September 2009

  • Hmongs New Year Festival

    There is something about other ethnic groups and cultures in American that never fails to fascinate me!  As a child of immigrant parents, I’ve always had a keen interest in other people’s culture, and especially their “immigrant experience”.  A few months ago, I re-read The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman. This book… Continue reading

  • Three excellent picture books

    My family recently discovered three new picture books that have become read-aloud favorites. Wombat Walkabout by Carol Diggory Shields; illustrated by Sophie Blackall Six wombats with charming names like Jack and Pru go on walkabout. But a hungry dingo with a sack is following close behind when one by one each wombat gets distracted by… Continue reading

  • The highly-charged world of medical research labs

    Recently, we have been reading about the tragic and chilling death of Yale graduate student Annie Le.  Her story is intricately tied in with its setting, a state-of-the-art research lab in the basement of a Yale building. The stakes are huge at this level of research; for example, normally a police investigation into such an… Continue reading

  • Trying to judge a Russian book by its cover

    One of the more interesting parts of my job as a librarian for Mobile Services is going on the monthly Russian Day bookmobile run. We visit six low-income housing buildings in Seattle that have a high number of Russian-speaking residents. We bring books, magazines, and movies in Russian and, most importantly, Leszek, a librarian from the Central Library… Continue reading

  • Get Lost (Part 2)

                                 There are signs…                Dividing in…                               That I couldn’t abide…  I wouldn’t miss it again…          Burning every bridge that I cross…               To find some beautiful place…                                            To get lost… First stop was Portland: 2 nights, 2 days We pulled on to Division Street around ten at night, parked the car, unloaded the bare necessities,… Continue reading

  • Seattle’s New Bookfest: of course you’re going.

    I am bummed. After five years without a local literary festival, there’s a brand spanking new one launching not just in my fair city, but right smack in my own neighborhood, Columbia City, aka the best neighborhood in the northwest; yes, I’m biased. The first annual Seattle Bookfest will be happening on October 24th and 25th at the Columbia City Community Center,… Continue reading

  • More Fall Staff Favorites for Children: Picture Books II

    Egg Drop, by Mini Grey E GREY Ever wonder what really happened to Humpty Dumpty? Well, in this modern day tale, an egg dreams of flying, finds a tall, tall tower, and WHEEEEE!,… he jumps!….SPLAT!!  In Humpty Dumpty fashion, his friends rush to put him back together, but, alas, to no avail. Read this book… Continue reading

  • Booklovers, beware!

    It is that time of year again, and I’m in serious danger. It is absolutely essential that I do not even THINK of going to the Friends of the Library’s Fall Book Sale coming up next weekend. Under no circumstances whatsoever. Not within a mile of the place! I’m a librarian surrounded by books every day, so you might… Continue reading

  • Appreciating Book Bloggers

    Did you know we’re smack in the middle of Book Blogger’s Appreciation Week? Yuh-huh. So let me take this opportunity to appreciate a recent arrival on the scene that really fills a gap in the local blogosphere: Reading Local Seattle. Started by up this past July by local author Matt Briggs as a sibling of Reading… Continue reading

  • Get Lost (Part 1)

    Road trippin’ with my two favorite allies… Fully loaded we got snacks and supplies… It’s time to leave this town… It’s time to steal away… Let’s go get lost… Anywhere in the U.S.A. Let’s go get lost…                                                                  Let’s go get lost… As a teenager I couldn’t wait to go on a road trip, but with… Continue reading

  • ¡Viva! Celebrate Latin America’s Independence Days and National Hispanic Heritage Month with Children’s Books!

    September 15th through October 15th is designated as National Hispanic Heritage Month.  It is a time to celebrate the rich and diverse cultures of Latin America and the struggle for independence.    Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua celebrate their Independence Days on September 15th, Mexico on September 16th, and Chile on September 18th.… Continue reading

  • Through a child’s eyes

    If a child’s voice in an adult novel doesn’t ring true, it’s the worst sort of blasphemy: kids are about as real as it comes and it’s easy to spot a charlatan. But when I read a book that sounds like my inner child, or a childhood friend, I fall right in. For instance, the… Continue reading

  • Research: filtered vs. unfiltered terminals.

    In 1970 when I started my first job as a librarian at the Rugby Branch of  The Brooklyn Public Library, I was surprised to discover that the nearly 1000 page Book of Health was kept in the reference desk. The library did not intend to restrict the use of Book of Health, but to keep… Continue reading

  • The Moviegoer by Walker Percy

    Editor’s note: Susan Hildreth, our City Librarian, will be checking in with us from time to time to let us know what she’s been reading. I had never read this 1961 novel that won the National Book Award in 1962. It was being read by my book group so I was enthusiastic about reading an award… Continue reading

  • Music + Books = Delightful Synergy

    Music and reading are subjects that, separately, many people are passionately enthusiastic about.  But what about great music-book pairings for those of us who love them both?  A way to soundtrack our reading, if you will.  For my own personal love match, there is something about the Death Cab for Cutie album Transatlanticism that I… Continue reading

  • Fall Staff Favorites for Children: Picture Books

    Augustus and His Smile, by Catherine Rayner E RAYNER              Stunningly bold illustrations and simple text are artfully paired to tell the tale of a tiger who sets off to find his lost smile.  Augustus searches the jungles, mountains, deserts, and oceans of the world without success.  In the end, he discovers that his smile comes… Continue reading