Libraries are a hub of connection.

This year’s Festival of Libraries tagline is “Bound Together, Connected Through Stories” and now, more than ever, we want to highlight the ways we can connect through over 100 of Greater Manchester’s libraries. The festival will encompass more than 100 events between the 10th and 14th June, promoting creativity, hosting amazing performances, and bringing communities together across borders.

This year’s festival celebrates the multiculturalism at the heart of Manchester, connecting us all to our shared community through people’s heritage.

Through these events, we are connected across borders:

The Rising Sun Documentary | 13th June, Levenshulme Old Library

Join us for a screening of the powerful documentary The Rising Sun. The documentary is about a happy life that was destroyed by Russia, leaving darkness, uncertainty, and fear. It is a heartbreaking story of a young woman who, with her young son and a great tragedy of her own, found herself in the UK because of the war in Ukraine. 

We are also delighted to say that the lead actor from the film will be attending the event at Levenshulme Old Library for a talk with the audience after the screening.

A Dance For My Foremothers | 13th June, Manchester Central Library

Dance has long brought people together, and is a key part of the Baganda People of Uganda. This workshop explores how dance can challenge authoritarian rule, focusing on how Baganda dances strengthen community and empowerment. Led by Peninah Wampamba, a researcher of indigenous practises and women’s health, the session connects dance with politics, health and decolonisation. You will also be invited to take part in dancing yourself.

We Should Be Friends Forever | 1st-30th June, Manchester Poetry Library

Multilingual city poet Charlotte Shevchenko Knight led a poetry exchange project that tasked primary school children in Manchester and Odesa. The final set of translated poems are now being presented on specially printed postcards and displayed in a pop up exhibition at Manchester Poetry Library as part of the festival.

Barcelona Scenes | 1st June-31st July, Manchester Central Library

Barcelona Scenes is a long running exhbition that explores the deep and long-standing relationship between the city and the comic-book medium. From early twentieth-century satirical illustrations to contemporary graphic novels, Barcelona has been a constant source of inspiration for comic creators in Spain and beyond, and a key centre in the development of the national industry.

Focusing on iconic settings such as Gaudí’s architecture and the Gothic Quarter, the exhibition shows how artists from Catalan, Spanish, European and American traditions have captured the city’s spirit across genres ranging from humour and adventure to noir, social drama and political storytelling.

Storytelling: Los sueños de Ilán | 13th June, Instituto Cervantes

Join Instituto Cervantes Manchester for a children’s reading session in Spanish featuring El sueño de Ilán (Ilán’s Dream). This gentle, thoughtful story explores how children understand the loss of a loved one and offers a supportive way to talk about grief. Through this unfinished tale from the Coloria collection, young readers are invited to reflect, imagine, and create their own ending.

Jordanian Comics Exhibition | 1st-30th June, Bolton Library

Jordanian Comics are celebrated at an exhibition at Bolton Central Library. These comics were drawn by amazing artists inspired by true stories from Jordan’s disabled individuals.

Fanzeen is a collective that launched in Amman, Jordan at F.A.D.A. 317 back in 2018. Why? They wanted to write and draw comics the way they wanted to.  Each issue invites us to meet new artists, who find themselves inspired by the seasoned artists of Fanzeen. Nothing like allowing artists to roam free within the pages of a comic book.

These events are just a few of the eclectic offerings that are celebrating Greater Manchester’s libraries, to find out more about this year’s festival, explore the full programme here.