March on Down to the Hudson Library

Written By: Emily Crowell | Issue: 2018/03 - March

We’ve made it through the darkest days of winter on the Plateau, and while there are likely still some cold and blustery days ahead of us, the first vestiges of spring are in the air.  What, you’re probably wondering, is going on at Hudson Library on a typical late winter day?

Lots, it turns out.  On Thursday afternoons at 3:30 the Hudson is now host to Kids Zone, which offers elementary-age children a place to go after school and participate in crafternoons, book and art projects, makerspace activities, and – on the fourth Thursday of every month – Lego Club, when kids can combine the library’s collection of extra cool Lego with their own imagination to come up with designs to put on display.  What a pleasant melody – the clacking together of Lego bricks, the (not always) quiet exclamations of children and their adults being struck with new creative building ideas, the absence of the desperate yelping that punctuates a bare foot’s meeting with a stray Lego because shoes are generally worn in the library… As you wander through the stacks, take note of the Lego creations gracing the tops of certain not-so-tall bookcases – what inventive youth we have in Highlands!  If your family can’t make it to Lego Club, the children’s room has a permanent collection of larger Lego (for smaller hands) and a set of dinosaur Lego. Lego idea books can also be found in the juvenile non-fiction section – although they don’t stay on the shelf for very long.

The slower winter months are a good time for Hudson staff to plan for the year ahead and to make needed changes to the library’s collection.  A new section of books highlights the library’s small-but-growing collection of Spanish-language and bilingual books in the hopes of better serving the community’s language-learning population. Right now, most of the books are children’s picture books, which are actually quite helpful for adults learning a new language – including native English-speakers wanting to learn Spanish.  If you’re looking to learn a new language and picture books aren’t your thing, your library card affords you access to online language-learning programs through NCLive, as well as CD-and-booklet learning kits. Your friendly library staff is happy to help you find what best suits your needs!

Speaking of the Hudson’s book collection, did you know that you can request the library buy a certain book or DVD to add to its collection?  Since the library exists to serve the community, they always welcome community input and feedback.

Hudson Library is open Tuesday through Friday from 10:00 A.M. to 5:30 P.M. and Saturdays from 10:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M.  They can be reached by phone at (828) 526-3031, or by visiting 554 Main Street –just a short walk from almost anywhere in Highlands.