Starting in October, the Library’s Plaza Branch is trying something new: a jigsaw puzzle exchange. 

Throughout the month, patrons are encouraged to donate a puzzle or two and receive an exchange voucher. On Saturday, November 9, return to the branch and take home the same number of puzzles that you dropped off. 

“The date, November 9,” Community Engagement Librarian Haley Lips says, “will be perfect for folks getting ready for the holidays and wanting something to do with their family.” 

Puzzles will be arranged for selection according to piece count, but she cautions that it will be a “use at your own risk type of situation. We will not be able to know if all the pieces are there.”  

But doesn’t that add to the fun?   

“The goal of this program is to have people come in and exchange puzzles they are no longer using,” says Lips. “We will put in many of our puzzles and make them available for exchange.”  

Studies have shown that puzzles have health benefits – including a boost to visual-spatial reasoning and short-term memory and critical thinking skills. They can also reduce stress.  

In the early months of the coronavirus, while most people were under orders to stay home, the demand for jigsaw puzzles skyrocketed.  

To meet the needs of recent and longstanding enthusiasts, several Library branches now have puzzle tables on site. Patrons can add a few pieces or stay and complete a puzzle if they have more time.

To date, the Plaza Branch has amassed about 100 puzzles, but Lips says it’s time for a refresh – and perhaps patrons feel the same about their personal collections.  

Any leftover jigsaw puzzles will be available to use at the Plaza Branch’s puzzle table.