Month: July 2026

New York Times Bestsellers: July 12, 2026

Linda Reimer

All titles can be requested/checked out through the library.

If you’d like to go the traditional route to request a title on this list and drop by the library, or give us a call – please do!

Our telephone number is: 607-936-3713

You can also request titles through StarCat found at https://starcat.stls.org

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THE BESTSELLERS

FICTION

1. THEO OF GOLDEN by Allen Levi: A man travels to a small Southern town, where he purchases pencil drawings of local residents and exchanges them for stories.

2. YESTERYEAR by Caro Claire Burke: Natalie Heller Mills, a privileged tradwife social media influencer, wakes up to find she is living in the comparatively difficult reality of 1855.

3. WHISTLER by Ann Patchett: Decades after their time together, a woman reconnects with her stepfather and they look back at the directions their lives have taken.

4. THE CALAMITY CLUB by Kathryn Stockett: As things get tougher during the Depression, several women look for ways to improve their circumstances.

5. PROJECT HAIL MARY by Andy Weir: Ryland Grace awakes from a long sleep alone and far from home, and the fate of humanity rests on his shoulders; the basis of the movie.

6. DUNGEON CRAWLER CARL by Matt Dinniman: A Coast Guard vet named Carl and his ex-girlfriend’s cat, Princess Donut, are trapped in a fantasy dungeon.

7. THE DEAL by Elle Kennedy: Hannah Wells makes a deal with the captain of the college hockey team in exchange for tutoring him that may complicate their relationship.

8. WEDDINGS by Danielle Steel: The daughter of a celebrated wedding dress designer becomes engaged and the women in the family contend with relationship complications.

9. IT COULD HAVE BEEN HER by Lisa Jewell: When a teenager is reported missing, Jane Trevally visits a house that holds unsettling memories for her.

10. THE DIVORCE by Freida McFadden:  After her husband ends their marriage and she turns her attention to his new girlfriend, Naomi suspects she might be in danger.

11. THE CORRESPONDENT by Virginia Evans: Letters from someone she used to know push Sybil Van Antwerp toward revisiting her past and finding a way to forgive.

12. THE MISTAKE by Elle Kennedy: The second book in the Off-Campus series. A college hockey player attempts to redeem himself to a rising sophomore.

13. THE SCORE by Elle Kennedy: The third book in the Off-Campus series. A brokenhearted senior resists the charms of a hockey star.

14. THE GOAL by Elle Kennedy: The fourth book in the Off-Campus series. Pregnancy complicates things between a college senior and a hockey player.

15. OUR PERFECT STORM by Carley Fortune: After her fiancé leaves her, Frankie goes on her planned honeymoon trip with her best friend from childhood, George.

NON-FICTION

1. REGIME CHANGE by Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan: Two White House correspondents for The New York Times delve into the first year of President Trump’s second term.

2. COMMUNION by JD Vance: The vice president and author of “Hillbilly Elegy” describes how he perceives his faith played a part in his work in public life.

3. STRANGERS by Belle Burden: Burden retraces her marriage of 20 years in search of clues to help shape her understanding about its demise and to find a way forward.

4. REVOLUTION by Eric Metaxas: The author of “Martin Luther” and “Bonhoeffer” gives an account of the foundation of the United States of America.

5. THE LAND AND ITS PEOPLE by David Sedaris: Essays on the passage of time, complicated relationships and some unexpected delights life has to offer.

6. COURAGE CAN SAVE US by Rye BarcottL Profiles of Democratic and Republican politicians who previously served in the military or the F.B.I.

7. LONDON FALLING by Patrick Radden Keefe: The author of “Say Nothing” details the efforts by the parents of a 19-year-old Londoner to uncover the truth about his mysterious death and secret life.

8. THE BODY KEEPS THE SCORE by Bessel van der Kolk: How trauma affects the body and mind, and innovative treatments for recovery.

9. STRIPPED DOWN by Bunnie Xo:  The host of the “Dumb Blonde Podcast” shares how redemption was an important part of her journey toward reaching her goals.

10. THE GREATEST SENTENCE EVER WRITTEN by Walter Isaacson: The historian and biographer examines the concepts of a statement found in the Declaration of Independence.

11. MAILMAN by Stephen Starring Grant: After losing his corporate job and being diagnosed with cancer, Grant becomes a mailman in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia.

12. WHEN BREATH BECOMES AIR by Paul Kalanithi: A memoir by a physician who received a diagnosis of Stage IV lung cancer at the age of 36.

13. THE REVERSE CENTAUR’S GUIDE TO LIFE AFTER AI by Cory Doctorow: The journalist and science fiction writer envisions the future of work and artificial intelligence.

14. THE ANXIOUS GENERATION by Jonathan Haidt: A co-author of “The Coddling of the American Mind” looks at the mental health impacts that a phone-based life has on children.

15. FAMESICK by Lena Dunham: The author of “Not That Kind of Girl” evaluates the effects that pursuing her creative endeavors had on her.

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NON-FICTION

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Have a great Sunday!

Linda

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New York Times Bestseller lists are shared via blog post on Sundays.

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LIBRARY CATALOGS:

The Digital Catalog aka Libby: https://stls.overdrive.com/

The Digital Catalog, is an online catalog containing eBooks, eAudiobooks, and digital magazines. You can use your library card and checkout content on a PC; you can also use the companion app, Libby, to access titles on your mobile devices; so you can enjoy eBooks and eAudiobooks on the go!

All card holders of all Southern Tier Library System member libraries can check out items from the Digital Catalog.

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Hoopla Catalog: https://www.hoopladigital.com/

The Hoopla Catalog features on demand checkouts of eBooks, eAudiobooks, comic books, albums, movies and TV shows. Patron check out limit is 10 items per month.

Hoopla is a Southeast Steuben County Library service available to all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders.

The Hoopla companion app, also called Hoopla is available for mobile devices, smart TVs & media streaming players.

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Kanopy Catalog: https://www.kanopy.com/en

The Kanopy Catalog features thousands of streaming videos available on demand.

The Kanopy Catalog is available for all Southern Tier Library System member library card holders, including all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders!

You can access the Kanopy Catalog through a web browser, or download the app to your phone, tablet or media streaming player (i.e. Roku, Google or Fire TV).

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StarCat: The catalog of physical/traditional library materials: https://starcat.stls.org

Card holders of all Southern Tier Library System member libraries can access StarCat to search for and request materials available at libraries through out the Southern Tier Library System.

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For more information on library materials and services, including how to get a library card call the library at 607-936-3713.

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*The Southern Tier Library System includes the public libraries in Steuben, Chemung, Yates, Schuyler & Allegheny counties.

Suggested Listening & Viewing: July 3, 2026

Linda Reimer

Hi everyone, here is our weekly Suggested Listening and Viewing post; featuring a collection thematic songs and two streaming video recommendations, one from a mainstream service and the other from Kanopy, the library’s free to access streaming service (all you need is a library card!).

First off the music, and as today is July 3 and tomorrow is the Semiquincentennial of the founding of the United States, this week our suggested listening collection offers both traditional songs for a 4th of July celebration & a collection of diverse songs that offer a glimpse into the rich history and culture of the peoples that make up the United States.

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An American Tune by Paul Simon 

 

Found on the Album: There Goes Rhymin’ Simon (1973) 

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Ballad of Ira Hayes by Johnny Cash 

 

Found on the Album: The Essential Johnny Cash (2002) 

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Beans, Bacon, and Gravy by Pete Seeger 

 

Found on the Album: Industrial Ballads (1992) 

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Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee by Buffy Sainte-Marie 

 

Found on the Album: Up Where We Belong (1995) 

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Deportee (Plane Wreck at Los Gatos) by Joan Baez 

 

Video recorded live during the 2017 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony.  

Found on the album:  Joan Baez 75th Birthday Celebration (2016)

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Hole hole bushi by Allison Arakawa at Japanese American National Museum 

 

Found on the Album: N/A

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Jimmie Brown the Newsboy

Found on the Album: The Essential Carter Family (2013)

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John Henry by Bruce Springsteen 

 

Recorded live at the at the 2006 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival 

Found on the Album: We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions (American Land Edition) (2006)

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Midnight Special by Lead Belly

Found on the Album: Lead Belly: The Smithsonian Folkways Collection (2015)

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No More Auction Blocks by Odetta  

 

Found on the Album: Live (2011) 

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Lift Every Voice and Sing by Kim Weston 

 

Found on the Album: 20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: Best Of Kim Weston (2003) 

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One Time One Night by Los Lobos 

 

Found on the Album: By The Light of the Moon (1987) 

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This Land Is Your Land by Woody Guthrie 

 

Found on the Album: The Asch Recordings Vol. 1 

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We Shall Overcome by Pete Seeger 

 

Found on the Album: If I Had a Hammer: Songs of Hope and Struggle (2006) 

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Fanfare for the Common Man by Aaron Copland, performed by the London Symphony Orchestra 

 

Found on the Album: Copland Conducts Copland (2000) 

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Rhapsody in Blue composed by George Gerswhin and performed by Leonard Bernstein with the New York Philharmonic 

 

Found on the Album: Gershwin: Rhapsody in Blue & An American in Paris by Leonard Bernstein (2022) 

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Stars & Stripes Forever by John Phillips Sousa, performed by The U.S. Marine Band 

 

Found on the Album: Sousa’s Greatest Hits & Some That Should Have Been (1999) 

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And a few humorous American Revolution related clips from the School House Rock: 

The Constitution Preamble 

 

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No More Kings 

 

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Shot Heard Round The World  

 

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Three Ring Government 

 

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Fireworks 

 

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And one more clip just for fun! (Yes, indeed, I’m showing my vintage!) 

Sufferin’ for Suffrage  

 

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For those who prefer more traditional 4th of July music here are two more videos: 

Fourth of July Concert at Washington National Cathedral, 2015 (1 hour, 46 minutes) 

 

& 

Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular (2024) (2 hours, 27 minutes) 

 

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Mainstream Stream of the Week 

Enola Holmes, Season 3 (2006) (Netflix) 

 

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Kanopy Stream of the Week 

The American Revolution (2025) a Ken Burns presentation 

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Have a great weekend!

Linda Reimer, SSCL

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Information on the four library catalogs 

The Digital Catalog aka Libby: https://stls.overdrive.com/ 

The Digital Catalog, is an online catalog containing eBooks, eAudiobooks, and digital magazines. You can use your library card and checkout content on a PC; you can also use the companion app, Libby, to access titles on your mobile devices; so you can enjoy eBooks and eAudiobooks on the go! 

All card holders of all Southern Tier Library System member libraries can check out items from the Digital Catalog. 

And The Digital Catalog/Libby features titles that may be checked out via the one-copy-one-user lending model, just like print books.  

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Hoopla Catalog: https://www.hoopladigital.com/ 

The Hoopla Catalog features on demand checkouts of eBooks, eAudiobooks, comic books, albums, movies and TV shows. Patron checkout limit is 10 items per month. 

Hoopla is a Southeast Steuben County Library service available to all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders. 

The Hoopla companion app, also called Hoopla is available for mobile devices, smart TVs & media streaming players. 

Titles in the Hoopla Catalog are available to be checked out on-demand by all library card holders, with the caveat of being able to check out a maximum of ten titles per month, per card.  

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Kanopy Catalog: https://www.kanopy.com/en 

The Kanopy Catalog features thousands of streaming videos available on demand.  

The Kanopy Catalog is available for all Southern Tier Library System member library card holders, including all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders! 

You can access the Kanopy Catalog through a web browser, or download the app to your phone, tablet or media streaming player (i.e. Roku, Google or Fire TV). 

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StarCat: The catalog of physical/traditional library materials: https://starcat.stls.org 

Card holders of all Southern Tier Library System member libraries can access StarCat to search for and request materials available at libraries through out the Southern Tier Library System. 

Suggested Reading Five: July 1, 2026

Linda Reimer

Hi everyone, here are our five suggested reads of the week!

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Nine Lives by Catherine Steadman 

Reeling from a very recent divorce, Frankie has moved into a glamorous London neighborhood. This is a new chapter in her life. She’s decided to put down roots with Blue, the beautiful Persian cat she left her marriage with. 

But little doubts about her perfect new life start to grow, and when Blue returns one night from slipping into places he shouldn’t, Frankie’s concerns solidify. Two words are roughly scratched into his collar: help me. Unsettled and unwilling to ignore the incident, Frankie roots out an old unused “cat cam” collar. What slowly begins as a voyeuristic fascination with her neighbors and the secrets they’re hiding soon turns into a perilous quest for the truth that threatens to bring untold terrors to her doorstep. 

A riveting thriller about the terrible secrets hidden behind the pastel-colored façade of one of London’s most upscale enclaves, Nine Lives is catnip for suspense readers everywhere and perfect for fans of modern classics like The Girl on the Train and The Woman in the Window. 

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Scandal of the Summer by Alexandra Vasti 

In Vasti’s new Regency adventure, following Ladies in Hating (2025), Ruby and her two best friends are tired of being high society outcasts for being different or having family issues. Ruby is too scientific and outspoken for the ton’s liking. She hatches a plan with her friends to pretend to be ladies-in-waiting at a princess’ empty estate. When they arrive, they find handsome Malcolm Archer and his crew running the mansion. The crew tries to make things unpleasant for the young women in hilarious ways, attempting to get them to leave. Archer is using his role at the royal home to disguise his smuggling business and doesn’t need nosy misses about, even if Ruby captures his attention and even as the women clean and fix up the house. Ruby is fascinated with Archer and tries to discover his secrets and what he and his crew are up to. Then the imperiled princess arrives, and they are all thrown into a plot to save her. Vasti’s wonderfully entertaining caper is full of heroism and romance. –Booklist Review  

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The Someday Garden by Ashley Poston  

In an attempt to grapple with her grief after the death of her best friend Harriet, horticulturist Sophie Drear takes on the head gardener position at her and Harriet’s favorite place, Lilymoor House in coastal Maine. The house and its vast, hedge-mazed gardens are challenging and gorgeous, as is the disgruntled and handsome man Sophie discovers behind a secret blue door. Cyrus Beck, grandchild of Lilymoor House’s owners, is trapped inside, and Sophie cannot seem to find a way to free him. As Sophie attempts to unlock the secrets tangled in the lush foliage and the people of Lilymoor House, she also finds herself falling in love with both the place and with Cyrus. Questions abound in this paranormal romance. Will Sophie be able to solve Lilymoor House’s mysteries without losing track of herself or her grief? What if the man she has fallen in love with is not the man who she’ll eventually meet in real life, outside of the hedge maze?  

VERDICT Poston (Sounds Like Love) continues her trend of lightly magical stories, perfect for readers seeking the magic of Sarah Addison Allen blended with the humor and romance tropes of Emily Henry.—Library Journal Review 

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Sweet Spot by Kemper Donovan  

Ghostwriters, just like ghosts, shouldn’t exist. Knowing that the latest juicy memoir was penned by a stranger for a paycheck tends to ruin the illusion of intimacy. But not every ghostwriter is in it for the money alone. 

For Belle Currer—as the ghostwriter extraordinaire prefers to be known—Genevieve Caraway’s memoir is an irresistible project, a tale of tragedy overcome. At 14, Genevieve was abducted from her bedroom by a couple and held hostage for three months. She’s now a happily married mother with a flourishing career, a poster child for thriving after trauma. Still, the scars haven’t entirely faded. 

Genevieve’s lavish Utah home, “Sweet Spot,” is a guarded compound impregnable to outsiders—theoretically, at least. But Belle’s arrival coincides with the parole of Deirdre Gregory, one of Genevieve’s kidnappers. When Deirdre shows up at Sweet Spot begging to see Genevieve, she is refused. The next day, Deirdre’s dead body is found on the grounds. 

How did Deirdre get in? More importantly, who killed her? Belle soon joins Detective Kay Adams, the pregnant Mormon detective assigned to the case, in sifting through the suspects. The compound is filled with family and friends—and also with secrets, including one the ghostwriter has been carrying for far too long. She knows how guilt, remorse, and love can drive people to do unthinkable things. And that no matter how much you try to keep the world at bay, the best and worst of it may find a way to get in . . .

 

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The Top of the World by Ethan Joella  

A teenager with leukemia spends one eye-opening summer working at a Poconos honeymoon resort, trying to find new experiences before he dies. It’s the mid-1970s, and Maggie Bishop’s older brother, Chip, has been diagnosed with cancer. Rather than subject himself to the treatments his doctors recommend, he leaves town after finishing high school without telling anyone where he’s going. He only returns home once he’s certain his death is imminent. He wants to spend his last days with his family, but he never tells them where he’d been all that time. After he dies, Maggie finds herself stuck on the question of where her brother spent his last summer and why. She snoops through his things for months until she finally discovers a nametag indicating Chip had been employed by the Red Maple, a Poconos resort. As soon as she finishes her own senior year, Maggie, like her brother before her, takes off without explaining to her parents where she’s going. She manages to get herself employed at the Red Maple, as well, and she spends her summer there trying to get to know the people who knew Chip in the hope of better understanding his final choices.

Told in alternating chapters that follow Chip through the summer of 1974 and Maggie through the summer of 1975, the book depicts a touchingly close relationship between the siblings, which is, paradoxically, most evocative in the moments when they are apart. Joella also manages to portray the devastation of a teenager’s certain death with grace and insight. While Chip seems to have a much richer internal life than his sister, both characters are exceedingly likable and devoted to each other, which makes their separation all the more heartrending. A particular strength of the novel is the Red Maple setting, where the author manages to capture the magic of the summer resorts where both visitors and staff have transformative experiences. While some readers may find a few too many coincidences or some predictable turns of plot, the preponderance of touching moments while Chip accepts the unfairness of his fate allow the story to soar nonetheless. A captivating and tragic tale about living to the fullest before a young life is extinguished. – Starred Kirkus Review  

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Happy reading!

Linda Reimer, SSCL

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Weekly Suggested Reading Five postings are usually published on Wednesdays, unless Monday is a holiday and then they are published later in the week.

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Note: Book summaries are from the respective publishers unless otherwise specified.

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Information on the four library catalogs

The Digital Catalog aka Libby: https://stls.overdrive.com/

The Digital Catalog, is an online catalog containing eBooks, eAudiobooks, and digital magazines. You can use your library card and checkout content on a PC; you can also use the companion app, Libby, to access titles on your mobile devices; so you can enjoy eBooks and eAudiobooks on the go!

All card holders of all Southern Tier Library System member libraries can check out items from the Digital Catalog.

–

Hoopla Catalog: https://www.hoopladigital.com/

The Hoopla Catalog features on demand checkouts of eBooks, eAudiobooks, comic books, albums, movies and TV shows. Patron check out limit is 10 items per month.

Hoopla is a Southeast Steuben County Library service available to all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders.

The Hoopla companion app, also called Hoopla is available for mobile devices, smart TVs & media streaming players.

–

Kanopy Catalog: https://www.kanopy.com/en

The Kanopy Catalog features thousands of streaming videos available on demand.

The Kanopy Catalog is available for all Southern Tier Library System member library card holders, including all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders!

You can access the Kanopy Catalog through a web browser, or download the app to your phone, tablet or media streaming player (i.e. Roku, Google or Fire TV).

–

StarCat: The catalog of physical/traditional library materials: https://starcat.stls.org

Card holders of all Southern Tier Library System member libraries can access StarCat to search for and request materials available at libraries through out the Southern Tier Library System.

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Have questions about how to access Internet based content (i.e. eBooks, eAudios)? Feel free to drop by the Reference Desk or call the library and we will assist you! The library’s telephone number is: 607-936-3713.

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Tech & Book Talk is a Southeast Steuben County Library blog.