Bacon Free Library

Français à la bibliothèque
2025-03-08 10:00 - 11:00 (America/New_York)
BONJOUR !

Vous parlez français ?
un peu, beaucoup, pas de problèmes.
Venez nous rejoindre pour parler ou pour écouter.

History Book Club
2025-03-13 11:00 - 12:00
Join us for a virtual discussion of: American Jezebel: the uncommon life of Anne Hutchinson, the woman who defied the Puritans by Eve LaPlante.
Copies of the book will be available at the Bacon Free Library.
Order your own copy HERE
For details on how to attend this virtual meeting via Zoom, please contact director@natickhistoricalsociety.org
The Zoom link to the discussion will be sent at a later date.

Music & Movement at Walnut Hill
2025-03-14 10:30 - 11:15
Join Miss Katie from the Community Theater Academy at Walnut Hill School for the Arts for a fun program that emphasizes the bond between children and their caregivers, while enriching their musical, cognitive, and physical development. Caregivers are led in enjoyable, simple rhythmic patterns, dances, and activities. Instruments like rhythm sticks, bells, shakers, and drums are used, as well as scarves, balls, bubbles, and more.
Geared toward ages 6 months to 4 years. Registration is required.
Location: Walnut Hill School for the Arts (12 Highland Street in Natick)
This program is full. If you would like, you may join the waiting list by filling out this form:

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Virtual: Irish Whiskey - History & Recommendations with Travis Ireland of the Friskey Whiskey Podcast
2025-03-17 19:00 - 20:00 | Bacon Free Library, 58 Eliot Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
How perfect is this for St. Paddy’s Day? Travis IRELAND of The Friskey Whiskey Podcast will join us to discuss the history of Irish whiskeys and the best he’s encountered!

This program is sponsored by the Friends of the Ashland Public Library and in partnership with a multitude of MA & NH libraries.

PLEASE REGISTER HERE FOR THE ZOOM LINK.

About Travis:
Travis Ireland, co-host of The Friskey Whiskey Podcast, is an IT professional by day and a whiskey aficionado by passion. He brings his knowledge and expertise to the podcast, discussing various distilleries, tasting notes, and industry trends. Through The Friskey Whiskey, Travis aims to educate, entertain, and share his profound appreciation for whiskey.

RECORDING NOTE: This program will be recorded. All registrants will receive the recording via email within 48 hours of the program

Environmental Book Discussion
2025-03-18 19:00 - 20:00 | Bacon Free Library, 58 Eliot Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
Join us for a Zoom discussion of Eight Bears: Mythic Past and Imperiled Future by Gloria Dickie
Copies of the book will be available at the Bacon Free Library.
Order your own copy HERE
Join environmental enthusiast, Arthur Ensroth, in discussing current, historical and future environmental issues through books! We’re finding ways to become more engaged and participatory in the natural world, educating ourselves on the climate challenges we face and looking at the history and philosophy of how the environment has been viewed through the ages.
The BFL is collaborating with Broadmoor, Mass Audubon with this book group. We thank them for sharing their mission with us.
Please email glesellier@minlib.net for the Zoom meeting details.

Virtual: W.F.K. Travers' Lincoln Portrait
2025-03-19 18:00 - 19:00 | Bacon Free Library, 58 Eliot Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
At nine feet tall, Travers’ Lincoln portrait is impressive. This portrait of the 16th president has been praised by those who knew him as more lifelike than any other. Exhibited at the US Capitol, the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia, and the Union League Club in New York, among other important places, this portrait eventually found a home in the Hartley Dodge Memorial in Madison, NJ. Mallory Mortillaro will share her first-hand account of researching this painting and the stories she uncovered as she leads the audience through this painting’s fascinating provenance. The portrait is currently on loan to the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery.
Mallory Mortillaro is an art historian and educator. She has ten years of teaching experience and has worked on various art research projects for museums and organizations in the New York metropolitan area. She studied at Drew University. Mallory resides in New Jersey with her husband and daughter.
This program will be held over Zoom. Please register to receive the meeting link.

W.F.K. Travers' Lincoln Portrait

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CANCELED Jammin With You
2025-03-21 10:30 - 11:00 | Bacon Free Library, 58 Eliot Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
This event has been canceled due to weather.
We hope you can join us next time, on 4/4 at 10:30am!

Sponsored by Middlesex Savings Bank

Nonfiction Book Club
2025-03-22 10:00 - 11:00 | Bacon Free Library, 58 Eliot Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
This month, we will discuss Strength in What Remains: A journey of remembrance and forgiveness by Tracy Kidder.
Tracy Kidder, author of BFL nonfiction book club favorites Mountains Beyond Mountains and Rough Sleepers, brings us the heart-wrenching story of Deo.
From Tracykidder.com: Deo grew up in the mountains of Burundi, and survived a civil war and genocide before seeking a new life in America. In New York City he lived homeless in Central Park before finding his way to Columbia University. But Deo’s story really begins with his will to turn his life into something truly remarkable; he returns to his native country to help people there, as well as people in the United States.

Copies of this book are available at the library.
Our discussion will be held over Zoom. Please register here to receive the meeting details:

Nonfiction Book Club Registration - March 2026

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Virtual: Grow your Leafy Greens
2025-03-25 18:00 - 19:00 | Bacon Free Library, 58 Eliot Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
Would you like to learn how to grow the most nutritionally dense food on the planet? The experts at Blackstone Valley Veggie Gardens have you covered. In this virtual program, they’ll teach you how to successfully grow kale, spinach, chard, and lettuce using a variety of methods.

This program will be held over Zoom. Please register below to receive the program link.

Grow your Leafy Greens

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Tuesday Book Discussion
2025-03-25 18:30 - 19:30 | Bacon Free Library, 58 Eliot Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
Join us at the library for a discussion of: How to read a book: a novel by Monica Wood
Copies of the book are available at the library.
Order your own copy HERE
If you are interested in attending, please contact Graziella at glesellier@minlib.net
The historic nature of our building limits accessibility. A book discussion program is also offered in an accessible location at the Morse Institute Library (click here for dates, times, and more information).

Read to a Dog at the MORSE
2025-03-29 10:00 - 11:15 | Morse Institute Library, 14 E Central St., Natick, MA, United States
Build confidence and practice your reading skills by reading out loud to a registered therapy dog! This program will be held at the Morse Institute Library this month. Children ages 5 and up can sign up for a 15 minute reading session with Sophie, a gentle golden retriever who loves belly rubs, stories, and cuddles.
Registration is required for each child attending.
This program is full. If you would like, you may join the waiting list by filling out this form:

Event Waiting List

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Cinéphile Mondays
2025-03-31 16:00 - 17:30
Cinephilia is an academic word literally meaning “love of cinema,” but it also contains hints of nostalgia and passion for a film art that was undoubtedly the defining media experience of the twentieth century.
As such, cinema has a variegated and fascinating history which extends well beyond the Hollywood we are all familiar with. Meant as a tribute to the film art around the world, from the days of silent cinema to the new waves and beyond, our cinephile Mondays is a slow and tasteful appreciation of the First Century of Cinema. The films will be selected on the basis of their relevance for the development of the film art. On the last Monday of the month, cinephiles of the world unite!
Watch a movie at home and then join Film history & Media studies Professor MV for a virtual discussion.
For Monday March 31, we will be discussing:
SAFE by Todd Haynes, USA 1995.

Available on Criterion DVD HERE
Available on the Internet Archive HERE

If you are interested in attending this Zoom discussion, please contact Graziella at glesellier@minlib.net

All Together: Preschool Storytime
2025-04-01 10:00 - 10:30 | Bacon Free Library, 58 Eliot Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
Join us on Mondays and Tuesdays for stories and songs! Outdoors, weather permitting. Bring along a blanket to get comfy.
Note: if the weather is wet or below 55 degrees, we’ll move this storytime indoors. The historic nature of our building limits accessibility. This program is also offered in an accessible location at the Morse Institute Library (click here for dates, times, and more information).

Zentangle - NEW LOCATION
2025-04-01 17:00 - 18:30 | Bacon Free Library, 58 Eliot Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
The Zentangle® Method is an easy-to-learn, relaxing, and fun way to create beautiful images by drawing structured patterns (called tangles). In this workshop, learn the history of Zentangle, the basic steps of the method, and the tools used. Through step-by-step instructions, you will be immersed in creating an original Zentangle tile.

No artistic talent or experience is required. All supplies will be provided.

PLEASE NOTE: TO MAKE THIS PROGRAM MORE ACCESSIBLE, WE WILL BE HOLDING IT IN THE COMMUNITY ROOM AT THE MORSE INSTITUTE LIBRARY AT 14 E. CENTRAL STREET, NATICK. Click HERE for more information about the Morse Institute.

Rachel Slate-Ziman is a Certified Zentangle Teacher (CZT), educated by the creators of Zentangle, Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas. She has been learning and practicing the Zentangle Method for many years.
Registration required.

Zentangle - New Location

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Mystery Book Club
2025-04-03 13:00 - 14:00
Join us for a virtual Zoom discussion of Mistress of the Art of Death by Ariana Franklin. Copies available at the library, or borrow through Libby. Please email cstirling@minlib.net to register and receive the Zoom link.

Jammin With You
2025-04-04 10:30 - 11:00, 2025-04-18 10:30 - 11:00 | Bacon Free Library, 58 Eliot Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
Be prepared to laugh, dance, sing, and jam your way through 30 minutes of non-stop family fun! This performance is geared toward kids ages 1 – 7, but fun for the whole family. With modern takes on children’s classics and classic original tunes, you’ll be humming and bopping all the way home.
This program will be held outdoors. In case of rainy or cold weather (under 45 degrees), it will be rescheduled.

Sponsored by Middlesex Savings Bank

Virtual: Local Farms (Metrowest) - Produce, Meats, & Dairy
2025-04-07 19:00 - 20:00 | Bacon Free Library, 58 Eliot Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
Join the growing number of people who are buying their produce, meats, and dairy products from local farms. Not only is local food fresher than many options in the supermarket, but supporting our local farms creates a more sustainable ecosystem. Sure, you might not get raspberries in December, but when you get them in August, they will be the best tasting raspberries you could ever have!
Working with Ashland’s Town Sustainability Coordinator, Samantha Riley, we’ll have a panel of farmers who will help us understand the benefits of shopping for locally grown foods AND give us suggestions for reputable growers in our area. We hope you can join us for this important discussion as climate change affects the way we live our daily lives.
This program is held in collaboration with the Ashland Public Library.
PLEASE REGISTER HERE FOR THE ZOOM LINK
Recording note: This program will be recorded. All registrants will receive the recording via email within 48 hours of the program. It will also be available to view on the Ashland Library’s YouTube Channel.

Virtual: Behind the Headlines: Understanding Bird Flu
2025-04-07 19:00 - 20:00 | Bacon Free Library, 58 Eliot Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
**PLEASE NOTE THIS IS A VIRTUAL PROGRAM THAT WILL TAKE PLACE VIA ZOOM. Registrants will receive a link to access the Zoom Webinar via email.**
Dr. Catherine (“Katie”) Brown is the Massachusetts State Epidemiologist and Public Health Veterinarian, and current President of the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists. She plays a key role at the state and national level in monitoring and responding to infectious disease threats, and has been involved with avian influenza for over 20 years. She will give a clear and authoritative overview of the nation’s current situation and the risk that avian influenza presents.
Register directly on Zoom HERE.
This program is sponsored by the Public Health Museum, in recognition of National Public Health Week, and presented with support from the Tewksbury Public Library.
RECORDING NOTE: This program will be recorded. All registrants will receive the recording via email within 48 hours of the program.

History Book Club
2025-04-10 11:00 - 12:00
Join us for a virtual discussion of: The Cause: the American Revolution and its discontents by Joseph J. Ellis.
Copies of the book will be available at the Bacon Free Library.
Order your own copy HERE
For details on how to attend this virtual meeting via Zoom, please contact director@natickhistoricalsociety.org
The Zoom link to the discussion will be sent at a later date.

Virtual: Lost Treasures of the Titanic with Art Historian Mallory Mortillaro
2025-04-10 18:00 - 19:00 | Bacon Free Library, 58 Eliot Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
James Cameron’s Titanic told the invented story of the Heart of the Ocean–a fictional blue diamond necklace lost tragically in the ship’s famous sinking. But what about the real treasures that were lost when the Titanic sank? For over a century, the world has been intrigued by the story of the Titanic. When tragedy struck on April 14, 1912, in addition to the incredible loss of life, a nearly incalculable amount of goods plummeted into the ocean, never to be seen again. This lecture takes a closer look at and tells the stories of some of the more interesting and valuable treasures lost on that fateful night.
Mallory Mortillaro is an art historian and educator. She has ten years of teaching experience and has worked on various art research projects for museums and organizations in the New York metropolitan area. She studied at Drew University. Mallory resides in New Jersey with her husband and daughter.
This program will be held over Zoom. Please register to receive the meeting link.

Lost Treasures of the Titanic - virtual - w/Art Historian Mallory Mortillaro

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Virtual: Composting 101
2025-04-15 17:30 - 18:30 | Bacon Free Library, 58 Eliot Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
Join the Bacon Free Library and Blackstone Valley Veggie Gardens to learn the basics of composting. Did you know you can recycle all your kitchen scraps and yard waste and turn it into beneficial food for your plants? We’ve got it all covered from the “how to” to the “how much.”
This program will be held over Zoom. Please register to receive the meeting link.

Vanish - Disappearing Icons of a Rural America

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Environmental Book Discussion
2025-04-15 19:00 - 20:00 | Bacon Free Library, 58 Eliot Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
Join us for a Zoom discussion of Total Garbage: How We Can Fix Our Waste and Heal Our World by Edward Humes
Copies of the book will be available at the Bacon Free Library.
Order your own copy HERE
Join environmental enthusiast, Arthur Ensroth, in discussing current, historical and future environmental issues through books! We’re finding ways to become more engaged and participatory in the natural world, educating ourselves on the climate challenges we face and looking at the history and philosophy of how the environment has been viewed through the ages.
The BFL is collaborating with Broadmoor, Mass Audubon with this book group. We thank them for sharing their mission with us.
Please email glesellier@minlib.net for the Zoom meeting details.

Virtual: John Muir, Ansel Adams and the National Parks
2025-04-17 10:30 - 11:45 | Bacon Free Library, 58 Eliot Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
**PLEASE NOTE THIS IS A VIRTUAL PROGRAM THAT WILL TAKE PLACE VIA ZOOM. Registrants will receive a link to access the Zoom Webinar via email.**
John Muir — celebrated naturalist, promoter of the natural parks, and founder of The Sierra Club — led an interesting life focused on conserving nature’s beauty. Ansel Adams is perhaps the greatest American landscape photographer. Learn and see how their lives and works intersected and overlapped at Yosemite National Park.
This program will be led by Eric J. Simon, Ph.D., a professor at New England College in Henniker, New Hampshire, who leads international biology-themed travel courses and teaches online lifelong learning classes at a variety of institutions.
Register directly on Zoom HERE.
This program is sponsored by the Friends of the Tewksbury Public Library and is held in partnership with the Bacon Free Library and the Tewksbury Public Library.
RECORDING NOTE: This program will be recorded. All registrants will receive the recording via email within 48 hours of the program.

Closed for Patriots' Day
2025-04-21 08:00 - 17:00
The BFL will be closed today in honor of Patriots’ Day.
Best wishes to all of the marathoners today!

Tuesday Book Discussion
2025-04-22 18:30 - 19:30 | Bacon Free Library, 58 Eliot Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
For its 100th anniversary, join us at the library for a discussion of: The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Copies of the book are available at the library.
Order your own copy HERE
If you are interested in attending, please contact Graziella at glesellier@minlib.net
The historic nature of our building limits accessibility. A book discussion is also offered in an accessible location at the Morse Institute Library (click here for dates, times, and more information).

Nonfiction Book Club
2025-04-26 10:00 - 11:00 | Bacon Free Library, 58 Eliot Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
This month, we will discuss Thunderstruck by Erik Larson.
According to eriklarsonbooks.com, Thunderstruck is:
The saga of how the lives of the inventor of wireless and of Britain’s second most famous murderer (after Jack the Ripper) intersected during one of the greatest criminal chases of all time. The inventor was Guglielmo Marconi, the young Italian genius; the killer was Hawley Harvey Crippen, who murdered his overbearing wife and fled Britain with his mistress, unaware that Scotland Yard was hot on his heels. The book—an instant New York Times bestseller—brings to life a host of forgotten characters, including spirit mediums, ghost-hunting physicists, Scotland Yard inspectors, and one of the great pioneers of forensic science. The climax occurs during a trans-Atlantic chase which, thanks to the miracle of Marconi’s invention, was followed by millions of people around the world—with Crippen and his mistress completely unaware.

Copies of this book are available at the library.
Our discussion will be held on Zoom. Please register here to receive the meeting details:

Nonfiction Book Club Registration - April 2026

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Cinéphile Mondays
2025-04-28 16:00 - 17:30
Cinephilia is an academic word literally meaning “love of cinema,” but it also contains hints of nostalgia and passion for a film art that was undoubtedly the defining media experience of the twentieth century.
As such, cinema has a variegated and fascinating history which extends well beyond the Hollywood we are all familiar with. Meant as a tribute to the film art around the world, from the days of silent cinema to the new waves and beyond, our cinephile Mondays is a slow and tasteful appreciation of the First Century of Cinema. The films will be selected on the basis of their relevance for the development of the film art. On the last Monday of the month, cinephiles of the world unite!
Watch a movie at home and then join Film history & Media studies Professor MV for a virtual discussion.
For Monday April 28
we will be discussing: Ali: Fear Eats the Soul by Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Germany 1974.

Criterion DVD available in the Minuteman HERE

If you are interested in attending this Zoom discussion, please contact Graziella at glesellier@minlib.net

Virtual: No More Curse! A History of the Red Sox with Author/Historian David Kruh
2025-04-28 19:00 - 20:00 | Bacon Free Library, 58 Eliot Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
Take me out to the ballgame with David Kruh!
Based on his research for his musical, The Curse is Reversed!, David takes us to the roots of Boston baseball, when, just like today, the team captured the hearts of the people of Boston. We will look back at the real story behind Harry Frazee and his sale of slugger Babe Ruth. Relive the (sometimes frustrating) saga of the Boston Red Sox and their ultimately successful struggle for a World Series championship.

This program is held in collaboration with the Ashland Public Library.
PLEASE REGISTER HERE FOR THE ZOOM LINK
Recording note: This program will be recorded. All registrants will receive the recording via email within 48 hours of the program.

About the Author:
David Kruh is a former New Yorker and a 1978 graduate of the University of Maryland. While earning his Masters in Computer Engineering at Boston University, David worked as an engineer at WRKO Radio. He has also worked full time as a copywriter, computer programmer, radio producer, radio engineer, and, for a few years in the mid-1990s, as a spokesman and web master for the Big Dig. He retired a few years ago from a semiconductor manufacturer, where he was the Direct Marketing Manager. He is also the author of several other books, notably two on Boston’s Scollay Square and Building Route 128. David’s most recent book is Inseparable.
Learn more about David’s Musical: The Curse is Reversed! (A musical tribute to the Red Sox).

Mystery Book Club
2025-05-01 13:00 - 14:00
Join us for a virtual Zoom discussion of The Snowman by Jo Nesbo. Copies available at the library, or borrow through Libby. Please email cstirling@minlib.net to register and receive the Zoom link.
