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Cambridge is home to over 80 species of edible wild plants, some of which are more nutritious and/or flavorful than their cultivated counterparts. These include native species like Fox Grape and Shagbark Hickory; non-native weeds like Chicory and Burdock; and invasive species like Japanese Knotweed and Autumn Olive. Join expert forager Russ Cohen on a 2.5 hour ramble around Fresh Pond to learn about over two dozen species of edible wild plants. Keys to the identification of each species will be provided, along with info on edible portion(s), season(s) of availability and preparation methods, as well as guidelines for safe, ethical and environmentally-responsible foraging. NOTE that this is an educational walk only: no actual foraging will take place, as that activity is prohibited with in the Fresh Pond Reservation. We will meet at Fresh Pond, in the main parking lot by the ranger station and water department. Russ Cohen is a naturalist and wild foods enthusiast from Weston, Mass., currently in his 52nd year of leading walks and talks about wild edibles. He has led talks for the Massachusetts Audubon Society, the New England Forestry Foundation, and The Trustees of Reservations. Russ' foraging book, Wild Plants I Have Known...and Eaten, is now in its ninth printing. Russ has taken on the role of Johnny Appleseed for edible native species, collaborating with land trusts, cities and towns, and other groups (including one in Cambridge) to plant plants from his nursery in appropriate places on their properties.

Youth ages 10-16 are welcome to join for three sessions of cooperative role-play and storytelling as we build out skills playing the table-top game DnD. The first session will include a character-building introduction followed by play continued into the next two sessions. No prior DnD experience is required, and experienced players are also welcome to join. Registration is required, as the program is capped at 8 players. Please plan to attend all sessions! (Registration is attached to the first DnD session on 11/7 and closed on that date.) The City of Cambridge does not discriminate, including on the basis of disability. We may provide auxiliary aids and services, written materials in alternative formats, and reasonable modifications in policies and procedures to people with disabilities. For more information contact us at library@cambridgema.gov, 617-349-4032 (voice), or via relay at 711.

Youth ages 10-16 are welcome to join for three sessions of cooperative role-play and storytelling as we build out skills playing the table-top game DnD. The first session will include a character-building introduction followed by play continued into the next two sessions. No prior DnD experience is required, and experienced players are also welcome to join. Registration is required, as the program is capped at 8 players. Please plan to attend all sessions! (Registration is attached to the first DnD session on 11/7 and closed on that date.) The City of Cambridge does not discriminate, including on the basis of disability. We may provide auxiliary aids and services, written materials in alternative formats, and reasonable modifications in policies and procedures to people with disabilities. For more information contact us at library@cambridgema.gov, 617-349-4032 (voice), or via relay at 711.

Can a robot be a friend? Can a robot help do your chores? An educator from the Museum of Science leads Robot Storytime to explore these questions through an original story. After the story, participants can interact with a robot dog! This program will happen twice. Come to either the 10:30 AM or 11:30 AM session. No registration required. Recommended for ages 0-7 with a caregiver.

Can a robot be a friend? Can a robot help do your chores? An educator from the Museum of Science leads Robot Storytime to explore these questions through an original story. After the story, participants can interact with a robot dog! This program will happen twice. Come to either the 10:30 AM or 11:30 AM session. No registration required. Recommended for ages 0-7 with a caregiver.

Harvard Book Store and the Cambridge Public Library welcome Angela Buchdahl—Senior Rabbi of Central Synagogue in New York City and the first Asian American to be ordained as a rabbi—for a discussion of her memoir Heart of a Stranger: An Unlikely Rabbi's Story of Faith, Identity, and Belonging. She will be joined in conversation by Allegra Goodman—local author of the bestselling novels Isola and The Chalk Artist. Registration is required.

The Arthropod Petting Zoo is a hands-on, show-and-tell introduction to entomology featuring real live insects and arthropods! While having fun and interacting with genuine crawling critters, kids learn about biology, taxonomy, adaptations, and scientific thinking that real scientists use in the field. Recommended for ages 3-12 and their families. Funding for Summer Reading has been generously provided by the City of Cambridge, Cambridge Public Library Foundation, Friends of the Cambridge Public Library and the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners.

Kids in 6th, 7th and 8th grade can come to the Library to make buttons and magnets. Snacks provided. No registration necessary.

Kids in 6th, 7th and 8th grade can come to the Library to make their own bicycle spoke cards! Snacks provided. No registration necessary.

This presentation incorporates 4-5 live birds of prey that all native to New England. The program is designed to explain predation, the birds' place at the top of the food web, their different hunting adaptations and their status in a rapidly changing world. Because many birds of prey are declining in number, this presentation also features one or more of the endangered raptors that Wingmasters cares for, and explains why these species face an uncertain future. Recommended for children ages 6 and up and their caregivers. This program can accommodate 75 people. Tickets are available on a first come, first served basis on the day of the program. The entire party must be present to receive a ticket. This program starts promptly. Unclaimed seats will be offered to someone waiting. We appreciate your patience and understanding. Funding for Summer Reading has been generously provided by the City of Cambridge, Cambridge Public Library Foundation, Friends of the Cambridge Public Library and the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners.