NEW! Art Hive

Join the Newburyport Public Library Art Hive! The NPL Art Hive is held on the 2nd Wednesday of every month in the Program Room.

What is an Art Hive? Art Hives are community art spaces where participants bring in their own arts and crafts projects to meet, exchange ideas, and socialize with fellow artists in an inclusive and respectful environment. They are often held at an art studio, a local venue, or a public library.

All skill levels are welcome. Please bring in your own supplies and projects to work on. The Library will also provide coloring pages, color pencils, and origami. Suggested art hive projects include knitting and crocheting, collaging, small-scale watercolors and/or drawings.

Adults only. See our calendar for dates. Please call 978-465-4428 x2 with any questions. 

Council on Aging Outreach Services Drop-In Hours

Starting on Thursday, September 12 (12:30-1:30 PM), Outreach Specialist from the Council on Aging, Ann Freeman, will be available at the Newburyport Public Library twice a month to Newburyport residents.

Stop by to get connected to services and information, including information on housing, home care, food, transportation, finance, health, and family issues. Residents will be helped on a first-come first-served basis. See Reference staff for directions. Consultations and referrals are confidential and free to all. 

Please see the Events calendar for exact dates or call us at 978-465-4428.

Newburyport Literary Festival

Join the Newburyport Literary Festival as it celebrates its 19th year! Events will be hosted in various locations around Newburyport. To view the schedule of events, please click here.

The Newburyport Public Library will host the following events on Saturday, April 27th:

9:30 AM: Celebrations of the Season: A Conversation with Nina MacLaughlin

Nina MacLaughlin’s Winter Solstice: An Essay “takes your breath away with lyrical leaps across time and space.” MacLaughlin (Wake Siren: Ovid Resung; Hammer Head: The Making of a Carpenter and the companion to Winter Solstice, Summer Solstice) looks at the season through every lens, from hot chocolate to waiting until just the right moment to light a candle so a passing stranger might see it go on. In conversation with Josh Bodwell.

Presenter: Nina MacLaughlin
Moderator: Josh Bodwell

11:00 AM: Colonialism, Racism, and the Cosmos: A Conversation with Novuyo Rosa Tshuma

Novuyo Rosa Tshuma’s award-winning novel Digging Stars blends drama and satire in the story of a young graduate student who is poised to attain her dream of researching the cosmos but is plagued by anxiety attacks she calls “The Terrors” and forced to grapple with questions about the life and death of her late astronomer father. Tshuma will be in conversation with author Yvette Lisa Ndlovu (Drinking from Graveyard Wells).

Presenter: Novuyo Rosa Tshuma
Moderator: Yvette Lisa Ndlovu

1:00 PM: Enlightened Transsexual Comix with Sam Szabo and Nikole Beckwith

In Enlightened Transsexual Comix, artist and Newburyport native Sam Szabo has created a world where a “raw, uncut heroine roams the wasteland in defense of trans rights and trans wrongs.” This subversive collection of work is “a psychedelic stew of social satire and gonzo gender theory.” In conversation with director, screenwriter, and playwright Nikole Beckwith.

Presenter: Sam Szabo
Moderator: Nikole Beckwith

3:00 PM: Perfect Murders and Twisted Trails

Join two contemporary mystery writers at the top of their game as they discuss their newest novels with local crime writer Connie Hambley. In Blood Sisters, Vanessa Lillie introduces us to a Cherokee archeologist for the Bureau of Indian Affairs who is summoned to rural Oklahoma to investigate the disappearance of two women—one of whom is her sister. In The Kind Worth Saving, Peter Swanson brings us a private eye who starts to follow a possibly adulterous husband, but little does he know that the twisted trail will lead back to the woman who hired him. How do the authors’ visions of the perfect murder inform each mystery they write?

Presenters: Vanessa Lillie and Peter Swanson
Moderator: Connie Hambley

To request any titles featured in the Newburyport Literary Festival, please call 978-465-4428.

Círculo de Lectores

¿Le gusta leer libros en español? ¿O quisiera leer más y practicar su español?

¡La biblioteca lo invita a participar en nuestro grupo de lectura para adultos- El Círculo de Lectores! Nuestro grupo lee libros clásicos así también como aquellos recientemente publicados. Platicamos sobre la trama de la historia, los personajes, y su experiencia leyendo el libro. Los libros y platicas son completamente en español.

Discusiones se lleván a cabo en Zoom cada tercer martes del mes a las 3 pm. Visite nuestro calendario de eventos para encontrar nuestras siguientes fechas y libros.Si no puede participar, pero tiene interés en leer libros en español, visite nuestra colección en el segundo piso de la biblioteca. ¡Se agregan nuevos libros mensualmente!

¿Tiene preguntas? Contáctenos enviando un correo electrónico a info@newburyportpl.org o llamando a 978-465-4428 x242.

Do you enjoy reading in Spanish?

We invite you to join our growing adult Spanish language book group- El Círculo de Lectores! This is best suited for those who feel comfortable reading and speaking in Spanish. 

Discussions are held virtually every third Tuesday of the month at 3 PM. Future dates and titles can be found in our event calendar.

Not able to participate? Browse our growing Spanish collection in the second floor of the library! New books are added monthly.

Questions? Contact us by email at info@newburyportpl.org or by phone at 978-465-4428.