Effective September 23, 2021, and until further directed, all city employees, contracted vendors, sub-contracted employees, and visitors are required to wear a mask while working or visiting any city owned or operated facility. Masks shall be worn, covering both the nose and mouth, regardless of vaccination status.

I was made for the library, not the classroom... The library was open, unending, free.
Ta-Nehisi Coates

Disguise a Gingerbread Man Contest


November 29 - December 12
All RPL Locations

The holiday season is approaching and the Gingerbread Man needs your help! Help create the perfect disguise for him/her/them based on your favorite book character! Just pick up a gingerbread man template from your local branch, decorate it, snap a picture, and upload it to our Biblioboard form. Winners from each age group will recieve their very own gingerbread decorating kit!

Giving Tuesday



Giving Tuesday is getting closer! This year, the Richmond Public Library Foundation will spreading the joy (and the generosity) over several weeks. This week we are focusing on the Digital Divide. RPL and its Foundation work to reduce this divide every day. The Digital Divide refers to the gap between those who benefit from the Digital Age and those who do not. Your donation through the Richmond Public Library Foundation helps purchase new technology and supports library programs designed to reduce the Digital Divide and increase Access.

Gellman Room Concert: Sweet Potatoes


December 4
Main Library - Gellman Room

Join us on Saturday, December 4 at 2:00pm for “Sweet Potatoes Live at the Gellman Room” presented by the Richmond-based jazz band, Sweet Potatoes, with members Johnny Hargrove, guitar, Reyna Pannell, vocals, and Stephon Larue, drums.

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November 2021 Art Exhibits


November 5 - 30
Main Library

First Friday, a monthly opening-night reception for all the artists of the library's galleries, will be held on Friday, November 5, 2021, from 6:30-9:00 pm. The featured art exhibits are the following: "Ellis Island Immigrants: Faces of America" by Sandra Nardone "City Street Life: Seen by Three" by Steve Ferretti, Lisa Lezell Levine, and Ed Tepper "Friends in the Streets: an artist's view on homelessness" by Connie de Bordenave "Full Circle" by Gina Catlin Live music provided by Rumput

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Introducing Black Life in America



Introducing Black Life in America, our new resource to support discussions on diversity, equity, inclusion, and social justice. Explore and gain a deeper understanding of the African American experience as recorded by the news media, 1704 through today.

Mask Mandate


Until further notice
All RPL Locations

Effective September 23, 2021, and until further directed, all city employees, contracted vendors, sub-contracted employees, and visitors are required to wear a mask while working or visiting any city owned or operated facility. This mask mandate additionally covers all city owned or operated vehicles. Masks shall be worn, covering both the nose and mouth, regardless of vaccination status.Thank you for your cooperation!

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Master Gardener Virtual Help Desk

Ben Himmelfarb
November 22, 2021
cooperative extension
gardening
gardens
master gardener
adult
crafts-and-hobbies
gardening
inform-enrich-empower

When the pandemic began in Spring 2020, the Richmond Public Library and Richmond Master Gardeners created the Virtual Help Desk, a way for people to connect with experts for all gardening-related questions. The questions continue to come in steadily, and thanks to our online database, the answer you seek may already be available! Check out the Virtual Help Desk here Simply submit your question and your answer will be privately emailed back to you and posted on our question and answer forum. It's that simple! Virginia Extension Master...

2021 Teen Reading Challenge: Something You've Always Wanted to Learn About

Jennifer Deuell
November 17, 2021
#bookrecommendations
2021rplteenreadingchallenge
booksforteens
ireadya
readingchallenge
recommendedreads
teenreadingchallenge
teenreads
fiction
nonfiction
reading-challenge
reading-recommendations
teens

Well readers, we've made it to the end of the 2021 RPL Teen Reading Challenge! This post highlights Prompt #12, our last official prompt. Prompt #12 asks you to read a book (or other resource) that teaches you something you've always wanted to learn about. For obvious reasons, this was a difficult post to pull together. I wish I had the inside scoop on what all teens what to learn about. But, sadly, I don't. So I used this as an opportunity to highlight some of the awesome YA nonfiction books that I  think often get overlooked.  These books...

Veterans Day

Laura Price
November 10, 2021
book recommendations
Fiction
Veterans Day
holidays-celebrations
veterans

"To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with lots of pride in the heroism of those who died in the country's service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations." Woodrow Wilson It was supposed to be over by Christmas of 1914. Instead, World War I, or the Great War, as Europeans still refer to it, slogged on for four years. Carnage of an...

Music of the Month - November 2021

Ben Himmelfarb
November 6, 2021
adult
events
inform-enrich-empower

MUSIC OF THE MONTH IS A MONTHLY ROUND-UP OF RPL’S MUSIC-RELATED PROGRAMS AND RESOURCES.   Gellman Room Concerts The 2021-2022 Gellman Room Concert season is here! You can always watch past concerts on RPL’s YouTube page. Sigma Alpha IotaSaturday, November 6 at 2:00 PM The Richmond Alumnae Chapter of Sigma Alpha Iota, an international music fraternity, presents a mix of classical and popular selections featuring pianists, vocalists, and other instrumentalists. RVA BaroqueSaturday, November 20 at 2:00...

National American Indian Heritage Month

kathryn Coker
November 1, 2021
adult
book-reviews
environment
events
families
history-and-preservation
holidays-celebrations
inform-enrich-empower
law-library
reading-recommendations

Introduction National American Indian Heritage Month has particular significance to Virginia, home to eleven state recognized American Indian tribes. “State recognition is the formal declaration of recognition to an American Indian tribe located in Virginia by the Commonwealth.” [https://www.commonwealth.virginia.gov/virginia-indians/state-recognized-tribes/] The recognition procedure is meant to distinguish Native American tribes that were here before European migration. Virginia has used various processes and benchmarks to do...