We have partnered with Natural Grocers for a series of videos focusing on healthy living to start the new year!
Just like the rest of our body, the immune system requires optimal nutrition to work at its best. Keeping your immune system fed with the right stuff will ensure that your body is ready to handle whatever comes its way during the winter months.
Building Healthy & Delicious Meals
with Natural Grocers
We have partnered with Natural Grocers for a series of videos focusing on healthy living to start the new year! To start, let's get back to the basics! Discover the importance of getting off the blood sugar roller coaster using high-quality proteins, fats & carbohydrates to build healthy & delicious meals.
a movie review by Deana
Nathaniel and Angelica are moving into their Great-Aunt Eleanor’s house after their parents inherit it. Nathaniel who everyone calls Nat doesn’t know the secret from the books that his great-aunt left him. When he finds out that his dad needs money to repair the house, he offers the books that he never wanted in the first place to pay on the repairs. Little does Nat knows that the books have a special magic that only he can protect. This French film has also been translated into English, with both versions available on Kanopy.
Nat and his sister Angelica have just moved into their great aunt’s house near the beach. We find that Nat isn’t interested in reading books since he can barely read, yet his great-Aunt has just left him all of her fairytale book collection. Nat cherished these books when she read them to him on their summer visits. Angelica his sister has been given a special doll that she thinks has no value or use for in her life. As we journey through the secrets of the fairytale books, Nat and Angelica will race against time to keep their great Aunt’s secrets in the family. Just when their dad decides to sell the books to Mr. Pickles, a neighbor who has always tried to get Eleanor’s prize fairytale collection, Nat, Angelica and a few friends go on an adventure through wonderland. Will their great aunt Eleanor’s secret disappear or can Nat, Angelica and friends save the day? You may enjoy this movie if you like animated films, family adventures and fairytales. It's a heartwarming story of adventure.
If you’re not a fan of family animated films, this may not be the movie for you. This movie isn’t a high tech 3-D animated version that so many of us are used to watching. The colors aren’t as brightly vibrant and the visual graphic art designs can be quite simple. But it’s a film that will warm your heart as you take an adventure through the looking glass of fairytale characters trying to save the day.
This film features the voice over talents of:
Paul Bandey Jeanne Moreau
Pascal Berger Julie Gayet
Christine Flowers Lilane Rovere
Joanne Forrest Pierre Richard
David Gasman
Every title I recommend is available for you to watch instantly, for free, using our digital library services.
”Nocturna” can be accessed using Kanopy , with a direct link here: https://aurorapl.kanopy.com/video/eleanors-secret-0
Don't have a library card? Don't worry! You can sign up for a virtual library card here.
a movie review by Deana
Tim, an orphan in London who is afraid of the dark, has just learned that his star Adhara has disappeared from the night sky. An adventure through the night takes him on a journey of strange happenings that he never knew existed. Tim learns that he has a guardian cat name Tobermory who is up through the night protecting him while he sleeps. Tim knows all about the stars, so why is his star suddenly gone. As he investigate about what happen to his star, he meets strange creatures of the night that helps him find the truth behind his most beloved night star.
Tim is a little shy and awkward around the other children at his orphanage home. They all know that he is afraid of the dark and when they do mean things to him like hide his favorite stuff animal, Tim goes to his secret place where he knows that he is loved. Soon Tim sets off through the night and meets strange creatures like Cat Sheperd, Mr. Pee, Sr. Moka, Pastor de Gatos and so many more. As he travels on an adventure through the night with Cat Shepherd, the North Star and his guardian cat Tobermory to find out who cause his star Adhara to disappear, Tim has to overcome his fears from what is causing the Nocturna creatures and Adhara his star to disappear. With daylight coming too soon, will Tim be able to save the Nocturna creatures and his star - or will they be lost forever?
You might not like this film for some children because the animation characters are a little dark (no pun intended by the title). I would not recommend this film to young children, but every child is different. It is a great film if you have a youth trying to overcome their fear of the dark.
Cat Sheperd played by Robert Paterson
Pastor de Gatos played by Imanol Arias
Moka played by Roger Carel
Sr. Moka played by Carlos Sobera
Tim played by Lloyd F. Booth Shankley
Mr. Pee played by Joshua Zamrycki
Every title I recommend is available for you to watch instantly, for free, using our digital library services.
”Nocturna” can be accessed using Kanopy , with a direct link here: https://aurorapl.kanopy.com/video/nocturna
Don't have a library card? Don't worry! You can sign up for a virtual library card here.
a movie review by Kristin S.
A programmer wins a mysterious contest and is taken to his eccentric CEO's remote mansion to complete a challenge. The challenge? To prove whether an android is sentient or not, using whatever questions he can devise.
This visually stunning sci-fi piece is both fast-paced and introspective. Like most good science fiction, it centers on the question, "What makes us human?" However, the further down the rabbit hole the movie draws you, the more you aren't sure what to expect from its answer. There's a tension in the dynamics between the three main characters that quickly leads you to wonder if something else is happening behind the scenes.
The cinematography is stunning. Frequent wide shots leave the characters feeling lost in an environment that is both vast and uncertain. The movie makes use of visual language just as often as spoken to tell its story by framing shots on things like the cracked glass in the corner of Ava's room that allude to a darkness beneath the bright facade. The mansion's architecture is a mixture of futuristic and natural, with large slabs of stone and lush trees paired with glass walls and diffuse floor lighting, and this backdrop gives the film a distinct visual flavor. The CGI used to create Ava is both interesting and well executed, but it's used with a subtlety that doesn't overshadow the acting within the scenes.
Overall, this movie does an excellent job of balancing philosophy and suspense, and keeps the viewer guessing throughout. If you're a fan of shows like "Westworld", definitely give this a shot.
This movie can be dark and tense at times, which isn't everyone's cup of tea. It addresses sexuality and adult themes in ways that can be brash or vulgar. There is a creeping feeling of danger and distrust throughout the film. Don't go into this if you need a happy ending.
There's also a painfully awkward dance scene.
Every title I recommend is available for you to watch instantly, for free, using our digital library services. "Ex Machina" can be accessed using our Hoopla service, with a direct link here:
https://www.hoopladigital.com/title/12454577
Don't have a library card? Don't worry! You can sign up for a virtual library card from home by following these instructions.
Let us know what you thought of the movie in the comments below!
Board Games at Home
by Elizabeth
Board games make for a great boredom buster! Check out these games you can play with friends and family while practicing social distancing. Tell us your favorite game and share more recommendations in the comments below!
|