Wellness is not just about physical health; it’s also about having a healthy mind and relationships. Madison Public Library can help you stay informed through our free resources and help you reach your wellness goals through our workshops by the community, for the community.
Want to stay in the know about future wellness events at your library? Sign up for the Live Well @ Your Library Insider email newsletter.
Thurber Parks' Artist-in-Residence Jennifer Bastian
Join Thurber Parks' Artist-in-Residence, Jennifer Bastian on a journey of processing grief through community art during weekly drop-ins sessions on Wednesdays from 12-2PM at Thurber Park (3325 Thurber Ave.)
"There is a lot of grief in our world right now. For some it is delayed processing of loss due to the ongoing Covid pandemic and ramp-up back to “normal,” for others it is due to income inequality or racial inequity in a segregated city, others are impacted by the reality of multiple concurrent genocides around the world. I believe we need space to slow down and process our grief. Art can help us access the emotions our daily lives do not leave room for." explains Jennifer
Programs will take place through Fall 2026 and will include sewing circles, grief-themed sewing workshops, opportunities to collaborate on larger community projects and more.
No Open Studio: 12/25/24, 01/01/25 and 01/08/2025
Announcing the new LGBTQ+ Wellness Guide
Each year Madison Public Library celebrates Pride month in June with events, books, resources and more. However, we also have LGBTQ+ events happening year-round. This year we're especially excited to debut an ongoing resource, a new 2024 edition of the Madison Public Library LGBTQ+ Wellness Guide!
Madison Public Library welcomes and supports the LGBTQ+ community and understands that the fight for LGBTQ+ equity in America is far from over, especially for transgender people and queer people of color. Included in this guide are mental health providers, transition and sexual health resources, support groups, hotlines, and more. We hope this guide informs and empowers you to find the community and support that you need.
We're in the process of getting the guide printed and out in all of our libraries, as well as clinics around the city. Keep an eye on our website at madpl.org/lgbtqwellness to see the list of clinics the guide will be available at as well as a link to download a digital copy.
Wellness At Home: Make Your Own Gratitude Journal
The practice of daily gratitude is perfect for the cold, winter months. While you're reflecting on the previous year or gearing up for the new one, take a little time out to make your own gratitude journal! Artist Angela Johnson created this helpful kit so that you can design your journal using watercolor techniques and common materials found around the house. Each kit also includes 30 journal prompts to guide your gratitude practice. Download the instructions by clicking the images below and get started today!
This kit is intended for older adults as part of the Live Well @ Your Library Senior Initiative.
KIT Components
Wellness Books
A few highlights of new and newer wellness books available at your library.
Dr. Ala Stanford knew she wanted to be a doctor by the time she was eight years old. But role models were few and far between in her working-class North Philly neighborhood. Her teachers were dismissive, and the realities of racism, sexism, and poverty threatened to derail her at every turn. Nevertheless, thanks to her faith, family, and the sheer strength of her will, today she is one of the vanishingly small number of Black women surgeons in America—and an unrelenting force in the fight for health justice.
The Modern Navajo Kitchen takes you on an exhilarating journey for your taste buds. This beautifully photographed cookbook ties together traditional Navajo recipes as well as global recipes with a Navajo spin, creating a truly unique culinary experience!
Despite modern technology and the ample ways we have to keep in touch, we risk neglecting our relationships with the people who have the most profound effect on our well-being: our friends. Weaving together personal stories, interviews with experts, and social research, Friendship First empowers you to nurture relationships with friends both new and old.
If you are looking to learn how to express what you truly feel and ask for what you want in a kind and direct way, this book will help you take control of situations and set boundaries that work for you in your environment. Giving hundreds of examples of boundary phrases and conversation scripts, it's designed to be both easy to read and an accessible reference to pull out again and again when you need boundary-setting guidance. Featuring three boundary phrase frameworks and a multitude of topics for use in each.
Through science and storytelling, Jamil Zaki imparts the secret for beating back cynicism: hopeful skepticism. This approach doesn't mean putting our faith in every politician or influencer. It means thinking critically about people and our problems, while simultaneously acknowledging and encouraging our strengths. Far from being naïve, hopeful skepticism is a more precise way of understanding others, and paying closer attention re-balances how you think about human nature. As more of us do this, we can take steps towards building the world we truly want.
This title is also available in e-book and e-audiobook formats.
