The Library will be closed on Monday, Jan. 19, in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.  Visit our Website Calendar for additional Info & Registration links:  https://tinyurl.com/apl-calendars

Featured for Adults:

Online - Adult Winter Reading Challenge 2026

Jan. 1 - Jan. 31, 2026

Read whatever you want during the month and count up the minutes. Submit up to 1800 minutes (30 hours) worth of reading time. Each hour that you read gives you a raffle ticket to win fabulous prizes.

Submit how many minutes you read from Jan. 1 - Jan. 31, 2026. We're on Beanstack, so you can register anytime for the challenge and start adding your reading time from Wednesday, Jan. 1, through Saturday, Feb. 1.

Adult In Person

Front Street Readers Book Club

Tuesday, Jan. 6 at 11 - 12:30 p.m.

Read The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon.

Mah Jongg

Wednesday, Jan. 7 at 6 p.m.

Knowledge of the American version of Mah Jongg rules and your own National Mah Jongg League card is necessary.  

Women's Wisdom Circle: Skip the Resolutions

Thursday, Jan. 8 from 6 - 7:30 p.m.

Paula Topliffe leads a discussion on Skip the resolutions, Envision 2026.

Mystery Book Club

Friday, Jan. 9 at 12 p.m.

Read The Life We Bury by Allen Eskens.

Card Making with Jan Poppendieck

Monday, Jan. 12 at 6:30 p.m. Card making with Jan.

Historical Fiction Book Club

Tuesday, Jan. 13 at 11 a.m.

Read The Woman with the Cure by Lynn Cullen.

A Book Birthday with

Romance Author Caroline Linden

Saturday, Jan. 17 from 1 - 3 p.m.

A book birthday bash with Caroline Linden. How to Get Away with Scandal. 

Cook Book Club

Tuesday, Jan. 20 at 5 p.m.

Cook from The New England Soup Factory Cookbook by Marjorie Druker.

Hot Chocolate Bar and Winter Reading Discussion

Thursday, Jan. 29, from 6:30 - 7:30 p.m.

An evening of relaxing, discussion, and hot cocoa! For adults 18+, and does require registration

New England Lore with Horror Authors Christa Carmen and JW Ocker

Saturday, Jan. 31, from 1 - 3 p.m.

Christa Carmen and JW Ocker to the library for a fascinating conversation.

Adult Virtual:

Virtual - The Two Nerdy History Girls Ride Again!

Monday, Jan.5 at 7 p.m.

Two Nerdy History Girls - Authors Loretta Chase and Susan Holloway Scott.

Virtual - Jack London with Bill Thierfelder

Tuesday, Jan. 6 from 7 - 8:30 p.m.

Virtual - Environmental Book Club

Wednesday, Jan. 7 at 6:30 p.m.

Read The New Tourist: Waking Up to the Power and Perils of Travel by Paige McClanahan.

Virtual - In Conversation with Author Julie Dobrow

Wednesday, Jan. 7 at 7 p.m.

Author Julie Dobrow will discuss her new book, Love and Loss After Wounded Knee: A Biography of an Extraordinary Interracial Marriage.

Virtual - Declutter series with Jamie Novak: Fresh Start: how to have a clutter-free new year

Thursday, Jan. 8 from 7 - 8:30 p.m.

Virtual - Presidential Series with Doodler Heather Rogers: George Washington

Friday, Jan. 9 at 10:30 a.m.

Virtual - In Conversation with Author Heather B. Moore

Monday, Jan.12 at 7 p.m.

Discussion with author Heather B. Moore about her recent release, Julia, the untold story of Julia Child, before she became a worldwide cooking sensation!

Virtual - Romance Book Club

Thursday, Jan. 8 at 6:30 p.m.

Read a High Seas or Pirates Romance.

Virtual - Historical Fiction Book Recs with Bestselling Author, Jane Healey

Tuesday, Jan. 13 from 6:30 - 7 p.m.

Join bestselling author Jane Healey monthly for 30 minutes of pure book recommendations.

Virtual - Thriller/Horror Book Recs with Bookstagrammer@redreadreviews

Tuesday, Jan. 13 from 7:30 - 8 p.m.

Join Jody Blanchette (aka @redreadreviews), monthly, for 30 minutes of pure book recommendations. 

Virtual - "Superspy Science: Science, Death & Tech in the World of James Bond" with Dr. Kathryn Harkup

Wednesday, Jan.14 at 2 p.m.

Dr. Kathryn Harkup, writer, science communicator, and vampirologist, will be discussing her book Superspy Science: Science, Death and Tech in the World of James Bond.

Virtual - In Conversation with Author Sharon Udasin

Wednesday, Jan. 14 at 7 p.m.

Author Sharon Udasin will discuss her new book, Poisoning The Well: How Forever Chemicals Contaminated America.

Virtual - Women's Fiction Book Recs with Bestselling Author, Kristan Higgins

Thursday, Jan. 15 from 6:30 - 7 p.m.

Join bestselling author, Kristan Higgins (and Ashland fave!), quarterly for 30 minutes of pure book recommendations.

Virtual - Chasing John Brown: A photographic journey

Thursday, Jan.15 at 7 p.m.

This presentation follows the abolitionist John Brown’s path across America.

Virtual - Inclusive and Diverse Book Recs with Bookstagrammer @sometimesleelynnreads

Thursday, Jan. 15 from 7:30 - 8 p.m.

Join bookstagrammer, Leelynn Brady (aka @sometimesleelynnreads), monthly for 30 minutes of pure book recommendations.

Virtual - Classical Masterworks: Johann Strauss II with Clint Edwards

Tuesday, Jan. 20 from 7 - 8:15 p.m.

Exploring the life and works of the 19th-century master of the waltz.

Virtual - In Conversation with Author Elyse Graham

Wednesday, Jan. 21 at 7 p.m.

Author Elyse Graham will discuss her new book, Book and Dagger: How Scholars and Librarians Became the Unlikely Spies of World War II. 

Virtual - Creating a Modern Homestead with Homesteader and Blogger, Victoria Pruett

Monday, Jan. 26 from 7 - 8:15 p.m.

A conversation with modern-day homesteader, blogger, and author Victoria Pruett about her book Creating a Modern Homestead: Traditional Skills for Real, Everyday Life.

Virtual - Self-Regulation for Parents with Parent Coach Kerri Smith

Tuesday, Jan. 27 at 7 p.m.

Virtual - In Conversation with Author Christina Hillsberg

Wednesday, Jan. 28 at 7 p.m.

Author Christina Hillsberg will discuss her new book, Agents of Change: The Women Who Transformed the CIA.

Virtual - The Dudleys and the Howards with Authors and Historians Joanne Paul and Nicola Clark

Thursday, Jan. 29 at 10 a.m.

Join authors and historians Joanne Paul and Nicola Clark as they discuss their books, The House of Dudley and The Waiting Game: The Untold Story of the Women Who Served the Tudor Queens.

Virtual - Art on Thursdays- January - American Art at 250: Masterworks of a Nation

Thursday, Jan. 29 from 7 - 8:15 p.m.

Adult Weekly:

Knit and Crochet Club

Mondays at 6 p.m.

Walk-In

Gentle Yoga

Tuesdays at 6 p.m.

Registration Required

Children: 

Special Programs: Stay tuned on our website calendar for our upcoming programs as our new Children’s Librarian starts planning! 

LEGO Club!

Monday, Jan.12 at 4:30 p.m.

For kids in grades K-3. Registration is required, and space is limited.

Juntos en la Biblioteca: Actividades en Español en Familia for families/ para familias

Monday, Jan. 26 at 6:30 p.m.

Little Crafters

Thursday, Jan. 29 at 10:30 a.m.

For families with children ages 0-5. No registration required.

Weekly Storytimes:

Tuesday Clocktown Rockers! 

For ages 2-5 with a caregiver

Tuesdays at 10:30 - 11 a.m.

Designed for ages 2–5 with a caregiver. No registration needed—just drop in and dance it out! 

Friday Clocktown Rockers! 

For ages 2-5 with a caregiver

Fridays at 10:30 - 11 a.m.

No registration needed—just drop in and dance it out!

Mother Goose on the Loose 

For ages 0-3 with a caregiver

Wednesdays from 10:30 - 11 a.m.

No registration needed—just drop in and join the fun!

Saturday Stories 

For ages 2-5 with a caregiver

Saturdays from 10:30 - 11 a.m.

For families with children ages 2-5. No registration required.  

Recurring Weekly

Programs:

Project ABC: Play, Learn & Grow 

For ages 0-5

Mondays from 11 a.m. - 12 p.m.

Join the Metrowest YMCA in partnership with the Early Childhood Alliance of Ashland & Framingham for a fun and interactive experience designed just for little ones aged 5 and under. Registration is required, and is found on their website: https://www.projectabc.org/

Friends of the Ashland Public Library Monthly Book Sale & Donation Day!

Saturday, Jan. 3 from 9:30a.m. - 1 p.m.

Monthly Book Sales and Donation Days are held on the 1st Saturday of every month from 9:30 a.m. -1 p.m. Exceptions are the Big 2-Day Sale weekends in March, June, and December. To keep the shelves stocked with fresh selections, the Friends accept donations in the library parking lot of gently used books, audiobooks, and DVDs. Friends volunteers will be available to assist donors during this time. There is also a cart in the mezzanine lobby for donations at any time during library hours. Proceeds from monthly book sales fund library programs for children, teens, and adults, Museum Passes, and so much more!

Customers for all our sales will find thousands of titles on the permanent sales shelves, including hard and soft cover fiction (all alphabetized by author for ease of shopping), a wide selection of history and politics titles, health and family living books, plus memoirs, biographies, and loads of additional titles, all arranged by genre.

An entire section of the Book Sale Room is arranged for children to browse and select from a huge collection of board books, picture books, easy readers, and chapter books.

If you can't make it to the sales, the Friends have a book sale corner on the 1st floor of the library (in the beautiful original part of the building). There, you can find great books for yourself and your family any time the library is open.

Proceeds from these monthly book sales and all fundraising efforts made by the Friends fund 100% of children, teen, and adult programs, our wonderful Museum Passes, and so much more!