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Vol 8 # 10  July 15, 2024

Events at our Library

From Sabah Abdulla, Branch Manager and Nathan Page, Children’s Librarian


Toddler Storytime

Songs, active rhymes, and stories especially for ages 18 months to 3 years. Every Tuesday morning at 10:15 am. Stay and Play after Storytime with fun age-appropriate toys through 11:15 am.  

Vivarium at our library!

Teens: Make Your Own Jewelry

Tuesday, July 16, 4 - 5 pm

Come on by and make your own jewelry with help from an artist from Rock Paper Scissors Collective. All supplies are included, and you get to take it home with you when you're done!


Aguacero

Wednesday, July 17, 6 - 6:45 pm

Join us for a dynamic and energetic Bomba workshop and demonstration for the entire family featuring live drums and singing. Bomba is Puerto Rico’s oldest music and dance tradition, originating over 400 years ago when enslaved people practiced this artform in the sugarcane plantations as a means of survival and resistance.


Henna for Teens

Saturday, July 20, 1 - 2 pm

Learn about the ancient art of henna at the library this summer and get your own Henna tattoo with artist Rachel Palacios. Henna tattoos are temporary but can last up to 8 -10 days.


 Build, Make, Play

Saturday, July 20, 3 - 4 pm

Join us for an afternoon of hands-on activities. From tie-dyed shoelaces to washi tape bracelets, there's a new project to make every week. Come create with us!



Teen Pop Up Crafts

Tuesday, July 23, 3:30 - 4:30 pm

Come and hang out and get creative with us every 2nd and 4th Tuesday of the month. Teens age 13-18 all welcome. Snacks will be provided.

Teens: Take Tiny Photos at Piedmont Ave.

Tuesday, July 23, 4:30 - 5:30 pm

Calling all teens! We need your skills to contribute to our Virtual Teen Tiny Photography Exhibit. Come by, take an amazing photo with our great instant camera, then decorate and embellish your photo however you'd like! We'll take a6 scan of your piece of art, and you get to take it home with you.


Scientific Adventure

Wednesday, July 24, 6 - 6:45 pm

Elementary school children are invited to explore fun with this engaging hands-on STEM program.


Drag King Storytime/Hora de Cuento rey drag

Wednesday, July 31, 6 - 6:45 pm

Drag King Storytime with VERA. Drag King VERA's storytime celebrates diversity and fun through magical storytelling.

National Night Out at the Library, Tuesday,

August 6, 2 - 7 pm


National Night Out is a wonderful event that brings neighbors together to build community spirit and unity. The Piedmont Avenue Library is having a party to celebrate National Night Out 2024 on Tuesday, August 6 from 2 - 7 pm. The theme for this year is “Get Involved, Make a Difference.” It’s a great opportunity to meet your fellow library patrons.

 

City of Oakland staff, personnel from the Fire Department and the Police Department, and some of our elected officials will be visiting many parties and may be at the library.



Please drop in anytime from 2 - 7 pm and join the fun!


Events at our National Night Out:


Teen Night Out, 3 - 5 pm

Button Making, Sushi Making, snacks & music for teens!



Face Painting Fun with Heather Ware!, 2 - 4 pm

A fun afternoon of colorful face painting the whole family can enjoy! Heather has over 25 years of Face Paint experience and specializes in full face transformation customized to your facial features, using high-quality, skin-friendly, professional makeup. 


Music with Contemporary Violinist Nate Guinto! 5 - 6 pm

An exciting musical performance by Nate Guinto. Nate is a Bay Area native, contemporary violinist, aspiring producer, and beatmaker. This event will be amplified.


Hello & Cookies, 6 - 7 pm

Cookies and snacks as you chat with your neighbors.

Snakes in the Library!

Zany Zoe

Lizard from the Vivarium


Meeting Info: Friends of PAL General Meeting,

 Tuesday. July 23, 6:30 pm




OPL Director Jamie Turbak will speak at FOPAL's July 23 meeting.

to discuss:


  • The Mid Cycle Budget that was recently passed by the City Council and what impact it will have on the Library
  • Piedmont Avenue feasibility study results/campaign fundraising 
  • Possible name change for the branch


This is our chance to speak directly to the director, so please feel free to add your questions and concerns to the above.


Refreshments will be served!

"I think the health of our civilization, the depth of our awareness about the underpinnings of our culture and our concern for the future can all be tested by how well we support our libraries" --- Carl Sagan, Cosmos

We have a social media coordinator!

 

After many months of searching high and low for someone to fill this position, we are welcoming Rose Mandros Bell into this role for the Friends of PAL. If you have items or suggestions for our social media accounts, send them to Rose via contact@friendsofpal.org. We welcome Rose to our team.

The Bookmark has Reopened at 933 Broadway 

From the Friends of the Oakland Public Library, FOPL


We are thrilled to announce that our bookstore, The Bookmark, has opened on the corner of Broadway and 10th Street, with hours five days a week:

  • Wednesday - Friday, 11am - 4pm
  • Saturday and Sunday, 11am - 5pm

The new location is a delight. It is the same extensive collection and same welcoming spirit that characterized our previous space, but larger, more open, and with great natural light. Come visit! Donate books at any time they are open. And consider becoming a volunteer.

 

Our Avid Reader is on vacation and the Bookworm is kindly filling in.....

The Book Worm Recommends


Belgravia by Julian Fellowes



A light hearted romp through the British class system




This book by the author of Downton Abbey, Julian Fellowes, describes the same world—magnificent wealth, worry about a male heir needed to secure all this privilege, headstrong young women who refuse to marry for money, and wounding social snubs coming from all directions. Set in the 1850s, the story involves the beautiful daughter of a (gasp!) tradesman who falls in love with the son of a Duke, a secret heir who is hidden from view, lost legal papers that emerge in the nick of time, an evil presumptive heir who seduces and is blackmailed by a cheating wife, and so on. All are interesting characters, and all are well described.


The story is like a game of solitaire, the rules are rigid and immutable, but cards are turned up in succession that rearrange the whole game. The fun is in not knowing what will appear next and in seeing new possibilities emerge where formerly none existed. It is enjoyable to see the author’s nimble and unexpected plot turns. Not for a minute does the reader worry that anything really bad will happen.

Fellowes’ portrayal of the British class system as a jolly, lighthearted game is in contrast to that of Charles Dickens and Jane Austen who describe the real misery that unequal wealth causes. Fellowes, who is by birth a Conservative peer of the House of Lords, has made a long successful career of describing the class system as a comedy of manners to which he brings a clear and insightful insider’s understanding.

 

by Ann P. McCauley

Ann studied Anthropology at Cal and worked in international health. She loves stories with sympathetic, wise characters who engage in humorous conversations and travel to exotic places.  


What's Happening at the Library

Storytime, every Tuesday, 10:15 - 10:30 am Families are welcome to stay

after Storytime for Stay & Play


7/16 Teens: Make Your Own Jewelry, 4 - 5 pm


7/17 Aquacero, 6 - 6:45 pm


7/20 Henna For Teens, 1 - 2 pm


7/20 Build, Make Play, 3 - 4 pm


7/23 Teen Pop Up Crafts, 3:30 - 4:30 pm


7/23 Teens: Take Tiny Photos, 4:30 - 5:30 pm


7/23 Friends of PAL meeting with Library Director Jamie Turbak, 6:30 - 7:30 pm


7/24 Scientific Adventure, 6 - 6:45 pm


7/31 Drag King Storytime, 6 - 6:45 pm


8/6 National Night Out at the Library 2 - 7 pm


8/6 Teen Night Out, 3 - 5 pm


8/6 Face Painting Fun with Heather Ware, 2 - 4 pm


8/6 Music with Contemporary Violinist Nate Guinto, 5 - 6 pm


8/6 Hello & Cookies, 6 - 7 pm



Our library is open 6 days a week

Sunday Closed

Monday: 10 am – 5:30 pm

Tuesday: 10 am – 8 pm

Wednesday: 10 am – 8 pm

 Thursday: 10 am – 5:30 pm

Friday: 12 pm – 5:30 pm

Saturday: 10 am – 5:30 pm


Friends of the Piedmont Avenue Library Board of Directors 2024

President: Joanna Smith; Secretary: Arleen Feng; Treasurer: Ronile Lahti


The Friends of the Piedmont Avenue Library is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Our tax ID is 84-4203055.

All contributions are tax deductible.


Donate to Friends of PAL