The library will be closed on Monday, July 4 in observation of Independence Day.  

Staring on Sunday, July 3, we will be closed on Sundays throughout the summer. 

Check out the Digital Resources page on our website. 

Why should kids and teens have all the fun? 

This year we are inviting you to participate in our Summer Reading Challenge for Adults, now through September 5. Accept the challenge by reading five books over the summer that fit the categories selected by our Librarians. 

Pick up your challenge packet at one of our public service desks and complete the challenge to be entered to win a gift card to a local business. Join the fun and READ this summer!

Programs for Adults

The Fascinating Life and Legacy of Massachusetts Dinosaur Pioneer Edward Hitchcock: Tuesday, July 5 at 7pm. Author Robert T. McMaster will discuss his latest book, All the Light Here Comes From Above: The Life and Legacy of Edward Hitchcock.  A native of Deerfield, MA, Edward Hitchcock (1793-1864) was one of 19th-century America's most influential scientists. A geological pioneer, he was the first State Geologist of Massachusetts, the first American geologist to publicly embrace the theory of continental glaciation and the first scientist to unearth evidence of dinosaurs in North America.

 Tiny Hats for Cats: Thursday, July 7 at 7pm. Join us for a whimsical program where you’ll learn to craft tiny hats for cats! Assemble three fun paper crafts for your pet to enjoy as stylish accessories or as toys. (Note: All pets should be monitored when playing with the crafts and crafts should be discarded if damaged.)

 Hoopla, Kanopy & Libby: Friday, July 8  at 11 am. Get an introduction to our three most popular library eResources so you can start accessing books, music, movies, and more from home.

Coming Up for Adults

Books, Boots and Bridles: The Story of the Horse Back Librarians: Tuesday, July 12 at 2pm. Join Jeffrey Urbin, Education Specialist at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum Learn, to the fascinating story of the Pack Horse Library initiative, a little known program of FDR’s Work Progress Administration. Its mission, carried out almost entirely by women, was to deliver and distribute reading materials to the far off corners of Appalachia during the darkest hours of the Great Depression. Sponsored by the Tewksbury Public Library.

 Accessing Consumer eResources from Home: Tuesday, July 12 at 3pm. Become a smarter consumer and better shopper! Learn how to access Consumer Reports, ConsumerLab and Consumers’ Checkbook from home using your library card.

Cooking Live with Chef Bill: Wednesday, July 13 at 5pm. Cook along or watch as Chef Bill prepares a different dish live on Zoom each month! This month he'll be baking Blueberry Lemon Cake.

Apply to Exhibit Your Art at the Newton Free Library! 

Proposals are currently being accepted for January - June 2023 exhibits. As one of the busiest public library buildings in Massachusetts, our galleries are highly sought after and well-loved by library patrons. We welcome applications from New England region artists showing two-dimensional works, or works that are compatible with the Walker Rod system.

 We encourage artists from a variety of ethnicities and life experiences to apply.

Art Shows and Displays on View July 2 - 28

Seeing You, Seeing Me by Becky Behar, Gallery. This series is a photographic collaboration between Becky Behar and her then 21-year-old daughter, Leah.

Inspired by Dutch artists, particularly Vermeer, Behar attempts to create images that capture a fleeting and pivotal moment in time – the still of life as her daughter stands on the cusp of adulthood and the artist witnesses the passing of time. Visit Becky’s website or email her at [email protected].

Inspired by the Book by Martha Brouwer, Main Hall. Throughout her careers as an art director, graphic designer and painter, Martha Brouwer has been interested in the interplay between words and imagery. In this show each book’s title serves as a jumping off point and gives rise to a variety of styles and subjects reflecting the delight the artist found in each topic. This show is a benefit for Hands Across the Sea, a charity dedicated to raising children’s literacy in the Eastern Caribbean. Contact Martha at [email protected].

Main Hall Display Cases: 

Enjoy an array of Turkish spoons from the collection of Nicholas Johnson. Learn about their origins, history and ornamentation. Turkish wooden spoons were first decorated - with designs and sayings - in Konya, an ancient city conquered by the Ottomans in the sixteenth century. The pilgrims and tourists visiting Konya in the 20th century encouraged the making of a huge variety of painted spoons, and the craze for spoons reached its height around the middle of the 20th century. 

Atrium Display Case One:

Participate in the Summer Reading Challenge for Adults runs through September 5.

 Accept the challenge by reading five books over the summer that fit in with the categories selected by our Librarians. Pick up your challenge packet at one of our public service desks starting on June 13.

 Complete the challenge and be entered to win a gift card to a local business! 

Join the fun and READ this summer!

Atrium Display Case Two: 

Learn about summer reading for preschoolers - rising 12th graders - Read Beyond the Beaten Path! The program will run through August 31. All reading counts - books/eBooks, magazines, audiobooks and reading aloud to your family or friends. Register on Beanstack. As long as you also log minutes, write a book review on Beanstack, complete an adventure or attend a library program, you’ll be entered into the weekly drawings for cool prizes like a family Mass Audubon memberships and gift certificates to bookstores.