Nonfiction

  • Summer reading: Suggestions from readers in Greenwood

    On the Edge: My Story by Richard Hammond Regarding the jet engine car that crashed and nearly killed him, RH and his wife, Mindy, recount the process of healing and recovering. Well-written, an excellent read. ~ Shay Original Sin by Beth McMullen Quite enjoyed. Captures very well the unworldliness of being a mother and simultaneously… 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

  • 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

  • Your Next 5 Books: For a family that cycles together

    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

  • Woodpecker Wake-Up Call

    Before the calendar told me that spring had arrived, a familiar visitor announced it in a very bold way. Every spring for the past several years, a northern flicker woodpecker (Colaptes auratus) has pecked away on my roof during mating season in spurts of rapid, repetitive motion lasting several seconds. The sound of a jackhammer… Continue reading

  • Sad when that big ship went down…

    This month marks the hundredth anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic, yet the passage of time has not reduced the drama of, and questions about,  that cold spring night in the North Atlantic. The most familiar controversy has to do with the inadequate number of lifeboats, and the seeming indifference of the passengers. The… Continue reading

  • Animals are only human, too—

    What in the world are they thinking? Have you ever come home to find your pet waiting for you behind the door? Ever looked into their eyes and wondered what’s going on in there, or felt the connection of thought and emotion? Have you observed animals’ interactions amongst themselves that remind you of ourselves? If… Continue reading

  • Audio Described Movies

    What is an audio described movie? An audio described movie is a movie with a separate sound track that includes a narrator who verbal describes important visual elements of the film. The narration is interspaced between the movie’s regular dialogue, to create as little disruption to the movie’s main sound track as possible. The audio… Continue reading

  • A Visit to New Orleans, Part 2

    (Find Part 1 of this post here) “To be engaged in some small way in the revival of one of the great cities of the world is to live a meaningful existence by default.”-Chris Rose, 1 Dead in Attic The third most important is Hurricane Katrina and the toll it left on the city. Even though… Continue reading

  • Downloading for Dinner – Part II

    Yesterday’s post took a look at the library’s growing collection of electronic cookbooks. After browsing the collection, a curious librarian might wonder how using a print copy differs from using an ebook? With the help of a willing participant and a few pieces of technology, an experiment was conducted comparing use of the same title in… Continue reading

  • Downloading for Dinner – Part I

    When looking for a good cookbook, many people do not realize the library has a growing and diverse ebook collection. Using the term “cookery” as a subject keyword and limiting to ebooks reveals the library’s current holdings of 399 titles about food preparation, as well as food culture and history. A quick perusal shows the… Continue reading

  • Science Insight – Pacific Northwest “Adapter” Author

    Rebecca Stefoff is referred to as an “adapter” author who writes nonfiction for young adults, with an emphasis on science and history. Her gift is interpreting complex subjects and writings to make them understandable to the average reader. Thus, her focus is the young audience. Through her books, readers can explore topics as varied as… Continue reading

  • Science Insight – Quest to find Consciousness

    For a long time, consciousness has been the subject of neuroscience, psychology, philosophy, cognitive science and other disciplines in the natural and social sciences and the humanities. What is the nature of consciousness? Asking the question is simple, but determining the answer is not. Consciousness can seem utterly familiar, even mundane. People excuse themselves for… Continue reading

  • Make Learning Fun and Keep the Mind Young

    “Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young. The greatest thing in life is to keep your mind young.” ~Henry Ford With school in full swing, maybe your child is having difficulty with a subject, or perhaps you want to explore an interesting topic together. The… Continue reading

  • Library Book Leads to “Antiques Roadshow” Moment!

    About 15 years ago I bought a motorcycle jacket from a local thrift shop. I was intrigued by its padded elbows and shoulders, which sported a marvelous scuffed-and-buffed patina. I figured the jacket had seen better days, but I never gave a second thought to its age—or value. Until recently, that is, when I chanced… Continue reading

  • Meaning of Pink in October

    Pink is all over. We now even get library check-out receipts in pink. That is because October is “National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.” Many events like walking, running, fundraising, and lectures are going on through the month of October. There is even an organization called National Breast Cancer Awareness Month (NBCAM) which works to promote… Continue reading

  • When Langston Came to Town

    It is always interesting to think of famous people walking the streets of our city.  That is the idea behind the Douglass-Truth Branch’s exhibit ‘When Langston Came to Town’. It memorializes the day in May, 1932, when Langston Hughes drove into Seattle for an author program at the First AME Church. The Seattle Times called… Continue reading

  • September Question of the Month – an irregular series

    I’m having the dickens of a time finding a definitive answer to the question “what is the largest nature preserve in the world?”  I’ve searched the web for hours and find many conflicting claims to the title but nothing with a reputable source. Since you have many resources beyond the Web available I’m hoping you… Continue reading