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BL Manga with Kelley in FL

The Checkout Stack

66 Plays1 month ago

Introduction to The Checkout Stack

00:00:19

Speaker

Hello and welcome to the Checkout Stack where we talk books with a new librarian every episode. I am your host and the world's biggest library superfan Maria Scogin and I'm so excited to introduce our guest today Kelly Mayer from the South Creek branch in Orange County, Florida.

00:00:37

Speaker

Kelly, thank you for being here

Kelly Mayer's Journey at Orange County Library System

00:00:39

Speaker

today. Can you introduce yourself to our listeners and tell us a little about you and your library? Yes, absolutely. Thank you so much for having me on today.

00:00:48

Speaker

so i work for the Orange County Library System, and I've actually worked there for 16 years, but I've only been a librarian since last July. I got my master's degree at the end of 2023 then became librarian 2024.

00:01:00

Speaker

and then became a librarian in twenty twenty four So I'm not new to our system, but I am sort of new to librarianship. um I've had the chance to, all my 16 years, work at multiple locations across the county.

00:01:12

Speaker

We have very wide service area.

Library Services and Community Engagement

00:01:15

Speaker

So we're the Orlando area, but we also serve Winter Garden, Windermere, parts of Ocoee, Apopka, Winter Park. um The Orlando sort of metro area is about two million people.

00:01:26

Speaker

So we have a very, yeah, a very wide service area. And over that, we have about 15 locations. We have 14 branches and our main library. And I say about 15 because we're in the process of opening two new branches.

00:01:39

Speaker

So it's going to be very exciting in the coming years. Awesome. So before you were a librarian, what did you do in the library system? I started as a circulation clerk and I did that for about nine years.

00:01:52

Speaker

And then I became a customer service lead, which is sort of the supervisor of the clerks. And I did that for five years and now a librarian. Nice. And are you liking librarian role more than those other roles?

00:02:07

Speaker

They all sort of lend into each other there's a lot of overlap in what we do. um and so much of it is serving the community. So I really have liked in my librarianship working with the collection more, getting to host my own book club has been really exciting.

00:02:22

Speaker

But we yeah I've always done programming and outreach and been public facing. So I've definitely enjoyed getting to keep some of those responsibilities as well. It's interesting to learn about the different pieces and roles that make up a library and how you can kind of transfer between them throughout your career.

00:02:41

Speaker

So congratulations on getting your master's. I know that's a big deal. so nice job.

00:02:49

Speaker

All right, well, let's go into books.

Recent Reads: Literary Fiction and More

00:02:52

Speaker

and So let's kick it off with our recent reads, and I will go first. My recent read was Family, Family by Laurie Frankel.

00:03:01

Speaker

This is a work of literary fiction that explores different perspectives on adoption. So the plot line of the novel is that India Allwood, a famous movie star, begins to face public criticism for her recent development portrayal of a mother who put her child up for adoption in a movie.

00:03:23

Speaker

When she talks to a journalist, she ends up agreeing with some of the criticism that she has received in the press. And that makes everyone mad. It makes the people who criticized her mad. It makes her movie producers mad. It makes her agent mad.

00:03:40

Speaker

And she continues to keep stepping in it over and over again as she tries to explain her thoughts. So that plot line is interspersed with going back in India's history and learning about her experiences with adoption, of which she has several. And that is not a spoiler to say.

00:04:00

Speaker

India has placed her own children for adoption. And she also has two adopted children who are not her biological children, but she has adopted herself. And so you're learning about all these different experiences and stories of people The children, the mothers who put them up for adoption, and the parents who adopted them.

00:04:22

Speaker

And you just get so many perspectives that I don't think we get to hear a lot about today. So it was a really great read, especially if you're interested in that topic and you want to get kind of deeper than some of the standard stories we hear about adoption.

00:04:40

Speaker

That was Family Family by Lori Frankel. Kelly, what did you read recently? My recent read is Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin, which is sort of at its heart, sort of a video game movie, but it's our book. But it's also about friendships and relationships and how those closest to us can push us to be better. But they also know how to push our buttons.

00:05:11

Speaker

um So it's about Sam and Sadie who meet in the eighty s in the hospital because Sam is there to get foot surgery after an accident. And Sadie is visiting her sister who has leukemia. And they start playing video games together.

00:05:24

Speaker

And they continue this for a while until they have a big falling out. And they don't really connect again until college um because he goes to Harvard and she goes to MIT and they kind of accidentally meet up one day and she gives him a game that she's working on.

00:05:38

Speaker

And he's absolutely enthralled by it. And he goes to her and is like, we have to make a game together. And so they do. They spend a whole summer and a semester making this amazing game that they then have the opportunity to distribute.

00:05:51

Speaker

And then it's kind of their life after that. And all of it is about, there's some video game making, but it's not, don't be afraid if you're not into video games, you're still going to like this one. But it's really about all these different relationships and tensions and how we share so much of ourselves, but we sometimes keep some of ourselves private and how we should ask for help, but we don't and mental health and There's violence and it's sort of covers so many different topics.

00:06:19

Speaker

But at the end, it's people, people doing extraordinary things, people making mistakes, friendship. I loved it. Wow. That does sound really good. And I've heard that several times that, yes, it's about video games, but you don't have to care about video games to like this book.

00:06:38

Speaker

So thanks for that. Yes, it doesn't go too detailed into like programming or like there's not a lot of ah programming languages and stuff. Like if you want something like that, I would say like Masters of Doom is a better book.

00:06:49

Speaker

This is more about the friendship aspect.

Book Recommendations: From Horror to Cozy Sci-Fi

00:06:53

Speaker

That was Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin. Next, we are going to go into recommendations. So first up, we're going to hear about a book that was released in the last year.

00:07:07

Speaker

Kelly, what is the new book that you are bringing to the show today? Okay, my new book is Don't Let the Forest In by C.G. Drews. And I am so excited to talk about this book.

00:07:20

Speaker

I made my best friend read it because I was like, I need someone to talk to about it. It's so good. It was published in October of last year, which is perfect because it's kind of a spooky read. It's Young Adults.

00:07:32

Speaker

It's set at a boarding school, so not really dark academia, but a little bit of like academics in general. if They don't go to class much. Spoiler. Mostly it's sort of botanical horror.

00:07:43

Speaker

but So it's about twins, Andrew and Dove, who come back to boarding school for their senior year. And they share a best friend named Thomas. And the issue is Andrew is in love with Thomas, but he doesn't want to sort of break up the trio that they have going.

00:07:59

Speaker

And he's also questioning his sexuality. he's pretty sure that he's ace because he knows that he wants to kiss Thomas, but that's all he wants to do. um And so the year starts very strangely because Thomas's parents have gone missing, but no one knows what happened.

00:08:14

Speaker

And there's blood on his shirt. Thomas is disappearing at night. Where is he going? um Andrew's afraid he's hooking up with Dove, but actually he's in the woods fighting monsters. it's Yeah, Andrew writes these sort of gruesome fairy tales that are like more like Grimm's fairy tales versus Disney.

00:08:32

Speaker

And Thomas illustrates them. And all of his illustrations are coming to life at night. And he has to go into the woods to fend them off. um And so Andrew starts helping him and they grow closer and closer.

00:08:45

Speaker

But the woods are encroaching, like they're coming into the school and they're attacking. it's it's a little gory. the writing is so beautiful, like lyrical, poetical.

00:08:56

Speaker

Everything is lush. Like, it's sort of like we want to cut ourselves open and sew ourselves together so we can breathe the same breath. Like I was, it was so intense.

00:09:08

Speaker

There are content warnings at the beginning. I would say, look at those before you read it. But oh my gosh, it was incredible. So botanical horror is like a very interesting descriptor. I'm imagining the woods being this collective hive mind monster kind of thing. is that aligned with what's happening?

00:09:30

Speaker

It's kind of, yes. The woods are kind of alive and there's all these creatures that live in it. And... I don't want to give anything away, but like the vines are living kind of the feeling that they're like breathing. They like and take over the school.

00:09:47

Speaker

They take over some people. If you look at the cover, this is one where you can judge the book by the cover because they have vines and roses that coming out of their lips. um Like it's a little bit bloody, but yeah, it's definitely, that's I think the best way to describe it It's okay amazing.

00:10:05

Speaker

In this universe, is everything normal until this starts to happen? Or is it already kind of like fantastical? Things are a little different than what we would normally imagine in like a regular in the real universe, I guess.

00:10:21

Speaker

No, everything seems totally normal. Like they're going back to boarding school. You know, Andrew has a little like anxiety or a lot of anxiety. um You do know some things are off this year, like certain things because there's other twists that happen. um So you notice certain things are kind of off.

00:10:36

Speaker

But other than that, you don't you don't have any clue that this is what's going to be happening. Creepy. All right. That was Don't Let the Forest in by C.G. Drews.

00:10:48

Speaker

Next, we are going to go into the backlist. so So this is something that came out over a year ago, and maybe you can actually check it out from the library instead of having to wait a very long time on a hold list.

00:11:01

Speaker

Kelly, what is our backlist pick today? Today we have The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune, which came out in 2020. So hopefully should be able to find it.

00:11:13

Speaker

It did just have a sequel come out last year, Somewhere Beyond the Sea. But hopefully you can still go into your local library and pick this one up. We're going to completely go the opposite direction from the last book.

00:11:24

Speaker

This is cozy sci-fi. This is like a warm bath. It's like a hug. It's like if the great British Bake Off was a book, it would be his book.

00:11:35

Speaker

But it is still science fiction. But if you've never read sci-fi and you're worried about hard sci-fi, this is a way to put your toe in If you like stuff like Legends of Lattes or Psalm for the Wild Build, I would say this is a good one for you.

00:11:47

Speaker

it's about a guy named Linus who is a caseworker for the department in charge of magical youth. And he goes around investigating orphanages where they have magical children.

00:11:59

Speaker

So he's sort of a caseworker that, you know, if there's an incident that happens, he will investigate it, write reports, and send it back to the main people who kind of take care of everything else. And his life is very gray. It always seems to be raining where he is.

00:12:13

Speaker

He never has his umbrella. his like, workspace is very sad. Like, you know, it's very doldrums. And he gets the special assignments, top secret, to go to this island and investigate this orphanage run by a man named Arthur. And this orphanage has...

00:12:29

Speaker

children that they've kind of put in hiding there because they're very unique. um And so the first one is Lucy, who is actually the Antichrist. So Linus is like, wait, what have I gotten myself into?

00:12:41

Speaker

But they also have a wyvern and a female garden gnome and a shapeshifter. they have all these different kids that are there. And when he first goes, he's kind of afraid of them because they're different.

00:12:52

Speaker

But they're also afraid of him because he has the potential to shut down their home. Right. And they have built a home at this place. So it's sort of him spending time with the children, being charmed by them.

00:13:05

Speaker

saying that they're just like normal children, even though they have magical powers or maybe are the devil. um It's him falling in love with the person who runs the house, Arthur. so it's kind of like a love story and found family and kind of dealing with prejudice too. so there's a little bit of angst because the people outside are sort of ah afraid of the children, but they're just kids.

00:13:28

Speaker

They're just sweet. It's kind of got an X-Men feel. It's wonderful. Yeah, like a marshmallowy X-Men, I think is a nice way to think of it. I read this one and also really enjoyed it. The kids are just so, so funny, especially the Antichrist character and how you come to realize that maybe they're actually being set up for everyone to hate them. And they're really just like a normal, a normal kid, super cute story.

00:13:53

Speaker

So hard a thumbs up from me on that one as well. And that was The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune. Next up, we are going to talk about a local author.

00:14:07

Speaker

So, Kelly, where is this author from and what book are you bringing to the show today? Yes, our author is Jose Pablo Iriate and they are Cuban-American and they grew up in Miami, but now they do live in Central Florida and they are a local high school math teacher.

00:14:24

Speaker

So shout out to our teachers because we love them. Yeah. Yes. So our book actually is called Benny Ramirez and the Nearly Departed. And it takes place in Miami.

00:14:35

Speaker

And it's about Benny, who is leaving Los Angeles with his family and moving to Miami. And they are moving into their grandfather's house because he has recently passed away. And both of his parents are going to teach in an art school.

00:14:48

Speaker

And both of his siblings are very talented in the arts. His sister is a dancer. His brother is in theater. But Benny himself doesn't really have an artistic talent. So he's super anxious.

00:14:59

Speaker

And on the first day, his siblings are teasing him about being an amazing trumpet player like his grandfather. but the school takes it seriously and puts him in band. And he's never played the trumpet.

00:15:11

Speaker

So the first day, of course, is terrible. um no. When he goes home. Right. It's just him like attempting to play it and not doing it well at all. And as someone who played the trumpet terribly, I'm like, oh, I resonate with this book so much.

00:15:26

Speaker

um Yeah. He goes home and he sees the ghost of his grandfather. And it turns out that his grandfather, after he passed away, was not admitted to the big party in the afterlife because he wasn't a very good person in his life.

00:15:40

Speaker

And so he's sort of tasked with proving that he can be good so he can move on to the afterlife. And when Benny is the only one that can see him, he thinks, well, I must be here to help you.

00:15:51

Speaker

So he starts helping him. But what he's doing is sort of making Benny into a small version of him. He's like, oh, like wear my clothes, which is like a lot of sequin things and have swagger and do stuff like this. And he's like, thanks, grandpa, but your fashion isn't really helping me and the swagger isn't helping me. He's like, I really just need to learn how to play the trumpet.

00:16:12

Speaker

And his grandfather like possesses him and plays for him and is incredible. And everyone's like, you're amazing. And he's like, but that wasn't me. um So it's Benny sort of finding his place, you know being his own person, finding his own style, and learning that you know things don't really come easy. He practices the trumpet and he starts getting better. And so he learns like you know when you actually put the work in you see results.

00:16:37

Speaker

Also, his grandmother comes to visit and he... finds out that he's really talented at cooking and like that's its own art. um And so he starts to embrace that as well. Like the the passion, and the drive that he has for cooking is kind of the same that his brother and sister have for their arts.

00:16:52

Speaker

So it's nice to see like different arts represented too, culinary arts, I think is very cool. And so it's at the end, like a family story about, you know, helping each other, being there for each other, what it really means to help someone, finding yourself.

00:17:08

Speaker

The siblings had a great relationship, which I love to see. very heartwarming. but Yeah, I love a good sibling relationship too. So Jose Ariarte is a math teacher. I actually went to college for mathematics. So I have to ask, is Benny, he not artistic because he's really good at math in the book?

00:17:30

Speaker

Does math come up? It doesn't really. No, they don't really talk too much about the other subjects. He has a friend who's willing to go. So it's a lot of like sort of afterlife stuff. It's a lot of anxiety of if I don't perform well, does my grandfather not going to get into the afterlife?

00:17:46

Speaker

So lot of him questioning stuff like that. And the grandfather sort of seeing the impact because he was a very famous trumpet player and he had to make a lot of sacrifices to pursue that dream, one of which was his family.

00:17:59

Speaker

And so it's kind of the grandfather getting to see like the impact of his choices. It's got a lot depth and sweetness. And that is a juvenile fiction, like a middle grade kind of book.

00:18:10

Speaker

Okay, cool. Depth and sweetness, but not enough math.

00:18:17

Speaker

Yes, there could have been more math. out That'll be the note we send.

00:18:22

Speaker

That was

Exploring BL Manga

00:18:23

Speaker

Benny Ramirez and the Nearly Departed by Jose Pablo Ariarte. Next, we are going to go into our bookend. So for this segment of the show, our guest gets to pick any topic they want and bring three books on it.

00:18:39

Speaker

So Kelly, why don't you tell us what topic you picked for today's show? So I picked manga, specifically BL manga, which is boys love manga, which is romance between two boys, two boys that are falling in love.

00:18:53

Speaker

And this is a big genre in the manga world, yes? Yeah, so there's like a lot of niches in manga. So you have like shoujo, which they consider more like girly stuff, which would be like Sailor Moon.

00:19:06

Speaker

And then you have like shounen, which would be the more like boy oriented or action stuff, which would be like Naruto or One Piece. And of course, everyone can read everything. But sort of those are the two big things. And then BL, also sometimes called like yaoi manga, is sort of a smaller niche, but ever growing.

00:19:24

Speaker

Okay. So what is the first pick for BL Manga? Okay, so my first pick, and I want to say these are all manga that ah Orange County Library System does carry. And I also wanted to pick things that were one shots.

00:19:40

Speaker

So it's just like one and done. so if you've never read manga, never read BL manga, this is a very easy way to start. It's not like a 20 volume series that you're like, oh, this is going to be so intense to read.

00:19:51

Speaker

These are just, you could read this one. It's it. So I kind of like that about it too. So my first one is Go For It Nakamura by Shunde. And i am trying very hard to pronounce everyone's name correctly, but please correct me if I am wrong.

00:20:06

Speaker

This was originally a webcomic that they serialized in a magazine and then got published as a full manga volume. And it's Nakamura, right, our title character, it has a crush on his classmate Hirose.

00:20:20

Speaker

And it starts off very innocent. Like, he's even afraid to talk to him. Like, they're in the same class, but he's like, I can't even talk to this boy. Like, he's so sweet and nice and kind. Like, I'm afraid to even, like, say hello to him. So the very first scene is, like, Hirose drops a handkerchief. And he's like, oh, my gosh, I'm going to pick up the handkerchief. And I finally have a reason to talk to him. I'm so excited.

00:20:39

Speaker

And then someone else goes to pick it up. And he, like, storms over. And he steps on. He's like, no. I'm going to do this. And so everyone's horrified. They're like, this handkerchief? And he picks it up. He's like,

00:20:52

Speaker

It's zany like that. So it's a much more like silly, very goofy set of stories. And they're all little. There's like 11 little chapters. And they're all sort of just little shorts of them doing things together, working on like class projects and um going on a class trip together.

00:21:09

Speaker

it's very much just friendship because like, even though he's in love with him, really all he wants is to just start by being his friend. And so it's very innocent. It's rated T for team, but it's very sweet. There's no kissing or anything. It's really just, I want to spend time with you and and be friends with you.

00:21:26

Speaker

Very sweet. Are most BL manga centered around like high school age characters or is that specific to this one? a lot that are centered in high school but no they go all ages so college adults yeah it it runs the gamut and then I heard you say t for teen and I guess is this a specific manga rating system or I've never heard that before Oh, yes, yes, yes. So when you on the back of manga, and you know, manga opened the opposite way that American book would open.

00:22:00

Speaker

Yes, that's very important for listeners to know. Start in the back. Yes, yes. And it will tell you, no, yeah, it will tell you like, you're reading the wrong way. yeah, on the back, it will have like a content rating.

00:22:13

Speaker

And so it'll say like, you know, teen or older teen or like mature. it'll give you kind of an idea of like the content. So that kind of helps too, if you're kind of looking for stuff in different categories.

00:22:24

Speaker

Yeah, that's really great to know. Cause think, There can sometimes be some prejudice against manga from adults who don't understand it and what the content could be.

00:22:35

Speaker

So knowing how to check the rating on a manga book, I think is really important. And I didn't know that existed. So that's that's a great thing for people who don't read manga, but maybe have teens that do to know and be able to help them pick the correct books that they feel like are appropriate.

00:22:52

Speaker

So to repeat, that was Go For It, Nakamura, The Story and Art by Shunde. And with manga books in general, there sometimes is a story, so the person who writes the story, and then the art is the person who draws. And in this case, that is all one person whose name is Shunde.

00:23:11

Speaker

Next up, what do we have in our BL manga bookend? Okay, so next up we have one that's called Seven Days, Monday to Sunday. and it was written by Takari Rihito illustrated by Tachibara Binio.

00:23:27

Speaker

This is one of my all-time favorite manga. i actually requested the library order it because I was like, we need to have this book. It's so good. It was published as two parts. So it was seven days, Monday through Thursday, and then seven days, Friday through Sunday.

00:23:41

Speaker

And it's very sweet, also rated teen. So it's about a boy named Yuzuru who sort of disillusioned with dating because he's very handsome and he's really good at sports.

00:23:52

Speaker

But all the girls that date him kind of think he's going to be one thing, but he's really another. They're like, oh, you're the handsome prince. But really, he's kind of a doofus. And he's kind of blonde and sometimes says the wrong thing.

00:24:02

Speaker

And so they're like, oh, you're not who I thought you were. he's kind of like, and not really interested in dating. um And then we have a first year named Toji, who's kind of stuck on his brother's wife.

00:24:16

Speaker

um She's very flirty with him. and He kind of has a thing for her. So he dates a lot, but not seriously. So he'll date someone, but only for one week. And the first person to ask him each week is the one he dates.

00:24:28

Speaker

So he's made his way through a lot of the girls in school, but he's very sweet to them. He's the perfect boyfriend for a week. But again, he's kind of pretending to be something he's not. So in our week, right, our seven days, Yuzuru is like, hey, why don't you date me?

00:24:43

Speaker

That's kind of a joke. But Toju's like, okay, takes it seriously. And so they kind of start dating. um Little things like walking home together. They're both part of the archery club. So they go to the club together.

00:24:56

Speaker

they have like lunches together, go on like a little dates. And they're slowly over the course of week, start to fall in love with each other. And the thing about it is they they like each other for who they are.

00:25:08

Speaker

So Toju's like, I kind of like that you're doofus and you're too blunt and you say what you mean and you're honest. And Yuzuru's like, I like that you let your guard down around me and you're open about things and you're not trying to be this like perfect prince.

00:25:21

Speaker

um So it's like two people kind of appreciating each other, you know, not in spite of their flaws, but like for their flaws, which I thought was really sweet. And this one's just like light kisses. So it's very light BL, but a very sweet sort of romance blooming.

00:25:37

Speaker

And so sometimes originally it was two volumes, but right now it's being published as one mega volume Monday through Sunday. So that's what we have it as. Nice. I can take a little bit of doofus in my romantic lead. That's not necessarily a deal breaker. doesn't even mean to be.

00:25:53

Speaker

He's a teen boy. I mean, you know, it's sometimes we're doofuses as teens. Sometimes we're doofuses as adults. All right. That was Seven Days, Monday through Sunday. And the story was by Takari Ruhito and art by Tachibana Vanillo.

00:26:10

Speaker

Kelly, that brings us to our last book in the BL manga bookend. What do you have for us? Okay, so we're moving on to adults, and we have Our Dining Table by Ori Mita.

00:26:23

Speaker

and Even though it's adults, it's still rated T for Teen because it's still kind of a light BL manga. um But this one, if you like The House and the Cerulean Sea, you might like this one too because it's also kind of found family.

00:26:35

Speaker

But it stars Yutaka, who is sort of a lonely office worker who's eating his lunch alone in the park one day. And this little boy runs up and he's like, a stomach is grumbling. He's staring at his lunch with these big puppy eyes.

00:26:47

Speaker

And so is like, do you want part of this? he's like, oh my gosh, thank you. So he's halfway eating together and his big brother runs over. He's like, what are you doing? Like you took this man's lunch.

00:26:58

Speaker

What are you thinking? um and so they leave. But the next day they're there in the park waiting for him again because they want to apologize. for taking his lunch. and So the brothers are, the younger one is Tane and then the older one is Minoru.

00:27:12

Speaker

And Minoru actually says, you know, Tane loved your food so much. Would you consider coming over to our house and teaching us how you made it? And Yutaka says yes. He's like, okay, that sounds great.

00:27:25

Speaker

um I think he's charmed by them and their sweetness as brothers. He had a very not great relationship with his family. So to see their sort of genuine love for each other, he's like kind of moved by. He's yeah, would love to come over.

00:27:37

Speaker

So he goes to their house and he's teaching them how to make like onigiri, the rice balls, and the special way that he makes it. And he's like very welcome into their family. And they're just being crazy and goofy. Tane is like probably like five or six. So, you know, he's just...

00:27:50

Speaker

has no filter, just being really sweet. And he feels sort of not as lonely as he did. He Yutaka, like has an issue with eating in front of other people. Because growing up, he was, his parents passed away and he was adopted into a family.

00:28:06

Speaker

And his adoptive brother, who was actually his cousin, but was very mean to him at the dinner table. He was like, you're disgusting when you eat. No one wants to see you. You're horrible. And so he developed sort of like this fear of eating in front of other people.

00:28:18

Speaker

But when he's with Tani and Minoru, they're just like, just eat. They force him to eat stuff and they're having a great time. And so he kind of overcomes his... fears of eating with people and like develops this great relationship with them and their dad.

00:28:33

Speaker

And then you find out that their mom has passed away. And, and so cooking together is very special for them because they miss her cooking. And so that's bringing back part of that for them. it's a lot of family dynamics. It's very sweet.

00:28:47

Speaker

Also just like kissing, very nice. It was very gentle. Yeah. Yeah. I love that. I really, i have a habit when someone makes me food that is delicious, i have asked them to teach me to make it. That is like a thing that I do. So I think that's a really fun plot line where you're like, oh, that was really good. Like, help me make it.

00:29:08

Speaker

Yes. Yes. And then the end, it has a short story of Tane sort of as a high schooler growing up. So you get to see kind of a little glimpse into the future where they're still together and Tane's little crush on Yutaka because he's grown up eating his food. So it's very cute. Yeah. All right. That was our dining table story and art by Ori Mita.

00:29:33

Speaker

That wraps up our bookend today. So those are all the books. What a great little shelf we've put together today. I'm really excited to check some of them out. and Next, I always like

Branch Highlights and Community Programs

00:29:45

Speaker

to leave some space to plug anything that's going on at the library. So, Kelly, do you have anything you want to share with our listeners about your branch out in South Creek?

00:29:57

Speaker

Is it so is South Creek, the name of the town or is that just the name of the branch? That's just the name of the branch. OK. Is there anything you want to plug for South Creek branch in Orange County, Florida? Yes, so for the library in general, so our big initiative, the thing that's sort of at the heart of everything we do is that we want to be welcoming, right? We want to be a place where everyone in the community feels like they belong, like everyone has a space with us.

00:30:22

Speaker

And we want to be a place that... represents people and engages them and enriches their lives. And we also sort of personally want to be your library. We want to be a place where you can come and connect with things and be inspired and learn stuff and feel like this is your place, this is your home, this is your space.

00:30:44

Speaker

And i think one of the ways we are great about that, the library in general and South Creek shout out, um is our programming. and We have so many different kinds of programs at the library, from babies to seniors. We have like yoga classes, plant clinics.

00:31:00

Speaker

We have our own garden. We're hatching monarch butterflies right now. we have technology classes. Yeah, we got to see the caterpillar stage and they're now forming their little chrysalis.

00:31:11

Speaker

So then we will take them into the garden and release them when they um form as butterflies. that's really unique to us. We have technology classes, fiber arts, crafting, language learning. We play D&D. We have Lego clubs.

00:31:24

Speaker

why But what I really want to highlight is the book clubs that we have in the Orange County Library system. We do have one at South Creek. um We have traditional book clubs across multiple locations, you know, where you read a book and everyone comes and talks about it.

00:31:38

Speaker

but have in-person and virtual, but we also have a ton of unique ones. We have a no pressure silent book club. We have a contemporary romance book club. We have the bleak circle, which is our horror book club.

00:31:51

Speaker

We have a nature walk book club. ah We have a nature walk book club. we have a kids graphic novel book club, teen book club, and then we have a lo-fi teen book club. So just to name a few, we have a lot.

00:32:05

Speaker

So if you love reading, which hopefully if you listen this podcast, you love reading. um There's a book club for you and in Orange County. Wow. those That's an amazing selection. What does a lo-fi teen book club mean?

00:32:19

Speaker

So they meet online and there's no cameras and there's no talking. so there's no pressure. It's just chatting, chatting online. So kids from across the county can meet and chat about stuff without having to have the pressure of speaking, public speaking or having their cameras on.

00:32:33

Speaker

Interesting. I've never heard that language in that context before. Yeah, it's something new we're trying. One of the librarians, Annie, downtown has has launched it. So it's very cool. Something different.

00:32:45

Speaker

And then we have a big event coming up that's literary based. So we're doing our Southwest author series. It's the 18th annual one at our Southwest branch. And we're partnering with the Rotary Club of Dr. Phillips to host the author of Victoria Christopher Murray.

00:33:02

Speaker

And she's the author of The Personal Librarian and The First Lady's, name a few. The Personal Librarian was NPR's best book of the year. So we are having like an author presentation, having a book signing.

00:33:14

Speaker

You can bring your own book or buy one there She'll sign it for you. There's refreshments, totally free. It's going to be at the Southwest Branch, Friday, April 11th at 7 p.m. And the

Encouragement to Engage with Libraries

00:33:25

Speaker

doors will open at 6.30 Great.

00:33:28

Speaker

Well, this has been a wonderful episode. If you enjoyed listening, please consider giving us a five-star review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts to help us grow our numbers.

00:33:39

Speaker

If you are a librarian and you're interested in being on the show, i would love to host you and you can reach out to me at thecheckoutstack at gmail.com. Alrighty, listeners. Thank you for joining us today. Now go forth and use your public library.

00:34:12

Speaker

you