NOTE: Tax filing season begins January 29th, click here for more information.
FEATURED PROGRAMS
Adult Winter Reading is back and entering is easy!
January 21 – February 18
Let us know what you are reading (title and author) along with your name and contact information and be entered for a chance to win prizes. To enter you can call 203-385-4164, email: Slaask@stratfordlibrary.org or on Social Media: Facebook, Instagram or X.
Mardi Gras Party With the Pigs
Saturday, February 22 | 11am | Lovell Room
4 little piggies went to Mardi Gras and so can you! Join Gilbert, Sprinkle, Meadow and Dot (the party pigs) at our Mardi Gras party! Make some beads, eat some cake and take pictures with the famous pigs*
*You may recognize Sprinkle from the hit TV series “Only Murders In the Building”
This program is for ages 18 and up. Registration is required
Propagation Station – Houseplant Swap
Thursday, February 27 | 6pm | Lobby
Join our houseplant cutting swap! Bring cuttings from your houseplant to our Propagation Station and trade plant babies. It’s a great chance to share your love for plants, connect with fellow enthusiasts, exchange tips, and grow your indoor garden. All plant lovers from beginners to experts are welcome!
Registration required.
TALKS & WORKSHOPS:
Sunday Afternoon Talks: THE FLOATING PALACES OF NORTH ATLANTIC
Sunday, February 2 | 2pm | Lovell Room
Guest speaker Rick Abramson will discuss the golden era of trans-Atlantic ocean travel and the famous liners.
The program covers the evolution and history of the great liners beginning in the early 1800’s, the decline of ocean travel, and to the present with the resurgence of ocean travel. It will cover the halcyon years of these great ships, their contributions in both WW I and WW II, and the tragic times that was part of their history. Rick will also display some ocean liner models.
Workshop: GUIDED CHAIR YOGA & MEDIATION
Thursday, February 6 | 12:30pm | Lovell Room
Thursday, February 20 | 12:30pm | Lovell Room
Instructor Laurie Trupp leads this unique one hour class that combines gentle chair yoga poses with relaxing guided meditation at the beginning and end of class. The yoga poses will be done seated, as well as standing with the chair used as a prop for balance. Registration is required.
Register HERE for February 6
Register HERE for February 20
Meet-the Author: BRENT MEDEIROS
Saturday, February 15 | 12pm | Lovell Room
In Brent Medeiros’ captivating short story Sunrise, the well-known phrase ‘Til death do us part…’ takes on a profound new meaning. Follow the lives of Peter and Lily, two individuals brought together by fate during a time when they needed each other the most. Although life’s twists and turns led them down separate paths, their destinies intertwined once more. Sunrise, Brent’s first work, is a realistic exploration of the love and devotion between two people and how they can overcome anything together. Brent currently resides in Stratford, Connecticut and when he is not writing he is a teacher, a movie aficionado, and an avid sports fan.
Meet-the-Author: ANDY PIASCIK
Thursday, February 27 | 6:30pm | Lovell Room
SPECIAL FOR “BLACK HISTORY MONTH”!
Author Andy Piascik joins us for a discussion about his new book: Radical Connecticut: People’s History In The Constitution State
Radical Connecticut: People’s History in the Constitution State tells the stories of everyday people and well-known figures whose work has often been obscured, denigrated, or dismissed. There are narratives of movements, strikes, popular organizations and people in Connecticut who changed the state and the country for the better.
Bridgeport native Andy Piascik is a long-time activist and award-winning writer whose work has appeared in many publications and on many websites. He is the author of the novel In Motion. Radical Connecticut: People’s History in the Constitution State is his fourth book.
CAREER & TECH HELP:
CAREER COACH: Job Search Help on the Career Coach
Monday, February 10 | 10am to 12pm | Bus parks on Main Street near the library front entrance.
Are you ready to take the next step in your career but feel lost in the world of job searching? Join our “Job Search” workshop and equip yourself with the knowledge, skills, and resources you need to land your dream job!
The same material will be presented in each 2-hour workshop, participants only need to attend one of the sessions.
Register HERE for 10am-12pm session
Register HERE for 1-3pm session
BOOK DISCUSSIONS:
Monday Morning Buzz
Monday, February 3 | 11am | Lovell Room
Stop in to hear what’s new, what’s hot, and what books are creating a buzz! Staff will lead an informal discussion of books, movies and more. Share what you’re reading and watching and hear from others! Meets the first Monday of the month.
Don’t Know Much About
Wednesday, February 12 | 11am | Lovell Room
Join the “DKMA” adult book discussion of The Red House Mystery by A. A. Milne. Mark Ablett’s house party goes well until his brother Robert returns from Australia and joins the festivities. Shortly after his arrival, Robert is found dead, and Mark disappears. Tony Gillingham is the stranger who decides to investigate, and what follows is a witty whodunit, the only murder mystery A. A. Milne ever wrote.
Copies available at the Checkout Desk. Ebook and audio downloads are available through the Hoopla app.
FYA Book Club
Wednesday, February 12 | 6:30pm | Board Room
Are you an adult that loves to read Teen books? Then join us for our new bookclub FYA (Forever Young Book Club)! This month we will be discussing is Dragonfruit by Makiia Lucier, a dazzling, romantic fantasy inspired by Pacific Island mythology. Hanalei of Tamarind is the cherished daughter of an old island family. But when her father steals a seadragon egg meant for an ailing princess, she is forced into a life of exile. In the years that follow, Hanalei finds solace in studying the majestic sea dragons that roam the Nominomi Sea. Until, one day, an encounter with a female dragon offers her what she desires most: a chance to return home, and to right a terrible wrong.
Copies are available at the Check-Out desk.
Books On Tap
Books, Brews, and Bantor
Tuesday, February 25| 7pm to settle, 7:30pm to talk
Join us at the Whiskey Barrel located at 251 E. Main St, Stratford.
We will be discussing The Many Lives of Mama Love by Lara Love Hardin, a harrowing, hilarious, no-holds-barred memoir that recounts the author’s slide from soccer mom to opioid addict to jailhouse shot caller and her unlikely comeback as a highly successful ghostwriter. The Many Lives of Mama Love is a heartbreaking and tender journey from shame to redemption, despite a system that makes it almost impossible for us to move beyond the worst thing we have ever done.
Copies available at the Check-Out Desk.
Books Over Coffee
SPECIAL FOR “BLACK HISTORY MONTH”!
Wednesday, February 26 | noon | Lovell Room
Master Slave Husband Wife: An Epic Journey from Slavery to Freedom by Ilyon Woo
Winner of the 2024 Pulitzer Prize in Biography – “A rich narrative of the Crafts, an enslaved couple who escaped from Georgia in 1848, with light-skinned Ellen disguised as a disabled white gentleman and William as her manservant, exploiting assumptions about race, class, and disability to hide in public on their journey to the North, where they became famous abolitionists while evading bounty hunters.”
Copies available at the Check-Out Desk.
PLAY & CREATE:
Coloring & Coffee
Monday, February 3 | 6pm | Lovell Room
Don’t let stress get you down! Try coloring for adults! Coloring has many benefits including helping you to focus and de-stress. Stop in and give it a try. The Library will supply coloring pages, colored pencils and markers, plus coffee and tea. You are welcome to bring your own supplies too.
Wednesday, February 5 & 19 | 6pm | Lovell RoomJoin the library’s drop-in knitting program! Also crochet! Make new friends, get tips and share ideas while working on your own projects.
Held every other Wednesday evening 6:00-7:30pm.
MOVIES:
Monday Matinees – THE PIANO LESSON
SPECIAL FOR “BLACK HISTORY MONTH”!
Monday, February 10 | 12pm | Lovell Room
During the aftermath of the Great Depression, August Wilson’s prize-winning drama follows the lives of the Charles family and an heirloom, the family piano, which documents the family history through carvings made by their enslaved ancestor. Special for “Black History Month”, Samuel L. Jackson leads an excellent cast.
PG-13, 125 minutes