September 2023

@ OFPL

There is a lot going on at the library this month! Read on to find out about:

• Hispanic & Latinx Heritage Month @ OFPL
• A library card design contest
• A K-pop party
• The We READ, We TALK Book Club's discussion of Take My Hand by Doren Perkins-Valdez
• Special classes and events for adults
• Our new Teen Advisory Board

Don't forget to check out our September calendar for a full listing of events!

Hispanic & Latinx Heritage Month

Join the Library in celebrating Hispanic and Latinx Heritage Month from September 15 to October 15! Discover reading recommendations, crafts, events, and more this month and beyond.

Crafting at Rio West Mall

Join us at the Rio West Mall on September 16 from 12 - 4 PM for some crafting fun! Kick off Hispanic Heritage Month with crafts that highlight the diversity and beauty of Hispanic culture around the world. 

Drum & Rhythm Workshop

Children and their families are invited to join us at the Children & Youth Library on Saturday, September 30 for a hands-on drum & rhythm workshop with music teacher Randy Markham. Celebrate National Hispanic and Latinx Heritage Month by learning some important rhythms of Latin American music, including calypso and soca.

Reading Recommendations

If you'd like to explore Hispanic & Latinx Heritage month with books, we've got your back! Come to the library for reading recommendations. Here are a few to start you off:

Picture Books

Planting Stories: The Life of Librarian and Storyteller Pura Belpré by Anika Denise

When she came to the U.S. in 1921, Pura Belpré carried the folktales of her Puerto Rican homeland. Finding a new home at the New York Public Library as a bilingual assistant, she turned her popular retellings into books and spread story seeds across the land. Today, these seeds have grown into a lush landscape as generations of children and storytellers continue to share her tales and celebrate Pura’s legacy. View in catalog.

Dreamers by Yuyi Morales

This beautiful picture book tells the story of a mother and child who discover many new things—some wonderful and welcoming and others unfamiliar and scary. The book includes an autobiographical essay about the author’s own immigration story as she traveled from Mexico to Texas with her two-month old son. View in catalog.

Alma and How She Got Her Name by Juana Martinez-Neal

If you ask her, Alma Sofia Esperanza José Pura Candela has way too many names: six! But As she hears the story of her name, Alma starts to think it might be a perfect fit after all - and realizes that she will one day have her own story to tell. In her author-illustrator debut, Juana Martinez-Neal opens a treasure box of discovery for children who may be curious about their own origin or name story. View in catalog.

Juvenile & Young Adult Books

Gaby, Lost and Found by Angela Cervantes

Gaby Ramirez Howard’s mother was recently deported to Honduras. Gaby finds comfort in the animals she cares for at the local animal shelter. Her volunteer job is to write adoption ads to help cats and dogs find their “forever home.” Gaby desperately wants to help her favorite shelter cat, Feather, find a home. She connects with Feather because Gaby herself is having a hard time finding a place that feels like home. View in catalog.

Undocumented: A Worker's Fight by Duncan Tonatiuh

Juan crosses the U.S.-Mexico border to find work in the states. He works as a restaurant busboy but he isn’t paid well, less than half of minimum wage. Even though Juan worries about his boss reporting him for not having proper papers, he decides to stand up for himself and his coworkers to improve their salaries and working conditions. This graphic novel tells the story of undocumented immigrant workers who face daily struggles at work but join the work force and contribute to society. View in catalog.

Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo

Sixteen-year-olds Yahaira Rios, in New York City, and Camino Rios, in the Dominican Republic, are devastated to hear of their dad’s death in a plane crash, but they are even more surprised to learn of each other's existence in the wake of their devastating loss. With alternating perspectives told in verse, the two sisters grapple with grief, forgiveness, and love. View in catalog.

Adult Books

Solito by Javier Zamora

A young poet tells the unforgettable story of his harrowing migration from El Salvador to the United States at the age of nine in this moving, page-turning memoir hailed as “the mythic journey of our era” (Sandra Cisneros). Solito is Javier Zamora’s story, but it’s also the story of millions of others who had no choice but to leave home. View in catalog.

The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas

Mexican Gothic meets Rebecca in this debut supernatural suspense novel, set in the aftermath of the Mexican War of Independence, about a remote house, a sinister haunting, and the woman pulled into their clutches… View in catalog.

Woman of Light by Kali Fajardo-Anstine

Luz "Little Light" Lopez, a tea leaf reader and laundress, is left to fend for herself after her older brother, Diego, a snake charmer and factory worker, is run out of town by a violent white mob. As Luz navigates 1930's Denver on her own, she begins to have visions that transport her to her Indigenous homeland in the nearby Lost Territory. Luz recollects her ancestors' origins, how her family flourished and how they were threatened. She bears witness to the sinister forces that have devastated her people and their homelands for generations. In the end, it is up to Luz to save her family stories from disappearing into oblivion. View in catalog.

Library Card Sign-Up Month

What's the smartest card in your wallet?

Library cards are free to McKinley County residents. A library card allows you to tap into amazing resources including streaming movies, audiobooks, a seed library, the New Mexico Family Pass for free entry to museums and historic sites, and 56 databases like Ancestry, Comics Plus, and the Chilton Manuals online.

Celebrate Library Card Sign-Up Month by applying for a library card if you don't have one (it's free!), or telling someone else about the library. You can also renew your library card for free!

Calling all OFPL neighbors! To celebrate Library Card Sign-Up Month (September), OFPL is holding a library card design contest. To participate, pick up or print a Library Card Design Contest Form. Fill the blank space with an original design and turn it in at either the Main Library or the Children & Youth Library by Friday, September 22.

All entries will be displayed in an online poll on our website for community voting during the last week of September and the winning design will be printed on a special edition of our library cards, which will be available next June and July during our summer reading program.

The theme for next year’s summer reading program, which you are invited to draw inspiration from for your design, is Adventure Begins at Your Library.

K-pop Party!

Join us at the Children & Youth Library on September 9 beginning at 6 PM to immerse yourself in K-POP culture. K-POP is mainstream music that originated in South Korea and has grown into an international phenomenon. Dress up and mingle with K-POP fans, synchronize your dance moves to your favorite K-POP idols and artists, have your picture taken on the green screen, and create and trade K-POP merch.

Email ctatsukawa@gallupnm.gov for more information. 

We READ, We TALK Book Club

Take My Hand by Dolen Perkins-Valdez

The OFPL We READ, We TALK Book Club will be meeting this month to discuss the book Take My Hand by Dolen Perkins-Valdez.

Inspired by true events that rocked the nation, this is a profoundly moving novel about a Black nurse in post-segregation Alabama who blows the whistle on a terrible wrong done to her patients.

The book discussions will take place on Saturday, September 16 at 2 PM and Tuesday, September 26 at 6 PM at the Main Library. There will also be an option to join the discussions via Zoom. Please email bmartin@gallupnm.gov for more information.

Classes and Events for Adults

There are many special classes and events specifically for adults taking place at OFPL this month. We hope to see you at some!

Adult Finance Classes

In partnership with First Financial Credit Union, we will be holding adult finance classes at the Main Library on Wednesdays at 6 PM. Dale Dedrick, Business Relations Manager at First Financial, presents a series of financial planning workshops to help you achieve your spending and saving goals.

Classes are limited to 25 participants, advance registration at ofpl.online or the front desk at the main library is required.

● September 6 - Building a Budget 

● September 13 - Car Buying 101 

● September 20 - A Roof Over Your Head 

Email ctatsukawa@gallupnm.gov for more information.

Sew Happy! Sewing Class

Adults and teens are invited to join us at the Main Library on September 9 at 1 PM to sew some fun! Learn how to select, layout, and cut patterns, use a sewing machine, seam finishes, and hand sew to finish. Complete a project while you are here! 

Email pcarpenter@gallupnm.gov for more information.

Cricut 101

Adults and teens are invited to join us at the Main Library on September 23 at 1 PM for a Cricut workshop! Learn the basics of using your Cricut to cut and shape paper. Makers who have the fundamentals down but want to make a more complex vinyl decal project with guidance will complete one to take home!

Class is limited to 20 participants, advance registration at ofpl.online or the front desk at the main library is required. 

Email bmartin@gallupnm.gov for more information.

Preserving Goodness Canning Class:

Strawberry Freezer Jam

Join us at the Main Library on September 28 at 4 PM to learn how to make strawberry freezer jam with Elena Bowers from New Mexico State University, College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences!

Class is limited to 20 participants, advance registration at ofpl.online or the front desk at the main library is required.

Email ctatsukawa@gallupnm.gov for more information.

Navajo Rug Weaving Workshop

Diné weaver Lois A. Becenti with Diné Be´ iinà – The Navajo Lifeway - will offer a weaving workshop at the Main Library on September 22 at 10 AM. Learn the fundamentals and techniques of rug weaving in the traditional Diné style, including warping, carding, and spinning.

This is a monthly event, taking place on the 4th Friday of every month. Please bring your own weaving materials and projects to work on. 

Email bmartin@gallupnm.gov for more information.

Book Cover Bingo

All ages are invited to join us at the Main Library on September 29 from 5-6 PM to for Book Cover Bingo! Discover classic literature, must-reads, National Hispanic Heritage Month reads, and more as you play. It’s just like the classic game you know and love but with book covers!

Prizes will be awarded and snacks will be provided. 

Email pneilson@gallupnm.gov for more information.

"Understanding the Law" Series

Join us at the Main Library on September 30 beginning at 1 PM for the first of six presentations on understanding the Anglo-American model of law. Attorney David Eason will present What is Law - The Rule of Law as the starting point for learning about the principles and rules of our justice system.

Snacks will be provided.

Email tmoe@gallupnm.gov for more information. 

Teen Advisory Board

Are you (or do you know) a high schooler looking for leadership experience and opportunities? OFPL is recruiting Teens to join its Teen Advisory Board (TAB). TAB members will provide guidance and assistance for the library’s teen programming, space, and collections.

The TAB will meet on the 4th Friday of each month at 6 PM at the Children & Youth Library. This month, our meeting will be on September 22. Food will be provided.

Email pneilson@gallupnm.gov for more information.