Nonfiction

  • Seattle Staff Faves 2022: Nonfiction

    Library staff across the city weighed in on their favorite nonfiction books published in 2022 — and what a great list we created together! Read on for highlights of the excellent nonfiction included, with raves from staff; or jump straight into the full 36-item list. Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands by Kate Beaton… Continue reading

  • December 2022 Events: Authors, Art, Holly, a Concert and More

    December 2022 Events: Authors, Art, Holly, a Concert and More

    Brrr! Get cozy with The Seattle Public Library in December with engaging author programs, an art exhibit, a concert, fun events at the South Park Branch, a monthly movie and more. Many of these events require registration. Find information and registration at event links or spl.org/Calendar. All Library events are free and open to the… Continue reading

  • Explore Seattle from the Margins with historian Megan Asaka

    View Seattle’s history from a new vantage point, that of the migrant workers who built the city with a discussion between Megan Asaka, author of Seattle From the Margins: Migrant labor History in 19th and 20th Centuries, and Seattle Times columnist Naomi Ishisaka, at 2:30pm on December 3rd at the Central Library. The eagerly anticipated… Continue reading

  • Little Chefs, Big Bonding Time

    There is something special about cooking and sharing food. We do it for simple nourishment. We do it to show our love to our friends and family. Sharing a meal can be a great way to get to know people or to spend time with people you love. Do you know how great cooking is… Continue reading

  • It’s Pie Time

    With the shift to colder weather, and Thanksgiving coming right up, now is the time for pie! Find inspiration for sweet and savory pies in these books. Pieometry by Lauren Ko If you’re looking for visually stunning pies, search no further – Seattle author Ko’s geometric pie designs are sure to impress. Creative flavor pairings… Continue reading

  • New Nonfiction Roundup – November 2022

    November is bountiful with outstanding nonfiction! Celebrities, cookbooks, poetry and essays lead the pack. Bono, the lead singer of the legendary band U2, reflects on his remarkable life through 40 chapters named after U2 songs in Surrender; Matthew Perry takes readers behind the scenes of “Friends” and talks candidly about his struggle with addiction in… Continue reading

  • Let’s Read! The 8 Great Books of the 2023 Global Reading Challenge

    Let’s Read! The 8 Great Books of the 2023 Global Reading Challenge

    Hey fourth and fifth graders, are you ready to read, learn and win? The 2023 Global Reading Challenge launches today, with the unveiling of this year’s books. Now in its 28th year, the Global Reading Challenge is a reading incentive program between the Library and Seattle Public Schools (SPS). Fourth and fifth graders enrolled in… Continue reading

  • 10 Things to Do in November Through The Seattle Public Library

    10 Things to Do in November Through The Seattle Public Library

    It’s almost November, a good time to rediscover the joys of the great indoors. Here is a sampler of interesting and useful things to do through The Seattle Public Library  as we sink deeper into fall and the daylight hours wane. All are free, of course, but some programs do require registration. For much more,… Continue reading

  • November Author Events: Chef Sean Sherman, Cartoonist Megan Kelso, Historian Ada Ferrer and More

    November Author Events: Chef Sean Sherman, Cartoonist Megan Kelso, Historian Ada Ferrer and More

    From Oglala Lakota chef Sean Sherman to Newbery Award-winning children’s author Kwame Alexander, The Seattle Public Library’s November author events feature writers and thinkers who will light you up with stories, history and food for thought. All Library events are free and open to everyone. Most events require registration beforehand, which you can find at… Continue reading

  • A Bus Reads Goodbye

    I had every intention of bringing Bus Reads back once I was in building after maternity leave, but you know, it’s a lot harder to find time to read when you are a new mom – who would have thought?! And while I still had my commute, it was really hard to focus…mom brain really… Continue reading

  • New Nonfiction Roundup – October 2022

    Celebrate the first full month of fall with a bevy of fabulous cookbooks, celebrity biographies, moving memoirs, and so much more! Several leading cookbook authors are releasing new books in October. “Barefoot Contessa” host Ina Garten returns with her latest crowd-pleaser, Go-To Dinners; Danielle Walker provides easy recipes to keep you Healthy in a Hurry;… Continue reading

  • Drum Roll, Please: The 2022 Washington State Book Award Winners

    Congratulations to the winners of the 2022 Washington State Book Awards! The Washington Center for the Book and the Library selected winners in eight categories for the awards, which honor outstanding books published by Washington authors in 2021. This is the 56th year of the program, formerly called the Governor’s Writers Awards. Join us in… Continue reading

  • Fall sports season is here

    Fall sports season is underway! The Seahawks (football) kick off their season on Sept 12, the Mariners (baseball) are making a run for the playoffs, with the OL Reign (women’s soccer) likely headed to playoffs and the Sounders (men’s soccer) making a last push for a playoff spot. If all the excitement has you wanting… Continue reading

  • Labor Day Reads

    2022 has been a big year for Labor movements: the pandemic has changed the way we think about workplace safety and who makes decisions that have impact on employers and employees alike. You may or may not be working today, but as many of us enjoy a long weekend with Monday off, others in industries… Continue reading

  • A Peak at Peak Picks – September 2022

    Eight new titles are joining Peak Picks in September! For nonfiction, New York Times food writer Melissa Clark’s follow up to Dinner in French features 100 one-pot, one-pan and one-sheet recipes that are perfect for weeknights in Dinner in One; poet Javier Zamora tells the harrowing story of his three-thousand mile journey, alone among strangers… Continue reading

  • Cooking with Toddlers

    Cooking with Toddlers

    Our kiddo is knocking on the door of becoming a two-year-old and with that I’ve started to see this independent, thoughtful, and inquisitive mind blossom in front of my eyes. Dinner has always been hard since becoming parents, but I’m starting to see the role that he can play in this process so that we… Continue reading

  • Craft for a Cause

    I used to volunteer every year for a cause and it used to be my balm when things felt like too much. I rebuilt houses, fed the insecurely housed, and cared for children who had experienced trauma, abuse and neglect. The pandemic and my kiddo put all that on hold. Now more than ever though… Continue reading

  • #BookBingoNW2022: Health or Healthcare Workers

    Summer Book Bingo 2022 deadline is looming! As Sept. 6 draws near, here are some suggestions for folks trying to fill their Health or healthcare workers square – two novels that imagine the lives of nurses, plus nonfiction about building healthcare infrastructure, reflections on medical advancements, and two books for common health concerns. The Pull… Continue reading