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Update: This event has been moved inside the Valente Branch Community Room due to the heat emergency declared by the City of Cambridge. Join us for one, two, or all CPL Adult Summer Camp activities to meet new people and have nostalgic fun outside in Cambridge! Make Tie Dye T-shirts & Bags with us in the Reading Garden next to Valente. Rain/High Heat Location: Valente Branch Library Registration Required.

Join us for a fun, interactive introduction to American Sign Language (ASL) and inclusive communication. Participants will learn practical everyday signs, respectful ways to interact with Deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals, expressive communication techniques, and simple real-life ASL scenarios. This activity-based workshop includes silent communication challenges, group participation, and engaging sign language games designed to build confidence and connection through communication. Recommended for ages 10 and up.

Join us to craft homemade gifts this holiday season. Learn to make one-of-a-kind beads from recycled strips of paper. Once the beads are constructed, thread them into a piece of jewelry for yourself or someone else. Recommended for children ages 6-12 with a caregiver. Tuesday, December 9: Paper Bead Jewelry Monday, December 15: Tissue Paper Flowers Please note: latecomers arriving after 4:30 p.m. may not have time to complete this project.

Jill Ahlstrand is the founder of Harvesting Flavor, where she teaches approachable, garden-to-table plant-based cooking that helps people feel energized, confident, and nourished. Through classes, workshops, and wellness programs, she makes healthy eating practical, seasonal, and deeply flavorful. Bowls are one of the easiest ways to eat plant-forward, but only when they’re built well. In this class, you’ll learn how to create balanced, satisfying bowls using simple components like grains, vegetables, proteins, and sauces. We’ll focus especially on how sauces bring everything together, so bowls are flavorful, filling, and easy to repeat at home. No special diet is required, just practical, delicious food.

“If Black women were free, it would mean that everyone else would have to be free since our freedom would necessitate the destruction of all the systems of oppression.” - Combahee River Collective, April 1977 This event is part 2 of 4 of our reading group to discuss How We Get Free: Black Feminism and the Combahee River Collective by Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor. We will read and discuss the book in sections as follows: Session 1 - Intro, Barbara Smith Session 2 - Beverly Smith, Demita Frazier Session 3 - Alicia Garza, Angela Davis, comments Session 4 – Reflections on Cambridge present and future Participants are encouraged to come to as many sessions as they can — and all are welcome! Copies of the book are available for pickup at the Central Square Branch. This event was created in partnership with Community Conversations: Sister to Sister, the Cambridge LGBTQ+ Commission, and the Cambridge Women’s Commission.

“If Black women were free, it would mean that everyone else would have to be free since our freedom would necessitate the destruction of all the systems of oppression.” - Combahee River Collective, April 1977 This event is part 3 of 4 of our reading group to discuss How We Get Free: Black Feminism and the Combahee River Collective by Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor. We will read and discuss the book in sections as follows: Session 1 - Intro, Barbara Smith Session 2 - Beverly Smith, Demita Frazier Session 3 - Alicia Garza, Angela Davis, comments Session 4 – Reflections on Cambridge present and future Participants are encouraged to come to as many sessions as they can — and all are welcome! Copies of the book are available for pickup at the Central Square Branch. This event was created in partnership with Community Conversations: Sister to Sister, the Cambridge LGBTQ+ Commission, and the Cambridge Women’s Commission.

“If Black women were free, it would mean that everyone else would have to be free since our freedom would necessitate the destruction of all the systems of oppression.” - Combahee River Collective, April 1977 This event is part 2 of 4 of our reading group to discuss How We Get Free: Black Feminism and the Combahee River Collective by Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor. We will read and discuss the book in sections as follows: Session 1 - Intro, Barbara Smith Session 2 - Beverly Smith, Demita Frazier Session 3 - Alicia Garza, Angela Davis, comments Session 4 – Reflections on Cambridge present and future Participants are encouraged to come to as many sessions as they can — and all are welcome! Copies of the book are available for pickup at the Central Square Branch. This event was created in partnership with Community Conversations: Sister to Sister, the Cambridge LGBTQ+ Commission, and the Cambridge Women’s Commission.

“If Black women were free, it would mean that everyone else would have to be free since our freedom would necessitate the destruction of all the systems of oppression.” - Combahee River Collective, April 1977 This event is part 4 of 4 of our reading group to discuss How We Get Free: Black Feminism and the Combahee River Collective by Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor. We will read and discuss the book in sections as follows: Session 1 - Intro, Barbara Smith Session 2 - Beverly Smith, Demita Frazier Session 3 - Alicia Garza, Angela Davis, comments Session 4 – Reflections on Cambridge present and future Participants are encouraged to come to as many sessions as they can — and all are welcome! Copies of the book are available for pickup at the Central Square Branch. This event was created in partnership with Community Conversations: Sister to Sister, the Cambridge LGBTQ+ Commission, and the Cambridge Women’s Commission.

May selection: Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather Reading Interests: We read mostly contemporary Fiction and Non-Fiction, with forays into older works and classics. Past selections include: Wellness by Nathan Hill, Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward, The Elements of Marie Curie by Dava Sobel, and The Midnight Library by Matt Haig. How to get the print book: Copies of the book are set aside at the O'Connell Branch. Click here for O'Connell Branch Hours How to get the e-book or digital audiobook: This month’s book is available as a digital audio and e-book through Hoopla. This book group meets in person at the O'Connell Branch. No registration is needed. Drop-ins welcome. For more information contact the branch at 617-349-4019.

June selection: The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox by Maggie O'Farrell Reading Interests: We read mostly contemporary Fiction and Non-Fiction, with forays into older works and classics. Past selections include: Wellness by Nathan Hill, Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward, The Elements of Marie Curie by Dava Sobel, and The Midnight Library by Matt Haig. How to get the print book: Copies of the book are set aside at the O'Connell Branch. Click here for O'Connell Branch Hours How to get the e-book or digital audiobook: This month’s book is available as a digital audio and e-book through Libby or Hoopla. This book group meets in person at the O'Connell Branch. No registration is needed. Drop-ins welcome. For more information contact the branch at 617-349-4019.