Stay cool and cultured by attending one of the Library’s author and community events this summer, including a conversation between KUOW’s Katie Campbell and cabin-builder Patrick Hutchison, an evening with science fiction author with Rebecca Roanhorse, and a Book Bingo silent reading party at the Seattle Center’s Mural Amphitheater.
Also check out Summer Quest, our new all-ages summer program that encourages you to log your reading, Library programs, and summer discovery for fun and prizes.
All Library events are free and open to the public. Many of these events are supported by The Seattle Public Library Foundation and the Gary and Connie Kunis Foundation. Registration is not required unless noted.
Summer Quest programs. All summer long, Library locations across the city will host dozens of free all summer presented by local performing artists, from magic and music shows to pet painting and other art workshops. Check the full list out and mark your favorites!
FIFA World Cup Watch Parties. Through July 19, three Library locations – the Central Library, the Lake City Branch, and the Southwest Branch – will host 2026 FIFA World Cup Watch Parties in branch meeting rooms and the Central Library, Level 1 Microsoft Auditorium. Find dates and times for watch parties on the event calendar.
Silent Reading Party for Kids. Thursday, July 9, from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Green Lake Branch. Kids! Bring your own book, read for an hour, and chat (if you want) with fellow book lovers. This event is designed for kids ages 5-12.
Book Bingo: Silent Reading Party. Sunday, July 12, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Seattle Center Mural Amphitheater. Grab a blanket, pack your favorite snacks, and join fellow book lovers. Meet local booksellers and librarians, enter to win fun prizes, swap and shop great reads, and celebrate the 2026 Summer Book Bingo program.
Patrick Hutchison and Katie Campbell. Thursday, July 16, 2026, from 6:30 p.m. to 7:45 p.m., Central Library, Level 1 Microsoft Auditorium. Join KUOW’s Katie Campbell in conversation with Patrick Hutchison to discuss “Cabin: Off the Grid Adventures with a Clueless Craftsman,” about the author’s project to rehab a run-down off-the-grid cabin in the Cascade Mountains in Washington state. Registration is required.
Queer Silent Book Club Seattle. Thursday, July 16, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Central Library Level 4 – Room 1. Join us on the third Thursday of the month for reading, community, and to hang out together. After reading, feel free to stick around for bookish chitchat in the Living Room on Level 3. Or feel free to read and leave.
Rebecca Roanhorse discusses “River of Bones and Other Stories.” Thursday, July 23, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Central Library, Level 1, Microsoft Auditorium. As part of Clarion West’s Summer of Science Fiction & Fantasy reading series, Rebecca Roanhorse will discuss her collection “River of Bones,” the culmination of the first eight years of her career. Registration is required.
G. G. Silverman discusses “The Blood Year Daughter.” Thursday, July 30, from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Central Library, Level 4 – Room 1. Drawing from folktales, Silverman’s Italian roots, and killers both real and imagined, the stories in “The Blood Year Daughter” are as spare and glittering as a spiderweb, and they establish G.G. Silverman as a formidable voice in feminist horror and magical realism.
“Raised by Ferns” Author Maya Jewell Zeller and Katie Campbell. Thursday, Aug. 20, from 6:30 p.m. to 7:45 p.m. Central Library, Level 1 Microsoft Auditorium. Born in a Pacific Northwest gas station to itinerant, countercultural parents, Maya Jewell Zeller grew up in a world shaped by poverty, wildness, and fierce self-reliance. In conversation with Katie Campbell, Zeller will reflect on her journey from what she calls “a feral girl” to a middle-class adult reckoning with identity, belonging, and uneasy privilege. Registration is required.
Book Bingo Party. Thursday, August 27, from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Central Library, Level 3 – Living Room. The summer may almost be over, but you still have more than a week of reading until the Book Bingo deadline! Mix and mingle with other readers, share your favorite Book Bingo finds, get suggestions for your final reads, and enjoy light refreshments with us. Registration is required.
Cello Concerts with Gretchen Yanover. Wednesdays through August, from 10:45 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Central Library, Level 1 – Microsoft Auditorium. Join us for an electric cello concert with Seattle cellist and Library artist in resident Gretchen Yanover. Yanover is a member of NW Sinfonietta orchestra, serves on their DEI task force, and has performed for Earshot Jazz Festival and TEDx Seattle.
Living with Conviction: Sentenced to Debt for Life in Washington State Exhibit. On display at the Green Lake Branch gallery and the Central Library Level 8 gallery. In partnership with formerly incarcerated individuals, this exhibit confronts how Washington courts have been sentencing people not only to prison but also to a lifetime of debt through photographic portraits, stories, and multimedia that share stories of our common humanity. Now extended!