This Week at the Library

This week at the Library, you can join us at:

Library OnDemand Available anytime you like.

Your doorway into live and archived programs. Arts & Culture, Career & Finance, Community Matters, Writers and more!

Gather at the Table Tuesday, Nov. 15, 5 – 6:30 p.m.

Conversation allows people to better understand different viewpoints. Friendships and communities are often built by the conversations that happen over a meal. Gather with us to break bread and discuss some of the difficult and controversial topics at the forefront of our thoughts and news. This fall we will discuss the First Amendment and multiple related issues from social media to book bans. All are welcome at any time during this drop-in discussion group. Food and drink are provided.

Reckoning with White Privilege: A Conversation with Brendan KielyThursday, Nov. 17, 10 a.m. – noon

Join us at Central Resource Library for a morning conversation with Brendan Kiely, participating virtually from his home in New York. Kiely is the New York Times bestselling author of All American Boys (with Jason Reynolds), Tradition, The Last True Love Story and The Gospel of Winter. His most recent publication, The Other Talk: Reckoning With Our White Privilege will be the focus of the conversation. Signed bookplates will be available following the program. Refreshments will be served.

Maintain Your Ride Thursday, Nov. 17, noon – 1:30 p.m.

Get your hands dirty and learn to keep your bike in tip-top shape with this free class from Johnson County Library and BikeWalkKC. Live and in-person at the bicycle fix-it stand in front of Central Resource Library, our instructors will teach you how to keep your bike in good working order with a few basic tools and some practical know-how. You will learn how to clean and lubricate your chain, fix a flat, adjust shifting and braking, and basic bike maintenance skills. We’ll also show you how to use the fix-it stand. This is a hands-on class! Registration is required.

Writers Conference Kickoff Thursday, Nov. 17, 6:30 – 8 p.m.

Faculty and attendees will kick off the 7th annual Writers Conference at Central Resource Library with readings that respond to prompts from our conference book, Creative Acts for Curious People: How to Create, Think, and Lead in Unconventional Ways, by Sarah Stein Greenberg.

An evening with Author Anne-Marie Oomen Friday, Nov. 18, 6 – 8 p.m.

Join us for an evening at Central Resource Library with award-winning poet, memoirist, playwright, and teacher Anne-Marie Oomen for a celebration of her award-winning memoir As Long as I Know You: The Mom Book, winner of AWP’s Sue William Silverman Nonfiction Award. Oomen will give a reading followed by a conversation with local author Virginia Brackett and conclude with an audience Q&A. Representatives from the Johnson County Department of Aging and Human Services will be on hand to offer resources about caregiving and local bookseller Green Door Bookstore will be on-site to sell copies of Oomen’s memoir. A book signing will follow.

And much more happening this week »