Santa Barbara Public Library

Celebrate the Library and the Zoo with your library card!

Featuring art inspired by Santa Barbara Zoo and created by Library Card Design Contest winners Kelly Hudson, Eleanore Preloger, and Khayukti Gandrothula these new designs are now available at any Santa Barbara Public Library location or Library on the Go stop.

Sign up for your card today or replace your current card with a fresh new design.

Learn more at sbplibrary.org.

New limited-edition library cards have arrived!

Featuring three winning designs from our Wild About Reading Library Card Design Contest, these special cards celebrate the Santa Barbara Zoo, Santa Barbara Public Library, and a love of reading.

Available at all library locations and Library on the Go.
While supplies last!

What's your next move?? ♟️

Chess Club meets every other Friday at the Central Library from 2:30 - 4 pm. Players of all skill levels and ages are welcome.
No registration required just drop in and play!

Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with a visit to the Santa Barbara Museum of Art! Enjoy free admission on Sunday, September 27, when you present your library card, and explore captivating works by Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, and Argentinian artists, along with much more.

Join 805EPIC and IndivisibleSB for a Voting Rights Forum in partnership with the City of Santa Barbara on September 23 from 6 - 8 PM at the Central Library | Faulkner Gallery. The event will provide information to help eligible voters register, understand their voting rights, access reliable information, and safely submit their ballots, with a focus on understanding voter disinformation.

High school students and their parents/guardians: Join experienced writer and college essay coach Taylor Ross, who will lead a workshop addressing common concerns and provide tips, tricks, and tools for writing strong college admissions essays this Tuesday, September 22, 5:30–6:30 p.m. Attendees will learn essential information for the college essay process, with special focus on the timeline.

This workshop is recommended for rising juniors and seniors in High School, accompanied by their parents/guardians. Registration is required, snacks will be provided.

Register here:
https://calendar.library.santabarbaraca.gov/event/destress-college-essay-process-workshop-teens-parents-32072

We Want to Hear From You!
Tell Us Your Summer Reading 2026 Story! How did you engage with the Library this summer? What would you like us to know?

Take a small survey:
https://forms.cloud.microsoft/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=1ifjWL21yUSYiqzygxkLYrH2y1eoQPBNpwdaIiRpbsxUMjczS080NlhTNFZQQllDV0g1MllYNkdDSy4u

Annie Lamont-Ayers joins us for an engaging look at botanical exploration across the California Channel Islands on Thursday, September 17 in the Faulkner Gallery! Drawing from fieldwork on Santa Rosa, Santa Cruz, San Clemente, and San Nicolas islands, Annie will share stories from her exploration on some of California's most biodiverse landscapes.

This talk will highlight the botanical collections on Santa Rosa Island, along with discoveries of new island plant records and the support of community science platforms.

Annie Lamont-Ayers, Herbarium Collections Manager at Santa Barbara Botanic Garden, first cut her teeth exploring botany in San Luis Obispo. Annie has subsequently spent time working in plant museums in Flagstaff, Arizona and St. Louis, Missouri. Before working at the Garden, Annie conducted remote fieldwork in Yosemite National Park, Grand Canyon National Park, Carrizo Plains National Monument, Los Padres National Forest, and Angeles National Forest. Since working at Santa Barbara Botanic Garden, Annie has had rich experiences in California. The highlight of this talk will be about her time on the California Channel Islands.

Trail Talks
Central Library
Thursday, September 17
6:30-7:30pm