Category: Uncategorized

May 2021 HVAC update

Posted on by Glenn Grube

Excellent progress has been made on the Library’s HVAC project.  All new geothermal wells have been drilled and contractors are now working on trenching and horizontal piping to connect those wells to a manifold in the basement.  Work in the basement is substantially completed but work in the attic to connect additional heat pumps continues.  This work will necessitate some disruption of public access to the children’s and teen sections of the library for several more weeks, but do call 860-673-9712 x211 to book a browsing appointment in the children’s and teen collections or to request curbside pickup of children’s or teen books.

 

April 2021 HVAC Update

Posted on by Glenn Grube

Work continues on the new geothermal HVAC system at Avon Library.  Over 2/3 of the 36 new wells have been drilled and some trenching has been completed.  A new manifold is installed in the basement to connect the geothermal wells to heat pumps.

Demolition of 13 old heat pumps, either associated with wells that have failed or that could be turned off due to the locations they serve in the building, has been completed, and prep work is underway to install new heat pumps in the basement and attic of the library.

 

 

6 Steps to a Better Business

Posted on by Glenn Grube

The Avon/Canton Chamber of Commerce and the Avon Free Public Library are pleased to offer business-oriented presentations free for interested area professionals.

We will teach a process for building your business, focusing on common challenges of business owners around TIME, TEAM and MONEY. This simple and easy to understand model works with any type of business in any phase of its lifecycle. Topics to be covered include how to:

  • Implement systems that will free up your time
  • Get the right people on your team to handle increased demand
  • Ensure that your team delivers to the quality standards that you and your customers expect
  • Build marketing that delivers results to your bottom line
  • Create a plan to expand your business
  • Develop an exit strategy for when you’re ready to retire

Stream the presentation here.

Visit the Avon/Canton Chamber of Commerce’s website.

February 2021 HVAC Update

Posted on by Glenn Grube

Work on Avon Library’s HVAC replacement project is underway.  Tree work on the library grounds is complete and fencing is up around the exterior work site.  Drilling of the bore holes for new geothermal wells has begun and will likely last through March.

On the interior of the library, new equipment is being delivered and will be stored in the basement until ready for installation.

Periodic updates will be posted on the Library and Town websites (www.avonctlibrary.info and www.avonct.gov).  If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact Glenn Grube, Library Director at 860-673-9712 x207 or ggrube@avonctlibrary.info.

January 2021 HVAC Update

Posted on by Glenn Grube

Avon Library’s geothermal HVAC system, installed during the renovation and expansion project in 2012, has experienced multiple failures over the past five years and will be replaced with a more conventional and robust version of geothermal technology this year.  At the January 7, 2021 meeting of the Town Council, a contract was approved with All State Construction to execute this project.

We expect work to begin in February.  The most immediate and noticeable aspect of this project will be the need to take down several trees on the Library’s grounds and trim several others.  Additionally, fencing will go up around the work site, which will be on the south side of the library building and along the Sunnybrook Drive side of the grounds, while crews dig the new geothermal wells for heat exchange.

While some of this work will occur outside the library, there will also be extensive work inside the building, predominantly in the basement and attic.  Every effort will be made to avoid impacting library programs and services during this project, but inevitably there will be some disruptions that may require a change to library operations.  When possible, that will be communicated in advance.

Periodic updates will be posted on the Library and Town websites (www.avonctlibrary.info and www.avonct.gov).  If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact Glenn Grube, Library Director at 860-673-9712 x207 or ggrube@avonctlibrary.info.

Would you like to join the Library Board?

Posted on by Glenn Grube

The Avon Free Public Library is seeking candidates to fill two upcoming openings on its volunteer Board of Directors.

If you are a (library) card-carrying resident of Avon and are willing to contribute some of your time and talent to this outstanding community resource, you just may be the right person to fill one of those openings.  A background in finance, accounting, or related areas is desirable, but not necessarily required.

Don’t miss this opportunity to translate your interest into action!  For more information, or to express interest, please contact Glenn Grube, Library Director, at ggrube@avonctlibrary.info or 860-673-9712 x207.

 

What Do I Read? Teens Suggest Titles For You

Posted on by Avon Teen Room

Teen Tuesday Book Talks happen every Tuesday from 4/14-5/19.

Here are the teen recommended books & recommendations from Miss Marisa, the Teen Librarian from a past Book Talk Tuesday.

If you have questions or want to suggest a title to add to Overdrive email mhicking@libraryconnection.info

Teen Recommend Titles & Readalikes By Miss Marisa: 

Lost Girls of Paris by Pam Jenoff. Available via Hoopla (audio) Overdrive (ebook & audio). 3 different points of view. Written for adults. 

The teen reader says: 

  • A story of 3 female spies in WWII
  • Mystery, danger, and deception
  • There is a little bit of romance

IF you liked Lost Girls of Paris…because of the spies and WWII, you might also like: Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein  (she has a prequel and a sequel to Core Name Verity). Available via Overdrive (ebook)

  • WWII Paris, France: two young women set off on a spy mission from England
  • Plane crash and Nazis take one of the women for interrogation
  • Find out the past, who is who and whose story can you trust?

If you like historical fiction in general, you might like The Downstairs Girl by Stacey Lee. Available via Hoopla (audio) Historical fiction, action, and romance. 

  • 1840, Georgia: Chinese girl named Jo secretly lives in a basement, with a mysterious past
  • She dreams of a better life, and not that of a lady’s maid
  • What if she she secretly starts an advice column for the newspaper challenging fixed ideas about race and gender. 

As Wicked As You Wish by Rin Chupeco. Available via Hoopla (ebook & audio). Sequel comes out in 2021!

From the teen reader:

  • Subtle gay/queer
  • ICE (immigration) crosses magical lines
  • Prophecies…

IF you liked As Wicked As You Wish…you might like: Havenfall by Sara Holland. Available via Overdrive (ebook). LGBTQIA+ fantasy.

  • An inn: safe haven between four magical realms
  • A girl sworn to protect it — at any cost
  • A murdered body is found, she’s now in charge of the Inn and of finding out long buried secrets…

IF you liked As Wicked As You Wish…you might like: The Midnight Lie by Marie Rutkoski. Available via Overdrive (ebook & audio).

  • LGBTQIA+ romantic fantasy
  • Lower status girl keeps a dangerous magical secret
  • Learning to free ourselves from the lies others tell us—and the lies we tell ourselves

More Than We Can Tell by Brigid Kemmerer (book 2 in Letters to the Lost series). NOT owned in Hoopla or Overdrive, BUT if it sounds interesting, email me OR look it up in Overdrive and recommend we buy! 13+

Teen readers says:

  • kids who are dealing with family issues
  • realistic fiction
  • romance

IF you liked More Than We Can Tell….you might like: Words in Deep Blue by Cath Crowley. Available via Overdrive (ebook)

  • A beloved used bookstore where people leave mysterious love letters….
  • A love story between a boy and a girl
  • Then a girl moves away, and comes and back grieving her brother’s death

What If? Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions by Randall Munroe. Available via Hoopla (ebook & audio) Overdrive (ebook). Nonfiction, written for adults, but a great read for all.

Teen reader says:

  • This is NOT a textbook AND it has comics & pictures
  • Started from  the author & a friend arguing about what would happen if a bullet got struck by lightning, and they agreed” it needed to be resolved. The author liked questions like this so much he started What If.

Acorn TV: the Best in British TV & Film!

Posted on by Glenn Grube

We’ve recently added Acorn TV to Avon Library’s collection online content.

Access Acorn TV with your Avon Library card to binge on thousands of hours of commercial free world class mysteries, dramas, and comedies from Great Britain and beyond.  You’ll find your favorites like Agatha Christie and Doc Martin, plus Acorn TV originals.  Register with RBdigital using your Avon Library card and then stream through the web or using the RBdigital app for Android or iOS.

Go to the Stream & Download section of our website for Acorn TV and all of our e-content.

Listen to The Book Jam, the new teen and middle grade podcast!

Posted on by Avon Teen Room
Do you want to hear about great middle grade and teen books recommendations?
Listen to The Book Jam! It features our own Marisa, the Teen Librarian from Avon Free Public Library and Mary, the Adult and Teen Services Librarian from Colchester Public Library. 
They talk about books! What kind of books? Young Adult, Middle Grade, Graphic Novels, and genres of all different kinds: realistic, science fiction, fantasy, LGBTQ+, and more! 
Where can you listen? More options will be added in the future! Search for “The Book Jam”
Click here to listen via Anchor.fm
Click here to listen via Spotify

Gather around, it’s time for a story!

Posted on by Kari Ann St. Jean

We are happy to bring you a new podcast produced by the Farmington Valley Podcast Network, we invite you and your children to follow along or practice listening skills as Kari Ann reads “The Bird with Golden Feathers: a story from South Africa,” by Barbara Baumgartner. Click here to listen to the story.

This story is from Good As Gold: stories of values from around the world / Barbara Baumgartner, Illustrated by Amanda Hall.  London: DK, c1998.