August 15, 2010
When I feel the summer heat steaming from the pavement, my childhood memories of the bookmobile provide a cooling sensation to my spirit. This feeling came back last summer on a visit to Chicago when I happened upon a parade of bookmobiles of various ages. There it was: an old Ford grille with big, round […]
August 14, 2010
Every once in awhile you come across something that is just too good to be described, too amazing to waste the time necessary to convince someone else of why they should care. In these rare instances there is nothing to be done but to grab the person by the shoulders, shake vigorously and shout in […]
August 13, 2010
One of the great things about working in the library is that you are constantly exposed to new things, you are always learning. Just today I came across a comment from an astute EPL patron on our library website which alerted me to a great new online resource for book recommendations. The website is called Five […]
August 13, 2010
Over a decade ago, Harry Potter blazed a trail for adults to publicly read children’s books – at least without too much shame. Even though there’s less of a stigma for this sort of thing, I must admit I’m still a bit embarrassed to read Kid Lit on my commute. On the bus today, I tried to discreetly read […]
August 12, 2010
In 1972, as the women’s rights movement was building steam to take on the Establishment, this iconic poster graced the walls of many a bedroom, office, kitchen, and dorm. It was designed by The Women’s Graphic Collective based here in Chicago, and thousands of posters were sold all around the world. This bold statement of what […]
August 11, 2010
I hear voices inside my head. Don’t worry, they are not telling me to do dangerous or illegal things. They are benign and quite useful. I suspect that many folks hear these kinds of voices, too. They are the voices of the narrators of books. When I read a novel narrated by a character in […]
August 7, 2010
One Book One Chicago has chosen Toni Morrison’s latest work, “A Mercy”, as its 19th title for 2010. Set in the 17th century, “A Mercy” is the tale of African American enslaved girl, Florens, the Anglo Dutch landowner, Jacob Vaark, and other white indentured servants who labor on the Northeast American farm where Florens is a slave. Programming around […]
August 7, 2010
The vacation and retirement community in Yates Township located in a small rural northwestern part of Michigan near the southeastern border of Lake County, is the site of the first annual Idelwild Writers & Poets Conference, August 12-14, 2010 in Idlewild, MI. Called the “Black Eden” during it’s heyday, Idlewild was one of only a few resorts in […]
August 7, 2010
Renowned artist and art historian, Dr. Samella Lewis, and author, Dr. Richard Long, will present a lecture at Chicago Public Library Woodson Regional Library at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Agust 14. The two lecturers will speak at length about James Richmond Barthe’ (1901-1989). Dr. Lewis is the author of, Barthe’: His Life in Art. For information, […]
August 5, 2010
Great interview with Anthony Horowitz, British author and bestselling novelist of the YA series featuring Alex Rider. Horowitz responds to questions on his sources of inspiration, his childhood, and how he handled ending his extremely popular series. Heard on NPR.
