Tag Archives: hoboken public library

Gotta Catch’em All: Check Out these items at the Hoboken Public Library for Pokémon Trainers

13 Jul

If you are out catching Pokémon at the Poké Stop in Church Square Park and need to get a break from the heat we hope you stop in to cool off at our library across the street. There is a water fountain on the second floor for those needing a quick drink, a charging station for your phone or tablet, and we have a variety of fun Pokémon related videos, books, and more for you to check out if you can’t get enough Pokémon.  If you aren’t familiar with 90’s franchise that spawned the Pokémon Go phenomena, this will give you the opportunity to learn the difference between a Charmander and a Clefairy.

Pokémon Cartoon Series

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When I was in graduate school my roommate (a fan of a Jigglypuff) and I always giggled about the fact that instead of going out to the clubs Friday evenings we sometimes enjoyed nothing more than getting a pint of fresh made ice cream from the store up the block and watching the adventures of Ash, Misty, and Brock and other Pokémon trainers.  I’m having fun introducing my son to the cartoon series.  We have a variety of DVDs to choose from including The Johto Journeys, Adventures in Orange Islands, and many more.  Plus for those who have a favorite type check out the Pokémon Elements series with volumes concentrating on episodes highlighting everything from Grass types, Electric types, and my personal favorites the Ghost types.  Plus you can check out movies like Hoopa and the Clash of Ages and Genesect and the Legend Awakened.

Pokémon Games

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My son and husband have been having a lot of fun playing Pokémon Go in the parks near our home (Go Team Instinct!), but if it is a rainy day and you don’t feel like leaving the house we have some fun Pokémon games for those with Wiis or Wii Us, you can borrow here at the library including PokéPark 2, Wonders Beyond for the Wii, Pokken Tournament for the Wii U, and Pokémon Battle Revolution for Wii.

Pokémon Books

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The Hoboken Public Library has Pokémon XY by Hidenori Kusaka; the graphic novels tells the story of a shy but talented young prodigy and Legendary Pokémon Xerneas and Yveltal.  We also have his Pokémon Adventures. Black & White and Pokémon Adventures. Emerald for you to check out.  Plus you can borrow from various other BCCLS libraries various editions of Pokedexes (a listing of Pokémons and their abilities) from Pokémon Omega Ruby, Pokémon Alpha Sapphire: The official national Pokédex to Pokédex all 482+8 Pokémon & Post-Story Guide.  If you are a Hoboken resident, you can request the books be sent to you through interlibrary loan to the Hoboken Public Library, though many libraries are Poke Stops and Gyms so it may be the perfect opportunity to take a trip around North Jersey and see what all the terrific BCCLS libraries have to offer in person.

Pokémon Music

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If you are looking for some fun music to listen to while searching for Pokémon than check out the choices you have from Hoopla including the soundtrack to the first film Pokémon The Movie, Pokémon – 2.B.A. Master – Music From The Hit Tv Series, and Pokémon – Totally Pokémon – Music From The Hit Tv Series.  Plus for when Christmas time comes around, who can resist Pokémon Christmas Bash featuring the song “I’m Giving Santa a Pickachu This Christmas”? There is even a Karaoke version on the album!

Let us know your favorite Pokémon in the comments section and happy hunting!

-Written by Aimee Harris, Head of Reference

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Digital Delivery Delicacies: Food-A Cultural Culinary History, Online Courses from Universal Class, and more!

15 Jun

If you have been wanting to expand your culinary knowledge and skills, but don’t have time to attend a class in person then checkout these great online lectures and courses available from home for Hoboken Library Card holders.

Food: A Cultural Culinary History and The Everyday Gourmet

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For Hoboken Library and other BCCLS Library Patrons interested in learning about the history of food check out episodes of Food: A Cultural Culinary History, part of The Great Courses lecture series available from Hoopla.  Although best watched in order since each of the 36 lecture builds on one another, they are filmed as 30 minute segments by topics on specific regions/eras so if you are just interested in specific food cultures/time periods you can skip around.  The lecture starts at the Stone Age and then moves through different times in history including Ancient Egypt, Elizabethan England, Edo Era Japan and ending with a look into what the future of food might be.  I found the lectures very interesting in the way they looked at not only food trends, but the way history impacted the food we eat and the way food in turn influenced history.  You can pick up some great tidbits for cocktail party chatter.  The course is taught by Dr. Ken Albala, Professor of History at the University of the Pacific in California, where he teaches food history.  The series is also available on DVD from BCCLS libraries and you can check out several of Albala’s books in print on a variety of food history topics.

Hoopla has other lectures from The Great Courses series including several Everyday Gourmet courses on topics such as Rediscovering the Lost Art of Cooking, Essential Secrets of Spices in Cooking, and Baking Pastries and Desserts.  I have checked out the first of the Baking Pastries and Dessert lectures and plan to watch more in the future.  It has some useful tips for beginners like how to ensure all the ingredients are mixed.

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Hoopla also features a variety of cookbooks and ebooks on food history.  I enjoyed reading The Donut: History, Recipes, and Lore from Boston to Berlin by Michael Krondl.  My parent’s house was behind Dunkin’ Donuts so the delicious smell of fresh made donuts makes me think of home; it was fun to learn about their history and other notable moments in donut history.  Also featured are a baker’s dozen of donut recipes including ones from around the world such as Venetian Carnival Fritters and Oliebollen Dutch Donuts.  My husband was inspired to make the Nutella filled Bombolonis-Yum!  Remember BCCLS patrons have 20 checkouts for Hoopla per month of books, movies, music and more!

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Get Cooking and Baking with Universal Class
For those looking for a more interactive learning experience check out some of the cooking classes available to Hoboken Patrons from Universal Class including online courses on:

If you don’t have a Hoboken Library Resident Card to access Universal Class from home, you can access the courses from within the library on the library’s computers or from your wi-fi enabled laptop.  The courses each feature an instructor who you can email about assignments with.  The courses are self-paced and you have a six month period to complete them.  This is a great way to expand your repertoire and learn some new skills.  I love baking cakes and cookies, but have always found pies intimidating so I’m hoping to take the pie baking course and be able to have homemade rather than store-bought pumpkin and apple pies for Thanksgiving.  Courses are available 24/7 so they are perfect for a busy working mom like me since I can work on them after my little guy goes to bed.  Besides the classes that will appeal to beginning cooks there are also ones on a variety of other topics such as Excel, Grammar, and Resume Writing.  The courses are easy to navigate.

And if you are looking for an in person class for foodies we have that too; on Monday June 13 back by popular demand I will be co-teaching a class on ice cream making using a machine as wells as an easy recipe using just plastic bags, ice, salt and a few simple ingredients.  This is a fun class for adults, older kids, and teens!

-Written by Aimee Harris, Head of Reference

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