If you've been joining in with our Audio Waves Book Club then it's time for your next audio book! Our fourth Audio Waves title is: THE WALL OF LIFE by Shirley MacLaine. Available FREE on BorrowBox as an eAudiobook with your Orkney Library card (OR available wherever you get your eAudiobooks.)

It's a little known fact that Otis Redding spent time in Hoy, #Orkney during the 1920s while engineer Ernest Cox carried out salvage work on the scuttled German fleet, as shown in this photograph. Apparently Otis was often seen sitting on the dock in Mill Bay, watching the tide roll away.

Like #CelebrityTraitors, our Traitors display is done and has now been replaced with a #StrictlyComeDancing display. 💃🕺 The banished labels have been replaced by glitterballs. The books have changed. @claudiawinkleman.bsky.social endures. 🕺💃

Along with the toolboxes and drills we've just added 2 Wagner Wallpaper Strippers and 2 Cable Reels to our NEW loanable tool collection. And we'll be adding more items shortly so watch this space! 👀 Find out more about our loanable tool collection at: orkneylibrary.org.uk/tools/

A book poppy for #RemembranceDay

We had 2 very fun and festive Christmas Sewing Machine sessions on Saturday! 🎄 Thanks to Frances for running the sessions, Ellen for coming along to help out, and Jocelyn for the brilliant video! ❤️ We'll have more Lend & Mend craft sessions soon so watch this space! 👀

Couldn't find this book yesterday. We'd lost That Loving Feeling. Whoa That Loving Feeling. We'd lost That Loving Feeling now it's back back back whoa oh-oh-oh.

Massive thanks to the brilliant Sally Magnusson for coming along to Stromness Library last night to discuss her fabulous new novel The Shapeshifter's Daughter. Both the old and new Stromness Library buildings feature in the story so it was wonderful to hold the event there. ❤️

This has been our #CelebrityTraitors display. We've been Orkney Library. Until next time. Stay Faithful. 🗡

We've just added 2 DeWalt Combi Drill sets to our NEW loanable tool collection along with Drill and Bit sets which can be loaned with the drills or borrowed separately. And we'll be adding more soon! 🔨🔧 Find more information below or on our website at: orkneylibrary.org.uk/tools/

Remember remember the 5th of November, which is traditionally the day we put that guy Faulks on top of the Bonfire (of the Vanities) 🔥🎇 #BonfireNight #GuyFawkes

Our #Lego display cases have been overflowing with Lego models for our SOMETHING SPOOKTACULAR #OrkneyLibraryLego theme! 👻🎃🦇🧛‍♂️ All made by library users using our #Lego collection. Thanks to everyone who made us a #Halloween model! ❤️ Our next theme is HARVEST! 🚜🍂🍃

Today is #NationalSandwichDay so we've made a Jam and Cleese sandwich. 🥪

Another week, another new thing at Orkney Library & Archive! 🛠️ Libraries are not just about books and this week we're launching our loanable TOOL collection! 🔧 We have 3 different toolkits available and we'll be adding more items very soon. 🪛 #GreenLibraries #LoveLibraries

If you've got kids and only just realised it's #Halloween or your kids come home from school today and announce they need a dressing up outfit in the next 15 minutes THEN DON'T PANIC! At Orkney Library and Stromness Library we have loads of FREE dressing up clothes available!

Every year on #Halloween we carve a #Pumpkin from our collection of Penguin Books. 🎃 We're up to our elbows here in juicy plots and seedy characters. Luckily there's not much pulp fiction. 🎃

We've been overwhelmed by the response to our new Wintering Well Kits. The batch of 10 additional kits including SAD lamps have also now been catalogued and are all heading out on loan. We'll fulfil reservations as soon as we can once the kits are returned.

Tomorrow is #Halloween which is a great time to read a spooky story. One of our favourite spooky stories is The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irvine. First published in 1820 it tells the story of a terrifying headless horseman, but that's not why we like it. 🎃

Everybody waiting for #CelebrityTraitors tonight

Thank you to Kim for sending us this lovely #Agatha Christie postcard for #Halloween! Featuring the original dustjacket artwork for the U.S. edition of the bestselling mystery novel of all time! If you've not read it yet then this is the year to do it! 🔪💀 #ReadChristie2025

The launch of our new Wintering Well Kits has been a great success and have all now gone on loan! BUT LOOK AT THIS! Our lovely friends at East Dumbartonshire Libraries have sent us some extra Wintering Well Kits along with some cosy goodies to get us through the winter! ❤️

The clocks have gone back and we are moving towards the darker months so we are DELIGHTED to launch our new Wintering Well Kits - FREE loanable kits containing a portable plug-in therapy lamp, along with other resources to help people who struggle during the winter months. ☀️💡

We have fat balls how's your Monday morning going? Many thanks to the brilliant team from RSPB Orkney who have been here the last two weekends running Nature craft sessions for children. ❤️👏🐦‍⬛🪲 @rspbscotland.bsky.social

Just the wind outside the library endlessly forming then scattering then reforming a pile of fallen leaves. 🌬🍃

Still need to update our #TheTraitors display...🗡 #IYKYK

It's been a bittersweet week at Orkney Library & Archive because we've been saying goodbye and HAPPY RETIREMENT to Simon who is leaving us after many years of service in the library and, of course, being the driver of #BookyMcBookface (and several previous Mobile Libraries!)

#CelebrityTraitors last night

It's October and next week the clocks go back as we slowly slide towards the days of shorter light. So we're delighted that next week we'll be launching our Wintering Well Boxes, which are FREE loanable kits containing SAD therapy lamps, activity guides and other resources.

The Bluesky Department is closed for a few days now because we have a wee calf. The library is open as normal and you can still contact us on 01856 873156 or email [email protected]. See you all next week 👋

Time travel exists between the pages of a book. This luggage tag fell out of a pile of old books, and everything about it looks like the past.

We had 2 superbly spooky Halloween Sewing Machine sessions on Saturday at Orkney Library & Archive! 🎃 Huge thanks to Frances for coming along and running the classes, and to Ellen for helping out! 👻🧙‍♀️🪄 We'll have more Lend & Mend craft sessions soon so watch this space. 👀

okay who did this?

We are delighted to announce that on Thursday 6th November, broadcaster, journalist and novelist Sally Magnusson will be coming to Stromness Library to talk about her new book The Shapeshifter's Daughter, with local historian and writer Tom Muir.

This is #BookyMcBookface sailing back from Rousay this afternoon. 💨🌊 #Orkney

We have an announcement. #BookyMcBookface our Mobile Library is away on the ferry to the islands of Rousay and Egilsay today, but due to bad weather he will NOT be visiting Egilsay this afternoon. All Rousay stops will be as normal. Apologies for any inconvenience.

Remember the beautiful, sparkly Book Bench Trail Silver Darlings-inspired Book Bench we had out front all summer? It's being auctioned TONIGHT to raise money for Clan Cancer Support! You can see all the benches, follow the auction live and bid for a bench at: clancancersupport.org/the-book-ben...

Happy publication day to regular Orkney Library visitor @anncleeves.bsky.social. The Killing Stones has just been published and features D.I. Jimmy Perez but now he has moved from Shetland to #Orkney! It's less sassermaet and more fatty cuttie. #IYKYK Available now from your local library.

We have no cats today but say hello to the library car park snail. 🐌 We think he was on his way to borrow a book but he's not arrived yet.

If you go down to Stromness Library today, you can see Stephanie's superbly spooktacular window painting of Meg and Mog, from the brilliant books by Helen Nicoll and Jan Pieńkowski. 🧙‍♀️🐈‍⬛🦉🧹🌙 #LoveLibraries #Halloween

s of the night. #NationalPoetryDay #BookSpinePoetry

Our last #OrkneyLibraryLego theme was 'Things You'd Find At School' and among all the fabulous models was a #Lego notebook and pen! Amazing work as always! ❤️

It may be the first of October but still the holiday balls keep on coming. Here's some stupendously shiny sunken balls all the way from Munich. (try saying stupendously shiny sunken balls after some schnapps)

Incredible Aurora Borealis in #Orkney last night so glad we stayed up late to see it

Good morning to everyone but ESPECIALLY to Helen who came to visit yesterday and brought us some lovely sweet treats all the way from Ireland! Helen works at the library of Trinity College in Dublin which is one of the MOST BEAUTIFUL libraries in the world! We want to visit! 😍

Good morning everyone. This was the sun rising over Shapinsay this morning. Taken from the ferry as #BookyMcBookface sailed north to the #Orkney island of Eday. ❤️

Mordor on the Orient Express

We like big butts and we cannot lie. This is our new water butt which will be installed out front so that we can collect rainwater to water the flowers of our new Interactive Flora Trail. orkneylibrary.org.uk/interactive-...

Hey @richardosman1.bsky.social when did you discover time travel and also were you a school teacher called Mr Shaw living in #Orkney in 1971? #PhotographicArchives

Thanks to Pat for bringing us this lovely library bag all the way back from La Capitolare di Verona (the Chapter Library of Verona). La Capitolare is one of the oldest libraries in the world to have been in continuous use, and is over 1500 years old with it's origins dating back to at least 517 AD.

Today is #HobbitDay because both Bilbo and Frodo Baggins were born on September 22nd. Normally we'd shire a hobbit pun or two but it might just feel like a tolkien gesture and we don't want to embarrass our elves. Anyway come and boromir #Tolkien books.