What's New!

Pikes Peak Library District is pleased to announce the selected title for All Pikes Peak Reads (APPR) 2024. This year’s book is Go as a River by Shelley Read. (You can also access on OverDrive/Libby) 

All Pikes Peak Reads is Pikes Peak Library District’s (PPLD) annual community reads program that focuses on celebrating literature, improving community connections, and fostering dialogue across social, cultural, and generational lines. Each year, we select APPR titles that focus on timely topics and plan a variety of community-wide programs. This year’s selection is a historical fiction book set in the former Colorado town of Iola that takes readers on a literary journey that is equal parts hopeful and tragic while encouraging readers to rethink their definition of home and family.  

Hosting a book group? Check out the book discussion guide from the publisher. 

Author visit

Join Pikes Peak Library District as we welcome Shelley Read to discuss her book Go as a River, the 2024 All Pikes Peak Reads selection.  

Following the keynote address, Shelley will do an audience Q&A session and will be available for book signing. Books will be available to purchase during the event. Registration is suggested, but not required.  

When: Sat., Oct. 5 at 3 p.m. 
Location: Library 21c     
Click here for more information

Additional Programs

• Beneath Blue Mesa: Author Talk
  Join Pikes Peak Library District as we welcome author David Primus to discuss his book Beneath Blue Mesa: The Gunnison River Valley Before the Reservoir. David will present a slideshow of the history of the Gunnison River Valley before Blue Mesa Reservoir was completed in 1965. He will discuss fishing resorts, ranches, towns, and the narrow-gauge railroad that now lie beneath the reservoir as remembered by local residents. Copies of the book will be for sale after the program. 
  • East Library: Thu., Sept. 19 at 6 p.m. 

• Introduction to Canning: Water Bath Canning
  From preserving your garden harvest to putting up locally purchased produce, canning is a great way to preserve the season’s bounty. Home canning requires knowledge of the science behind food preservation. In this introductory class, participants will learn about the risk of botulism, an overview of proper techniques, and a review of the proper tools for canning. 

  After attending this class, you will be able to safely can high acidic foods such as fruit, peaches, salsa, pickles, tomatoes, jams, jellies, and more. Presented by El Paso County CSU Extension. 

  • Sand Creek Library: Thu., Sept. 5 at noon
  • Calhan Library: Wed., Sept. 25 at noon 
• Peach Cobbler: A Hands-On Nostalgic Experience 
  Join us to create and sample nostalgic peach cobbler, inspired by the 2024 All Pikes Peaks Read selection, Go as a River. Presented by award-winning author Elayne Prechtel from @sharinglifeloveandfood, this "make and take" class celebrates food, community, and storytelling. Don't miss this special hands-on event artfully blending culinary and literary arts. 
  • High Prairie Library: Mon., Sept. 9 at 1 p.m.
  • Library 21c: Wed., Sept. 11 at 6 p.m. 

Learn More about Iola and the Blue Mesa Reservoir 

• Drought reveals a long-submerged Colorado town on floor of Blue Mesa Reservoir, from the Denver Post
• As The Blue Mesa Reservoir Dries Out, A Forgotten Small Town Reemerges, from Colorado Public Radio 

Book Clubs 

Several of our book clubs will be reading Go as a River together. Check our Book Clubs page to find out which clubs are reading it. Anyone can join our book clubs at any time, even if you have not been part of the group before. We are always happy to welcome new readers who want to have fun discussing books with others in their community. 

More about Go as a River 

From the publisher: 

Seventeen-year-old Victoria Nash runs the household on her family’s peach farm in the small ranch town of Iola, Colorado—the sole surviving female in a family of troubled men. Wilson Moon is a young drifter with a mysterious past, displaced from his tribal land and determined to live as he chooses.  

Victoria encounters Wil by chance on a street corner, a meeting that profoundly alters both of their young lives, unknowingly igniting as much passion as danger. When tragedy strikes, Victoria leaves the only life she has ever known. She flees into the surrounding mountains where she struggles to survive in the wilderness with no clear notion of what her future will bring. As the seasons change, she also charts the changes in herself, finding in the beautiful but harsh landscape the meaning and strength to move forward and rebuild all that she has lost, even as the Gunnison River threatens to submerge her homeland—its ranches, farms, and the beloved peach orchard that has been in her family for generations.

Inspired by true events surrounding the destruction of the town of Iola in the 1960s, Go as a River is a story of deeply held love in the face of hardship and loss, but also of finding courage, resilience, friendship, and, finally, home—where least expected. This stunning debut explores what it means to lead your life as if it were a river—gathering and flowing, finding a way forward even when a river is dammed. 

About the Author

Shelley Read’s internationally bestselling debut novel, Go as a River, is being translated into over thirty languages and has been optioned for film by Mazur Kaplan in partnership with Fifth Season. She was a Senior Lecturer at Western Colorado University for nearly three decades, where she was a founder of the Environment & Sustainability major and the PRIME program for at-risk students. She holds degrees in writing and literary studies from the University of Denver and Temple University and is a regular contributor to Crested Butte Magazine and Gunnison Valley Journal. She is a fifth-generation Coloradoan who lives with her family in the Elk Mountains of the Western Slope. 

When you research your family genealogy, you want to have access to a wide variety of sources and tools so that you can find the historical documents you need. Your Library has you covered with a world of useful resources housed in our Regional History & Genealogy department to help you delve into your family’s story. From databases like Heritage Quest to classes and historic newspapers, we have many resource to support your work. 

Classes

No matter where you are in your research process, don’t miss our regularly occurring virtual genealogy classes where you can learn essential research techniques and tools to support your work. You can also find helpful handouts from these classes to get you started before the next class.

Databases

Your library card gets you access to a variety of genealogy databases where you can research your family history. You will need an El Paso County resident card (which starts with a 4) to access these databases remotely, or you can access them at any Library location.

One handy database to explore is HeritageQuest, where you will find a comprehensive treasury of American and international genealogical records rich in primary sources, local and family histories, military records, census maps, and more. In this database, search for your ancestors using US Census records and US Indian Census Rolls, Canada Census records, and other sources.

Other databases include MyHeritage, Ancestry Library Edition, Fold3, American Ancestors, and FamilySearch.

Newspapers

Genealogy databases are not the only place you can look for your family history. Newspaper databases can also provide useful information for your project, especially if your family is local to Colorado. Both PPLD’s microfilm collection and the Colorado Historic Newspapers Collection database contain historic newspapers from Colorado and the Pikes Peak region. For a wider selection of news from across the U.S., look in the 19th Century U.S. Newspapers database and the Newspaper Archive database.

Regional History & Genealogy

For more information about how else our Regional History & Genealogy department can support your genealogy needs, visit our Genealogy page! 

The United States declared independence from England and its monarch on July 4, 1776. We commemorate this occasion with annual fireworks displays and other festivities. The Library is closed in recognition of this federal holiday, but we offer several ways to help you celebrate our nation’s Independence. On this page, explore information and fun resources, including music playlists, booklists, and web resources.  

Booklists 

• Independence Day Adult Nonfiction
• Overdrive & Libby

Resources 

• Freegal Playlists
  Use your library card to access 24/7 music to add pizzaz to your 4th of July celebrations.
  • Land Of Liberty: A 4th of July Playlist
  • 4th of July Playlist
     
• Kanopy
  Use your library card on Kanopy to access documentaries and historic dramatizations that delve into the founding of our nation, the Revolutionary War, the writing of the Constitution, and other key moments in U.S. history
  • American Military History 
  • American Revolution: The Impossible War
  • America’s Musical Heritage: Episode 2, “American Revolutionary and Wartime Music”
  • Black Patriots: Heroes of the Revolution
  • The History of the United States: Episode 14, “Creating the Constitution”
  • Liberty in the Air
  • The Men Who Built America: Frontiersmen
     
• Gale eBooks: American Revolution Reference Library
  In this eBook you will find a timeline of events during the American Revolution, as well as information about historic figures and the roles they played in key revolutionary events. (Must have a library card that starts with a 4 to access outside of a Library location)
   
• Gale in Context: U.S. History
  Read about the 4th of July, from historic battles and the signing of the Declaration of Independence to celebrations commemorating Independence Day. (Must have a library card that starts with a 4 to access outside of a Library location)

Websites 

Explore July 4 fireworks, festivities, and other events happening in the Pikes Peak region on the Visit Colorado Springs website. 

• Library of Congress: Today in History – July 4th 
  Explore Independence Day history and enjoy historic photos and documents in this article from the Library of Congress. 
• Smithsonian Institute: Independence Day 
  Take an in-depth look at artifacts from the past as you celebrate the birthday of the United States with this historic gallery from the Smithsonian Institute. 
• History Channel: Fourth of July 
  Watch Videos from the History Channel packed full of 4th of July facts you might not have known, including the first use of fireworks in 4th of July celebrations. 
• PBS: A Capitol Fourth 
  From bonfires and illuminations to picnics and public readings of the Declaration of Independence, learn about historic 4th of July celebrations in this PBS article.
• Old Farmer's Almanac: Fourth of July 2024
  Celebrate the 4th of July with history, traditions, and recipes in the Old Farmer’s Almanac. You can also look ahead to see what day of the week our next 4th of July falls on.