Curious about MPL's proposed budget for 2018? Check it out.

Ever wondered if your child could be living with Dyslexia? Come learn about the signs and more information.

This year is the 100th anniversary of the United States’ entry in World War I. World War I, an epic global war, was known as The Great War & The War to End All Wars. It started in Europe with the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria in 1914. The US followed President Woodrow Wilson’s policy of neutrality for several years. However, Germany’s aggression against neutral ships, including US vessels, began to sway public opinion toward an active participation in the war. Finally, the tide turned when a German torpedo sank British ocean liner Lusitania on May 7, 1915. Hundreds of Americans were on board; 120 died. In February 1917 Congress passed an arms appropriation bill worth $250,000,000 to prepare for war. The very next month saw the Germans sink four more US merchant ships. On April 2 President Wilson went to Congress calling for a declaration of war. Americans joined branches of the military service to fight in The War to End All Wars. Marion & Grant County was home to many of those young people. By the time WWI ended an estimated 16 million people lost their lives due to the conflict. While WWI was raging, a killer of another kind swept the world. The influenza pandemic of 1918 killed more than 50 million people. Four stories of Grant County WWI soldiers are shared here; 3 of them died from pneumonia, likely influenza related. These photos are from the Historic Photo Collection at the Marion Public Library Museum. The images of draft registration cards are from ancestry.com.

So, the eclipse is over but you still have those ever so fashionable eclipse glasses. Bring them to the Marion Public Library for Astronomers without Borders. They will pass them on to South Americans who will experience a solar eclipse in 2019. Thanks!

MPL handed out 200 pairs of eclipse glasses this afternoon! Our program starts at 2 pm, lots of activities for families. Be safe viewing the eclipse! The library is also live streaming the NASA broadcast so come watch!

The countdown: https://www.timeanddate.com/countdown/eclipse?iso=20170821

Just a reminder from Conner Prairie about safely viewing the eclipse: https://www.facebook.com/connerprairie/videos/10156039044366874/

Yes, we have a few pairs of eclipse glasses. Yes, they are for people attending our afternoon eclipse viewing party.

Ready to read with no holds (as of this moment) on 8/22: Midwinter Break by Bernard MacLaverty; Reincarnation Blues by Michael Poore; The Room of White Fire by T. Jefferson Parker; The Massacre of Mankind by Stephen Baxter; The Burning Girl by Claire Messud; and, The Saboteur by Andrew Gross.

Today is the day for the solar eclipse. Activities, making pinhole viewers, learning about the sun, & videos begin at 9:30 near the circulation desk. At 12:30 we will move to the parking lot; @ 1 p.m. we will begin handing out eclipse glasses. There will also be pinhole viewers available. Bring your lawn chair, a bottle of water, & spend the afternoon with us watching Mother Nature at her best!