World Refugee Day
Refugee Programs
World Refugee Day, commemorated around the world on June 20, offers an occasion to raise awareness of the millions of people displaced from their homes each year because of war and fear of persecution. In recognition of this day, and to remind us of the civic values we all share, whether immigrant, refugee, or native born, Hartford Public Library is hosting a series of public events that we invite you to attend. 

Naturalization Ceremony, Tuesday, June 20, 11 am
Center for Contemporary Culture, Downtown Library

The Honorable Donna F. Martinez, U.S. Magistrate Judge for the District of Connecticut, will administer the Oath of Allegiance to America's newest citizens.  Lt. Gov. Nancy Wyman will provide opening remarks. Other speakers include: Scott Jackson, Commissioner of CT Department of Labor; Dr. Leslie Torres-Rodriguez, Superintendent of Hartford Public Schools; and Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin, who will lead the audience in an American folk song.

We Belong Here, Photo Exhibition by Andy Hart
Center for Contemporary Culture Corridor
Photographer Andy Hart's photos show the diversity of Hartford's city dwellers.

Pushing The Elephant, Film and discussion
Saturday, June 24, 2-4 pm, Center for Contemporary Culture, Downtown 
A 2010 documentary about a Congolese mother and daughter reunited after a decade of being separated by war. Rose Mapendo becomes a peace advocate, but she must convince her daughter to forgive. 

Immigrant Advisory Group
Wednesday, June 29, 11:30 am-1 pm, Center for Contemporary Culture, Downtown  
Hear experiences of immigrant and refugee young adults, who have graduated from high school, have jobs, internships and college prospects.
RSVP: [email protected].

Learn more

Summer Learning Continues
Sign Up for Summer Learning

It's easy!
1.     Get a library card and sign up on  hplct.beanstack.org
2.     Set your summer learning goals! #readgodo
3.     Accomplish your goals and celebrate with us at the Yard Goats game on Aug 31.

More information: www.summer.hplct.org
World of Sounds
Chat Noir
Wednesday, June 21, Noon-1:30 pm
Downtown Terrace
Fête de la Musique, or World Music Day, began in Paris in 1982 as an annual celebration of music, free and open to the public. This year, HPL joins this now-worldwide celebration with a midday, open-air performance by Chat Noir.
Chat Noir is a gypsy jazz quartet from Connecticut playing music of the great guitarist Django Reinhardt, and classic folk tunes from the Italian, French, and Russian traditions.
World of Sounds is sponsored by the Evelyn W. Preston Memorial Trust Fund. 

Be An Inspirational Leader
Here is an inspirational young leader. When the Taliban took control of the Swat Valley, one girl spoke out. Malala Yousafzai refused to be silenced and fought for her right to an education. On October 9, 2012, she  was shot in the head at point-blank range while riding the bus home from school.
I Am Malala: How One Girl Stood Up for Education and Changed the World is her story.
   
Teens and Leadership Workshops
Goodwin Branch, Tuesday, June 20, 2 pm
Dwight Branch Tuesday, July 11, 1:30 pm
Downtown, Monday, July 31, 2:30 pm 
Ropkins Branch, Tuesday, Aug. 15, 4 pm

These one-hour sessions will help teens learn about five qualities of a leader, participate in brainstorming sessions, and identify strong role models. 
Participants will also find resources for more information about critical thinking, communication skills, and responsibility. 
 
Children's Programs
Fun for the Kids
Hartford Public Library offers programs for children and their families and caregivers from birth to middle school Downtown and in our branches.
Here are highlights through June 23:
Play Giant Jenga on Tuesday and Wednesday, June 20-21,1:30-2:30 pm, Downtown.
Take a virtual reality vacation to Brazil, London and New Zealand Monday, Wednesday and Thursday, June 19, 21 and 22, from 3 to 4 pm at Albany Branch.

NAACP Centennial
Hear The Presidents' Stories
Saturday, June 24, 2-4 pm
Hartford History Center, 3rd Floor, Downtown
Hear the experiences of seven of its past presidents of the Greater Hartford Branch, NAACP. The panel includes:  Dr. Sedrick Rawlins, James W. Patterson, Ula Dodson, Barbara Wiggins, Russell Williams, Joan Harrison Gibson, and the Honorable Thirman L. Milner.
HPL Board Member Andrea Comer,  Vice President of Workforce Strategies at the Connecticut Business & Industry Association Education & Workforce Partnership, is the moderator. The history center will archive interviews with the presidents.

Poets on Poetry
Poetry of William Carlos Williams
Saturday, June 24, 10:15 am-12:15 pm
Hartford History Center, Downtown, 3rd Floor
Mark Sheridan will lead a discussion of the poetry of William Carlos Williams for the Connecticut Poetry Society.
Williams' poems have often been compared to paintings for his imagery. 
He lived in Rutherford, NJ, and worked as a physician. His work won the National Book Prize for Poetry and he was posthumously awarded the Pulitzer Prize.
Sheridan has been studying and writing poetry full-time since 2013, after a long career as an international investment banker.   

Nonprofit Workshop
So You've Decided To Build a Nonprofit. Now What?

Tuesday, June 20, 9 am to Noon
Downtown, Youth Program Room, Third Floor

Martey Rhine, of Management Solutions & Resources, will cover the basics of building a board, budgeting, planning, marketing and fundraising.
Register: Email your name and address to [email protected].
Children's Book of the Week
The Very Hungry Caterpillar
Story and illustrations by Eric Carle
One sunny Sunday, a caterpillar was hatched out of a tiny egg. He was very hungry. On Monday, he ate through one apple; on Tuesday, he ate through three plums -- and  still he was hungry.  Full at last, he made a cocoon around himself and went to sleep, to wake up a few weeks later wonderfully transformed into a butterfly.
Celebrate Carle's June 25 birthday:
Goodwin Branch, June 21, 10-10:45 am
Park Branch, June 22, 10-11 am
Camp Field Branch, June 22, 10:30-11:30
Downtown, June 23, 11 am -Noon
Dwight Branch, June 28, 11-11:45 am

Pay Your Fines Online
Use a Credit Card
You can now pay your overdue book fees online using a credit card.
Log into your account at HPLCT.org. If the fine you owe is greater than $1, you can process payments on line using a credit card or Paypal.  If the fine is $1 or less, please pay in person. As always, you can pay fines more than $1 in person using a credit card.
Once you have checked into your account, the system will guide you through the process. The Library will not store your credit card information.
Meet the Local Filmmakers
Made It!
Interactive Multimedia Presentation

Tuesday, June 20, 6 pm
Center for Contemporary Culture
Downtown, Main Floor
MADE IT!  tells the story of Joe and Kyle Young, a local father and son team, who made a Hollywood movie despite the odds. This program will include a screening of the film  Diamond Ruff and a discussion about this journey to write, produce and obtain major distribution for Hartford’s first major homegrown film.

Be Smarter About Art

Art Appreciation 101

Lauren Cross
Saturdays, 2-4 pm
June 24 through July 29
Downtown Library

Want to know more about art?  Lauren Cross, of the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, will help you see art with a deeper understanding. Each of the six sessions includes a hands-on art-making lessons. All supplies will be provided.
The class includes walking field trips to observe some of  Hartford's artistic treasures.
Adults 55 and older, and Hartford residents are given priority for admission.
This Lifelong Learning class is supported by the Ensworth Charitable Foundation, Bank of America, N.A., Trustee.
Sign up by contacting Sarah Pelletier, 860-695-6320 or [email protected].
June Is Audio Book Month
Listen To Your Next Book
Hartford Public Library has many ways to listen to your favorites.  Check out books on CD. In stock is Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s “My Own Words,” a selection of her writings and speech, and “Diary of a Wimpy Kid”. Coming soon is Jacqueline Woodson’s “Another Brooklyn,” Ta-Nehisi Coates’ “Between the World and Me,” and  “The Inexplicable Universe” by Neil deGrasse Tyson.
Or you can download the entire “Harry Potter” series as e-audio books on One Click Digital. See our download apps.

Meet The Author
Kathryn Orzech
Asylum: a Dark Suspense Saga
Wednesday, June 21, Noon to 3 pm
Downtown, Main Floor
The novel begins in 1899 when 12-year-old Maggie Delito sees something she shouldn't. She is dragged away and locked in an asylum.  Fast forward 75 years when Laura Delito tries to figure out what happened to her ancestor.
Meet the author who will have books available for sale.
Graphic Novels, Comic Books
ComicsPlus
Comics Plus: Library Edition brings thousands of digital graphic novels and comics to HPL patrons with any web-connected device.
You can view titles through your web browser, computer, tablet or smartphone, through the Internet.
Start here.
Gardening At Barbour
Community Growing Project
Barbour Branch, Tuesdays, Thursdays, 3-6 pm
Families at the Barbour Branch turned out May 20 to plant seeds in the Mount Moriah Community Garden run by KNOX.
To prepare, Branch Manager Anwar Ahmad had youngsters read  The Greening Book: Being A Friend To Planet Earth in April, listen to E. Diann Cook talk about nutrition, and learn about the Earth through word games, recycling activities and writing.Students placed seeds in soil, and took pods home.  
Students and families were helped by Senita Brown when planting their gardens. The Barbour Gardening Group will continue reading about plants and tend the garden throughout the growing season.
Muncipal ID Program
Apply at the Library, City Hall
Downtown, Mondays & Wednesday, 5-7 pm
Albany, Mondays & Wednesdays, 11 am-2 pm
Hartford City ID is a new municipal photo identification card program available to all city residents. Applicants must provide proof of residency.  The cost is $10 for ages 17 and younger, and 65 and older; and $15 for adults 18 to 64.  Apply at Hartford Public Library, 500 Main St., Mondays and Wednesdays, 5 to 7 pm, and Saturdays, 11 am to 4 pm. The City's Office of Town & City Clerk in Room 104 at 550 Main St. is also accepting applications from 2 to 4 pm, Tuesdays and Thursdays.
ArtWalk 
Pablo Delano
Hartford Views
Exhibition Runs Through July 1
ArtWalk, Downtown, 3rd Floor
Pablo Delano, a painter-turned-photographer, documents the city of Hartford in flux. His large- format photographs focus on the built environment of this small metropolis. The photographs, spanning eight years, highlight the nuances and contradictions inherent in a city with a layered history, and record what has been lost over time. They are not sociological statements, despite their subject matter. Delano’s love of visual form, design, composition, and color elevate the images to works of art. 

Learn To Play Chess
DIG Chess Lessons

Downtown, YOUmedia, 2nd Floor
Thursday, June 29, 6-8 pm
Albany Branch, Thursday, June  22, 4-6 pm

DIG Chess tutors will help you learn. DIG (Determination, Integrity, Growth) was started in 2013 by Dan Pelletier, as a soccer coaching enterprise. The following year he started teaching his players chess, and last year he decided to teach others. 

Teen Programs
YOUmedia, Branches
The Downtown Library offers YOUmedia, a space for visitors ages 13-19, to hang around, mess around, and geek out.  
Teen specific programs are also held in our branches.
Ongoing YOUmedia activities include 3D sculpting and and design, and anime character creation, Thursdays, 6-8 pm; anime character creation; and drawing on Mondays and Wednesday, 1 to 6 pm; and Open Mic Wednesdays, 6 -8 pm.
Or play tabletop games Tuesdays, 4:45-5:45 pm at Ropkins and try poetry workshops, 3 to 6 pm at Barbour.

Thank You For Your Support
We Love Your Help
The Hartford Public Library needs your support throughout the year. Please consider making a pledge or donation to help us continue to offer a place that cultivates opportunities, empowers and inspires individuals, and fuels a more prosperous future.
We thank the leaders of Aetna, Travelers, and The Hartford, for their generous support.

Adult Classes 
Immigrant Career Pathways 
Runs Through June 30
The American Place, 2nd Floor, Downtown
The Immigrant Career Pathways Program, sponsored by the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, serves as a pipeline to jobs in the food service industry for English-language learners in the Hartford area. Eligible students may enroll for free in either one of two classes: the ESL and Food Service Training class or the ServSafe Manager Certification class. All classes are held in the morning. Information: 860-695-6292 or email [email protected]
Study For Your GED

Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, 9:30-11:30 am
Classes run June 26 to July 21
Barbour Branch, 261 Barbour St.

Take classes in writing and math to prepare you for the GED test. Open enrollment.Registration forms are available at the Downtown location, 2nd floor, The American Place and at the Barbour Street branch.  Photo ID and validation of address is required.
Register: 860-695-6349 or 860-695-7400.  
Classes at Mark Twain Branch
Adult Learning
Wednesdays, 6-7:30 pm
Runs through June 21
Mark Twain Branch, West Middle School
927 Asylum St.

Ongoing classes include: Spanish For Beginners, Wednesdays, 6-7:30 pm through June 21; Citizenship Test Prep Class, Tuesdays and Thursdays, 6-7:30 pm; and Read to Succeed, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, 2-7:45 pm, and Thursdays, 2-5 pm.
Information: 860-695-6316 and [email protected]
Citizenship Prep
Prep for the Test
Downtown, Saturdays, 1-3
Downtown, Saturdays, 3-5, Spanish language
Albany, 1250 Albany Ave., Saturdays, 10-Noon

Each class will focus on many of the 100 citizenship test civics questions. We encourage the community to join us for these lively interactive activities and discussions. The classes are open for U.S. citizens who want to improve their own knowledge of U.S. Civics or enhance their skills to tutor new arrivals on their paths to citizenship. 
Information: 860-695-6316 and [email protected] 
Legal Services
Lawyer At Your Library
First Tuesday of Each Month, 11 am-1 pm
Downtown Library, The American Place 

Meet privately with an attorney from Greater Hartford Legal Aid concerning questions about rights in the workplace. No appointment necessary. Topics include unlawful discrimination, wages and overtime, and rights of former offenders. Visitors are seen on a first-come, first-served basis. 
Passport Office
You can apply for a passport at Hartford Public Library. Hours are Monday though Thursday, 3:30 to 7 pm; Saturday, 10 am to 3 pm.  No appointment is needed and photos can be taken on site.

The Passport office is located on the second floor in The American Place.

American Job Center

Monday-Thursday, 10 am-6 pm
Fridays, 10 am-5 pm,
Main Floor, Downtown

 Looking for a job? Feeling a bit rusty on your interview skills or bewildered by all the new technology a successful job search demands? We can help! CTWorks Capital Workforce Partners and HPL Library have partnered to bring a CTWorks "American Job Center" to the Downtown Library.
Information

Catalog Options
Have you checked out our
mobile-friendly catalog?
Hartford Public Library | 860.695.6300 | hplct.org