News & Updates

June 9, 2025 – June is Pride month, and the library has plenty of reads for all ages highlighting LGBTQ+ stories and voices. Check out some recently published adult fiction titles below!

June 4, 2025 – Everyone is welcome at the library this summer – and everyone is welcome to join us for the Summer Reading Challenge. Summer reading is for kids and families – but it is also for everyone else! 

June 3, 2025 – The Cedar Rapids Public Library is made possible by our incredible staff. And we are staffed by book lovers. To celebrate the people who keep our library running, we're highlighting different staff members and books they love.

May 26, 2025 – May is Jewish American Heritage Month. Here is fiction – a graphic novel, a romance, and literary fiction – and nonfiction – histories, modern sociology, and a cookbook - by and about Jewish Americans, telling Jewish American stories.

May 19, 2025 – May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and library partner Tanager curated a list of meaningful titles for all ages, which they shared with us. 

May 15, 2025 – The Summer Reading Challenge welcomes a series of big performances for kids to the library on Mondays throughout June and July. All performances are first-come, first-serve; wrist bands will be handed out one hour prior to each performance.  

May 12, 2025 – The 2025 Pulitzer Prizes were announced May 6. Along with prizes for excellence in journalism, the Pulitzer committee awarded honors for literature, including fiction, history, biography, memoir, poetry, and general nonfiction.

May 6, 2025 – May is Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.

April 29, 2025 – April is Autism Acceptance Month, which celebrates and honors the experiences and identities of autistic individuals. It emphasizes understanding, inclusion, and support, moving beyond awareness towards meaningful acceptance. 

April 21, 2025 – April is National Poetry Month. Launched by the Academy of American Poets in April 1996, National Poetry Month is a special occasion that celebrates poets’ integral role in our culture and that poetry matters.

April 15, 2025 – April is National Arab American Heritage Month, which honors the history and heritage of 3.5 million Arab Americans. Dive into the month by checking out these novels, memoirs, and more, by and about Arab Americans.

April 10, 2025 – The American Library Association released the Top 10 Most Challenged Books of 2024 list this week as part of the

April 3, 2025 – National Library Week is April 6-12, 2025, and the Cedar Rapids Public Library invites community members to join this celebration of the many ways libraries serve as hubs for learning, creativity, and con

April 2, 2025 – The Cedar Rapids Public Library is made possible by our incredible staff. And we are staffed by book lovers. To celebrate the people who keep our library running, we're highlighting different staff members and books they love.

March 26, 2025 – The Cedar Rapids Public Library Foundation and Lion Bridge Brewing Company have partnered to release Library Lager, a specialty limited-release beer, in celebration of the Westside Library project and National Library Week.&nb