Libraries Seek Expanded Hours in Latest Budget

Adding four more hours or operation to 10 libraries in the county would help create a more consistent, understandable schedule for library patrons, a library official said.

SP Elementary Wins Library’s Chesapeake Cup

Severna Park Elementary School won the Anne Arundel County’s Library award associated with summer reading.

Students at Severna Park Elementary School were recognized for their Summer Reading efforts on Monday. The school received the Anne Arundel County Public Library’s (AACPL) Chesapeake Cup at an assembly on Monday morning. According to a release, the Cup is awarded annually to one public and one private school that achieve at least 25 percent participation in AACPL’s Summer Reading Club. Severna Park Elementary was chosen at random from the list of public schools that achieved that milestone. Principal Lynn Birus was very excited and pleased with the school’s accomplishment. “I am so proud that so many of our boys and girls kept reading this summer!” said Birus in an email to Patch. “Reading is so important for everything we do in life and a…

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POLL: Should ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ Be Banned?

The racy book, which has sparked controversy in some libraries, is available in the Anne Arundel County Public Library system and has a waiting list of nearly 700 people.

If you want to get people fired up, just start talking about sex and censorship. At least that is the lesson libraries across the country are learning thanks to the Fifty Shades trilogy. The best-selling racy and romantic series by British author E. L. James tells the story of literature student Anastasia Steele’s sexual escapades with young entrepreneur Christian Grey. According to Amazon.com, the books focus on the relationship between protagonists Grey and Steele, with explicit details of the pair's sexual encounters. The Anne Arundel County Public Library system currently has 265 copies of Fifty Shades of Grey available, and just ordered 15 more audio copies, according to Laurie Hayes, Anne Arundel County Library spokeswoman. An online…

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AAC Library Hosts Cover Art Contest

Local library branches are now accepting submissions for the annual teen cover art contest.

Are you between the ages of 11 and 18 and want to show off your artistic talents? The Anne Arundel County Public Library is hosting their annual teen art contest for the cover of the library system's newsletter Library Happenings. Shelly Davenport, a librarian at the Mountain Road Branch Library in Pasadena, is running this year's contest. “Two art teachers and county Councilman Derek Fink have agreed to be guest judges and I want to 'wow' them with the response,” said Davenport. Those who are interested in participating in the contest can bring their entry to any Anne Arundel County library branch or submit by email to aacplteen@gmail.com. Entrees must be received by 5 p.m. on March 30. The winning artwork will be used on the cover of the…

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