with our families, friends, co-workers, and neighbors. Readers of all ages can take part in a community movement to read, learn, talk about, and create social transformation.

Join the community in reading Firekeeper's Daughter during the month of September. Look over the questions we have provided for you to consider while reading. We hope that this community read series will equip and inspire our community, both adults and youth, to imagine and create a more inclusive and equitable world. When we as a community read together, we become part of something bigger than ourselves.  
 
Cook County Community Read 2022-2023 program will include a series of fiction and non-fiction, with new topics and materials provided in the Early Fall, Late Fall, Winter, and Spring. Want to plan ahead? Here are two additional books that will be part of the Cook County Community Read - The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett and Walking the Old Road by Staci Drouillard. 

Gwen Danfelt is the manager and book buyer at Drury Lane Books and has participated in book clubs for over 20 years. She has a degree in Cultural Studies & Comparative Literature from the University of Minnesota and has facilitated several local book clubs. When she's not working, canoeing, hiking, or hanging out with her 7-year-old, she's usually reading! 

This program is made possible by Drury Lane Books, Grand Marais Public Library, Cook County Higher Education, and the CARE - Committee for Addressing Racial Equity.



Now Hiring: Part Time Library Clerk

Open until filled



The Grand Marais Public Library has a job opening for a part time Library Clerk. The starting wage is $17.06 per hour.

When you share your excellent customer service skills, attention to detail, interest in libraries, and computer skills with the library, you help inspire a sense of community belonging in Cook County. You also encourage literacy and support the lifelong love of learning. Access the job announcement, job description, and application here, at the City of Grand Marais' website.  

Cheers!
 

pop-up book sale coming at oddZ & endz

Organized by the Library Friends of Cook County
Friday and Saturday, August 5th and 6th
10 AM - 5 PM



LOCATION:
Oddz & Endz
2066 West Highway 61
Grand Marais!

Library Friends of Cook County is an all-volunteer non-profit organization, composed of members who care about books and information resources, people, and particuarly libraries--those places, where books and people get together. Their work supports, bolsters, enriches Cook County's public and school libraries.

Do you love books as much as we do? Please:
  1. DONATE: Bring books to the Oddz & Endz donation door on Mondays, Fridays and Saturdays between 10 AM and 4 PM. Hardcover and paperback books in good-to-excellent condition will be accepted in all genres. Please, no encyclopedias or textbooks.
  2. VOLUNTEER: Contact library.friends.cc.mn@gmail.com
  3. SPREAD THE WORD: Please share this information far and wide.
  4. SHOP: All book sales will benefit local libraries and reading programs.
Want to know more about volunteering? The Library Friends of Cook County need help is needed with the following tasks:
  • Sort donated books and shelve in the book room at Oddz & Endz.
  • Sort and box books to be used in the book sale.
  • Volunteer during the book sale to be held August 5th and 6th at Oddz & Endz. Shifts available between 10:00 and 4:00 both days.
  • Volunteer August 3rd and 4th to help move furniture and set up for the sale at Oddz & Endz.
  • Volunteer after the sale to box up the remaining books.
  • Volunteers are also needed to work in the book room at Oddz & Endz on a weekly basis. Your hours worked will be included in the year-end payout to benefit the Library Friends.
If you are interested in volunteering, contact Jan Smith at library.friends.cc.mn@gmail.com or call 218-387-1535 from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m.

Thank you for supporting libraries and reading programs in Cook County!


LIBRARY offering service indoors:

Updated 5/9/22 at 11:11 AM.


Thanks for checking back. It's the second week of May and the library is open. Please, come in.

Due to ongoing water issues, know that our service levels will fluctuate this summer. We may need to close suddenly, or to resume limited services at any time. Call ahead if you have any concerns about our service levels. We thank you for your patience and understanding.

Contact us at : 218-387-1140

 

Library Board of Trustees' Regular Meeting

Thursday, July 28, 2022 at 5:00 PM
In person at City Council Chambers
15 N Broadway, Grand Marais, MN

The library's monthly Board meetings are open to the public and held at the City of Grand Marais' Council Chambers--15 N Broadway, Grand Marais, MN 55604. They are streamed live and archived on the City's YouTube channel.

 

creative bug resources


Do you have an ALS library card and Internet acess? Great! You now have unlimited access to more than 1,000 award-winning arts and crafts video classes taught by recognized design experts and artists. 

There are creative projects for every occasion with downloadable patterns, templates, and recipes.  The easy-to-navigate website features classes on topics in art and design, sewing, paperwork, holidays and parties, knitting and crochet, quilting, jewelry, and more! Browse by skill difficulty levels, quick or multi-part classes, specialty techniques, or those video tutorials best suited for children.

 

state parks passes at your library

June 14 2021 through June 30, 2022


Through a partnership with the DNR, the library will be circulating two free 7-day vehicle parking passes to visit Minnesota's state parks. A library card is not required for participation. Starting June 14, we will begin accepting reservations for the passes and will book them through August 31, 2021. Additional months will open as the current one ends.

The purpose of this program is to make state parks even more accessible to the public by eliminating the entrance fee. Passes are funded by the DNR’s Parks and Trails Legacy Amendment dollars. Folks who try the program will be encouraged to complete a survey. The data are needed to support the program’s continuation. For more information about Minnesota’s parks, visit mndnr.gov.

WOWBRARY email service

A welcoming way to see the newest additions to our collection



WOWbrary is a weekly email showcasing Grand Marais Public Library's newest books, audiobooks, movies, and magazines.

With WOWbrary, you can browse our latest arrivals from home or wherever you have Internet access. You'll learn about bestsellers, cookbooks, mysteries, science books, travel guides, histories, children's titles, health books, science fiction, and more. Read a summary of each title and screen consumer reviews. With links to our catalog, it's easy to place holds on the titles that capture your imagination.


 

For free weekly emails of our latest books, movies, and music, enter your email address:  
 

 

mail-a-book program for county residents

Listen to this short WTIP audio clip

County folks, we know it can be difficult to return books to Grand Marais Public Library on time. Did you know you can borrow paperback books and other materials from the Arrowhead Library System via u.s. mail free of charge?

The items come to your mailbox; you return them through your mailbox. The same is true for city residents in assisted living. ALS Executive Director Jim Weikum joins Tracy Benson on WTIP to explain:



 

 

 strategic plan, mission, tagline




Our mission is:
The Grand Marais Public Library increases knowledge, inspires creativity, removes barriers, and builds community across Cook County.

Our tagline is:
EXPLORE.  LEARN.  CREATE.  CONNECT.

Our priority goals are:

  1. The community will increase understanding and appreciation of the full range of human diversity.

  2. The community will have increased knowledge and utilization of library resources and programs throughout the county.

  3. People will enjoy a comfortable environment that gives them a sense of community belonging.

  4. Young children will develop a love of reading and improve their literacy.

We invite you to review the 2018-2022 Strategic Plan for more information.