19 Things You Didn’t Know You Could Do at the Library
Cook. Borrow a guitar. Get married. The choice is yours.
The Free Library of Philadelphia’s Parkway Central branch / Photography by Jeff Fusco
From learning to play the electric violin to finding a job, the Free Library of Philadelphia and its suburban shelf mates have myriad activities and services to keep you busy this winter and beyond. All you need is your library card.
Cook by the Books
Did you know that tucked within the Free Library of Philadelphia’s stately Parkway Central main branch is a big, bright commercial-grade kitchen? The Culinary Literacy Center, up on the fourth floor, is stocked with stoves, fridges, bowls, blenders, and a classroom’s worth of tall tables and chairs. We’ve heard nothing but five-star reviews about the hands-on cooking classes and educational programs, many of which focus on healthy eating, language skills, and cultural enlightenment.
A cooking class at the Free Library of Philadelphia’s Culinary Literacy Center
Borrow a Guitar
The FLP’s been lending out musical instruments for eight years now, and since the trio of ukuleles are always in high demand, I’d say the program has been a rousing success. You just check out your banjo, bongos, or fretless bass from the Musical Instrument Collection at the main branch, the same way you would a book. (You’re not allowed to take the theremin or a couple of large keyboards home, but you can mess around with them in a soundproof chamber on-site.) By the way, the library accepts donations; the instruments just need to be small enough to fit on a SEPTA bus and not the sort of thing you blow into (sax, harmonica, flute).
The Free Library of Philadelphia’s Musical Instrument Collection
Watch Flicks and Shows (for Free!)
Your library card gets you access to Kanopy, a streaming service with a decent if slightly respectable collection of shows and movies. (Smile, no. Mona Lisa Smile, yes.) It fills in some gaps left by the for-pay streamers out there. Or try the FLP’s DVD and Blu-ray collection, if you have a device that plays such antiquated media. Make a reservation online and wait for it to show up at your neighborhood branch. This way you can watch semi-recent releases, Criterion classics, HBO shows, you name it.
Read in Public
The One Book, One Philadelphia program, sort of a citywide book club, announces its new titles in February, with readings and such scheduled for April and May. After all these years it’s still kinda cool to step onto the El platform in the spring and see a bunch of people reading the same thing.
Meet Your Fave Author
After this summer’s unpleasantness in which the staffers who handled FLP’s Author Events were fired en masse, there’s nowhere to go but up for this beloved series that has welcomed some of publishing’s most interesting names to the stage of the main branch’s basement auditorium. Kurt Vonnegut, A.S. Byatt, Colson Whitehead, Elizabeth McCracken — I probably never would’ve gotten the chance to hear some of my favorite novelists read in person if not for this program. It’ll take a while for the library to regain its footing in this arena, but they’re well-funded and -staffed in that department now, and I expect a robust list starting this winter.
Entertain the Little Ones
Drag the brats (we kid!) to your local library (in the city or the burbs) for all sorts of stuff tailored to their age groups. The FLP’s schedule is packed with story times, chess clubs, craft hours, and writing workshops for younglings of all ages. Will they show even an ounce of appreciation? No, but maybe it’ll buy you half an hour of peace and quiet.
Check Out Books From Afar
If the FLP doesn’t have what you’re looking for, some other library in Boston or Seattle probably does. Just make a request through the nationwide interlibrary loan program via ILLiad (epic name). Researchers and authors use this service all the time, but everyday readers with a taste for rare and out-of-print stuff can use it too.
Find a New Gig
The FLP network has an extensive array of free programs under its Job Seekers umbrella, including workshops for seniors, teens, and people recently released from prison.
Hit a Museum
The FLP ditched its Experience Pass program during the pandemic, but lots of suburban systems still have them. Basically, they grant you free access to zoos, museums, arboretums, and historical sites. For instance, the Lower Merion library offers passes to just about every museum in Philly. The Montco-Norristown library can get you into the Elmwood Park Zoo, the Audubon Center, and the Woodmere Art Museum. Meanwhile, the Delaware County library system has passes to Chanticleer, Mercer Museum and Fonthill Castle, and others.
Go Digital
Lots of libraries, FLP included, have a partnership with the Libby app, which grants instant access to a catalog of audiobooks and e-books. Just because it’s digital doesn’t mean the whole city can read the same thing at once; you still have to wait for your book to become available and check it out as usual. But you can do it 24-7, on your phone. The collection is excellent considering the price (free), but it takes a while for new books to be added, and even then the catalog seems heavy on romance. If you have access to a library that offers the Hoopla service — like Berks or Bucks County — you are blessed. That app has no wait times and, in my experience, better access to graphic novels, magazines, and other cool stuff.
Photograph by Justin James Muir
Get Married
More than 30 bibliophile couples get hitched at Parkway Central Library every year, with the rooftop terrace — one of seven venues in the circa-1927 building — being the most popular spot for receptions. The space looks out on the Philly skyline, giving marriers and their guests a supreme backdrop. (A tent is available in case of bad weather.) Make it official in the marble-clad lobby, and partake in the many photo ops, from the staircase to the upper-level balcony, where you can pose among rare tomes. Brûlée Catering will handle the menu. Interested? The venue is almost fully booked for 2025 nuptials, and 2026 is filling up rapidly.
Other Wonders
Some are impressive buildings, home to cool collections, or just handy places to borrow a hammer or something to read.
Library Company of Philadelphia
Founded by Benjamin Franklin, America’s oldest cultural institution is free to visitors and often hosts history-focused lectures and exhibitions. Midtown Village.
Soapbox Zine Library
Connected to a working print shop and letterpress studio is this impressive archive of DIY publications from Cometbus to Gogglebox. Stop in during business hours and read on-site. West Philly.
Carnegie Libraries
Steel magnate Andrew Carnegie contributed to the building of thousands of stately stone book houses all over the world, including 25 in the city and 34 more scattered across the state, including in Ridley Park, Pottsville, Phoenixville, and Easton. Throughout Pennsylvania.
The Athenæum of Philadelphia
Keep an eye out for public events at this august members-only institution, founded in 1814, if only for a glimpse of its interior full of dark hardwood and glass cases occupied by handsome old tomes. Washington Square West.
Little Free(dom) Libraries
These pop-up kiosks offer free banned books, most of them by Black authors like Zora Neale Hurston and Ta-Nehisi Coates. Multiple city locations.
West Philly Tool Library
Since 2007, this member-supported club has been lending out hammers, angle grinders, and impact drivers for your building projects. West Philly.
Darby Free Library
Opened in 1743, this little brick beauty is billed as the country’s oldest public library “in continuous service.” Darby.
Fisher Fine Arts Library
Frank Furness’s magnificent fortress of sandstone and terra-cotta is valued by researchers for its many collections, including the materials library, but regular visitors are welcome too. University City.
See Also: Inside the Bookish World of One Local Librarian
Published as “Long Live the Library!” in the December 2024/January 2025 issue of Philadelphia magazine.
