May 2015

  • Science Fiction Checklist Challenge: Kids

    ~posted by Jenny C. We’re coming to a close on the Science Fiction Checklist Challenge shortly, but I wanted to make sure there were a few more offerings for the child sci-fi reader out there. Oddly, while children’s fiction is crammed to the gills with fantasy and magic, there’s not much SF on the shelf,… Continue reading

  • Hidden Humor

    A recent blog post by Shannon Hale about funny girls getting shushed got me thinking about women writers who are really stinkin’ funny, but not usually marketed or thought of as humor writers. Then I looked on my nightstand and saw a Katie MacAlister book.  The Importance of Being Alice is labelled a romance, the… Continue reading

  • Nightstand Reads: Seattle author Bridget Foley shares some favorites

    We are thrilled to have Seattle novelist and screenwriter Bridget Foley, author of Hugo & Rose, here today to share a few favorites from her nightstand pile. Eleven years ago when I moved in with my husband I insisted that we keep no bookshelves in our bedroom. Since we are both writers, we are drowning in… Continue reading

  • All in the Boat

    By Di Z. Eddie Huang is a brash, early-30s restaurateur and TV personality who’s been making waves in pop culture for the last half decade, which in today’s world seems like a lifetime. Those who have followed Huang can instantly recognize his quasi New York accent which he acquired from years of listening to Biggie and… Continue reading

  • Science Fiction Checklist Challenge: Alternative History

    ~posted by Selby G. History is a series of events. But what if some of those important events had a different outcome? What if the Soviet Union won the cold war or Kennedy didn’t get assassinated? How would that change the world? Science fiction writers are known for pondering the wild realms of speculation and… Continue reading

  • Seattle Cooks…Digitally

    Everyone knows that The Seattle Public Library has an outstanding cookbook collection. But you may not know that you can check out “e-cookbooks” through OverDrive. If you’re a messy cook prone to spilling ingredients on page after page, then this could be the best option for you! OverDrive has more than two dozen cookbooks, food and wine… Continue reading

  • Mad Men is gone, but the Music lives on

    ~posted by Frank There’s so much to miss about Mad Men. Multi-dimensional characters. Deliberate pacing. Cryptic dialogue. Glamorous production. Perspectives on the 1960s. Smoking and drinking. And, the music. Although much of the music was limited to the closing credits, they often captured the essence of the episode, and introduced me to some great music from the 1960s… Continue reading

  • The Science Fiction Checklist Challenge: Hard SF

    By Richard C. Start your Hard Science Fiction Checklist Challenge with a just-published and aptly-titled short story collection, Carbide Tipped Pens. Number 1 is called The Blue Afternoon that Lasted Forever, and there’s more intensity in its 13 pages than you’ve ever had before. Yes indeed, you’ll find it a work of Hard SF that’s… Continue reading

  • If Walls Could Talk: The Bussell Family – Part 2

    By Jade D If you missed my first post about the history of the Bussell family and their home, take a look at Part 1 to catch up! So here’s what really happened, as best as I can tell. Charles Bussell and his first wife, Elizabeth, bought their Madrona home in 1900. Despite the stately… Continue reading

  • If Walls Could Talk: The Bussell Family – Part 1

    ~posted by Jade It all began with a picture of a house. I was researching a recent addition to our Seattle Historical Photograph Collection and all I had to go on was the name “Bussell” on the back of the photograph. Quick searches in HistoryLink and the Seattle Times historical newspaper database revealed it to… Continue reading

  • You Must Read This: A Little Life

    Last year, I attended a workshop with sales representatives from the major publishing houses promoting forthcoming books. One particular rep discussed dozens of titles, but she stopped and reflected on A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara. She read the manuscript and knew that it was special, and that it would be one of the most outstanding fiction titles of 2015.… Continue reading

  • Science Fiction Checklist Challenge: Graphic Novels

    ~Posted by Daniel S. Science fiction and graphic novels go together like a cape and a mask. You may not have considered it before, but the superhero genre really is just another version of sci-fi. Think about all the sci-fi concepts that pop up in your favorite comics: Radiation turns an ordinary man into a… Continue reading

  • Get Your Banh Mi On

    I love banh mi! Those amazing Vietnamese sandwiches have occupied many coffee shop visits with friends. However, finding time to go get my banh mi fix can be somewhat of a pain. But then…The Banh Mi Handbook: Recipes for Crazy-delicious Vietnamese Sandwiches by Andrea Quynhgiao Nguyen crossed my path one day at work and when… Continue reading

  • Tigers!

    ~posted by SPL staff Tigers (Panthera tigris), the largest of all cats, are critically endangered. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), fewer than 2,500 adult tigers remain in the wild today. There were over 100,000 a century ago. They have lost over 90% of their natural habitat and are now found… Continue reading

  • Science Fiction Checklist Challenge: Cyberpunk

    ~posted by Meranda T. There are many people who claim to be the inventors of Cyberpunk but the true inventor is highly debated. Cyberpunk is essentially about technology, specifically the Internet. It’s social decay wrapped in high technology; the ability to directly connect to the internet and interface with it in a virtual fashion; or… Continue reading