Baby Grand Jazz is back!

And oh, what a lineup of extraordinary performers we have for you.
We're kicking the season off on
January 2nd with S.O.A.R.

Partners in music and life, April May Webb and Randall Haywood, (Sounds of A&R aka S.O.A.R.) have come together creating a distinct sound that fuses aspects of swing, cool, hard bop and avant-garde while exuding pure soul and R&B.

Shows will be held Sundays at 3 p.m. in January, February March and April. (There will not be a show on Easter Sunday). Limited in-person seating is available but you must register ahead of time. Concerts will also be streamed on HPL's Facebook page and YouTube channel.

Learn more about Baby Grand Jazz and read the entire lineup HERE
Register for our jazz email list so you don't miss a show HERE

Get lost in a great novel.
Kazuo Ishiguro
New York Times Best Seller
Booker Prize Nominee

Klara and the Sun is a thrilling book that offers a look at our changing world through the eyes of an unforgettable narrator, and one that explores the fundamental question: What does it mean to love?

"I'll go for broke and call Klara and the Sun a masterpiece that will make you think about life, mortality, the saving grace of love: in short, the all of it.” —Maureen Corrigan, NPR

“A delicate, haunting story, steeped in sorrow and hope.”
— Ron Charles, The Washington Post
Colson Whitehead
New York Times Best Seller
 NPR’s Best Books of The Year

Harlem Shuffle's ingenious story plays out in a beautifully recreated New York City of the early 1960s. It's a family saga masquerading as a crime novel, a hilarious morality play, a social novel about race and power, and ultimately a love letter to Harlem. 
 
"Etched detail and features a wonderful panoply of characters who spring to full-bodied life, blending joy, humor, and tragedy. A triumph on every level.” —Booklist, Starred Review

"One of the Ten Best Books of 2021" — Laura Miller, Slate
Do you love movies and music?

With just your library card you experience all your favorite songs and movies from home.
Is Die Hard a Christmas Movie?

With just your library card you can watch thousands of movies for free at Kanopy.

Watch your holiday favorites HERE
Freegal Music is a download music service that the Hartford Public Library offers, free of charge, for use by library cardholders.

Make your holiday playlist HERE
Ana Alfaro — a force for good in our community
"The Library is so much more than books and can be life changing for people in our Latino community"

With the support of donors and volunteers, Hartford Public Library board member Ana and her team of volunteers just delivered more than 500 toys to community members!

Learn more about Ana and her life of service HERE
Time Capsule Ceremony: Park Street Library @ The Lyric
Come join us for a special day in the history of the Park Street Library at the Lyric when we place a time capsule in the walls of our Park Street Library @ the Lyric branch.

The time capsule will be closed for 25 years, opening in 2046.

Monday, December 20
4:30pm - 5:30pm
Park Street Library @ the Lyric Community Room
603 Park Street

Learn more about this ceremony HERE 
Need your COVID-19 booster? HPL has you covered.
Hartford Public Library will host a COVID-19 vaccine clinic this week with Pfizer and Moderna shots available for those ages 12 and up. Anyone under 18 must be accompanied by a guardian.

You can receive one of your first two doses or your booster. Insurance is not required.

Friday, December 17th
10 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Albany Library
1250 Albany Avenue
Exhibit your work on our ArtWalk Gallery!
We're seeking submissions for up to four exhibitions to be mounted on our ArtWalk beginning in September 2022.

Artists working in all media are encouraged to apply.

Learn more about applying HERE
Art by Wladyslaw Prosol. Exhibit closing on December 16th — check it out before it goes!
We're closing early this Friday because — eggnog.
Its our holiday staff party this Friday!
All library locations will close at 3:30 p.m. this Friday, December 17th.

We will be back bright and early on Saturday!
“Hope,’ he said. ‘Damn thing never leaves you alone.”
― Kazuo Ishiguro, Klara and the Sun