CALS Blogs

CALS patrons now have digital access to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Historical Archive! Many of you know that the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette was split into two newspapers until they merged in 1991. This collection contains searchable, image edition issues of the Arkansas Gazette, Arkansas Democrat, and Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. This collection is available remotely so patrons can access this outside our libraries;

It must be human nature to want to classify events as either before or after some watershed event. I’m not smart enough to know why we do it but I often hear and find myself saying something happened “pre-pandemic” or “post-pandemic.”

I’m reluctant to start another year talking about a pandemic that for many was a source of trauma but there is value in assessing how we approach issues in comparison to how we did things before March 2020.

Not only is it a new month, it’s a whole new year. There’s a lot of pressure to recreate yourself and become a “new you,” but what if you don’t become new, what if you just become a slightly better version of the you that you already are? Here are just a few things you can do this month with CALS that can set you on a new path in 2024 (or at the very least,

CALS staff members, Guy Lancaster and Brian Robertson recently had articles published in the Arkansas Historical Quarterly, a peer-reviewed journal of the Arkansas Historical Association.

The Arkansas Historical Quarterly, established in 1942, is the scholarly journal of the Arkansas Historical Association. It publishes research on every aspect of Arkansas’s history, from earliest human habitation to the twenty-first century.

On November 2, CALS staff members from several branches along with other well-wishers gathered at the Hillary Rodham Clinton Children’s Library & Learning Center to bid a fond farewell to retiring Deputy Director Lisa Donovan. If you know anything about Lisa, the location of the party was a given. Lisa began her career with CALS when the Main Library opened in its current location in the River Market in 1997.

Yes, it’s December already, which means it’s time to start practicing writing “2024” over a hastily scribbled-out “2023.” In the meantime, CALS has enough events and new media to keep you entertained right up until the new year. (But seriously, where did this year go?)

1. Shawn Camp Live
   • Celebrated singer,

A Spooky Christmas Storytime
Thursday, December 21, 6 p.m.
Children’s Library
Families – Join us at Children’s for a late night storytime with a spooky twist! If you enjoy the weird and spooky, you’ll love this storytime!

Kwanzaa Kinara Candle Craft
Wednesday, December 27, 2 p.m.

The CALS team has been working behind the scenes to make your library experience even better. In the next few weeks, we are moving our event system to a platform called Attend, created by Communico. This means that our event calendar will look a bit different, but you will be able to sort events by category then email or print a list,