Fun adult programs to be held at Milton Public Library throughout February

During February, the Milton Public Library is celebrating both Black History Month and Random Acts of Kindness Day (February 17th), and there will be displays of materials related to these topics shown on the first floor of the library for all to enjoy.  There will also be an African drumming concert for all ages with the musician Mamadou.  He will bring his band to the Library for a family music show during school vacation week, on Thursday, February 22nd from 2:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.  Mamadou blends the rhythms of West Africa with an endless variety of catchy melodies.  No registration is required for this event and it will be fun for all to check out the wide variety of drums this group brings with them.  For more details about the program, call the Childrens Department at 617-698-5757 x. 6 or check our website.

On Thursday, February 1st at 7:00 p.m. and Saturday, February 17th at 10:00 a.m., expert knitter Nina Zonnevylle will hold meetings of the Milton Knitting Group in the lower level Conference Room, so come by with your project and learn some great tips and tricks from her.

If you’re a fan of tea and chocolate, join us on Wednesday, February 7th at 7:00 p.m. for a special workshop just in time for Valentines Day.  Tea Specialist and former owner of Hallowed Herbs Tea House, Lisa Tavakoli, will share with us the benefits, traditions, and history of in a program called “Pairing Tea and Chocolate.”  Guests will taste samples of both at this enjoyable session.  Advance registration is required at www.miltonlibrary.org, so click on events from the main page to sign up.  (Also please note there is a snow date for this program of Wednesday, February 28th).

The first concert in our Spring series will take place on Saturday, February 10th starting at 2:00 p.m. and it will be a wonderful classical program presented by members and friends of The Parkway Concert Orchestra.  The repertoire will include pieces by Bach, Handel, Pepusch and Scarlatti, by both a woodwind trio and a string quartet of very accomplished musicians.  You do not want to miss this excellent presentation.

Film lovers should mark their calendars to meet at the Library on Thursday, February 15th from 7:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. when Boston Globe Film Critics Ty Burr and Janice Page return for their very popular “Oscar Night at the Library.”  Ty and Janice bring their usual banter and have great fun sharing their personal favorites for Oscar’s big night.  This is a very popular annual program, so come early!

On Tuesday, February 20th starting promptly at 6:30 p.m., there will be a Tuesday Night at the Movies pick which is “The Zookeeper’s Wife” starring Jessica Chastain.  This is a true story from 1939 Poland about Antonia Zabinska and her husband who shelter Jews from the Germans during World War II.  It is based on the gripping memoir by Diane Ackerman of the same title.  The couple successfully ran the Warsaw Zoo and raised their family in an idyllic existence until their world was overturned when the country was invaded by the Nazis, and they risked everything by covertly working with the Resistance and using the zoo’s hidden tunnels and cages to save families from brutality.   The movie is rated PG-13 for “thematic elements, disturbing images, violence, brief sexuality, nudity and smoking” and the running time is 2 hours and 6 minutes.    It is not appropriate for children.

On Sunday, February 25th, at 2:00 p.m., Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice is the subject of this month’s “Shakespeare Sunday” program.  This second interactive session, led by Milton resident and former Milton Academy teacher David Smith, takes a look at the play through a variety of film interpretations.  Guests should read the play in advance.  Pick up your copy at the Library or order it from the Library’s website.

Wildlife photographer Peter Christoph returns to the Library with a talk called “Birds of the Quabbin” on Tuesday, February 27th starting at 7:00 p.m.  Treat yourself to an unforgettable narrated slideshow as Peter shares his experiences looking for wildlife, by land and by boat, at the beautiful and pristine Quabbin Reservoir.  A rich diversity of birds call the Quabbin their home, the main attraction being the common loon and bald eagle families that nest there.  This is a wonderful opportunity to find out more about Massachusetts nature and wildlife from a talented naturalist.

Calling all cooks!  The Milton Library Cookbook Club invites you to its first session on Monday, February 26th from 6:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.  Each club meeting – happening every other month – will feature a selected cookbook, and members will prepare a tasty treat from the book to bring to the Library and share.  The cookbook chosen for February 26th is The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook by Deb Perelman, published in 2012.  Space is limited and advance registration is required at www.miltonlibrary.org.   Once you register, you will receive more details about the club.  Bon Appetit!

Library Director Will Adamczyk will hold his Eclectic Book Chat on Wednesday, February 28th starting at 7:00 p.m. in the lower level Conference Room.  The book to be read in advance is The Attack by Yasmina Khadra (c2004), which is a haunting novel that powerfully illuminates the devastating human costs of terrorism.  Dr. Amin Jaafari is an Arab-Israeli surgeon at the hospital in Tel Aviv and his world is shattered when his wife is killed in a suicide bombing.  Join Will for a fascinating discussion about this fascinating story.  You can reserve your copy at our website, or call the Reference Department for help in obtaining the title.

All of these programs are kindly sponsored by the Friends of the Milton Public Library and are free and open to the public.  They are held in the lower level Keys Community Room unless otherwise noted here and for more information, call Jean Hlady, Adult Services Librarian, at 617-698-5757, x. 3.  Please come and enjoy a library event in February.