Authors & Books
-
Listen to This Podcast: KUOW Book Talk With Coll Thrush
What do Pacific Northwest shipwrecks have to do with settler colonialism? Author and historian Coll Thrush recently published a book, “Wrecked: Unsettling Histories from the Graveyard of the Pacific,” which explores this topic through six years of extensive research. He shared his findings in a recent KUOW Book Talk at the Central Library, in conversation… Continue reading
-
New Nonfiction Roundup – March 2026
Spring is not quite here yet, but the spring publishing season has arrived in full force! Check out some of most anticipated nonfiction coming out this month. Christina Applegate considers her life, from star of Married with Children and Anchroman to her role as an advocate for herself and others living with multiple sclerosis in… Continue reading
-
Books to Help You Start (and Finish!) Writing Your Novel
Have you always wanted to write a novel? Or are you feeling stuck with your current draft? Wherever you are in your writing project, the library carries many books that can help with inspiration and next steps. Here are some that I have found to be especially useful: For Getting Inspired: 1,000 Words by Jami… Continue reading
-
Spring 2026 Author and Community Events at the Library
Author and community programs are blooming at the Library this spring, from a KUOW Book Talk with Sasha taqwšəblu LaPointe about “Thunder Song” on March 23, to an evening with famed audiobook narrator Julia Whelan on April 15, to two One Book, One Coast events with local authors that reframe and retell the history of… Continue reading
-
New Fiction Roundup, March 2026
There’s plenty of new fiction to be excited about in March, from haunted houses to family sagas and a vengeful Anne Boleyn, from local authors (Kim Fu) to returning favorites (Louise Erdrich, Yann Martel), and much more! 3/3: Lake Effect by Cynthia D’Aprix SweeneyIn a sleepy 1977 Rochester neighborhood, a copy of The Joy of… Continue reading
-
Learn About the Hidden Histories of Native American Activism on March 10
“How can a nation founded on the homelands of dispossessed Indigenous peoples be the world’s most exemplary democracy?” That is the question that opens Dr. Ned Blackhawk’s “The Rediscovery of America,” which won the 2023 National Book Award in Nonfiction. The Library is honored to have Dr. Blackhawk present this year’s annual Bullitt Lecture in… Continue reading
-
Read George Takei’s Graphic Memoir with the West Coast’s Biggest Book Club
We have good news for Seattle readers! This spring, The Seattle Public Library invites you to take part in One Book, One Coast, a shared reading initiative connecting more than 140 library systems across California, Oregon, and Washington, including more than a dozen in Washington State alone. Organized by LA County Library, One Book, One… Continue reading
-
A Peek at Peak Picks – March 2026
We’re adding twelve new Peak Picks in March! In fiction, Maria Adelmann’s newest novel follows an adjunct professor gigging her way through academia’s poor job market when she crosses paths with her old PhD adviser whose new novel might be about her in The Adjunct; the latest from Elizabeth Berg, Life: A Love Story, is a warm, intimate novel… Continue reading
-
2025’s Best in Genre Fiction
This January, librarians from across the country met to debate the best books published in 2025 for adults. The Notable Books List highlights literary fiction, nonfiction, and poetry; the Listen List is all about outstanding audiobooks; and The Reading List, which I want to highlight, gathers outstanding genre fiction across eight genres: Adrenaline (aka thrillers, adventure stories), Fantasy, Historical Fiction,… Continue reading
-
6 Books That Speak to Midwinter Moods
“The Pacific Northwest has a cold like no other place. It seeps through your clothes and keeps you cold like your own personal ghost had moved in.” — Neko Case, “The Harder I Fight the More I Love You.” For some Seattleites, February is a time for sojourns to sunnier locales. For those who stay… Continue reading
-
Where Is Dr. King Living Today?
At the start of every year, we celebrate the life and achievements of Dr Martin Luther King Jr. Although his life on Earth ended in 1968, his words and deeds inspired many people to carry on his life’s work right up to this very day. For your own inspiration, here are some of their stories… Continue reading
-
Cozy Survival: Making a Home in the Wilds
Lately, I’ve been running across books that instruct by example how to eke out survival while making a comfortable home. Cozy survival, if you will. In January, my apartment had a gas leak that caused a lapse in hot water and heating. Winter suddenly became very wintry. Luckily, I felt more prepared to weather the… Continue reading
-
Whoa, It’s Lunar New Year: Cook Your Way Through the Year of the Horse
Happy Lunar New Year! February 17th marks the start of the Year of the Horse and kicks off dayslong festivities in different communities. Everyone has their own cultural and familial traditions when it comes to celebrating this time of year, and what better way to celebrate anything than with food? During Lunar New Year, many… Continue reading
-
New Teen Romance
Romance sells a lot of books, especially around Valentine’s Day. Here are some of the best new teen romance titles released in the past year. In Trung Le Nguyen’s latest graphic novel Angelica and the Bear Prince, Angelica is grieving and dealing with burnout. When she receives messages of support from a bear, or… Continue reading
-
New Nonfiction Roundup – February 2026
America celebrates its 250th anniversary this year, and the first of many books about our nation’s history are being released this month. Acclaimed historian Jon Meacham unites centuries of essential American voices to understand our national debates and divisions in American Struggle while CBS News’s senior correspondent Norah Jones paints a vivid portrait the hidden… Continue reading
-
Local Authors Take the Stage for KUOW Book Talks
Want to be part of a book club that features selections by some of our region’s greatest talents, and offers you a chance to meet the author in person? Welcome to the KUOW Book Talks Live series at the Central Library. From February through May, KUOW Book Club host Katie Campbell will sit down with a… Continue reading
-
New Fiction Roundup, February 2026
2/3: How to Kill a Guy in Ten Dates by Shailee ThompsonRom-com meets slasher flick when a speed dating event turns into a bloodbath and friends Jamie and Laurie will have to use all their knowledge of genre tropes to get out alive … and maybe find love on the way. (romance thriller) 2/3: The… Continue reading
-
Impact Story: When a Children’s Author Comes to Town
The benefits of reading for kids are well-known: literacy, language skills, empathy. But on a winter morning at Seattle’s John Rogers Elementary, a group of 40 fourth and fifth grade readers are showing something else: pure, unadulterated excitement. The students are crowded on the floor of the school library for a talk from Ernesto Cisneros,… Continue reading