October 2016

  • Bus Reads for October

    The Well by Catherine Chanter has an edge of magical realism, but for the most part it is the struggle for life, marriage, family, and self under pressure; I loved it. Mark and Ruth Ardingly seek a new start. They leave their London life behind and find their new home at The Well. The Well turns… Continue reading

  • The Other Side of the Rainbow: Homeless GLBTQ Youth

    Follow us throughout the fall for posts which highlight library resources and information that supports the Tiny: Streetwise Revisited exhibit at the Central Library and its community programming. This is my second year on the Rainbow Book List Committee whose charge is: “To select from the year’s publications, books that reflect gay/lesbian/bisexual/trans-gendered/queer-questioning (glbtq) experience for young… Continue reading

  • History, only better!

    Don’t get me wrong, I love history, but sometimes I need a more satisfying narrative. Here are a few titles that will transport you to another time and place and you may learn a little history at the same time: Secret Book of Frida Kahlo by F.G. Haghenbeck This fictionalized version of Frida Kahlo’s life… Continue reading

  • Black Lives Matter At The Library

    Today across the city, many Seattle Public School teachers and staff are wearing Black Lives Matter t-shirts and stickers, holding rallies before school, and teaching lessons on Black history and institutionalized racism in a district-wide action, #BlackLivesMatterAtSchool. Here is more information about the action. To support these very important conversations happening throughout our city with… Continue reading

  • Retiring With a Plan

    Last month, I suggested some books to get you started on investing. This month, we move on to the different but related topic of retirement planning. Those of us who are fortunate enough to be employed for a significant number of years expect to retire at some point. The choices that we make years –… Continue reading

  • A note from Brit Bennett, author of ‘The Mothers’

    When I was sixteen, I started my first job at the Oceanside Public Library, a job that I, naturally, assumed would entail sitting at a desk, answering the occasional question, and spending the rest of my shift powering through as many books as I could. Little did I know what being a library page actually… Continue reading

  • We Are Tiny: Streetwise Fiction

    Follow us throughout the fall for posts which highlight library resources and information that supports the Tiny: Streetwise Revisited exhibit at the Central Library and its community programming. The life of Erin Blackwell can be flipped through in a book and analyzed through the television screen, but don’t think for a minute that she’s not… Continue reading

  • A Respite in Provence

    The dark, dank atmosphere of England, Scotland, and Scandinavia lends itself to wonderful mysteries to savor. Such mystery masters like Peter Robinson, Henning Mankell, Ian Rankin, Deborah Crombie, Mark Billingham, Peter Lovesey, Camilla Lackberg, Tana French and Adrian McKinty are breathtaking in their ability to grab you by your lapels and not let go until… Continue reading

  • Films to inspire you to change the world: Recommended picks from Seattle’s Social Justice Film Festival

    Our guest post today is thanks to Michelle Dillon, librarian for Seattle’s groundbreaking and award-winning Books to Prisoners, a non-profit organization that puts thousands of books into the hands of incarcerated individuals each year. Learn more about the importance of this work in promoting literacy and reducing recidivism in this recent article from The Guardian, and learn about how you… Continue reading

  • A Bit of Library Magic: Ancestry Library Edition

    I believe in library magic. I’ve seen it many times in my sixteen years with the Seattle Public Library. Now some may wonder “What is library magic?” Well, its finding that newspaper article from 1937 that talked about your grandmother, discovering that movie you grew up watching over and over as a child and enjoying… Continue reading

  • Homelessness and Our Society: A Deeper Dive

    Follow us throughout the fall for posts which highlight library resources and information that supports the Tiny: Streetwise Revisited exhibit at the Central Library and its community programming. As you may know, the Central Library is currently presenting a thought-provoking and poignant exhibit, called Streetwise Revisited. We’ve put together some great resources that focus on the… Continue reading

  • Seattle Rep’s ROZ AND RAY: Beyond the Theatre

    Seattle Repertory Theatre presents ROZ + Ray by Karen Hartman from October 14 – November 13, 2016. Librarians at Seattle Public Library created this list of resources to enhance your experience of the show: Seattle Rep’s ROZ AND RAY: Beyond the Theatre I was a small child when the AIDS crisis broke, but I still… Continue reading

  • Bringing Mexico Home

    I finally traveled abroad for the first time last year to Mexico! It was beautiful and rugged, but the best part was the food! I searched and searched the library to track down the food I fell in love with. Here are the recipes I’ve found and the stories attached: Tequila: Myth, Magic & Spirited… Continue reading

  • Fall Biographies: Bruce and Beyond

    It’s fall, and the publishing industry is set to release the year’s most anticipated books during these dark, wet months. Lucky for us, there’s a bumper crop of celebrity biographies and memoirs to curl up with. Here are more than two dozen of the best bets. Continue reading

  • Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month Through Reading – With Kids!

    Hispanic Heritage Month, September 15th – October 15th, honors the histories, cultures and contributions of Americans with ancestry in Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America. Children’s librarians from the Central Library’s Children’s Center have compiled a list of favorites for children to help you and your children celebrate the month through reading! Here… Continue reading

  • Streetwise Revisited: Homeless Youth

    Follow us throughout the fall for posts which highlight library resources and information that supports the Tiny: Streetwise Revisited exhibit at the Central Library and its community programming. Every year the Seattle/King County Coalition on Homelessness conducts a One Night Count, a county-wide effort to count the number of individuals sleeping on the streets, in… Continue reading