Teens

Illustrations of animals reading stories with the "Imagine Your Story" Slogan on a blue background
Discord. Share. Chat. Create. For Teens age 13-18

Hang out and connect with other local teens while school is closed on our Discord server! To get your very own invite, fill out this short form.

Ames Public Library Closure FAQ
Coronavirus (COVID-19) Updates and Resources
Your Library Online
Resources for Families
Get your library card online and start using it now!

Although the building is closed, Ames Public Library offers free access to a variety of online resources.

To make things easier, community members may currently register online and immediately get their own library card number.

Your Library Online

Stream and Download

Bridges: e-books, audiobooks, and videos

Text advertising Libby app with the Libby logo next to Open 24 Hours graphic and a picture of a phone with book covers

 

Kanopy: award-winning documentaries, rare and hard-to-find titles, film festival favorites, indie and classic films, and world cinema

Movie covers with text "The worlds finest cinema, now streaming free with your library card" and the Kanopy logo

 

Hoopla: e-audiobooks, graphic novels, e-books, movies, music, and television

Hoopla Logo in front of a collage of DVD and music covers with text about what you can borrow through Hoopla app

 

Newspapers, Language Learning, and Much More!

The New York Times (NYTimes.com): Enjoy complimentary unlimited access to the world's finest journalism on NYTimes.com the world's

Connect With Your Librarians

Reading Radio Wednesdays @ Noon on KHOI Community Radio

Watch for videos, book recommendations, and more on our Facebook page and our YouTube channel.
 

Hear us on Reading Radio on KHOI Community Radio Wednesdays at 12pm.

Stay Inside & Thrive Challenge: Read, Watch, Do, Share

Weekly Challenges

Are you ready for something new? Try our first ever Weekly Challenge! Pick from our Read/Watch/Do challenges, or go for all three, and share your progress with us. Your prize will be the respect and admiration of your local librarians. (Also, you may enjoy expanding your horizons!)

See how Cathy and Nathaniel are tackling this week's challenge on our YouTube channel.

  • Read: Dive into a "one day I'll read this" book that's been on your list for a long time. Audiobooks and e-books count!
  • Watch: Learn about another place or culture by watching a film set in another country.
  • Do: Create a journal of things that you have watched, played, or read while social distancing.
  • Share: Find the Stay Inside & Thrive post on our Facebook page and post a picture or tell us what you watched, read, or did! (www.facebook.com/AmesPublicLibrary)

Keep challenging yourself! Pick from our Read/Watch/Do challenges, or go for all three, and share your progress with us. 

See how Seth and Jill are tackling this week's challenge on our YouTube channel.

  • Read: Catch up on a classic that is new to you.
  • Watch: Watch one of Ames Public Library's online videos or Storytime on Facebook Live.
  • Do: In celebration of National Poetry Month, create a haiku of a topic of your choice. A haiku is a three line poem with 17 syllables written in a 5, 7, 5 syllable count. 
  • Share: Share your family-friendly haiku on our Facebook page.

Through the end of April, you can read or listen to the first Harry Potter book on Bridges or Hoopla! We're celebrating Harry Potter this week with our weekly challenge and book recommendations. (Don't worry muggles, we have lots of non-Potter ideas for you too!) Pick from our Read/Watch/Do challenges, or try all three, and share your progress with us.

Megan and Jerri give you some details on our YouTube channel.

  • Read: Read a book that has inspired a movie or television show.
  • Watch: Watch a movie or television show that has been inspired by a book. (This can be the same title you read!) 
  • Do: Start learning a new language online with Mango or Little Pim.
  • Share: Tell us which movie or book was better in your opinion.

Need some inspiration? Try our week 4 challenges!

  • Read: A magazine or newspaper that is found online or in your home.
  • Watch: Watch a movie from the American Film Institute's 100 Years 100 Movies list. 
  • Do: Try out Ancestry.com Library Edition, or call/video chat a family member and ask them to share a story from their life.
  • Share: Share what you read or watched and give it a rating between 1-5 stars (5 stars being the best)!

Anastasia and Chris are excited to share the details on our YouTube channel.

We're kicking off another month of challenges! What will you tackle first?

  • Read: Look through a cookbook or read a book about food.
  • Watch: Watch a musical, concert, or music video or listen to music that gets you moving.
  • Do: Have a dance party at home! If you choose, take a video and post it on APL's Facebook page.
  • Share: Share the title of the book you read, the music you enjoyed, or the recipe you made!

Get some ideas to start you off on our YouTube channel.

Dig into nature with this week's Stay Inside & Thrive Challenge!

Get some details and inspiration at our YouTube channel.

Exercise your creative side with this week's challenge!

  • Read: A graphic novel or Caldecott Award winner.
  • Watch: An APL-created art video on YouTube, or an art documentary on Kanopy.
  • Do: Create a work of art.
  • Share: Post a photo of your artwork on APL's Facebook page.

Tanvi and Chris share their talents for this week's Stay Inside & Thrive challenge on our YouTube channel.

It's the final week of the Stay Inside & Thrive Challenge! (Don't worry, we have a new summer challenge starting next week!)

  • Read: In honor of Memorial Day, read historical fiction or non-fiction.
  • Watch: Watch a history documentary.
  • Do: Write a letter or draw a picture and thank a healthcare worker.
  • Share: Share a photo of what you read, watched, or listened to before you bring it back to the library.  

Check it out on our YouTube channel!

Teen Advisory Group

The Teen Advisory Group (TAG) helps the Library plan programs for teens and pick out books for teens.

More >>

K-12 Databases

ABCmouse.com Early Learning Academy logo

ABC Mouse

Check out ABC Mouse for award-winning educational games, puzzles, books and other fun interactive learning activities for kids age 2 to 6. It’s free to use in the Ames Public Library! In Library Use Only

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Academic OneFile from Gale logo

Academic OneFile

Academic OneFile offers access to millions of peer-reviewed, full text articles for a variety of academic subjects.

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America's News from Newsbank banner logo

America's News/Ames Tribune from NewsBank

Search local job fairs, companies in the news, state and national business, economic and employment trends. Find diverse perspectives on topics related to job searching, consumer spending and the housing market. Updated daily. 

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Brainfuse logo

Brainfuse Help Now

Stuck on a tough homework assignment? Looking for test prep resources? Brainfuse offers virtual live tutoring, a 24-hour writing assignment review, study groups, flashcards, and can even help create a study plan. Find test prep for college entrance exams and ASVAB. Adult learners will find tutoring and study guides just for adults, as well as computer training courses, and study guides for the U.S. Citizenship Test, TABE, TOEFL, GED, and more. 

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WorldCat Services logo

FirstSearch Online Database

FirstSearch is a great place to start if you're looking for a specific book or for full-text articles. You can search for books and e-books at libraries across the world and access millions of full-text, full-image articles from thousands of serials.

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GCF Learn Free.org logo

GCF LearnFree

If you need a quick brush up on your Microsoft Office or other technology skills GCF LearnFree is the place to start. Check out their more than 125 self-paced tutorials for math, career, reading, every day life skills, and more. 

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Khan Academy logo

Khan Academy

Khan Academy's mission is to provide free, world-class education for anyone, anywhere, and they’ve partnered with institutions like NASA and the Museum of Modern Art to do so. Create an account and you'll have access to videos, exercises, and your own learning dashboard as you study at your own pace. 

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Little Pim logo

Little Pim

Little Pim is the fun, easy way for kids ages 0-6 to learn a new language. Come explore with Little Pim, the adorable cartoon panda, as you discover a new language!

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Mango Languages

Mango Languages

Powered by intelligent technology and an adaptive algorithm, Mango empowers you to communicate with confidence, preparing you for uncharted experiences with language and culture. Challenge yourself to discover something new. Start the conversation.

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NoveList Logo

Novelist Plus

NoveList is a fiction database that provides subject heading access, reviews, annotations, and much more for over 120,000 fiction titles. It also includes other content of interest to fiction readers, such as Author Read-alikes, Book Discussion Guides, BookTalks, and Feature Articles. 

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Opposing Viewpoints in Context from Gale logo

Opposing Viewpoints in Context

Opposing Viewpoints is the perfect resource for anyone wanting information on today's hottest social issues, from capital punishment to immigration to marijuana. It offers pro/con viewpoints, reference articles, interactive maps, infographics, and more. Informed, differing views help you develop critical-thinking skills and draw your own conclusions.

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Tumble Book Library logo

TumbleBookLibrary

Want a fun, 21st century alternative to print picture books? TumbleBookLibrary has a great interactive collection of stories with sound, music, animation, and narration. Have your favorite book read as you follow along and enjoy the story. Be sure to check out their book of the day!

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Teen Rainbow Books

  • Cover image for What If Someone I Know Is Gay?

    What If Someone I Know Is Gay?

    Eric Marcus

    Offers answers to questions young readers might ask about gay people, whether those questions concern a friend, a family member, or themselves.

  • Cover image for Beautiful Music for Ugly Children

    Beautiful Music for Ugly Children

    Kirstin Cronn-Mills

    The award-winning author of The Sky Always Hears Me and the Hills Don't Mind presents the story of teen DJ Gabe, a transgendered youth who knows himself to be a boy trapped in a girl's body and whose efforts to gain acceptance are threatened by a violent gang of bullies. Original.

  • Cover image for Who's That Girl

    Who's That Girl

    Blair Thornburgh

    This laugh-out-loud debut is filled with hilarious awkward encounters, a supportive LGBTQ organization, and too many cheesy lyrics to count—all with the compulsive readability of Audrey, Wait! and Boy Meets Boy. Junior Nattie McCullough has always been that under-the-radar straight girl who hangs out in the cafeteria with her gay-straight alliance friends. She’s never been the girl that gets the guy, let alone the girl that gets a hit song named after her.

  • Cover image for The Porcupine of Truth

    The Porcupine of Truth

    Bill Konigsberg

    Spending his summer in Billings, Montana, to help care for the dying alcoholic father he never knew, Carson Smith meets a beautiful runaway and a pastor who holds a secret about Carson's long-missing grandfather. By the award-winning author of Out of the Pocket. Simultaneous eBook.

  • Cover image for The Letter Q

    The Letter Q

    Sarah Moon, James Lecesne

    Collects letters from such famous contributors as Brian Selznick, Michael Cunningham, and Amy Bloom to offer hope and support in the face of prejudice.

  • Cover image for The Prince and the Dressmaker

    The Prince and the Dressmaker

    Jen Wang

    Prince Sebastian has a secret. At night he puts on daring dresses and takes Paris by storm as the fabulous Lady Crystallia. Sebastian's secret weapon (and best friend) is the brilliant dressmaker Frances. But how long can Frances defer her dreams to protect a friend?

  • Cover image for Lizard Radio

    Lizard Radio

    Pat Schmatz

    Fifteen-year-old bender Kivali has had a rough time in a gender-rigid culture. Abandoned as a baby and raised by Sheila, an ardent nonconformist, Kivali has always been surrounded by uncertainty. Where did she come from? Is it true what Sheila says, that she was deposited on Earth by the mysterious saurians? Now she's in CropCamp, with all of its schedules and regs, and the first real friends she's ever had. Strange occurrences and complicated relationships raise questions Kivali has never before had to consider.

  • Cover image for The Inexplicable Logic of My Life

    The Inexplicable Logic of My Life

    Benjamin Alire Saenz

    "A story set on the American border with Mexico, about family and friendship, life and death, and one teen struggling to understand what his adoption does and doesn't mean about who he is"--

  • Cover image for Love Dares You

    Love Dares You

    Christos Gage, Rebekah Isaacs, Joss Whedon

    "This volume reprints the comic-book series Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 10, #11-15, from Dark Horse Comics"--Title page verso.

  • Cover image for Brazen

    Brazen

    Pnlope Bagieu

    With her characteristic wit and dazzling drawings, celebrated graphic novelist Penelope Bagieu profiles the lives of these feisty female role models, some world famous, some little known. From Nellie Bly to Mae Jemison or Josephine Baker to Naziq al-Abid, the stories in this comic biography are sure to inspire the next generation of rebel ladies.

Upcoming Teen Events

Library Closed due to COVID-19

All Day 3/17 - 6/30
Branches:
Ames Public Library, Off Site
Description:
  Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Ames Public Library is closed for the safety of our visitors, staff, and community. For information and updates on the closure and reintroduction of services, visit www.amespubliclibrary.org/C...

Summer Reading Challenge

All Day, 6/1 - 8/14
Family, Teens, Adults
Library Branch: Online
Age Group: Family, Teens, Adults
Program Type: Reading Incentive Program
Program Details:
This year our summer reading challenge for all ages is designed to develop a reading habit and connect everyone to the world of ideas through the Ames Public Library. Read and complete challenges to earn virtual badges. See how many you c...

Ames Public Library connects you to the world of ideas through diverse and inclusive resources and programs. We welcome program proposals via our website at bit.ly/APLprogram.

Teen Advisory Group (TAG)

7:00pm - 8:00pm
Teens
Library Branch: Online
Age Group: Teens
Program Type: Boards/Government, Meetup
Program Details:
Help plan exciting library events for teens, share what you’re reading, and make new friends.  E-mail trastogi@amespubliclibrary.org for more information or to participate in the online meeting. Supported by the Ames Public Library Frien...

Ames Public Library connects you to the world of ideas through diverse and inclusive resources and programs. We welcome program proposals via our website at bit.ly/APLprogram.

Teen Advisory Group (TAG)

7:00pm - 8:00pm
Teens
Library Branch: Online
Age Group: Teens
Program Type: Boards/Government, Meetup
Program Details:
Help plan exciting library events for teens, share what you’re reading, and make new friends.  E-mail trastogi@amespubliclibrary.org for more information or to participate in the online meeting. Supported by the Ames Public Library Frien...

Ames Public Library connects you to the world of ideas through diverse and inclusive resources and programs. We welcome program proposals via our website at bit.ly/APLprogram.

Library Closed

All Day
Branches:
Ames Public Library
Description:
Ames Public Library will be closed July 4. ...

Teen Advisory Group (TAG)

7:00pm - 8:00pm
Teens
Library Branch: Online
Age Group: Teens
Program Type: Boards/Government, Meetup
Program Details:
Help plan exciting library events for teens, share what you’re reading, and make new friends.  E-mail trastogi@amespubliclibrary.org for more information or to participate in the online meeting. Supported by the Ames Public Library Frien...

Ames Public Library connects you to the world of ideas through diverse and inclusive resources and programs. We welcome program proposals via our website at bit.ly/APLprogram.

Teen Advisory Group (TAG)

7:00pm - 8:00pm
Teens
Library Branch: Online
Age Group: Teens
Program Type: Boards/Government, Meetup
Program Details:
Help plan exciting library events for teens, share what you’re reading, and make new friends.  E-mail trastogi@amespubliclibrary.org for more information or to participate in the online meeting. Supported by the Ames Public Library Frien...

Ames Public Library connects you to the world of ideas through diverse and inclusive resources and programs. We welcome program proposals via our website at bit.ly/APLprogram.

Teen Advisory Group (TAG)

7:00pm - 8:00pm
Teens
Library Branch: Online
Age Group: Teens
Program Type: Boards/Government, Meetup
Program Details:
Help plan exciting library events for teens, share what you’re reading, and make new friends.  E-mail trastogi@amespubliclibrary.org for more information or to participate in the online meeting. Supported by the Ames Public Library Frien...

Ames Public Library connects you to the world of ideas through diverse and inclusive resources and programs. We welcome program proposals via our website at bit.ly/APLprogram.

Teen Advisory Group (TAG)

7:00pm - 8:00pm
Teens
Library Branch: Online
Age Group: Teens
Program Type: Boards/Government, Meetup
Program Details:
Help plan exciting library events for teens, share what you’re reading, and make new friends.  E-mail trastogi@amespubliclibrary.org for more information or to participate in the online meeting. Supported by the Ames Public Library Frien...

Ames Public Library connects you to the world of ideas through diverse and inclusive resources and programs. We welcome program proposals via our website at bit.ly/APLprogram.