What You'll Find At The 2018 Holiday Book Sale

Start your Christmas shopping early with our holiday-themed books and items. You'll find children's Christmas picture books, pop-up books, jigsaw puzzles, and more. For adults, there are books on holiday cooking and crafts; holiday-themed fiction, CDs, and DVDs, and even holiday Harlequin romances. Volunteers do their best to remove books that have been personalized, so many are suitable for gifting. These items are in the meeting room where you'll find this display.

The meeting room is where you'll find sorted fiction hardcovers and trade and mass market paperbacks. Fiction is sorted by genre - mystery, fantasy, historical fiction, etc - and then arranged in alphabetical order by author. We have a very large collection of classics. Fiction by really popular authors can often be found in boxes on the floor with each box limited to one writer and clearly labelled.

In the back room are children's books and non-fiction. Children's books have been cleaned and arranged by age appropriateness, picture books, chapter books, etc. You could pay $10-$20 for a new children's book; you'll get them here - gently used - for $.50-$1.00 and many are gift quality.

Also in the back room, you'll find non-fiction for every interest: biography, art, philosophy, science.

If you like really old books, check out our vintage children and adult books. Some are ex-library, so they have library markings on them, and some are rebound. We're featuring a special book: an autobiography by P.T. Barnum. Because of the book's age, we're keeping it behind the cashier's desk. Ask to see it. It sells for $50.

Crafters will find a nice selection of quilting, knitting, needlework, and an interesting selection of books about creating paper art: altered books, collage, bullet journal techniques, etc. Crafts and home improvement are in the meeting room.

Our volunteers work hard all year, cleaning and sorting books. You'll rarely find one that's damaged or soiled. The sale is easy to shop because tables and shelves are clearly labelled. If you can't find something, ask one of our volunteers. We'll be wearing name tags.

We price to sell! Hardcover and trade paperbacks are $2. Regular mass market paperbacks, CDs, and DVDs are $1. We have literally hundreds of CDs.

The public sale opens on Thursday, November 29, from 11 am to 7 pm. Friday hours are 11 am to 5 pm. Saturday, December 1, is Half Price Day from 10 am to 3 pm. Monday, Dec 3, is Half Price Day for Books and $.25 for CDs and DVD with hours from 3 to 7 pm. Tuesday, December 4, is $5 Bag
Day from 2 to 7 pm. ShopRite has again donated plenty of brown grocery bags for you to fill.

The Library is located at 515 Church Street between 5th and 6th Streets. Metered street parking is available if our lot is full. Please enter the sale from the Church Street entrance which is handicapped accessible.

A new book group just for True Crime fans!

Are you hooked on Forensic Files?

Do you love true crime podcasts such as My Favorite Murder and True Crime Garage? 

Does your sister think it's weird that you only watch documentaries about murder? 

Then True Crime Library is the group for you. 

True Crime Library is a new book group at the Palmer Branch! 

We meet at the Palmer Branch on the third Thursday every other month at 6:00pm. For each meeting we select a case and participants can read any book on the case. At the meeting, we'll discuss different perspectives of the case based on our readings.

Upcoming meetings are as follows:
May 16 - Children of Serial Killers
June 20 - Amanda Knox
July 18  - JonBenet Ramsey
August 15 - "Life After Death" (Body Farms, Medical Examiners, etc.)
September 19 - Scott Peterson

Want to get email updates about True Crime Library? Sign up for our email newsletter! You'll get periodic emails with meeting reminders and group updates!

Questions about True Crime Library? Contact Katie Cardell at katiec@eastonpl.org or at 610-258-7492.

The Palmer Branch welcomes Barbara J. Taylor!

The Palmer Branch is excited to host Scranton author Barbara J. Taylor at our next Palmer Adult Book Group meeting!

We'll discuss Ms. Taylor's 2014 debut book, Sing in the Morning, Cry at Night, and have a Q&A with the author! Ms. Taylor's second book, All Waiting is Long, is a 2016 release that picks up sixteen years after the end of her debut book.

Sing in the Morning, Cry at Night was called the Best Book of Summer 2014 by Publisher's Weekly and earned lots of praise from several book review magazines and blogs.

We hope you'll join us on Tuesday, June 27 at 6pm at the Palmer Branch to meet and talk with this amazing author! Contact the Palmer Branch (610-258-7492) for more information or if you're interested in attending. You can also RSVP on our Facebook Event page.

New Program Launching at Palmer Branch! ATTN: Teen Writers!

YA Fest 2017 was a smashing success!

On Saturday, March 18th, YA Fest 2017 took place at the Palmer Branch. Despite initial worries about the dreary, snowy/rainy weather, 300 people attended this year's Fest! Be warned... there are many pictures ahead!! 

People packed into the Palmer Branch for YA Fest 2017

The day kicked off with our Golden Ticket Event. Our "volunteens" and any teen who wrote a book review for a YA Fest author received a Golden Ticket. This allowed them to attend an up close and personal Meet n' Greet with select authors, and a Skype session with YA author Paige McKenzie.

Authors with teens at the Golden Ticket Event

Author Jeff Hirsch with teens at the Golden Ticket Event

Author Kieran Scott with teens at the Golden Ticket Event

Authors with teens at the Golden Ticket Event

Paige McKenzie created a YouTube series called The Haunting of Sunshine Girl, which eventually became a young adult book trilogy. Paige began writing when she was just 16 years old (!), which made her quite an inspiration to the young writers that attended the Golden Ticket event. The 21 teens who attended also got a swag bag from Weinstein Books (Paige's publisher) with all three books in the Sunshine Girl series, including the not-yet-published third and final book of the series!

Paige McKenzie Skyping with teens

Swag bag, courtesy of Weinstein Books!

After the Golden Ticket Event, doors opened at 1pm and two hours of autographing and book-buying madness ensued!

Let the crowds in! People were lined up when the doors opened. 

Buying books from Barnes & Noble

Authors signed books, took pictures, and chatted with their readers. Teens (and some adults, which may have included the library staff... *ahem*) giddily talked to their favorite authors, and were enthusiastic about having new books to read from newly discovered authors. 

Authors K.M. Walton and Christine Heppermann talking to teens. 

Authors Kieran Scott and Tiffany Schmidt chatting and signing. 

The crowds were deep! 

For our last order of YA Fest business, we raffled away 25 book bundle prizes. All book bundles were donated by major publishers and contained copies of recent and upcoming releases. Raffle tickets were given out at the door and throughout the Fest. Teens could enter any and all raffles as many times as they wanted.

Just a few of the bundles we gave away

These two hit the jackpot!

Book signings, raffle giveaways, and pictures are amazing, but the best and most important part of this festival is that it brings teens and authors together. It provides an open and welcome place for teen readers and aspiring young writers to meet published authors. Some teens gushed at favorite authors, others received advice and insight from the authors so they could dive in to writing ventures of their own. We love to host this event because it supports both readers and writers, which happen to be two of our favorite types of people! 

Even though YA Fest 2017 was packed with teens, we also met teachers stocking their classroom libraries and public librarians looking for advice to host "sister" YA Fests. We met guests who came from as far as Ohio to attend our festival. Some of the attending authors came from Canada and Florida to be part of this event! 

After the Fest officially came to a close, we were so excited to see that YA Fest was all the rage on social media! 

Authors who signed 📚, took 📸, or just chatted, THANK U. Awesome afternoon @YAFESTPA Can't wait til next yr! thx @BNBethlehem & @bnwhitehall pic.twitter.com/DIwwcZicaA

— Sarah Strouse (@Fe1styL1brar1an) March 18, 2017

A great day at @YAFESTPA! Met so many incredible teen readers. pic.twitter.com/w6NaojBFDN

— K.M. Walton 🤘📄✂️ (@KMWalton1) March 18, 2017

A huge #thanks to @yafestpa for including me in their #festivities #yesterday ! They even gave me a #giftbag with two #yabooks which look like #awesomereads ! (The Last Harvest by Kim Liggett and To Catch a Killer by Sheryl Scarborough.) I met a bunch of #enthusiast and #devoted #yareaders and this was well #worththetrip ! I also met some other cool #yaauthors — as well as catching up with #author pals. A #greatday ! #teenlit #teenbooks #teenauthors #teenliterature #youngadultbooks #youngadultbooksgram #youngadultliterature #yalit #yaliterature #goodreads #books #bookstagram #bookshelf #booksofinstagram #booklove #readers #yafest

A post shared by Selene Castrovilla (@selenecastrovilla) on Mar 19, 2017 at 11:59am PDT

Had a blast meeting so many readers at YA Fest 2017!

A post shared by Danielle Vega (@vegarollins) on Mar 19, 2017 at 8:02am PDT

#YAFest is always a blast! And even more fun when you spend it in great company! 😍 Between talking to readers & chatterboxing with @kieransscott, the afternoon flew by! See you next time, @eaplteens! 📸cred @kmwalton 😘

A post shared by tiffanyschmidt (@tiffanyschmidt) on Mar 18, 2017 at 4:18pm PDT

We can't tell you how much planning and support went into this event, and we would like to extend our sincerest thanks to:

• The 40 authors who attended and participated in our book signings and Meet & Greets

• The "volunteens" and their parents who helped throughout the Fest

• Linda Voigt of LV Design Studios who made beautiful YA Fest themed jewelry for the event

• Barnes and Noble of Bethlehem for being our official YA Fest bookseller and for giving a portion of book sales back to the library through the Barnes & Noble Bookfair program

• The Junto staff at Easton Area High School for reviewing the authors' books and promoting the Fest in the school newspaper

• The many publishers who donated books for our raffle bundles 

• The Friends of the Easton Area Public Library for sponsoring YA Fest and volunteering time at the Fest to promote the library and its many programs. 

Library Friends member and volunteer Lois P. sharing information about the library

• YA Fest coordinators Jennifer Murgia and Ashley Supinski, who brought this amazing event to the library for the fourth time in five years

YA Fest coordinator (and author) Jennifer Murgia with a copy of Bad Blood by Demitria Lunetta

• Everyone who attended YA Fest 2017! 

On behalf of the library staff and YA Fest organizers...

"Forever Young... Adult" Book Group!

Are you an adult who enjoys reading teen and young adult books?

Do you still feel like an angsty teenager at heart? 

Do you ever feel shamed by friends who are reading more "adult" books and think you should too?

Do you wish you had a place to talk about the YA books you read (and love)? 

Then join us at the "Forever Young... Adult" Book Group! 

We offer a safe place to discuss your addiction to YA books (we we consider to be a totally healthy and justifiable addiction, by the way). Join Katie and Ashley as we discuss pre-selected titles from a (semi) adult perspective.

We meet the third Wednesday of every month (except December) at 6pm at the Palmer Branch. 

Join us at any of our upcoming meetings! No need to register... just show up! We have print copies of book selections available at both library branches, and also as e-books available through Overdrive, the library's e-book service.

Some of the books we've discussed include:

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Asking for It by Louise O'Neill

Love and First Sight by Josh Sundquist 

The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon

Ramona Blue by Julie Murphy

The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly by Stephanie Oakes

 

Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok

Girl with the Red Balloon by Katherine Locke

Dear Martin by Nic Stone

Moxie by Jennifer Mathieu

If you have any questions or would like more info about the "Forever Young... Adult" Book Group, call the Palmer Branch at 610-258-7492, or email Katie (katiec@eastonpl.org) or Ashley (ashleys@eastonpl.org). 

Don't forget to join our Forever Young Adult Facebook group!

What You'll Find at This Week's Book Sale

It's been almost a year since our last sale. We weren't fortunate enough to benefit from a publisher's clearance again, but we have had plenty of donations - especially in children's books and non-fiction.

You can start your Christmas shopping early with our holiday-themed books and items. You'll find children's Christmas books, adult holiday-themed fiction, books on holiday crafts and cooking, some Christmas CD's, and even holiday Harlequin romances. Volunteers do their best to remove books that have been personalized, so many are suitable for gifting. These items are in the meeting room where you'll find this table.

The meeting room is where you'll find sorted fiction hardcovers and trade and mass market paperbacks. Fiction is sorted by genre - mystery, fantasy, historical fiction, Christian/Amish fiction, etc. - and then arranged in alphabetical order. We have a large selection of classics, 2015-16 books, and books by international writers. Fiction by really popular authors can often be found in boxes on the floor with each box limited to one writer and clearly labelled.

In the back room are children's books and non-fiction. Children's books have been cleaned and arranged by age appropriateness, picture books, chapter books, series, etc. You could pay $3 to $12 for a new children's book; you'll get them here - gently used - for $.50 each and many are gift quality.

Also in the back room, you'll find non-fiction for every interest: biography, history, art, philosophy, etc. One category that's larger than usual at this sale is poetry. There's also a nice selection of books on Jewish culture and religion. They're a donation from the library of a local rabbi/writer/scholar and his wife who was a scholar of Yiddish. Here's a sampling:

If you like really old books, you'll find three bays of vintage children and adult books. About two-thirds are ex-library, so they have library markings on them and some are rebound. Most are poetry and literature books from the 1800's.

Crafters will find a nice selection of quilting, papercrafts, and needlework patterns. Crafts, cookbooks, and books about diet and exercise and animals are on the stage with the DVD's and CD's.

We're also selling a 4-wheeled heavy duty steel utility cart that our computer department no longer needs. It was given to the volunteers to use for transporting books, but it's much too big and heavy for our purposes. It measures 24" by 36" with the shelves being 38" high. We're asking $100.

Our volunteers work hard all year, cleaning and sorting books. You'll rarely find one that's damaged or soiled. The sale is easy to shop because tables and shelves are clearly labelled. If you can't find something, ask one of the volunteers. We'll be wearing name tags.

We price to sell! We like to think of ourselves as the Dollar Book Sale because that's what you'll pay for most hardcovers, trade (quality) paperbacks, CD's, and DVD's. Small paperbacks and children's books are $.50. We have a limited number of VHS priced at $.25 each.

The public sale opens on Friday, November 4, at 10:00 am until 5:00 pm. Saturday hours are 9:00 am until 2:00 pm. Monday, November 7, is Half-Price Day from 2:00 to 7:00 pm. Tuesday, November 8, is $5 Bag Day from 2:00 to 7:00 pm - stop in after you vote! ShopRite has again donated plenty of brown grocery bags for you to fill.

The Library is located at 515 Church Street between N. 5th and 6th Streets. Metered street parking is usually available nearby if our lot is full. Please enter the sale from the Church Street entrance which is handicapped accessible.