After the Crash by Michel Bussi (Publication Date: January 5, 2016)
An Airbus plane flies into the Swiss Alps, and one miracle baby girl survives. Two families step forward to claim the baby, but who is she really? This novel is French author's Bussi's first to be translated into English and it unfurls differently than a typical thriller.
The Ex by Alafair Burke
A missed connections ad reunion mysteriously takes place at the same time as a shooting. Is the author who placed the ad involved?
The Drowned Boy by Karin Fossum
The body of a boy with Down's Syndrome is found in a nearby pond. Similar to TGOTT in that the reader observes the boy's parents as the story unfolds but it is unclear as to what exactly transpired.
In a Dark, Dark Wood by Ruth Ware
"In the tradition of Paula Hawkins's instant New York Times bestseller The Girl On the Train and S. J. Watson's riveting national sensation Before I Go To Sleep, this gripping literary debut from UK novelist Ruth Ware will leave you on the edge of your seat through the very last page."
The Wild Inside: A Novel of Suspense by Christine Carbo
Set in Montana's Glacier National Park, the setting is about as far away from NYC as you could get. This is a well-built mystery novel with a sympathetic protagonist, unlike the characters in TGOTT.
Collected Fiction by Leena Krohn
Selected along with TGOTT as one of the A.V. Club's Best Books of the Year
Next year two films will be hitting the big screen with leads that do not fit the typical superhero mold. Deadpool, from Marvel comics, will be featuring the lone character as the star and Suicide Squad features a rogues gallery of villains and vigilantes from the DC Comics world. These well-known comic book characters are usually referred to as antiheroes, people who often work outside of the law and depending on the situation may be friend or foe to someone in distress.
So what is an antihero? The term has been used for hundreds of years in literature and can be dated as far back as the 1700s. The term refers to a character in a story or movie that lack the characteristics of a conventional hero such as morality, selflessness, courage and generosity. Many times when they do good it's for personal gain, and they often have no problem going outside the law as a means to an end. Characters such as this appear often in comic book stories where the world is not always black and white when it comes to making ethical decisions.
Anticipation is high for the upcoming Deadpool film. The character is very quirky and anyone who has ever read his comics knows just how much. So who is this masked man? He is a mentally unstable and disfigured mercenary known for his humor and superhuman ability of accelerated healing (he can literally regrow severed limbs and vital organs). He pays the price for his special ability because it is what makes him unstable and therefore not always on the right side of the law. His nickname is the "Merc with a Mouth" because he is talkative and has a tendency to "break the fourth wall" meaning writers have him talk directly to the readers. So what makes him an antihero? While he is known for being a mercenary he also has a strong moral code so at times this conflicts with his less than honorable activities. He also seems to genuinely care about other people and despite his less than savory origins has managed to be considered one of the good guys (most of the time).
The Suicide Squad (formerly known as Task Force X) is comprised of villains and vigilantes forced to do the bidding of Amanda Waller. Waller is the head of a government organization called A.R.G.U.S who is willing to do whatever it takes to save humanity. Most of the missions involve questionable actions so the Suicide Squad was created from some of the most notorious prisoners at Belle Reve. Belle Reve is a federal penitentiary and sanitarium in the DC comic universe that houses meta humans and other super villains but also serves as the headquarters for Suicide Squad operations. If those who are recruited don't do what they're told, they will be killed via devices implanted in their necks but if they comply, time will be taken off of their prison sentence. Needless to say with limited options most go along for the ride which leads many of these former villains to become antiheroes.
These are only a few of the antiheroes in the comic book world. Below you will find a list of other well known characters with this persona.
Catwoman
Catwoman is known as one of Batman's many nemeses. While she is a burglar and a thief, her heart is often in the right place when it comes to helping people. Like many comic book characters she has seen many changes over the years. Her backstory is usually one with an unhappy home life where she ends up having to fend for herself (hence her skills at thievery). She has alternated between villain and hero, falling somewhere in between. Her current incarnation is good, for now.
John Constantine has the job from hell, literally. His character is an occult detective and professional sorcerer from England. His antisocial behavior, brutal attitude, penchant for foul language, and chain smoking make him a titular antihero figure. He is also willing to do whatever it takes to get the job done which sometimes means putting others in danger. Despite his behavior Constantine does care about people, and is constantly putting himself in the crosshairs of the battle between Heaven and Hell for humanity's collective souls.
Joseph Dredd is an American law enforcement officer (although a British creation), or street judge as they are called, in a dystopian future. He exists in a world where crime runs rampant so officers have been given clearance to invoke the law as they see fit. They are allowed to convict, sentence and execute on sight. While his duty holds priority over everything his devotion is not blind. There were times when the character resigned from the force based on his principles but he inevitably returned. On several occasions he has saved his city where he works and even saved the world during World War 4, but Dredd is the personification of The Law and as such cannot be bought or reasoned with. If he feels he is in the right he will enact justice.
The Incredible Hulk is one of Marvel's most popular characters. He is also known as Bruce Banner, a scientist who was caught in a gamma bomb explosion. His alter ego is hard for him to control and comes out when he gets angry. The angrier Hulk gets the stronger he becomes. Banner is not always able to control himself when he becomes Hulk and many times in the comics they are written as completely separate beings despite inhabiting the same body. It is this split personality and issue with anger (which sometimes makes him unable to be reasoned with) that make Hulk an atypical hero.
Venom is a symbiote, a sentient alien life form that must bond to a host in order to live. After bonding the alien bestows his powers and abilities on the host. When it attaches itself to a human, it calls itself Venom. The character has been housed in a few bodies but his most well known is that of Eddie Brock. Brock was a journalist who accused the wrong man of being a serial killer and Spiderman found the real one. Disgraced, Brock comes into contact with the symbiote Spiderman rejected (once he realized what it was capable of) and bonds with it becoming Venom. Although usually at odds with Spiderman, Brock's Venom does attempt to do right by saving people he believes to be innocent.
Natasha Romanova, codename Black Widow, is a former Russian spy. As an extremely well trained assassin Romanova was often pitted against some very well known heroes including Iron Man and the Avengers. At some point she develops a relationship with Hawkeye, another dubious hero. When she realizes she has been brainwashed, she fights against it and joins the ranks of the Avengers. Before defecting, Black Widow goes through many twists and turns, both working for and against the good guys. Eventually she chooses the side of good and even at one point works solo as a vigilante. Working outside of the prescribed justice system, even if it is for good, and her past as a Russian spy all add to Romanova's place in comic history as an anithero.
The Punisher is a no holds barred antihero who will do literally anything, including assault, kidnapping ,extortion and of course murder to name a few, in his war on crime. Motivated by the murder of his wife and kids during a mob related shoot out, Castle goes on a rampage against the mafia and other criminal organizations in New York. Even after he murders those that took away his family Castle continues his fight against organized crime. Despite the violence he employs, Castle only uses it against those he knows are involved in criminal activity.
Some might not consider Wolverine an antihero because he works with the X-Men, a group of mutants that are inherently good and yearn for acceptance by humans. But while he does help others, it is his surly attitude and use of deadly force when necessary that make him less mainstream than other members of the group. Wolverine was born with superhuman senses and the ability to heal from most wounds. As a young man, he was kidnapped by a secret organization and had an unbreakable skeleton and claws placed inside his body. Treated as less than human he still harbors anger over what was done to him and while it took years for him to learn how to control himself, (with the help of Professor Xavier, the leader of the X-Men) he still loses himself at times.
Tallulah Bankhead. Photograph by Florence Vandamm. Image ID: 5057002
If you walk west on 65th Street between Broadway and Amsterdam Avenue, you will go past the “blades.” These electronic signposts promote current and upcoming events at Lincoln Center. They are 8’ x 4’ and heavily pixelated, as if you were standing too close to a stadium Diamond-vision screen. The Library for the Performing Arts’ designer is expert at selecting which exhibition images are the most eye-catching in the Blades’ zoom.
Head Shots is represented on the blades by this portrait of Tallulah Bankhead by Florence Vandamm. It can be seen in the exhibition’s entrance area and, for the last few months, has been featured on the 65th St. blades. Vandamm photographed her often in costume and plays, frequently providing the images for Playbill covers. In the Vandamm clipping file, there is a wonderful article in the Sunday News (August 28, 1949) that described her directing Bankhead how to fall down a staircase to best effect for press photos of the period piece, The Eagle with Two Heads.
The famous photographs of Bankhead in Rain and The Little Foxes are Vandamms. There are also many portraits in contemporary clothing not associated with specific roles. This one was taken just before her Broadway appearances in Odets’s They Clash By Night (1941) and Saroyan’s Skin of Our Teeth (1942) and her most important film, Hitchcock’s Lifeboat (Twentieth Century-Fox, 1944). Although unquestionably her work, the photograph is not from the vast Vandamm Collection of Theatrical Photographs. It was found in the Bankhead *T-Pho B file.
There are at least three portraits from this studio session with the same elegant profile, hair, make-up, jewelry, and blouse. The raw silk blouse, with its uniquely draped sleeve, is an unusual choice for a head shot, since the sunburst effect of the sleeve cap commands the eye. It comes from a period in which she was wearing Mainbocher whenever possible and the combination of simplicity of fabric and unique detail draping fits his design aesthetic. Look at the Mainbocher garment details in the Museum of the City of New York’s online exhibition to see why I think he designed the sleeve. This 7/8 position image was used to promote her appearance on the summer theater circuit in 1942; a similar one with the camera pointing straight at the sleeve cap was distributed for autographs.
But why was it my choice for a key image? There is a section of the exhibit on the selection process and how editing, proofing and cropping serve the creation of headshots. We selected this image as an example of one of the steps in selection—an interim step image that is visible only on the blades with its Diamond Vision impact. On the blades, you can see slight airbrushing under the chin. It would have been blended in until imperceptible when it was released by the Vandamm Studio. But somehow, as it appears on the blades, much larger than life, the interim image is even more about vulnerability and self-representation—the key elements that make headshots so memorable.
While the exhibition Printing Women focuses on Henrietta Louisa Koenen’s (1830–1881) collection of female printmakers from the 16th to 19th centuries, it is only appropriate to signal women’s continuing participation in the medium as well as the Library’s longstanding commitment to acquiring and exhibiting prints made by women from around the world. To complement this earlier history, therefore, I worked with the Library’s Digital Experience Team to display online a small sampling of works by contemporary printmakers in the Library’s collection. We began reaching out to artists, asking if we could display their work on the exhibition’s web page and digitize it for our digital collections. The majority were delighted to contribute, many also provided writings about their work and the exhibition. Throughout the exhibition’s run, I will choose and present a piece by one artist every other week on the exhibition’s web page. Additionally, I will produce a blog post about their work as well as about works in the exhibition, featuring their own words when possible.
For those who are interested in the long history of women’s involvement with the medium of print, there is much more to explore within the Library’s deep and varied holdings. The exhibition features only a smattering of Koenen’s collection (which numbers over 500 prints of which only a little over 80 are shown in the exhibition). In addition, the Print Collection not only owns large numbers of additional prints from the period in which Koenen collected, but also many, many more works from the 20th- and 21st-century.
The fifth blog post in our series is by Valerie Hammond about her piece, Blue Anemone, 2011.
"Blue Anemone, made in 2011, was the result of a special collaboration with printmaker Maryanne Simmons of Wildwood Press, but the image’s origins stemmed from a group of works I began a decade before.
I started making tracings of hands in the late 1990s, partly in response to the death of a dear friend from AIDS, whose beautiful hands I often found myself remembering. Mostly traced from women and children, each of the hand images was unique, an attempt at capturing the essence of a gesture and the fleeting moment in which it was made. Around the same time, in 1998, I was invited to teach printmaking at Yale University’s Norfolk summer program. Like many of the women in the exhibition I worked within the confines of children and family. My then young children came with me, and we spent time in the nearby woods, making fairy houses out of moss and ferns. I collected and pressed various fern fronds, attracted to their spindly forms and primordial origins.
I soon began assembling the ferns inside the traced hands, securing them with layers of wax, their stems and fronds echoing the body’s bones, veins and circulatory systems. Ferns, and then other plants, became both the material and “tools” for drawing, subverting traditional markmaking methodologies. Later, I introduced printmaking, drawing and photographic techniques, like the Xerox transfer process, to the compositions, in order to further manipulate and “distance” the imagery. One night, experimenting in Photoshop, I accidentally inverted some of the images: the background darkened into a deep blue and the plant material turned ghostly white. The works suddenly inhabited a space I had been searching for, straddling the indefinable boundary between presence and absence, material and immaterial, consciousness and the unconscious. For me, they became emblematic not only of those whose hands I had traced, but of my own evolving artistic process – testimony to passing time and the quiet dissolution of memory.
Blue Anemone, Photo by David Wright, 2011
Simmons first invited me to make prints at her St. Louis studio in 2006. Her huge presses enabled me to work at an unprecedented scale, with unprecedented freedom, and I developed a series of large, relief printed lithographs from my hand tracings. While I was working at Wildwood Press, a close friend of Maryanne’s, Courtney, who at the time wore a bright pink wig, impressed me by her warmth and instant understanding of my process. My experience at Wildwood was rich and very meaningful; it was a collaborative environment among likeminded women. Years later Maryanne told me that Courtney was terminally ill. Before Courtney died, Maryanne asked her son to trace her hands, knowing that Courtney would understand why. Maryanne then sent the tracings to me and asked me to begin a piece using her hands. As I set out looking for materials I came across some ethereal blue anemones in the garden. It turned out they were Courtney’s favorite flower. She passed away before the print, Blue Anemone, was finished.
Pilota sericea, Anna Atkins, Cyanotype Impression, c.1850
Women artists and printmakers have long been a huge influence on me. Obvious associations can be seen in Victorian botany photographs, like those of Anna Atkins, and the prints and watercolors of Maria Sybilla Merian. More immediately, I am indebted to the fearlessness of Louise Bourgeois, the political feminism of Nancy Spero, and the close friendship and collaboration I have with Kiki Smith, where we have spent many hours teaching printmaking together as well as working in various print shops together joyfully scratching on copper. "
A student's copy of To Kill a Mockingbird marked up for reading aloud
Every Wednesday from 10 AM-1 PM, a group of ESOL students who were enrolled in the Upper Manhattan Adult Literacy program, but who for one reason or another could not continue, get together to talk about a book they are reading. This month the book is To Kill a Mockingbird, the Pulitzer Prize winning novel by Harper Lee.
They meet with their former NYPL teacher at the Atrium, part of the Lincoln Center Campus, on the Upper West Side. They meet because they love to read and to talk about what they are reading! They meet to see how much they understood in the pages they read at home, and they meet because they love to share their ideas with each other.
They know that talking about literature in English will benefit them in a host of different ways—they get to argue, they get to hear different points of view, they get to talk about new vocabulary and idioms; they get to analyze themes and symbols, and they get to share their ideas in this, their second or third language, which they probably learned years ago, but which is still a challenge to them.
"I really like it when I can reflect on my individual thoughts during the discussion and listen to other opinions. It's great that we have the chance to listen to opinions from all generations,” said a member of the group.
What better way to improve their English skills than to meet and to talk about literature!
In one of the 6 sessions, they even acted out the trial of Tom Robinson, the defendant. They took on the roles of Judge Taylor, Prosecutor Gilmer, Atticus Finch, Bob Ewell, and of course Maybelle, the victim and Tom Robinson, the accused.
What do the students have in common? Certainly not their cultures: They hail from such countries as diverse as Pakistan, Columbia, Spain, Turkey, Syria, Germany, Brazil, and Benin.
Certainly not their ages: They range from 30-something to 70-something, and all decades in between!
And certainly not their professions: Those range from fashion journalist to engineer, from a musician to to a scientist.
But they do it because they are motivated to read… and to read a prize winning American novel… and to learn about American culture through the literature of this, their adopted country.
One student explained, “For me this book group is an opportunity to get together with people of different countries and cultures to read classic literature like "To Kill a Mockingbird" which helps us understand the background, the culture and the human right issues (racism) in the United States, a problem that is still present in our society. It's interesting to see how prejudice about skin color can pervade people’s lives… which is very sad…”
Another said, “I was so happy when I was invited to join this book group. I always loved my classes at NYPL and the way that [Elaine] used to teach us, through wonderful books that I will always remember. I don't have patience for classic ESL classes anymore, but I need to practice my English and this book group is the perfect opportunity to improve my English in a smart way!"
A meeting of the ESOL book discussion group
“I'm my music band spokesman and I need to know how to entertain the audience (during our performances) without losing focus or being boring, so that was actually what brought me to the library… And when we finished the last cycle at the library, I was sad because that was the only opportunity for me to learn about America's history, the lives of black people in old days, and people’s mentality in America (different from our African one),” said a student from Benin. “So,” he continued, “I even didn't check my schedule before saying 'yes' to the new reading group, because I knew that I would make it possible, no matter when it met!”
When thinking about the narrator of this book who is an 8-year-old little girl, one student said, "I like this book because it shows how important education could be when you have a father with a sense of justice."
Students were encouraged to watch the original film with Gregory Peck when it appeared on TV at the end of November. Of course, they wanted to compare the film and the book, which made for another fascinating discussion.
And what about the future? They want to continue, they want to invite a few more students (but keep the group under 10, however), and they want another good book to share. Maybe it will be Go Set a Watchman, the prequel to TKAM. Maybe it will be Beloved by Morrison, or Catcher in the Rye by Salinger. Who knows?
What they do know is that they will continue to meet in this student book group! Thank you, NYPL, for bringing them together in the first place, and inspiring them to continue their learning!
Today we share the news of the appointment of The New York Public Library’s Andrew W. Mellon Director of the Research Libraries—William P. Kelly.
The Library's Mellon Director leads the Library's four research centers and their 460 staff members—the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building on Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street; the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture; the Science, Industry and Business Library; and the Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center. As Mellon Director, Bill will be charged with preserving and expanding the use of the most democratically accessible of research collections, which includes approximately 45 million items and is growing by about 150,000 books per year. He will begin his tenure in January.
Bill is both an accomplished scholar and a true leader. Most recently, he was the interim chancellor of the City University of New York, after serving from 2005 to 2013 as president of the CUNY Graduate Center. He is also currently chairman of the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation. At the CUNY Graduate Center, Bill has a well-earned reputation as an advocate for scholarly work, an institution builder, and a teacher and mentor.
Given his wealth of experience from these and many additional roles he has undertaken in his career, Bill has much to contribute to The New York Public Library. He arrives to a very full plate of activity, including: recruiting a number of new curators and staff; completing the second story of underground storage underneath Bryant Park so that we can again have as many or more books as ever on site—and now well preserved; working to ensure a great outcome from the Schwarzman Building renovation, which will open up approximately 40 percent more of the building to researchers and the general public; overseeing a $20 million renovation of the Schomburg Center; and much more. For more details, please see the news release about Bill's appointment.
If you are interested in joining our e-newsletter for researchers and scholars, sign up here.
SAGEWorks Boot Camp - Enrollment Now open for January 4th. SAGEWorks assists people 40 years and older in learning relevant, cutting-edge job search skills in a LGBT-friendly environment. This two week training takes place from Monday - Friday, 1/4/16 - 1/15/16 - 9:30 am - to 2:00 pm at the SAGE Center, 305 7th Avenue, New York, NY 10001.
SAGEWorks Workshop - Career Development Assessments. This is a One-on-One Employment Assessment with SAGEWorks staff to discuss the SAGEWorks Bootcamp and its' benefits, CV's and Resumes, how to best market yourself in an interview, innovative job search strategies and more, at the SAGE Center, 305 7th Avenue, 15th Floor, New York, NY 10001. SAGEWorks assists people 40 years and older in learning relevant, cutting-edge job search skills in a LGBT- friendly environment.
If you would like to receive information for a future event showcasing employment opportunities at the Hotel Syracuse, please send an email to recruitment.dews@labor.ny.gov with 'Hotel Syracuse" in the subject line.
The New York City Employment and Training Coalition (NYCE&TC) is an association of 200 community-based organizations, educational institutions, and labor unions that annually provide job training and employment services to over 750,000 New Yorkers, including welfare recipients, unemployed workers, low-wage workers, at-risk youth, the formerly incarcerated, immigrants and the mentally and physically disabled. View NYCE&TC Job Listings.
Digital NYC is the official online hub of the New York City startup and technology ecosystem, bringing together every company, startup, investor, event, job, class, blog, video, workplace, accelerator, incubator, resource, and organization in the five boroughs. Search jobs by category on this site.
St. Nicks Alliance Workforce Development provides Free Job Training and Educational Programs in Environmental Response and Remediation Tec (ERRT). Commercial Driver's License, Pest Control Technician Training (PCT), Employment Search and Prep Training and Job Placement, Earn Benefits and Career Path Center. For information and assistance, please visit St. Nicks Alliance Workforce Development or call 718-302-2057 ext. 202.
Brooklyn Workforce Innovations helps jobless and working poor New Yorkers establish careers in sectors that offer good wages and opportunities for advancement. Currently, BWI offers free job training programs in four industries: commercial driving, telecommunications cable installation, TV and film production, and skilled woodworking.
CMP (formerly Chinatown Manpower Project) in lower Manhattan is now recruiting for a free training in Quickbooks, Basic Accounting, and Excel. This training is open to anyone who is receiving food stamps but no cash assistance. Class runs for eight weeks, followed by one-on-one meetings with a job developer. CMP also provides Free Home Health Aide Training for bilingual English/Cantonese speakers who are receiving food stamps but no cash assistance. Training runs Mondays through Fridays for six weeks and includes test prep and taking the HHA certification exam. Students learn about direct care techniques such as taking vital signs and assisting with personal hygiene and nutrition. For more information for the above two training programs, email: info@cmpny.org, call 212-571-1690, or visit. CMP also provides tuition-based healthcare and business trainings free to students who are entitled to ACCESS funding.
Nontraditional Employment for Women (NEW) trains women and places them in careers in the skilled construction, utility, and maintenance trades. It helps women achieve economic independence and a secure future. For information call 212-627-6252 or register online.
Grace Institute provides tuition-free, practical job training in a supportive learning community for underserved New York area women of all ages and from many different backgrounds. For information call 212-832-7605.
Please note this page will be revised when more recruitment events for the week of December 13 become available.
The Leteo Institute gives you the chance to erase all of your bad memories. If you could, would you take advantage of it? But what if what you wanted to erase was an inherent part of you? Aaron Soto faces this dilemma while growing up in the South Bronx, in More Happy Than Not, Adam Silvera’s debut young adult novel.
We at the Bronx Library Center were very excited about hosting Adam as part of the TeenLIVE Fall 2015 series! He began with talking a little bit about the journey of More Happy Than Not, which included several changes to the original draft. Adam was very open and honest about growing up in the Bronx, his writing process, and of course about his love for Harry Potter. This made the audience, of primarily teens, very receptive towards Adam. So receptive, that Adam ran over his time in order to answer all of their questions!
We had an interested group that asked many different questions! A few teens asked about his writing as well as his literary influences. From his writing process to his tattoos, the questions varied greatly, and they allowed for the teens to get to know Adam better. He is not much older than the audience we had and many of the teens were able to relate to Adam in different ways. Towards the end of the event, he made sure to sign a personalized flyer for everyone and took many photos. Being able to meet someone with a similar background who has become successful doing something that he loves is incredibly inspiring for our teens.
Afterwards, Adam also answered a few questions about his book and his experience coming to the Bronx Library Center. We are happy he enjoyed it as much as our teens did!
What do you hope readers, especially teen readers, get out of More Happy than Not?
The novel's universal theme is the pursuit of happiness so I hope readers understand that the path towards happiness may be difficult sometimes, and how happy endings aren't promised in our teen years, but we can be in control of separating the good from the bad, even if those choices can sometimes be heartbreaking. Just trust that happiness goes on at the end of the day.
What was your favorite part about coming to the Bronx Library Center?
Meeting teens is obviously the genuine, go-to answer because teen readers are legit the coolest and very passionate, but it was extra special to meet teens from neighborhoods not unlike the ones where I grew up. We ran over the expected time because they had so many questions. It was also incredible to not only speak openly about my sexuality in a borough that I was once afraid to come out in, but for my stories about making out with hot guys now that I'm out to be cheered. I'm so happy I got a chance to meet them!
How did you feel when you saw your book on the New York Times Bestseller list?!
It was so awesome, with a few happy curse words thrown in there. This book was rejected by tons of publishers and some editors even wanted to strike parts of Aaron's identity, like his ethnicity and orientation, so I'm happy he remained as he is and has connected with so many readers as he was always meant to be. It's safe to say there aren't many books on the bestseller list with gay Puerto Rican narrators so I'm honored Aaron Soto has left that mark.
Our friends at Book Riot came up with a doozy of a New Year's resolution: Spend a whole year reading consciously, thoughtfully, and outside your comfort zone.
Book Riot's latest Read Harder Challenge lays out 24 new reading tasks to complete in 2016. Here at The New York Public Library, our expert recommenders have come up with a few book suggestions to fit the criteria of each task.
We used a “something old; something new” theme: The books on this list were (mostly) published before 1950 or in 2015. Our picks range from 19th-century Gothic literature to new YA bestsellers. And, of course, all of them are available from the public library or downloadable for free online.
More than 4,000 (!!) people became members of the challenge's 2015 Goodreads group last year. This year's tasks are even more inspiring and challenging, and we—Gwen, Jessica Pigza of the Rare Book Division, Carolyn Broomhead of the Research Libraries, and maybe some other NYPL book experts if we can convince them too—have both accepted the challenge this year ourselves!
Staff picks are chosen by NYPL staff members and are not intended to be comprehensive lists. We'd love to hear your ideas too, so leave a comment and tell us what you’d recommend. And check out our Staff Picks browse tool for more recommendations!
Timbaland is a producer, rapper, songwriter, and now, an author. A four-time Grammy winner, Timbaland has worked with artists including Rihanna, Nas, Aaliyah, Jay-Z, Nelly Furtado, Drake, Missy Elliot, Pharrell Williams, Rick Ross, Ludacris, Madonna, and Mariah Carey. At a recent visit to the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, he launched his memoir The Emperor of Sound. This week for the New York Public Library Podcast, we're proud to present that conversation with Timbaland discussing Mantronix, artistic reinvention, and kids.
Dr. Jelani Cobb and Timbaland
Timbaland spoke of his appreciation for producers like Pete Rock. But even before Rock, Timbland recalled discovering Mantronix, one of his early influences:
"Mantronix to me was the first. He had this song called 'King of Beats' and that song, I was like, 'How did he do this?' because it's like what computers do now, he kind of was starting the element back then. I didn't know how he did. I thought it was unique how he'd take Peter Piper beat and slow it down and do certain things and trick it out a little bit. I'm like, 'This dude is ill.'"
One of the most prolific artists and producers making music today, Timbaland views evolution as the key to longterm success. He subscribes to a four-year artistic cycle:
"I think every major career has like a four-year term, just like the presidency. You know, the president can be president and if you make another term it's eight years. That's it. So, you beat all the odds. It's the same thing in music. It's like you have to constantly reinvent, and as you reinvent you have to reinvent everything: your finances, everything about you. You've got to think smart, and sometimes after a while, you don't need to go back to being down eighty-thousand chains."
Just as Timbaland believes in the need for personal reinvention, he also believes in a creative reinvigoration of education. He hopes to see more creativity in the classroom:
"People need to pay attention to the kids around us. I feel like people get to thirty-five, thirty-six, they kind of get complacent, and I feel like our kids are the future. In school they need to come up with something more creative for our children instead of letting the outside create stuff for our children... That's my next calling: to do music and to teach at the same time."
You can subscribe to the New York Public Library Podcast to hear more conversations with wonderful artists, writers, and intellectuals. Join the conversation today!
Monserrat Thalia's gaze on life is losing focus. An undocumented immigrant from Argentina, she is a senior in high school. She cannot see a way into college, considering her status. MT starts skipping school and stops trying. MT's father rules their household with fear and intimidation. Her parents pump her full of anxiety about deportation. She is afraid that cops or goverment officials will get wind of her status, and she will be forced to go live in a country that she does not think can offer her anything.
MT's mother does her best to protect her from her abusive father, but her success is severly limited. Brother Jose is adorable with his SpongeBob fascination. Best friend Chelsea offers her home as a refuge for the lost young woman. MT looks at the road of her life, and she struggles to traverse it. The chains of her abusive father and the lack of documentation shackle her.
I loved reading a fictionalized version of the challenges that undocumented teens face. Unfortunately, though, the teen's father was quite brutal towards her.
Staff picks are chosen by NYPL staff members and are not intended to be comprehensive lists. We'd love to hear yourpicks! Tell us what you'd recommend: Leave a comment or email us.
Buttery croissants, lusciously frosted cupcakes, chocolate studded brownies, fresh fruit pies, crusty artisan bread...there is so much deliciousness on display in New York City bakery windows. If you've ever thought about trying to replicate these sweet or savory treats, check out the cookbooks from these famous NYC bakeries!
The Mid-Manhattan Library turned 45 this year. The library opened its doors to the public on October 26, 1970 and we’ve been serving readers from all over the city—and the world—ever since. To celebrate our 45th birthday this fall, we compiled a list of 45 fiction titles, including award-winners, bestsellers, and some other noteworthy fiction from the early 1970s, currently available in NYPL’s circulating and/or e-collections. As end of the year book lists are circulating, we thought we’d share this blast from the fiction past.
What books were in the news in October 1970?Love Story by Erich Segal was at the top of the New York Times Best Seller List for October 25, 1970. It was also the number one bestselling novel of that year with The French Lieutenant’s Woman by John Fowles in second place. The Pulitzer Prize for Fiction was awarded to The Collected Stories of Jean Stafford, and Joyce Carol Oates received the National Book Award for her novel Them in 1970. Ursula Le Guin won both the Hugo and Nebula Awards that year for The Left Hand of Darkness, and Forfeit by Dick Francis won the Edgar Award for Best Mystery Fiction. The 1970 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to Russian writer Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, and future Nobel Laureate Toni Morrison published her first novel, The Bluest Eye that year.
In making our list, we started started with National Book Award and Pulitzer Prize winners, looked at other literary awards, and consulted NYPL's Books to Remember lists from the early 1970s. Bestsellers are taken from the Publisher's Weekly annual lists. Finally, we included a few other culturally significant novels that did not win awards or become bestsellers when published in the early 1970s, but which have had a lasting impact. Please feel free to suggest others. There is some crossover among the categories. Several bestsellers, like E. L. Doctorow's Ragtime and John le Carré's Tinker, Tailor, Soldier Spy also appeared on NYPL's Books to Remember lists. Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn is both a Nobel Prize winner and a bestselling author of the time; his August 1914 was the second best-selling novel of 1972.
What were you reading in the 1970s? What books written in the 1970s resonate with you? If I remember correctly, my favorite book in 1970 was Richard Scarry’s Best Story Book Ever, but 45 years on I'd be more likely to read Margaret Atwood or John le Carré. Please share your favorite 1970s fiction in the comments section below!
Thanks to Nancy Aravecz, Lois Moore, Billy Parrott, and Melissa Scheurer for contributing to this list!
Erika Paul, Pre-Professional in our Jean Blackwell Hutson Research and Reference Division, reflects on the significance of Civil Rights pioneer Claudette Colvin through a new display—sixty years after her courageous yet understated act:
Do we ever consider the contribution of teens during the Civil Rights Movement—who they were and what happened to them? We often remember leaders such as Rosa Parks and Dr. Martin Luther King, who made radical changes for the black community, but in fact teenagers during the Civil Rights Movement also made their mark in the battle against inequality.
In March 1955 Claudette Colvin, 15, was pulled off a bus, handcuffed, and taken to jail because she refused to give up her seat for a white passenger in Montgomery, Alabama. This event took place nine months before Rosa Parks became a major figure in the Civil Rights Movement.
Today, Bronx resident Colvin, now 76, is celebrated in a new flash display in the Schomburg's Jean Blackwell Hutson Research and Reference Division as the remarkable teenager who stood up for her rights. Through newspaper clippings, books, and photographs, Colvin's important story continues to be shared with audiences.
"Other kids played school and house and all of those things. I played library." - Dawn Collins (Zimmerer)
Dawn Collins (Zimmerer) is a Senior YA Librarian at The New York Public Library's West Farms Branch. The West Farms Branch, which began as a sub-branch of The New York Public Library in 1929, has been serving residents of the South Bronx in its present location on Honeywell Avenue since 1954.
Recently, the WSJ wrote about Cyndi Lauper's songwriting process for her hit single "Time After Time." The song was inspired by her personal life, but also by the book Time and Again by Jack Finney. Here's a list of some upcoming time travel books. May they inspire your creative endeavors.
Into the Dim by Janet B. Taylor (Publication Date: March 1, 2016)
Hope Walton feels out of place because she's a brunette in a family full of blondes, but little does she suspect that she's descended from a family of time-travelers. The time travel method has something to do Nikola Tesla and takes her to Scotland. Comparisons toOutlanderabound.
Library Journal: "Fetishes, Time Travel & Disappearing Authors"
Mo Daviau's Every Anxious Wave (Publication Date: February 2016) is a winner of the University of Michigan’s prestigious Hopwood Award and bridges 1980s Manhattan and 980s Mannahatta Island.
Influential, iconic, legendary. Just some of the words that could be used describe The Wu-Tang Clan. The St. George Library Center on Staten Island pays homage to the hip-hop greats with a compilation of books, music, and movies by and about the group and its members.
Take a look at the list below, containing just a few of the items in our display. Come by the branch for a closer look or request an item using the links provided in this blog post. Don't wait too long, because the books are flying off the shelf. If you think we've missed something or have a suggestion, don't hesitate to post a comment at the bottom of the page.
Para muchos, el 24 de diciembre Día de Nochebuena, es una celebración tan importante como la fiesta de Navidad del 25 de diciembre, por ser la víspera del nacimiento de Jesús (según la religión católica).
La tradición de Navidad en Estados Unidos es una mezcla de cultura y religión, y es tan variada como la diversidad de su población. La Casa Blanca enfatiza las costumbres decorativas de fin de año con el lema: Tradiciones Eternas para inspirar y recrear recuerdos.
¿Podrías creer que alrededor de trescientos años atrás la celebración de la Navidad era penalizada? El bullicio de la festividad era considerada una violación al orden público. Desde la época colonial hasta nuestros días, ¡cuánto hemos progresado! ¡Hasta podemos considerarnos afortunados! ¿Qué podemos hacer esta Navidad para seguir celebrando con alegría y algarabía?
En 1866, la tranquilidad del pequeño pueblo de Horston se ve perturbada por el asesinato de la nueva mujer del alcalde, y en medio de la investigación surge una gran historia de amor.
Las lágrimas de Eureka son tan poderosas que tienen el poder de hacer resurgir el continente perdido de la Atlántida, pero ¿estará ella dispuesta a renunciar a su amor para salvar al mundo?
Melinda trata de recuperarse de un terrible trauma y durante un viaje humanitario en medio de la selva descubre un amor apasionado que dará un nuevo sentido a su vida.
Una novela que remonta al lector desde el centro de Italia hasta las costas de Inglaterra para contar una conmovedora historia de amor rodeada de misterio y secretos.
Una innovación gastronómica para ayudar a acentuar los sabores al máximo a través de procesos de cocinado generales, consejos, trucos, y una extensa variedad de recetas.
En esta nueva trilogía llamada Rendición, a pesar del dolor que le causó la pérdida de su esposo, Josslyn va en busca de lo que su difunto marido nunca le pudo dar y encuentra lo inesperado.
Damon Savage desconoce que la esposa que le impusieron sus padres sin su consentimiento, no es otra que la bella y aclamada actriz que siempre ha deseado convertir en su amante.
En esta obra se cuentan las dos historias que ocurrieron antes de que la joven América llegara al palacio para completar La selección. La primera cuenta la vida del príncipe Maxon y su chica anterior. La segunda narra la vida de Aspen fuera del palacio y la de otros guardianes reales.
Para muchos, el 24 de diciembre 
