Library News

One of the newest offerings to the community at the West Des Moines Public Library is Tech Help with Teens—a program designed to pair trained teen technicians with library patrons who have specific questions about technology. Each teen assistant is trained on both Apple and Android products and can help answer questions on smart phones, tablets, and laptops.

In response to high attendance levels at youth programs at the WDM Library, we will now require registration in advance for all storytimes and other events for youth starting November 1. Registration for all November programs and events for youth will open on Monday, November 1 at 9:00 AM. You may register online using our calendar, call 515-222-3405, or stop by the Children’s Desk on or after November 1 for assistance. 

What do the novels Water for Elephants, The Night Circus, Fangirl and

Everyone's talking about Squid Game and for good reason: it's utterly impossible to stop watching. Squid Game is not new. Sure, the series is quite new, but the script was written more than a decade ago, in 2007. Hwang Dong-hyuk wrote it with inspiration from books like Liar Game or Battle Royale. He has never imagined the story would gain so much notoriety, fearing people would find it a bit weird and hard to understand. He failed to realize that his story would perfectly match today's society.

Stop by the Jordan Creek Mall Barnes & Noble on October 13th to support the library during our B&N Book Fair! In order for the portion of your sales to go to the Friends of the Library Foundation, you'll need to mention that you're supporting the library before you start your purchase. 

Whether you're a fan of a cozy read or a spooky read to bring you into the fall season, our library staff has you covered! We've narrowed down our favorite books with fall vibes for kids, young adults, and adults below. Let us know if you end up reading any of our suggestions! 

Each year, the West Des Moines Public Library celebrates Banned Books Week to honor the freedom to read. Banned Books Week was launched in 1982 in response to a sudden surge in the number of challenges to books in schools, bookstores and libraries.  Librarians, booksellers, publishers, journalists, teachers, and readers of all types come together during this week to support the freedom to seek and to express ideas, even those some consider unorthodox or unpopular.

by Ray Seidelman, Secretary, WDM Library Board of Trustees

Talking with a friend soon after I was appointed to the West Des Moines Library Board of Trustees in 2019, I expressed how excited I was to serve such a dynamic community institution.  He met my enthusiasm with, “that’s great…but do they still have libraries?”. 

As West Des Moines students start back to school, we wanted to highlight an invaluable resource that was developed by The Iowa Core. Their Parent Guides, in English and Spanish, provide an overview of what students will learn by the end of each grade level as directed by the Iowa Core, the state’s academic standard.

The library underwent many changes between July 1, 2020 and June 30, 2021. Explore some of the highlights in our Library Annual Report linked below. 

Read the FY2021 Library Annual Report. 

From Joe Pollpeter, Vice President, WDM Library Board of Trustees

This summer I will be wrapping up my four-year term on the West Des Moines Library Board of Trustees. This follows the six years I spent as part of the West Des Moines Library Friends Foundation.

As you start to think about heading back to school, we wanted to highlight some of the hidden gems that can be checked out at the library. These items are part of our Library of Things and range from technology items, children’s STEM kits, Meet Your Neighbors Story Boxes and even a car charging kit!

You might be asking yourself: what is a Library of Things? By definition, it’s a collection of objects loaned that vary widely but go beyond books, journals and media traditionally offered in a library. Our offerings continue to expand as we meet the needs of our growing community.

In This Day and Page is a new podcast created by the West Des Moines Public Library with the goal of sharing all the different library resources, services, and programs we offer! Through staff and community member interviews, join us as we explore the ins and outs of the library world. Look out for a new episode every Monday on all major podcast platforms.

Two of our most regularly used programs at the West Des Moines Public Library are the Senior Outreach and Homebound Delivery services. These programs were created to give WDM residents who have difficulty coming into the library access to library materials, no matter their living situation.

The Homebound Delivery service has been around for over twenty years and has been utilized by hundreds of patrons. In 2020, library staff and volunteers selected and delivered materials monthly to an average of 50 patrons in individual homes.