Birmingham Public Library Blog

  The City of Birmingham is celebrating its 150th birthday this year ( founded on June 1, 1871 ).  As part of a June 4-6 weekend celebration of the city's 150th anniversary, the Birmingham Public Library is holding 3 programs, its first live events since the COVID-19 pandemic began 15 months ago. The programs are:  Bards & Brews, the library's popular spoken word poetry event;  2021 BPL Summer Learning Kick-off Celebration ; and  Soulful Sundays Concert on the Lot. If you are looking for fun, safe way to spend your weekend,  check out details of all three events below: * Bards & Brews Open Mic Poetry, Friday, June 4, 2021, 6:00 p.m. at the Central Library  Bards & Brews, BPL's popular spoken word poetry program will host its first in-person event since the COVID-19 pandemic began 15 months ago. On June 4, at 6 pm. join us at the Central location of the Birmingham Public Library, conveniently located at 2100 Park Place, as we commemorate ...

  The Birmingham Public Library is hosting four 2021 Pride Month programs during June. The programs will air on the BPL Facebook page every Thursday , starting on June 3.  Pride Month is a national recognition held every June in tribute to those involved in the Stonewall Riots, an incident that occurred on June 28, 1969, when New York City Police raided the Stonewall Inn, a gay nightclub. The incident led to riots outside in which several people were injured. President Bill Clinton was the first U.S. President to recognize Pride Month in 1999.    Here are the programs BPL is hosting, all on the BPL Facebook page: Affirming Spaces with the Magic City Acceptance Center , Thursday, June 3, 11:30 a.m. Acceptance Center will join us for a virtual conversation about youth programming and how we can provide safe places for LGBTQ+ youth. The Magic City Acceptance Center offers programs for LGBTQ children, youth, adults, and family members. Queer History with the Invisi...

   Are you ready for more than 40 virtual programs and 14 fun crafts that can be done from the comfort of home this summer? The Birmingham Public Library is here to help with the Summer Learning Program.  The 2021 Summer Learning programs will take place virtually on the Birmingham Public Library Facebook page. If you miss them live, you can watch them at a later date and time.  You can also find the link to 2021 BPL Summer Learning programs and crafts, plus download a printable list, by clicking here cobpl.org/SummerLearning You can participate and watch the programs by visiting www.Facebook.com/BirminghamPublicLibrary    There is no advanced registration required for BPL 2021 Summer Learning.  Just stop by any of our 18 library locations and pick up a “pledge to read” card. Featured are 22 youth programs, 7 programs for all ages, 6 adult programs and 5 programs for teens.  BPL is also hosting 14 virtual craft programs for patrons of all ages....

  By Jim Murray| Business, Science & Technology Department, Central Library What: Grow with Google: Use YouTube to Grow Your Business When: Tuesday, June 8, 2021 10:00 – 11:00 a.m. CST  Details: Free but registration is required. Make reservations through the BPL events calendar.   YouTube is the most popular place on the Internet for viewing videos. Next to Google.com , it is the second most visited website in the world. According to 2020 data, 2 billion users login to the site every month, and that does not include users who view the site without creating an account.  If you are a small business owner and you have not considered utilizing YouTube as a means of marketing your products and services, then you could be missing out on an incredibly effective way to communicate with your customers.  Not sure how to get started on YouTube? Well, tune into the Grow with Google webinar, Use YouTube to Market Your Small Business, on June 8. Here you will learn bes...

A man and young boy pay tribute to George Floyd at a mural, one of many painted in his memory.    Today, Tuesday, May 25, 2021, marks one year since the death of George Floyd while in custody of  Minneapolis police. He died after former officer Derek Chauvin pressed a knee to his neck for nine minutes after Floyd was arrested for allegedly using a $20 counterfeit bill in a store.  Chauvin was convicted of three charges in the death of Floyd by a jury in Apri l, and awaits sentencing this summer.  A bystander's video of Floyd begging for his life and screaming “I can’t breathe!” as he lay on the street, with Chauvin and several Minneapolis officers ignoring his pleas, went viral online. His death sparked a historic summer of protests against racial injustice across the nation and worldwide.      Last summer  after Floyd's death, the Birmingham Public Library experienced an uptick in patron requests for library materials about race and ...

  All locations of the Birmingham Public Library will be closed Monday, May 31, 2021 in observance of Memorial Day.  Photo credit: Holiday vector created by freepik

"A Computer Called Katherine" is one of 4 summer children's book reads recommended by BPL Jane Clapp|  Southside Branch Library Although Women's History Month has passed, there are four children's books celebrating women that  I would like to recommend for those going to the beach or looking for great summer reads.   Mary Anning and the Sea Dragon by Jeanine Atkins   I would like to start with the book Mary Anning and the Sea Dragon by Jeanine Atkins.   Mary was a young girl living in England in the early 1800s. She often went to the beach looking for fossils to sell at her family’s gift shop. One day Mary discovered the bones of a “sea dragon.” She became quite famous. Mary paved the way for future archeologist, both male and female. Mary continued throughout her life to excavate and study fossils and became the first person to make a living as a paleontologist. She died at the age of 48 in 1847. This was a most interesting story.  Meet Coretta Scott ...

 By Joan Inman| Avondale Regional Branch Library May is Mental Health Awareness Month . In recognition, Avondale Library is hosting a series of  interviews with local mental health professionals that will go into the first week of June. Mental health is extremely important, especially now in our new normal. Since March of last year, the world has been hit with a global pandemic that has impacted every facet of our daily lives and has brought about new challenges and feelings of uncertainty for everyone.  From dealing with financial stress, to parents needing to balance work and care for children at home, to mandatory self-quarantining measures, it can often feel overwhelming.  According to the National Institute of Mental Health, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a negative impact on many American's mental health.   According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness ( www.nami.org ): “Prior to the pandemic, one in five adults in America experienced mental health ...

  By Jill Lollar |  Central Library Circulation/Information Desk  The iconic women captured in Dorothea Lange’s depression era photographs tell their stories in Kristen Hannah’s new novel, The Four Winds.  Inspired by Lange’s Woman of the High Plains , this poignant fictional narrative will draw you in and break your heart. The central character, Elsa Wolcott, embodies the courage and strength shown by millions of unsung American women who withstood the dangers and hardships of the great depression. From her dustbowl farm in Texas to California’s poverty stricken migrant camps we follow Elsa as she fights for her family’s survival. Elsa’s story is filled with the unrelenting loss that plagues most novels of the great depression.  The onslaught of tragedy after tragedy may grow tedious and exhausting for some readers. However, if you enjoy a good tearjerker, get your hankies out and pick up The Four Winds. You will not be disappointed.   You can f...

  By Tisha George | West End & Titusville Branch Libraries   Summer is here! And in my family, we have been waiting patiently for this time of the year. And it’s not due to the blooming flora or the warmth of the sun on our winter skin, although that has definitely been a  welcomed addition to our largely indoor lives this year.  Folks, it’s because of the chickens.   Keeping backyard chickens is one of the easiest and most rewarding experiences an urban homesteader can have. First, you have a box of cute little balls of fluff and in a few more months, you have fresh omelets made from your own eggs. And in between, you spread some mulch, keep an eye out for rulebreakers, do a little coop-keeping, and enjoy watching and listening to their little personalities emerge as they scratch and cluck around in their yards. In Alabama, there are many places to get chicks. Craigslist has them. Facebook has many local groups dedicated to raising chickens and mo...

Poetry lovers, rejoice.  Bards & Brews, the Birmingham Public Library's popular spoken word poetry/craft beer program, will hold its first in-person event in 15 months on June 4, 2021.  Bards & Brews will take place live beginning 6:00 p.m. inside the Central Library, with some of the nation's most talented poets sharing their voices. Space will be limited, with only 30 allowed to attend in person. For those unable to enjoy Bards & Brews on site, you can still watch it on the  Bards & Brews Facebook page  from the comfort of your own home or via smart phone devices on the go.      Poets interested in registering for this event should forward their contact information to Bards.Brews@cobpl.org.  Bards & Brews celebrated a year of virtual-only library programs in April 2021.  Candice Hardy, BPL Outreach Librarian who serves as Creative Director for Bards & Brews, said, "I am appreciative of the continued support and month...

  What: Birmingham Public Library/Dannon Project Civic & Wellness Fair  Where: Central Library, 2100 Park Place, Birmingham, AL 35203 When: Wednesday, June 2, 2021, 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. Details: Free health screenings, social services, haircuts, and more. Vendors available offering access to clothing, housing assistance, employment assistance, healthcare services, transportation assistance, and more. Lunch will be provided. Do you want to get a free health checkup, gain access to numerous healthcare resources, and receive information from community agencies about the different services they can offer you?  The Dannon Project and the Birmingham Public Library are co-hosting the 2021 Civic and Wellness Fair on Wednesday, June 2, 2021. The event, taking place from 10:00am to 3:00 pm at the Central Library, will include numerous vendors from across Birmingham and Jefferson County who offer services that include access to food, access to clothing, housing assistance...

Avondale Library has tissue painting craft kits available for patrons. By Leslie Deason | Avondale Regional Branch Library Would you like to create a unique painting using tissue paper? Avondale Regional Branch Library has tissue painting craft kits available for patrons. You will use the tissue paper transfer method to create a colorful piece of art. This is a fun and easy technique and a great project to do with your kids.   The process is simple.  First, you must take a piece of heavy paper (white cardstock) and wet it with water (use a spray bottle).  Then add pieces of “bleeding” tissue paper in any arrangement you like.  Next, spray your project with water.  Finally, let it dry. The color bleeds beautifully onto the paper.  Where the tissue overlaps, you will see a blending of colors. The process is magical to watch. Can’t wait to get started? We supply everything you need in the kit: instructions, “bleeding” tissue paper, white crayon and cardst...

  What: Bus to Stop by Central Library with 2 Original Freedom Riders Who Made the 1961 Journey W hen: Wednesday, May 19, 2021; bus arrives and is open for public tours at 3:00 p.m.; event begins at 5:00 p.m. Where: The Central Library Parking Lot, 2100 Park Place, Birmingham, AL 35203 Details: A restored vintage Greyhound bus that is part of the Freedom Rides Museum permanent collection in Montgomery will retrace part of the journey of the Freedom Riders this week. The bus will begin its journey in Ardmore, Tennessee, on Tuesday, May 18, before coming to Birmingham, Al. and stopping by the Central Library downtown beginning at 3:00 p.m. The bus will end its tour in Montgomery at 10:23 a.m. on Thursday, May 20 – the exact date and time the bus arrived in the city 60 years ago, where student Freedom Riders were met with violence. The bus will arrive at the Freedom Rides Museum, a historic property of the Alabama Historical Commission.     During the Birmingham visit, ...

  BPL's Central Library Citizens Services Department has staff trained to help you sign up.   By Lynn Hutchins Central Library  On May 11, 2021, Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra announced that more than one million Americans have signed up for health insurance coverage on HealthCare.gov during the Special Enrollment Period, made possible by the Biden Administration.  “This milestone reinforces what we know to be true, there is a real demand for quality, affordable health care across the United States," Becerra said. Click here to read Secretary Becerra's full statement. Now, thanks to the American Rescue Plan , millions of Americans are seeing reduced monthly premiums and lower out-of-pocket costs. But our work is far from over. “Now, it’s time for Congress to build on this progress with the American Families Plan, which would lower health care costs for families and make premium relief permanent. In addition, four million uninsured American...

  What:  Vintage Greyhound Bus to Visit Freedom Rides Site in Birmingham  When:  Wednesday, May 19, 2021; bus arrives and is open for public tours at 3:00 p.m.; Program  begins at 5:00 p.m. Where:  Parking lot of the Birmingham Public Library, 2100 Park Place, Birmingham, Ala. 35203 Details:  A restored vintage Greyhound bus that is part of the Freedom Rides Museum collection will visit Birmingham on Wednesday, May 19, as part of the 60th Anniversary of the Freedom Rides Commemoration. The Freedom Rides Museum, located in Montgomery, Ala., is a historic property of the Alabama Historical Commission.   Original Freedom Riders Catherine Burks Brooks and Rev. Clyde Carter will be on site and available for media interviews. Food trucks will be on site in the Central Library parking lot. Visitors will have the opportunity to board the vintage Greyhound bus and be immersed in some of the sounds, stories and songs of the Freedom Rides and view a sui...