Alameda Free Library Event Alert - September 2023

Event Descriptions – Ongoing Adult and Teen Events:

• Make It: Calling all knitters, crochetiers, embroidery enthusiasts, and fiber ateliers! Please join us in the Family Study Room at Main for a fiber arts craft circle. Please bring your own project, materials, and expertise. Limited instruction available!
• Teen Advisory Board (TAB): Do you wish the library would do more events and programs that you’re interested in? Have you been anxiously awaiting a new book and you want the library to buy it? Do you need an impressive membership to put on your applications and resumes? Join the Teen Advisory Board (TAB) to let the library know what you’re interested in. The Teen Advisory Board is your chance to make a difference in the library for yourself and other teens in Alameda. Members of the Teen Advisory Board will help plan teen programs and choose teen events. Teen Advisory Board members will earn community service hours for every meeting and event that they participate in.
• Teen Book Club: Teen book club members choose what we read from a variety of titles and genres each month. Additionally, while supplies last, book club members receive a free copy of the book to keep. The title we will discuss in September is Ace of Spades by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé. All teens, ages 13 to 18, are invited to join the book group. Registration link is on the calendar. We will be meeting in person in the Stafford Room at the Main Library.
• Lawyers in the Library: The Lawyers in the Library program provides free 15-minute consultations by phone with a volunteer attorney who will provide guidance on legal matters. Examples of areas covered include landlord/tenant disputes, probate matters, employment problems and other general consumer issues. Please see the online calendar for registration form and instructions.
• Alameda Library Writers’ Group: This group is open to all adult writers looking for an opportunity to connect and share with other writers. At the meeting you are welcome to share your writing and everyone will be given a writing prompt. Whatever your genre, you are welcome to join the group! Join in person or via Zoom.
• A Novel Idea: A Novel Idea is a book club for adults featuring novels from diverse genres and authors. Join us for a lively discussion and deepen your engagement with your reading! The September book is Chain-Gang All-Stars, a new novel by the New York Times best-selling author Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah. Set in a dystopian alternate U.S., where prisoners are basically gladiators and have the option to fight for their freedom, the novel speaks to the eternal question of what it truly means to be free. Copies are available in the Alameda Free Library collection and through LINK+. A limited number of free copies provided by the Friends of the Alameda Free Library are available at the reference desk at the Main Branch.
• Dungeons & Dragons: Want to try Dungeons & Dragons but can’t find a group? Looking for a new party? Come to our Dungeons & Dragons Teen Meetup! No previous experience required. Character sheets will be provided as well as rules explanations and dice. Registration is encouraged; please see the online calendar for the registration link.
• Game Break: Don’t forget to take a break…A GAME BREAK! Try out our new games and/or watch others play. No registration needed, masks strongly encouraged. Teens only!
• A Cup of Coffee and a Good Book Club: Wondering what to read next? Instead of a monthly book everyone reads, A Cup of Coffee and a Good Book Club will discuss what everyone is currently reading or has read recently that they enjoyed. This is a fun and informal way to get some recommendations and give some too. The September theme is Books with an Animal as the Main Protagonist. Please email the facilitator, Lynda, at llyndaw@gmail.com for more information.
• Mystery Book Club: Join theAlameda Free Library’s Mystery Book Clubfora fun and engaging literary discussion! We are offering this popular book club in two different locations, the Main Library and the Bay Farm Island Library. The September mystery is The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler. Copies are available in our Alameda Free Library collection and through our LINK+ library partners. A limited number of free copies provided by the Friends of the Alameda Free Library will also be available soon at the Main Library.
• Movie Night - Beatriz At Dinner (2017, rated R) Beatriz, an empathetic Mexican immigrant, unexpectedly finds herself having a tense and uncomfortable evening at a client's small dinner party, where she becomes entangled in an escalating war of words with a billionaire who prioritizes money over people.

Event Descriptions – Special Adult/Teen Events:

• Alameda Free Library Blood Drive: Please give blood if you can! Please visit the Alameda Free Library website calendar listing for registration information.
• Author Talk with Julia Park Tracey: Join us for an author talk with Julia Park Tracey, award-winning journalist, essayist and past Alameda Poet Laureate. Learn more about The Bereaved, Julia Park Tracey's new book, out now and available to borrow from the Library!

Event Descriptions – Ongoing Children’s/Family Events:

• Bay Farm Island Branch:
• • Preschool Storytime: A 30-45 minute program geared toward children ages 3-5 years old. Creating a language-rich environment through books, music, and movement, this program also offers children an avenue toward Kindergarten readiness by asking them to take turns, share, and follow simple directions. New day! Mondays at 10:30am, ages 3-5.
  • Family Storytime: Put on your pajamas and join us at the Bay Farm Island Library for family storytime! Geared for a mix of ages, we invite families to participate as we read stories, sing songs, do fingerplays and more. Every Tuesday at 7pm, all ages.
  • Toddler Storytime: A 20-30 minute program that uses stories, songs, fingerplays, and movement to help young children ages 1-3 years old develop word and sound recognition, gain background knowledge of how the world works, and encourages families to build social connections with other parents and children. New program at BFI! Thursdays at 10:30 AM.
  • Build with LEGO: We will provide the LEGO building blocks. Use your imagination and creativity to create with them! Every Thursday at 3:30 pm.

• Main Library, Children's Programming Room:
• • Preschool Storytime: A 30-45 minute program geared toward children ages 3-5 years old. Creating a language-rich environment through books, music, and movement, this program also offers children an avenue toward Kindergarten readiness by asking them to take turns, share, and follow simple directions. Every Tuesday at 10:30am, ages 3-5.
  • School-Age Storytime: A 45 minute program for children in Kindergarten through third grade. Through the use of books and conversation, children are encouraged to engage with the stories, learning context from pictures and memory, and building comprehension by asking questions about the book just read. Every Wednesday at 3:30pm, grades K-3rd.
  • Mother Goose on the Loose: This fast paced lap-sit program for little ones and their caregivers includes songs, nursery rhymes, knee-bounces, and movement to help develop important pre-literacy skills. This class is appropriate for infants through 2 years old. This program starts promptly at 10:30am. Latecomers may not be admitted. Every Thursday at 10:30am, ages 0-2.
  • Toddler Storytime: A 20-30 minute program that uses stories, songs, fingerplays, and movement to help young children ages 1-3 years old develop word and sound recognition, gain background knowledge of how the world works, and encourages families to build social connections with other parents and children. Every Friday & Saturday at 10:30am, ages 1-3.

• West End Branch:
• • Family Storytime: Put on your pajamas and join us at the Bay Farm Island Library for family storytime! Geared for a mix of ages, we invite families to participate as we read stories, sing songs, do fingerplays and more. New program at WEB! Every Monday at 7pm, all ages.
  • Toddler Storytime: A 20-30 minute program that uses stories, songs, fingerplays, and movement to help young children ages 1-3 years old develop word and sound recognition, gain background knowledge of how the world works, and encourages families to build social connections with other parents and children. Every Tuesday at 10:30am, ages 1-3.

Event Descriptions - Special Children’s/Family Events:

• Family Movie Matinee: Join us for a sensory-friendly, family focused screening of Lyle, Lyle Crocodile! When the Primm family moves to New York City, their young son, Josh, struggles to adapt to his new school and friends. All of that changes when he discovers Lyle, a singing crocodile that loves baths, caviar and great music. The two become fast friends, but when evil neighbor Mr. Grumps threatens Lyle's existence, the Primms must band together to show the world that family can come from the most unexpected places.

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