Today is the final day of two winter programs at the Delaware County District Library – the Winter Reading Club and Personalized Picks. From Dec. 1 through Jan. 31, the community is invited to cozy up and read and potentially walk away with a prize!
Readers of all ages were invited to write down four books they read or programs they attended in any combination to enter to win a raffle basket of their choosing. Before the end of today, participants should stop by any DCDL location to drop off their bookmark for their chance to win.
Personalized Picks is a reader recommendation service that is offered by DCDL librarians, specialists and book lovers during the Winter and Summer reading clubs. For those who need one more batch of recommendations to get them through the cold and dreary month (months?) ahead, get started at www.delawarelibrary.org/personalized-picks.
Want an extra tip reading? Try requesting books specifically in an audio format, then join us for Preservation Parks of Delaware County’s Winter 100 challenge! Each year, DCDL partners with Preservation Parks in its winter programming to promote the overall health benefits of reading and walking – of course, listening to an audiobook is preferred while walking over reading a physical book.
During the Winter 100, participants are challenged to walk 100 miles or 100 kilometers (roughly 62 miles) between Jan. 1 and March 31. Registrations are accepted at www.preservationsparks.com/programs/winter-100. Registering gives access to a private Facebook group and biweekly email for ongoing encouragement and expert tips from other partners.
There are many benefits to listening to an audiobook while taking a walk outdoors. First, a human voice can add an emotional connection to the story, which creates a deeper memory of the overall experience. Because I’ve listened to so many audiobooks while on road trips, I have specific passages of books tied to my memories of that particular excursion or vacation.
It’s been proven that audiobooks help improve the symptoms of depression, anxiety, obsessive-compulsiveness and more in the elderly population, according to a study published in the National Library of Medicine. Today in developed countries, bibliotherapy is used for the treatment of the most prevalent psychiatric disorders.
Finally, listening to an audiobook can boost overall feelings of productivity – especially while walking. The heart is pumping while the brain is engaged. These positive benefits help with motivation, enabling the stamina to tackle to-do lists or everyday routines.
For those who are new to audiobooks, I recommend starting with the best – any past winners of the Audie Awards. The top audiobooks, according to the Audie Awards, are listed here.
• “Finding Me” written and narrated by Viola Davis. The critically acclaimed film, television and theater actress presents an inspiring and deeply honest story of her life, from her coming-of-age in Rhode Island to her current hard-won success.
• “Unprotected: A Memoir” written and narrated by Billy Porter. The incomparable Emmy, Grammy and Tony Award winner shares his life story of coming of age in a world where simply being himself was a constant struggle and how unbreakable determination led him through countless hard times to where he is now.
• “Fairy Tale” written by Stephen King, narrated by Seth Numrich. Legendary storyteller Stephen King goes into the deepest well of his imagination in this spellbinding novel about a seventeen-year-old boy who inherits the keys to a parallel world where good and evil are at war, and the stakes could not be higher—for their world or ours.
• “Mad Honey” written by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan, narrated by Carrie Coon, Key Taw, Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan. Her life upended when her husband revealed a darker side, Olivia MacAfee and her teenage son Asher move back to her New Hampshire hometown for a new beginning until Asher is implicated in the death of his girlfriend and she realizes he’s hidden more than he’s shared with her.
• “Happy-Go-Lucky” written and narrated by David Sedaris. The best-selling author offers a new collection of satirical and humorous essays that chronicle his own life and ordinary moments that turn beautifully absurd, including how he coped with the pandemic, his thoughts on becoming an orphan in his seventh decade, and the battle-scarred America he discovered when he resumed touring.
• “Greenwich Park” written by Katherine Faulkner, narrated by Laura Kirman. Helen innocently befriends Rachel at a prenatal class despite the woman’s unbecoming behavior and has no idea her new friend has ulterior motives and is on a vindictive mission to ruin the lives of her extended family.
If you have a question that you would like to see answered in this column, mail it to Nicole Fowles, Delaware County District Library, 84 E. Winter St., Delaware, OH 43015, or call us at 740-362-3861. You can also email your questions by visiting the library’s web site at www.delawarelibrary.org or directly to Nicole at [email protected]. No matter how you contact us, we’re always glad you asked!
