Birmingham Public Library Blog

The Birmingham Public Library is excited to announce the re-opening of the East Lake Branch Library located at 5 Oporto Madrid Boulevard. The library opens to the public at 12:00 p.m. on Thursday, November 18, with a program and reception. To attend the celebration, the public may park at the Agape Missionary Baptist Church located at 7631-1st Avenue North. The renovated facility now boasts an elevator, a fully restored second floor atrium, and a completely redesigned public service area on the first floor. Please celebrate this beautifully renovated library with us. Details East Lake Branch Library Re-opening Thursday, November 18, 2010 Noon

Olivia Johnson, 8, and Lyles Little, 11, design their "hands" to put on our window as Annette Johnson looks on. Location: Springville Road Branch

Give us a hand! Come to the Springville Road Branch Library and decorate a "hand," telling us what you're thankful for this Thanksgiving season. We'll put it up as one of our Turkey "Tales." Location: Springville Road Branch

Choctaw girls in 1868, Smithsonian Institution Join us as Jackie Matte discusses the Indigenous People of Alabama. Matte grew up in Washington County, Alabama, near Old St. Stephens. She is an independent scholar, with master's degrees in history and in secondary education from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. She has taught at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and in the Mountain Brook School System, and in 1991 she received a Teacher-Scholar Award from the National Endowment for the Humanities for one year of independent study. The research she did that year on Southeastern Indians was published in Social Education , the professional journal of the National Council for Social Studies . She has also written They Say the Wind is Red: the Alabama Choctaw Lost in their Own Land . Wednesday, November 17, noon. Feed your body and mind at BPL's Brown Bag Lunch programs . You bring the lunch and we'll bring the drinks. Wednesdays at noon in the Arrington Auditoriu...

Don't forget to set your clocks back 1 hour tonight for the time change! With your extra hour of time, check out these books on the history of time change! Seize the Daylight: The Curious and Contentious Story of Daylight Savings Time by David Prerau Spring Forward: The Annual Madness of Daylight Savings Time by Michael Downing Time Lord: Sir Sandford Fleming and the Creation of Standard Time by Clark Blaise Stop the Social Sciences Department and pick up these books today! Enjoy your extra hour of reading!

The Birmingham Public Library (BPL) will host “That Puppet Guy” Lee Bryan, jazz guitarist Keith “Cashmere” Williams, and celebrated storyteller Dolores Hydock in its December BPL@Night programming line-up. Lee Bryan will present a festive, hilarious performance for the whole family at the Avondale Library on Tuesday, December 7; Keith Williams will perform at the Springville Road Library on Thursday, December 9; and Dolores Hydock will present Truman Capote’s A Christmas Memory at the Central Library, also on December 9. These events are free and open to the public. Avondale Library December 7 at 6:30 p.m. The North Pole Fa-La-La-La Follies Get ready for hilarious holiday high-jinx as some talented residents of the North Pole perform in their annual talent show. The zany, colorful cast includes a wisecracking fruitcake, a musical goose, the “not-so-abominable” snowman, and much, much more! Atlanta-based puppeteer Lee Bryan often incorporates multiple styles of puppets which he dem...

Poets, aspiring poets, and poetry clubs in grades 9-12, and teachers are invited to participate in free spoken word poetry workshops at the Birmingham Public Central Library (BPL) on December 4 and January 8, 2:00-4:00 p.m. The December session will be held in the Story Castle on the 2nd floor; the January session will be held in the Arrington Auditorium. If this is your first foray into spoken word poetry, or you’d like to take your skills to the next level, sign up. Each workshop will differ in focus. Planning to participate in the next BPL Word Up! contest? Now is the time to hone your skills. Space is limited. Call 226-3670 or email hm@bham.lib.al.us to reserve your spot. Free of charge! Details Saturday, December 4 Central Library Youth Department Story Castle, 2nd floor 2:00-4:00 p.m. Saturday, January 8 Central Library Arrington Auditorium, Linn-Henley bldg., 3rd floor 2:00-4:00 p.m. The Desert Island Supply Company (DISCO), a nonprofit writing program based in Birmingham, and R...

One of our youngest patrons, four and half years old, loves his visits to the library. His mother told him the library needed help to buy new books, dvds and cds. He decided to do something himself. He gathered together some of his toys to sell and set up a lemonade stand. He raised $35 which he presented to Avondale Library on November 2. The next generation is stepping up to the plate. How about you? PLEASE GIVE TODAY