Kids ages 7 through teen, come to the Cosmos Library to play Pokémon! In April and May, the program will be held every Thursday, 4:00-5:30, in the library.

The library has all of the cards needed to play the trading card game, but you can bring your own if you wish. No need to sign up. Free to attend.

Parents and caregivers are welcome to stay with their kids — recommended for 7-year-olds.

Whether you love playing Pokémon or you would like to learn how to play, you are welcome to join this friendly learning environment.

Celebrate National Library Week by stopping by the Cosmos Library during the week of April 7-12! The theme of National Library Week this year is Drawn to the Library. What draws people to the library? Everything! From books and movies to computers and creative programs, libraries are essential to thriving communities.

At Cosmos Library, we invite the community to join in the celebration. Whether you’re a long-time library user or haven’t visited before, now is the perfect time to explore all the library has to offer. Our library provides free wi-fi, Libby ebooks and downloadable audiobooks, Chromebooks and wi-fi hotspots you can check out and take home, DVDs, large print books, and much more. Whatever draws you in, the library has something for everyone.

Stop in for a free book-themed sticker to put on your laptop or water bottle during National Library Week, while supplies last.

Gaming time for Pokémon TCG begins again on Thursdays on April 3. Kids ages 7 and up are invited to play – or learn to play – from 4:00 to 5:30 p.m. in the library every Thursday this month. Cards are provided, or you can bring your own. Kids under age 8 should be accompanied by an adult or teen caregiver.

Kids ages 5-18 are invited to build with LEGOs at Cosmos Creation Club on Monday, March 21, 2:00-3:00 p.m.  Children ages 5-7 must be accompanied by a teen or adult caregiver. There’s no need to sign up, and everything is provided.

A Dr. Seuss-themed spring craft will be available for kids to take home beginning on Tuesday, April 8. An adult take-home craft , a decoupage plant pot, will be available beginning Tuesday, April 22. While supplies last. One per person please.

Cosmos Library is located in city hall. The phone number is 320-440-1012, and the website is www.cosmos.lib.mn.us. The library’s hours are Mondays 10-5, Tuesdays 2-5, Thursdays 2-6, Fridays 2-5, and Saturdays 10-1.

Plan to visit the Cosmos Public Library in March for fun and for practical help. Both are always good reasons to visit the library!

Celebrate Dr. Seuss’s March birthday at a drop-in event on Saturday, March 15, 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Jessica will have a variety of Dr. Seuss books available to read to kids. Activity stations will be set up for kids to visit, including Cat in the Hat hats, Horton the Elephant beaded bracelets, Thing 1 and Thing 2 signs, and a One Fish Two Fish sensory bin. Bring the kids any time between 10:30 and 12:30, and spend a little time to do one thing, or stay to do them all!

Need a little help with technology? Drop by during Tech Time on Saturday, March 22, between 10:30 and 12:30. Katie will offer basic guidance on Libby, email, online searching, updating the settings on your smartphone, tablet, or laptop, and similar things. We are unable to assist you with online purchases, tax navigation, legal documents, or anything complex. We will help to the best of our ability, for up to a half hour, depending on how busy the library is at that time. No need to sign up, and assistance is free.

Looking for an activity to do at home with the kids? Stop by beginning March 11 to pick up a St. Patrick’s Day craft for your child, while supplies last.

Kids ages 5-18 are invited to build with LEGOs at Cosmos Creation Club on Monday, February 17, 2:00-3:00 p.m.  Children ages 5-7 must be accompanied by a teen or adult caregiver. There’s no need to sign up, and everything is provided.

Looking for some new DVDs to check out? Cosmos Library has some recent additions, including these:

“The American Vice President”
“The Perfect Christmas Present”
“Saturday Night”
“Severance,” season one
“The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon,” season one
plus the new music CD “Luck and Strange” by David Gilmour, formerly of Pink Floyd.

Cosmos Library is located in city hall. The phone number is 320-440-1012, and the website is www.cosmos.lib.mn.us. The library’s hours are Mondays 10-5, Tuesdays 2-5, Thursdays 2-6, Fridays 2-5, and Saturdays 10-1.

Kids, join us to build with LEGOs at the library! At Cosmos Creation Club, kids ages 5-18 can use the library’s LEGO collection. The program is held one Monday per month, 2:00-3:00 p.m. No need to sign up.

Children ages 5-7 must be accompanied by a teen or adult caregiver.

Dates are as follows:

January 27
February 24
March 17
April 21
May 19

Cosmos Library News for February 2025

February at Cosmos Library starts off with some nature fun for all ages. On Saturday, February 1, a DNR naturalist from Sibley State Park will offer a nature table called Skin and Bones. The environment around us supports many animals that all have their own special tricks for survival. We can learn about some of those tricks – known as adaptations – by looking at the furs and bones of the animals. Stop by the naturalist table any time during the program hours, 10:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.,  to learn about our wildlife neighbors and what makes them unique. Activity takes about 10 minutes.

Kids ages 5-18 are invited to build with LEGOs at the Cosmos Creation Club on Monday, February 24, 2:00-3:00 p.m.  The program is delayed by a week due to the Presidents’ Day holiday. Children ages 5-7 must be accompanied by a teen or adult caregiver. There’s no need to sign up, and everything is provided.

The adult winter reading program, Winter Reads, continues all month. Sign up to get rewarded for reading three or six books by March 15. Read library books, your own books, audiobooks, ebooks, print books – whatever you choose. A variety of small prizes are available to choose from, while supplies last. Participation is free. Open to adults only.

The Cosmos Library will offer two take-home crafts this month: one for kids and one for adults. On February 4, kits will be available to kids to make dinosaur Valentine boxes. On February 18, pineapple string art kits will be available for adults. Free, but supplies are limited; one per person.

Pioneerland libraries will be closed on Monday, February 17, for Presidents’ Day.

Cosmos Library is located in city hall. The phone number is 320-440-1012, and the website is www.cosmos.lib.mn.us. The library’s hours are Mondays 10-5, Tuesdays 2-5, Thursdays 2-6, Fridays 2-5, and Saturdays 10-1.

Take a look at the most-borrowed items of 2024 for Pioneerland Library System!

Top adult fiction

• The women / Kristin Hannah.
• The river we remember : a novel / William Kent Krueger.
• Three-inch teeth : a Joe Pickett novel / C. J. Box
• Toxic prey / John Sandford.
• Spirit crossing : a novel / William Kent Krueger.
• The housemaid / Freida McFadden.
• The teacher / Freida McFadden.
• A calamity of souls / David Baldacci.
• Mind games / Nora Roberts.
• The truth about the Devlins / Lisa Scottoline.

Top adult nonfiction

• Dear Jacob : a mother’s journey of hope / Patty Wetterling with Joy Baker.
• Hillbilly elegy : a memoir of a family and culture in crisis / J.D. Vance.
• The boys in the boat : nine Americans and their epic quest for gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics / Daniel James Brown.
• House of Kahmanns : a memoir : a story about family love and shattered bonds, about finding each other in the aftermath / P. G. Kahmann.
• Killers of the Flower Moon : the Osage murders and the birth of the FBI / David Grann.
• The demon of unrest / Erik Larson.
• Oath and honor : a memoir and a warning / Liz Cheney.
• Gunflint falling : blowdown in the Boundary Waters / Cary J. Griffith.
• The anxious generation : how the great rewiring of childhood is causing an epidemic of mental illness / Jonathan Haidt.
• Atomic habits : tiny changes, remarkable results : an easy & proven way to build good habits & break bad ones / James Clear.

Top young adult fiction

• One-Punch Man / story by One ; art by Yusuke Murata ; translation, John Werry.
• A court of thorns and roses / Sarah J. Maas.
• A good girl’s guide to murder / Holly Jackson.
• One piece / story and art by Eiichiro Oda.
• The seven deadly sins / Nakaba Suzuki ; [translator, Christine Dashiell ; lettering, James Dashiell].
• The ballad of songbirds and snakes / Suzanne Collins.
• Powerless / Lauren Roberts.
• One of us is lying / Karen M. McManus.
• If he had been with me / Laura Nowlin.
• Death note / story by Tsugumi Ōba ; art by Takeshi Obata ; translation & adaptation, Pookie Rolf.

Top easy fiction

• The Big Cheese / written by Jory John ; illustrated by Pete Oswald.
• The teeny-weeny unicorn / by Shawn Harris.
• Love from Bluey / text by Suzy Brumm.
• Bluey : daddy putdown.
• The pigeon has to go to school! / words and pictures by Mo Willems.
• Buffalo Fluffalo / written by Bess Kalb ; illustrated by Erin Kraan.
• If you give a dog a donut / written by Laura Numeroff ; illustrated by Felicia Bond.
• Creepy crayon! / Aaron Reynolds ; illustrated by Peter Brown.
• No cats in the library / Lauren Emmons.
• Penelope Rex and the problem with pets / Ryan T. Higgins.

Top juvenile fiction

• Dog Man. Vol. 12 : The scarlet shedder / written and illustrated by Dav Pilkey.
• Cat kid comic club. Vol. 5 : Influencers / words, illustrations, and artwork by Dav Pilkey .
• Dog Man. Twenty thousand fleas under the sea / written and illustrated by Dav Pilkey.
• Dog man. Mothering heights / written and illustrated by Dav Pilkey.
• Dog man. Lord of the fleas / written and illustrated by Dav Pilkey.
• Dog Man. Brawl of the wild / written and illustrated by Dav Pilkey.
• Dog man. Grime and punishment / written and illustrated by Dav Pilkey.
• Baby-sitters club. Vol. 15 : Claudia and the bad joke / a graphic novel by Arley Nopra.
• Baby-sitters Club. Vol. 7 : Boy-crazy Stacey / a graphic novel by Gale Galligan.

Are you looking for some creative inspiration this fall? Pioneerland Library System offers access to Creativebug, a website with thousands of award-winning art and craft video classes. This service is provided by Prairielands Library Exchange, an organization that exists to help support public and school libraries in southwestern Minnesota. We are excited that our library users can use their library cards to access these online classes taught by recognized design experts and artists.

You can find the link to Creativebug on the left bar of the Pioneerland website or the Cosmos Library website: www.cosmos.lib.mn.us.

Once you have entered your library card number, the site will prompt you to create an account. Through your account, you can keep track of where you left off in a class and which videos you have watched, and you can be notified of new classes on topics you’re interested in. You can even upload photos of your own projects to share, if you’d like.

Class topics include art and design, sewing, quilting, paper, knitting, crochet, food and home, jewelry, holiday and party, and kids.

One interesting feature the website offers is daily practice. Intended to be a way to challenge yourself to a month of making, the website offers 30-day prompts for daily art practice. There are over 60 daily practice series to choose from, such as hand stitching, watercolor and colored pencil, bookmaking, and rubber stamp carving.

Beyond the video classes, the Creativebug website also offers downloadable knitting and crochet patterns.

New classes are being added to the website all the time. Recent classes are titled “Embroidered Pencil Case,” “Love Letter Quilt Top,” and “Crochet Edges for Garments.” Upcoming classes include “Accordion Book as Art Form” and “Professional Illustration 101.”

If video classes aren’t your thing but you enjoy art or crafting, you can choose from a wide variety of books in the library to learn more. The Cosmos Library collection has many books on arts and crafts, including a wide range from whittling to origami and from painting to quilting.

Crafting and art have many benefits: they can reduce stress, improve mood, and reduce cognitive decline, as the activity brings you into a focused, almost meditative state. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced artist or crafter, the library can be a resource for your creativity.

Cosmos Library will offer curbside service indefinitely. Call the library at the number on the sign, 320-440-1012, if you’d like your materials brought outside. Have your library card number ready.

Library staff can hand your bag of library materials to you on the sidewalk or bring it to your vehicle parked in the parking lot behind the library. Let us know where you’d like us to bring it when you call.

Curbside service may be useful if you have mobility issues or a sleeping child in the car, or because of illness. Regardless of your reason, you are welcome to use the service!

by Beth Cronk, Meeker County Librarian

Here are some useful facts about the library in a Frequently Asked Questions format. I hope you learn a little something you didn’t know before!

How much does it cost to get a library card?
A library card is free! It’s part of the public services available to you as a resident of Minnesota. Once you have a library card, it’s also free to check out anything in the library collection, both ebooks and physical items. If you had a library card and it’s lost, there is a $3 charge for a replacement card.

How many books are in the Cosmos Public Library?
The Cosmos Library has about 10,000 books. It also has about 1,500 DVDs and about 400 CDs.

What if I want to check out something that the Cosmos Library doesn’t have?
You can request things from other libraries in the Pioneerland Library System, which has a collection of about 620,000 physical items. If Pioneerland doesn’t have something, you can often request it from another library in Minnesota, using the MNLINK catalog. You can search both the Pioneerland and MNLINK catalogs online and request things yourself, or library staff can help you and place those requests.

Does it cost money to order things from other libraries?
No, the service is free to you as part of the interlibrary loan network in place in Minnesota. Our state is outstanding at providing access to library materials! Cosmos Library gets two deliveries of those interlibrary loan materials each week.

How long can I keep a book?
Most books are loaned for four weeks. Some bestsellers are limited to just two weeks while they’re new; you’ll recognize these by the sticker on the spine that says “14 day loan.”

How long can I keep a DVD I’ve checked out?
DVDs are now loaned for two weeks.

Can I check out magazines?

Yes, magazines can be checked out for two weeks.

A book I checked out had a due date coming up soon, but now I found out that it’s not really due for a few more weeks. What happened?

Automatic renewals! This is a brand-new service our library system is offering. If no one has a hold on an item that you have checked out, and you haven’t renewed it before, the library’s computer system will automatically renew it for you once, three days before its due date. If you are signed up for email updates about your account, you’ll be notified by email when those renewals happen and when you have items that will be due soon.

I’m late returning a library item. How much will I be charged?

There is a charge of ten cents per day for late items, although there is a three-day grace period before those start being charged. Materials for children and teens no longer have late fees. If your item is a month overdue, you’ll get a bill for the replacement of that item. If that happens, once you return the item the charge will drop to a $3 late fee (or to $0 for materials from the kids’ section). If an item is damaged or lost, talk to library staff about how you can resolve that charge.

Can I use my library card in other libraries?

Yes, you can. Your Pioneerland library card will work in all libraries in the system. Our system stretches from Graceville to Glencoe and from Canby to Dassel. If you want to use a different library system in Minnesota, you can do that, too. Bring your card to them, and they will help you register as a reciprocal borrower in their system.

If you have more questions, stop in or call the library, and we’ll be happy to answer them.