850-522-2100

850-233-5055

850-871-3092

Port St. Joe

850-229-8879

Wewahitchka

850-639-2419

Bristol

850-643-2247

Hosford

850-379-3300

by Brendan Slocumb

Ray McMillian loves playing the violin more than anything, and nothing will stop him from pursuing his dream of becoming a professional musician. Not his mother, the fact that he can't afford a high-caliber violin, or the racism inherent in the classical music world. And when he makes the startling discovery that his great-grandfather's fiddle is actually a priceless Stradivarius, his star begins to rise. His prized family heirloom is stolen before the international Tchaikovsky Competition. Ray is determined to get it back. But now his family and the descendants of the man who once enslaved Ray's great-grandfather are each claiming that the violin belongs to them. With the odds stacked against him, will Ray ever see his beloved violin again?

by Joe R. Lansdale

Hap Collins seems like a good ol' boy, but his liberal politics don't add up. His best friend Leonard Pine is the ultimate outsider: black, gay, and Republican Together, Hap and Leonard always find trouble, and plenty of it. Now they're older but not necessarily wiser. In these previously uncollected stories, the boys uncover the sordid secret of a missing bookmobile, compete in a warped version of the Most Dangerous Game, recuperate after Hap's reluctant visit to a psychologist turns deadly, and indulge in more highly improbable adventures.

by Emily St. John Mandel

Edwin St. Andrew is eighteen when he crosses the Atlantic by steamship, exiled from polite society. He enters the forest, spellbound by the beauty of the Canadian wilderness, and suddenly hears the notes of a violin echoing in an airship terminal. Two centuries later a famous writer named Olive Llewellyn is on a book tour. She's traveling all over Earth, but her home is the second moon colony. Within the text of Olive's best-selling pandemic novel lies a strange passage: a man plays his violin for change in the echoing corridor of an airship terminal as the trees of a forest rise around him. When Gaspery-Jacques Roberts, a detective in Night City, is hired to investigate an anomaly in the North American wilderness, he uncovers a series of lives upended. Gaspery has glimpsed the chance to do something extraordinary that will disrupt the timeline of the universe.

by Lisa Scottoline

Jason Bennett is a suburban dad who owns a court-reporting business, but one night, his life takes a horrific turn. He is driving his family home after his daughter's field hockey game when a pickup truck begins tailgating them, on a dark stretch of road. Suddenly two men jump from the pickup and pull guns on Jason, demanding the car. A horrific flash of violence changes his life forever.

by Susan Cain

Author of Quiet, Susan Cain, em­ploys the same mix of research, storytelling, and memoir to explore why we experience sorrow and longing, and how embracing the bittersweetness at the heart of life is the true path to creativity, con­nection, and transcendence. If we don't acknowledge our own heartache, she says, we can end up inflicting it on others. But if we realize that all humans know (or will know) loss and suffering, we can turn toward one another.

by Bonnie Garmus

It's the early 1960s and chemist Elizabeth Zott's all-male team at Hastings Research Institute takes a very unscientific view of equality. Except for one: Calvin Evans; the Nobel-prize nominated grudge-holder who falls in love with her mind. True chemistry results. But like science, life is unpredictable. Which is why a few years later Elizabeth Zott finds herself not only a single mother, but the reluctant star of America's beloved cooking show Supper at Six. Her unusual approach to cooking ("one tablespoon acetic acid with a pinch of sodium chloride") proves revolutionary. But as her following grows, not everyone is happy. Because Elizabeth Zott isn't just teaching women to cook, she's daring them to change the status quo.

by Jennifer Raff

20,000 years ago, people crossed a great land bridge from Siberia into Western Alaska and then dispersed southward into what is now called the Americas. Until we venture out to other worlds, this remains the last time our species has populated an entirely new place, and this event has been a subject of deep fascination and controversy. Many different models have been proposed to explain how the Americas were peopled and what happened in the thousands of years that followed. A study of both past and present, Origin explores how genetics is currently being used to construct narratives that profoundly impact Indigenous peoples of the Americas.

by Ocean Vuong

In this deeply intimate second poetry collection, Ocean Vuong searches for life among the aftershocks of his mother's death, embodying the paradox of sitting within grief while being determined to survive beyond it. Shifting through memory, and in concert with the themes of his novel On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous, Vuong contends with personal loss, the meaning of family, and the cost of being the product of an American war in America. At once vivid, brave, and propulsive, Vuong's poems circle fragmented lives to find both restoration as well as the epicenter of the break.

by Kate Quinn

In 1937 in the snowbound city of Kiev (now known as Kyiv), wry and bookish history student Mila Pavlichenko organizes her life around her library job and her young son, but Hitler's invasion of Ukraine and Russia sends her on a different path. Given a rifle and sent to fight, Mila must forge herself from studious girl to deadly sniper--a lethal hunter of Nazis known as Lady Death. When news of her 300th kill makes her a national heroine, Mila finds herself torn from the bloody battlefields of the eastern front and sent to America on a goodwill tour. But when an old enemy from Mila's past joins forces with a deadly new foe, Lady Death finds herself battling her own demons and enemy bullets in the deadliest duel of her life. Based on a true story.

by Bill Browder

When Bill Browder's young Russian lawyer, Sergei Magnitsky, was beaten to death in a Moscow jail, Browder made it his life's mission to go after his killers and make sure they faced justice. The first step of that mission was to uncover who was behind the $230 million tax refund scheme that Magnitsky was killed over. As Browder and his team tracked the money as it flowed out of Russia through the Baltics and Cyprus and on to Western Europe and the Americas, they were shocked to discover that Vladimir Putin himself was a beneficiary of the crime. As law enforcement agencies began freezing the money, Putin retaliated.

by Molly Shannon

A candid, hilarious, and heartbreaking memoir by comedic genius Molly Shannon. At age four, Molly Shannon's world was shattered when she lost her mother, baby sister, and cousin in a car accident with her father at the wheel. Held together by her tender and complicated relationship with her grieving father, Molly was raised in a permissive household where her gift for improvising and role-playing blossomed. Hello, Molly! spans Molly's time on Saturday Night Live and explores her personal relationship with her father.

by Beatrice A. Ojakangas

Call it a hotdish, covered dish, or casserole; in these pages, you'll find one-dish meals for every season and occasion, put together with James Beard Cookbook Hall of Famer Beatrice Ojakangas's customary common sense and uncommon culinary flair.

With an ever-reliable and inspired sense of how to create a delicious meal, Ojakangas has advice for both expert and novice about ingredients, equipment, and meals.

by Peter Swanson

Nine strangers receive a single sheet of paper with a list with their names on it in the mail. None of the nine know or have ever met the others on the list. They dismiss it as junk mail until very, very bad things begin happening to people on the list. First, a well-liked old man is drowned on a beach in the small town of Kennewick, Maine. Then, a father is shot in the back while running through his quiet neighborhood in suburban Massachusetts. A frightening pattern is emerging, but what do these nine people have in common? FBI agent Jessica Winslow, who is on the list herself, is determined to find out.

All Northwest Regional Library System locations will be CLOSED on Monday, May 30th for Memorial Day.

The Northwest Regional Library System (NWRLS) has expanded its sponsored subscription access to all patrons to include Creativebug available with your library card. A library card is free for all residents of Bay, Gulf and Liberty County. Visit your NWRLS location with proof of residency and photo ID to pick up a library card. Creativebug is a high-quality, instructional video platform for over 1,000 art and craft classes for makers of all skillsets.

Creativebug video classes include: 

• Embroidery and Sewing

• Knitting and Crochet

• Cake Decorating

• Acrylic, Watercolor, and Oil Painting

• Printmaking

• Ceramics

• Jewelry

• Quilting

• And so much more!

All classes are taught by experts with new classes added daily. Each class provides a video tutorial, a materials list, and any required patterns. A small selection of the notable instructors include: Danielle Krysa (The Jealous Curator), Lisa Congdon, Molly Hatch, Arounna Khounnorag (Bookhou), Hello!Lucky Printmaking, Jen Hewett, Wilton Instructors, and Yao Cheng.

To create your Creativebug account online, visit the Northwest Regional Library System website at www.nwrls.com. Select the “Books & Research” tab and then the “Databases” page. Login with your library card number to be able to create a free account until the grant period is over in September 2022.

Creativebug is optimized for mobile and tablet access. After you create your account, you can also download the Creativebug app to your device through iTunes and Google Play. Creativebug classes are available 24/7.

Funding for online access to Creativebug is provided through the Expanding Outreach and Digital Access Grant. This project was funded under the provisions of the DLIS Florida American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. Florida's DLIS Florida ARPA program is administered by the Department of States Division of Library and Information Services.

Thursday, May 19th at 2 p.m. CT

Japanese Side Sewn Sketchbook class at the library will introduce you to Creativebug and provide the supplies. Learn how to make a sketchbook using a Japanese bookbinding structure. This is an adult library program for ages 18 and up due to the use of sharp tools. Registration is required. Call 850-522-2107 to register. Program will be held in the Meeting Room.

Unstacked with Sarah (Bay County Public Library) and Stephen (Huntsville-Madison County Public Library). Join us for an interview with best-selling author, Brendan Slocumb. We'll discuss his riveting debut thriller, The Violin Conspiracy. Unwind with Brendan as he shares his writing process, love of music, the violin, comic books, libraries, and more. The Violin Conspiracy was Good Morning America's February Book Club Pick! The Violin Conspiracy is available in the NWRLS library collection to check out.

Click link to listen to Podcast: https://anchor.fm/nwrls/episodes/Author-Talk-23-Unwind-with-Brendan-Slocumb-e1h32vt

Unstacked Author Interview: Joe Lansdale

Unstacked with Sarah (Bay County Public Library) and Stephen (Huntsville-Madison County Public Library). Join us for an interview with award-winning writer, Joe R. Lansdale. We'll discuss his newest release, Born for Trouble: The Further Adventures of Hap and Leonard. Unwind with Joe as he shares his writing process, love of Batman, genre blends, films, libraries, and more. Born for Trouble: The Further Adventures of Hap and Leonard along with many other titles by Joe R. Lansdale are available in the NWRLS library collection for checkout!

Click link to listen to Podcast: https://anchor.fm/nwrls/episodes/Author-Talk-22-Unwind-with-Joe-R--Lansdale-e1givra

The Community Garden Day at the Harrell Memorial Public Library in Bristol had a great turnout for those learning how to container garden. And now our library community have been checking in on the garden and making sure the plants are happy! Thank you to the Liberty County UF/IFAS Extension Office and community!

Saturday, May 7th

The library will have “blind bags” each containing 3 assorted Free Comic Book Day comics divided into three age groups: Children, Teen, and Adult. One age-appropriate bag per person, while supplies last. Come pick up your comics at the Youth Services Department. Kat Kan will share which comics are available this year, which will be released by video through Facebook prior to May 7th.

Program will be released through library Facebook pages on the specific date/time. Pre-recorded videos can be viewed earlier on the Northwest Regional Library System FL YouTube channel.

Tuesday, May 3rd at 2 p.m. CT / 3 p.m. ET

Just in time for National Star Wars Day, examine some common optical illusions and learn about how our eyes often deceive us. These are just the mind tricks you were looking for!

Wednesday, May 11th at 2 p.m. CT / 3 p.m. ET

Fold a modular origami toy spinner from six sheets of paper!

Thursday, May 12th at 10 a.m. CT/ 11 a.m. ET

Miss Deby will read How I became a Pirate by Melinda Long

with permission by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Thursdays, May 5th, 12th, and 19th at 10:30 a.m.

Storytime to build early literacy skills needed for school readiness through engaging books, songs and activities.

Tuesday, May 3rd at 4 p.m. CT

Talk about anime/manga with fellow fans, participate in fun activities, and learn about Japanese culture! Registration is required. Please call Youth Services at 850-522-2118 to register.

Tuesday, May 10th from 4 - 5 p.m. CT

Learn the joy of storytelling and refine your writing skills with this young creative writers group. Using R. L. Stine's Creative Writing Program, learn the basics, collaborate, and learn how to take an idea to a finished

concept. Registration required. Visit Youth Services or call 850-522-2118 to register.

Tuesday, May 17th at 4 p.m. CT

Want to have a say at your library? All while earning volunteer hours, making crafts, playing games, and eating snacks? Join TAB! Registration required. Please call Youth Services at 850-522-2118 to register.

Tuesday, May 24th from 4 - 5 p.m. CT

Assemble your party and venture forth on a short, fun adventure. Learn the basics and jump right into your first session of Dungeons and Dragons, Fifth Edition. No experience needed. Registration required. To register, visit Youth Services or call us at 850-522-2118.

Starting on Wednesday, May 18th

Make a faux stained-glass kite out of tissue paper. Take and Make Kits will be available in Youth Services while supplies last. The tutorial will be posted on our YouTube channel.

Throughout the month of May, stop in for the latest Take and Make Craft Kit. The kits will be available while supplies last. There will be a limited number, so stop by and pick one up to enjoy! We thank the Panama City Beach Library Foundation for sponsoring this program.

StoryWalk® Family Program: Cats Colors by Airlie Anderson

Friday, May 27th from 2 - 4 p.m.

Come join us for a fun outside StoryWalk® around the library building geared for families. A book is posted along a trail for readers to follow as they walk.

Starting on May 2nd

Science Bookmark with Glow-in-the-Dark Beads Take & Make Craft Kits will be available while supplies last!

Stop by to pick up a STEAM challenge activity. Kits made possible by the Friends of the Gulf County Public Libraries.

Stop by to make a craft project in the children's area, or grab one to make at home. All material provided. Crafts made possible by the Friends of the Gulf County Public Libraries.

Mondays, May 9th and May 23rd at 3:30 p.m. ET

Saturday, May 14th at 10:30 a.m. ET

Chess is a great way to improve your critical thinking skills, and

is a game that parents and children alike may enjoy together.

Friday, May 6th at 8 p.m. ET

Celebrate Space Day with an introduction to night-sky viewing led by local amateur astronomer, Skip Marlin. Telescopes and binoculars provided, or bring your own! Open to ages 6 and up with adult. Registration required. Event to be held at the former St. Josephs Bay Country Club; call 850-229-8879 for details.

Friday, May 20th from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. ET

Make a Beaded Suncatcher! All materials provided. Registration required.

Stop in for our latest Take and Make Craft Kit. Kits will be available while supplies last.

Stop in for our latest STEAM Challenge project. Kits will be available while supplies last.

Tuesdays at 11:30 a.m. CT

Stories, songs, finger plays & crafts to instill a love of literacy! All little ones welcome with a caregiver. Recommended for ages 5 and under.

All ages and levels of experience welcome. Chess board and pieces will be provided or you may bring your own. Registration Required. Call the library at 850-639-2419 to register. Refreshments will be served.

Celebrate the last month of school with a bang! Stop by the library and pick up this month’s 20 Book Challenge! Complete the challenge to win a book bundle!

Receive a paper scoop of ice cream for every book checked out to place on our wall! At the end of the month, the child with the most checkouts will receive a Free Treat!

Each month will feature a different themed activity/craft filled bag. One bag per child while supplies last.

Wednesday, May 4th at 10 a.m. ET

Join us for an interactive storytime, finger plays, rhymes and more! Space is limited to 6 participants along with a caregiver. Program is 1/2 hour in length.

Craft Kits will be available each month while supplies last for kids.

Saturday, May 7th from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. CT

The first part of the class is for beginner basics. The second part is for jammin’! We will have a few loaner instruments available but you are encouraged to bring your own.

Monday, May 2nd at 5:30 p.m. CT

Come and learn basic conversational Japanese with our instructor! Registration is required. Please register at the Adult Services Information Desk or call 850-522-2107.

Thursday, May 12th at 11:30 a.m. CT / 12:30 p.m. ET

Premonition: A Pandemic Story by Michael Lewis

Email rfillingame@nwrls.com for Zoom invitation or meet in the Bay County Public Library Meeting Room.

Thursday, May 12th at 6 p.m. CT

Free admission and no reservations required to attend this family-friendly afterhours concert. Sponsored by the Friends of the Bay County Public Libraries.

Saturday, May 14th at 2 p.m. CT

Film: Their Finest (2017) Rated-R

Book: Their Finest by Lissa Evans

Refreshments provided by the Friends of the Bay County Public Libraries.

Friday, May 20th at 2 p.m. CT

First song is a beginner tune, the rest is mountain dulcimer

practice. Email sburris@nwrls.com for Zoom invitation or meet in the Youth Services Program Room.

Panama City Beach Public Library 

Fridays from 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. CT

Bring your yarn and let's knit! Seating is limited. First come, first served.

Wednesday, May 4th at 10:30 a.m. CT / 11:30 a.m. ET

Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Email jmcduffie@nwrls.com for Zoom invitation.

Saturdays from 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. ET

Bring whatever project you are working on and enjoy a relaxed social gathering in our Florida room with others who share your love for knitting, felting, crochet and other needle arts. Seating is limited. First come, first served.

Thursday, May 12th at 11 a.m. ET

Bring your lunch and learn some tips on lawn care from Ray Bodrey, University of Florida, IFAS, Gulf County Extension Office. Q & A following presentation.

Mondays, May 9th and May 23rd at 3:30 p.m. ET

Saturday, May 14th at 10:30 a.m. ET

Chess is a great way to improve your critical thinking skills, and is a game that parents and children alike may enjoy together.

Monday, May 16th at 10:30 a.m.

Join us as we discuss this month's read, Where the Grass is Green and the Girls are Pretty by Lauren Weisberger.

Friday, May 13th & Thursday, May 26th at 3:30 p.m. CT

All ages and levels of experience welcome. Chess board and pieces will be provided or you may bring your own. Registration Required. Call the library at 850-639-2419 to register. Refreshments will be served.

Monday, May 9th at 2 p.m. CT

Join us to discuss This Tender Land by William Kent Kruger.

Thursday, May 19th at 12 p.m. CT

Bring your lunch and learn some tips on lawn care from Ray Bodrey, UF/ IFAS, Gulf County Extension Office. Q & A following presentation.

Monday, May 2nd at 5 p.m. ET

Join us at the library the first Monday of each month for a fun filled family game night! Registration is encouraged. Space is limited.

Tuesday, May 10th at 12:30 p.m. ET

Food and Nutrition demonstrations are presented each month by the Liberty County UF/IFAS Family Nutrition Program. Each month we will explore different nutrition topics, all while having fun!

Tuesday, May 10th at 2:00 p.m. ET

This month, we will discuss Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris. Registration is encouraged. Space is limited.

Thursday, May 12th at 10:00 a.m. ET

Let's have fun making a different craft each month. Space is limited. Registration is encouraged. 

Packets contain coloring pages, word searches and more!

Each month there will be a different themed activity packet filled with word puzzles, adult coloring sheets and more!

Wednesday, May 11th at 10 a.m. ET

Each month will feature a different art or craft project. Most supplies are provided by the library, but personal supplies are always welcomed! Space is limited to 6 participants.

Wednesday, May 18th at 1:30 p.m. ET

Adult Nutrition Class and Bingo, presented by the Liberty County UF/IFAS Family Nutrition Program. Each month we will explore different nutrition topics, all while having fun during the process! Space is limited to 6

participants.

by Peng Shepherd

Nell Young's whole life and greatest passion is cartography. Her father, Dr. Daniel Young, is a legend in the field and Nell's personal hero. But she hasn't seen or spoken to him ever since he cruelly fired her and destroyed her reputation after an argument over an old, cheap gas station highway map. But when Dr. Young is found dead in his office at the New York Public Library, with the very same seemingly worthless map hidden in his desk, Nell can't resist investigating. To her surprise, she soon discovers that the map is incredibly valuable and exceedingly rare. In fact, she may now have the only copy left in existence . . . because a mysterious collector has been hunting down and destroying every last one—along with anyone who gets in the way. But why?

by Florence Williams

When her twenty-five-year marriage suddenly falls apart, journalist Florence Williams expects the loss to hurt. But when she starts feeling physically sick, losing weight and sleep, she sets out in pursuit of rational explanation. She travels to the frontiers of the science of "social pain" to learn why heartbreak hurts so much—and why so much of the conventional wisdom about it is wrong. Heartbreak is a remarkable merging of science and self-discovery that will change the way we think about what it means to fall in and out of love.

by David Baldacci

It’s the eve of 1953, and Aloysius Archer is in Los Angeles to ring in the New Year with an old friend, aspiring actress Liberty Callahan, when their evening is interrupted by an acquaintance of Callahan’s: Eleanor Lamb, a screenwriter in dire straits. After a series of increasingly chilling events - mysterious phone calls, the same blue car loitering outside her house, and a bloody knife left in her sink - Eleanor fears that her life is in danger, and she wants to hire Archer to look into the matter. Archer suspects that Eleanor knows more than she’s saying, but before he can officially take on her case, a dead body turns up inside of Eleanor’s home and Eleanor herself disappears. 

With the Libby app, you can check out five e-books and audiobooks at a time for free for 21 days. All you need is your library card number and PIN. Forgot your PIN? Just give us a call at 850-522-2100 and we'll set one up for you. And you can return items early!

To access e-books and downloadable audiobooks, click here or:

Go to www.nwrls.com

Click on Books & Research

Click on eBooks & eAudiobooks

Click on Libby to find eBooks, audiobooks and magazines

Download the Libby App to your device.

Sign in by selecting Panhandle Library Access Network.

Select Northwest Regional Library System as your library,

and login with library card number and PIN.