Reflecting on the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

In January, let's honor the legacy of influential civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. together. Our materials collection provides opportunities to engage with Dr. King’s work and other anti-racist materials. We have more than 100 books in our collection related to Dr. King, and librarians have compiled a list of books on our website to introduce young readers to Dr. King’s work and ideals. Patrons can also access archival videos of Dr. King's speeches, including "I Have A Dream," and "The Promised Land," along with full-length civil rights documentaries in our online collection.

The Library will be closed on Monday, Jan. 17th due to Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a Town holiday. At Chapel Hill Public Library, we encourage you to think of the day as a "day on," not a "day off," and use it as an opportunity to dedicate yourself to community service. In honor of the day, we've compiled a list of community service ideas, as well as a list of books centering around community service.

“Best of” Book Bingo

As temperatures plummet, our winter “Best Of” Book Bingo continues. You can keep crossing off squares on your card until Jan. 31st. Bring in your completed card to receive an "I love books" tote bag and enter into a drawing for a swag bag of books.

Haven’t started yet? Cards can be downloaded here or picked up in the Library.

Remembering Martha

Martha Brunstein, voracious reader, former president of the Friends of the Chapel Hill Public Library, and fierce library advocate, passed away late last month at the age of 86. To celebrate Martha’s legacy, the Friends encourage you to shop at the Friends Online Book Store (which Martha founded), become a Friends member, or make a donation to the Library in her honor.

Tracks Music Library submissions open

Chapel Hill's own digital music streaming platform, Tracks Music Library, is currently accepting new submissions. Triangle area musicians of any genre can submit up to three songs for consideration. Visit the Tracks website to explore the music, learn more, and submit. 🎶 The deadline to apply is Feb 14th.

Switching StoryWalks

Eagle-eyed visitors to Umstead Park and Homestead Park may have noticed we recently switched out our StoryWalk stories. Keep an eye out at our three StoryWalk locations—Pritchard Park, Umstead Park and Homestead Park—we display new books every month.

Crook’s Corner Book Prize

Next week, we are teaming up (virtually) with our pals over at Flyleaf Books and the Crook's Corner Book Prize Foundation to host the Crook's Corner Book Prize announcement event. The prize celebrates the best debut novel set in the South—you won’t want to miss the exciting announcement of this year’s winner!

Jan. 11 | Virtual | 7 p.m.

Project FeederWatch

Grab your binoculars— we’re hosting another weekend of FeederWatch events on our terrace this month. We'll be on the back terrace with binoculars, a birding scope, reference books, and experienced birders from New Hope Audubon Society to identify feeder birds.

Jan. 7 & 8th | Library Terrace | 3 p.m.

Chapel Hill’s favorites

Still feeling a bit nostalgic for 2021? You can read through Chapel Hill’s most checked out books of the year in our list here. “Where the Crawdads Sing,” “The Vanishing Half,” and “Caste” took the top spots in 2021.

2021 Staff Picks

The only thing library staff loves more than reading books is talking about the books we love. Chapel Hill Public Library staff created lists of favorite younger reader, older kid, teen, and adult books released this year.