5 Things Besides Books You Can Get at the Worcester Public Library

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

GoLocalWorcester Features Team

The Worcester Public Library is a great place if you’re looking for a good book to read. But if you’re not into reading, read on an electronic device, or are looking for information beyond the latest bestseller, Worcester’s library is still the place for you.

Here are 5 things you can get at the library besides books

Electronic Readers and Movie Devices

The library is currently lending NookColor and Kindle devices to patrons with at least a three month borrowing history. The devices are preloaded with more than 30 books, and other e-books from the library’s selection of more than 3000 may be downloaded as well. E-readers may be borrowed for 14 days.

The library is also a pilot site for Playaway View devices. 30 easy to use units, which are preloaded with classic movies, televisions series, self improvement shows and documentaries are available to borrow. Because the movies are pre-loaded, there are no additional disks or devices to worry about. Titles include: A Farewell to Arms, John Wayne’s Blue Steel, The Dick Van Dyke Show and The Lone Ranger.

Drawing Lessons

Graphic artists Andy Fish and Jamie Buckmaster are teaching Manga (Japanese style cartoon) drawing to teens on Friday afternoons from 3:30 to 4:30. All materials are provided, and advance registration is not needed.

Museum Passes

Through the Friends of the Worcester Public Library, patrons with a valid library card can reserve a pass to any one of 20 different museums in Central and Eastern Mass and Rhode Island.

Some museums are just plain fun, like the Boston Children's Museum, Davis Farmland Discount Pass, Discovery Museum, and EcoTarium. Others, like the Mass Audubon Pass to the Sanctuaries, Roger Williams Park Zoo and Parks Pass give you cheap access to outdoor fun, and still others, like Fitchburg Art Museum, Harvard Museum of Natural History, Higgins Armory Museum, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and the Worcester Art Museum provide access to some of the finest cultural collections.

Some passes provide for free admission, while others provide discounted admission. Passes may be reserved online or in person.

Genealogy Help

If tracking down your family tree is your hobby, the library is an excellent resource, even if your family did not live in Worcester County. The library has city and town histories for Massachusetts and New England; yearbooks, church histories, business histories, and annual reports for Worcester businesses and schools; most of the newspapers published in Worcester, census records dating back to 1790, passenger lists for the port of Boston.

The library also has access to several online ancestry databases if its own materials are not sufficient.

Reading Practice for School Children

School aged children who need to practice their reading can come by on Tuesday evenings from 6 to 7 pm and read to Easy the greyhound and Nemo the Newfoundland.
These certified therapy dogs are perfect companions for reluctant readers who need some practice.

The Main Branch of the Worcester Public LIbrary is open 9 am - 9 pm on Tuesday and Wednesday, and 9 am to 5:30 pm Thursday through Saturday. The Frances Perkins Branch is open 9 am - 9 pm on Monday, 9 am to 5:30 pm on Tuesday and Wednesday and 1 - 9 pm on Thursday and Friday. The Great Brook Valley Branch is open Monday through Friday 2 - 5 pm.