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World Book Night is an annual celebration designed to spread a love of reading and books. On Tuesday, April 23, 2013, tens of thousands of people will go out into their communities to spread the joy and love of reading by giving out twenty free World Book Night paperbacks.

This year, the Milwaukee Public Library will act as a distribution center for people who sign up to be book givers. You can help by handing out the free books in your community on World Book Night to new and infrequent readers. If you would like to be a part of the fun, simply go to the World Book Night website, choose three books you would like to hand out, and select the Central library as your distribution center. Deadline for applications is January 23rd, 2013. Help us spread the love of reading throughout our community. Sign up to be a giver today!

Looking to start your own business? Milwaukee Public Library can help! Our Business and Technology Department has free monthly drop-in sessions that will highlight resources that can help you write your business plan, conduct market research, and identify your best customers.

Small Business Resources 101
Thursday, January 10th, 12 - 1 p.m.
Central Library, Krikelas Room, 2nd Floor
No registration required.

If you can't make it this Thursday, the class will also be held the following Thursdays throughout the year:

February 14, March 14, April 11, May 9, June 13, July 11, August 8, September 12, October 10, November 14, and December 12.

Come to the East Library Book Club this month! Until further notice, the book club will be meeting at Martin Luther King Library during East Library construction. This month, the East Library Book Club discusses Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell. There is still time to check it out from the library. New members are always welcome to the club, and there is no registration required.

Date: Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Time: 7:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Location: Martin Luther King Jr. Library 310 W. Locust St.

Investigate your family history with help from Humanities librarians and a brief introduction to library resources available for beginning genealogists. This hour long class will be held in the 2nd floor Krikelas Room. Reservations are not required, but you can call the Humanities desk at (414)286-3061 if you have any questions about the program.

Location: Central Library Krikelas Room
Date: Thursday, January 17, 2013
Time: 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM

"Everybody can be great ... because anybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace, a soul generated by love." -- Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Four years ago President Obama started the National Day of Service, a day to honor the life of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and continue the lifelong commitment to service our community. You can volunteer on Saturday, January 19th by searching the National Day of Service website for events near you. To find events click here: http://2013pic.org/service/serve

See you out there!

Discover clever ways to increase your effectiveness in your career search as well as in the workplace. Through hands-on activities you will increase your value as an employee by strengthening soft skills such as: interpersonal communication, interview preparation, and professionalism.

Library: Center Street Library
Date: Thursday, January 24th, 2013
Time: 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM

Bring your family and friends to read aloud and share your favorite poems, biographies, and stories by African-American authors. We will have a wide selection of books from which to choose, in case you don't already have a favorite set aside to read from. This program will be available at various times and locations, starting with this Saturday's Read-In at Central Library, in Mozart's Grove across from the Media Room.

Central
Saturday, Feb. 2 and 23, 2013
2:00-3:00 p.m.

Center Street
Monday, Feb. 11, 2013
4:30-7:30 p.m.

Capitol
Monday, Feb. 11, 2013
5:00-7:45 p.m.

Mill Road
Monday, Feb. 18, 2013
6:00-7:45 p.m.

Villard Square
Monday, Feb. 18, 2013
6:30-7:30 p.m.

In collaboration with Blk-Art, History and Culture, M.L. King Library will host the Black Cinema Film Series showing - Sisters of Selma: Bearing Witness for Change. Watch the story of the unsung heroes of the voting rights marches. Learn how life changed when Catholic nuns from across the country responded to Martin Luther King's call to join the protests in Selma, Alabama in 1965.

Date: Monday, February 4th
Time: 6:00 p.m.
Location: Martin Luther King Library, 310 W. Locust St.

Celebrate Black History Month @ your Milwaukee Public Library with activities for
adults, children and families.

Join us as we celebrate Black History Month
with discussions on Tom Burrell's provocative book,
Brainwashed: Challenging the Myth of Black Inferiority
and Edward P. Jones's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel
The Known World.

Book: Brainwashed by Tom Burrell
Date: Saturday, Feb. 9
Time: 12-1 p.m.
Location: Conference Room 2B, 2nd floor
Central Library, 814 W. Wisconsin Ave.

Book: The Known World by Edward P. Jones
Date: Tuesday, Feb. 19
Time: 6-7 p.m.
Location: Meeting Room I
Central Library, 814 W. Wisconsin Ave.