Events Calendar

We’re here to mend anything you need for the colder months, including clothing, coats, and any other fabric-related repairs, except for zippers. Sewers from the Sewing Machine Project will be available to mend your things for free every Thursday of the month.

Join us for a special time of stories, songs, and play for toddlers and preschoolers.

Engaging with books, songs and reading together helps children develop communication and listening skills, improves language skills, promotes patience, empathy and literacy.  And it is fun!

Families and groups are welcome.

Library programs are always free.

Masks are required in all indoor spaces for those ages 2 and up.

Are you behind on your rent because of the pandemic, either directly or indirectly? You are not alone. Many people are experiencing financial hardship right now.

The African Center for Community Development will be at the Pinney Library on Thursdays, 11:00 am - 3:00 pm, to help individuals and families who owe back rent apply for Dane Core assistance. Eligible households in need of rental and utility assistance should stop by. Working with City of Madison to provide rental assistance. For questions about the program, please call African Center at (608) 957-5623 or (608) 294-0066. More info at https://africancentermadison.org/housing-support/ (link is external)

Read the book and join the discussion of "Silver Sparrow" by Tayari Jones. New members always welcome!

Synopsis: "With the opening line of Silver Sparrow, 'My father, James Witherspoon, is a bigamist,' author Tayari Jones unveils a breathtaking story about a man’s deception, a family’s complicity, and the two teenage girls caught in the middle.

Set in a middle-class neighborhood in Atlanta in the 1980s, the novel revolves around James Witherspoon’s two families—the public one and the secret one. When the daughters from each family meet and form a friendship, only one of them knows they are sisters. It is a relationship destined to explode. This is the third stunning novel from an author deemed 'one of the most important writers of her generation.'" -- Atlanta Journal Constitution

Having trouble with your digital device? DANEnet technicians are available at Lakeview Library every Thursday from 2-4 PM to assist you with your technology repair needs for free.

Technicians can look at laptops, desktop computers, phones and tablets, and can help with:​

• Viruses
• Data recovery
• Slow computers
• App issues
• Password reset
• And more!

No appointment needed. Walk-ins only: first come, first served.

Digital Equity Project events are made possible through the partnership of Madison Public Library and DANEnet, thanks to funding by the MG&E Foundation and the AT&T Foundation.

Drop-in on Thursdays at Lakeview Library for all sorts of creative projects and activities. For families, groups, and all ages. 

Masks recommended but not required.

Join us for hands on art projects that you can take home with you!

Class Experience

Do you write poetry? Do you like to make short videos or want to learn how? This class is for you! In this hands-on workshop, you’ll learn the basics of making video poetry. You'll start by watching some video poems, read and write poetry, develop ideas for your videos, and then learn how to use software and dive into the video and recording process to create a video using our own original poems or a favorite published poem of your choice. You might even get to see your work on the big screen! Completed videos can be submitted to the Midwest Video Poetry Festival for screening in October.

This free workshop is a Collaboration between Arts + Literature Laboratory and The Bubbler at Madison Public Library. 

Age: 12 - 17 yrs

Registration

This hands-on workshop is a 7-part series on Tuesdays and Thursdays starting 4/26 and ending 5/17. You should plan to attend as many sessions as possible because each class builds on the previous. Register now.

Meet your Instructor

Rob Franklin is the Media Projects Bubblerarian for the Madison Public Library. He is a Kennedy Center certified teaching artist and has taught in schools, at the County Juvenile Detention Center and Juvenile Shelter Home, and Madison Jazz Consortium. As a musician, he has performed with Nas, Eminem, Common, Talib Kweli, Dead Prez and others. He has been inducted to the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress and The National Museum of African American History and Culture.

Gathers most Thursday evenings! Middle and high school students can meet other aspiring authors, bounce ideas off one another, share their stories, and feel the creativity flow! Writing club is led by local author Carole Madrzak.