Richards Free Library

Engage, Enrich, Entertain

Events

RFL November Calendar

To download the calendar, scroll to the bottom of this post!

11/3-11/7 Baby’s Keepsake Handprint Drop In (families), Drop in to make a special Keepsake of Baby’s Handprint this week, while librarians are available.

11/4 Temporary Tattoos (Teens), 3pm. Come use our stencils and skin safe markers or make your own designs. Grades 6-12

11/6 LEGO Day Drop In (Kids and families) 1-5 pm. Let your imagination loose to build anything at all with the library’s LEGOs.

11/6 Teen Hang Out (Teens) 2:30-4pm. Hang out upstairs in the Elaine Frank Teen Program Room with a librarian; color, work on homework, or just vibe with your friends.

11/6 Crafter’s Movie Night (adult) 5-7pm. Have some compassion for your poor nerves and watch Pride and Prejudice (2015) with a bunch of like-minded crafters!

11/7 Scarf Assembly for “Keep Sarah Warm” 3pm. Assemble any scarf contributions as we prepare to wrap up the Sarah statue on the 21st!

11/8 Wags and Wiggles’ Doggies 101 (all ages)10am. Newport’s own Wags and Wiggles will be at the library to provide info on spay and neuter clinics, safe temperature for dogs, and what to expect when adopting. Some furry friends may also join us!

11/10 Board Games (Teens) 3pm. Play board games from our collection with your friends! Grades 6-12

11/10 How to Crochet 2pm. Learn how to start, make a chain, turn your work, and how to finish! Bring your own materials or use ours!

11/11 Closed for Veteran’s Day

11/13 Needle Felting (Kids age 6-11) 1-4pm. Learn how to needle felt! Make a fall decoration out of wool, or try your own project! Drop in between 1 and 4 to learn or practice your skills!

11/13 Writer’s Workshop (adult) 6pm. Writers of any genre, interest area, and experience level. We meet virtually, so for info email mchurchill@newport.lib.nh.us

11/14 LaValley Community Center Kidzone Story Visit (Kids 0-5) 10-11am. We’ll be hanging out and reading stories at the Rec’s play group! Stop in and play and listen.

11/17 LEGO Day Drop In, (Kids and Families)2-4pm. Let your imagination loose to build anything at all with the library’s LEGOs.

11/18 Brown Bags and Books Book Club (adult) 12pm. This month we’ll discuss The Midnight Library by Matt Haig.

11/18 Stitch-for-a-bit 1pm. Circle up and get to work on your craft in a social circle!

11/19 After School Hot Cocoa Party (Kids and teens) 2:30-4pm. Stop by while you’re here after school for some tasty hot cocoa to warm you up!

11/20 Adult Arts and Craft: Make Your Own Masterpiece! 6pm. Make your own interpretation of famous works of art using any medium you wish.

11/20 Teen Hang Out (Teens) 2:30-4pm. Hang out upstairs in the Elaine Frank Teen Program Room with a librarian; color, work on homework, or just vibe with your friends.

11/21 Keep Sarah Warm: Final Assemble (3:30) and WRAP UP! (4:00). After the final assembly, we will hear some facts about Sarah and the scarf will be installed on the Sarah statue. Join the finale and enjoy some cider!

11/24-11/26th Turkey Table Decoration Craft (Kids and teens) Drop in to make a colorful turkey craft to decorate your Thanksgiving table!

November 2025 Official (2)Download

Hale Award 2025 – Author Peter Heller

As summer comes to a close, we head straight into fall and the annual Hale Award Ceremony! For those of you unfamiliar with this award, it is an honor bestowed upon an accomplished author who has ties to New England. It was first awarded to the poet, Robert Frost, in 1956. Previous recipients include well-known authors such as May Sarton, David McCullough, Arthur Miller, Anita Shreve, Tomie dePaola, Jodi Picoult, and Chris Bohjalian.

This year’s recipient of the Sarah Josepha Hale Award is the bestselling author, Peter Heller! Peter has written 4 non-fiction books relating his outdoor adventures and 8 fiction thrillers! His latest novel, Burn, set in Maine, tells the story of two men who emerge from a week-long hunting trip in the Allagash, to discover that Maine has seceded from the nation.

The 2025 Hale Award Ceremony will take place on Saturday, October 4th, at 7:00 p.m. at the Newport Opera House. Peter will be awarded the Sarah Josepha Hale Medal, will speak to the attending audience for approximately 45 minutes, and will then be available to sign his books. Morgan Hill Books will have a representative on site to sell copies of Peter’s works before and after the event. As usual, this fabulous Hale Award Ceremony is free and open to the public! Also on Saturday, October 4th, prior to the ceremony itself, there will be a ticketed dinner at the Old Courthouse Restaurant at 5:00 p.m. Tickets for the dinner will be available for purchase at the Richards Free Library circulation desk, beginning Monday, September 15th.

The Sarah Josepha Hale Award Judges, Richards Free Library Board of Trustees, and Richards Free Library Staff look forward to hosting Peter Heller, and his wife Kim, at the Sarah Josepha Hale Award Dinner and Ceremony on Saturday, October 4th!

We hope to see you there!

Sally Bernier,

Library Director

RFL September Calendar of Events

September

To download the calendar, scroll to the bottom of this post!

9/2 Temporary Tattoos (grades 6-12), 3 PM.

9/3 After School Coloring Party! Join us when you get out of school today to color with friends and get to know the Children’s Librarian.

9/4 Teen Hang-Out (grades 6-12), 2:30-4 PM.

9/8 LEGO Day Drop in, 2-4pm. Let your imagination loose to build anything at all with the library’s LEGOs.

9/9 My First Book Group, 3:30. Read a beginning reader book together. We’ll have a snack, read, and discuss. Grownups are asked to stay. BOOK: Dot the Ladybug: Dot Day

9/9 Chapter Chats, 4pm. We’ll start a chapter book together and discuss it! This is intended for grades 2-5, depending on children’s reading level. BOOK: Amber Brown is Not a Crayon

9/10 Needle Felting (Kids age 6-11), 1-4pm. learn how to needle felt or practice your skills! Make your favorite animal out of wool or try a simpler project!

9/11 Teen Hang-Out (grades 6-12), 2:30-4 PM.

9/16 Beaded Necklace (Kids 6-11 and their families), 3:30 pm. String a necklace or bracelet to take home!

9/16 Knitting group (adult), 6-8PM.

9/17 Craft Club: Paper Jewelry (adult), 5:30-7PM. Want to make a new accessory? We will make paper beads and quilled paper pendants! We’ll provide the supplies!

9/17 Teen Advisory Board (grades 6-12), 3 PM.

9/18 Kids’ Window Painting, 3:30pm-4:30pm. Help us decorate the Children’s Room with a fresh fall mural on the big window!

9/18 Legends and Truths About New England’s Wolves Presented by Susie Spikol (adults), 6 – 7PM. Discover how wolves survived, what forces lead to its extinction from the New England landscape, and how the stories and myths we tell about this creature continue to influence our perception of it today.

9/18 Teen Hang-Out (grades 6-12), 2:30-4 PM.

9/19 Newport Rec Building Play Group story time: 10-11am. We’ll be hanging out and reading stories at the Rec’s play group! Stop in and play and listen.

9/22 Bingo for Books (Kids 6-11 and their families), 3:30pm. Play Bingo for a chance to win free books!

9/22 Library Board of Trustees Meeting (open to the public), 6:30PM.

9/23 Writing Games (grades 6-12), 3 PM .

9/24 LEGO Day Drop in 1-5pm. Let your imagination loose to build anything at all with the library’s LEGOs.

9/24 Movie Night: West Side Story (2021), 5PM – 7:30PM. Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month. An adaptation of the 1957 musical, West Side Story explores forbidden love and the rivalry between the Jets and the Sharks, two teenage street gangs of different ethnic backgrounds.

9/25 Poetry group (adult), 6-8PM.

9/25 Teen Hang-Out (grades 6-12), 2:30-4 PM.

9/29 Board Games (grades 6-12), 3 PM

9/30 Kids Stomp Rockets (Kids 6-11 and their families), 3:30. Weather permitting! Make a paper rocket and launch it with a stomp.

September 2025 Official (1)Download

August 4th-9th 2025

Monday August 4th: No program, but feel free to come hang out in our teen space and use the computers, coloring pages, or board games.

Tuesday August 5th: Frozen T-Shirt Challenge at 2pm! Attempt to unfold and put on a frozen solid t-shirt. For kids, teens, and families.

Wednesday August 6th: Paint Your Own Jigsaw Puzzle at 3pm! Use paint markers or acrylic paint to decorate a unique puzzle. Grades 6-12.

Thursday August 7th: No program, but feel free to come hang out in our teen space and use the computers, coloring pages, or board games.

Friday August 8th: Teen Lock-In! Teens who signed up for summer reading and attended at least two teen summer reading programs are eligible to attend our after-hours lock-in!

Saturday August 9th: Dungeons and Dragons @ 10-2pm: Local DM Reggie from the Dragon’s Maze leads a drop-in campaign free for all!

2025 Library Festival!

The Library Festival Book Sale is on August 23rd!

Don’t miss our famous annual Library Festival with its huge book sale, raffles, cookie walk, giant bubbles, children’s craft, and face painting!
Right across the road from the giant Apple Pie Craft Fair, the Book Sale opens at 8am for members only, and 9am for everyone else. Stock up on books for the year at incredibly low prices! Teachers get books half-price starting at 1pm with their school ID. Everyone gets books for 1$ a bag starting at 2pm!
Fun for the whole family! Children will love getting their face painted, trying our free craft, and enjoying our famous giant bubbles! Come early to do the “cookie walk” to fill a bag with cookies before they sell out!
The Library Festival has been hosted by the Friends of the Richards Free Library in Newport NH for well over 50 years. The whole community pitches in to help put together this huge event, from Friends volunteers who spend hours sorting books, to local sports teams who help move books and tables, to the community sponsors. Thank you all for your incredible support!
This year will look a little different! The library is reseeding the grass on the giant side lawn after getting trees taken down over the winter, so the event will take place in the parking lot! The library will still be open during their Saturday hours of 10am-2pm, so folks can cool off in the AC, have a rest, or use the facilities.
Look for the special pre-sale event, new this year, called Books and Brews Preview Night, August 22nd 5pm-7:30pm. $25 tickets will buy you access to the preview-sale to get an exclusive first chance to buy books, as well as two drink tickets, with beer provided by Rockingham Brewery West.
For more information or to volunteer to bake cookies or help with the event, please email friends@newport.lib.nh.us