Belleville Public Library

Finding Me: A Musical Children's Book

Have you ever heard a student say they went to a school where they didn’t feel seen, heard, confident, loved, or like they truly belonged? Jr. has felt that way at his many schools. But things begin to change when he stumbles upon a magical classroom and peeks through their window. With the help of a teacher named Mr. Rise, he sees a handful of students who are shown just how special they are every day! Will Jr. be too afraid to reveal himself to them? Will they let Jr. join their team? Only time will tell if he’s found the community he’s needed for a very long time.

Book Discussion: Darius the Great is Not Okay by Adib Khorram

Darius doesn't think he'll ever be enough, in America or in Iran. Darius Kellner speaks better Klingon than Farsi, and he knows more about Hobbit social cues than Persian ones. He's about to take his first-ever trip to Iran, and it's pretty overwhelming--especially when he's also dealing with clinical depression, a disapproving dad, and a chronically anemic social life. In Iran, he gets to know his ailing but still formidable grandfather, his loving grandmother, and the rest of his mom's family for the first time. And he meets Sohrab, the boy next door who changes everything.

Book Discussion: Darius the Great is Not Okay by Adib Khorram

Darius doesn't think he'll ever be enough, in America or in Iran. Darius Kellner speaks better Klingon than Farsi, and he knows more about Hobbit social cues than Persian ones. He's about to take his first-ever trip to Iran, and it's pretty overwhelming--especially when he's also dealing with clinical depression, a disapproving dad, and a chronically anemic social life. In Iran, he gets to know his ailing but still formidable grandfather, his loving grandmother, and the rest of his mom's family for the first time. And he meets Sohrab, the boy next door who changes everything.

Book Discussion: Darius the Great is Not Okay by Adib Khorram

Darius doesn't think he'll ever be enough, in America or in Iran. Darius Kellner speaks better Klingon than Farsi, and he knows more about Hobbit social cues than Persian ones. He's about to take his first-ever trip to Iran, and it's pretty overwhelming--especially when he's also dealing with clinical depression, a disapproving dad, and a chronically anemic social life. In Iran, he gets to know his ailing but still formidable grandfather, his loving grandmother, and the rest of his mom's family for the first time. And he meets Sohrab, the boy next door who changes everything.

Let's Talk About It: Identifying and Responding to Mental Health Stigma

What is stigma? What creates stigma? Can you recognize mental health stigma? Why is mental health stigma a problem? What can we do to reduce mental health stigma? Mental illness stigma comes in many forms. Exclusion, silence, and labeling are just a few. Through self-reflection, discussion and interactive exercises, learn about how you can recognize mental health stigmas, what happens when people are stigmatized, and what you can do to help reduce the resulting problems.

Simple Things with Jerry Apps

Return to the farm with Jerry Apps as he reminisces about how the simple things that made up everyday life on the farm—an old cedar fencepost, Fanny the farm dog, the trusty tools used for farmwork, the kerosene lantern the family gathered around each morning and evening. Listen as he plumbs his memories for the deeper meanings of these objects, sharing the values instilled in him during his rural boyhood in the 1940s and 1950s.