Portland Public Library presents: Emerge From Stigma: Tell Your Story with NAMI Maine

Wednesday, May 29, 2019 from 5:30-7:00pm

In the Rines Auditorium

Portland, Maine - Our lived experience – our stories – is where the power and impact lies to change lives.

Through the NAMI Maine Speakers Bureau – a team of survivors of suicide loss, attempt survivors, individuals living with a mental illness and those family members and friends who care about them – the sharing of our personal stories helps create systemic change and eliminate the stigma surrounding mental illness and suicide.

Attend this event to hear the stories of three speakers with lived experience who share their message of hope and resiliency. Learn more about the NAMI Speakers Bureau and come with your questions and contemplations.

Light refreshments will be served.

Portland Public Library presents Smart Girls Read @ PPL – a monthly book club for girls

Portland Public Library presents 

Smart Girls Read @ PPL – a monthly book club for girls

First Saturday of each month from 2:00-3:00pm

Starts October 7

Portland, Maine - The Sam L. Cohen Children’s Library will be hosting a monthly book club for girls ages 9-12. Smart Girls Read @ PPL book club will provide a forum where girls can explore what’s on their minds: what’s really important to them as well as strengthening their sense of self.  The books they read act as catalysts to spark critical conversations about the roles of girls and women in the past, and examining the girl culture of today.

Smart Girls Read @ PPL will be facilitated by the Children’s Library staff. Please contact the Children’s Desk to find out the book of the month and to get assistance procuring a copy!  All you need to participate is a desire to voice your opinion, a willingness to listen to others, an interest in reading and discussing books.

Portland Public Library presents Dahlov Ipcar’s Favorite Folk Songs and Ballads Concert

Portland Public Library presents Dahlov Ipcar’s Favorite Folk Songs and Ballads Concert

Friday, October 6th at 7:00pm

in the Rines Auditorium

Portland, Maine - Friends of Dahlov Ipcar will be presenting a concert of her favorite folksongs and ballads, while projecting her illustrations of the songs. Songs will be performed by Bob and Jeanne McDougall Zentz, Nor and Eli Dale, Alison Lee Freeman, Charlie Ipcar, and Jeff Logan.

Dahlov Ipcar is best known for her kaleidoscopic paintings of wild and domestic animals, and her many children’s books. She also had a long time interest in folk songs and ballads, and illustrated many of them during her long art career.

For more information go to www.portlandlibrary.org

Portland Public Library hosts a Literary Lunch with Lee Sharkey in conversation with Stuart Kestenbaum

Portland Public Library hosts a Literary Lunch with Lee Sharkey 

in conversation with Stuart Kestenbaum

Wednesday, April 19th at noon in the Rines Auditorium

Join us for a conversation between Lee Sharkey and Stuart Kestenbaum about poetry and Sharkey’s newest book Walking Backwards.   The conversation will be held in the Rines Auditorium at noon on Wednesday, April 19th.  There will be time for audience questions at the end of the program.

About the book
Walking Backwards examines resistance to violence and repression through evocations of contemporary events and conversations with poets and artists whose voices arise from the Holocaust. Employing a remarkable variety of formal strategies— lyrics, parables, testimony, paratactic narratives and re-castings of Torah stories, inter-leavings with other texts—these poems offer a complex vantage on cultural erasure and persistence. Sharkey conjures a simultaneous present to reclaim a heritage expressed by gaps and silencing. Paul Celan, Nelly Sachs, and the Yiddish language poets Abraham Sutzkever and Peretz Markish become contemporaries, as her words mingle with theirs to bear the weight of the unspoken. “What have we come for,” the poet asks, “to sleep where the dead slept in the bed of our absence?” What redemption she finds is in language.

About the Series
Portland Public Library’s Literary Lunch series is held monthly and features authors from New England in conversation about new works.  Conversations are generally wide ranging and engaging.

All Literary Lunches are free to the public. Because they take place over the lunch hour, guests are encouraged to bring their lunch; coffee provided by Coffee By Design.

Portland Public Library hosts Poetry Open Mic!

Portland Public Library hosts Poetry Open Mic! 

Friday, April 14th at 5:00pm

In the Lewis Gallery

At our Poetry Open Mic in April, everyone is welcome to step up to the mic and share a favorite poem from a favorite poet, or share one of their own poems. What poets have inspired you? Are you a local poet? Come share your work or a poem that's touched your life in the Lewis Gallery at the Main Library on the evening of Friday, April 14, 2017. We'll start the open mic at 5:00 p.m. and read till the library closes at 6:00 p.m.

Please email hartsig@portlandpubliclibrary.org or call the Reader’s Advisory desk at 871-1700, ext. 705, if you have any questions.

Portland Public Library hosts Poetry Spotlight: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Wednesday, April 26th from 12:00-1:00pm

Portland, Maine - This month we will shine the poetry spotlight on Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Portland’s native son and one of America's most recognized and best–loved poets. His words, characters, images, and ideas fill our language and cultural landscape to this day. Born in Portland, Maine, in 1807, he became a national literary figure by the 1850s and a world-famous personality by the time of his death in 1882.

Join us on Wednesday, April 26th from noon to 1:00pm in the Rines Auditorium for a Poetry Spotlight on Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.  Our guide through the life and works of this legendary poet will be Maine Historical Society’s John Babin, the visitor services manager for the Wadsworth/Longfellow House in Portland. John has served as site coordinator and guide at the Wadsworth/Longfellow House, led the “Longfellow’s Childhood and Portland History” walk on the Longfellow Trail, and guided Old Port Walking Tours’ “Portland History” tour. He is the co-author of “Henry Wadsworth Longfellow In Portland: The Fireside Poet of Maine.”

Portland Public Library hosts a Literary Lunch with Ron Currie Jr. in conversation with Lewis Robinson

Portland Public Library hosts a Literary Lunch with Ron Currie Jr. in conversation with Lewis Robinson

Wednesday, March 29nd at noon in the Rines Auditorium

Portland, Maine - Ron Currie Jr. will have a conversation about his book, The One-Eyed Man, among other things with fellow writer Lewis Robinson.  Join us for what promises to be an insightful and entertaining conversation with time for audience questions at the end of the talk.

About the book
K., the intriguing narrator of Currie’s new novel, joins the ranks of other great American literary creations who show us something new about ourselves. Like Jack Gladney from White Noise, K. is possessed of a hyper-articulate exasperation with the world, and like Ignatius J. Reilly in A Confederacy of Dunces, he is a doomed truth teller whom everyone misunderstands. After his wife Sarah dies, K. loses his metaphorical capacity, becoming so wedded to the notion of clarity that he infuriates everyone, friends and strangers alike. When he intervenes in an armed robbery, K. finds himself both an inadvertent hero and the star of a new reality television program. Together with Claire, a grocery store clerk with a sharp tongue and a yen for celebrity, he travels the country, ruffling feathers and gaining fame at the intersection of American politics and entertainment. But soon, through a conflagration of biblical proportions, he discovers that the world will fight viciously to preserve its delusions about itself.

K.’s quixotic effort to fully understand the world he lives in makes for a singular and engaging novel, one which further establishes Ron Currie’s position as one of today’s rising stars in fiction.


About the Series » Literary Lunch Series
Portland Public Library’s Literary Lunch series is held monthly and features authors from New England in conversation about new works.  Authors are interviewed by literary friends, colleagues or critics.
All Literary Lunches are free to the public. Because they take place over the lunch hour, guests are encouraged to bring their lunch; coffee provided by Coffee By Design.

Portland Public Library presents: Let Them Play! Nature Play with Lynn Rutte

Portland Public Library presents: Let Them Play! Nature Play with Lynn Rutter

Saturday, March 18th at 2:00pm

for children ages 2-6 with their parents/caregivers

in the Sam L. Cohen Children’s Library

Portland, Maine - It soon will be spring and observing the cycle of bird life in the backyard is a great way to introduce children to the natural world. Have you ever found a nest tucked in a tree? Have you wondered who made the nest or what may have hatched? Lynn Rutter M.A., Director of Roots N Shoots Nature-Based Preschool in Portland, will lead children through a series of activities to simulate the building of a nest. This program, part of a series, Let Them Play! is about the important role of play in the development of children’s early literacy and language skills.

Lynn has taught at public and private schools as well as environmental centers. Her home-based child care seeks to bring children and nature back together through frequent, unstructured play in natural settings. These activities support physical, intellectual, academic, emotional and social development through interactions in nature.

Come and “nest” with us Saturday, March 18th at 2:00 pm. Cozy up to and enjoy a story and activity focused on birds building nests, laying eggs and little chicks hatching.

Portland Public Library announces Call for Presenters for Makers@PPL

Event is April 22, 2017; open call for public presenters: ends March 18, 2017

Portland, Maine - Portland Public Library is pleased to announce Makers@PPL 2017 will be held on Saturday, April 22nd from 10:00am to 3pm at the Main Library.

Makers@PPL is the library’s maker fair– which launched with an inaugural event in April 2015, welcoming close to 2,000 participants, and 75+ presenters and workshop leaders– is a festival of STEM learning for people of all ages and backgrounds. It is an opportunity for the greater Portland community to come together to learn about and take part in creative, hands-on, science based experiences.

As such, Makers@PPL is a program that dovetails perfectly with the Library’s mission to be an engaging presence in the community. The event provides discrete teaching moments and professional development opportunities for STEM teachers, as well student participation in fun and unique STEM activities.

The call for presenters is live, and closes March 18th, so please submit your interest by filling out the form http://bit.ly/2lia9vy and we’ll get back to you by March 25th.

Makers@PPL 2017 will be organized like a conference, with thematic tracks that include: Arts, Technology & Science, and Food & Nature. We are planning a wide range of Children’s and Teen’s workshops as well, and the day will include offerings suitable for members from across the community. Individual sessions will last anywhere from 45 minutes to longer, and an exhibit hall is designed for drop-in-style learning. Participants can stay for the whole day or just attend a session. We have found that this flexible scheduling – along with the fact that this is a free event – helped us attract families with small children as well as a robust number of teen attendees.

Makers@PPL combines elements of the traditional maker movement with STEM learning and community engagement. Topics included in previous years' events included: 3D printer demonstrations, calligraphy writing, soldering, computer building, coding, blacksmithing, cupcake decorating, digital photo conversion, trebuchet construction, modular origami, quilting, and much more.

The fair will take place from 10am-3pm on Saturday, April 22, 2017, throughout the Main Library, and is free and open to the public.

Portland Public Library receives $50,000 grant for health information initiative

Portland, Maine - Portland Public Library (PPL) is pleased to announce it has received a $50,000 grant from the National Library of Medicine (NLM). These funds will support programs to bridge the gap in access to health information for our patrons, focusing on the most vulnerable members of our community -- teens, immigrants and refugees, and patrons experiencing homelessness.  

This project is grounded in three critical goals: improve access to reliable health information for underserved populations, strengthen partnerships with local health organizations, and improve health literacy for library patrons. To accomplish this, the library will offer public health information workshops, targeted use of specific online resources, and the efforts of a health outreach specialist. Access to high quality health and understandable information, can help members of these groups have greater confidence in making their health decisions. "Public libraries transform lives. We believe that by bridging gaps in access to health information, the community’s health will be stronger. Informed patients can make better decisions about their health and wellness," states Sarah Campbell, Executive Director of Portland Public Library.

Portland Public Library provides resources and experiences to build community awareness, improve access to information, and increase civic engagement. In 2014, PPL identified health as a focus area to stimulate community health literacy and convene community conversations about key health issues. We offer workshops, community discussions, and direct interaction with health professionals and organizations, in order to build awareness around health information resources and provide opportunities for deeper engagement around the issues most critical to our community.  

The National Library of Medicine (NLM), on the campus of the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, has been a center of information innovation since its founding in 1836. The world’s largest biomedical library, NLM maintains and makes available a vast print collection and produces electronic information resources on a wide range of topics that are searched billions of times each year by millions of people around the globe. It also supports and conducts research, development, and training in biomedical informatics and health information technology. In addition, the Library coordinates a 6,000-member National Network of Libraries of Medicine that promotes and provides access to health information in communities across the United States.

Developed resources reported in this press release are supported by the National Library of Medicine (NLM), National Institutes of Health (NIH) under cooperative agreement number UG4LM012347. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.

Portland Public Library presents Teen Snack Chat: Bystander Intervention with YAAPP

Portland Public Library presents Teen Snack Chat: Bystander Intervention with YAAPP

Tuesday, April 25th from 3:00-4:00pm

in the S. Donald Sussman Teen Library @ Portland Public Library

Portland, Maine - The Portland Public Teen Library welcomes back our friends from YAAPP (Young Adult Abuse Prevention Program) of Family Crisis Services for a Snack Chat on how to safely and effectively stand with others when they feel threatened. YAAPP educators will use role playing and dialog to facilitate the session. The Teen Library will provide snacks to participants. This Teen Snack Chat is part of our April programming for Sexual Assault Awareness month, a collaboration between the Teen and Health & Literacy libraries.

About YAAPP
The Young Adult Abuse Prevention Program (YAAPP) is the prevention team at Family Crisis Services. YAAPP delivers education, services, and advocacy that enable youth to make choices within their dating relationships that are safe, healthy, and informed. YAAPP’s offerings are free to all schools and organizations in Cumberland County, Maine.

To find out more visit http://www.yaapp.org or call 207.767.4952 ext. 108.

Celebrate National Kidney Month with a Free Kidney Screening at the Portland Public Library

Celebrate National Kidney Month with a Free Kidney Screening at the Portland Public Library

National Kidney Foundation urges Americans to test their kidneys

March 20, 2017 – Noon – 4:00pm

Portland, Maine - March is National Kidney Month and the National Kidney Foundation is urging all Americans to assess their risk for kidney disease. If you have diabetes, high blood pressure, a family history of kidney failure, or are over the age of 60, you are at risk and should have your kidneys checked.

NKF is offering a free kidney screening on March 20, 2017 at Portland Public Library, 5 Monument Way, Portland, ME 04101 from 12:00pm to 4:00pm. All KEEP Healthy participants will answer a brief health-risk survey and have their height, weight and blood pressure measured. At-risk individuals will have their kidney health checked through a simple, onsite, ACR urine test. The ACR test can identify protein in the urine, which is often the first sign of kidney disease. Free educational materials will be provided and a medical professional will review results and answer questions from participants.

Over 26 million Americans have kidney disease and most don’t know it. Early detection and treatment can slow or even prevent the progression of kidney disease. Attend this lifesaving screening and give your hardworking kidneys a much-needed checkup this National Kidney Month.

To pre-register for KEEP Healthy, contact the National Kidney Foundation at 781-278-0222 ext.333.

Urine strips and accessories for KEEP Healthy are provided by Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics, Inc. and Quantimetrix Corporation.

The National Kidney Foundation is the leading organization in the U.S. dedicated to the awareness, prevention and treatment of kidney disease. For more information, visit www.kidney.org.

Portland Public Library to host Race and Justice in America book discussion series with the Maine Humanities Council

Portland Public Library to host Race and Justice in America book discussion series 
with the Maine Humanities Council
January 23rd through April 10th 2017

Portland, Maine - Portland Public Library has been selected by the Maine Humanities Council to offer Race and Justice in America, a free 5-book reading and discussion group with all copies of books available through the library. This "Let's Talk About It" program is provided by the Maine Humanities Council’s Maine Center for the Book in cooperation with the Maine State Library.

The first discussion in the Race and Justice in America series begins at 6:00 p.m. on Monday, January 23 at Portland Public Library, Meeting Room 5, in Portland. The series will continue for four other sessions through April 10, 2017.

Books to be read and discussed in this series include: The Fire This Time: A New Generation Speaks About Race, edited by Jesmyn Ward; Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption, by Bryan Stevenson; The Contested Murder of Latasha Harlins: Justice, Gender, and the Origins of the L.A. Riots, by Brenda Stevenson; Contempt of Court: The Turn-of-the-Century Lynching that Launched 100 Years of Federalism, by Mark Curriden and Leroy Phillips, and Arc of Justice: A Saga of Race, Civil Rights, and Murder in the Jazz Age, by Kevin Boyle.

The book discussions will be facilitated by Dr. Leroy Rowe, Assistant Professor of African-American History & Politics at USM.

Books for the program are available for loan at the Reader's Advisory desk of the library. Please call the library at 871-1700 ext. 705 to register and come in to pick up books from the series.
This program is offered to Maine libraries through the Maine Humanities Council in partnership with the Maine State Library.

For more information about “Let’s Talk About It” and the work of the Maine Humanities Council, see www.mainehumanities.org or call the office in Portland at 207-773-5051

Portland Public Library presents the Civil Rights Film Series

Portland, Maine - Join Portland Public Library for a Civil Rights Film Series presented on Thursday evenings in January at 6:30pm in the Rines Auditorium.  We will present films from the California Newsreel collection.  California Newsreel has produced and distributed cutting-edge social issue films for activists and educators since 1968. Today it is the oldest, independent non-profit documentary center in the country and the first systematically to integrate media production and distribution with the media needs of contemporary social change movements.

Film schedule

Thursday, January 5th - Hoxie: The First Stand
How many people know that the first battle to implement the Brown vs Board of Education school desegregation decision was fought in the small, rural town of Hoxie, Arkansas? Or that it became a flashpoint because it offered a peaceful alternative to the bloody Massive Resistance campaigns of the next decade? Hoxie sparked the first deployment of federal agents in support of integration and the first court order overturning state segregation laws. But it also showed that unscrupulous politicians would fan unfounded fears into violent anti-government fury, all too reminiscent of similar movements today.


Thursday, January 12th - The Road to Brown
The Road to Brown tells the story of the Brown v. Board of Education ruling as the culmination of a brilliant legal assault on segregation that launched the Civil Rights movement. It is also a moving and long overdue tribute to a visionary but little known black lawyer, Charles Hamilton Houston, "the man who killed Jim Crow."

Thursday, January 19th - Negroes With Guns
Robert F. Williams was the forefather of the Black Power movement and broke dramatic new ground by internationalizing the African American struggle. Negroes with Guns is not only an electrifying look at an historically erased leader, but also provides a thought-provoking examination of Black radicalism and resistance and serves as a launching pad for the study of Black liberation philosophies. Insightful interviews with historian Clayborne Carson, biographer Timothy Tyson, Julian Bond, and a first person account by Mabel Williams, Robert's wife, bring the story to life.

Thursday, January 26th - Freedom On My Mind
Nominated for an Academy Award, winner of both the American Historical Association and the Organization of American Historians awards for best documentary, this landmark film tells the story of the Mississippi freedom movement in the early 1960s when a handful of young activists changed history.


For more information, please go to: https://www.portlandlibrary.com/series/civil-rights-film-series/


Each film is 60 minutes with the exception of Freedom on My Mind which is 110 minutes.  All films at Portland Public Library are free and open to the Public.  Refreshments are provided.

Portland Public Library hosts Science Magic!

Portland Public Library hosts Science Magic! 

 as part of I ♥ Reading in Portland: Time of Wonder! Summer Reading Program

Wednesday, July 27th from 3-3:30pm 

Riverton Branch Library, 1600 Forest Avenue 

Portland, Maine - Portland Public Library is pleased announce that the Boston Museum of Science is bringing the wonder of magic to our Riverton Branch as part of the summer reading program, I ♥ Reading in Portland: Time of Wonder! Have you ever wondered how magic tricks really work? This program investigates the science behind the “magic” of several classic magic tricks. You might learn how to snatch a tablecloth without disturbing the items on top, make a balloon fireproof, and use electromagnetism to defy gravity. And for the grand finale…see how science can make it safe to lie down on a bed of nails!

This event is free and open to children ages 5-12.

Portland Public Library to host Create your own Pollinator Garden workshop on Saturday, July 23rd

Portland Public Library to host Create your own Pollinator Garden workshop

Saturday, July 23rd from 10:30am-12:30pm

in the Rines Auditorium

Portland, Maine - Portland Public Library is pleased to host the Portland Pollinator Partnership and Katelyn Buttler, Environmental Steward at the Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge, on Saturday July 23rd in the Rines Auditorium. Just us at 10:30am for a two-hour interactive workshop on how to make your garden bee friendly! You will have the chance to learn about different plants and pollinator species, and go home with your own pollinator garden kit! These gardens will attract all types of important pollinators, including Monarch butterflies.
All ages are welcome! To register, email portlandpollinators@gmail.com or call 871-1700 x 284.

Portland Public Library announces "Maine Audubon- Become a Citizen Scientist"

Portland Public Library announces "Maine Audubon- Become a Citizen Scientist"
as part of the library’s summer reading program, I ♥ Reading in Portland: Time of Wonder
Thursday, July 14^th 10:30am – 11:30am 
 in the Sam L. Cohen Children’s Library 

Portland, Maine - Portland Public Library is pleased to host Doug Hitchcox, Maine Audubon’s naturalist, on Thursday, July 14^th at 10:30am in the Sam L. Cohen's Children's Library.  Join Doug to learn about taking action for wildlife and becoming a citizen scientist. His visit is part of the Library’s summer reading program, I ♥ Reading in Portland: Time of Wonder. 

Count loons and bats, listen for frogs and toads and observe wildlife crossings on Maine’s roads – there are lots of ways to take action and lend a hand (or an eye or an ear) for wildlife. Citizen scientists provide biologists and resource managers with valuable information. Maine Audubon has many programs that rely on the data collected from individuals, such as the Maine Loon Project, Christmas Bird Count and BatME. Doug will also inform the audience about the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s program, eBird – which is a real-time, online checklist project where participants have reported more than 9.5 million bird observations around the world. This citizen scientist program has revolutionized the collection of biodiversity data! 

Maine Audubon works to conserve Maine’s wildlife and wildlife habitat by engaging people of all ages in education, conservation and action. "Become a Citizen Scientist" is a program designed for children ages 5 and up.

Portland Public Library announces A Visit with Author and Naturalist Jim Arnosky

Portland Public Library announces A Visit with Author and Naturalist Jim Arnosky
as part of the library’s summer reading program, I ♥ Reading in Portland: Time of Wonder
Thursday, July 28^th 10:30am – 11:30am 
 in the Sam L. Cohen Children’s Library 

Portland, Maine - Portland Public Library’s Sam L. Cohen Children’s library is excited to announce that award winning author, Jim Arnosky, will be visiting the Portland Public Library, as part of the library’s summer reading program, I ♥ Reading in Portland: Time of Wonder. Jim Arnosky has written and illustrated over 132 books on nature subjects and has illustrated 46 other books written by various authors! His presentation will include a drawing demonstration, singing and playing his guitar and talking about a few of his books and adventures he’s had while researching in the outdoors. 

Jim Arnosky spends half the day exploring the outdoors and the other half at his drawing board.  He’s been creating award winning books for over 30 years. He states, “I am convinced that if you love the outdoors, natural places, and wildlife, you will grow into a person who will consider those factors no matter what work you do. My job is to foster an appreciation of nature and a curiosity about wildlife. I tell kids what I know and let them decide how to think about it. Hopefully they'll use that knowledge and make a difference.” 

Jim Arnosky has been honored for his contribution to children’s literature by the Eva L. Gordon Award and the Washington Post/Children’s Book Guild Award for nonfiction. He has been awarded the Christopher Medal and Orbis Pictus Honor. Many of his books have been chosen as ALA Notable Books and have received Outstanding Science book awards from National Science Teacher’s Associations. Jim was honored with the Franklin Fairbank Award for being Vermont’s foremost creative guide to nature lore.

This event is free and open to children ages 5-12.

Peaks Island Library hosts "The Zany, Magestic Bard"

Peaks Island Library hosts The Zany, Magestic Bard

at the Peaks Island Library Community Room

July 28th at 7:00pm

Portland, Maine - On Thursday, July 28th the Peaks Island Library will host “The Zany, Majestic Bard” a program created through a partnership between the Maine State Library and the Maine Humanities Council. The performance, led by theater artist David Greenham, celebrates William Shakespeare’s inventive language on the 400th anniversary of his death and includes singing, acting and learning activities aimed at making the works of Shakespeare more accessible and inspirational to all audiences.  There will also be some cameo appearances by Peaks Island residents.

This program will be held in the Community Room at the Peaks Island Library and is free and open to the public.

Portland Public Library announces The PuppeTree Theater puppet show

Portland Public Library announces The PuppeTree Theater puppet show
as part of the library’s summer reading program, I ♥ Reading in Portland: Time of Wonder
Thursday, July 21st 10:30am – 11:30am
Sam L. Cohen Children’s Library 

Portland, Maine - Portland Public Library is pleased to announce that the PuppeTree Theater will be presenting two puppet shows on Thursday, July 21^st from 10:30am-11:30am, as part of the library’s summer reading program, I ♥ Reading in Portland: Time of Wonder. The performances will be held in the Sam L. Cohen Children’s Library at the Main Branch.

Vermont’s PuppeTree brings to the stage a stunning production of Leo Lionni's classic children's book Swimmy. This fully authorized multimedia production blends shadow puppets, animation and projections performed by the PuppeTree's founder Ann Legunn. A visual and musical treat Swimmy features a classical music score that draws us into the undersea world and introduces children to lyrical work of Debussy. 

The companion piece, Swimmer, is an original work inspired by Lionni’s wonderful story, set on a picturesque New England river. A young girl recognizes the threats to her beloved river and learns to organize the people that live along its banks to change their behavior and preserve the magic of the river. Swimmer boasts an original music score by Patrick Ross a fifth generation Vermont fiddler and composer. Visual artists, musicians, puppeteers and craftsman have worked over 3 years to bring this beautiful and inspiring show to life. 

This program is free and open to children ages 3-12.