May Happenings at Berkeley Public Library
Collection of comic book covers.
Free Comic Book Day
May 4th
All Locations
 
Berkeley Public Library will give away hundreds of free comics and host fun comic-themed events in celebration of Free Comic Book Day on Saturday, May 4th. The festivities will take place from 1:00–4:00 at all library locations. Free comics will be available for children, teens, and adults (limit 3 per person, while supplies last) and the events, including cartooning workshops, crafting sessions and movie screenings, are free and open to all. Free Comic Book Day is made possible by the generous support of the Friends of the Berkeley Public Library.
 
Box containing the words Asian Pacific American Heritage Month.
Asian Pacific American Heritage Month 
All Locations
Book jacket cover art for the book "Berkeley Walks"
Berkeley Walks Tour
May 25 - 10:00am
North
Illustration of interpretation of therapeutic psychedelic experience.
Therapeutic Psychedelics:
A Conversation with Bay-Area Experts
May 26 - 2:00pm
Ashkenaz Music & Dance Center
Library Events
All Locations

Events in this email are only a small sampling of this month's planned programming.
 For more information on these and other programs, please explore our Calendar.
All Library events are free and open to the public.
 
New Online Catalog Coming Soon
Text announcing new online catalog July 2nd
New Online Catalog - July 2nd 
 
Over the years we've received lots of input from you, our community, about how we could improve our online catalog. To better serve you, the Berkeley Public Library will launch a new online catalog on July 2nd. We think this transition will address many of your suggestions and the new platform will improve our staff user experience as well. We are excited to share this good news with you!
 
Click here to learn about the benefits to patrons as well as how the transition may effect you.

Link+ Temporary Suspension
Link+ logo
Link+ Temporary Suspension
Begins May 31st
 
Link+ is a service we offer that gives BPL users access to collections from 59 other library systems. Beginning May 31, Link+ will be temporarily unavailable as part of the transition to our new online catalog. Please return all Link+ items by May 31st. We apologize for this temporary inconvenience and we will alert you as soon as our Link+ service has been restored. Questions? Please ask. We are here to help!
Tip for Link+ Users
 
Do you own a library card for Alameda County Library or for other nearby libraries like Oakland or San Francisco? You can use Link+ through a variety of systems during BPL's temporary suspension of Link+ service. Click here for the list of Link+ Member Libraries. 
 
Wildfire Preparedness Community Meetings
official seal of the Berkeley Fire Department
Evacuation and Household Preparedness
May 14 - 6:00 pm @ North Branch
May 25 - 2:00 pm @ Claremont 
 
Get ready to survive a potential wildfire in the Berkeley Hills by attending a wildfire preparedness forum in May. 
 
The Berkeley Fire Department will teach you how to create a “go bag” for your household, sign up for emergency alerts, and make a plan to leave rapidly with your family and neighbors. 
"Near Normal Man" film screening with Q&A
"Near Normal Man"
April 29 - 5:30 am
Berkeley City College
 
"Near Normal Man" is a documentary, told in a 1st hand account by Ben Stern, a Polish Jew, who survives 2 ghettos, 9 concentration camps and 2 death marches only to face the Nazis again - 30 years later - this time in Skokie, Illinois. The screening will be followed by a Q&A with Ben Stern and Producer/Director Charlene Stern. 
 
This event is free and co-sponsored by the City of Berkeley, Berkeley City College, Berkeley Public Library, and the AAUW. 
Film jacket for Near Normal Man
Friends of the Library Annual Book Sale
Logo for the 501c3 Friends of BPL
Annual Book Sale
May 11 10:00-4:00 & May 12 1:00-4:00
Central
 
Thousands of books, CDs and DVDs will be for sale for at the annual Friends book sale, many for $0.50! The Friends of the Berkeley Public Library is a 501(c)(3) CA nonprofit organization whose purpose is to support and expand the educational, cultural, and outreach programs of the Library. 
ALL BRANCHES WILL BE CLOSED:
 
Monday, May 20th - Malcolm X Day
Monday, May 27th - Memorial Day
Sunday, June 30th - Library transitioning to new online catalog
Monday, July 1st - Library transitioning to new online catalog
Programming at Berkeley Public Library is made possible thanks to support from the Friends of the Berkeley Public Library.

 
Berkeley Public Library
2090 Kittredge St.
Berkeley, California 94704
510.981.6100
www.berkeleypubliclibrary.org/