The following events are in partnership with Bay Area Book Festival 



Making Marvelous Middle-Grade Fiction @Central
Saturday, June 6  
10:00-10:50am
Community Meeting Room
Award-winning authors, Gennifer Choldenko, Sarah Klise, Jordan Jacobs and Mitali Perkins moderated by Marissa Moss, share their experiences on writing middle-grade fiction and describe what makes a book successful for this hyper-critical audience.

Rad American Women A - Z: Rebels, Trailblazers, and Visionaries Who Shaped Our History . . . and Our Future!
Saturday, June 6
11:00am
Community Meeting Room
Presented by City Lights Publishers
"This is not a book. This is a guest list for a party of my heroes," raved Daniel Handler, aka Lemony Snicket. Like all A-Z books, Rad American Women A - Z: illustrates the alphabet - but instead of "A is for Apple", A is for Angela - as in Angela Davis, the iconic political activist. B is for Billie Jean King,  etc. Author Kate Schatz and illustrator Miriam Stahl celebrate these heroes with a dazzling visual presentation - and silk screenings! Bring your own t-shirt, onesie, or tea towel to have a vibrant rad woman silkscreened on it!

A Journey to Literacy: Adult Learners in Conversation @Central
Saturday, June 6    
1:00-1:50pm
Community Meeting Room
Presented by Bay Area Literacy (BALIT)
Each learner tells his/her story and shares the book from which they learned to read and the impact it has had on them. Themes include inspiration, motivation, trust, opening up a "new door," gained confidence and community building.

Bilingual Story Time @Central
Saturday, June 6
3:00-3:30pm
Children's Room
Presented by Bilingual Books; with Mathilde Hollander and seven translators
Bring the little ones to enjoy a story time in eight languages! Children will explore their senses through story and play, learning the names for each sense in a multi-lingual environment. Readers from Bilingual Books will be on hand to provide free bilingual resources after the event.

East Bay Young Writers Competition Winners Reading @Central
Saturday, June 6
4:00-4:50pm
Community Meeting Room
Presented by WriterCoach Connection
Middle and high school students from WriterCoach Connection's East Bay programs participated in a writing competition this spring. Students read selections from their winning work and answer questions about their writing process. Make sure to catch them now, so you can say you saw them way back when!

For Kids, By a Kid: How to Write Your Own Book @Central
Michelle Longega Wilson
Sunday, June 7
11:00am
Community Meeting Room
Do you have a budding author in your family? Find out how an ordinary eight-year-old girl became an Amazon bestselling author. Michelle Longega Wilson, author of the bilingual book series The Adventures of Giulia presents her own writing experiences and explain to kids how they can write their own book. Michelle will walk us through her simple step-by-step plan. For all ages.

Small Beer Literary Cabaret @Central
Sunday, June 7
Noon
Community Meeting Room
Small Beer Literary Cabaret
Ayize Jama-Everett (The Liminal War), Ysabeau Wilce (Prophecies, Lies, and Dreams)
A salute to Gavin Grant and Kelly Link's Small Beer Press and an invitation to discover two of its new voices. Wilce's "tall tale is set in or around the Republic of Califa, an alternate, Aztec-influenced version of the Golden State from the 19th century, where magick is part of everyday life and wonders never cease" (San Francisco Chronicle). Jama-Everett has a "flat-voiced, sharp-edged humor reminiscent of the razors his fellow thugs wear around their necks (The Seattle Times).

Flaunt That Romance - Don't Hide It! @Central
Sunday, June 7
1:00pm
Community Meeting Room
If you think Bay Area readers are immune to the lure of the romance novel, think again. Bring your own love of this hugely popular genre out in the open --or get a taste of it for the first time -- as three popular practitioners share their work and observations on the books that really shouldn't hide in plain brown covers! T.J. Kline (Heart's Desire), Julie Ann Long (It Started with a Scandal) and Jennifer Ryan (At Wolf Ranch).

Raising a Reader: Developing Early Literacy Skills @Central
Sunday, June 7
2:00-3:20pm
Community Meeting Room
Presented by Raising a Reader
The Raising a Reader staff offers read-aloud demonstrations and strategies specifically designed to build early literacy and support learning standards, including Common Core and The Preschool Learning Foundations. Bring the kids and learn new strategies for reading together as a family

UC Berkeley Story Time: an adventure through Cal's first children's book! @Central
Sunday, June 7
3:00-3:30pm
Children's Room
Presented by UC Berkeley's BUILD Public Service Center. In partnership with BABF, students and staff from UC Berkeley's BUILD program wrote and illustrated a children's book all about the exciting life of a Cal student-- as told by a Cal campus squirrel! Each family attending the reading receives a free copy of the book.

Radio Ambulante: A Showcase of Latin American @Central
Sunday, June 7
4:00pm
Community Meeting Room
Novelist and journalist Daniel Alarcón will share the work that has made his Spanish-language podcast, Radio Ambulante, such a success. Alarcón's At Night We Walk in Circles was a finalist for the 2014 PEN-Hemingway Award. A graphic novel, City of Clowns, illustrated by Sheila Alvarado, is due from Riverhead this fall.

Peme Gellek @Children's Stage
Saturday, June 6
4:00pm
Downtown Berkeley
Tashi and Norbu is about Tashi, a little nomad boy who has grown up in a valley of the towering Himalayas. He learns his best friend, Norbu, a most unusual yak, is destined for slaughter. He embarks on a high-altitude adventure to save Norbu, and along the way, learns the meaning of friendship and the preciousness of all life.

Bike Repair Basics @North
Saturday, June 6
2:00pm-4:00pm
Get your bike into gear for summer and be ready to Explore More!
The Missing Link Bicycle Coop joins us for a bike repair demonstration.  Learn how to adjust your gears, tighten your brakes, change your tires, and maintain your chain!

Drought Soil & Your Backyard: Tips for Making Every Drop Count @West
Wednesday, June 10
6:00pm-7:45pm
Scientist, educator, professional trainer, and natural resources consultant, Stephen Andrews is passionate about soil. Known variously throughout the Bay Area as the Dirt Dude, Soil Sommelier, and Compost Crusader. When you attend a presentation given by Stephen, you will walk away with a new appreciation for the ground beneath your feet.

Container Gardening @Claremont  
Saturday, June 13
10:30-11:30am.
Learn the basics in a free demonstration led by the Berkeley Garden Club. They cover the why's and how's of container planting including selecting containers and appropriate plants, ensuring adequate drainage and more.

Meet the Farmers @Claremont
Saturday, June 13
1:00pm
Meet some practitioners of urban farming - our neighbors in West Oakland from City Slicker Farms! Learn more about the past and future of urban farming, how urban farming can create individual and community resilience, and how you too can be a backyard farmer.

Berkeley Saves the Bay @Central
Saturday, June 20
Saturday, June 27
2:00pm-3:30pm
2nd floor Berkeley History Room
A 2-part series presented by eminent local historian, author and lecturer Charles. Hear Wollenberg discuss how Berkeley and her citizens were instrumental in the 1950s and 60s in forming the organization "Save the Bay," the organization that tirelessly preserves the beautiful San Francisco Bay estuary from being filled-in, polluted, and otherwise misused.

Free Garden Tool Repair Workshop @Tool Lending Library
Monday, June 22
12:30-3:30pm
Tool Library Parking Lot
Our very own Tool guys will focus on sharpening, minor repairs and demonstrations of everyday gardening tools.

Free Bike Repair Clinic @South
Monday, June 22
1:00pm-5:00pm
The folks from BikeMobile stop by. Learn how to take care of your bike. They will bring their mobile repair clinic and do basic fixes on bikes for community members of all ages. Get a flat tire repaired, adjust your brakes, and tighten up a chain whatever you need to get bike-ready for summer. All free! To register, call the South Branch at (510) 981-6260. All ages are welcome!

Fifty Shades of Greywater: Making Every Drop Count @South
Monday, June 22
4-5:30pm
A Free Workshop: Fifty Shades of Greywater: Making Every Drop Count. Christina Bertea, of Greywater Action, will lead a workshop on how to "Drought-Proof Your Landscape." Topics include: Common types of greywater systems, plant friendly soaps and detergents, codes and regulations and costs.

Camping in the East Bay @Central
Tuesday, June 23
6:30pm-7:30pm
3rd floor Community Meeting Room
Naturalist James Wilson from the East Bay Regional Park District visits the Library to discuss camping opportunities in the parks of the East Bay.