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Harvard Book Store and the Cambridge Public Library welcome Hetty Lui McKinnon—James Beard Award-winning food writer and cook—for a discussion of her new cookbook Linger: Salads, Sweets and Stories to Savor. She will be joined in conversation by Irene Li—founder of Mei Mei Dumpling Company in South Boston and author of the cookbook Perfectly Good Food. Registration is required.

Join the Cambridge Public Library in welcoming Rachel Slade, author of Making It in America: The Almost Impossible Quest to Manufacture in the U.S.A. (And How It Got That Way)—as well as the national bestseller, Into the Raging Sea—for the latest installment of the Our Path Forward Lecture Series. Slade's book, which follows a young couple in Maine trying to kickstart a lost industry, was named a Publishers Weekly "Top 10 Pick in Business and Economics." Cosmopolitan called Making It in America an "enlightening look at the history of manufacturing in America and how we got to where we are today." After the lecture, Slade will sit in conversation with Janelle Nanos, a business enterprise reporter at The Boston Globe and a finalist for a 2023 Pulitzer Prize, after which she will answer questions from the audience. Registration is required.

The Boston Festival Orchestra returns to the Cambridge Public Library for the second year of its AAPI Heritage Concert, celebrating the extraordinary breadth of musical voices from Asian American and Pacific Islander composers. This program brings together works that reflect personal history, cultural inheritance, and bold contemporary expression — offering a powerful snapshot of the many ways identity and artistry intersect. Join BFO Artistic Director Alyssa Wang, BFO musicians, and guest artists for an intimate chamber music experience that pairs performance with conversation, inviting audiences to engage with the cultural, historical, and human stories behind the music. This concert continues the BFO’s commitment to amplifying AAPI voices and creating space for meaningful artistic exchange. For registration: https://patron.bforchestra.org/ticketing/bfo/AAPImonth This concert is cosponsored by the Friends of the Cambridge Public Library.

Is King Philip’s War really part of the past? Four Indigenous speakers tell us that it’s still deeply present. People who are not Indigenous often think of Metacom’s Resistance – more commonly known as King Philip’s War – if they know of it - as part of a distant past. If we have read children’s stories of an idealized colonial life, or educated with traditional textbooks, we might think of the war as a single violent chapter in an otherwise quaint, albeit colorful, history, with colonial heroes bravely conquering their enemies. Historical markers dotting the New England countryside, especially in Massachusetts, reinforce this idea: it was brutal, but the colonists emerged victorious, and in any event it was long ago – nothing to do with life today. For Indigenous communities, the past is not so easily left behind – and nor should it be for non-Indigenous people. We all live today with its aftermath. King Philip’s War continues to shape daily life, experience, and memory. Panelists include: Hartman Deetz, Mashpee Wampanoag Brad Lopes, Aquinnah Wampanoag Brittney Walley, Hassanamisco Nipmuc Elizabeth Solomon, Massachusett at Ponkapoag, moderator On the eve of the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution, this panel invites audiences to grapple with a foundational war of Indigenous resistance on its 350th anniversary - and to see that it is not past, but deeply present, for us all.

Harvard Book Store, the Harvard University Division of Science, the Harvard Library, and the Cambridge Public Library welcome Felice Frankel—award-winning science photographer and research scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the department of Chemical Engineering—for a discussion of her first book for young adults, Phenomenal Moments: Revealing the Hidden Science Around Us. She will be joined in conversation by Melissa Franklin—the Mallinckrodt Professor of Physics and Director of Graduate Studies at Harvard University. Registration is required.

Join us for a Know Your Rights presentation led by an attorney from De Novo. This session will share important updates for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) recipients, including: How to renew your TPS Work permit and travel information Legal supports and available resources You’ll also have the chance to ask questions and connect with local organizations that can help with ongoing support. This a hybrid event. A Zoom link will be sent to all registered participants 1 hour before the event. We will be providing interpretation in Spanish and Haitian Creole on location during the event. Registration is encouraged but not required. Pizza will be provided! Vin jwenn nou pou yon prezantasyon ak yon avoka imigrasyon De Novo sou Estati Pwoteksyon Tanporè (TPS). Nou pral eksplore sijè tankou: Kijan pou renouvle pèmi Travay TPS ou ak enfòmasyon sou vwayaj Sipò legal ak resous ki disponib Pou wè prezantasyon sa a sou Zoom, enskri pou reyinyon an ak lyen ki anwo a. Pou gade l an dirèk, vizite Bibliyotèk Central Plas la (45 Pearl Street). Entèpretasyon an ap disponib an kreyòl Ayisyen ak an Espanyòl. Gratis epi louvri pou tout moun! Acompáñenos a la presentación de un abogado de inmigración de De Novo sobre el Estatus de Protección Temporal (TPS). Hablaremos sobre los siguientes temas: cómo renovar su TPS permiso de trabajo e información de viaje apoyos legales y recursos disponibles Para ver esta presentación en Zoom, regístrese en la reunión usando el enlace anterior. Para verla en vivo, visite la Biblioteca de Central Square 45 Pearl Street, Cambridge Habrá interpretación en criollo haitiano y español. ¡Entrada libre y gratuita!

Join us as we celebrate the official acceptance of the Cambridge-Yerevan Sister City Association Records into the Cambridge Public Library’s Archives and Special Collections. Learn about the collection and three significant objects given by Yerevan to the city of Cambridge with guest speaker, Gary Lind-Sinanian, Collections Curator of the Armenian Museum of America. We’ll be treated to a selection of traditional Armenian music sung by a local student. A sampling of hors d’oeuvres and Eastern Armenian desserts will be served following the program.

What’s going on with Cuba and why? This presentation will examine the current crisis in relations between the United States and Cuba in historical context. The Trump administration has brought its own peculiar mix of his “Donroe Doctrine,” Pete Hegseth’s “warrior ethos,” Trump’s claim to be a “president of peace” to a long and troubled relationship with our Caribbean neighbor. The talk will look at the reasons for US enmity towards the Cuban Revolution and how the relationship has evolved in the post-Cold War era until today. Registration is required.

Join Earthwise Aware for a thought-provoking workshop examining how land use and climate change influence the design, function, and future of urban green spaces. Starting at the library’s front lawn, we will explore how conventional designs can undermine biodiversity and tree health. What makes a space truly nature-friendly? Can a lawn, sidewalk, or plaza be transformed into habitat? We will compare low-functioning green spaces with examples of micro-forests, native plantings, and meadows. Along the way, we will observe seasonal changes in plants and wildlife through the lens of phenology, the study of nature’s calendar. We will also introduce simple participatory science tools that help monitor habitat quality, foster community engagement, and inform better decisions. Even a modest native plant patch can be a pocket of resilience. Come learn how to spot, support, and reimagine urban nature that works with the ecosystem, not just mimics it. The program will start with a workshop in the Rossi Room, then move outside to Joan Lorentz Park. Registration required.

Join local author Clare Walker Leslie (How to Look at a Bird, Keeping a Nature Journal) to learn how to draw Cambridge birds! Participants will discuss birds local to Cambridge, learn how to draw the birds they see every day, and leave the program with their own finished bird drawing. All drawing and reference materials will be provided and all skill levels are welcome, no previous drawing experience required. If you don't think you can draw a bird, that's okay - this event will show you that you can! Registration is required for this program. This program is suggested for participants ages 8 and up.