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Rodents have become a growing concern in urban environments, and Cambridge is no exception. To combat this, the City offers a free rodent control assistance program for residents of buildings with four or fewer units. This initiative, a partnership between the City and a private pest control company, provides professional inspections, baiting, trapping, and follow-ups within 60 days to help control rodent populations.

Cambridge has long been committed to taking action on climate change to reduce emissions and prepare for climate impacts. Identifying ways to make building operations less carbon-intensive is essential to reaching the city and state’s goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050 or earlier. The Cambridge Fossil Fuel Free Ordinance will go into effect starting March 22, 2024. Here's what you need to know about the ordinance.

In January 2020, the largest and most eagerly awaited cache of new materials written by the Nobel-Prize-winning poet T. S. Eliot was finally opened: the 1,131 letters he sent Emily Hale, his little-known American love, over the course of their lifetimes. Their relationship was, in their own words, an “unnatural” love affair, one that began in Cambridge in 1913, when Eliot was a graduate student at Harvard and Hale, an aspiring amateur actress, and that played out in Boston, England and California over the years. Named as one of its "Fifty Notable Non-fiction Books of 2024" by the Washington Post, Fitzgerald's biography of Hale is based on the embargoed letters and extensive research into Hale’s life and times. Hale was much more than just a muse to a literary celebrity. She overcame personal hardship to pursue a career as a professor of speech and drama at prominent American women’s colleges and schools, including Simmons and Smith Colleges and Abbot and Concord Academies. She was a talented amateur actress and director, who performed at many Boston area theaters and later guided Eliot as he tried his hand at playwriting. But in the end, Eliot disavowed her, sending a secret letter to Harvard in 1960 that claimed his love for Hale was that of “a ghost for a ghost,” and confirming that he had arranged for Hale’s side of their 27-year correspondence to be destroyed. In the words of The Washington Post reviewer, “Missing letters, a secret love affair, a famous poet, a beautiful actress—what else could you possibly want in a story?" Sara Fitzgerald is a retired journalist whose career included fifteen years as an editor and new media developer for The Washington Post. In 2020, she also published The Poet’s Girl: A Novel of Emily Hale and T. S. Eliot. Since then, her essays about Hale have appeared in multiple volumes of the Journal of the T. S. Eliot Society and the T. S. Eliot Studies Annual. She has presented at the annual meetings of the Modern Language Association, the American Historical Association, the International T. S. Eliot Society, and at the T. S. Eliot Summer School at Oxford. She is also the author of the biography, Elly Peterson: “Mother” of the Moderates and Conquering Heroines: How Women Fought Sex Bias at Michigan and Paved the Way for Title IX.

As we head into cooler weather, it’s time to think about flu and COVID-19 risks. Flu season will soon be upon us. Spending more time indoors means that there’s more opportunity for COVID-19 to spread. To protect against these two threats, the Cambridge Public Health Department (CPHD) strongly recommends that residents get an annual flu vaccine AND stay up-to-date on COVID vaccinations and boosters.

This month's book: Single Player by Tara Tai Audience: Teens and Adults. If you read romance (or want to start), this group is for you! Reading Interests: This group will explore the burgeoning genre of contemporary romance. Example selections include: Honey and Spice by Bolu Babalola and Mistakes Were Made by Meryl Wilsner. How to get the print book: Copies of the print book are set aside at the Main Library Q&A Desk on the ground floor. Visit the Main Library at 449 Broadway during service hours and a staff member can help you check out a copy. How to get the e-book or digital audiobook: This month’s book is available as an e-book and digital audiobook through Hoopla. We'll meet in the Teen Room on the first floor of the Main Library. For more information, contact Susannah at sbtkacz@cambridgema.gov.

This month's book: I'll Have What He's Having by Adib Khorram Audience: Teens and Adults. If you read romance (or want to start), this group is for you! Reading Interests: This group will explore the burgeoning genre of contemporary romance. Example selections include: Honey and Spice by Bolu Babalola and Mistakes Were Made by Meryl Wilsner. How to get the print book: Copies of the print book are set aside at the Main Library Q&A Desk on the ground floor. Visit the Main Library at 449 Broadway during service hours and a staff member can help you check out a copy. How to get the e-book or digital audiobook: This month’s book is available as an ebook and digital audiobook through Libby. We'll meet in the Teen Room on the first floor of the Main Library. For more information, contact Susannah at sbtkacz@cambridgema.gov.

This month's book: Done and Dusted by Lyla Sage Audience: Teens and Adults. If you read romance (or want to start), this group is for you! Reading Interests: This group will explore the burgeoning genre of contemporary romance. Example selections include: Honey and Spice by Bolu Babalola and Mistakes Were Made by Meryl Wilsner. How to get the print book: Copies of the print book are set aside at the Main Library Q&A Desk on the ground floor. Visit the Main Library at 449 Broadway during service hours and a staff member can help you check out a copy. How to get the e-book or digital audiobook: This month’s book is available as an e-book and digital audiobook through Libby. We'll meet in the Teen Room on the first floor of the Main Library. For more information, contact Susannah at sbtkacz@cambridgema.gov.

This month's book: Problematic Summer Romance by Ali Hazelwood Audience: Teens and Adults. If you read romance (or want to start), this group is for you! Reading Interests: This group will explore the burgeoning genre of contemporary romance. Example selections include: Honey and Spice by Bolu Babalola and Mistakes Were Made by Meryl Wilsner. How to get the print book: Copies of the print book are set aside at the Main Library Q&A Desk on the ground floor. Visit the Main Library at 449 Broadway during service hours and a staff member can help you check out a copy. How to get the e-book or digital audiobook: This month’s book is available as an e-book and digital audiobook through Libby. We'll meet in the Teen Room on the first floor of the Main Library. For more information, contact Susannah at sbtkacz@cambridgema.gov.

This month's book: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen Audience: Teens and Adults. If you read romance (or want to start), this group is for you! Reading Interests: This group will explore the burgeoning genre of contemporary romance. Example selections include: Honey and Spice by Bolu Babalola and Mistakes Were Made by Meryl Wilsner. How to get the print book: Copies of the print book are set aside at the Main Library Q&A Desk on the ground floor. Visit the Main Library at 449 Broadway during service hours and a staff member can help you check out a copy. How to get the e-book or digital audiobook: This month’s book is available as an e-book and digital audiobook through Libby and Hoopla. We'll meet in the Teen Room on the first floor of the Main Library. For more information, contact Susannah at sbtkacz@cambridgema.gov.

This month's book: Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert Audience: Teens and Adults. If you read romance (or want to start), this group is for you! Reading Interests: This group will explore the burgeoning genre of contemporary romance. Example selections include: Honey and Spice by Bolu Babalola and Mistakes Were Made by Meryl Wilsner. How to get the print book: Copies of the print book are set aside at the Main Library Q&A Desk on the ground floor. Visit the Main Library at 449 Broadway during service hours and a staff member can help you check out a copy. How to get the e-book or digital audiobook: This month’s book is available as an e-book and digital audiobook through both Libby and Hoopla. We'll meet in the Teen Room on the first floor of the Main Library. For more information, contact Francesca at fedouard@cambridgema.gov.