PORT ANGELES — To get the word out about its 250,000 items — traditional books, electronic books, books on CD and tape — the North Olympic Library System is throwing a party.

It’s called the Winter Readers’ Revel, and it will feature short book “trailers” on the big screen, a book swap, a demonstration of the online database NoveList, door prizes and plenty of food and drink.

This first readers’ revel will run from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday in the Raymond Carver Room at the Port Angeles Library, 2210 S. Peabody St.

What’s this ‘revel’ thing’?

It’s called a “revel” because the organizers want something much more festive than your usual “book discussion group,” said Margaret Jakubcin, assistant library director.

The event is part of the monthly readers’ get-together at the Port Angeles Library, but with the holiday season still in progress, the staff were in the mood for an open house.

The revel will give readers a chance to see book trailers — just like movie previews, only from publishers — for novels and nonfiction titles to come out in 2012.

“Some of them are amazingly cool,” Jakubcin said, adding that the videos are also found online via Google and YouTube.

Internet resource

In keeping with the multimedia theme, librarian Lorrie Kovell will give a crash course in NoveList, an Internet resource loaded with recommendations of books in various genres, discussion guides and thousands of reviews.

NoveList is available to anyone who has a free North Olympic Library System card.

The Winter Readers’ Revel also will be a time for old-fashioned conversation about what people have read lately.

And Kovell invites attendees to join the optional book-trading session.

“Bring a gently used book to swap with other readers,” she said.

Anything goes in terms of genre and format: fiction, nonfiction, print, CD.

At the revel, readers will also have a chance to discover the county library system’s 70,000 traditional bound fiction titles and 4,300 electronic titles.

Four public libraries

All float among the four public libraries in Port Angeles, Forks,

Clallam Bay and Sequim, and are available free to library-card holders.

The libraries host many other activities, including monthly book discussions.

For example Outliers, a work of journalism by Malcolm Gladwell, is the book to be talked over at 6:30 p.m. Jan. 25 at the Port Angeles Library.

Everyone is welcome to join that discussion; details are at 360-417-8500.

With events such as these, “we’re hoping to broaden the circle of readers in Clallam County,” Jakubcin said.

For more information about books and other media at the libraries, along with free events scheduled in 2012, visit the system’s comprehensive website, www.NOLS.org.

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Features Editor Diane Urbani de la Paz can be reached at 360-417-3550 or at diane.urbani@peninsuladailynews.com.