Ask anybody: between our vision of an inclusive, engaged community and the value we place on respect and service, the Library's the friendliest place in town. Just recently, in fact, we got the attention of Dementia Friendly Indiana, an organization dedicated to improving the lives of people living with dementia, for the work we do to welcome and support this audience. Read more about It's Official: We're Dementia Friendly

When the Library introduced a virtual reality console to its Digital Creativity Center last year, Jeannette Lehr wanted to do more than just demonstrate its entertainment value.

“We didn’t want people to think of VR as something to passively consume, or just some tech novelty,” said Jeannette, who coordinates programming for Level Up at the Downtown Library. “We wanted them to think creatively and practically about the possibilities of virtual reality, and incorporate it into their own projects and ideas.” Read more about First-Ever Virtual Reality Camp an Adventure for Tech Fans

Well, maybe not quite.

Listening to the Dropkick Murphys, I’m swept into their Irish-Catholic South Boston neighborhood. The sense of place in their rough-and-tumble songs is simply that strong—and not just on account of the accent coming through in the vocals.

The Murphys are a curious blend of genres: they’re described as both hardcore punk and Celtic folk, and you can definitely hear both in their music. I’d add unapologetically, jubilantly brash. And raucous. Irreverent. Throbbing with life, vitality, emotion, even a little death. Not above making fun of themselves.

And prolific. This year’s 11 Short Stories of Pain & Glory, peaking at number eight on the U.S. Billboard charts, follows a dozen releases by the Murphys since 1998. You may Read more about Dropkick Murphys: Kiss Them, They’re Irish

Here’s the scenario. Walking across a bridge over a railroad one day, you notice that five people are tied to the tracks below. Worse, you also spot a speeding train approaching, with no sign of slowing down—it’s sure to plow through the five people, killing them. Suddenly you see the only possible way to save them: an exceptionally large man—large enough to derail an oncoming train, it just so happens—is leaning on the bridge’s railing above the tracks, resting. Now’s your chance: do you push the man over the railing, killing him, but saving the five people tied to the tracks? Or do you refrain from pushing him, thereby sparing his life but effectively allowing the five below to die? Read more about Would You Kill the Fat Man?

Playaways are great—an entire audiobook on a gadget the size of a business card!—but they’re typically used with headphones. Don’t worry--using an inexpensive cable, you can connect Playaways to your car stereo for enjoying audiobooks on the road.