September 2014

The Power of Truth: Easy Biographies for Kids

September 30, 2014

Sometimes a book that tells a true story of a fantastic adventure or a monumental idea that changed the world can overshadow any picture book or work of fiction, simply because the story is true. There is something very powerful about telling a child, this story actually happened. Done well, children’s books can bring events… Continue reading
Movie Mondays: Slow Burn Thrillers

September 29, 2014

Slow burn thrillers aren’t for everyone. They require patience, and some viewers find them boring. They don’t always provide answers, leaving viewers to infer what’s really going on. They’re often tense, dark and brooding. For me, it’s the character development and moral ambiguity that makes these worth the investment. Continue reading
Seattle Rep’s ‘The Vaudevillians’ and Seattle’s vaudevillian history

September 26, 2014

By Karen K. In Seattle Repertory Theatre’s production of The Vaudevillians, Seattle natives Jerick Hoffer (Jinkx Monsoon, RuPaul’s Drag Race) and Richard Andriessen (Major Scales) star as “The Vaudevillians,” a fictional 1920s duo who were literally frozen in time while touring in Antarctica. Thawing out nearly a century later, they discover their original music has… Continue reading
Meet Drag King Ernie Von Schmaltz at Banned! Books in Drag

September 26, 2014

For our Banned! Books in Drag event at Neighbours Nightclub hosted by David Schmader this Saturday, Sept. 27 (6:30-9:00 p.m.), we asked Drag King Ernie Von Schmaltz, about his first LGBTQ book: A pivotal LGBTQ book I remember reading and re-reading is Leslie Fienberg’s Stone Butch Blues. I first read it 10+ years ago when I… Continue reading
The Best of NFFTY-Cinema in Tune

September 25, 2014

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LGB-T!: Transgender Materials at the Library

September 25, 2014

Recently, The Seattle Public Library tabled at the Gender Odyssey conference, the first time a library has been present at a major national conference for the trans community. In preparation for the conference, John from the Capitol Hill branch assembled a number of lists to highlight some of the many trans materials we have in our collection, from teen fiction to… Continue reading
Romantic Wednesdays: LGBTQ

September 24, 2014

One of the things you’ll find at our upcoming Banned! Books in Drag event at Neighbours Nightclub on Saturday, 9/27 are lots of LGBTQ booklists. Among them will be lists of gay and lesbian romance. Here are some hot gay and lesbian romances to try: Lickin’ License by Intelligent Allah This urban fiction lesbian story… Continue reading
LGBTQ: Banned & Challenged Books

September 23, 2014

During Banned Books Week, we highlight the importance of the Freedom to Read. But what does that mean, exactly? While we welcome patron comments about materials in our collection, upholding intellectual freedom means we believe our collection should have something to please and offend everyone. That means a well-rounded collection should include materials that someone… Continue reading
Movie Mondays: Writer Directors

September 22, 2014

Directors who pen their own screenplays are a dime a dozen. The Coen brothers write their own films as do Paul Thomas Anderson, Jia Zhangke, and Jim Jarmusch. And while there are a number of novelists who have tried their hand at directing, from Michael Crichton to Norman Mailer, few filmmakers have done the reverse… Continue reading
Science Fiction Friday – Leading Women

September 19, 2014

By Richard C. Sometimes it’s good to zoom out on your reading tendencies and see what you’re missing. The leading women in these sci/fi choices may cause you to wonder if some diversity would refresh your favorite themes, or perhaps even spark some new ideas: 1) Babel-17 by Samuel R. Delaney. A poet, linguist, and ship’s captain sci/fi heroine?!… Continue reading
Let off some steam

September 18, 2014

— Posted by Chelsea W. I don’t know about you guys, but I have been super stressed out lately. And, when this happens, I find it best to find a good album and turn up the music really LOUD and to LET IT ALL OUT. Here are three albums to help that help… Continue reading
Seattle’s Favorite Poems — read aloud at Town Hall Thursday night

September 17, 2014

Thursday night at Town Hall — poets and poetry lovers read aloud. We asked former U.S. Poet Laureate Robert Pinsky for his thoughts on this wonderful community tradition for celebrating poetry: I think the truly memorable Favorite Poem Reading at Seattle’s Town Hall years back was the first event at that noble space in… Continue reading
Romantic Wednesdays: Spotlight on LGBTQ Romance

September 17, 2014

Posted by guest blogger Tracy Timmons Gray If you’re looking for love stories, then the Library is a great place to start! There, you’ll find loads of romances, from mysteries to historicals, from sci-fi to contemporary, and you’ll find a ton of books that star LGBTQ main characters falling in love and finding that awesome… Continue reading
The Librarians, coming soon to a small screen near you

September 16, 2014

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Movie Mondays: Movies about Movies

September 15, 2014

Last week, we looked at pictures about pictures — films about art and artists — and this week we look at movies about movies – documentaries about individual films. These four documentaries — two about classic films and two about films that were never made — are required viewing for cinephiles. Continue reading
Science Fiction Friday: Winter Is… Here?

September 12, 2014

By Richard C. Even with summer waning, winter is coming has become a popular phrase, what with the ice-cold specter of death and desolation hovering over the latest installments of A SoIaF. Eagerly awaiting the release of Winds of Winter, know that the coldest season has long snowed up the pages of sci/fi, pages buried deeply in ice ages and harsh glacial landscapes, where the stark realities… Continue reading
Take a Hike

September 11, 2014

My first hike was at Camp Waskowitz in fifth grade. I was terrified my asthmatic lungs were going to slow me down, but although I wasn’t the fastest hiker, I made it! It would be another five years though before I would attempt another hike, this time Steamboat Rock. I was a teenager and probably… Continue reading
Romantic Wednesday: Our Romance Genre Challenge heads to YA and new adult romance

September 10, 2014

by Selby G. Part 5 of our Reading Challenge focusing on subgenres of romance. The late teen years and early 20’s are times in life when things change rapidly and emotions run high. To appeal to these audiences, romance publishers have added a label between young adult (YA/teen) and general romance: New Adult. Young Adult… Continue reading