Queen City Reads!

Award winning Minnesota author Brian Freeman kicks off Virginia Public Library’s inaugural Queen City Reads program! 

The Virginia Public Library and the City of Virginia, with the support of the Friends of the Virginia Public Library, are pleased to announce the Queen City Reads program, a community-wide reading program for the residents of Virginia. 

Queen City Reads is a community reading program during which all members of the community are invited to read and discuss the same book.  Our Queen City Reads program is designed to encourage citizens of Virginia to engage in conversation.  Possible side effects include the discovery of new authors and the addition of new friends to readers’ lives. 

The inaugural Queen City Reads choice is Brian Freeman’s Goodbye to the Dead, which has been called “a superior psychological thriller that adroitly weaves obsession, sex and revenge into a page-turning mystery.” (Open Letters Monthly)  Copies of the book are available to borrow through the Virginia Public Library and the Arrowhead Library System. 

There will be two events in the library auditorium.  The first will be a book discussion at noon on Thursday, February 23.  Bring your interest and questions and be prepared for lively discussion.  A brochure with discussion questions will be available the first week of January. 

The second Queen City Reads event is the big one:  Brian Freeman, author of the popular Duluth-based Jonathan Stride series and recipient of multiple awards, will be at the library on Thursday, March 2, 2017, also at noon.  Brian will talk about his work in the publishing industry, discuss Goodbye to the Dead with us, and remain for further talk and to sign copies of the book. 

This program, brought to you by the Virginia Public Library and the City of Virginia, is funded by the Friends of the Virginia Public Library.  Call the library at (218)748-7525 for more information.

Virginia Public Library is rowing its way to the Olympic spirit!

One Book Northland logo

At noon on Thursday, April 7, the Virginia Public Library will be hosting its annual One Book Northland event.  One Book Northland is a collaboration among several entities, including the Virginia, Duluth, Cloquet, Two Harbors, and Superior public libraries.  The One Book committee spends many hours each autumn considering several different titles before narrowing the choices to four, from which our communities choose the book which we will all read.  The title chosen this year is The Boys in the Boat, by Daniel James Brown. 

Boys in the Boat cover image

This fascinating book explores the 1936 gold medal winning rowing team’s journey, from the early days of the Great Depression through their day of triumph in Berlin.  It is part biography, as the author used interview information on Joe Rantz, one of the boys in the boat, to describe his particular path to becoming part of the winning team.  It is also part history, as without historical context, much of the drama would be lost. 

Virginia is pleased to be having David Krmpotich, a Duluth native, participating in our One Book Northland, discussion on April 7^th.  David Krmpotich, who grew up in Duluth and joined the Duluth Rowing Club as a teenager, was a member of the 1988 US Olympic team which won Silver at the Seoul Olympic games.  His program is called “The Olympic Experience” and will share how his experience relates to those of the young men featured in The Boys in the Boat. 

Discussion of the book will follow David’s presentation.  In addition to having multiple copies to borrow, the library has several copies of the book available for purchase.  Reading the book is not required for participation!

Contact us at 748-7525 if you have questions. 

One Book, One Community -- The Dance Boots

The Dance Boots

One Book, One Community

Join us in reading The Dance Boots by Linda LeGarde Grover, this year's One Book, One Community selection.  This collection of short stories portrays an Ojibwe community struggling to follow traditional ways of life in the face of a relentlessly changing world.  A cycle of boarding schools, alcoholism, and violence haunts the stories even as the characters find beauty and solace in their large extended families.  

Linda LeGarde Grover

For the first time, in addition to the Virginia, Duluth, and Cloquet public libraries, the Superior and Two Harbors public libraries are participating, as well.  As a result, there are many more programs than in the past.

The featured One Book, One Community event will be held at the Fitger's Brewery Complex on Tuesday, April 14, at 7:00.  The evening will feature the Oshkii Giizhik singers and a talk by Linda Grover.

There will be three events in Virginia.  The first is on Monday, March 23.  The Oprah Book Club will meet at Gethsemane Lutheran Church at 4:30 to discuss the book.  Non-members are welcome to attend.  

The second event in Virginia will be at the library.  Linda Grover will be here on Thursday, April 16, at noon.  She will talk about her book, sharing the background for the stories, characters, and settings.  Copies of the book will be available for purchase and autographing.

Murder of Joe White

The final event in Virginia features Erik Redix, who will be at the library the following week, on April 23, at noon, as part of the overall One Book, One Community series of events.  His book, The Murder of Joe White:  Ojibwe Leadership and Colonialism in Wisconsin, examines the events surrounding the attempted arrest and subsequent murder of Ojibwe chief Joe White by Wisconsin game wardens in 1894.  

For more information, as well as a complete schedule of events at all of the participating venues, click here.  Event brochures are also available at the library.  For more information, contact us at 748-7525.

This program is supported in part by the Friends of the Virginia Public Library.  

A complete list of supporters can be found on the One Book, One Community brochure.

Winter 2015 Programs @ Your Library

We have had some wonderful programs this past year.  They ranged from Minnesota author Peter Geye in January and Master Gardener Carol Borich in March to musicians Briand Morrison in August and Sara Pajunen in September; from wonderful children's programs throughout the Summer Reading Program to Digital Photography 101 in October and our final 2014 program, a Henna workshop which will be at 10:30 on December 30th.


There is already a great line-up of programs slated for the Winter 2015 season.  Hot Reads for Cold Nights, the adult winter reading program, begins on Friday, January 2nd.  The Friends of the Library will be hosting Hot Reads Tuesdays during the program.  They are providing yummy goodies for everyone who visits the library on Tuesday mornings between 10:00 and noon.  Of course, this is first come, first served!

Travels & Tribulations

During the two months of the Hot Reads program, there will be a number of Brown Bag lunch and other programs for you to enjoy.  On January 15th at noon, local author Melody Swenson will be back with author--and Chisholm coaching legend--Bob McDonald.  They will be promoting their new book, Travels and Tribulations--A Coach's Journey. 

Cornets & Pickaxes

St. Olaf College professor Paul Niemisto will present a Brown Bag lunch at noon on January 29th.  His book, Cornets and Pickaxes -- Finnish Brass on the Iron Range, is about Finnish musicians who moved to the Arrowhead region.  It "measures the value and influence these Finnish bands had on cultural life of the early twentieth century Iron Range..."  Musicians and history buffs alike should enjoy this program!

Chris Monroe

Looking forward to Valentine's day?  Don't miss the Book Lover's Tea on Thursday, February 12th, at noon.  This year's speaker will be Chris Monroe, Duluth artist and author/illustrator of several children's books. This program has become so popular that we are forced to require reservations.  They can be made by calling 748-7525 before February 6th.  Space is limited to the first 50 participants. 

Moving on to March, we will have a program brought to us by the Arrowhead Library System with funding from Minnesota's Arts and Cultural Legacy Fund.  Northern Gael, which is comprised of Laura MacKenzie and the Sutter Brothers, is sure to have everyone's toes tapping with their traditional Irish and Scottish tunes.  They  will be presenting their program in the library lobby on Wednesday, March 18th at 1:00. 

One Book, One Community

The month of April brings us the annual One Book, One Community program.  Working with the Duluth, Cloquet, and Superior public libraries, we will be hosting NE Minnesota author Linda Grover as we read The Dance Boots, her collection of short stories.  The program kick-off will be on Monday, April 13th, in Duluth.  The author will be here in Virginia at noon on Thursday, April 16th.  Stay tuned for information on other programs related to the 2015 One Book, One Community program.

Straw Bale Gardens

We will close the winter 2015 program season late, with a gardening program on Thursday, April 30, at noon.  Minnesota gardener and author Joel Karsten will tell us all about straw bale gardening.  This program is brought to us by the Arrowhead Library System with funding through the Legacy fund.

For more information on individual programs, check our website and online calendar.  You can also call us for more information at 748-7525.

--Susan Hoppe, Adult Services Librarian