Blog: Author: Cait Quinn

Summer Reading Ending Soon!

Posted on by Cait Quinn

This is not a drill! Summer session is ending soon. We have just two more weeks of prizes before we wrap up our summer reading program and move onto the Fall season. Minutes must be submitted before August 31st and prizes must be picked up before September 1st. Also the week 8 prize in this year’s summer reading iron on patch. It is an exclusive MPL design and the most fashionable accessory of the year.

Stil need to sign up? You can back date all your minutes for the summer and collect prizes now before we run out. (We have supplemental prizes for the weeks that have run out, so don’t worry). To add to our minutes and help us reach our goal of 600,000 hours read as a community log in or set up your Beanstack account. It is the Beanstack Tracker app on mobile or use this link to get to the website. bit.ly/BeanstackMPL

Teeth Time 8.21.25 @ 11am

Posted on by Cait Quinn

Start the school year off right! Join us Thursday August 21st at 11am for a fun and informative program about proper brushing. Establishing proper tooth brushing habits early leads to a lifetime of positive outcomes. Even the smallest teeth can be susceptible to tooth decay. So learning how to brush is important to help prevent cavities and other oral health problems. This program aims to teach kids the best way to brush their teeth while making it fun. Help your little one learn to love cleaning their teeth! Join us for Teeth Time.

MassArt Comics Arts Workshop with the MBLC comes to the Malden Public Library 8.14.25

Posted on by Cait Quinn

Join MassArt and the MBLC at the Malden Public Library on Thursday August 14th, 4pm for a Comic Arts Workshop. Registration is required. Please use the link: https://bit.ly/MassArt_Comics_MPL or sign up in person at the library.

The workshop provides an opportunity to deconstruct the comic creation process in an engaging and accessible way that applies to a wide range of skillsets. It introduces the storytelling structure and starts with a simple activity where students sketch different shapes on their pages. MassArt Comic Arts instructor LJ Baptiste will demonstrate how these shapes can be fleshed out into full characters. Participants will learn techniques they can utilize to understand a character they’re creating and develop their own 4 panel comic strip featuring one of their original characters.

For kids and teens ages 7 and up.

Happy Little Trees: A gently guided paint night 8.7.25

Posted on by Cait Quinn

Join Cait in the program room on Thursday August 7th at 6pm for some light refreshments and a refreshing paint night. Paint along with everyone’s favorite PBS painter and make some happy little trees and maybe a big ol’ rock. Materials will be provided so space is limited. Registration is required. You can sign up at the link: https://bit.ly/Happy-little-trees-MPL or call the library to be added to the list.
Prior painting skills are not required. In fact, Cait can’t paint at all. So plan to laugh along and learn through the magic art of trial, error, and happy accidents.

Ice Cream Social Thursday June 26th 1-2:30pm

Posted on by Cait Quinn

It’s that time of year again. Summer reading is starting and to celebrate we are kicking off with Dairy Delight. Join the library on Thursday, June 26th from 1-2:30pm for ice cream on the front lawn (rain location to be announced day of). For the party we’ll have games, music, books, and of course ice cream. To get ready we ask that anyone who is able, please sign up on Beanstack for your summer reading challenges. And don’t worry, for less technology inclined folks we will have librarians available to help you sign up and get your summer started. To register please use our Beanstack link: bit.ly/BeanstackMPL

And if you can’t make it we still want to support your summer progress. Sign up via the Beanstack app, webpage, one of our library sign up stations, or in person at the info or children’s desks. We have a lot of tasty prizes for kids and teens this summer. And for adults who read their weekly goal we have a prize raffle for fun gift certificates to our favorite community partners. Don’t miss out this summer it is going to be tons of fun!

 

Closed for Juneteenth 6.19.25

Posted on by Cait Quinn

The Malden Library will be closed this Thursday June 19th, in honor of Juneteenth. We reopen again for Friday from 9-6pm and then Saturday from 9-1pm with the start of our summer Saturday hours. While we are closed feel free to enjoy the Malden Juneteenth Festival. And if you would rather stay in and avoid the heat, check out our online database ProQuest: Black Freedom Struggle for some really interesting topics on the African American experience in the United States.

And speaking of Juneteenth…here is a little history you might find fascinating…

Juneteenth is a federal holiday in the United States. It is celebrated annually on June 19 to commemorate the ending of slavery in the United States. William Shiloh was one of many former enslaved men and women that came north after freedom to make a new life in Malden.

William Shiloh was owner of Shiloh & Company, a barbershop on the south side of Pleasant Street. The business was listed in city directories as early as 1857. William was succeeded by his son, C. D. Shiloh, who was a photographer and architect.

According to An Early History of Malden, William Shiloh was working at his shop on the day of the bank robbery and murder of Frank Converse in 1863. William provided Franks’ father Elisha Converse a list of everyone he saw who entered and exited the bank the day of the murder. He was thanked by the family and records indicate that Elisha Converse built Shiloh and his family a house on Walnut Street, an area later known as Shiloh’s Hill.

A poem “Shiloh & Co.” was written by John Holland and published in the Star Streaks in 1870.

“What numerous barbers arrive in our town.
The first raise their pole and they next take it down.
Because there’s no man can successfully go,
And hold out his own against Shiloh & Co.;
For who can a razor so tastefully strap,
Or frizz up the curls on a dandified chap.”

“Let me of all nations in Malden unite.
To Do up the thing that is perfectly right.
Raise a shout that shall bring down the mountain
echo,
For Colfax and Grant, and for Shiloh & Co.
Their weapons are peerless in peace or in war,
And when there’s no fighting time they tune the guitar’
And the music they play makes our rooster birds crow,
Tis “The Star Spangled Banner” and Shiloh & Co.”

 

Summer Hours Start Saturday June 21st! Saturdays 9-1pm

Posted on by Cait Quinn

Summer is back! And this year we are open on Saturday. Starting Saturday, June 21st the library will open from 9am-1pm. This will give you and your family time to stop by and pick up your beach reads, audio books for the long car ride, or movies for a rainy weekend. For the rest of the week our hours will be the same, and packed with lots of summer reading special events. Check out our calendar to see what is going on! And don’t forget to sign up on Beanstack to log your reading minutes!

Book Log Snakes!!!

Posted on by Cait Quinn

To get Sssssstarted…what’sssss thisssss about?

There are snakes at the Malden Public Library! Book snakes! This year we wanted a way to log books and encourage reading that was fun and educational. And thanks to TikTok and the internet we have this cool and crafty project. For this project you will crochet or knit a log of all your reading by assigning colors to genres or themes and then adding them each time you finish a book that matches those categories. In the end you’ll have a cute, plush log of all you’ve accomplished.

Sssssupplies…

We have provided kits with a crochet hook, some eyes, stitch markers, a pattern, and a pre-crocheted head to get you started. We are also stocking the card catalog with loads of yarn for you to choose from and some back up supplies. Stop by the library and get your kit, pick up some yarn, or just get a pattern and start logging your books. You can view the crochet pattern here:

Don’t like to crochet?

No problem…we have a knitting pattern! And you can still use the yarn, the eyes, the stitch markers. You can also bring your knit snake to one of our knitting programs and ask questions or seek assistance.

Need ssssome more help?

The library is hosting our first Book Log Snake Class and Clinic on Thursday, March 13th at 6pm. Stop by to learn how to crochet your snake from scratch. You will need your own 4.5mm hook, but we will provide the rest. There will be other snake clinics as we go and you can email cquinn@maldenpubliclibrary for updates on classes or suggestions for snake resources. In the meantime, here are some free online tutorials the staff found helpful:

And for kids too little to crochet or knit…

We have a coloring sheet. You can ask for copies at the children’s desk or pick them up near the yarn station. You can also print this template at home!

Pride Screening: Gen Silent 6.4.25

Posted on by Cait Quinn

The Malden Public Library in conjunction with the City of Malden, Councillor Ari Taylor, the Malden office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and Malden Pride Coalition will have a special screening of Gen Silent in honor of Pride month. On Wednesday, June 4th at 6pm, at the library, we will show this very important documentary about LGBTQIA+ elders and the hurdles they face as they navigate later life care and medical concerns. Gen Silent follows the lives of 6 seniors in and around Boston who are trying to navigate aging and care in a system that is often hostile or at a minimum not equipped to embrace and support their needs.

Join us for this very important film and share your perspectives with our community. Elder care is an issue that each of us will have to face in some form. But for our queer elders that can be even more daunting. SAGE Advocacy and services for LGBTQ+ Elders provides some startling figures facing the community. “53% of LGBTQ+ older people report feeling isolated from others. 50% of all Americans living with HIV are over 50 years old. 65% of older transgender respondents felt there would be limited access to care as they aged… 55% from the same 2015 national survey feared they would be denied medical treatment. 70% of LGBTQ+ elders fear having to “re-closet” themselves when seeking elder housing. 41% of LGBTQ+ older people report having a disability, compared to 35 percent of heterosexual older adults.” With these figures it is essential to have conversations around what we can do to better support people in our neighborhood, family, and systemically through government support.

Following the screening there will be a discussion and light refreshments. There will also be representatives from Mystic Valley Elder Services and the Wicked Queer Film festival there to join the discussion. And for those who wish to learn more about services available for themselves and elders in their community we’ll also have in information table with materials from local organizations and a book list for further reading.

Industry in Converse Sq.: A walking tour

Posted on by Cait Quinn

Lace up your Chuck Taylors, grab a bottle of water, and get ready to learn about the cool and interesting history of our city. Local History at the Malden Public Library is excited to announce a free walking tour! Welcome in Spring by getting outdoors and exploring Malden’s rich industrial history in a guided tour put on by local history librarian, Phillip Wright. The tour is about a mile, and it begins and ends at Malden Public Library’s historic Converse Memorial Building.

There are two sessions:

May 13th (Tuesday) from 5-7pm Sign up here

May 15th (Thursday) from 10am-12pm. Sign up here

Registration is required.
Sign up using the links. You can also register by calling the library at (781) 324-0218.