The Free Library’s Musical Instrument Collection is now as old as the number of lines on a musical staff—on September 25, 2021, the MIC turned 5! It was an ominous trek leading up to this milestone. That goes for other instrument lending collections in libraries around the world, too. The pandemic paused all our unique lending for… continue reading Celebrating Five Years of the Musical Instrument Collection at the Free Library

By written by Perry G.    November 26, 2021   

• Music
• Parkway Central

With Thanksgiving just around the corner, many people have family silver they bring out for special occasions. Did you know that cleaning away the tarnish yearly will eventually wear away the silver? Consider these tips from the Free Library Collection Care department: Store your silver so that it doesn't tarnish Believe it or not,… continue reading Quick Tips to Help Care for Your Silverware

By written by Collection Care    November 24, 2021   

• How To
• Collection Care

Sharing a meal is at the heart of Thanksgiving. Be it with friends or family, with new neighbors or with those in the larger community, the act of cooking and eating together brings us all together in gratefulness... just like these picture books!   A Feast for Joseph written by Terry Farish and O.D. Bonny ; illustrated by Ken Daley ebook… continue reading Picture Book Highlights | Thanksgiving

By written by Monica C.    November 23, 2021   

• Childrens Books
• Recommendations
• Picture Book Highlights

November is Native American Heritage Month, as well as a time when many people in the United States celebrate Thanksgiving. If this holiday is a part of your family’s tradition, it may be time to give this annual harvest feast a conceptual refresh. Giving thanks is a very old tradition that has been practiced by Indigenous cultures around… continue reading Reframing Thanksgiving for Native American Heritage Month

By written by Emily S.    November 22, 2021   

• Holidays
• Native American

by Autumn M. and Alexis A. You might think of the Parkway Central Library as a great place to check out your favorite books and movies, but there’s so much more we have to offer and a lot of beautiful sights in the actual building to see! Maybe you already know that if you can’t make it down to the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, you can… continue reading Take a Video Tour Through Parkway Central Library!

By written by Administrator    November 19, 2021    6  

• Parkway Central
• Digital Media
• Volunteers

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 12 participating libraries across Philadelphia to reach caregivers of all ages, providing resources that support early literacy skills, language development, and purposeful play. In… continue reading Read, Baby, Read Presents Early Literacy Ideas: Colors!

By written by Sarah J.    November 18, 2021    1  

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

Marian Sosa spent the summer volunteering for the Free Library, with Youth Services , the Summer of Wonder , and on Philadelphia's Play Streets . Here is what she had to say about her experience... Summer in the streets of Philadelphia, like the summer in many cities all across the nation, oftentimes means that there’s going to be a… continue reading A Summer of Service: What I Learned on Philly's Play Streets

By written by Administrator    November 17, 2021   

• Reading
• Summer
• Community

Back in 2012, a group of authors and illustrators came together to promote picture books and... Picture Book Month was born! During this time in November, we celebrate this magical format of text and pictures coming perfectly together to tell a story. It’s a deceptively simple format that requires just the right amount of… continue reading November is Picture Book Month!

By written by Monica C.    November 16, 2021   

• Childrens Books
• Recommendations

The Free Library of Philadelphia is excited to announce that Mr. Kelly Richards, Director of the Muskegon Area District Library in Michigan and President of the Michigan Library Association, has been named as its new President and Director! "The search process for a new President and Director for the Free Library was expansive, inclusive,… continue reading Kelly Richards Named New Free Library Director

By written by Administrator    November 16, 2021    14  

• Free Library Staff
• Board of Trustees

Transgender Awareness Week , held annually from November 15 – 19, helps to raise the visibility of transgender people and address issues members of the community face. The week is capped off on November 20 with Transgender Day of Remembrance, where we remember those who have passed away this year from transphobic violence. Let me define a… continue reading Transgender Awareness Week 2021

By written by Shelley R.    November 15, 2021   

• LGBTQ
• Teens
• YA Literature

If you like sweet beets, nourish your literacy with extra flavor and spice! Brocc out with the Veggie Rap! It's a jam, and it might even make you feel butter. Lime for lime you can farro along. Phyllo ears with some grape rhymes! We are so lucky that Sunshine created the amazing "Veggie Rap!" for us to enjoy. Additional… continue reading Nourishing Literacy | Veggie Rap!

By written by Shayna M.    November 12, 2021   

• Music
• Poetry
• Culinary Literacy

Written by Lewis Shaw, who conducted extensive research in the Art Department as part of a Friends Select School Senior Internship Project. The following is a continuation of a previous blog post on the topics of Surrealism and Gender. Leonora Carrington grew up in the UK as the daughter of a rich couple whose wealth was built on the textile… continue reading A Continued Discussion on the Topics of Surrealism and Gender

By written by Administrator    November 10, 2021   

• Archives
• Art
• Departments
• History
• Literature
• Students

Young Readers Day was first created by a collaboration between the Library of Congress and the reading-incentives program with pizza rewards, Book It! We will happily take any excuse to celebrate reading with kids! Why is reading important? If you are visiting this blog, you may tend to love books and reading, but there are so many reasons to… continue reading Celebrate Young Readers Day!

By written by Emily S.    November 9, 2021   

• Family Programs
• Holidays
• Reading

As part of his bold New Deal aimed at national reform and recovery in the wake of the Great Depression , President Franklin D. Roosevelt launched the Work Projects Administration (WPA) . The federally funded program focused on putting people back to work and employed some 8.5 million Americans to construct 650,000 miles of roads, 78,000… continue reading The ABCs of the WPA at FLP

By written by Fleisher Collection    November 8, 2021   

• Exhibitions
• Fleisher Collection
• Parkway Central
• Special Collections

November is Native American Heritage Month, so let’s celebrate with audio podcasts and videos from the Free Library’s Author Events series! Natalie Diaz | Postcolonial Love Poem  with Denice Frohman Recorded April 21, 2021 Natalie Diaz  is the author of  When My Brother Was an Aztec , an "ambitious . . .… continue reading Celebrate Native American Heritage Month with These Author Events Podcasts and Videos

By written by Author Events    November 5, 2021   

• Author Events
• Native American

Join us for an afternoon of delicious and nutritious food, reading, movement, cooking, and activities on Saturday, November 13 at the Free Library Kids' Wellness Day! This free,  multigenerational, outdoor event is a collaboration between the Parkway Central Library's Children's Department , Culinary Literacy Center's… continue reading Kids’ Wellness Day in Shakespeare Park, Featuring Author Stacey Woodson, MS, RD, LDN

By written by Becky S.    November 4, 2021   

• Childrens Programs
• Childrens Books

The 1960 presidential campaign was close, hard-fought, and left both sides feeling embittered. Kennedy’s final margin of victory was less than 115,000 votes out of nearly 70 million cast.  Nixon was convinced that the Kennedy campaign had stolen Illinois and Texas from him. He wanted to challenge the election results, but senior… continue reading Frenemies: The Strange Friendship of JFK and Richard Nixon

By written by Richard L.    November 3, 2021    1  

• Central Senior Services
• History
• Politics
• Virtual Programs

Updated Tuesday, December 7, 2021 Sherry L. Howard is a Philadelphia-based art collector and researcher who primarily focuses on local African American art and artists. She writes about her experience in the world of art auctions on her blog, Auction Finds , and in her new book,  Art with Heart: How I Built a Sweet Collection by… continue reading African American Art Collecting and Research with Philadelphia Author Sherry Howard

By written by Alina J.    November 3, 2021   

• Archives
• Art
• African American
• Author Events
• History of Philadelphia
• Black Authors

Born in Columbus, Ohio, Jacqueline Woodson grew up in Greenville, South Carolina, and Brooklyn, New York, graduating from college with a B.A. in English. She is the author of dozens of award-winning books for young adults, middle graders, and children. Among her many accolades, she is a four-time Newbery Honor winner, a four-time National… continue reading Celebrating Jacqueline Woodson

By written by Jeff B.    November 2, 2021   

• Recommendations
• Literature
• Black Women Authors

We are grateful for these new titles arriving on our shelves and catalog this fall! Young Children (up to 2nd Grade) Nibi's Water Song  written by Sunshine Tenasco; illustrated by Chief Lady Bird When Nibi, an Indigenous girl, turns the handle on the sink in her house, only mucky brown water comes out. That starts her on a search… continue reading New Titles Coming to the Free Library in November!

By written by Rachel F.    November 1, 2021   

• Recommendations
• Monthly New Titles
• New Titles