Free Library Blog

African Hair Styles: Culture and Consciousness

Communications Office — 2009-07-01T15:34:00-05:00

New this summer, an exhibit in the Parkway Central Library explores the history and meaning behind the hairstyles of African women. African Hair Styles: Culture and Consciousness features a range of artistic and historical objects, such as masks, photographs, and intricately carved sculptures. The exhibition highlights how women were able to communicate through their hair styles—letting others know which cultural group they came from, what their life position was, and what their status was within their cultural group. Women could also style their hair to communicate their marital status, their age, and how many children they had. As seen in the photographs and sculptures, the hairstyles are an artistic discipline that provides aesthetic beauty—not to mention acting as a source of admiration and pride for those who wear them. The exhibition also highlights how styles vary from village to village and how they evolve over time.

The exhibition, which will be on display in the west gallery through August 28, is presented by Herman Bigham & Associates: African Cultural Arts Preservers and Presenters.

Music the soundtrack of our lives

Communications Office — 2009-06-30T16:09:00-05:00

Philadelphia is a big music town, and we are home to many musical talents such as opera singer Marian Anderson, pop sensation Frankie Avalon, jazz legends John Coltrane, Grover Washington and Rufus Harley, songwriters G. Love and Amos Lee, R&B groups The Delfonics, Hall and Oates and Boyz II Men as well as hip hop artists Will Smith, DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Roots to name a few.

In Philly, music is in our bones, and the death of pop music icon Michael Jackson was felt throughout the city. I can personally remember my first introduction to Michael Jackson’s music. I was sitting on the floor, five inches away from the television, watching the “world premiere” of the Thriller video. I was a bit too young to fully understand everything going on, but I can distinctly remember the excitement around me and knew he was doing something unique.

On June 25, when the news of Michael Jackson’s death hit the airwaves, journalist and author Farai Chideya was at the Parkway Central Library to discuss her debut novel, Kiss the Sky, which chronicles the ups and downs of a black female rocker attempting to make a musical comeback amidst struggles with love, friendship, and faith. She spent the first part of her talk discussing Michael Jackson and celebrity. You can listen or download the podcast here (or subscribe to our podcasts via iTunes).

The Parkway Central Library's Music Department also provides many resources for music lovers. Here are some quick facts you might not know about our music department:

You can listen to our vast recording collection, including CDs and LPs, on one of our turntables or CD players (bring your head phones or use ours). Each patron can listen for an hour and a half each day using their library card.

You can view more than 350,00 titles in our sheet music collection (which can be used in the department)

You can check out popular songbooks of artists and shows as well as classical scores and instructional method books.

Check out biographies on composers, artists and musicans as well as books on music history, musical instruments and music business.

Our Chamber Music Collection is a unique circulating collection of scores and parts for ensembles available to amateur and professional musicians from all music periods (from Baroque to Modern) that can be borrowed with a refundable deposit.

Our Drinker Choral Music Library is the largest library of choral music scores and song books in the United States available to choirs and choral groups

Our Edwin A. Fleisher Collection of Orchestral Music is the world’s largest lending library of orchestral performance materials with over 21,000 titles available to music organizations and orchestras.

Feel free to leave comments about music you love!

Lovett Branch Went to the Dogs

Communications Office — 2009-06-23T09:19:00-05:00

On June 3rd the Lovett Branch located in Mt. Airy went to the dogs!

Guests learned about greyhound rescue efforts with a presentation by Citizens Against Greyhound Racing and got to meet some of the adorable greyhounds.

You can view all the upcoming events at this branch and other braches all over the city in our Events section.

Explore Historical Images of Philadelphia on a Map

Communications Office — 2009-06-15T16:34:00-05:00

Step back in time and explore the Philadelphia of yesterday using the Free Library of Philadelphia's Historical Images of Philadelphia digital collection with Google Maps. A portion of our records have been geocoded to include latitude and longitude, and when you view an image from our collection on Google Maps, you can see the image, its description, and where it was taken.

Not sure where to start? Try selecting groups of images by neighborhood using the checkboxes located at the top of the page. You can also compare the digital collections image to the current street view of a location and see how much an area has changed over the years.

There are a little more than 100 images currently available —as we add locations to more images from our digital collections, they will begin to appear on this map. So be sure to check back periodically to see new additions!

Historical Images of Philadelphia Map

Library Usage Highlighted on Today Show

Communications Office — 2009-06-11T15:06:00-05:00

This morning, NBC’s Today Show explored the current state of libraries across the country—much like the Free Library of Philadelphia, the libraries profiled in the segment are experiencing an increase in traffic, a growing demand for computer access, and reduced hours, days of service, and budgets.

In times of economic strain and job loss, do you use your local library differently? Do you check out DVDs from the Library instead of paying to rent movies at national rental chains? Do you borrow career guidebooks, attend résumé-writing workshops, or apply for jobs using the Library’s computers or wireless access?

Check out the clip below for how libraries truly are the lifeline of communities across the country and let us know how you use your library!

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Have a Question?

Communications Office — 2009-06-03T09:15:00-05:00

Need a quick answer to a question to settle that office debate? Need to know when Parkway Central Closes or when Northeast Regional Library opens? With the Free Library of Philadelphia's new text-a-librarian service, you can have your answers at your fingertips.

Simply text a message to 66746. In the message box, type “askfree” and a space, then your question. Example: askfree What are the hours at Parkway Central?

Text messages should be for quick, simple questions that can be answered in short responses. A librarian should answer within two hours and usually much, much sooner. Our average response time is under five minutes. In the orange ASK section of our home page, you can click on “Text” to see a longer explanation in the form of an FAQ.

The Free Library of Philadelphia does not charge the patron for this service, however, cell phone providers generally charge customers for sending and/or receiving text messages.

There are also other ways to communicate and ask questions. Of course, we would love for you to visit one of our many library locations, check out books, and attend a program. If you can't come in person, you can call our General Information Department at 215-686-5322 or call your local branch.

Via the internet, the library offers a 24/7 chat service @ Ask Here PA. This service is designed to provide fast answers to your questions, using information found on the internet and in databases funded by the library. You can chat with a librarian, who will send you links to websites or articles contaning the information you requested. When Free Library staff is not available, a librarian from another library in Pennsylvania or even one from as far away as California will be there to assist you! If your question involves lengthy research or relates to your library record, the librarian will get you started and Free Library staff will follow up within two business days.

More involved research questions and comments can be sent to us directly via email. A librarian will answer your question within two business days.

So text, chat, email, phone or visit! The Free Library of Philadelphia staff is waiting for all of your questions.

Get Lost in Star Trek

Communications Office — 2009-05-21T16:45:00-05:00

I was first introduced to Star Trek during my summer vacation in 9th grade. It was 1994 and science fiction was big business, the television show The X Files had developed a huge following, and aliens were back in vogue. Every week day I spent the afternoon watching re-runs of Star Trek: The Next Generation episodes and was amazed at this future world, where star ships traveled at warp speed (faster than the speed of light) and their only mission was the exploration of the galaxy (“to go where no man has gone before”) and provide help where needed. For a slightly geeky teenager this was paradise.

But Star Trek wasn’t just an adventure show, it explored the controversial topics of war, peace, use of technology, democracy, economics, religion, human rights, feminism, xenophobia, and racism, and presented them all in allegories which left you to ponder and make your own decisions. The Next Generation caused me to watch the original Star Trek series (the one led by Captain Kirk and Spock). The television series was so successful (despite only being on air for three seasons) that it spawned five additional television series, 11 feature films, and a host of novels, comic books, and merchandise. The latest Star Trek film was released this month to great fanfare. Even Philadelphia’s own The Franklin has an exhibit on Star Trek, running from May 16 through September 20.

Below you will find a couple Star Trek films and books in the Free Library’s catalog. Please keep in mind many of these items have a limited quantities, so be prepared to place items on hold. But I’m sure if you’re a Star Trek enthusiast or just want to dig deeper into this fictional world, you won’t mind the wait. To find more Star Trek titles try searching our catalog.

Movies

Star Trek: The Motion Picture

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan

Star Trek III: The Search for Spock

Books

Star Trek Chronology: the history of the future by Michael and Denise Okuda

Star Trek Academy: Collision Course by William Shatner

The Klingon Dictionary by Marc Okrand (reference book)

Spock Must Die! by James Blish (the first original Star Trek novel)

Are you a Star Trek fan too? Feel free to leave a message below; it’ll be great to hear from fellow Star Trek fans.

New Website Feature Extras!

Communications Office — 2009-05-12T14:10:00-05:00

Have you ever wondered:

“Where can I get cool Free Library wallpaper?”

“Is there a way to search the library catalog from my browser?”

“I wonder if the Library Twitters?”

“I need more friends on Facebook... who can I add?”

“Where can I watch Free Library videos?”

Well, don’t worry; the library’s web development team answered all these questions with our new Extras page!

The Extras page allows you to download Free Library widgets (which can be embedded on a blog or website), desktop wallpaper, link to our social networking sites (twitter, Facebook, MySpace and YouTube), and install a search plug-in which allows you to search our catalog directly from your browser.

You can always find the Extras page by clicking "Extras" at the top-right of every page.

Check out the page and let us know what you think by leaving a comment below!

Parkway Central: Then and Now

Communications Office — 2009-05-01T16:37:00-05:00

I may not be a bona fide history nut—I certainly don’t know who was the fourth King of England—but I can spend hours poring over photographs and historical accounts of places I’m familiar with in present-day. Take the Parkway Central Library for example—there’s a certain level of nostalgia and intrigue that surrounds the history of a library, and Parkway Central doesn’t fall short. As media and technology (and the way we access them) evolve throughout the years, so does our Library.

Explore history hands-on and roam the halls of Parkway Central Library. Many departments display photographs of the original space, allowing visitors to study the differences that have shaped the departments over the years. I recommend starting your self-guided tour with a stop in Philbrick Popular Library, a bustling room full of new releases, DVDs, and popular literature. Then check out the "then and now" poster that shows the room how it once was—a sparse periodical space with dozens of heavy metal tables and chairs!

For a historical account without walking the halls, visit the digital collections the Free Library developed to celebrate the building’s 75th anniversary in 2002. Choose from blueprints, photographs, a timeline, and more in the 75th anniversary archives and explore the Parkway Central of the early 20th century.

Free Library Festival Was a Huge Success!

Communications Office — 2009-04-21T15:36:00-05:00

With more visitors than ever, the Free Library Festival was a hit last weekend! Broadway and television actress Kristin Chenoweth drew a huge crowd, and she even gave fans a special treat when she burst into song. Teens crowded Shakespeare Park to hear author John Green of Paper Towns talk about his books, his life, and his advice for nerdfighters. Our youngest Library fans joined their favorite storybook characters for a parade on Saturday, and later danced to the music of Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul, and Mary. Festival visitors enjoyed dozens of other events, including visits from Dara Torres, Amiri Baraka, Joyce Carol Oates, Nation Beat, and more! And of course, First Person Arts' StorySlam competitors from Chicago and Philadelphia kept the audience entertained with tales of mortification... and Philadelphia won!

We hope everyone had a great time, and we can’t wait to see you next year!