Kettering Library

01/06/2026

This week is Libraries Change Lives Week and we're celebrating how libraries can change children's lives through literacy and reading.

Sharing books with little ones helps build their communication, listening and language skills by introducing new words and encouraging attention and interaction. 👶

To support this, we're created a lovely leaflet packed with helpful hints and tips for reading with your child. We also have out some examples of different types of books that can support your child's reading journey. 📖

You'll also find a collection of picture books in the children's area, all themed around the library and book adventures for your children to enjoy! 💙

01/06/2026

Spaces for next Monday's PLAY & LEARN FOR UNDER 1s go live in an hour. 👶

You know the drill. See you there! 👇

A playgroup with toys and sensory activities for under 1s and their grown-ups! This week we'll be playing with cars.

01/06/2026

June's title is the captivating 𝐁𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐬 & 𝐁𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐤𝐧𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬 by Travis Baldree. Available right now via BorrowBox! 📱📖

𝐹𝑒𝑟𝑛 ℎ𝑎𝑠 𝑤𝑒𝑎𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑙𝑙𝑛𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑎 𝑏𝑜𝑜𝑘𝑠𝑒𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑟’𝑠 𝑙𝑖𝑓𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑑𝑒𝑐𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑠, 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑛𝑜𝑤, 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑎𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑟𝑖𝑝𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑒𝑛𝑛𝑢𝑖, 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑠 ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑒𝑙𝑓 𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑇ℎ𝑢𝑛𝑒 𝑡𝑜 ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑔 𝑜𝑢𝑡 ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝑠ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔𝑙𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒 𝑎 𝑙𝑜𝑛𝑔-𝑎𝑏𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑓𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑛𝑑’𝑠 𝑐𝑜𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑝. 𝑊ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 𝑏𝑒 𝑎 𝑏𝑒𝑡𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑝𝑎𝑖𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔? 𝑆𝑢𝑟𝑒𝑙𝑦 𝑎 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑜𝑣𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑚𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑔𝑒 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑐𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑤ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑎𝑖𝑙𝑠 ℎ𝑒𝑟!
𝐼𝑓 𝑜𝑛𝑙𝑦 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔𝑠 𝑤𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑠𝑜 𝑠𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑒 . . .

01/06/2026

June's BorrowBox campaign titles are here and ready for you to enjoy with no wait times! 📱📱🥳

This month's bumper crop is as follows:

B̲o̲t̲h̲ ̲e̲B̲o̲o̲k̲ ̲a̲n̲d̲ ̲e̲A̲u̲d̲i̲o̲

- 𝑇ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔𝑠 𝑌𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝐹𝑢𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑆𝑒𝑙𝑓 𝑊𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑇ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑘 𝑌𝑜𝑢 𝐹𝑜𝑟 𝑏𝑦 𝑀𝑎𝑟𝑘 𝑅𝑜𝑤𝑒
- 𝐴𝑚 𝐼 𝐻𝑎𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝐹𝑢𝑛 𝑁𝑜𝑤? 𝑏𝑦 𝑆𝑢𝑧𝑖 𝑅𝑢𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑙𝑙
- 𝐵𝑟𝑖𝑔𝑎𝑛𝑑𝑠 & 𝐵𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑘𝑛𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑠 𝑏𝑦 𝑇𝑟𝑎𝑣𝑖𝑠 𝐵𝑎𝑙𝑑𝑟𝑒𝑒
- 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑅𝑒𝑠𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑂𝑢𝑟 𝐿𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑠 𝑏𝑦 𝐵𝑒𝑛𝑗𝑎𝑚𝑖𝑛 𝑀𝑎𝑟𝑘𝑜𝑣𝑖𝑡𝑠

e̲A̲u̲d̲i̲o̲ ̲o̲n̲l̲y̲

𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝐹𝑜𝑙𝑘 𝑜𝑓 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝐹𝑎𝑟𝑎𝑤𝑎𝑦 𝑇𝑟𝑒𝑒 𝑏𝑦 𝐸𝑛𝑖𝑑 𝐵𝑙𝑦𝑡𝑜𝑛
𝑊ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑊𝑒 𝐶𝑎𝑛 𝐾𝑛𝑜𝑤 𝑏𝑦 𝐼𝑎𝑛 𝑀𝑐𝐸𝑤𝑎𝑛
𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝐼𝑚𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑏𝑙𝑒 𝐹𝑜𝑟𝑡𝑢𝑛𝑒 𝑏𝑦 𝑅𝑖𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑂𝑠𝑚𝑎𝑛
𝐷𝑜𝑛’𝑡 𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝐻𝑖𝑚 𝐼𝑛 𝑏𝑦 𝐿𝑖𝑠𝑎 𝐽𝑒𝑤𝑒𝑙𝑙
𝑁𝑜𝑏𝑜𝑑𝑦’𝑠 𝐺𝑖𝑟𝑙 𝑏𝑦 𝑉𝑖𝑟𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑎 𝑅𝑜𝑏𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑠 𝐺𝑖𝑢𝑓𝑓𝑟𝑒

30/05/2026

🍼🎉𝙇𝙖𝙨𝙩 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙩 - 𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙢𝙥𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝘽𝙖𝙗𝙮 1930 – 𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧 12 𝙢𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙝𝙨🎊👶
Wayback Week – Day Seven: Baby Week Archives

It's the last day of 1930 Baby week! Wipe those tears away, no tantrums please- just think of all the fun we've had looking back 96 years to the mothers and babies of the past! If you enjoyed this wayback week- make sure to keep your eyes peeled for baby week 1928...

But now, back to the baby of the moment:
Say hello to Jessie Wildman, aged 1 year and 7 months – and following in some award-winning footsteps! 👶🏆Jessie was a true “legacy baby,” with her older brother having taken second place at just two years old.

Her mother recalled the surprise of the moment: “𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘤𝘬𝘦𝘥 𝘮𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢 𝘧𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘵𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘑𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘮𝘱𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘣𝘢𝘣𝘺!”

As for Jessie herself? She remained delightfully unfazed by her success- “𝘑𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘫𝘶𝘥𝘨𝘦𝘴’ 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥. 𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘸𝘦𝘥 𝘢 𝘣𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘶𝘪𝘵.” 🍪

However, Mrs Wildman suspected Jessie knew exactly how special her win was: “𝘐 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘯𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘮𝘱𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘐 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥𝘯’𝘵 𝘥𝘰 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘦𝘳. 𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘳𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨.” 💃

30/05/2026

𝗗𝗶𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄...? that Anthony Hopkins had some unusual inspiration for his portrayal of Hannibal Lecter? 🫘🍷

The iconic 𝘵𝘩-𝘵𝘩-𝘵𝘩-𝘵𝘩 lip roll was inspired by Bela Lugoi’s performance in Dracula (1931). Hopkins said, “𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘬𝘪𝘥, 𝘐’𝘥 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘪𝘳𝘭𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘋𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘢 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐’𝘥 𝘨𝘰 𝘵𝘩-𝘵𝘩-𝘵𝘩, 𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘭𝘵, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺’𝘥 𝘳𝘶𝘯 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨.” 🧛‍♂️

He also took inspiration from a friend who “𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘥 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘰𝘶𝘵” because he rarely blinked! The minimal blinking in his performance was designed to be reptile-like, cold and predatory. We think it worked! 🦎

30/05/2026

The 𝐒𝐔𝐌𝐌𝐄𝐑 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐄𝐍𝐆𝐄 is fast approaching and we, as always, are on the hunt for enthusiastic volunteers who would love to take on the challenge of helping the young'uns get HYPED about reading! 🤩📚

So, if you are aged between 14-24 and think you are up for the task, hit us up via email at [email protected].

30/05/2026

Final reminder that DOODLER'S ART CLUB is this very afternoon. Join the Art Gallery team as they celebrate the beauty of the natural world! 🏜️🦋

Almost the last Saturday of the month? That means Doodler's Art Club is nearly here!🥳

We're feeling inspired by the natural world this month. Pop along to our FREE art session and created your very own moveable artwork 🦋 Our doodling activities encourage kids to use their imagination and see the little details around us.

And when DAC is over, use the FREE activity pack to explore the Manor House Gardens and practice your drawing skills. What will you find?🐿️

See you on Saturday at 2pm🙂

More info here👉 https://bit.ly/4iWSRgn

29/05/2026

👶🎉𝗟𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻… 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝟭𝟵𝟯𝟬 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗕𝗮𝗯𝘆!🎊🍼
Wayback Week- Baby Week Archives: Day 6!

👑Meet Mary Ishbel Winter, aged 11 months – crowned Champion Baby of 1930! 👶
The Evening Telegraph reported that Mary Ishbel was a “General Election baby,” inspiring her distinctive middle name-shared with the daughter of then Prime Minister, Ramsay MacDonald.

Already a little local celebrity, she had been “𝘱𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘰𝘸𝘯,” with people frequently stopping her mother just to admire her. After having her photograph taken, Mary Ishbel became quite taken with herself too, reportedly doing nothing but kissing her own picture! 😙

Her mother tells readers that Mary Ishbel’s chief characteristic is that "𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘪𝘳𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘺 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘦𝘳... 𝘉𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘶𝘱 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘸𝘰 𝘣𝘰𝘺𝘴, 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘰𝘶𝘣𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘺 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘢 𝘣𝘪𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘵𝘰𝘮-𝘣𝘰𝘺"

I wonder what little Mary Ishbel went on to do!