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  • May is Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month

    Asian American, Native Hawaiian & Pacific Islander Heritage Month is a nationally recognized monthly designation that honors the many contributions and accomplishments of Asian Americans, Pacific Islanders and Native Hawaiians. Click below to check out curated lists of books for all ages:
     


    Programs and Events
    Indian Folk Art Display
    Through May / Second floor display case
    Display case by

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  • Check out the April library highlights

    The Arlington Heights Memorial Library (AHML) is the community's place to read, learn and gather! Each month, the library compiles a director's report which highlights the most recent statistics and trends in library usage, programs and other initiatives that impact our community and support the library's overall strategic goals and plan. Highlights from April's report include:

    • AHML Celebrates Women’s History Month (pages 1-2)
    • Staff Member Honored as Local Business Person of the Year (page 4)
    • Increase in Diversity of Library Collection (page 6)
    • Makerplace Supports Local Inventor (page 8)
    • Former Hub Regular Helps Launch Inaugural Convention Inspired by AHML’s
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  • Arlington Heights marvels at Solar Eclipse Viewing Party

    Wonder and awe filled North School Park today as close to 700 people joined in the library's Solar Eclipse Viewing Party and witnessed a rare celestial event together- the moon passing between the sun and Earth, blocking the sun's light. 

    "It's such as unusual, once-in-a-lifetime occurance for many people," said Arlington Heights resident Jane Born, a former teacher who came to North School Park with her friend, and former colleague, Marcia Becker. "It's so nice to be able to see it locally too and to share in the experience with so many people. It's really amazing and fun!"  

    The event, presented

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NEW TO THE LIBRARY

An American immigrant
Rojas Vann, Johanna,
"Twenty-five-year-old Melanie Carvajal, a hardworking but struggling journalist for a Miami newspaper, loves her Colombian mother but regularly ignores her phone calls, frustrated that she never quite takes the time to understand Melanie's life. When the opportunity arises for a big assignment that might save her flagging career, Melanie follows the story to the land of her mother's birth. She soon realizes Colombia has the potential to connect her, after all these years, to something she's long ignored: her heritage, the love of her mother, her family, and the richest parts of herself. Colombia offers more than a chance to make a name for herself as a writer. It is a place of untold stories. Inspired by real-life events, An American Immigrant is a story of culture and community, of abiding commitment to family, and of embracing our culture and the generations that have come before."--
What grows in the dark
Evans, Jaq,
When fake spiritualist Brigit returns home to investigate the disappearance of two teenagers, the case eerily echoes her own sister's death sixteen years earlier
One dangerous night
Maxwell, Cathy,
Fleeing to her family home in Ireland after a devastating betrayal, Elise Lanscarr, when her stagecoach crashes in a storm, is rescued by a rough-looking, albeit handsome stranger, and finds this night is just the beginning of an unexpected, often dangerous, adventure which puts their hearts at risk
Day One
Dean, Abigail,
"Marty seems to do no wrong. Trent can't seem to get things right. When they are thrown together by tragedy, they find their futures may be defined by more than just their good intentions. Stonesmere is an English seaside suburb, defined by poignant traditions passed from generation to generation. Marty is a golden girl here, albeit one who quietly chafes against the legacy of her father's accomplishments and the care of her saintly mother - an outsider who became a beloved teacher. Meanwhile, Trent's home-life is in shambles: the only child of a mother forever on the look-out for the boyfriend that can remake their lives, Trent longs for Stonesmere's stability. But he and his mother only pass through. He leaves ostracized and stung, retreating into on-line communities instead. When another young man commits an unthinkable act during Day One, Stonesmere's treasured annual assembly, Trent is transfixed by the news coverage, and by his memories of the town he idolized. As he dives deeper, he falls under the spell of a slick online media personality and the conspiracies he peddles. As Marty fumbles to play the part of the grieving good girl, she becomes the focus of these conspiracies - and Trent's attention. Narrated by a chorus of voices who reveal the secrets and tangled histories of this seemingly simple place, Marty and Trent's fates become intertwined. With Day One, Abigail Dean once again peels back the facade of suburban life to show how repressed trauma, miscommunications, and unrequited feelings trap us - but only if we let them"--
Memory piece
Ko, Lisa,
"Three Asian American teenagers meet in the New York suburbs in the 1980s. Drawn together by their shared sense of alienation from their conventionally domestic immigrant families, each wants to live a meaningful life. They envision a future defined by freedom and creativity, but on the brink of adulthood in New York City, their fortunes quickly diverge. Giselle Chin is a performance artist, pushing the boundaries of the form while socializing with the city's artistic and financial elite. Jackie Ong works at tech start-ups during the early dotcom era, as the internet's egalitarian promise is tested against its rampant monetization. Ellen Ng, a community activist, fights against gentrification overwhelming the city's neighborhoods. Their chosen paths separate them, but their friendship sustains and challenges them across huge divides of class, status, and worldview. Decades later, their sense of what is possible has changed, mutating against the hardscrabble realities of work and love. Moving from the 1980s to the 2040s, spanning multiple eras of a changing New York City, Memory Piece explores the roles of art, friendship, and creativity in self-preservation, chronicling three women as they strive to find value in a radically different world than the one they were promised. Ambitious, visionary, and intellectually playful, Memory Piece asks how we define a good life, individually and collectively, and understanding what we do about the direction our society is headed-where do we go from here?"--
When I'm her
Jeng, Sarah Zachrich,
"Though polar opposites, Mary and Elizabeth are as close as can be--until the night Elizabeth makes an irrevocable mistake and leaves Mary to take the blame. Years later, Elizabeth seems to have forgotten Mary exists. Mary hasn't forgotten her. She follows Elizabeth's every move online, obsessed with paying her back for the betrayal that cost Mary her dreams. Now Mary has found a way to switch bodies with Elizabeth, and she's got a plan to steal her charmed life. Her career. Her looks. Her husband. They do say living well is the best revenge. Or is it? The more Mary uncovers about Elizabeth's life, the more she realizes she may have made a deadly mistake. And she'll need the help of her worst enemy to stay alive."--
A short walk through a wide world
Westerbeke, Douglas,
Cursed with immortality at the age of 9, but with a requirement that she stays in perpetual motion, Aubry flees Paris and embarks on a century-spanning, globe-trotting odyssey, seeking a cure and discovering a world beyond the boundaries of time and space
Chainsaw Man. 14, I wanna see penguins!
Fujimoto, Tatsuki,
I cheerfully refuse
Enger, Leif,
"Set in a not-too-distant America, I Cheerfully Refuse is the tale of a bereaved and pursued musician embarking under sail on a sentient Lake Superior in search of his departed, deeply beloved, bookselling wife. Rainy, an endearing bear of an Orphean narrator, seeks refuge in the harbors, fogs, and remote islands of the inland sea. Encountering lunatic storms and rising corpses from the warming depths, Rainy finds on land an increasingly desperate and illiterate people, a malignant billionaire ruling class, crumbled infrastructure, and a lawless society. Amid the Gulliver-like challenges of life at sea and no safe landings, Rainy is lifted by physical beauty, surprising humor, generous strangers, and an unexpected companion in a young girl who comes aboard. And as his innate guileless nature begins to make an inadvertent rebel of him, Rainy's private quest for the love of his life grows into something wider and wilder, sweeping up friends and foes alike in his strengthening wake. I Cheerfully Refuse epitomizes the "musical, sometimes magical and deeply satisfying kind of storytelling" (Los Angeles Times) for which Leif Enger is cherished. A rollicking narrative in the most evocative of settings, this latest novel is a symphony against despair and a rallying cry for the future"--
The reason I married him
Quinn, Meghan,
He proposed... and I said yes. Normally a jovial occasion for a couple in love, but this proposal has a very different feel. Because the man that I'll be calling my husband blew into town with one thing on his mind... to make my life a living nightmare. So why did I say yes? Well, because we both need something from each other. Namely, I want the farm land he currently owns, and he needs a wife in order to inherit his family cabin in his grandfather's will. So as he so eloquently put it, my hand, for his land. At first, I thought the idea was nuts. Who really gets married out of convenience? Apparently, I do. And now we have to sell our relationship to the town. Meaning, we're holding hands, he's pinching my cheeks... upper and lower. We're even forced to share the one-bedroom guest house on the farm where his monstrous body is taking up a large percentage of the bed. But we're so persuasive about our farse, that now I'm starting to think he actually might like me. Especially when he grabs me by the wrist and teases the shell of my ear as he whispers, "Mine."
Maktub : an inspirational companion to The Alchemist
Coelho, Paulo,
A companion to the inspirational classic The Alchemist is filled with timeless stories of reflection and rediscovery. From one of the greatest writers of our age comes a collection of stories and parables unlocking the mysteries of the human condition. Gathered from Paulo Coelho's daily column of the same name, Maktub, meaning "it is written," invites seekers on a journey of faith, self-reflection, and transformation. As Paulo Coelho explains, " Maktub is not a book of advice--but an exchange of experiences." Each story offers an illuminated path to see life and the lives of our fellow people around the world in new ways, allowing us to tap into universal truths about our collective and individual humanity. As Coelho writes, "a man who seeks only the light, while shirking his responsibilities, will never find illumination. And one who keep his eyes fixed upon the sun . . . ends up blind." In these wise tales akin to Zen koans and other mysteries of the universe, there are talking snakes, old women climbing mountains, disciples querying their masters, Buddha in dialogue, mysterious hermits, and many saints. Following the path of his previous internationally bestselling works, this thoughtful collection of short, inspirational pieces, introduced in a foreword by the author and illustrated with black-and-white line art throughout, will engage seekers of all ages and backgrounds
Here we go again
Cochrun, Alison,
"A queer rom-com following once childhood best friends forced together to drive their former teacher across the country"--
A love discovered
Peterson, Tracie,
"The heart finds its way when one least expects it--even in the most unforgiving frontiers. Invited by a friend to trek west and help establish the newly formed town of Cheyenne, Edward Vogel is prepared to leave the haunting memories of his wife and son's deaths behind him. The only problem is the corrupt new railroad town wants family men who can establish law and order, and desperation leads Edward to his friend Marybeth with a proposition of marriage. After her father's death leaves her with no means of support, Marybeth Kruger is in danger of having her two-year-old half sister taken from her. So when Edward Vogel, the widower husband of her late best friend, offers her a marriage of convenience to escape both their troubles, she has no choice but to accept. Life in Cheyenne is fraught with danger, but will this arrangement be enough to save Edward and Marybeth from the pasts they tried to escape? Or will life with each other put them--and their hearts--in more danger than ever?"--
At her service
Spalding, Amy,
"Max Van Doren has a wish list, and a great career and a girlfriend are at the top. But despite being pretty good at her job as an assistant to one of Hollywood's fastest rising talent agents, she has no idea how to move up the ladder. And when it comes to her love life, she's stuck in perpetual lust for an adorably perfect bartender named Sadie. Her goals are clear--and Max has everything but the self-confidence to go for them...Tired of the sponcon life with its fake friends and endless selfies, Max realizes that to have true influence, she'll have to find the courage to make her own, totally authentic way in the world"--
Clear
Davies, Carys,
"John, an impoverished Scottish minister, has accepted a job evicting the lone remaining occupant of an island north of Scotland--Ivar, who has been living alone for decades, with only the animals and the sea for company. Though his wife, Mary, has serious misgivings about the errand, he decides to go anyway, setting in motion a chain of events that neither he nor Mary could have predicted. Shortly after John reaches the island, he falls down a cliff and is found, unconscious and badly injured, by Ivar who takes him home and tends to his wounds. The two men do not speak a common language, but as John builds a dictionary of Ivar's world, they learn to communicate and, as Ivar sees himself for the first time in decades reflected through the eyes of another person, they build a fragile, unusual connection. Unfolding in the 1840s in the final stages of the infamous Scottish Clearances--which saw whole communities of the rural poor driven off the land in a relentless program of forced evictions--this singular, beautiful, deeply surprising novel explores the differences and connections between us, the way history shapes our deepest convictions, and how the human spirit can survive despite all odds. Moving and unpredictable, sensitive and spellbinding, Clear is a profound and pleasurable read."--Publisher's website

Items Coming Soon

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Upcoming Programs

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25
Apr

SCORE Business Mentoring
- /See Description for Location

25
Apr

Toddler Time
- /Lindsey Room

25
Apr

Page Turner Daytime Book Discussion: True Biz
- /Room H

25
Apr

Word: Intermediate
- /Training Center

25
Apr

Play Time
- /Kids' World

25
Apr

Toddler Time
- /Lindsey Room
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