Happy Halloween!

Ever wonder why people dress up on Halloween? Who the first trick or treaters were? Why we carve pumpkins on Halloween? What are the origins of common Halloween superstitions? Learn all about Halloween on a neat site from the History Channel

Dinosaurs!

Newly arrived at the library and chock-full of the latest information, The Encylopedia of Dinosaurs & Prehistoric Life is a must read for any dinosaur fan (i.e., pretty much any boy between the ages of 5 and 10!) We have lots of other new books on dinosaurs - come check them out!

Election information

As just about everybody knows all too well, there's an election next week. But not everybody knows how to register, or where to vote, or has seen a copy of a sample ballot for Goodhue County. We can help with all those things and more! Check out our elections and voting page or just give us a call at the reference desk (651-385-3645). And please don't forget to vote!

The Gruffalo!

Coming to the Sheldon Theater next Thursday is The Gruffalo, a musical adaptation of the award winning children's book. Come to the library afterwards to check out other books by Gruffalo author Julia Donaldson!

Evening of poetry

On Friday, October 24, Robert Bly and Robert Hedin read from their newest book of translations, The Dream We Carry: Selected and Last Poems of Olav H. Hauge. The event will begin with a 6:30 pm reception at the Historic Residence in the Anderson Center, followed by a 7:30 reading in the Main Gallery. The event is free and open to the public.

More changes!

The first phase in the makeover of our storywell begins today. Please excuse the construction noise and mess of this phase - it shouldn't last more than a day or so!

New DVDs

Newly arrived at the library:

Stardust (Rotten Tomatoes rating 76%)






Grace is Gone (Rotten Tomatoes rating 58%)







Ben X (Rotten Tomatoes rating 65%)






In the Valley of Elah (Rotten Tomatoes rating 72%)







The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (Rotten Tomatoes rating 94%)

The Final Frontier!

Newly arrived at the library is a set of books about the planets of our solar system. Written for 8-10 year olds, the True Book: Space series includes 12 books: The Sun, Mercury, Venus, Earth, The Moon, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto and Beyond Pluto. Boldly go to the library and check them out!

Author Steven J. Keillor to visit library

Author and historian Steven J. Keillor, brother of Garrison Keillor, will visit the library on Saturday, Oct. 18 to discuss his new book, Shaping Minnesota's Identity: 150 Years of State History. The program, sponsored by the Friends of the Red Wing Public Library, will be held at 10:00 am in the Foot Room at the library, and is free and open to the public

In the midst of a bitterly contested election season, here's a book to demonstrate that not all stories that come from Washington D.C. inspire cynicism. From the publisher: "Step by Step is the inspiring personal account of Bertie Bowman’s remarkable rise from farmer’s son in the Jim Crow South to hearing coordinator for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in the U.S. Capitol. For sixty years, Bertie Bowman stood at the epicenter of change and witnessed history in the making: the death of FDR, World War II, Brown v. Board of Education, the Civil Rights movement, Vietnam, and Watergate." Kirkus Reviews calls it "A heartfelt, old-school American history lesson."

A green revolution

Best selling author Thomas Friedman has a new book that covers some of the same subject areas he usually discusses - foreign policy & globalization - but also "provides an exhaustive and convincing argument about the need for the United States to transition to more sustainable systems of energy soon." Hot, Flat, and Crowded: Why We Need a Green Revolution - and How It Can Renew America is now available at the library!

Preschool storyhour begins this week!

Don't forget that preschool storyhour begins this Wednesday, with one session at 10:15 and the other at 11:15. Preschool storyhour is for children ages 3 to 5 years old, and offers books that range from classic to new on the shelves, as well as music and finger games. There's still room in both sessions! Please call ahead (385-3645) to register.

Back to school...

Now that school's been back for about a month, many students are in the middle of researching and writing papers. If you need some help on the research or the writing, come to the library! You might find some or all of these books useful (and these are just a few of what's available):

Cite it Right






Grammar Girl's Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing






The Elements of Style





Last Minute Term Papers






MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers

Voter registration

Election time will be here soon! For information on registering to vote, see the MN Secretary of State's register to vote page or Goodhue County's election information page. Or if you're looking for information on issues and candidates, check out our elections page.

Changes to preschool storyhour

In response to changing demand, the library is altering the schedule for preschool storyhours. The Thursday at 10:15 session will be dropped, but we are adding twice a month sessions on Saturday morning during the winter (Jan. - Mar.) No registration will be required for the Saturday storyhours. The specific dates and times are yet to be determined, but will be announced later this fall. Please give us a call if you have any questions!