June 2012

  • Science Fiction Fridays: Fifty shades of the fantastic

    The hottest book right now, for better or for worse, is Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James. It’s not really surprising that book is so popular. The combination of intense interpersonal drama and steamy erotica makes it a perfect book for word-of-mouth recommendation.   However, we science fiction and fantasy fans want a little… Continue reading

  • Beyond Tea & Crumpets: Gritty Brits on DVD

    Think of British TV mystery and you may conjure up images of teacup wielding dowager sleuths, peering through the foxgloves at some suspicious goings on about the Village green. Lord Peter Wimsey and Miss Marple. Arsenic and tweed. But there’s a whole other side to British Crime – a tough contemporary side where hardened detectives battle it… Continue reading

  • Universal Class—take a free online class, from a certified teacher, through the Seattle Public Library

    If you have a library card, chances are good that you have used the library at some point to enhance your knowledge of a topic or a craft. You might have borrowed a cookbook to try out a new cuisine, taken guitar lessons on DVD, used a study guide to ace a test, or accessed… Continue reading

  • Infinity Crisis

    Author Kate Wilhelm is in town, and will be appearing at the Central Library this Friday, June 29 on her way to the opening night of a new play based on her work, produced byThe Infinty Box Theatre Project. Artistic Director David Mills tells us about it: What happens when what you watch becomes what… Continue reading

  • Long May You Run

    If the Solstice Parade and Pride festivities have you all worn out and you’re planning to take it easy next weekend, come on over to the Greenwood Car Show! Take a leisurely stroll down Greenwood Ave N. on Saturday, June 30th, where you’ll be able to drool over 1.5 miles of hot rods, collector cars, antique gems… Continue reading

  • Science Fiction Fridays: Queering reality

    If it turns out that the mopey weather keep you from going out to the Pride celebrations going on this weekend in Seattle, don’t feel like you still can’t celebrate! You can still have a great time by curling up with one of these superb science fiction and fantasy books that feature some equally ace… Continue reading

  • Crime: Imagining Jack the Ripper

    Whitechapel, London, 1888 Would Sherlock Holmes identify Jack the Ripper using his astute powers of deduction? Arthur Conan Doyle never put Holmes on the Whitechapel set, but Lyndsay Faye pits the pipe-smoking, cognitively-advanced detective against the Ripper with disastrous results in her novel Dust and Shadow: An Account of the Ripper Killings by Dr. John… Continue reading

  • LGBT Pride

    June is here, which means LGBT Pride Parades are taking to the streets of major cities, including ours: the Seattle Pride Parade and Seattle Pride Fest take place on the weekend of June 23-24! Names like Ellen, Harvey, Elton, Dan, and Wanda will float about, rekindling our knowledge of famous gays and lesbians throughout our… Continue reading

  • Your Next 5 Books: British authors you’ll love

    In this column we regularly highlight a Your Next 5 Books submission that we find interesting, funny, unique, or useful to other readers. Submit Your Next 5 Books entry now, or stop by and see us in person, and maybe you could see your (anonymous) reading habits on Shelf Talk! Continue reading

  • Science Fiction Fridays: Sad birds sing the sweetest songs

    I am very pleased to announce that mystery, thriller and science fiction wizard Kate Wilhelm will be joining us at the Library at the end of the month for a reading! If you’ve never read Kate Wilhelm before you are most assuredly missing out. From her short stories to her novels, Wilhelm has a way… Continue reading

  • Crime: Stealing Mona Lisa

    You think someone would notice if the Mona Lisa (or La Gioconda, as I now like to call her) disappeared from a wall in the Louvre. But in 1911, the painting was gone an entire day before anyone reported it stolen. Guards actually did notice it was gone, but assumed it had been taken by… Continue reading

  • Many Shades of Black (and White, Jack)

    After many months of waiting, my patience was rewarded and I checked out a copy of Jack White’s new solo album Blunderbuss. To keep me busy while I waited my turn, I decided to revisit some of his earlier works and some other great albums with a relationship to “black” or “white.” In hindsight, I… Continue reading

  • Your Next 5 Books: Fantasy with females

    In this column we regularly highlight a Your Next 5 Books submission that we find interesting, funny, unique, or useful to other readers. Submit Your Next 5 Books entry now, or stop by and see us in person, and maybe you could see your (anonymous) reading habits on Shelf Talk! Continue reading

  • Science Fiction Fridays: Don’t wait! Act now!

    Lots of great science fiction authors have books out this month, but with brand new books from well-known science fiction and fantasy authors there is usual wait list for their books at the Library. With that in mind, here is a list of author read alikes that are available right now while you’re waiting for… Continue reading

  • The Phantom Tollbooth at 51

    One of my favorite books of all time, The Phantom Tollbooth, the novel by Norton Juster and illustrated by Jules Feiffer, celebrates its 51st birthday this year. It is fitting that I am writing to mark its 51st birthday, rather than its 50th because the book itself is a celebration of the unusual in the… Continue reading

  • The Rules We Live By

    Society is constantly telling us how we should behave: behavior is enforced through rules and laws, schools and teachers have certain expectations, and religious leaders preach about conduct based on sacred texts. Most often, we learn how to behave through our parents and families. We are raised for the better part of our years by… Continue reading

  • Science Fiction Fridays: Eating what you’re reading

    I thought about writing some witty intro about Soylent Green being people, or a joke about asking a bartender for his strongest chalice of elven wine. However, in the end I just decided to let these delightfully unique cookbooks speak for themselves. What a great weekend to lock yourself inside and make some sci-fi and… Continue reading