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Summer Reading Challenge Launch

The 'Read to the Beat' begins!

Sign your child up for this year’s ‘Read to the Beat’ Summer Reading Challenge from this coming Saturday, 4 July, and start their adventure in stories, music and sound.

Once the school holidays begin (Saturday 18 July) your little ones will be able to start collecting stickers and fun rewards to track their reading progress. To complete the Challenge, they just need to read at least six books over the summer and collect the six special stickers – one for each week of the holidays!

Visit your local library, or our webpage Summer Reading Challenge | Cambridgeshire County Council to find out more!

Summer Reading Challenge - Special Events

We are holding lots of special events in libraries across the county to celebrate this year’s Summer Reading Challenge - Read to the Beat. Here are some highlights:

Joshua Seigal Lets the Words Out

Ely Library - Saturday 4 July, 11-11:45am

Join us for a fun and interactive poetry performance with Laugh Out Loud book award winner Joshua Seigal. This free event is suitable for families (suggested age 4+ years). 

Please book in advance: Joshua Seigal Lets the Words Out - Tickets

Evelyn Glennie reads from “Listen”

Huntingdon Library - Saturday 18 July, 11-11:45am

World famous percussionist Dame Evelyn Glennie will read from the picture book about her life - 'Listen: How Evelyn Glennie, a Deaf Girl, Changed Percussion'.

NOTE: this is a reading event, there will NOT be a music performance. This free event is suitable for families. 

Please book in advance: Evelyn Glennie Reads from 'Listen' - Tickets

Mark Grist’s Big Box Bonanza

March Library - Saturday 18 July, 11am-12pm

Wisbech Library - Saturday 18 July, 2-3pm

Chatteris Library - Thursday 30 July, 11am-12pm

Whittlesey Library - Thursday 30 July, 2-3pm

Big Box Bonanza is a fast-paced, funny, inventive poetry show, designed to leave everyone buzzing with ideas long after the final box has been opened. Perfect for ages 4 -11yrs and their families.

Please book free tickets in advance: Mark Grist's Big Box Bonanza - Tickets

Disability Pride Month

Disability Pride Month UK is a month-long celebration in July dedicated to honouring the achievements, culture, and contributions of disabled individuals in the United Kingdom. It aims to raise awareness, promote inclusivity, and foster a sense of unity within the disabled community and beyond.

Don’t forget that you can visit your local library or browse our catalogue online to explore our wide range of books by authors with lived experience of disability. You can also access our Neurodiversity and Disability Celebrate Diversity collection all year long.

Ukrainian Cultural Afternoon in Ely

Join us for an afternoon of Ukrainian crafts, folk tales, food and music to celebrate Ely Library’s twinning project with Sambir Library in Ukraine!

Ely Library - Saturday 11 July 2-6.15pm

2pm - Family craft workshop - Free to attend, drop-in.

3pm - Storytelling with Daria Kulesh - Free to attend, drop-in.

5pm - Folk concert by Mariia Petrovska - Must be booked in advance, tickets are £3 (includes Ukrainian snacks). 

Book your tickets: Ukrainian Cultural Afternoon - Music Concert

For more details, please visit: Library Live | The Library Presents

Author Talks

We have some author events taking place this month!

Meet Robin Ince

Cambourne Library - Tuesday 7 July, 2-3:30pm

Enjoy a highly entertaining afternoon with popular writer, comedian and broadcaster Robin Ince. Tickets are £3. Please book in the library or contact Cambourne.Library@cambridgeshire.gov.uk

Meet Robin Ince — Library.Live

Atlantic Furies with Midge Gillies

St Neots Library - Wednesday 29 July, 7-8pm

Discover the courageous, rule-breaking aviators who risked everything to prove that women could fly the Atlantic. Tickets are £3. Book in St Neots Library or email StNeots.Library@cambridgeshire.gov.uk  

Author Event: Atlantic Furies by Midge Gillies — Library.Live

New books

Click on the button below for our full selection of new books for July

Cambridgeshire Reads and Listens 

Our Cambridgeshire Reads and Listens collection brings you a wide range of books to borrow in eBook and eAudiobook format. Available for multiple use, they're great for reading groups and workplace reads. 

Each month the selection of adult, young adult and children's titles are refreshed - they're available to borrow over a 60-day period. Try the link to look at this month's offerings. 

We have two titles available as Reads:

Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy and My Husband's Wife by Alice Feeney

We have seven titles available as Listens:
Kiss her Goodbye by Lisa Gardner, Gone Before Goodbye by Harlen Coben and Reese Witherspoon, Swept Away by Beth O'Leary, Nash Falls by David Baldacci, Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy, My Husband's Wife by Alice Feeney and The Little Book of Miriam by Miriam Margolyes

We have two Junior/Teen titles available as Listens:

Animal Adventure Stories by Enid Blyton and Bunny vs Monkey - Bunny Bonanza! by Jamie Smarts

South Asian Heritage Month

'Unity in Diversity' is the theme for this year's South Asian Heritage Month, 1-31 July, celebrating the extraordinary breadth and richness of South Asian communities in the UK and worldwide. South Asia is a region of extraordinary diversity: eight countries, hundreds of languages, multiple faiths, and millennia of shared and distinct histories.

The theme invites us to explore the beauty and strength that diversity brings, uniting people across differences, shared values, intertwined histories, and a common commitment to community and belonging.

Stop by your local library or visit our catalogue online to browse and borrow our many fiction and non-fiction books about South Asian history and culture.

The Library Presents

July is packed full of Music, Puppets and Creative Workshops!

Take a break from being outside and grab some joy at one of 10 possible events with tickets still available. Below are some highlights...

For young people and adults interested in art and creating: Zine Making Workshop - come and celebrate LGBTQ+ identities and self-expression (allies welcome!). Saturday 11 July, 3pm, at Cherry Hinton Library: Book Tickets

For men and boys who want a man-friendly space to express themselves: Writing for Friends Workshop– Join Lewis Buxton, your average guy who enjoys playing footie with his mates and happens to be an award-winning writer, in writing about friendship. Wednesday 15 July, 7pm, at St Neots Library: Book Tickets

For adults looking for an uplifting night out: Times of Our Lives - A musical tour down memory lane, packed with historic moments and heart-warming memories. Friday 17 July, 7pm, at March Library: Book Tickets

For families looking for a little magic in their day: Peachy and Me – Delightful magic and comedy show about friendship. Saturday 18 July, 3pm, at Burwell Library: Book Tickets

Multilingual Open Mic with PACE

Join Cambridgeshire Libraries and PACE to celebrate Cambridge's multilingual communities with an afternoon of stories at this free storytelling event.

Each storyteller will have 3-5 minutes to share their story in their mother language. The stories might be fiction, true stories, memories, notes, songs, or something in between.

If you’d like to read a 3-5 minute story, please email Yvonne Battle-Felton at yvonne.battle-felton@ice.cam.ac.uk

Free and all welcome. Book your free place on Eventbrite or just come along.

In Your Own Words: A Multilingual Celebration at Cambridge Central Library Tickets, Wednesday, July 15  •  5 PM - 6:15 PM | Eventbrite

 Blood Pressure Monitor Scheme

Did you know that you can now borrow a blood pressure monitor from your local library?

High blood pressure is one of the leading risk factors for cardiovascular disease and often has no symptoms. Early detection and follow-up can significantly reduce risk of stroke, heart attack and other serious health conditions. That’s why it’s important to check our blood pressure regularly.

Cambridgeshire Libraries offer blood pressure monitors for loan from all 33 libraries and 3 mobile libraries. 

Any library member aged 18 or over can borrow a monitor free of charge – just like borrowing a book! For more information, ask at your local library, or visit Blood pressure monitor loan scheme | Cambridgeshire County Council

You can also use our health kiosks currently at Arbury Court Library, Bar Hill Library and Huntingdon Library during this summer. The kiosk can check not only your blood pressure, but also heart rate, body fat and body mass index (BMI). It will also provide information on how to make healthy lifestyle changes and where to find further health and wellbeing support.

New Reading Group Sets

Looking for your next book group read? There are 10 new reading group sets for you to pick from! Browse the new sets and other recommended reads on our online catalogue: Home | Cambridgeshire Libraries

New reading set titles available:

Mrs Spy by Mandy Robotham

Fundamentally by Nussaibah Younis

The Names by Florence Knapp

The Artist by Lucy Steeds

Broken Country by Clare Leslie Hall     

The Correspondent by Virginia Evans

Days of Light by Megan Hunter

Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Heart the Lover by Lily King

Mother Mary Comes to Me by Arundhati Roy

You can find more information on our website at: Reading groups | Cambridgeshire County Council

Festival of Archaeology

It’s the Festival of Archaeology from 18 July - 2 August. The theme this year is ‘Archaeology and Nature’, which explores how human communities and the natural environment have shaped one another over millennia.

You can learn more about it on the Council for British Archaeology’s site or find local archaeology societies if you want to get involved yourself. If you want to check out archaeology at home, the Archaeological Data Service can help with sites, reports and lots more information. Or you can see maps online with the National Library of Scotland.

March Library is also hosting a talk by Laurie Friday, a ditch-loving ecologist with an unmatched local perspective, on Thursday 9 July at 10am - as part of the Fenland Folk programme of events they’re hosting, run by the University of Cambridge, Museum of Zoology, Landscape for Regeneration and other partners.

The talk is free to attend, just turn up on the day – there will be refreshments provided.

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