Check a book off of every kid’s wish list!

“Books are the perfect entertainment: no commercials, no batteries, hours of enjoyment for each dollar spent.”  ― Stephen King

For many of us, books are always at the top of the wish list and the giving list. This year, you can help the Cambridge Public Library give the gift of amazing stories and unforgettable characters to hundreds of kids in need for the holidays.

Buy a book (or books!) and donate to the holiday book program. The Cambridge Public Library is collecting donations of new books for kids of all ages. The library has particularly requested donations of board books for infants and young adult titles for 13-18 year olds. Once again this year, Porter Square Books is teaming up with the library and is giving a 20% discount on any books purchased for the holiday donation program. Book donations are accepted at any Cambridge Public Library location and Porter Square Books until December 31.

Since 2004, the Cambridge Public Library has collected new books for children and teens in transitional housing and shelters during the holiday season. The books are collected, wrapped by staff and volunteers, and delivered to each of the locations. Last year, the holiday book donation program gave 465 children at the Hildebrand Family Self Help Center, Transition House and the YWCA the gift of a new book!

If you want to donate a book and gift wrap it too, join one of the festive wrapping parties in the Beech Room at the Main Library. There will be four wrapping parties on December 2nd from 5:30-8pm, December 9th from 5:30-8pm, December 10th from 10am-noon, and December 13 from 10am-noon.  Please join us at any of these times to wrap gifts and spread the gift of stories.

For questions or more information please call 617-349-4038.

There are always great things happening at the library! For more information on how you can get involved with the Friends to help support our Cambridge libraries, click here.

Calling all home cooks!

Help the Friends of the Cambridge Public Library and our Cambridge Cooks cookbook team test recipes from some of the best restaurants in town. We already have over 60 recipes to test and we're still looking for home cooks to help us try them out and report back.

Read more details about the Cambridge Cooks cookbook project here, in a previous post.

If you would like to be a Cambridge Cooks recipe-tester, please write to us at cambridgelibrarycooks@gmail.com, and we will get in touch with you.

A library browser's interesting turn of events

Eve Sullivan, Friend of the CPL

A member of the Friends of the Cambridge Public Library, Eve Sullivan, shared a wonderful story that started one day in line at the Main Library. Browsing the recently checked out items, Eve picked up the book Cracked: The Unhappy Truth about Psychiatry by James Davies. The topic piqued her interest and she checked it out.

Eve described the book as a stunning narrative about psychiatry, over-prescription of drugs and the state of mental health care in this country, and around the world. As founder of Parents Forum, which focuses on emotional well-being in families, she wanted to learn more about the author. She contacted him by email about book readings or events he might have planned in the U.S.

As it turned out, Dr. Davies intended to visit New York the same week Eve was attending a U.N. mental health committee meeting. She followed up, heard the radio interview Davies did during his visit, and arranged a personal lunch with the author!

Every time you pick up a new book, you never know how the story will end! Thanks, Eve, for sharing this great experience with us.

There are always great things happening at the library! For more information on how you can get involved with the Friends to help support our Cambridge libraries, click here.