Lapeer District Library’s Adult Services staff provides support, guidance, and direction to help connect Library users with Library resources. From assisting patrons using our Digital Library to suggesting reading titles for fun or research, we strive to make the library experience beneficial and enjoyable. If you have questions, please contact us.
Additional Resources
Available Tax Forms
Federal 1040 Form & Instructions
State of Michigan Form & Instructions
State of Michigan Home Heating Credit
City of Lapeer
Contact your local branch to find out more information about these special collections. Not all items are available at all locations.
- Large-print collection
- Foreign-language movie collection
- Local and out-of-town newspapers
- Microfilm newspaper collection
Looking for a job locally:
MLive jobs, searchable by location
Search for jobs by title and location:
Donated by Mr. Bill Valley
-
What About the Baby?
A collection of essays, lectures, and observations on the art of writing fiction from Alice McDermott, winner of the National Book Award and unmatched "virtuoso of language and image" (Rebecca Steinitz, The Boston Globe)
What About the Baby? Some Thoughts on the Art of Fiction gathers the bestselling novelist Alice McDermott’s pithiest wisdom about her chosen art, acquired over a lifetime as an acclaimed writer and teacher of writing.
From technical advice (“check that your verbs aren’t burdened by unnecessary hads and woulds”) to setting the bar (“I expect the fiction I read to carry with it the conviction that it is written with no other incentive than that it must be written”), from the demands of readers (“they’d been given a story with a baby in it, and they damn well wanted that baby accounted for”) to the foibles of public life (“I’ve never subscribed to the notion that a film adaptation is the final imprimatur for a work of fiction, despite how often I’ve been told by encouraging friends and strangers, ‘Maybe they’ll make a movie of your novel,’ as if I’d been aiming for a screenplay all along but somehow missed the mark and wrote a novel by mistake”), McDermott muses trenchantly and delightfully about the craft of fiction.
She also serves throughout as the artful conductor of a literary chorus, quoting generously from the work of other great writers (including Tolstoy, Shakespeare, Nabokov, Morrison, and Woolf ), beautifully joining her voice with theirs. These stories of lessons learned and books read, and of the terrors and the joys of what she calls “this mad pursuit,” form a rich and valuable sourcebook for readers and writers alike: a deeply charming meditation on the unique gift that is literature. -
The Failed Promise
When Andrew Johnson assumed the presidency after Abraham Lincoln's assassination, the country was on the precipice of radical change. Johnson, seemingly more progressive than Lincoln, looked like the ideal person to lead the country. He had already cast himself as a "Moses" for the Black community, and African Americans were optimistic that he would pursue aggressive federal policies for Black equality.
Despite this early promise, Frederick Douglass, the country's most influential Black leader, soon grew disillusioned with Johnson's policies and increasingly doubted the president was sincere in supporting Black citizenship. In a dramatic and pivotal meeting between Johnson and a Black delegation at the White House, the president and Douglass came to verbal blows over the course of Reconstruction.
As he lectured across the country, Douglass continued to attack Johnson's policies, while raising questions about the Radical Republicans' hesitancy to grant African Americans the vote. Johnson meanwhile kept his eye on Douglass, eventually making a surprising effort to appoint him to a key position in his administration.
Levine grippingly portrays the conflicts that brought Douglass and the wider Black community to reject Johnson and call for a guilty verdict in his impeachment trial. He brings fresh insight by turning to letters between Douglass and his sons, speeches by Douglass and other major Black figures like Frances E. W. Harper, and articles and letters in the Christian Recorder, the most important African American newspaper of the time. In counterpointing the lives and careers of Douglass and Johnson, Levine offers a distinctive vision of the lost promise and dire failure of Reconstruction, the effects of which still reverberate today.
-
Every Minute Is a Day
An urgent, on-the-scene account of chaos and compassion on the front lines of ground zero for Covid-19, from a senior doctor at New York City's busiest emergency room
"Remarkable and inspiring . . . We're lucky to have this vivid firsthand account."--A. J. Jacobs, bestselling author of The Year of Living Biblically
When former New York Times journalist Dan Koeppel texted his cousin Robert Meyer, a twenty-year veteran of the emergency room at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx, at the beginning of the Covid-19 crisis in the United States, he expected to hear that things were hectic. On a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being overwhelmed, where do you think you are? Koeppel asked. Meyer's grave reply--100--was merely the cusp of the crisis that would soon touch every part of the globe.
In need of an outlet to process the trauma of his working life over the coming months, Meyer continued to update Koeppel with what he'd seen and whom he'd treated. The result is an intimate record of historic turmoil and grief from the perspective of a remarkably resilient ER doctor. Every Minute Is a Day takes us into a hospital ravaged by Covid-19 and is filled with the stories of promises made that may be impossible to keep, of life or death choices for patients and their families, and of selflessness on the part of medical professionals who put themselves at incalculable risk.
As fast-paced and high-tempo as the ER in which it takes place, Every Minute Is a Day is at its core an incomparable firsthand account of unrelenting compassion, and a reminder that every human life deserves a chance to be saved. -
Buttercream Petals
Create beautiful buttercream flowers and leaves using piping and palette knife painting techniques.
Master the art of decorating cakes with buttercream flowers in this stunning book from cake artist and tutor Neetha Syam. Neetha's strong, vibrant style and novel techniques make her designs really stand out from the crowd. In particular, she has developed a unique way of working that involves painting the flowers onto the cake using a palette knife, and the book will include both this and the more traditional piping technique to show how to create a multitude of flowers and how to decorate 10 glorious cakes.
The book includes a materials and tools section and some basic cake recipes, as well as sections on making and colouring buttercream, preparing piping bags, covering and stacking cakes. Projects range from cupcakes to one, two and three-tiered cakes, featuring Neetha's stunning piped and palette-knife painted flowers, leaves and embellishments.
Whether you are a home baker or experienced cake decorator, Neetha's designs will not fail to inspire you to create cakes that look as mouth-wateringly delicious as they taste! -
All Things Must Pass Away
Renowned Beatles expert Ken Womack and music historian Jason Kruppa explore Harrison and Clapton's musical and personal collaboration, friendship, and rivalry
George Harrison and Eric Clapton embarked upon a singular personal and creative friendship that impacted rock's unfolding future in resounding and far-reaching ways. All Things Must Pass Away: Harrison, Clapton, and Other Assorted Love Songs traces the emergence of their relationship from 1968 though the early 1970s and the making of their career-defining albums, both released in November 1970.
Authors Womack and Kruppa devote close attention to the climax of Harrison and Clapton's shared musicianship--the creation of All Things Must Pass, Harrison's powerful emancipatory statement in the wake of the Beatles, and Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs, Clapton's impassioned reimagining of his art via Derek and the Dominos--two records that advanced rock 'n' roll from a windswept 1960s idealism into the wild and expansive new reality of the 1970s.
All Things Must Pass Away reveals the foundations of Harrison and Clapton's friendship, focusing on the ways their encouragement and support of each other drove them to produce works that would cast long shadows over the evolving world of rock music.
-
Egg Shooters
A murder in the local hospital is raising everyone's temperature in the latest book in the New York Times bestselling Cackleberry Club series.
Suzanne Dietz, co-owner of the Cackleberry Club Café, is visiting her fiancé, Dr. Sam Hazelet, when a masked gunman bursts into the emergency room. He shoots two people and would probably have done more damage had Suzanne not brained him with a thermos full of chili. Still, the gunman manages to escape.
Now the ladies of the Cackleberry Club are determined to find the killer before he finds them.
-
Fortune and Glory
The twenty-seventh entry in the #1 New York Times bestselling series isn't just the biggest case of Stephanie Plum's career. It's the adventure of a lifetime.
When Stephanie's beloved Grandma Mazur's new husband died on their wedding night, the only thing he left her was a beat-up old easy chair...and the keys to a life-changing fortune.
But as Stephanie and Grandma Mazur search for Jimmy Rosolli's treasure, they discover that they're not the only ones on the hunt. Two dangerous enemies from the past stand in their way--along with a new adversary who's even more formidable: Gabriela Rose, a dark-eyed beauty from Little Havana with a taste for designer clothes. She's also a soldier of fortune, a gourmet cook, an expert in firearms and mixed martial arts--and someone who's about to give Stephanie a real run for her money.
Stephanie may be in over her head, but she's got two things that Gabriela doesn't: an unbreakable bond with her family and a stubborn streak that will never let her quit.
She'll need both to survive because this search for "fortune and glory" will turn into a desperate race against time with more on the line than ever before. Because even as she searches for the treasure and fights to protect her Grandma Mazur, her own deepest feelings will be tested--as Stephanie could finally be forced to choose between Joe Morelli and Ranger.
-
Endless Mercy
Madysen Powell has always been a forgiving person, but when her supposedly dead father shows up in Nome, Alaska, her gift for forgiveness is tested. With the recent loss of her mother, she searches for answers, leaning on Granny Beaufort, a neighbor in town, who listens with a kind heart. Still, Madysen is restless and dreams of performing her music around the world. The arrival of a traveling show could prove just the chance she needs, and the manager promises more than she ever dreamed.
Daniel Beaufort arrives in Nome, searching for his own answers after the gold rush leaves him with only empty pockets. Still angry about the death of his loved ones, he longs to start fresh but doesn't have high hopes until he ends up helping at the Powell dairy making cheese. Drawn to the beautiful redhead with big dreams, will deceptions from the past tear apart any hope for the future? -
Bone Canyon
A cold case heats up, revealing a deadly conspiracy in a twisty thriller by #1 New York Times bestselling author Lee Goldberg.
A catastrophic wildfire scorches the Santa Monica Mountains, exposing the charred remains of a woman who disappeared years ago. The investigation is assigned to Eve Ronin, the youngest homicide detective in the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, a position that forces her to prove herself again and again. This time, though, she has much more to prove.
Bones don't lie, and these have a horrific story to tell. Eve tirelessly digs into the past, unearthing dark secrets that reveal nothing about the case is as it seems. With almost no one she can trust, her relentless pursuit of justice for the forgotten dead could put Eve's own life in peril.
-
Deuces Down
An alien biological weapon was accidentally detonated over New York City, killing countless numbers of people. Those who survived, soon began to wish they had died once they discovered that they had been forever mutated by the virus unleashed in the blast. In this all-new collection of Wild Cards stories, the spotlight is on the most unusual Wild Cards of them all--the Deuces. Their role in the Wild Cards Universe is just as important as that of the Aces and the Jokers. In fact, their actions have affected the course of Wild Cards history.
New Large Print Fiction
-
Death with a Double Edge
Daniel Pitt's investigation into his colleague's murder leads him through London's teeming underbelly to the suspicious dealings of one of England's most influential shipbuilding magnates in a thrilling novel from New York Times bestselling author Anne Perry.
When junior barrister Daniel Pitt is summoned to the scene of a murder in the London district known as Mile End, he knows only that the victim is a senior barrister from the same firm. To Daniel's relief, it is not his close friend Toby Kitteridge, but the question remains: What was this respected colleague doing in such a rough part of the city? The firm's head, Marcus fford Croft, may know more than he admits, but fford Croft's memory is not what it used to be, and his daughter, Miriam--Daniel's friend and sometime sidekick--isn't in the country to offer her usual help. And so Daniel and Kitteridge must investigate on their own, lest the police uncover something that may cast a suspicious light on the firm.
Their inquiries in Mile End lead them to a local brothel and to an opium den, but also--unexpectedly--to a wealthy shipbuilder crucial to Britain's effort to build up its fleet, which may soon face the fearsome naval might of Germany. Daniel finds his path blocked by officials at every turn, his investigation so unwelcome that even his father, Special Branch head Thomas Pitt, receives a chilling warning from a powerful source. Suddenly, not just Daniel but his whole family--including his beloved mother, Charlotte--is in danger. Will Daniel's devotion to justice be the undoing of his entire life, and endanger Britain's defense at sea? As ever, the fates of family and history are inextricably intertwined in this spellbinder from Anne Perry.
-
Destined for You
In 1869, Gloriana Womack's family is much smaller since smallpox killed her mother and two of her siblings. She lives in a modest cottage in Duluth, Minnesota, with her father and young brother, and she has dedicated her life to holding her tiny, fractured family together--especially as her father is frequently gone on long fishing trips. Their livelihood may come from the waters of Lake Superior, but storms on the lake can be dangerous, even to those who know it well.
Luke Carson has come to Duluth to help shepherd the arrival of the railroad to the city's port, and he's eager to be reunited with his brother, Scott, who recently moved there with his pregnant wife. Competition for the railroad is fierce, with the neighboring city of Superior, Wisconsin, fighting for the tracks to come through their town instead. But the real danger lies in a resident of Duluth who is determined to have his revenge upon Luke.
When tragedy brings Gloriana and Luke together, they help each other through their grief and soon find their lives inextricably linked. If they survive the trials ahead, could it be possible they've been destined for each other all along? -
Active Defense
As a former field surgeon in Afghanistan, Heather Fontaine is used to life-or-death situations. She just didn't expect them to follow her home. When she returns from a party to find that someone has broken into her house--and threatened her friends--she assumes it is the stalker who has been following her and creeping her out. She hopes to find safety and peace of mind by leaving the city and hiding out in a small town. But trouble has followed her even there.
Luckily, a stalker isn't the only one watching Heather. Travis Walker has been secretly watching out for her for weeks. As owner of his own security agency, it's what he does. Together, Travis and Heather must figure out who wants her dead--and why--before it's too late.
Bestselling and award-winning author Lynette Eason will have you looking over your shoulder as you dive into this fast-paced, suspense-filled story about losing control and finding something even better. -
The Other Emily
Number one New York Times bestselling master of suspense Dean Koontz takes readers on a twisting journey of lost love, impossible second chances, and terrifying promises.
A decade ago, Emily Carlino vanished after her car broke down on a California highway. She was presumed to be one of serial killer Ronny Lee Jessup's victims whose remains were never found.
Writer David Thorne still hasn't recovered from losing the love of his life, or from the guilt of not being there to save her. Since then, he's sought closure any way he can. He even visits regularly with Jessup in prison, desperate for answers about Emily's final hours so he may finally lay her body to rest. Then David meets Maddison Sutton, beguiling, playful, and keenly aware of all David has lost. But what really takes his breath away is that everything about Maddison, down to her kisses, is just like Emily. As the fantastic becomes credible, David's obsession grows, Maddison's mysterious past deepens--and terror escalates.
Is she Emily? Or an irresistible dead ringer? Either way, the ultimate question is the same: What game is she playing? Whatever the risk in finding out, David's willing to take it for this precious second chance. It's been ten years since he's felt this inspired, this hopeful, this much in love...and he's afraid.
-
Strongheart: The Lost Journals of May Dodd and Molly McGill
Strongheart is the final installment to the One Thousand White Women trilogy, a novel about fierce women who are full of heart and the power to survive.
In 1873, a Cheyenne chief offers President Grant the opportunity to exchange one thousand horses for one thousand white women, in order to marry them with his warriors and create a lasting peace. These women, recruited by force in the penitentiaries and asylums of the country, gradually integrate the way of life of the Cheyenne, at the time when the great massacres of the tribes begin.
After the battle of Little Big Horn, some female survivors decide to take up arms against the United States, which has stolen from the Native Americans their lands, their way of life, their culture and their history. This ghost tribe of rebellious women will soon go underground to wage an implacable battle, which will continue from generation to generation.
In this final volume of the One Thousand White Women trilogy, Jim Fergus mixes with rare mastery the struggle of women and Native Americans in the face of oppression, from the end of the 19th century until today. With a vivid sense of the 19th century American West, Fergus paints portraits of women as strong as they are unforgettable.
-
Ocean Prey
Fan-favorite heroes Lucas Davenport and Virgil Flowers join forces on a deadly maritime case in the remarkable new novel from #1 New York Times-bestselling author John Sandford.
An off-duty Coast Guardsman is fishing with his family when he calls in some suspicious behavior from a nearby boat. It's a snazzy craft, slick and outfitted with extra horsepower, and is zipping along until it slows to pick up a surfaced diver . . . a diver who was apparently alone, without his own boat, in the middle of the ocean. None of it makes sense unless there's something hinky going on, and his hunch is proved right when all three Guardsmen who come out to investigate are shot and killed.
They're federal officers killed on the job, which means the case is the FBI's turf. When the FBI's investigation stalls out, they call in Lucas Davenport. And when his case turns lethal, Davenport will need to bring in every asset he can claim, including a detective with a fundamentally criminal mind: Virgil Flowers.
-
No Way Out
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Fern Michaels comes a brand-new novel that blends her rich, character-driven storytelling with a hint of suspense, as a reclusive young woman struggles to piece her life back together...
Ellie Bowman barely remembers the incident that put her into a coma. When she awoke, filled with unease, all she knew for certain was that her boyfriend, Rick, was missing. She knew she needed to get away from her old life and recover in safety. With the proceeds of a video game she helped develop, Ellie starts over in rural Missouri, working from her cottage and trusting no one except her friend and business partner.
Yet even in this quiet small town, it's impossible to completely isolate herself. Especially when a curious eight-year-old boy, smitten with Ellie's pup, stops by every day to talk to him over the fence. Little by little, Ellie is being drawn back into the world through the neighbors and community around her, realizing that everyone has their own fears and obstacles to contend with.
But when Ellie hears that Rick has resurfaced, her nightmares return, and with them, small snippets of memory. No one has heard from Rick since before the incident, so why is he back now? Ellie wants to move forward with her life, but first she must find the courage to look into her past, no matter what she finds there...
-
Miss Julia Happily Ever After
The delightful final installment of the beloved and New York Times bestselling Miss Julia series.
Wedding fever hits Abbotsville and several of Miss Julia's friends have plans to tie the knot. But, as usual, nothing is so simple. Christy Hargrove suddenly gives up a lifelong dream and drops out of medical school to marry, Helen Stroud and Thurlow Jones decide to change their commercial arrangement into a marital one, and, to Miss Julia's consternation, Lillian, her housekeeper and closest companion, is considering a less-than-romantic offer to wed a local businessman who turns courting into a job interview. And then there's LuAnne who just wants to be married, and Janelle who doesn't.
Miss Julia wants to properly celebrate each ceremony, insofar as anyone will let her. But Helen wants a private, even secretive, wedding; Christy's fiancé wants a destination wedding, and Lillian can't decide if she wants a wedding at all. In the middle of it all, a strange figure keeps showing up in town, streaking across lawns and vandalizing the gardens of Miss Julia's neighbors. Abbotsville's liveliest resident finds herself trying to solve it all---matters of the heart and petty crime alike---and once again save the day.
-
Braced for Love
Left with little back in Missouri, Kevin Hunt takes his younger siblings on a journey to Wyoming when he receives news that he's inheriting part of a ranch. The catch is that the ranch is also being given to a half brother he never knew existed. Turns out, Kevin's supposedly dead father led a secret and scandalous life.
But danger seems to track Kevin along the way, and he wonders if his half brother, Wyatt, is behind the attacks. Finally arriving at the ranch, everyone is at each other's throats and the only one willing to stand in between is Winona Hawkins, a nearby schoolmarm.
Despite being a long-time friend to Wyatt, Winona can't help but be drawn to the earnest, kind Kevin--and that puts her in the cross hairs of somebody's dangerous plot. Will they all be able to put aside their differences long enough to keep anyone from getting truly hurt? -
Endless Mercy
"Madysen Powell has always been a forgiving person, but when her supposedly dead father shows up in Nome, Alaska, her gift for forgiveness is tested. With the recent loss of her mother, she searches for answers, leaning on Granny Beaufort, a neighbor in town, who listens with a kind heart. Still, Madysen is restless and dreams of performing her music around the world. The arrival of a traveling show could prove just the chance she needs, and the manager promises more than she ever dreamed.Daniel Beaufort arrives in Nome, searching for his own answers after the gold rush leaves him with only empty pockets. Still angry about the death of his loved ones, he longs to start fresh but doesn't have high hopes until he ends up helping at the Powell dairy making cheese. Drawn to the beautiful redhead with big dreams, will deceptions from the past tear apart any hope for the future?"--
-
An Amish Singing
Four sweet stories from Amy Clipston show us the power of song and the truth of God's righteousness and love.
Hymn of Praise
Savannah Lambert and Jayden Smoker have been friends for a long time, but lately Jayden has seen Savannah in a new light. When they begin dating, Savannah tells him about a new youth group that performs traditional Amish hymns. Savannah joins the group, but Jayden is a traditionalist. Can these two dear friends get past their differences and find love?
Amazing Grace
Korey Esh is racked with guilt after a terrible tragedy for which he feels responsible. He is certain God doesn't love him and that he's unworthy of forgiveness or grace. When Leanna Bender, an acquaintance from school and youth group, invites Korey to join her at a singing, Korey doubts he will enjoy himself--let alone find peace. Through friendship, love, and the power of song, Leanna helps Korey learn how to forgive himself the way God already has.
Great Is Thy Faithfulness
Kayana Bender's mother has been battling breast cancer for some time and is now facing radiation. Kayana can't understand why God would allow someone as wonderful as her mother to go through such a terrible time. She finds strength in her singing group and friends, and when Ryan Detweiler sees Kayana crying one day after practice, he approaches and befriends her. As love blossoms and good news arrives, Kayana discovers that God was with her all along.
O Holy Night
Kaitlin Lantz and her parents joined the church district a year ago. She didn't participate in singings in her former church district, but Tyler King invites her to join their special performing youth group. Kaitlin worries she'll never fit in, but eventually she realizes she has finally found a home here. Together, they celebrate a new beginning, just like the first holy night.
Digital Library
Detailed information on 30 million businesses and over 200 million residents. Includes a jobs database and email marketing.
Provided by the Michigan Electronic Library (MeL.org).
Free downloadable Michigan legal forms: divorce, wills, name change, power of attorney, and more.
Support for students and professionals in skill-building, test prep, and career certification.
Provided by the Michigan Electronic Library (MeL.org).
Search for jobs by location or industry. Research executives & companies worldwide. Locate out-of-town companies. Search the white pages. Profile a neighborhood, city or state. Find local physicians and dentists.
Adult Services Blog
Oakdale's Castle
When I first moved to Lapeer County in the late 1990's, I kept hearing people making reference to Oakdale and talking about the Castle and as I drove around the city of Lapeer, I kept looking for buildings or some sign of the fabled campus. I didn't know until I became a reference desk assistant at the Marguerite deAngeli Library that despite its relatively recent closing (about 6 years at the time) that most of it had already been demolished. Answering questions for patrons about Oakdale only sparked my curiosity more.
The Free Box
By Lorry Traver
My favorite thing at any garage sale is the free box, though it can be slightly frightening to peer inside to see what treasures or perhaps scary closet creatures the sale owners are offering. However, it’s safe to assume that when you are offered something free at the Lapeer District Library, it is far from scary. We aren’t offering you anything that we wouldn’t find useful ourselves. While we offer a wide variety of services, providing free notary service is perhaps one of the least known about but most popular for patrons.
