The Library Vault

Voices from behind the scenes at Russell Library.

Are you ready to play?

Hint hint: there might be a “cheat code” of sorts way down below… What the heck are the Russell Library games? In celebration of Russell Library’s 150th year serving Middletown, we decided to spread joy in 2026 by running the Russell Library Games. Between the anniversaries of our doors opening to the public (April 5)…

brandiedoyle

March 30, 2026

Contests, Events, Giveaways, Middletown, CT, Sports, Trending

AnnArborDistrictLibrary, BirthdayBash, CheatCode, DowntownBusinessDistrict, FrancesRussell, GiftCard, LibraryCard, LibraryGiftCard, LoveClub, PokemonGo, RussellLibraryBirthday, RussellLibraryGames, RussellLibraryLoveClub, SummerGame
Reading the Movies

Have you ever read a book that you just loved, but then you watched the movie version and it’s just so different that you’re disappointed, sad, or even angry? As a librarian who also loves movies, I’ve had that happen many times. So what’s to be done? With few exceptions, movies and even series (formerly…

Amy S.

March 23, 2026

Book Reviews, Contests, Graphic Novels / Manga, Kids and Teens, Lost In Translation, Movies, Recommendations, Trending

AlfredHitchcock, AllisonPearson, AnneRice, Beloved, Buffy/Spike, BuffyTheVampireSlayer, DaphneDuMaurier, EJDickson, Hamlet, Hamnet, IDontKnowHowSheDoesIt, IfIHadLegsIdKickYou, InterviewWithAVampire, KPopDemonHunters, MaryBronstein, MeeshTheBadDemon, MinJinLee, Miyazaki, MyNeighborTotoro, NoveList, OneBadMother, OneBattleAfterAnother, Oscars, Pachinko, PhilipaGregory, Read-alike, Rebecca, RoseByrne, RyanCoogler, SarahJessicaParker, Shakespeare, Sinners, SpiritedAway, StudioGhibli, TheWhiteQueen, ThomasPynchon, ToniMorrison, VampiresOfElNorte, Vineland, WolfHall
Oscar Predictions from a Local Movie Expert

by Amy S. The 97th Academy Awards air on Sunday, March 15th. To get ready, we asked Professor Michael Slowik, Vice Chair of the College of Film and the Moving Image at Wesleyan University, to give us his predictions for the top awards. Best Original Screenplay and Best Adapted Screenplay: Sinners and One Battle After…

Amy S.

March 9, 2026

Contests, Movies, Recommendations, Trending

1930sAmerica, AcademyAwards, ActorsAwards, BAFTA, BestAdaptedScreenplay, BestAnimatedFilm, BestCinematography, BestDirector, BestInternationalFilm, BestOriginalScreenplay, BestSupportingActor, BestSupportingActress, CollegeOfFilmAndTheMovingImage, CriticsChoiceAwards, DrMichaelSlowik, FilmStudies, Golden, Hamnet, JessieBuckley, KPopDemonHunters, LeonardoDiCaprio, MichaelBJordan, OneBattleAfterAnother, Oscars, PaulThomasAnderson, SeanPenn, SentimentalValue, Sinners, StellanSkarsgård, TeyanaTaylor, TrainDreams, WesleyanUniversity
Born in a Blizzard

A blizzard was coming. That sounds like the opening of a novel, but it was, unfortunately, real life. It was early Saturday morning, 3:00AM to be exact, and I had just awakened with the realization that we had chicken eggs incubating in the children’s room. This was a big deal because there was a probability…

Mary

March 2, 2026

Inside Stories

#Blizzard2026, #chickeneggs, #chickens, #hatchingchickens, #libraries, #middletownct
Analog Soul

Some people think analog media is dead. Why bother buying an entire album when you can just stream that song? Who wants to develop a roll of film when we can store thousands of photos on our phones? Is it really necessary to carry around a stack of books when e-readers exist? It’s a valid…

Cate T.

February 23, 2026

Inside Stories, Library Services, Recommendations

AliceInWonderland, Analog, Arcades, Atari, BeKindRewind, Blu-Ray, Cassette, CDs, Cinnabun, DisneyVault, Dumbo, DVDs, GardenStateParkway, GenX, Mapquest, MenloParkMall, Mixtape, Movies, Nintendo, Nostalgia, RobinHood, Sega, Spotify, Streaming, SuncoastMotionPictureCompany, Tapes, VHS, VintageVinyl

Are you ready to play?

Reading the Movies

Oscar Predictions from a Local Movie Expert

Born in a Blizzard

Analog Soul