Everyone has a story worth sharing and hearing. Discover more about the lives of those around you at the Free Library's first "Living Library" event, which will take place at the Parkway Central branch on Wednesday, June 20 from 7 to 8:30 p.m. During this special evening, human "books" will be available for three fifteen-minute "reading" periods wherein they can be claimed by patrons interested in learning more about their particular stories. Attendees can ask the books questions about their lives, careers, passions, and interests; participants include the Executive Director of the Philadelphia Photo Arts Center, the President and Director of the Free Library, and many more! Check out the invite on the right and mark it down on your calendars- this will be a night to remember! 

Tags: Living Library

Maurice Sendak, beloved children's author/illustrator and noted curmudgeon, died today from complications suffered from a stroke at his home in Danbury, Connecticut. He was 83. Best known for his classic story, Where the Wild Things Are (for which he was awarded the Caldecott Medal in 1964), Sendak wrote over a dozen books and illustrated many more. He received the National Medal of Arts in 1996 for his contributions to illustration and to children's literature. To celebrate the man and his wondrous achievements, make sure to check out his hilarious interview with Stephen Colbert from January of this year and keep these words of wisdom from the man himself in mind:

"My big concern is me and what do I do now until the time of my death. That is valid. That is useful. That is beautiful. That is creative. And also, I want to be free again...I want to see me to the end working, living for myself. Ripeness is all. Now, interpreting what ripeness is our own individual problem. … So, what is the point of it all? Not leaving legacies. But being ripe. Being ripe... In other words, you must not waste a second of this deliciousness which for [Keats] was life and being a great poet. That you savor every, everything that happened. I want to get ripe."

Check out our memorial booklist here and read a Sendak story today!

"We die. That may be the meaning of life. But we do language. That may be the measure of our lives."

-Toni Morrison, “The Nobel Prize in Literature 1993”

Toni Morrison is one of the best examples of those who, in her own words, “do” language -- create it, play with it, enrich it, and further its evolution. Language is a complex system of expression, signification, destruction, and creation. It is performative, symbolic, and all-encompassing. The idea of “doing” language speaks to the need to throw oneself fully into this linguistic labyrinth, poke around, and play. I once heard Morrison deliver a lecture on the “invisible ink” that connects writers to readers who are particularly receptive to their work. This unseen language draws the reader into the story and involves them in its intricacies on a more intimate level. I have always loved her books and her particularly rich way of writing. To celebrate Morrison's receiving this year's Presidential Medal of Freedom, check out our featured podcast from Morrison's talk on her 2008 novel, A Mercy; buy tickets for her forthcoming talk on May 18 at Parkway Central in support of her new book, Home; or check out one of her fantastic books at the Free Library branch nearest to you!

After the multitude of holidays commemorated over the past few days, here comes another day jam-packed with reasons to celebrate. Today, April 23, marks World Book and Copyright Day, inaugurated by UNESCO in 1995 to promote reading, publishing, and copyright awareness. Today is also Saint George's Day, a holiday feted in Catalonia, Spain, by sweethearts exchanging books with one another, and International Pixel-Stained Technopeasant Day, a holiday created by science fiction and fantasy writer Jo Walton to encourage her fellow authors to post "professional quality" works for free on the internet. The abundance of literary happenings in one single day leads me to ask: Which science fiction/fantasy books would you offer to your sweetheart (platonic or romantic) to promote their reading and intellectual development? (Essentially, which titles do you think accord with the themes of today's three holidays?) My suggestions, in no particular order:

Anything by Ursula Le Guin

Nightfall and Other Stories by Isaac Asimov

Ubik by Philip K. Dick

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury (Actually, speaking of Bradbury, here is a quotation from him on his relationship with libraries: "Libraries raised me. I don’t believe in colleges and universities. I believe in libraries because most students don’t have any money. When I graduated from high school, it was during the Depression and we had no money. I couldn’t go to college, so I went to the library three days a week for 10 years.")