Iowa City bookstore hosting nature event, book drive with Johnson County Conservation

Saturday occasion at Sidekick Coffee & Books will function varied nature actions, book drive

IOWA CITY — A family-friendly occasion in Iowa City this weekend gives a wide range of interactive nature actions, together with an opportunity to fulfill an ornate field turtle and fox snake.

The occasion on Saturday — which can be unbiased bookstore day — will happen from 10 to 11:30 a.m. at Sidekick Coffee & Books, 1310 1/2 Melrose Ave. Sidekick Coffee & Books is hosting the occasion and a book donation drive with Johnson County Conservation.

Seasonal Naturalist Ian Perkins teaches college students about fox snakes and different reptiles native to Iowa. (Submitted photograph from Johnson County Conservation)

Sidekick proprietor Katy Herbold stated it will likely be a packed 90 minutes and he or she hopes there can be one thing for everybody to take pleasure in. Herbold stated she’s excited for the chance to accomplice with Johnson County Conservation, particularly throughout Earth Month and unbiased bookstore day.

“Anything you can do like this that promotes literacy with a super fun activity and a very worthy cause — conservation is great — so it just was kind of a no brainer,” Herbold stated. “ … We’re happy to be the hub for all of it.”

Sidekick Coffee & Books can have books accessible for buy and donation to help Johnson County Conservation’s library of kids’s nature books. Johnson County Conservation makes use of the books throughout free subject journeys, public packages and exploration hours on the Conservation Education Center.

Among the actions on Saturday are reptile meet and greets, which run each half-hour beginning at 10 a.m.

Kristin Morrow, a naturalist with Johnson County Conservation, stated info can be shared in regards to the two reptiles and other people will be capable of see them up shut, in addition to probably work together with the animals.

Seasonal naturalist Ian Perkins shares a frog with college students exploring a wetland on a subject journey. (Submitted photograph from Johnson County Conservation)

There additionally can be varied stations to discover, together with story time, chook scavenger hunts and the chance to have a look at nature artifacts, equivalent to bones, skulls, antlers and turtle shells. There additionally can be a dino-dig, which incorporates little buried dinosaur skeletons that youngsters will be capable of excavate, Morrow stated.

The stations can be outside, climate allowing, Herbold stated.

Herbold stated she’s excited for the story time actions as a result of it will likely be all about nature and can promote a number of the books county conservation is hoping so as to add to the library.

“Promoting the books with people who know a lot about the material is always exciting,” Herbold stated. “We have some guest story readers coming to read that day.”

Johnson County Conservation will use the donated books as a part of its free programming for kids.

Morrow stated there are a selection of occasions developing, and the easiest way to know what’s developing is following Johnson County Conservation on Facebook or subscribing to the publication by going to johnsoncountyiowa.gov/conservation/newsletters.

Sofas and books on the market are seen at Sidekick Coffee & Books in University Heights, Iowa on Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2019. (Jim Slosiarek/The Gazette)

Sidekick Coffee & Books additionally has a lot of different occasions developing that may be discovered on its Facebook web page. Herbold stated she’s enthusiastic about all of the occasions developing however talked about one particularly readers ought to placed on their calendars.

There can be a dialog and signing with Katie Runde of Iowa City at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, May 24. Runde’s debut novel “The Shore” comes out that very same day.

“I’m hoping people are ready to come back out and celebrate authors and celebrate literature at Sidekick because Sidekick is definitely ready,” Herbold stated.

Comments: (319) 339-3155; izabela.zaluska@thegazette.com