Events Calendar

READ and PLAY with your favorite baby or toddler! Reading, singing, talking and playing with your baby from the beginning is important because the roots of language are developing in a baby’s brain even before they can talk! Library programs are always free. Siblings and childcare groups are welcome.

Join us for a book discussion of "It's Not All Downhill From Here" by Terry McMillan. New members always welcome!  Please check with library staff for location or Zoom link.

"Loretha Curry’s life is full. A little crowded sometimes, but full indeed. On the eve of her sixty-eighth birthday, she has a booming beauty-supply empire, a gaggle of lifelong friends, and a husband whose moves still surprise. True, she’s carrying a few more pounds than she should be, but Loretha is not one of those women who think her best days are behind her—and she’s determined to prove wrong her mother, her twin sister, and everyone else with that outdated view of aging wrong. It’s not all downhill from here.



But when an unexpected loss turns her world upside down, Loretha will have to summon all her strength, resourcefulness, and determination to keep on thriving, pursue joy, heal old wounds, and chart new paths. With a little help from her friends, of course." -- Amazon.com

Attention word lovers: exercise your brain by playing Scrabble with other adults!

READ and PLAY together with children 5 & under! Engaging with books, songs and playful experiences all help children develop communication skills, patience, empathy, and pre-reading skills​ and helps to build a lifelong love of reading. Library programs are always free. Siblings and childcare groups are welcome.

READ and PLAY together with children under age 5! Engaging with books, songs and playful experiences all help children develop communication skills, patience, empathy, and pre-reading skills​ and helps to build a lifelong love of reading. Library programs are always free. Older and Younger siblings and childcare groups are welcome.

Visit the Dream Bus to browse books and other library materials, place or pick up holds, and sign up for a library card. Learn more at dreambus.org.

Join Making & Learning Intern Yaritza at Dream Bus and Parks Alive stops this summer for a fun, maker activity! While you're there, explore Madison Public Library's summer reading program WE READ: 

• Pick up your WE READ Card Game
• Fill your WE READ tote bag with books from the library collection
• Answer the Share Your Voice question of the week to earn a prize

Yaritza is bilingual in English and Spanish and will offer art and making programs throughout the summer. Learn more about Yaritza. 

Join us to READ and Play together. When children engage with books, songs, and play, they develop communication skills, patience, empathy, and pre-reading skills which helps to build a lifelong love of reading. 

This program is geared toward children under age 5. All older and younger siblings as well as childcare groups are welcome to join.

Library programs are always free.

Visit the Dream Bus to browse books and other library materials, place or pick up holds, and sign up for a library card. Learn more at dreambus.org.

Join Making & Learning Intern Yaritza at Dream Bus and Parks Alive stops this summer for a fun, maker activity! While you're there, explore Madison Public Library's summer reading program WE READ: 

• Pick up your WE READ Card Game
• Fill your WE READ tote bag with books from the library collection
• Answer the Share Your Voice question of the week to earn a prize

Yaritza is bilingual in English and Spanish and will offer art and making programs throughout the summer. Learn more about Yaritza. 

Visit the Dream Bus to browse books and other library materials, place or pick up holds, and sign up for a library card. Learn more at dreambus.org.

Join Making & Learning Intern Yaritza at Dream Bus and Parks Alive stops this summer for a fun, maker activity! While you're there, explore Madison Public Library's summer reading program WE READ: 

• Pick up your WE READ Card Game
• Fill your WE READ tote bag with books from the library collection
• Answer the Share Your Voice question of the week to earn a prize

Yaritza is bilingual in English and Spanish and will offer art and making programs throughout the summer. Learn more about Yaritza. 

Growing Voices Music Class is an interactive class for caregivers and their children, birth-5, to play, learn, and bond with music. In our classes we sing, play instruments, dance, and have fun together!

Drop-in knitting.  All experience levels welcome!  Children under 9 must be accompanied by an adult for duration of program. Yarn and Needles provided for in-library use.

Please contact Meadowridge Library at 608-288-6160 for more details and information!

Please join us to play chess at our weekly, drop-in program! All ages and experience levels welcome.

In this 4-week series, we’ll use short writing exercises to trigger your creativity while expanding your writing skill. We’ll practice writing about places, characters, and scenes with short assignments designed to be as fun as they are helpful in finding your voice as a writer. Some writing exercises will take place in class and others will be “Field Trip” assignments between class meetings. The workshop is open to all fiction and nonfiction writers, ages 12-112. Registration is now closed.

We will…

Explore capturing characters with telling details. 
Conveying a sense of place.
Dig into “show don’t tell” with action in scenes.

About the presenter: Sarah White  is a professional freelance writer, published author, and personal historian who helps people write about their lives, individually and in small-group workshops. She holds degrees in Journalism and Creative Nonfiction.

Stop by to make art with our summer artist in residence, Elias!  Each week will offer a different fun, hands-on project for kids of all ages!

Wednesdays, June 26-August 14, 3:30-5:00pm

Note: No program on July 17.

During this program, your librarian will be using an exciting new tool called the Observation Deck, funded by the Institute for Museum and Library Services, to better report on learning outcomes for youth. You can learn more about the project on our website: https://www.madisonpubliclibrary.org/engagement/observation-deck 

Join Bubbler Artist in Residence Savannah Starlin for a relaxing art workshop. Take what you make with you when you leave. No registration required & free of cost.

Make bracelets using gimp, yarn, and charms. Bring your bestie and make matching bracelets to symbolize your friendship.

We Make Summer Session meets weekly on Wednesdays, June 26th - August 28th. 

Youth 8 years and younger must bring an older caregiver with them.

Visit the Dream Bus to browse books and other library materials, place or pick up holds, and sign up for a library card. Learn more at dreambus.org.

Connect with Madison Public Library at Parks Alive. Stop by to get a library card, learn about library resources, and pick up a WE READ Library bag and a card game that inspires youth to read over the summer!  Parks Alive builds stronger neighborhoods and connects neighbors to their parks through fun, family-friendly activities, music and free food. Events are held in parks across the city and throughout the summer. Connect with your neighbors and engage with your community at a Parks Alive event near you!  Learn more at Parks Alive https://www.cityofmadison.com/parksalive.

Drop in knitting: Learn a new craft or work on that unfinished project with other neighborhood knitters.