News & Updates

The Bookmobile is On the Move! Check Out the New 2025 Schedule
The BCLS Bookmobile is Bringing the Library to You!Did you know that the Bay County Library System Bookmobile makes it easy to access books, materials, and library services no matter where you live? Whether you’re a busy parent, a senior citizen, a student, or someone who simply can’t always make it...
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Get YETI to Read: Join the Bay County Library System's 2025 Winter Reading Program!
As the winter chill sets in, there's no better time to cozy up with a good book. The Bay County Library System is thrilled to announce the return of its annual Winter Reading Program, "Return of the YETI," kicking off on January 6, 2025. This engaging program encourages readers of all ages to dive i...
Read MoreUpcoming Events
Join us at the Pinconning Branch to paint a ceramic pocket planter. Adults and teens (grades 6 and up) are invited to attend. Please register with a valid phone number where you can be reached.
Disclaimer(s)
Please register each person individually, including adults.
Registration is required. Please register in person, by phone, or online.
Do you love gaming? Come join your fellow gamers in crafts, snacks, and some fun Wii games! We'll be playing Wii Sports and the switch.
Disclaimer(s)
The library makes every effort to ensure our programs can be enjoyed by all. If you have any concerns about accessibility or need to request specific accommodations, please contact the library.
Registration is required. Please register in person, by phone, or online.
Bring your knitting and crochet projects and join us while we work on our projects. Other handwork is welcomed.
**Due to the high demand of this special collection/program it is available exclusively to Bay County resident cardholders.
Disclaimer(s)
Bay County Residents Only
This high demand special collection/program is limited exclusively to Bay County resident cardholders only.
Please alert staff to any food allergies.
Registration is required. Please register in person, by phone, or online.
Join us as we use paint, tape and fabric to give boring rubber duckies some new style. Also, we’ll have snacks.
Disclaimer(s)
The library makes every effort to ensure our programs can be enjoyed by all. If you have any concerns about accessibility or need to request specific accommodations, please contact the library.
Participant must be in grades sixth through twelfth (6-12) to register for this program
Free for All: The Public Library (Documentary Screening)
How public libraries shaped the country and continue to be a sanctuary for Americans everywhere.
Disclaimer(s)
Registration is required. Please register in person, by phone, or online.
Let's celebrate National Poetry month with pizza! Attendees can bring in their own poetry to share out loud and enjoy a poetry themed craft.
Disclaimer(s)
Please alert staff to any food allergies.
Use your wit, skill, and some lucky rolls of the dice to create characters, fight bad guys, and maybe even save the world. No experience necessary!
Disclaimer(s)
Participant must be in grades sixth through twelfth (6-12) to register for this program
New Teen Reads
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Deadstream
Rear Window meets The Ring in this sinister YA thriller, in which a teen girl witnesses the livestreamed murder of a popular online streamer by a paranormal entity . . . and could be its next victim.
After surviving a car accident that claimed the life of her best friend, Teresa is now terrified to leave the safety of her bedroom. Since then, her only solace and window to the outside world has been the online community she found through streaming.
But one night, the safe world Teresa created starts to break down. A shadowy figure appears in the background of her favorite's streamer's video, and his behavior mysteriously changes over the next few days before he dies in front of thousands of viewers. Teresa finds herself at the center of a life-and-death investigation as the world tries to figure out what or who this figure could be . . . especially as it begins appearing in the other people's streams, compelling them to "open the door" and let it in—including Teresa’s own. In order to save herself and the rest of the internet from this relentless entity, Teresa must venture outside of the mental and physical walls she’s created. But will she be able to conquer her fears before anyone else loses their life? -
Messy Perfect
Perfect for fans of Mason Deaver and Becky Albertalli, this tender, raucous novel follows a rule-following, perfectionist teen who starts an underground GSA club at her conservative Catholic high school, from the acclaimed author of Kings, Queens, and In-Betweens.
Cassie Perera is a star student in St. Luke's junior class. But the new school year brings an unwelcome surprise--the return to St. Luke's of Cassie's former friend, Ben, who left a few years ago after a homophobic bullying incident Cassie knows she didn't do enough to prevent.
Still harboring guilt from her inaction, Cassie decides, in her usual, overzealous way, to team up with the neighboring public school to found an underground Gender and Sexuality Alliance--as a complicated strategy for making things up to Ben. Secretly, Cassie is also tempted by the possibility of opening up about her own sexuality for the first time.
As Cassie's new friends urge her out of her comfort zone, she unlocks a kind of joy and freedom she's never felt before--even as she struggles to balance these experiences with her typical tightrope of being the perfect daughter, student, and Catholic.
Cassie's perfectly curated life unravels into turmoil, but can she embrace the mess enough to piece together something new?
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The Coven Tendency
Zoe Hana Mikuta delivers a bloody and unrelenting fantasy about young witches dangling on the edge of love and obsession, of magic and madness, of life and death (and death and death and death). . .
Just like her mother and her mother's mother, 18-year-old Vanity Adams is destined to lead a lavish life under the patronship of the Museum, someday taking her place as its premiere necromantic Spectacle and the centerpiece of their weekly soirees thrown for the City's elite.
But until that day, Vanity (and the other young witches of the Museum) is isolated from the outside world and purged of her magic--magic being particularly unstable for teenagers and often leading to antisocial conduct, mood swings, bloodlust, delusions, and, most concerning, a habitual, violent obsession with one another.
To all of this, Vanity thinks: Well, whatever. Better than being confined to the Sanatorium with the less fortunate witches, imprisoned in a chemically induced coma as her blood is harvested to make World, the City's favorite designer drug. At least she'll be dead someday, there's always that. And at least the Museum has Arrogance, Vanity's twin sister, who just might remember how to do magic, and who just might be where our story begins. . . . -
The House No One Sees
Penelope Ross has always felt like a passenger in her mother’s fairytale - until the night of her 17th birthday, when she is forced to enter her own.
After a text from her estranged mother rips her away from a night with friends, Penny is forced into a kaleidoscope of memories locked inside the dark labyrinth of her childhood home. As Penny wanders between present and past—prose and verse—she must confront her mother's opioid addiction to mend her fractured past. But the house is tricky. The house is impossible. It wants her to dig up the dead to escape. And as Penny walks through herself to find herself, she is not sure she has the courage to free the light she trapped inside. -
In the Company of Killers
Gossip Girl meets The Sopranos in this fast-paced drama about a teenage mafia heiress who would do anything to avenge her family, even join forces with her handsome enemy.
Inside the tony suburb of Scarsdale is New York's worst-kept secret: The mob runs everything, and the Nicastro family is at the center. Seventeen-year-old Tasha Nicastro lives a life of glitz and glamour, but she has no idea her family harbors a dark truth.
Tasha might look like your classic high school mean girl, but behind the designer clothes is a sharpshooter who knows how to bring anyone to their knees. The only person who has ever gotten under her skin is her former best friend, Leo Danesi, the youngest son of the Nicastro family's rivals. After Leo returns to New York older and more handsome, Tasha thinks he'll be the worst of her problems--until the life she thought she knew takes a violent, shocking turn. When her father and beloved older sister are murdered before her eyes, Tasha learns the dark truth: Her family runs the most powerful Mafia branch in New York, and now she's set to inherit it all.
Tasha vows vengeance on the mysterious new mob behind the hit, but she can't do it alone. She needs someone who already knows the underground world to help track them down. And that person is none other than Leo, the heir to his own family's dangerous empire.
But Tasha is a Nicastro. She's been raised in the company of killers, and there's absolutely nothing she won't do to avenge her family. That is, if the enemy doesn't put her in gold chains first.
Perfect for fans of:- Mafia Romances
- Second Chance Romance
- Rivals-to-Lovers
- Thrillers
- Mysteries
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Sunrise on the Reaping (a Hunger Games Novel)
The phenomenal fifth book in the Hunger Games series!
When you've been set up to lose everything you love, what is there left to fight for?
As the day dawns on the fiftieth annual Hunger Games, fear grips the districts of Panem. This year, in honor of the Quarter Quell, twice as many tributes will be taken from their homes.
Back in District 12, Haymitch Abernathy is trying not to think too hard about his chances. All he cares about is making it through the day and being with the girl he loves.
When Haymitch's name is called, he can feel all his dreams break. He's torn from his family and his love, shuttled to the Capitol with the three other District 12 tributes: a young friend who's nearly a sister to him, a compulsive oddsmaker, and the most stuck-up girl in town. As the Games begin, Haymitch understands he's been set up to fail. But there's something in him that wants to fight . . . and have that fight reverberate far beyond the deadly arena.
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We Were Warned
Everyone knows the legend of Fairport Village: twenty-five years ago, a shocking murder closed the place down. This year, the ruins will be bulldozed at last. But tonight, it's not too late to die.
All her life, Eden Stafford has heard the lore about the abandoned beach resort at the edge of town: ever since the notorious murder there, anyone who sets foot on the property is cursed to die, It's more than just a story: over the years, two high school students who dared to explore the ruins of Fairport Village were killed there.
Eden is no stranger to notoriety, having endured a family scandal that's made her a target at school. So when she reluctantly attends an overnight party at the ruins, she's on edge--not because of some legend, but because the clique that has made her life hell for years is there, too, including Caleb Durham, the worst of them all.
Yet out of all the things Eden expected to happen that night, finding another student dead at Fairport Village wasn't one of them.
Though the death is ruled an accident, Eden knows she saw something suspicious at the ruins--and Caleb and her other longtime tormentors did too. Now they're all being followed by a deadly stranger, and to save themselves, they must work together to uncover the truth about Fairport Village. But after all that's happened, can Eden really trust Caleb and his friends? Or will they leave her to face a killer alone?
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Unlock the Dark
Perfect for fans of Brigid Kemmerer and Lexi Ryan, this debut romantasy stand-alone novel blends an immersive world, unique magic system, and swoon-worthy romance to create an unputdownable read that explores the great and terrible lengths to which love compels us to go.
Elia Tallis's key conjuring abilities, when used with her father's magic, allow her to open a path to any location. But Papa is dying, and Elia has been forced to painfully tether him to life so she can siphon his magic to provide for her siblings. The god of death, angry to be denied his due, punishes her by claiming her youngest brother as a servant.
Desperate to save her brother, Elia accepts a potentially deadly commission from Trys, a kindhearted prince with his nose stuck in a book. Trys wants Elia to help him find a legendary scroll. In exchange, he'll give her his hand in marriage, securing her and her siblings' futures and allowing her to release Papa to the afterlife.
Despite the danger of their quest, Elia and Trys find themselves increasingly drawn to each other. But when Trys finally reads the scroll, it transforms him into a monster beyond comprehension. Elia will have to wield her power in ways she never thought possible, braving a world of endless darkness and the nightmares dwelling within it to bring home the prince she's growing to love.
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Make Good Trouble
Read real stories about moments that changed history, and find out what you can do to make a difference!
"Our struggle is not the struggle of a day, a week, a month, or a year, it is the struggle of a lifetime. Never, ever be afraid to make some noise and get in good trouble, necessary trouble."
- John Lewis, Twitter 2018
Inspired by civil rights activist and congressman John Lewis's call to challenge injustice, explore famous moments of global activism throughout history with more than 70 narrative stories.
Featured stories include the Newsboys' strike of 1899, the Freedom Summer Project of 1964, Greta Thunberg's first School Strike for Climate, and students against book banning.
A must-have, illustrated narrative non-fiction guide through stories of exemplary activism:
- Topics for every interest: Stories cover protests about climate change, racism, feminism, LGBTQIA+ pride, disability, and more from around the world.
- Beautifully told stories and useful resources: Alongside the moving narrative retellings of historical moments, kids can find information about how they can be activists in a safe way, alongside a glossary and key dates for annual activism moments from across the globe.
- Written by Jamia Wilson: The acclaimed author of Shining Bright, Shining Black, Big Ideas for Young Thinkers, and Young, Gifted and Black.
Each true story in Make Good Trouble shares how activists across a variety of beliefs, ages, and backgrounds called for change, empowering young readers of all ages, abilities, and circumstances to make a difference. Brimming with illustrations and additional resources, including a timeline and information about how kids can get involved, this is essential reading for budding activists. -
Wicked Darlings
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • From the author of The Revenge Game comes a twisty YA thriller about the underbelly of Manhattan's high society, where nothing is off-limits—not even murder.
Aspiring journalist Noa has a secret she's been keeping. Ever since her sister's tragic death, she's felt almost...relieved. Noa and Leah had been locked in competition with one another since childhood, and things came to a head when her sister scored a glitzy internship at a New York society newspaper. Noa can't help but revel in her new found autonomy.
But when she gets a lead about the sketchy circumstances surrounding her sister’s untimely death, she knows she needs to investigate−she owes it to Leah.
Noa sets out to infiltrate the seedy underbelly of Manhattan high society to investigate her sister’s final days. Along the way she finds herself entangled with the glamorous Avalons and their close-knit circle of friends and frienemies. But will Noa be able to resist the allure of the Avalons' world and uncover a shocking scandal. Or will she find herself in over her head...like Leah? -
Dropping Beats
"Funny, bursting with heart, goofy, wise, and did I mention- wildly wonderfully funny."
--Jon Scieszka, First National Ambassador of Young People's Literature and Founder of Guys Read
A hilarious and heartfelt young YA comedy about the misadventures of an aspiring young rapper as he navigates school, family, and friendship.
Thirteen-year-old Growls (aka Shaun) is an aspiring (awful) rapper who hopes to enter this year's Raptology competition with his best friend, Shanks (aka Zachariah). After all, what better way to land his crush (Tanisha) and get the respect he finally deserves than winning the contest and going viral?
But when a livestream practice goes epically wrong, the two friends do go viral- and not in the way they'd hoped.
Now the laughingstock of the school, Growls is sure he'll never have another chance to date Tanisha. Even worse, Shanks has gone MIA, leaving him terribly alone.
But when Growls meets the new girl on the block (Siobhan), things don't seem so terrible after all. And with some patience, a little luck, and a whole lot of practice, he just might win the Raptology competition and be a hero to both Siobhan and Shanks.
Either way, he's ready for this. He's steady for this. It's comeback season and they call him comeback king for a reason.
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What Comes After
Sixteen-year-old Mari Novak is dead—and her problems don’t end there. For Fans of The Good Place.
Mari never gave much thought to the afterlife before her untimely demise, but she certainly didn’t think it would be an experimental wellness enclave called Paradise Gate—a place where the newly dead go to sort out the unfinished business of their lives. She also didn’t think the biggest problem to plague her in life would follow her into the great beyond: her also recently deceased mother, Faye. Mari quickly realizes Faye is her unfinished business, and in order to move on to whatever’s next, she’ll have to find a way to forgive her dysfunctional mother for being no mother at all. But there’s so much to forgive: never holding down a steady job, never having a stable home, and abandoning Mari in the end.
It’s a lot to sort through, but faced with the possibility of being turned out into the abyss, Mari gets to work. She enrolls in the prescribed self- actualization classes (think: journaling, positive self-talk, and lots of Youga™). It all seems pretty hokey, but still, the assignments force Mari to confront difficult truths about her past.
When a shocking revelation about Mari’s death captures the attention of the afterlife media, Mari is suddenly in the spotlight, her messy history being judged by the whole realm. She finds escape in an equally troubled boy, who takes Mari to an obscure part of Paradise Gate and introduces her to rebels who show Mari that this “wellness center” is not all it pretends to be. With classmates disappearing and an afterlife revolution brewing, Mari must decide whether to play it safe or break the rules. At stake? Her eternal fate. Literally. -
The Corruption of Hollis Brown
From acclaimed author K. Ancrum comes a queer romantic thriller in which the lives of Hollis, a boy in search of meaning, and Walt, a spirit with unfinished business, collide when Walt takes possession of Hollis's body...and maybe his heart. For fans of Adam Silvera and Aiden Thomas!
Hollis Brown is stuck. Born to a blue-collar American Dream, Hollis lives in a rotting small town where no one can afford to leave. Hollis's only bright spots are his two best friends, cool girls Annie and Yulia, and the thrill of fighting his classmates.
As if his circumstances couldn't get worse, a chance encounter with a mysterious stranger named Walt results in a frightening trap. After unknowingly making a deal at the crossroads, Hollis finds himself losing control of his body and mind, falling victim to possession. Walt, the ghost making a home inside him, has a deep and violent history rooted in the town Hollis grew up in and he has unfinished business to take care of.
As Walt and Hollis begin working together to put Walt's spirit to rest, an unspeakable bond forms between them, and the boys begin falling for one another in unexpected ways. But it's only a matter of time before Hollis's best friends begin to notice that something about Hollis isn't quite...right.
With the threat of a long-overdue exorcism looming before them, will Walt and Hollis be able to protect their love and undo the curse that turned their town from a garden of possibility into a place where dreams go to die?
Praise for Icarus:
"The sparse prose in this unconventional, must-read of a trauma-infused borderline thriller is packed with emotional breadth." --Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"In this intimate poetic reimagining of the Icarus myth, Ancrum crafts a subversive triumph that is a love letter both to healing from trauma and to the importance of connection and empathy." --Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"Beautifully written...Psychologically acute, subtle, and sophisticated." --ALA Booklist (starred review)
"In her extraordinary fifth novel, Icarus, K. Ancrum performs a confident high-wire act, balancing the weighty manifestations of connection, desire, and contradiction." --BookPage (starred review)
"Both romance and thriller fans will likely be gripped by this memorable love story, tinged with mythology, built around a mystery made up of bitter secrets between the two families." --The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books (starred review)
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Darkness at Dreamer Mountain
Is there a more exciting place to spend winter break than a haunted theme park? Thirteen-year-old Teddy's uncle hosts a paranormal TV show called Shiver Search. He lets his nephew tag along with the crew for a special shoot. Dreamer Mountain is a long-abandoned amusement park with rust-covered rides and snow-steeped carnival stands. Yet some say they hear sounds rising up from the site at night. When the crew enters, what they encounter proves more mind-melting than they ever expected. Teddy finds a force that seems to know his personal hopes and fears, something that can warp and transform space and time. Can he survive the cosmic power that has taken hold of Dreamer Mountain?
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You Belong to Me
The Substance meets Girl in Pieces, in this new YA psychological thriller exploring the dark secrets of the wellness and beauty world, brimming with sapphic romance, class exploration, and friendship clashes.
Frances Bean has always been content living life on the perimeter. Until she gets paired up for a class project with rich and popular Julia, daughter of famous wellness guru Deena Patterson. The "magic" skincare products, healing sound baths, and extravagant parties of Deena’s company DEEP never really interested Frances before, who wears the badge of goth outcast and bookworm proudly. But face time with the girl she has been crushing on for years is starting to give her a new outlook.
When Frances gets an exclusive invite to a DEEP event, she is blown away by the beauty and luxury of Julia’s world and the group's focus on empowering girls to be their most true selves surprisingly strikes a chord. Before long Frances finds herself invested in DEEP, a whirlwind romance with Julia, and a future that feels hopeful.
But when an infamous DEEP party takes a dark turn, Frances wonders if the allure of being a part of Julia’s life was actually just a deadly distraction…