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PRESS RELEASE

October 19, 2023 
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
Sarah Henry, Public Information Officer
510-747-4714 | shenry@alamedaca.gov

Alameda Free Library Event Alert - November 2023

Event Descriptions – Ongoing Adult and Teen Events: 

• Teen Book Club: Teen book club members choose what we read from a variety of titles and genres each month. Additionally, while supplies last, book club members receive a free copy of the book to keep. The title we will discuss in November is Five Survive by Holly Jackson. All teens, ages 13 to 18, are invited to join the book group. Registration link is on the calendar. We will be meeting in person in the Stafford Room at the Main Library.
• Game Break: Don’t forget to take a break…A GAME BREAK! Try out our new games and/or watch others play. No registration needed, masks strongly encouraged. Teens only!
• Lawyers in the Library: The Lawyers in the Library program provides free 15-minute consultations by phone with a volunteer attorney who will provide guidance on legal matters. Examples of areas covered include landlord/tenant disputes, probate matters, employment problems and other general consumer issues. Please see the online calendar for registration form and instructions.
• Make It: Calling all knitters, crochetiers, embroidery enthusiasts, and fiber ateliers! Please join us in the Family Study Room at Main for a fiber arts craft circle. Please bring your own project, materials, and expertise. Limited instruction available!
• Teen Advisory Board (TAB): Do you wish the library would do more events and programs that you’re interested in? Have you been anxiously awaiting a new book and you want the library to buy it? Do you need an impressive membership to put on your applications and resumes? Join the Teen Advisory Board (TAB) to let the library know what you’re interested in. The Teen Advisory Board is your chance to make a difference in the library for yourself and other teens in Alameda. Members of the Teen Advisory Board will help plan teen programs and choose teen events. Teen Advisory Board members will earn community service hours for every meeting and event that they participate in.
• Alameda Library Writers’ Group: This group is open to all adult writers looking for an opportunity to connect and share with other writers. At the meeting you are welcome to share your writing and everyone will be given a writing prompt. Whatever your genre, you are welcome to join the group! Join in person or via Zoom.
• Dungeons & Dragons: Want to try Dungeons & Dragons but can’t find a group? Looking for a new party? Come to our Dungeons & Dragons Teen Meetup! No previous experience required. Character sheets will be provided as well as rules explanations and dice. Registration is encouraged; please see the online calendar for the registration link.
• A Novel Idea: A Novel Idea is a book club for adults featuring novels from diverse genres and authors. Join us for a lively discussion and deepen your engagement with your reading! The November book is Night of the Living Rez.
• Alameda Great Books Discussion Group: Join us for a discussion of What We Talk About When We Talk About Love by Raymond Carver.
• A Cup of Coffee and a Good Book Club: Wondering what to read next? Instead of a monthly book everyone reads, A Cup of Coffee and a Good Book Club will discuss what everyone is currently reading or has recently read that they enjoyed.  The November theme is Food, Food, Food!  Please email the facilitator, Lynda, at llyndaw@gmail.com for more information.
• Mystery Book Club: Join the Alameda Free Library’s Mystery Book Clubfor a fun and engaging literary discussion!  We are offering this popular book club in two different locations, the Main Library and the Bay Farm Island Library. The November mystery is Fifty Four Pigs by Philip Schott.
• Movie Night Smoke Signals (1998) PG-13. Arnold rescued Thomas from a fire when he was a child. Thomas thinks of Arnold as a hero, while Arnold's son Victor resents his father's alcoholism, violence and abandonment of his family.Uneasy rivals and friends, Thomas and Victor spend their days killing time on a Coeur d'Alene reservation in Idaho and arguing about their cultural identities. When Arnold dies, the duo set out on a cross-country journey to Phoenix to retrieve Arnold's ashes.

Event Descriptions – Special Adult/Teen Events: 

• Financial Literacy: Financial Aid Basics with the College of Alameda: High school teens, join us for an informative session with a COA Financial Aid Specialist who will provide valuable insights into grants, the FAFSA process, and the services and resources offered at COA. You'll have the chance to ask any questions you may have in a Q&A session. And that's not all! Students in grades 9-12 will have the opportunity to enter a drawing and win a prize. Adult family members are welcome.
• Alameda Free Library Blood Drive: Please give blood if you can! To sign up please visit redcrossblood.org and enter sponsor code ALAMEDALIBRARY
  To save time while saving a life please fill out a Rapidpass. Learn more at red-crossblood.org/rapidpass

Event Descriptions – Ongoing Children’s/Family Events:
Please note that there are no storytimes or children’s programs November 19 through November 26.

Bay Farm Island Branch:

• Preschool Storytime: A 30-45 minute program geared toward children ages 3-5 years old. Creating a language-rich environment through books, music, and movement, this program also offers children an avenue toward Kindergarten readiness by asking them to take turns, share, and follow simple directions. New day!  Mondays at 10:30am, ages 3-5.
• Family Storytime: Put on your pajamas and join us at the Bay Farm Island Library for family storytime! Geared for a mix of ages, we invite families to participate as we read stories, sing songs, do fingerplays and more. Every Tuesday at 7pm, all ages.
• Toddler Storytime: A 20-30 minute program that uses stories, songs, fingerplays, and movement to help young children ages 1-3 years old develop word and sound recognition, gain background knowledge of how the world works, and encourages families to build social connections with other parents and children. New program at BFI! Thursdays at 10:30 AM.
• Build with LEGO: We will provide the LEGO building blocks.  Use your imagination and creativity to create with them! Every Thursday at 3:30 pm.

Main Library, Children's Programming Room:

• Preschool Storytime: A 30-45 minute program geared toward children ages 3-5 years old. Creating a language-rich environment through books, music, and movement, this program also offers children an avenue toward Kindergarten readiness by asking them to take turns, share, and follow simple directions. Every Tuesday at 10:30am, ages 3-5.
• School-Age Storytime: A 45 minute program for children in Kindergarten through third grade. Through the use of books and conversation, children are encouraged to engage with the stories, learning context from pictures and memory, and building comprehension by asking questions about the book just read. Every Wednesday at 3:30pm, grades K-3rd.
• Mother Goose on the Loose: This fast paced lap-sit program for little ones and their caregivers includes songs, nursery rhymes, knee-bounces, and movement to help develop important pre-literacy skills. This class is appropriate for infants through 2 years old. This program starts promptly at 10:30am. Latecomers may not be admitted. Every Thursday at 10:30am, ages 0-2.
• Toddler Storytime: A 20-30 minute program that uses stories, songs, fingerplays, and movement to help young children ages 1-3 years old develop word and sound recognition, gain background knowledge of how the world works, and encourages families to build social connections with other parents and children. Every Friday & Saturday at 10:30am, ages 1-3.

West End Branch:

• Family Storytime: Put on your pajamas and join us at the Bay Farm Island Library for family storytime! Geared for a mix of ages, we invite families to participate as we read stories, sing songs, do fingerplays and more.
• Toddler Storytime: A 20-30 minute program that uses stories, songs, fingerplays, and movement to help young children ages 1-3 years old develop word and sound recognition, gain background knowledge of how the world works, and encourages families to build social connections with other parents and children. Every Tuesday at 10:30am, ages 1-3.

Event Descriptions - Special Children’s/Family Events:

• Family Movie Matinee - Moana: Join us for a sensory-friendly, family focused screening of Moana. Moana is the story of an adventurous teenager who is inspired to leave the safety and security of her island on a daring journey to save her people. Inexplicably drawn to the ocean, Moana convinces the mighty demigod Maui to join her mission, and he reluctantly helps her become a wayfinder like her ancestors who sailed before her. Together, they voyage across the open ocean on an action-packed adventure, encountering enormous monsters and impossible odds, and along the way, Moana fulfills her quest and discovers the one thing she’s always sought: her own identity.

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