Have you been meaning to revise your resume, but are not sure how to get started? Would you like to learn new skills to conquer your next job interview? Are you interested in making your LinkedIn profile stand out? Check out the new virtual career workshops for jobseekers at the Free Library, brought to you by Full… continue reading Fall into a new Career with Virtual Career Workshops at the Free Library of Philadelphia!

By written by Steven D.    September 6, 2022   

• Events at the Library
• Careers
• Business Resource and Innovation Center
• Digital Learning
• Job Seekers
• Virtual Programs

Read, Baby, Read is a Free Library initiative focused on encouraging early literacy development among infants and young toddlers under two years old. We work with 17 participating libraries across Philadelphia to reach caregivers of all ages, providing resources that support early literacy skills, language development, and purposeful play. You… continue reading Read, Baby, Read Presents Early Literacy Ideas: Bedtime!

By written by Sarah J.    September 6, 2022   

• Childrens Programs
• Family Programs
• Childrens Books
• Early Literacy
• Read Baby Read

As summer begins to wind down and another autumn is on the horizon, your friends at the Free Library have some new titles to share with you! Young Children (up to 2nd Grade) The Queen of Kindergarten by Derrick Barnes; illustrated by Vanessa Brantley-Newton MJ is more than ready for her first day of kindergarten! With her hair freshly braided… continue reading New Titles Coming to the Free Library in September!

By written by Rachel F.    September 6, 2022   

• Recommendations
• Monthly New Titles
• New Titles

Opening September 22 and running through January 31, 2023 (extended from original closing date of December 31, 2022) at Parkway Central Library and South Philadelphia Library,  Chronicling Resistance: The Exhibition  and its companion programs reveal what eight local activists, cultural organizers, and artists unearthed when… continue reading Chronicling Resistance: The Exhibition

By written by Administrator    September 1, 2022    4  

• Exhibitions

September is  Library Card Sign-Up Month —do you have your  Free Library card ?! Anyone who lives, works, pays taxes, or attends school in the city of Philadelphia is eligible, so share the news! Your Free Library card connects you to thousands of books, DVDs, CDs, and other materials from the  catalog , and grants you… continue reading Happy Library Card Sign-Up Month!

By written by Kate C.    August 31, 2022    10  

• Library Card
• Library Resources

Little Free Libraries have been around since the early 2000’s and many are familiar with their communal “leave a book, take a book” nature. In 2016, Portland artists Erinn Kathryn and Jen LaMastra created the Little Free Gallery Project. Their project temporarily converted twenty Little Free Libraries into art galleries for a… continue reading The Big Deal about Small Art: No Small Artists, Only Small Artworks

By written by Jeanette C.    August 29, 2022    1  

• Art
• Free Library Staff
• Community

It's hard to believe summer is almost over, isn't it? But the good news is that a new school year is about to start! There's something exciting about beginning fresh another year of learning. Perhaps you're going back to your old school and will see familar faces, or maybe you're going to a brand new school and will have a… continue reading Picture Book Highlights | Back to School!

By written by Monica C.    August 26, 2022   

• Childrens Books
• Recommendations
• Back To School
• Picture Book Highlights

Last November, we announced that Kelly Richards would be joining the Free Library as our new President and Director , coming to Philadelphia after serving as the Director of the Muskegon Area District Library in Michigan and President of the Michigan Library Association. Mr. Richards began his tenure with us on January 14, 2022 , and as he… continue reading Celebrating Six Months with Kelly Richards!

By written by Kate C.    August 24, 2022    1  

• Free Library Staff

We are so excited to introduce you to Claire Lutz, the BRIC's newest librarian! Claire started in July. Be sure to say hello when you see her in the Business Resource and Innovation Center (BRIC) at Parkway Central Library . Read on to learn more about Claire! Bragging rights: Tell us a little about your career before becoming a… continue reading Introducing BRIC's New Business Librarian: Claire

By written by Gillian R.    August 24, 2022    1  

• Free Library Staff
• Parkway Central
• Departments
• Business Resource and Innovation Center

We've got a few more weeks of sweet summertime to warm up our days and bring with it all sorts of fun outdoors activities! I'm very keen on summer, as you can see here and here . So what do I have for you this year? Check out these great books celebrating summer with all its glory: in the city, at the beach or on a lake! The World… continue reading Picture Book Highlights | Summertime

By written by Monica C.    August 22, 2022   

• Childrens Books
• Recommendations
• Summer
• Picture Book Highlights

We have loved spending our summer with you, and now we’re just as excited to get back to school! The start of a new school year can look different for everyone. Most students are returning to the classroom, while some may continue with virtual learning or get into a homeschooling routine. The Free Library is here to help with that… continue reading It's Back to School Time at the Free Library!

By written by Emily S.    August 22, 2022   

• Childrens Books
• Online Learning
• Back To School
• LEAP

August is National Black Business Month ! Philadelphia is home to a wide array of Black-owned businesses, from art galleries to restaurants and so much more. Just how many Black-owned businesses are there in Philadelphia? In 2019, Pew Charitable Trust’s State of the City report put the figure at 2.5% of all Philadelphia businesses .… continue reading August is National Black Business Month

By written by Claire L.    August 18, 2022   

• Business Resource and Innovation Center
• Business
• History of Philadelphia

With fall approaching, what better time than now to join the Adult Literacy Book Club , presented by the Free Library's Languages and Learning Center ! Improve your reading skills while reading and discussing interesting books as we turn the page on a new season in Philadelphia. Don't always have a lot of time to read? No problem. The… continue reading The Adult Literacy Book Club's Fall Book Selection

By written by Phil K.    August 17, 2022   

• Reading
• Book Clubs

We're setting new Summer of Wonder records in 2022! Not only did we meet our Community Reading Minutes goal for the summer, we also blasted past all of our minutes-read milestones and logged the most online community minutes read in Free Library history! As of this month, we have read over 360,000 minutes! We're so proud. To… continue reading Celebrating Another Summer of Wonder

By written by Emily S.    August 15, 2022   

• Summer Reading
• Summer

Did you know that water makes up 71 percent of our world and is a vital component of all forms of life on Earth? Look at a globe and you’ll see our continents surrounded by oceans. When seen from space, our planet looks blue due to all the water on its surface! Would you like to learn more about water? Start here! Hey, water by Antoinette… continue reading Picture Book Highlights | Water

By written by Monica C.    August 12, 2022   

• Childrens Books
• Recommendations
• Picture Book Highlights

Literacy in Early Learning Spaces is a Free Library project focused on literacy and language development in children from birth through 5 years old. We partner with childcare programs across Philadelphia and are funded through a generous investment from the Vanguard Strong Start for Kids Program™. This post was written by Bilingual Early… continue reading Literacy in Early Learning Spaces | How does reading out loud help young children learn to talk?

By written by Emily S.    August 10, 2022   

• Childrens Programs
• Childrens Books
• Pre K
• Literacy in Early Learning Spaces

Throughout the month of July, Field Teen Center recorded interviews with a voice actor, four game designers, and a comic book writer. If you’re interested in creative jobs or if you just want to learn more about how your favorite TV shows, games, and books are made, you won’t want to miss these! Job Talk: A Conversation with Voice… continue reading Explore Creative Careers with Field Teen Center!

By written by Yona Y.    August 5, 2022   

• Art
• Careers
• Tech
• Teens
• YA Literature
• Comics and Graphic Novels
• Digital Media
• Writing
• LEAP
• Fiction
• Video Games
• Adaptations
• STEAM
• Anime and Manga
• Games and Gaming
• Literature
• Black Authors

Residents can get out of the heat and into an air-conditioned space at a neighborhood library with access to books, computers, wireless internet, and other library amenities. Masks are recommended.  The following neighborhood library locations will serve as cooling centers from  Monday, August 8, 2022  to Tuesday,… continue reading Cooling Centers Open at Select Libraries on Monday, August 8 through Tuesday, August 9

By written by Jenn D.    August 5, 2022   

• Cooling Centers

Interested in time travel? The superpowered James Webb Telescope has released its first images this month, giving us a window into distant space and the distant past. It’s dazzling. The Carina Nebula, a birthing ground for stars, appears as a mountainous orange wave flowing upward in a deep blue twinkling field. Stephan’s Quintet,… continue reading Time Travel to the Beginning of the Universe

By written by Emily S.    August 5, 2022   

• Teens
• Summer Reading
• Childrens Books
• STEM

Juanita Vega DeJoseph is the Assistant Department Head in the Art & Literature Department and someone who enjoys cooking and creating. We are so grateful to Juanita for sharing her process of making sofrito, a recipe that has much meaning to her. In the following video, we are invited into a conversation between Juanita and… continue reading Making Sofrito with Juanita and Family!

By written by Shayna M.    August 1, 2022    3  

• Culinary Literacy
• Recipes