library staff

  • Books by People You’ve Probably Never Heard of, Part III

    It’s hard out there for young writers. The only houses that will house them are small, indie enterprises full of energy but lacking funds, and readers are scared by untested virtue. Be scared no longer sovereign readers! I will test your books for poison. Eat up! Richard Yates by Tao Lin What’s in a name?… Continue reading

  • March Question of the Month: an irregular series

    I’m doing geneological research and had trouble browsing the 1910 Census records due to insufficient information. The city of Lanark, Montana in 1910–what county was it in? what Township & Enumeration District was 1910 Lanark, Montana considered to be in? Hello, and thank you for using our Ask a Librarian service.   Your request for information… Continue reading

  • Books By People You’ve Probably Never Heard Of, Part II

    It’s hard out there for young writers. The only houses that will house them are small, indie enterprises full of energy but lacking funds, and readers are scared by untested virtue. Be scared no longer sovereign readers! I will test your books for poison. Eat up! The Orange Eats Creeps by Grace Krilanovich There is… Continue reading

  • Books with green covers, literally

    A favorite and fun library display to do is one which is literally a rainbow of covers. Library staff go on the search for books with covers in primary and other major colors. These finds are displayed on book easels. Then the serendipitious time happens with people pausing, contemplating, oohing and chuckling. Keeping in mind that the St. Patrick’s Day holiday is this week, I asked… Continue reading

  • Staff Faves: The Lovers and The True Deceiver

     The Lovers by Vendela Vida Yvonne returns to Datca, Turkey, the place where she and her late husband, Peter, honeymooned twenty-eight years ago. As soon as she settles in a large, empty mansion where she’s staying for her vacation, a week that was supposed to be a restorative good time proves to be the same… Continue reading

  • Books by People You’ve Probably Never Heard of, Part I

    It’s hard out there for young writers. The only houses that will house them are small, indie enterprises full of energy but lacking funds, and readers are scared by untested virtue. Be scared no longer sovereign readers! I will test your books for poison. Eat up! The Really Funny Thing About Apathy by Chelsea Martin… Continue reading

  • Who Was Here First?

    “In 1492 Columbus sailed the ocean blue.” That was the little mnemonic we used to remember the exploits of Christopher Columbus when I was in grade school. What an amazing voyage that must have been. I take nothing away from those brave sailors. That is, except their claim to being here first. If not Columbus and… Continue reading

  • Seattle Picks: Short Classics

    We’re often asked for suggestions of shorter classics. Sometimes the reader has an assignment where the teacher or professor says “read a classic” and leaves it wide open. Sometimes the reader wants to explore classics, but feels a little intimidated. And sometimes the reader just wants a book that doesn’t weigh a lot. Our Short Classics booklist is one of… Continue reading

  • History Gone Missing

    Once upon a time, I was a history major and I think I stay pretty current, historically speaking.  One day, not too long ago, I realized that I had basically missed an entire era and civilization.  Byzantium – hummm, wasn’t that some sort of precursor to the Ottoman Empire.  Decadent and short lived right?  Wrong.  In… Continue reading

  • Medical Lectures + medical info: at your Library!

    The fifth Medical Lecture Series started last October and still has two more to go.  Plan to attend to learn more about medical research for two medical conditions of great interest to many. On Wednesday, March 2 from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m., Dr. Hojoong (Mike) Kim will talk about new treatments in the pipeline for Parkinson’s… Continue reading

  • Seattle Picks: Terror for teens

    Take a look at some of the horror novels recommended by our teen services librarians: Possessed by Kate Cann Rayne takes a job at an old mansion to escape the London projects, and meets a group of rich, hot teens. When she uncovers the mystery of their power it will take all her strength and… Continue reading

  • Pie v. Cake

    Cake and cupcakes are still going strong in the Seattle area. Metropolitan Market has a huge mountain of little boxes with specialty cupcakes in them, and I saw a pink cupcake maker at Fred Meyer. When asked, the baker at Met Market said cake sells better than pie. Some of pie lovers admitted liking cake more often… Continue reading

  • Researching the History of Your Neighborhood (Part Two)

    In Part One of this neighborhood history series, I wrote about finding secondary sources of information about the history of your neighborhood. In this post I’ll take a look at some top sources for conducting your own original research. Continue reading

  • Researching the history of your neighborhood (Part One)

    On January 21, I had the pleasure of attending a History Café event about neighborhood history. History Cafés are free, informal events that focus on various local history topics. They are held on the third Thursday of each month, from 7-8 p.m., at Roy Street Coffee and Tea in Capitol Hill. For more information and… Continue reading

  • Telling downloads: Top downloadable books

    Did you know that the company the library uses for digital books (OverDrive) publishes its top ten lists of titles downloaded every month? Me either. I took a look at the top ten adult fiction and nonfiction titles downloaded from libraries in the U.S., Canada and the UK to see if I could glean any… Continue reading

  • February Question of the Month – an irregular series

    During the French Revolution of 1789-1799, a woman was executed. She was married to a member of the nobility. Her husband was a well known scientist (?), as was she. What was her name? Thank you for your question. The French husband and wife scientific team were Antoine and Marie Lavoisier. Lavoisier, a chemist and physicist, established… Continue reading

  • Seattle Picks: Set in Seattle

    Indian Killer by Sherman Alexie Someone is murdering white men in Seattle, scalping them and leaving owl feathers behind. As racial tensions rise to fever pitch, suspicion falls on John Smith, an Indian raised by white parents. Leaving Yesler by Peter Bacho Choices are few for a mixed-race working class kid from the projects, but… Continue reading

  • Getting the biggest bang for your download on Freegal

    I love long pieces of music – music where I can be taken somewhere; music that demands to be experienced, not just to be played in the background. Opera? Yep. Symphonies? Definitely. Progressive Rock, Jazz, experimental anything – I’m ready and waiting. When I heard that the library now subscribes to Freegal (an online database… Continue reading