About us
The City of Menlo Park's libraries offer a variety of programs, including art events, author talks, info sessions, craft sessions, music events, and more. To make the most of our programming efforts and this meetup page, we’d love for you to get involved. If you come to a program, say hi and let us know you saw it on meetup. If you have an idea for something you’d like to see at the library, send us a message. The library is a great space for community meetups and we’d love to play a role in making those connections!
See more events at our calendar, and check our hours and holiday closures.
Upcoming events
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Hana Baba: Folktales from Sudan
Location not specified yetThe 11th Annual Menlo Park Storytelling Festival continues! Today, enjoy mesmerizing storytelling, accompanied by music played on an oud.
Join storyteller, radio host, podcaster, and voice actor Hana Baba as she shares folktales from Sudan, the stories she grew up with in her Sudanese American home.
Through engaging storytelling, Hana introduces audiences to magical tales from a rich East African tradition: stories that build empathy, curiosity, and a love for global cultures.
About Hana Baba:
Hana Baba is an award-winning radio journalist whose work appears on NPR, PRI, BBC, TED and more. She is host of Crosscurrents, the daily newsmagazine of NPR station KALW Public Radio in San Francisco, and co-creator & co-host of the award-winning and podcast The Stoop, which tells stories from across the Black diaspora.
A daughter of Sudanese immigrants, Hana explores intersectionality, and the rich and varied life experiences within African diaspora communities.
She has been recognized as a Bay Area African Cultural Icon by the California Assembly.
This is one of nine events in the 11th Annual Menlo Park Storytelling Festival. Join us for one event, or the whole series!
https://menlopark.gov/storytelling- Sun. Sept. 27 | Clara Kamunde: Afri-Crafty Tales | Belle Haven Library | All ages
- Sat. Oct. 3 | Roopa Mohan presents Kasturba Gandhi | Menlo Park Library | Adults & teens
- Sun. Oct. 18 | Hana Baba: Folktales from Sudan | Belle Haven Library | 6-Adult
- Tues. Oct. 27 | Storytelling Meetup | Menlo Park Library | Adults & families
- Thurs. Nov. 5 | John Weaver: Pumpkin Tales | Menlo Park Library | 4-Adult
- Thurs. Nov. 12 | StoryFest! | Zoom | 6-Adult |
- Sun. Nov.15 | Storytelling Workshop | Menlo Park Library | 10-Adult
- Mon. Nov. 16 | Jeff Gere: True Supernatural Tales of Hawaii | Menlo Park Library | 9-Adult
- Sat. Nov. 21 | Tellabration! ™ | Menlo Park Library | 5-Adult
About Storytelling:
Storytelling is telling stories--without using a book.- It's an ancient art form that predates libraries, and books, and writing.
- It's not necessarily for children!
- Traditional-style storytelling creates unique images in the mind of each listener.
- According to the National Storytelling Network, "storytelling is the interactive art of using words and actions to reveal the elements and images of a story while encouraging the listener’s imagination. In storytelling, the listener imagines the story.”
- According to the Storytelling Association of California (an organization dedicated to promoting storytelling as a living art form), storytelling is “orally passing on adventures, wisdom, experiences, surprise, history, laughter, beliefs and imagination.”
This free event received funding support from the Friends of the Menlo Park Library.
Sunday, October 18, 2026 | 11:00 AM - 11:45 AM
Belle Haven Library, 100 Terminal Ave., Menlo Park, CAMore free events with Menlo Park Library
Menlo Park Library on social media:
@menloparklibrary on Instagram & Facebook
@menlolibrary on Twitter/X5 attendees
Tea and Tarot
Menlo Park Library, 800 Alma St, Menlo Park, CA, USJoin us for tea and conversation around the tarot deck!
Socialize and practice your skills reading the tarot. Although this isn’t an instructional course, meet like-minded people who can share their tarot experiences.
Decks won’t be provided, but tea and tarot-themed book recommendations will, so prepare to get cozy and pull some cards.
Tea & Tarot takes place on the 3rd Sunday afternoon of each month.
This free event received funding support from the Friends of the Menlo Park Library.
More free events with Menlo Park Library
Menlo Park Library on social media:
@menloparklibrary on Instagram & Facebook
@menlolibrary on Twitter/X3 attendees
Open Space Odyssey
Menlo Park Library, 800 Alma St, Menlo Park, CA, USDiscover the stories behind our region’s trails and open spaces!
Naturalists from the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District (Midpen) will share the history, flora, fauna, and ongoing preservation of the hidden natural treasures found throughout the Silicon Valley’s backyard.
Join us for an engaging introduction to our scenic preserves.
About Midpen:
Created in 1972, Midpen is an independent special district that helps plants, animals and people thrive throughout the greater Santa Cruz Mountains region by preserving a connected greenbelt of more than 70,000 acres of public open space. These diverse and scenic landscapes, from bay wetlands to redwood forests and coastal grasslands, host an incredible diversity of life, making our region one of the world’s biodiversity hotspots.
Tuesday, October 20, 2026 | 06:00 PM - 07:30 PM
Menlo Park Library, 800 Alma St., Menlo Park, CAMore free events with Menlo Park Library
Menlo Park Library on social media:
@menloparklibrary on Instagram & Facebook
@menlolibrary on Twitter/X4 attendees
Filipino Patterned Flower Drawing Workshop
Menlo Park Library, 800 Alma St, Menlo Park, CA, USAdults and Teens, join us to try your hand at drawing flowers in a special Filipino-influenced style!
In this workshop led by artist Kenneth Tan, participants learn the meaning of different shapes in Filipino weaving and tattoo traditions and then use shapes to draw flowers in a circular pattern.
About Kenneth Tan:
Kenneth Tan is a second-generation Filipino American living in his hometown of San Jose. He is the author of Crescenciana: A Memoir in Words and Illustrations, about his relationship with his Lola (grandmother), a survivor of World War II and the Japanese occupation of the Philippines. Together, they formed The Lola x Kenneth Collaboration: Crescenciana made watercolor paintings and Kenneth drew her stories on top of them. Kenneth has appeared on NPR and StoryCorps, and he is a recipient of the Leigh Weimers Emerging Artists Award.
This free event received funding support from the Friends of the Menlo Park Library.
Thursday, October 22, 2026 | 03:30 PM - 04:30 PM
Menlo Park Library, 800 Alma St., Menlo Park, CAMore free events with Menlo Park Library
Menlo Park Library on social media:
@menloparklibrary on Instagram & Facebook
@menlolibrary on Twitter/X11 attendees
Past events
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