Howard County Library System’s author events are a key component of the HCLS curriculum. Notable, best-selling, and local authors provide customers with enlightening experiences throughout the year. Bringing the community together to celebrate the literary arts is a hallmark of HCLS customer service. Join us for these opportunities to meet one of your favorite authors or discover someone new!
There are 16 upcoming classes.
'Zine Workshop with J. Scott in Equity Resource Center
Date: 10/22/24Time: 6:00pm - 8:30pm
Branch: Central Branch
Age group: Adults
Program type: Race, Equity & Inclusion
Description:
Got something to say! Join us at the Central Branch, in the Equity Resource Center for a month long workshop where you'll be creating your own 'Zine. Learn about the history of Zine's, and their roll as vital form of publication for under represented and alternative populations.
Whether you're documenting movements, preserving radical histories, sharing essential skills, or simply creating spaces of joy, 'zines are a powerful way to make your voice heard.
'Zine Workshop with J. Scott in Equity Resource Center
Date: 10/29/24Time: 6:00pm - 8:30pm
Branch: Central Branch
Age group: Adults
Program type: Race, Equity & Inclusion
Description:
Got something to say! Join us at the Central Branch, in the Equity Resource Center for a month long workshop where you'll be creating your own 'Zine. Learn about the history of Zine's, and their roll as vital form of publication for under represented and alternative populations.
Whether you're documenting movements, preserving radical histories, sharing essential skills, or simply creating spaces of joy, 'zines are a powerful way to make your voice heard.
Author Event: Meg Eden Kuyatt
Date: 11/02/24Time: 3:00pm - 4:00pm
Branch: Miller Branch
Age group: Children, Teens
Program type: Race, Equity & Inclusion
Description:
Geared toward 3rd-8th grade, and their grown ups, but all are welcome. | Registration is not required, but feel free to register for reminders.
Meet guest author, Meg Eden Kuyatt, author of Good Different, an extraordinary novel-in-verse about a neurodivergent girl who comes to understand and celebrate her difference.
Hear about Ms. Kuyatt's inspiration for writing this novel, her journey discovering she is autistic, and join the Q&A to get your questions answered. This author event is empowering for neurodivergent students and a great opportunity for all students to better understand their peers.
Good Different is the winner of several honors, including, the 2024 ALA Schneider Family Book Award Honor for a book that embodies the disability experience, and one of School Library Journal's Best Middle Grade Books of 2023.
* The Autism Society of Maryland will also join us to bring greater awareness of resources for students living with autism and the grownups who love them.
Good Different
Selah knows her rules for being normal.
This means keeping her feelings locked tightly inside, despite the way they build up inside her as each school day goes on, so that she has to run to the bathroom and hide in the stall until she can calm down. So that she has to tear off her normal-person mask the second she gets home from school, and listen to her favorite pop song on repeat, trying to recharge. Selah feels like a dragon stuck in a world of humans, but she knows how to hide it.
Until the day she explodes and hits a fellow student.
As her familiar world starts to crumble, Selah starts to figure out more about who she is, she comes to understand that different doesn't mean damaged. Excerpt from www.megedenbooks.com
Find the book in our collection HERE
FAM: Fun at Miller
Sisters in Crime: Mystery Lovers Extravaganza (ONLINE)
Date: 11/03/24Time: 1:30pm - 3:00pm
Branch: Online Branch
Age group: Teens, Adults
Program type: Community Events
Description:
Join us on Sunday, November 3rd, for an exciting afternoon with eight crime writers who will share their latest books and short stories published this year.
This event is being presented both in-person at our Miller Branch and online. To attend in-person, register HERE. Please register with an email address to receive class reminders and the link to join virtually.
Come hear from talented authors including Donna Andrews, Maya Corrigan, Barb Goffman, Con Lehane, Frances Schoonmaker, Shannon Taft, Marcia Talley, and Cathy Wiley.
With the holidays just around the corner, it’s the perfect time to discover what’s new in the mystery genre, courtesy of the Chesapeake Chapter of Sisters in Crime. Books will be available for purchase and signing.
Event Schedule:
- 1:30 - 2:30 PM: Author Presentations
- 2:30 - 3:30 PM: Meet & Greet, Book Signing
This event is free and open to all. We look forward to seeing you at the Sisters in Crime: Mystery Lovers Extravaganza at our Miller Branch!
This event is in partnership with the Chesapeake Chapter of Sisters in Crime and is sponsored by The Last Word.
Sisters in Crime: Mystery Lovers Extravaganza! (In-Person)
Date: 11/03/24Time: 1:30pm - 3:30pm
Branch: Miller Branch
Age group: Teens, Adults
Program type: Community Events
Description:
Join us on Sunday, November 3rd, for an exciting afternoon with nine crime writers who will share their latest books and short stories published this year.
This event is being presented both in-person at our Miller Branch and online. To attend virtually, register HERE. Please register with an email address to receive class reminders and the link to join virtually.
Come hear from talented authors including Donna Andrews, Maya Corrigan, Barb Goffman, Con Lehane, Frances Schoonmaker, Shannon Taft, Marcia Talley, and Cathy Wiley.
With the holidays just around the corner, it’s the perfect time to discover what’s new in the mystery genre, courtesy of the Chesapeake Chapter of Sisters in Crime. Books will be available for purchase and signing.
Event Schedule:
- 1:30 - 2:30 PM: Author Presentations
- 2:30 - 3:30 PM: Meet & Greet, Book Signing
This event is free and open to all. We look forward to seeing you at the Sisters in Crime: Mystery Lovers Extravaganza at our Miller Branch!
This event is in partnership with the Chesapeake Chapter of Sisters in Crime and is sponsored by The Last Word.
Bauder Book Talk: Jason Reynolds
Date: 11/06/24Time: 4:00pm - 6:00pm
Branch: East Columbia Branch
Age group: Teens, Adults
Program type: Author & Literary Events
Description:
Make sure you get a seat at this unforgettable event with Jason Reynolds, bestselling author of Long Way Down and Stamped. Jason speaks about his journey as a writer and engages with YOU in a live Q&A moderated by local teens.
Reynolds received a MacArthur Foundation Grant in 2024. from his Foundation page:
Jason Reynolds writes children’s and young adult literature that reflects the rich inner lives of kids of color and offers profound moments of human connection. With a poet’s ear for rhythm and a storyteller’s sense of narrative pacing and structure, Reynolds weaves humor, joy, and playfulness into his works. At the same time, he does not shy away from depicting the challenging realities of racism, economic inequity, police brutality, and grief for his young readers.
Beyond the page, he is a dynamic champion of storytelling who inspires reluctant readers and the adults who teach and care for them. He travels the nation to connect with kids at their level and remind them that their personal narratives hold important truths, that they are worthy of appearing on the pages of the books we all read. An inventive author and captivating speaker, Reynolds ensures that kids see themselves in literature and empowers them to tell their own stories.
Plus, you can participate as a moderator or enter our Creative Arts Competitions.
Bauder Book Talks by Howard County Library System is made possible by a generous gift from Dr. Lillian Bauder, a community leader and Columbia resident. Howard County Library System will present an annual endowed author event, known as Bauder Book Talks, for underserved students in grades 6-8 attending public middle schools in Columbia with high percentages of African American and BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) students. Authors and titles selected are high-interest and high-quality on topics of social issues, equity, and related matters. Student participants have the opportunity to hear from and engage the author and receive a copy of the author’s book. The event honors the memory of Don Bauder, late husband of Dr. Lillian Bauder and a champion of civil rights and social justice causes.
Registration is required for every attendee.
Battle of the Books 2025 Mandatory Coaches' Meeting (Online)
Date: 11/12/24Time: 7:00pm - 8:00pm
Branch: Online Branch
Age group: Adults
Program type: Author & Literary Events
Description:
Howard County Library System and Howard County Public School System are excited to bring you a Battle of the Books event for 2025. We thank you in advance for your hard work and dedication to this year’s battle!
This is a mandatory meeting for the Battle of the Books coaches and will provide information about the battle and expectations of teams and coaches.
If you attend this online meeting on 11/12, you do not need to attend the in-person meeting, but you will need to pick up your team's books from the HCLS Miller Branch lobby at one of the following times:
Wednesday, Nov 13 from 8pm-9pm
Friday, Nov 15 from 5pm to 5:45pm Branch closes at 6pm
Saturday, Nov 16 from 11am-1pm
This meeting will be recorded and available on the Battle of the Books page of the website by November 19.
Presenting Sponsor
Josephine B. Scheffenacker Education Trust
The UnBook Reading Group
Date: 11/13/24Time: 6:30pm - 8:00pm
Branch: Off Site
Age group: Adults
Program type: Community Events
Description:
The UnBook Reading Group
Connect with a community of readers without the stress of assigned reading! Bring the book of your choice, read silently in a comfy spot at Backwater Books. Then, wrap up the evening by sharing something interesting about what you read in an open literature-related discussion! No purchase required to participate. This group meets at Backwater Books in Old Ellicott City.
2nd Wednesdays @ 6:30 - 8 pm.
6:30-7:15 pm quiet reading time
7:15 - 8 pm - discuss books (optional - you may chose to just listen or continue reading)
Registrastion is optional. Please register with an email address to receive email reminders and updates.
For more information, please contact [email protected]
Battle of the Books 2025 Mandatory Coaches' Meeting
Date: 11/13/24Time: 7:00pm - 8:00pm
Branch: Miller Branch
Age group: Adults
Program type: Author & Literary Events
Description:
Howard County Library System and Howard County Public School System are excited to bring you a Battle of the Books event for 2025. We thank you in advance for your hard work and dedication to this year’s battle!
This is a mandatory meeting for the Battle of the Books coaches to pick up their team's book set and receive information about the battle and expectations of teams and coaches.
If you attend the online meeting on 11/12, you do not need to attend the in-person meeting, but you will need to pick up your team's books from the HCLS Miller Branch lobby at one of the following times: click a link to register
Wednesday, Nov 13 from 8pm-9pm
Friday, Nov 15 from 5pm to 5:45pm Branch closes at 6pm
Saturday, Nov 16 from 11am-1pm
Presenting Sponsor
Josephine B. Scheffenacker Education Trust
What's On Your Shelf? Fiction and Nonfiction Book Chat
Date: 11/14/24Time: 2:00pm - 3:00pm
Branch: Miller Branch
Age group: Adults
Program type: Community Events
Description:
Share fiction and/or nonfiction titles that are on your bookshelf and we will share titles from our shelves. If you don't have a title to share, find inspiration in what others recommend and start building your reading list.
Readers also have the opportunity to ask for recommendations or to ask our instructors questions about books, reading, and the library. Previous discussion topics have included book donations, Little Free Libraries, and Goodreads (the world's largest website for readers and book recommendations).
Book Bingo -- Indigenous Stories Edition
Date: 11/14/24Time: 7:00pm - 8:00pm
Branch: Elkridge Branch
Age group: Teens
Program type: Culture & Language
Description:
Enjoy a fun game of bingo celebrating Indigenous Stories. Play for book prizes in a relaxed, welcoming environment.
This is part of HCLS' Native American Heritage Month celebration series. Click here for a full list of classes and events for all ages!
Author Works: Chef Sean Sherman & The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen (Online Event)
Date: 11/20/24Time: 7:00pm - 8:00pm
Branch: Online Branch
Age group: Teens, Adults
Program type: Race, Equity & Inclusion
Description:
Chef Sean Sherman, a member of the Oglala Lakota tribe, discusses his award-winning cookbook The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen. His focus is on the revitalization and evolution of Indigenous foods systems throughout North America. Through his activism and advocacy, Sean is helping to reclaim and celebrate the rich culinary heritage of Indigenous communities around the world.
Register with an email address to receive the zoom link for this online event.
About Sean Sherman
Sherman was born and raised on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. He has dedicated his career to supporting and promoting Indigenous food systems and Native food sovereignty. His goal is to make Indigenous foods more accessible to as many communities as possible through the non-profit North American Traditional Indigenous Food Systems (NATIFS) and its Indigenous Food Lab, a professional Indigenous kitchen and training center. Working to address the economic and health crises affecting Native communities by re-establishing Native foodways, NĀTIFS imagines a new North American food system that generates wealth and improves health in Native communities through food-related enterprises.
In 2017, Sean published his first book with author Beth Dooley, The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen, which received the James Beard Award for Best American Cookbook in 2018. He is also the recipient of the 2019 Leadership Award from the James Beard Foundation. In 2021, Sean opened Minnesota’s first full service Indigenous restaurant, Owamni by The Sioux Chef, which received the James Beard Award for Best New Restaurant in America for 2022. Most recently, Chef Sean Sherman was honored as TIME Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of 2023 and in 2023 was named recipient of the ninth annual Julia Child Award for culinary activism, innovation.
Jan Brett's The Mitten-Story and Dramatic Play (Ages 6-8, Ticketed)
Date: 12/03/24Time: 6:30pm - 7:15pm
Branch: Central Branch
Age group: Children
Program type: Crafts, Fun & Games!
Description:
Ages 5-8, 45 minutes, ticketed. Tickets available 15 minutes prior to class.
Cozy up and celebrate the winter season with Jan Brett's classic adaptation of Ukrainian Folktale, The Mitten! Participants will act out the story and finish up with an adorable craft.
The UnBook Reading Group
Date: 12/11/24Time: 6:30pm - 8:00pm
Branch: Off Site
Age group: Adults
Program type: Community Events
Description:
The UnBook Reading Group
Connect with a community of readers without the stress of assigned reading! Bring the book of your choice, read silently in a comfy spot at Backwater Books. Then, wrap up the evening by sharing something interesting about what you read in an open literature-related discussion! No purchase required to participate. This group meets at Backwater Books in Old Ellicott City.
2nd Wednesdays @ 6:30 - 8 pm.
6:30-7:15 pm quiet reading time
7:15 - 8 pm - discuss books (optional - you may chose to just listen or continue reading)
Registrastion is optional. Please register with an email address to receive email reminders and updates.
For more information, please contact [email protected]
Author Works - BOUTWELL: Radical Republican and Champion of Democracy with Jeffrey Boutwell
Date: 02/24/25Time: 7:00pm - 8:30pm
Branch: Miller Branch
Age group: Adults
Program type: History & Genealogy
Description:
"Boutwell the man was a hero, and BOUTWELL the book is a revelation, a gripping tale of how Americans struggled to make the promise of equality into something more than mere words." - Kermit Roosevelt, Author of The Nation That Never Was: Reconstructing America’s Story
Jeffrey Boutwell discusses his new book, BOUTWELL: Radical Republican and Champion of Democracy (W.W. Norton, January 2025), a biography of family member George S. Boutwell, perhaps the most consequential American political figure you've never heard of. During his career from 1839 to 1905, George Boutwell was Governor of Massachusetts, served in the U.S. House and Senate, was Treasury Secretary for Ulysses Grant and Commissioner of Revenue for Abraham Lincoln, helped create the Republican Party in the 1850s and forty years later opposed Republican Presidents William McKinley and Teddy Roosevelt over their plans to annex the Philippines following the Spanish-American war. Boutwell was instrumental in framing the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments, initiating the impeachment of Andrew Johnson, and investigating white vigilante violence against Blacks in Mississippi in the 1870s. For seven decades, George Boutwell sought to "redeem America's promise" through racial equality, economic equity, and the humane use of American power abroad.
About the Author
Jeffrey Boutwell is a writer and historian living in Columbia, Maryland, after a 40-year career in journalism, government, and international scientific policy. He has written and spoken widely on issues ranging from nuclear weapons arms control to Middle East peace to environmental degradation and conflict. He's passionate about Shakespeare, Alpine skiing, improving US-Cuba relations, and road trips in his Mini Cooper. Jeffrey and George share a common ancestor, the indentured servant James Boutwell who emigrated in 1632 from England to Salem, Mass. Learn more at jeffreyboutwell.com
Battle of the Books 2025 Logistics Meeting (Online)
Date: 03/25/25Time: 7:00pm - 8:00pm
Branch: Online Branch
Age group: Adults
Program type: Author & Literary Events
Description:
Howard County Library System and Howard County Public School System are excited to bring you a Battle of the Books event for 2025. We thank you in advance for your hard work and dedication to this year’s battle!
This is a mandatory meeting for the Battle of the Books coaches and will provide information about the final logistics of the battle and expectations of teams and coaches.
This meeting will be recorded and available on the Battle of the Books page of the website by April 1.