An Interview with "Browse the Branches" Winner Penelope Pigeon
Browse the Branches invites Brooklynites to visit all 62 locations in person to see for yourself the unexpected treasures you can find at each Brooklyn Public Library location. We've been amazed by how many winners have already completed the challenge, but this week a very special winner flew into Central Library to collect her prize: Penelope Pigeon. As the first of her species to finish, she was kind enough to let us share her winner questionnaire to help encourage the city's feathered friends to take part in the Browse the Branches challenge. Your name: Penelope PigeonTelephone number…
Author Interview: Elisheba Haqq
Elisheba Haqq is a writing professor at Rutgers University, a registered nurse, and the author of Mamaji, a memoir about the loss of her mother, growing up as part of an immigrant family in Minnesota, and persevering through an abusive childhood. In this interview, she discusses her writing career, explains her research process, and recommends a few of her favorite books. Off the Shelf (Ots): Mamaji is an extremely personal memoir about the loss of your mother, as well as the horrific emotional, physical and financial abuse that you and your older siblings endured. I felt like I was reading…
Cool Off With These Hot Reads
It’s official: the dog days of summer are here. Now’s the time to grab a beach blanket, find a shady tree, sit in front of a fan...you get the idea. Wherever you end up, be sure to chill out with a good book—and don’t forget the sunscreen! Something New Under the Sun by Alexandra Kleeman Set in Hollywood in the not-too-distant future, Kleeman’s dystopian thriller features movie stars, wildfires, and privatized, synthetic water. Out in August, this book is already getting serious buzz. Appleseed by Matt Bell Packing your bags for a long summer vacation? At nearly 500 pages…
Reading Rut Remedies
If you’re on this blog, then I think you're well aware that reading is the best (nothing better!). But just like cooking, exercise or any hobby you practice regularly, sometimes the routine gets boring and you fall into a rut (nothing worse!). Oatmeal with blueberries, again? Jogging the Prospect Park loop, again?? Contemporary fiction about a sad lady looking for love in the big city, again?! Don’t despair, friends—the Library is here for you. Whether you’re currently stuck in a reading rut or you simply want to be prepared, here are five BPL resources that will rekindle your love…
An Interview With Cover Designer Olivia McGiff
When people ask who my all-time favorite writer is, I never hesitate. "It’s Laurie Colwin, absolutely," I say. More often than not I’m met with a blank stare: Colwin died tragically young and her final books were published posthumously in 1993. For years, it’s been up to Colwin’s passionate fanbase to introduce new readers to the food and fiction writer’s books. But lo! This spring, the publishers Harper Perennial and Vintage Contemporaries are reissuing Laurie Colwin’s five novels, three story collections and two cooking memoirs with fresh, beautiful covers designed and illustrated by…
Soda Bread & Shamrocks: A St. Patrick’s Day Booklist
We can’t give you a parade or a pub crawl, but we can offer you a celebratory booklist! Butter your soda bread, drown the shamrock and discover the history and traditions of St. Patrick’s Day with the BPL catalog. Holiday history lessons Celebrating 250 years of the NYC St. Patrick’s Day Parade by John T. Ridge NYC’s annual parade started in 1762! The Wearing of the Green by Mike Cronin & Daryl Adair A thoroughly researched history of March 17. Dagger John by John Loughery The story of Archbishop John Hughes, builder of St. Patrick’s Cathedral and founder of…
A Mood Ring for Beach Reads
For book lovers in search of a silver lining, here’s one: even in these unprecedented times, it’s still safe to read on the beach! Find your outdoor oasis, practice social distancing and take a dip into these recently published books. The offerings below, handpicked to provide a much-needed escape, range from steamy rom-coms and domestic dramas to literary thrillers and personal histories. And always remember: if it's a book and you’re reading it on a beach, it’s a beach read. And they lived happily ever after… Beach Read written by Emily Henry The title says it all,…
Earth Day Poetry Recommendations from a Former Hater
My reading appetite is insatiable, an annual sixty-course feast of literary fiction, mysteries and romantic comedies, the occasional nonfiction book tacked on like the green juice you choke down after a gluttonous vacation. I am willing to read anything, but until two years ago, I would have described myself as poetry averse. Why look to corny, rhyming couplets for the meaning of life when I could instead reflect on the emo lyrics of my teen angst? But then something happened: I got hooked on a weekly column about poetry and lipstick and caregiving written by a British cookbook author named…
Modern Little Women: An Interview with Virginia Kantra
Have you seen Little Women yet?! It's been the first question out of every book lover's mouth since Christmas Day, when Greta Gerwig's highly anticipated adaptation of Louisa May Alcott's novel finally hit theaters. BPL's bloggers are happy to report the movie is wonderful, it is everything, stop whatever you're doing and go see it. Even more good news: this interview with Virginia Kantra, author of Meg & Jo, the first installment of a two-book, contemporary retelling of Little Women. Whether you're a longtime Alcott reader or are brand new to March Sister fandom, you will love Kantra's…
Three Beach Reads to Remind You Winter Is Bad!
Well folks, we survived the Great Heatwave of 2019, yet New Yorkers are still complaining about the heat. Oh, is it hot outside? Newsflash: it’s July! It’s basically August! In this blogger’s opinion, summer is the best time to be a book lover—there are official (and not-so-official) Summer Fridays; everyone is either on vacation, about to go on vacation or just got back from vacation (in other words, no one cares about work); and warm weather means you can read on a beach, in a park or in the pleasantly climate controlled establishment of your choice (we're here to push books,…
Super Short, Never Sweet
As a library worker, I can't think of a better way to celebrate Women's History Month than checking out books written by and about women. One month is of course not long enough to cover an entire history, and you might think it's not long enough to read entire novels, but that's where you're wrong—each of these six books is super short (under 200 pages!) and deliciously unputdownable. Margaret the First by Danielle Dutton The insanely interesting story of one of the first published women writers, a duchess named Margaret Cavendish. Dutton’s writing is lovely—the food…
First Draft: A Podcast About Storytellers
How do today's authors come up with their book ideas? How did they become authors to begin with? In 2014, writer Sarah Enni set out to answer these questions and more on her podcast, First Draft. Her weekly show is a deep-dive into storytellers' careers and childhoods, their major influences and their future projects. Now in its fifth year, First Draft has featured more than 170 interviews, including ones with New York Times best-selling writers and winners of the National Book Award for Young People's Literature, the Caldecott Award and the Michael L. Printz Award. Read on to learn all…