Enoch Pratt Free Library

10/21/2026

It was a fall celebration at the Govans branch! 🍂🍁

The Govans branch held their annual Fall Fest, sponsored by the Friends of the Govans Library.

Families enjoyed the petting zoo, face painting, balloon artistry, Big Bubble fun and more. For more events like this, visit our website!

10/21/2026

Our collection is indeed pretty scary 📚👻

Come and see for yourself…

Our Rare Book Open House Collection will be on display just in time for Halloween 🎃

See rare books on the occult, witchcraft, horror, and other spooky matters, PLUS select items from our Edgar Allan Poe Collection.

Friday, October 30, 11:00am-4:00pm
📍Special Collections Reading Room, Central Friends of the Canton Library

Link in comments ⬇

10/20/2026

Join staff from the Pratt's Maryland Department on Tuesday, October 20th in the Poe Room at the Central Library for the 4th program in our series on the Dark Side of Maryland!

Do spirits return, and can we communicate with the dead? Baltimore’s Spiritualists thought so, but magicians worked to disprove them. Learn about spirit mediums, the Ouija Board, and Baltimore’s group of amateur magicians, the Demons Club.

This is program 4 in our 6 part Dark Side of Maryland series. If you are interested in attending any other programs to hear about Maryland's darker side, check these out:

October 6 -- Unveiling Maryland's Monsters
October 13 -- Maryland Mayhem
October 14 -- Witch's Brew
October 20 -- Mediums, Magicians and the Ouija Board
October 27 -- Haunted Maryland

10/20/2026

Our spooky month continues with some Maryland history for your ears 🎧

Listen to Pratt Librarians Julie Saylor and Amanda Hughes explore the history behind some of the state’s eeriest tales on WYPR's 'Maryland Unfolded':

10/16/2026

Fall fit check, library edition 🍁📚

10/14/2026

Libraries 🤝 fall weather

10/13/2026

Join us for an evening with Maryland State Delegate Lily Qi

Thirty years after her solo journey to America, Chinese-born Lily Qi became a Maryland state delegate. It was a gratifying moment she did not take for granted. Qi had overcome a viral WeChat disinformation campaign from her Chinese community and met with skepticism from the Democratic establishment before being elected.

Elected American tells the inspirational story of Qi’s dreams, setbacks, and achievements with candor and humility. Growing up in Mao’s Shanghai when “politics meant danger,” she never imagined running for public office. However, living in America, Qi came to see political participation as a missed opportunity for immigrants. As she campaigned to energize her cultural base, Qi realized she had to teach first-time voters how to make their votes count in a system not designed for them.

As the only U.S. state legislator to have lived through China’s Cultural Revolution, Qi brings a rare cross-system perspective to American politics and the modern-day Asian American identity. Elected American is a political memoir and an immigrant story that emphasizes that democracy doesn’t wait on the sidelines—it favors those who participate.

Lily Qi will be joined in conversation by Maryland State Delegate Regina Boyce.

10/13/2026

Join staff from the Pratt's Maryland Department on Tuesday, October 13th in the Poe Room at the Central Library for the 2nd program in our series on the Dark Side of Maryland!

Maybe you’ve heard of some of Maryland’s most notorious crimes, such as the conspiracy to assassinate Abraham Lincoln or the murder of Sister Cathy, subject of the popular Netflix series, The Keepers. But what about some of its lesser-known misdeeds? And maybe you've heard some things about the Alger Hiss espionage case, but not that many of its scenes actually played out in Baltimore and other parts of Maryland. Join us for a discussion of some of these shady characters and unfortunate episodes. You’ll hear about the only known case of burking in North America. You'll find out about a promising career in public service dashed on the rocks of family annihilation, as well as a cross-country blackmail scheme involving a psychic and a le***an millionaire.

This is program 2 in our 6 part Dark Side of Maryland series. If you are interested in attending any other programs to hear about Maryland's darker side, check these out:

October 6 -- Unveiling Maryland's Monsters
October 13 -- Maryland Mayhem
October 14 -- Witch's Brew
October 20 -- Mediums, Magicians and the Ouija Board
October 27 -- Haunted Maryland
October 30 & 31 -- Green Mount spiritualism cemetery tour

All programs in this series will be available on the Library's Facebook and Youtube pages after the event is over, except for the cemetery tour taking place on October 30th and 31st.

10/12/2026

We were honored to host the great Lois Lowry at the Pratt Library earlier this month to talk about her newest book 'Building 903'.

Missed her talk? Read more about her return to dystopian writing in this NPR interview, taken at the Pratt:

It’s been more than a decade since Lois Lowry has dealt with the end of the world. Her 1993 YA dystopian novel The Giver became a hugely popular middle school staple. She expanded that universe into a quartet of novels wrapping up with 2012’s Son (her personal favorite of the series). Since then...

10/11/2026

All Pratt Library locations will be closed Monday, October 12 in observance of Indigenous Peoples’ Day.

📷: Needle Felting Program at the Edmondson Ave. Branch