Stay Connected with Zoom Reading Groups

Here at Aura Libraries, one of our favourite things to do – besides reading books – is talking about the books. We love hosting reading groups at our libraries and have been delighted to see our wonderful library members stay connected with us online via our Zoom reading groups.

We truly believe sharing a love of reading and discussing the wonderful world of books is a great way to stay connected during difficult times. We now have three different Zoom sessions on a monthly basis.

Our 'Reading Friends' Shared Reading Zoom sessions are suitable for adults of all ages and take place on every second Tuesday of the month from 11am-noon, with our next session scheduled in for Tuesday, November 10.

We were delighted to host our very first online Children's Reading Group last Thursday, which will also be a monthly event on the last Thursday of the month at 4pm. This session is suitable for children eight years and over and is a great way to meet new friends, discuss their favourite books and discover new titles.

We are happy to announce the launch of our very first 'Introduction to Family History Research' Zoom session which will take place on Thursday, November 12, at 2pm. The aim of this session is to introduce participants to the wonderful ways in which we can discover and research our family ancestry.

We encourage all book club fanatics to join our Zoom reading sessions which are perfect for book lovers who enjoy sharing stories and discussing their favourite books. For more information, or to register for one of our reading groups, please email susannah.hill@aura.wales

Half term fun

The Leader:

Doing things a little differently for half term this year, we posted Story Time, Rhymetime and craft sessions on our social media which can be viewed on both our Facebook page and YouTube channel. We would like to say a big thank you to all the children who have gotten involved with our half term and Halloween craft activities. We received some lovely feedback from Hannah Zeise, a local resident of Connah's Quay, who sent us photos of her daughters Enfys and Willow (pictured above) making Halloween spider crafts!

Join the library online

If you are not already a library member but would like to become one, you can join online via the Aura Wales website for free, instant access to hundreds of library resources such as e-books, audiobooks, e-magazines and e-comics. These resources can be downloaded straight from our online providers such as Borrowbox, RBdigital and pressreader to a PC, laptop or Mac. Alternatively, you can download the apps directly to a smartphone or tablet.

Our digital tip of the week is inspired by the TV show The Great British Bake Off. We recommend browsing the different baking and cookery magazines available to read online via RBdigital and pressreader. Find us on Facebook @LlyfrgelloeddAuraLibraries or Twitter @LibFlintshire to share photos of your baking creations with us. We recommend a book shaped cake or some library biscuits!

To access most online library resources you will need to enter your library membership number and pin. If you are unsure of your pin, please email us at: libraries@aura.wales All links and further details about our digital library resources can be found on our website: www.aura.wales/libraries

Community calls

Our Community Calls service provides a telephone link for Flintshire residents who are lonely, socially isolated or finding it difficult to get out. We encourage anyone who may be feeling this way to get in touch with us: this service is free of charge and open to all Flintshire residents. To register for our Community Calls service, please contact Paula Jones on 01352 704400 or email libraries@aura.wales and provide us with your contact details so that we can arrange a suitable time to get in touch. Now more than ever, we hope that the community can look to its library service for support: you're never alone – your library is here to lend an ear.

Come and visit us

As a reminder, our libraries will reopen on Monday, November 9 for select browsing, computer use (ring to book), and for people to pick up Select and Collect orders. We understand not everyone is able to venture out right now, or might be feeling apprehensive about leaving their homes, therefore, we would like to remind the community about our home library delivery service that can bring library resources straight to your door if you are unable to visit your local library. If you phone the library on 01352 704400 or send us an email (libraries@aura.wales ), we can put together a collection of books to be delivered to you free of charge.

From everyone here at Aura Libraries, thank you for reading, stay safe and we hope to hear from you or see you soon! Whilst we may be facing difficult times, remember: we are always united by books!

• Aura is a charitable, not-for-profit, organisation responsible for managing the majority of leisure, libraries and heritage services in Flintshire. Aura is owned by its employees and operates for the benefit of local communities.