Laurel Ridge Community College Library

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Laurel Ridge Community College Library Books, computers, study rooms, DVDs, and other good stuff for Laurel Ridge students, faculty and staff.

Contact Information

Paul Wolk Library
173 Skirmisher Lane
Middletown, Virginia 22645
(540) 868-7170

Bob G. Sowder Library
6480 College Street
Warrenton, VA 20187
(540) 351-1596

Regular Hours
Monday - Thursday: 8AM-7pm
Friday: 8AM-4pm
Saturday (Middletown): 9am-1pm
Saturday (Fauquier): Closed
Sunday: Closed

As our hours can change depending on when classes are in session, please check the library's website for the most up-to-date calendar. https://laurelridge.libguides.com/c.php?g=122016&p=796254&fs=e&s=cl

🧡 What I Learned From Banned Books 🧡In honor of Banned Books Week, Laurel Ridge staff are sharing what lessons or insigh...
10/09/2026

🧡 What I Learned From Banned Books 🧡

In honor of Banned Books Week, Laurel Ridge staff are sharing what lessons or insight they’ve gotten from frequently challenged or banned books.

From John Owens:

“’The Glass Castle’ was a very important book to me. I read it as an adult who often struggled with imposter syndrome. The book helped me see that the past informs us, but it does not have
to define us. It made me feel less alone with my past trauma... I felt seen. We have to be able to read hard stories, because the world can be a hard place. A few years ago at a Laurel Ridge event, I got to meet Ms. Walls and share a poignant moment with her over the effect her story had on me.”

Post #4:🧡 What I Learned From Banned Books 🧡In honor of Banned Books Week, Laurel Ridge staff are sharing what lessons ...
10/09/2026

Post #4:

🧡 What I Learned From Banned Books 🧡

In honor of Banned Books Week, Laurel Ridge staff are sharing what lessons or insight they’ve gotten from frequently challenged or banned books.

From Erin Woods:

“I used to hate reading when I was younger because none of the books I saw seemed interesting until ‘The Giver’. Surprisingly, it was a book I was required to read in 7th grade that finally caught my attention. A 12-year old child chosen to bear the emotional burden of human society but instead chose to see the beauty in the world instead. It was an amazing lesson in self-discovery, empathy, and how to handle those hard feelings that are so new yet so important at that age. Self-regulation is not always an easy concept to learn from others and it was a banned book that really got that lesson to stick for me. It was my first step in my individuality and one I gladly share with others if they ask ‘what book should I try to read?’. It ignited my passion for reading and that passion still burns bright to this day.”

As we celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, this week’s TBT from the college archives looks back at Mr. Silvio Alvarez, the...
10/09/2026

As we celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, this week’s TBT from the college archives looks back at Mr. Silvio Alvarez, the college’s first Spanish teacher. Working throughout the 1970s, Alvarez helped expose our first generation of college students to the Spanish language and culture.

Post #3:🧡 What I Learned From Banned Books 🧡In honor of Banned Books Week, Laurel Ridge staff are sharing what lessons ...
10/08/2026

Post #3:

🧡 What I Learned From Banned Books 🧡

In honor of Banned Books Week, Laurel Ridge staff are sharing what lessons or insight they’ve gotten from frequently challenged or banned books.

“In this list, of the books I had read, Beloved stands out the most. It was brutal and yet necessary. It is difficult for us in this time and place, especially coming from old southern heritage, to truly appreciate the horrors visited upon our enslaved brothers and sisters. Knowing the facts from a history book or visit to a plantation are not the same as the visceral pain and terror displayed by Beloved. I can see why it was challenged, however I think it is a very necessary work that needs to be far more widely read.”

🧡 What I Learned From Banned Books 🧡In honor of Banned Books Week, Laurel Ridge staff are sharing what lessons or insigh...
10/08/2026

🧡 What I Learned From Banned Books 🧡

In honor of Banned Books Week, Laurel Ridge staff are sharing what lessons or insight they’ve gotten from frequently challenged or banned books.

From Larry Friedenberg:

“Honestly, in looking through the lists, I’m astonished to see so many important and valuable books I’ve read that have been documented by the ALA as “banned” or “challenged.” Most recently I read Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi, and to give some context, this book somehow makes the 2010’s list with the classics Of Mice and Men and The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. These books, along with many others, provide insights to ways of understanding others that we might never imagine or consider - is this wisdom or a lesson learned, perhaps. Maybe, more realistically, these books are a way for us to share and consume and assess wide ranging ideas, beliefs, understandings, and culture; a means of thinking critically about our world and expressing social empathy. Now who wouldn’t want us to do that?”

🧡 What I Learned From Banned Books 🧡In honor of Banned Books Week, Laurel Ridge staff are sharing what lessons or insigh...
10/08/2026

🧡 What I Learned From Banned Books 🧡

In honor of Banned Books Week, Laurel Ridge staff are sharing what lessons or insight they’ve gotten from frequently challenged or banned books.

From Catherine Robbins:

“In honor of Banned Books Week I’d like to share some books that have shaped how I think about war and conflict. I have read Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi, Nasreen’s Secret School by Jeanette Winter, Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card, and Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. A common theme throughout each of these books is the character’s struggle to remain human in spite of often intense conflict and violence. Whether through education, storytelling, rebellion, or empathy, the characters fight not only for survival but also for the right to define who they are. Dehumanization is evident in each of these stories. In Ender’s Game, the “buggers” are viewed as an enemy species until the devastating truth is revealed. In The Hunger Games, children become entertainment. In Persepolis, political ideologies reduce individuals to categories, often categories strictly enforced along gender lines. In Nasreen’s Secret School, girls are denied education because they are seen as less valuable. In the face of this dehumanization, these books emphasize storytelling, education, and memory as forms of resistance. Marji tells her own story through a graphic memoir in Persepolis. Nasreen’s education helps her reclaim her voice. Katniss’s narrative exposes the reality behind propaganda in The Hunger Games. Ender ultimately writes The Hive Queen so the alien species can be understood rather than feared. These stories help us remember what is most important and how to celebrate and fight for what we believe in.”

🧡 What I Learned From Banned Books 🧡In honor of Banned Books Week, Laurel Ridge staff are sharing what lessons or insigh...
10/08/2026

🧡 What I Learned From Banned Books 🧡

In honor of Banned Books Week, Laurel Ridge staff are sharing what lessons or insight they’ve gotten from frequently challenged or banned books.

From: Kayla Buckles

“Of all the books and stories that helped shape me into the adult that I am today, it was a Banned Book series that taught me the most. The Harry Potter series played a pivotal role in my upbringing. As an introverted and lonely child, I found friendship, loyalty, and hope in the Harry Potter series. These books taught me that empathy, love, and kindness are their own type of magic. That the strongest bonds are often forged in the loveliness of friendship, not the burden of familiar obligation. That ‘happiness can be found even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light.’”

🧡 What I Learned From Banned Books 🧡In honor of Banned Books Week, Laurel Ridge staff are sharing what lessons or insigh...
10/07/2026

🧡 What I Learned From Banned Books 🧡

In honor of Banned Books Week, Laurel Ridge staff are sharing what lessons or insight they’ve gotten from frequently challenged or banned books.

From JoAnn Ellwood:

“I read Flowers for Algernon as a freshman in high school, and one lesson that has stayed with me is that what seems beneficial in the moment may not always lead to the best long-term outcome. The story challenged me to think beyond the pursuit of progress itself and to consider its broader impact. What benefits might emerge? What unintended consequences could follow? And if risks exist, how might we address them responsibly?
That lesson feels especially relevant today as we navigate rapidly advancing technologies such as artificial intelligence. The novel reminds us that progress is not inherently good or bad. Rather, it is our responsibility to approach it critically and thoughtfully. We should not be fearful but thoughtful. As we innovate, we should remain curious, ask difficult questions, and consider what we can achieve as well as how those achievements may impact individuals and society over time. “

🧡 What I Learned From Banned Books 🧡In honor of Banned Books Week, Laurel Ridge staff are sharing what lessons or insigh...
10/07/2026

🧡 What I Learned From Banned Books 🧡

In honor of Banned Books Week, Laurel Ridge staff are sharing what lessons or insight they’ve gotten from frequently challenged or banned books.

From Monica James:

“Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury is a huge favorite of mine….along with everything dystopian science fiction….and I cannot get past the irony….that it’s a book about banned content and censorship and who has control of the information that’s currently banned.”

Address

173 Skirmisher Lane
Middletown, VA
22645

Telephone

+15408687170

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