Love to read? Let’s make it a group thing.
Whether your family is joining us for your first in-branch Story Time or you’re rediscovering old favourites with new friends, there’s a club—and a reading community—waiting for you here.
Adult Winter Challenge: All the Feels
October 1, 2025 – January 31, 2026
Experience All the Feels this winter with the ORL’s Adult Winter Challenge!
Discover the history of emojis, explore the importance of emotions, and enjoy creative activities that help you express yourself fully. As you read and reflect, you’ll earn fun emoji-themed badges—and tickets toward amazing prizes.
There’s no pressure, just good books, thoughtful moments, and a shared appreciation for stories and feelings that connect us all.
Get started today and make reading your coziest habit this winter.
How to Join
Complete the challenge online through Beanstack or pick up a paper tracker from your local ORL branch. Log your books, complete activities, and fill out the challenge survey to earn tickets for prizes and emoji-themed badges along the way.
How to Earn Tickets
You can collect up to 50 tickets during the challenge!
Reading Log
Track the books you read—any title counts!
- 1 ticket per book (maximum 20)
Activity Log
Complete as many creative or reflective activities as you like.
- 1 ticket per activity (maximum 20)
Bonus Tickets!
- 1 ticket for joining the challenge
- 4 tickets for completing the Winter Challenge Survey (December 1, 2025 – January 31, 2026)
- 4 tickets for bringing a friend to the library during our Library Card Drive in November
- 1 ticket for completing both the reading log and all activities
Return your completed tracker by January 31, 2026 to be entered into the prize draw.
Prizes
Each prize brings a little extra joy to your winter:
-
Kobo Clara eReader
-
One of three $50 Indigo Gift Cards
Winners will be contacted in February 2025.
All the Feels!
Ready to feel all the feels? The challenge explores four emotions that connect us all:
Happiness — Activities that bring comfort and joy.
Inspiration — Moments that spark creativity and hope.
Sadness — Reflections that connect us through empathy and understanding.
Worry — Exercises that help calm the mind and ease uncertainty.
You’ll find activities such as making a “Happiness Soundtrack,” journaling your feelings, creating your own emoji, or designing a “Worry Monster.”
Before You Start
- This challenge can only be completed once per person.
- You must have a valid ORL card to participate.
- Don’t have one? Sign up online or at your local branch.
- Open to all adult ORL card holders.
- ORL employees, board members, and their immediate families may participate for fun but are not eligible for prize draws.
Join the Challenge!
Register on Beanstack or visit your local branch to pick up your paper tracker.
Book Club Support
The library can help you with running your own book club! We have Book Club Kits you can borrow, and we can help you find awesome books to read.
- Ask your library how many copies of the book your club wants to read are in the collection.
- Check to see if there is a Book Club Kit for the book or ask library staff to help.
- Library staff can help you with placing your holds.
- Library staff can also help you pick good books, find questions to talk about, learn about the author, and the historical background for the book.
Join a Book Club to see what it is all about
Check our calendar and see if your library is running a book club.
Book Club Kits FAQs
A Book Club Kit is a ready-to-go tote filled with six to eight copies of the same title. Books are selected by ORL librarians for their meaningful themes, cultural impact, and ability to spark great conversation. If you have book suggestions for our Book Club Kits, please share them with staff.
A list of current Book Club Kits is available in our catalogue. Please place a Hold on a book club kit through the library catalogue, or ask staff for help.
Because kits are popular, we recommend placing your Hold well ahead of your Book Club meeting, then pausing the Hold until closer to the date you need it. There’s no limit to how many kits one person can borrow, so some clubs reserve two different kits per month to ensure a good match arrives on time.
Book Club Kits can be borrowed for 42 days. Please return the entire kit, including the tote and all books, to the circulation desk at your local branch.
The original borrower is responsible for returning the complete Book Club Kit. If the tote or books are missing or damaged, a replacement fee may apply.
Tips for Running a Book Club
Useful Websites
These websites can help you find good discussion questions for your book club and help you make your next book club choice.
- NoveList:
Log in using your library card and PIN and search through thousands of popular fiction. You can find authors or books like the ones you enjoyed, reading lists, and guides for talking about books. - Reading Group Choices:
Search for books by their title, author, or what they’re about. You’ll find summaries, info about authors, and ideas to start conversations in book clubs. - Reading Group Guides:
This website has guides for many books that are great for book clubs.
What Should You Read?
Choose books that will make your group talk and think. Things to look for:
- Award winners.
- Good reviews.
- Classic books that are well-known.
- Canadian authors.
- Books about important or tough topics.
- Different kinds of books like graphic novels, science fiction, and magical realism, or nonfiction.
Role of a Book Club Leader
A book club leads helps things go smoothly. You can take turns being the leader. Without a leader, book clubs can become just social gatherings and people might not talk about the book.
To have a great book club discussion, leaders should:
- Send an email about a week before the meeting with things like articles, interviews, or videos related to the book. This can help start discussions.
- Before the meeting, think of questions about the book, you can find questions on the internet, too. Choose parts of the book to read out loud and discuss.
- During the meeting, keep everyone focused on the book. If the conversation slows down, ask more questions.
- Pay attention to who talks a lot and who is quiet. Make sure everyone gets a chance to share their thoughts.
Remember, the goal is to have fun together while talking about books. Enjoy your book club meetings!
Story Time
Join us for in-library and online Story Times
Story Time celebrates the joys of language and story through the use of music, puppets, picture books, storytelling, and more! Sign up for Story Times using the registration links below, or view all in-library or online Story Times and register for them on the ORL’s Events Calendar.
Story times at the Library
Check in with your nearest library branch to see what they may be offering for Story Times, and to view registration details.
Online Story Times
Join in for these online programs no matter where you live! Register online to get the Microsoft Teams link information. Please include your email! Need help getting started with Teams? Download our Teams Help Sheet [PDF] or, view our help tutorial.
ORL Storywalks
What is a StoryWalk® ?
A StoryWalk® is an innovative and exciting way for children and adults to enjoy reading and the outdoors together.
Pages from a children’s book are installed along a path or in the windows of local businesses. As you stroll along the route, you are directed to the next page in the story.
Follow the pages of the book and enjoy walking and talking with your children as you read the story together. StoryWalks® encourage literacy, reading, health, connection and play!