Meet the Bloggers: Kara
Published on February 10, 2026
Our Siouxland Libraries blog team contributes from all over the system. Today, get to know Kara! Go to the Kara V. tag at the end to see all her articles.
What I like to read: Romance, Fantasy, Romantasy, and books about trees.
Best books I’ve recently:
The last exciting thing I did: One day I just decided I wanted to go to the Outer Banks of North Carolina and see the wild horses. Last year we made it happen! It was amazing.
If I was a music genre, it would be: 1980s-1990s pop. I often roller skated to this music as a kid. I lived by a cul-de-sac and would make lots of trips around and ramp off my neighbor’s front walks.
What always makes me laugh: My family and my dogs. My spouse makes at least 10 bad jokes before a good one lands.
A weird hobby / interest I have: Looking excessively at trees. I constantly tell my children to look up. I look at leaves, I look at bark, I open my book (Trees of North America) and try to identify what's in front of me. My kids humor me, but it brings me so much joy. I never realized how many pictures of trees I took until I noticed my camera roll was full of them.
Last fun fact I learned / something new I’ve learned: When a tree gets hurt it takes up to five years for it to heal. In the span of a tree’s life span that is not very long. Trees must dispel all their water before winter, or they will explode like a frozen pipe. I’m really into trees.
Favorite library program: I really love doing Author Visits and planning programs where we bring in an expert to talk about their passions. For example, I loved having Shane Gerlach here to talk about the use of gods/goddess in graphic novels and comic books, and I love inviting genealogical societies to lead a class.
My favorite book: Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte. I read this book just out of college while I was taking the El to my job on the North side of Chicago. I thought at the time that no book could be better than Emily’s Wuthering Heights (Heathcliff is so tortured) but I was wrong. I have now read every format and retelling of 'Jane Eyre' I can get my hands on.
If I was a mythological/supernatural creature, it would be: The talking tree from Pocahontas. That counts, right?
If I could go back and talk to my younger self, one thing I’d say: Show grace and just breathe. Show grace towards others and yourself. When you feel stressed, overwhelmed, down, take a moment and breathe.
My favorite family tradition: Whenever my family hikes we take a selfie. I love this! I love that we like to be around each other and be in nature. This is just one little way that we honor that time together.