You are here

Find a program or event

Some in-branch programs require registration with your library card. Please log in with your library account or follow this link to apply for a card online. You can also apply for a card in person at any of our 33 locations.

  • Notepad, camera, and magnifying glass on old map

    Tuesdays, May 21, 2024 - Jun 18, 2024
    1:30pm
    60 minutes

    2 sessions remaining

    All aboard for the final leg of our tour around the world, with Sweden, Nigeria, and Spain! Join us the third Tuesday of each month where we will discuss a title set in a different country and/or written by a foreign author.

    When you register, we will reserve a copy of the book for you - no need to place a hold, unless you would like to enjoy the book in a different format. This is the last chance to get your Reader's Passport stamped before the summer!

  • Open book on an off-white background, with blooming magnolias resting on the open book

    Thursdays, May 23, 2024 - Jun 27, 2024
    7:00pm
    60 minutes

    2 sessions remaining

    Our final book club sessions before the summer break!

    Come join us the 4th Thursday of every month for lively discussion on a variety of English-language books. Everything from non-fiction to fantasy to gentle reads, there's something for everyone - and you may find a new genre that appeals to you!

    When you register, we will reserve a copy of the book for you - no need to place a hold, unless you would like to enjoy the book in a different format.

    For June, we'll be having a BYOB party... Bring Your Own Book Party, that is! Whether it be an old favourite, or something new and amazing that recently crossed your path, we want to see what you recommend everyone should read and hear why you loved it. A list of the recommended titles will appear on the website after the event.

  • Asian heritage month with picture of Chef Joe

    Tuesday May 28, 2024 at 6:30pm
     minutes

    Learn all about Indian cuisine and culture with Chef Joe Thottungal. In this online event presented by Ottawa Public Library, Joe will explore Indian recipes, spices, and other ingredients through a cooking demo in his very own restaurant, Coconut Lagoon. Please register to receive a list of ingredients prior to the event so you can cook along with Chef Joe.

    To explore Joe’s cookbooks from OPL’s catalogue, follow this link

  • Rossy Pavilion

    Tuesday Jun 11, 2024 at 7:00pm
     minutes

    In partnership with the National Arts Centre (NAC), the Ottawa Public Library (OPL) is hosting an Indigenous Book Club for National Indigenous History Month featuring book of essays Making Love with the Land. On June 11 at 7pm, join us for this conversation with author Joshua Whitehead (Oji-Cree - Peguis First Nation) to discuss the book and connect directly with the author and other readers.

    Borrow a copy today: Making Love With the Land | Ottawa Public Library | BiblioCommons

    About the Book
    Making Love with the Land is a startling, challenging, uncompromising look at what it means to live as an Indigenous person “in the rupture” between identities. In these ten unique, heart-piercing non-fiction pieces, award-winning writer Joshua Whitehead illuminates the com­plex moment we’re living through now, in which Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples are navigating new and old ideas about “the land.” He asks: What is our relationship and responsi­bility towards it? And how has the land shaped ideas, histories, words, our very bodies?

    About the Author
    Joshua Whitehead (he/him) is a Two-Spirit, Oji-nêhiyaw member of Peguis First Nation (Treaty 1). He is currently an Assistant Professor at the University of Calgary where he is housed in the departments of English and International Indigenous Studies (Treaty 7).

    He is the author of full-metal indigiqueer (Talonbooks 2017) which was shortlisted for the inaugural Indigenous Voices Award and the Stephan G. Stephansson Award for Poetry. He is also the author of Jonny Appleseed (Arsenal Pulp Press 2018) which was long listed for the Giller Prize, shortlisted for the Indigenous Voices Award, the Governor General's Literary Award, the Amazon Canada First Novel Award, the Carol Shields Winnipeg Book Award, and won the Lambda Literary Award for Gay Fiction, the Georges Bugnet Award for Fiction and Canada Reads 2021. Whitehead is the editor of Love after the End: An Anthology of Two-Spirit and Indigiqueer Speculative Fiction, which won the Lambda Award in 2021.

    This is a hybrid event: the program is in-person, but will be streamed live: https://nac-cna.ca/en/event/36739. A recording of the event will be provided on the OPL YouTube page afterwards.

    Registration is for the in-person portion of the event- Registration required. This event is free but seating is limited.

  • Woman clutching her hair in frustration, looking at her laptop

    Saturday Jun 22, 2024 at 2:00pm
    120 minutes

    The average time it takes for an unprotected computer to be compromised after connecting to the Internet is under 15 minutes. Don't let it be yours!

    Chris Taylor, President of the Ottawa PC Users' Group, will show you the simple steps you need to take to keep your PC from being hacked.

    And best of all, it can be done for free!

    **Please note that you are not required to bring your laptop for the session.

  • Mondays, May 13, 2024 - Jun 10, 2024
    10:30am
    60 minutes

    2 sessions remaining

    Registration opens on Monday, May 13, 2024 - 11:30am

    Share the enjoyment of books in a relaxed atmosphere on the Second Monday of the month.

    The Stittsville Branch morning book club runs monthly from September to June.

     Books are available at the Stittsville branch Hub (central desk). 

  • three books on the right stacked together

    Mondays, May 13, 2024 - Dec 16, 2024
    2:30pm
    90 minutes

    8 sessions remaining

    Sorry this event and its waiting list are full

    The Stittsville Library Book Club meet on the third Monday of most months and read a variety of fiction and non-fiction books.  Registration is required.
     

  • Photo illustration of cookbook and cooking utensils

    Mondays, May 13, 2024 - Jun 17, 2024
    2:30pm
    60 minutes

    2 sessions remaining

    Do you love browsing through cookbooks and trying new recipes? Then come and meet with other food enthusiasts and put a cookbook to the test! Each month will be a different cookbook! We will then make recipes at home and share comments on the results with the group.

    No need to put a hold on a copy! You will get the cookbooks at the meetings.

     Cookbook for April              Cookbook for May  

  • Monday May 13, 2024 at 6:00pm
    120 minutes

    Many wireless routers do not default to the most secure configuration. Make sure you are not the "low-hanging fruit" that someone will decide to attack. It is surprisingly easy to make sure your network is secure. Chris Taylor, President of the Ottawa PC Users' Group will show you just how easy it is.​

    Registration limited. Please pre-register online. ​

  • penpal letters and pen

    Monday May 13, 2024 at 6:30pm
    30 minutes

    Have you ever wondered what it was like to live in Ireland? Are you interested in having a penpal abroad? If so then this program is for you! Please join us on Saturday May 4 or Saturday May 11 at 11:30 (30 min) in the meeting room to be matched with an Irish penpal and to create a letter! 

    Please note: Communications will be sent and received strictly through the library address. All letters will be monitored by library staff to ensure certain guidelines are followed in terms of appropriate language, content and to ensure that personally identifiable information is not shared. 

    Ages 8-13