Come relax and work in the newly updated space at the Manchester-by-the-Sea Public Library! There will be more shelving and final touches over the next few months but we are so excited to offer more flexibility and programming, including the return of monthly movie nights! The first movie night we will screen The Fabelmans, rated PG-13 on Friday, March 3 at 5:30PM. Check our events page for details.

In-Person & Hybrid Events For All Ages

Kids    Teens    Adults    All Ages

Cookbook Throwdown
Saturday, February 18 AT 11:30 AM—12:30 PM

Event postponed from Feb 11. February's pick is "One-pan wonders : fuss-free meals for your sheet pan, Dutch oven, skillet, roasting pan, casserole, and slow cooker" by the editors at America's Test Kitchen. Love a meal with minimal cleanup!

Sign up for a recipe in the library or online below and bring your dish to be sampled on Saturday, February 18th along with any utensils needed. Please call Maddy Willwerth at 978-526-7711 if you have any questions.

Diversity Book Group : “I Am Still Here"
Tuesday, February 21 AT 5:30-6:30PM

Reading  “I am Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness” by Austin Channing Brown. Physical book copies available at the circulation desk. March's read is "Born in Blackness: Africa, Africans, and the Making of the Modern World, 1471 to the Second World War: by  Howard W. French.

Teen Writers Workshop

Friday, February 17 AT 5:30—7:00 PM

Come write! Anyone in grades 7-12 is welcome to join the Teen Writers Workshop. Play games, write to prompts, share your stuff, and become a part of the local writing community. Snacks provided! Registration Required.

Afternoon Kids Movie: Spider-Man: Into the Spider Verse

During School Vacation On Friday, February 24 AT 1:00—3:00PM

Join us in the Children's Room for an action-packed afternoon with this 2018 animated, super-hero story featuring Miles Morales. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse matches bold storytelling with striking animation for a purely enjoyable adventure with heart, humor, and plenty of superhero action.  AND you'll be in the know for when the much anticipated sequel is released in June 2023.  Rated PG for mild language, frenetic action violence, and thematic elements. Snacks provided, but please bring a closed drink. Recommended for ages 8+.  All kids under the age of 8 must be accompanied by an adult.  

Weekly Events

Kids    Teens    Adults    All Ages

Craft Circle by the Hearthside
Sundays At 2-3pm

Digital Advice
Mondays: Appointments At 11am and 11:30AM & DROP-IN FROM 12-1PM         

Registration is required for the 2 appointments at 11 and 11:30AM. Click Here to register. 

Dungeons and Dragons
Alternating Tuesdays 3:30-5pm

For Ages 11-18. Most Tuesday and registration is required. Click Here for more details and to register. 

Tai Chi Class
Wednesdays At 9:45-10:45am

Safety Registration Form must be completed before 1st session. Fill out the form here. 

Shut Up and Write!
Wednesdays At 10:30 Am-12pm

Virtual over Zoom and registration is required. Email [email protected] for the zoom link.

Stories & Songs in the Children's Room
WEDNESDAYS 10:30-11AM

For our youngest patrons and thier caregivers, ages birth-6. Registration is required and space is limited. Click Here to register.

Mindfulness Meditation
Every Other Thursday Beginning February 16 At 11am-12pm

Alida Bryant is a Dharma Leader and meditation instructor under the guidance of Anam Thubten Rinpoche. She has been meditating for over 30 years (still very much a beginner!) and studying and practicing with lineage holders in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. Beginners and experienced meditators are welcome. There will be guided meditation, some silence, and discussion. 

Registration is encouraged but not required. Click Here to register or for more info. 

Friendship Bracelet Making with June
Four Week Session Begins Thursday, February 16 At 3:30-4:30pm

Create friendship bracelets with youth expert June B.! June has been making bracelets for years, and sharing the craft with family and friends is one of her favorite activities! After teaching her 8-year-old brother how to make bracelets last summer, then attending a fall craft night at the Manchester-by-the-Sea library, she thought it would be fun to offer this class to the youth community. The library will supply the materials and snacks so bring yourself and some friends. Registration is required. Sessions build upon each other but you can register for whatever technique(s) interests you. 

F.E.E.D. Families Exploring Equity & Diversity Stories and Activities

7 Week Series Begins Monday, February 27 At 3:30—4:15pm

Families and children ages 3.5 - 5 are invited to share stories and activities with educator and diversity trainer, Lindsay Banks and Manchester Public Library Children's Librarian, Carol Bender. Registration is encouraged but not required. Click Here to register or for more info. 

Virtual Events

Kids    Teens    Adults    All Ages

All virtual events require registration. Click on the events to register.

Abolition's Foot Soldiers: Female Anti-Slavery Societies in Antebellum MA 
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 15 AT 7-8PM

For at least the past three decades, scholars have argued that slavery's abolition would not have happened without interracial collaboration between politically-minded women. From 1830-1865, an interracial and transnational group of women insisted that the struggles for women's liberation and abolition were linked. They rooted their activism in their shared passion for religion, writing, reading, and teaching. They defended their activism from those who called their actions unbecoming for women by saying that their efforts were part of their duty as women and mothers. The abolitionist mother did not want her child to bear witness to the atrocities of slavery and therefore would do what she could to end it. In this talk, Dr. Jaimie Crumley will show that the efforts of the anti-slavery women in Massachusetts demonstrate the distinctively feminist contours of antebellum abolitionism. Further, she will assert that learning from the successes and failures of antebellum female anti-slavery societies can inform contemporary feminist organizing.

Bio: Jaimie D. Crumley, PhD is an Assistant Professor of Gender Studies and Ethnic Studies at the University of Utah. She is the 2022-2023 Research Fellow at Old North Illuminated in Boston, MA. Jaimie studies race, gender, and religion in the eighteenth and nineteenth-century Northeastern United States. Her dissertation, "Tried as by Fire: Free African American Women's Abolitionist Theologies," situates eighteenth and nineteenth-century Black women as proto-Black feminist abolitionists who rooted their politics in Biblical theology. Jaimie has received research fellowships from the Center for the Study of Women at UCLA, the Institute for Citizen's and Scholars, the Boston Athenaeum, and the American Congregational Library. 

This program is made possible by a partnership with the Reading Public Library and the Reckonings Project.

Online Safety Presentation (Virtual)

Tuesday, February 28 At 2—3pm

Robin Putnam, Events & Outreach Manager from the Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation, will present on online safety. The presentation will include information about the Office and what we do. It will also cover how to be safe online whether it be on your smart device, social media or online banking, phishing emails, and general protection from scams and identity theft. Register to recieve a Zoom link.

Free Digital Library Resources

We are always open online where you can check out our free to use digital collection! There you can find a great selection of eBooks, Audiobooks, and movies and TV shows to stream and enjoy along with many other digital resources by using your Manchester-by-the-Sea Public Library card.

Check out some of the popular options below! To see more free resources visit our Virtual Library page.

A nonprofit organization, Consumer Reports provides an easy-to-use guide for unbiased ratings on thousands of products and services used in everyday life. Included in the subscription are helpful tools for cars and televisions, satisfaction scores from nearly a million consumers, and expert tips on topics including health, food, tech and money. When accessing Consumer Reports from home you will need your library card’s barcode numbers. If you do not have access to your library card, please see a librarian at the Manchester Library.

Learn how to create a website, updating your knowledge of Microsoft Office, and developing business and creative skills that will increase your ability to achieve personal and professional goals on Linkedin Learning. You will need your Manchester Library card to access this free resource.

The Manchester-by-the-Sea Public Library is happy to provide access to The Manchester Cricket’s Digital Archive up to 2009. The digitization of the Cricket was funded by an equal collaboration between the Friends of the Manchester Public Library and current owners of The Manchester Cricket Newspaper. Up-to-date physical copies of the 2022 Manchester Cricket papers are also available at the Manchester Library. The Manchester Cricket is an independent, family-owned weekly newspaper that has served the communities of Manchester and Essex since 1888.