Blog Entries

Are you ready to read and earn prizes?  

Are you ready for the Tails & Tales summer reading program?  It's time to sign up for the library's online reading program!  It's easy and fun!  Kids 12 and under can earn points for time spent reading.  Register, track your reading progress, and earn badges online at  https://fortsmithlibrary.readsquared.com/.  You will also be able to download the READsquared app (available for iOS and Android devices). For more information, watch this Tails & Tales video!

Log the ti...

Concrete Rose, the prequel to The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas, is ready for you to check out!  Concrete Rose takes place seventeen years before the events of The Hate U Give and tells the story of seventeen-year-old Maverick Carter.  He knows that a real man takes care of his family. As the son of a former gang legend, Mav does that the only way he knows how: dealing for the King Lords. With this money he can help his mom, who works two jobs while his dad's in prison.

Life's not perfect, but with a fly girlfriend and a cousin who always has his back, Mav's got ...

Last year, teens across Arkansas voted I Am Still Alive by Kate Alice Marshall as the winner of the Level 1 (Grades 7-9) Arkansas Teen Book Award.  The Cruel Prince by Holly Black was the runner-up.  The Level 2 winner (Grades 10-12) was Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson, and the runner-up was On the Come Up by Angie Thomas.  Voting opened for the 2020-2021 nominees on September 25, 2020 and will run through August 31, 2021.  Any Arkansas teen can vote for Level 1, Level 2, or both!

For more information or to nominate a book for a future list, click here. &...

Let's Celebrate!

Let’s celebrate Picture Book Month by reading at least one picture book a day.  Here are some your librarians’ and library staff member's favorite picture books to get you started. 

If YOU have a favorite picture book, let us know.  We would like to read your favorites too!

The Color Kittens and Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown

The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton

Stellaluna by Janell Cannon

Stand Tall Molly Lou Melon by David Catrow

The Five-Dog Night by...

The Teens' Top Ten Award, sponsored by YALSA (Young Adult Library Services Association), is a "teen choice" list, where teens nominate and choose their favorite books of the previous year.  Members of teen book groups in fifteen school and public libraries around the country help nominate the titles to be voted on.  The nominations are posted on the Thursday of National Library Week, and teens across the country vote on their favorite titles each year. Readers ages twelve to eighteen vote online between August 15 - October 15 on the Teens' Top Ten  si...

Are YOU ready to read for fun and prizes?  

I hope so because the summer reading program is ready for you! The theme of our program is Imagine Your Story. This year, it's all online beginning on June 1 and ending on August 14!  We have a really neat program called READsquared, and all you have to do is go to the READsquared website, register, and start reading (or listening!).   For every minute you spend reading or listening, you will earn one point.  Before you know it, you will have 1,000 points!  When that happens, you will have earne...

Welcome to hoopla, a digital media service that allows you to borrow movies, music, audiobooks, ebooks, comics, and TV shows to enjoy on your computer, tablet, or phone – and even your TV! With no waiting, titles can be streamed immediately, or downloaded to phones or tablets for offline enjoyment later. There are hundreds of thousands of titles to choose from, with more being added daily. Hoopla is like having your public library at your fingertips. Anytime. Anywhere.

Fort Smith Public Library customers will need their library card (in good standing; no fines of $2...

The safety of our library customers, staff, and community is our top priority.  To support efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19, all four locations of the Fort Smith Public Library will close at the end of the day Monday, March 16, and remain closed until further notice.  Please check our Facebook page or the library website for updates.

Due dates for all materials currently checked out will be extended, and no overdue charges will accrue while the library is closed.  Library staff will be available by phone and email to assist with family history and general r...

The Education & Research Services team at UAMS (University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences) has put together a resource guide with information about Coronavirus Disease 19 (2019-nCoV). The pages provide authoritative, up-to-date information for clinicians, laboratories, researchers and the public. 

Included in the resource guide is the Coronavirus COVID-19 Global Cases by Johns Hopkins CSSE, an interactive web-based dashboard hosted by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University, to visualize and track reported cases of 201...

February is Black History Month, an annual celebration of achievements by African Americans and a time for recognizing the central role they played in U.S. history. Since 1976, every U.S. president has officially designated the month of February as Black History Month. We hope you will join us in celebrating Black History and Heritage this month and all year long at the Fort Smith Public Library.  The library is offering several programs spotlighting Black History this month, and also has many resources that may be of interest to you.

The Miller Branch Library will hold their...

Fort Smith Public Library is excited to host children’s author Jan Brett on Friday, December 6 at 5 pm.  Jan Brett is the New York Times #1 bestselling artist/author of over 35 picture books which have sold over 42 million copies combined. Her books have been chosen as “Best Children’s Books of the Year” by The New Yorker, Parents, Redbook, and others. 

 

This evening with the author will feature a drawing demonstration and discussion of Jan Brett’s newest book, The Tale of the Tiger Slippers. Inspired by Brett’s tiger research trip to India, it i...

As of November 1, 2019, Macmillan Publishers will no longer allow libraries to purchase more than ONE single copy of each new eBook for the first eight weeks following its release.  This will cause delays for our customers who get their eBooks via Library2Go, since the library typically buys multiple copies to satisfy user requests.  The Fort Smith Public Library will purchase the Macmillan titles when they become available, and will purchase additional copies if necessary after the eight-week embargo ends.  If you are interested in seeing a list of authors that publish ...

The Fort Smith Public Library has received a $5000 grant from the FINRA Investor Education Foundation to purchase personal finance books. The grant was received earlier this year, and new books and materials are already on the shelves at all four library locations.

The additional tools and resources will help ensure that residents have the information they need when making critical money decisions as they repair, rebuild, and clean up following flooding events from earlier this summer or in future natural disasters. The FINRA Foundation has also provided the Library with multi...

Chocolate - Chocolate - Chocolate! The Friends of the Fort Smith Library will hold a Chocolate Festival Fundraiser at the Dallas Branch Library on Sunday, September 29th, from 2:30 – 4:30 PM.  Local clubs, businesses and individuals will offer their favorite chocolate samplings to the chocoholics of Fort Smith.

Tickets to the festival are $7 for six tastes of chocolate; price includes a to-go-box. Tickets may be purchased at the event or in advance at all Fort Smith Public Library locations and on Chocolate Festival event page. 

All proceeds from the Ch...

A bottled water drive for The Day Room at Next Step Homeless Services will be held during the month of August at all Fort Smith Public Library locations.  Bottled water is essential for homeless clients, especially those unsheltered. As we continue to face much warmer weather, staying hydrated remains a daily challenge for the homeless.  Cases of individual-sized bottles (16 ounces) are desired; feel free to drop off your donations at any Fort Smith Public Library Location.  For library locations or more information on this or any of the Fort Smith Public Library’s services, ...