All HPL Branches are closed on Sunday August 2, 2026. Bookmobile is off the road and Extended Access is unavailable. Our Virtual Branch is open at hpl.ca. www.hpl.ca/hours
All Branches Closed August 2
Published:
Friday, July 31, 2026 - 9:00am
All Branches Closed for Civic Holiday
All HPL Branches are closed on Sunday August 3, 2026 for Civic Holiday. Bookmobile is off the road and Extended Access is unavailable. Our Virtual Branch is open at hpl.ca. www.hpl.ca/hours
Published:
Friday, July 31, 2026 - 8:00am
Kenilworth Branch Accessible Washroom Out of Order
The accessible washroom at Kenilworth Branch is not working. We aim to get it fixed quickly.
Published:
Thursday, July 30, 2026 - 5:45pm
New Loan Periods - Effective Monday, August 31
As of Monday, August 31, new loan periods will come into effect to shorten the wait time for popular hold items.
DVD Express - 3 days
DVDs and Blu-rays - 7 days (fiction, children's and languages)
Magazines - 7 days
Bestseller Express - 14 days
DVDs and Blu-rays - 14 days (non-fiction and TV series)
Books - 21 days
Music/Books on CD and Children's Express - 21 days
Please visit www.hpl.ca/borrowing for more details.
Published:
Tuesday, July 28, 2026 - 2:30pm
Study Halls Pause for Summer Break
After Hours Study Hall is not available in July and August. Hours will resume Tuesday, September 8. www.hpl.ca/study-halls
Published:
Tuesday, June 23, 2026 - 3:00pm
Writer in Residence
Authors Lisa Richter, Elizabeth Ruth and Lisa Ko are the next three Mabel Pugh Taylor Writers in Residence.
Lisa’s term begins this September and runs until April 2027.
Elizabeth follows in 2027-2028 and then Lisa in 2028-2029.
The residency allows authors time to work on their craft and mentor creative writers at the university and in the Hamilton community through one-on-one consultations.
The program is a collaboration with HPL, McMaster’s Department of English and Cultural Studies and the McMaster University Library. It is named for Mabel Pugh Taylor, who graduated from McMaster in 1922 – the first woman in her family to attend university.
Lisa Richter - Writer in Residence, 2026-2027
Photo by Kenzie Allen
Lisa is an award-winning poet, writer and educator who has written three books of poetry: Closer to Where We Began, Nautilus and Bone, which won the Canadian Jewish Literary Award for Poetry in 2021.
Her poetry is published in literary journals and anthologies, including Best Canadian Poetry, The Fiddlehead, The Malahat Review, The New Quarterly, and Locations of Grief.
Details about Lisa’s office hours at McMaster and HPL will be available soon.
Elizabeth Ruth - Writer in Residence, 2027-2028
Photo by Samuel Engelking
Elizabeth is the author of the novels Ten Good Seconds of Silence, Smoke, Matadora, and Semi-Detached, as well as a collection of poetry, This Report Is Strictly Confidential.
Her work was recognized by the Writers’ Trust of Canada Fiction Prize, the City of Toronto Book Award, the Amazon First Novel Award and One Book One Community.
She is also the author of a plain-language novella for adult literacy learners, Love You to Death, and the editor of the anthology, Bent on Writing: Contemporary Queer Tales.
Lisa Ko – Writer in Residence 2028-29
Photo by Juliana Sohn
Lisa is the author of Memory Piece and the national bestselling novel The Leavers, which was a finalist for the National Book Award for Fiction and the PEN/Hemingway Award. She also won the PEN/Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction in 2016.
Her writing has appeared in Best American Short Stories, McSweeney’s and The Believer.
