Today, writer, director, comedian and all-around entertainment legend Mel Brooks turns 92 (impressive, but not as much as a 2000 Year Old Man). As a child in Brooklyn, he fell in love with the movies and live theater. He grew up to be one of only 12 people to earn an EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar…
Celebrate Your Independence! Books for Kids
It’s that time of year again—when we grill out and chill out for the Fourth of July! Independence Day is a rite of passage for families to come together, have picnics and watch fireworks. Do you ever wonder why we celebrate Independence Day and how it came to be a holiday? Need a place to…
Quiz: Do You Know Chicago’s Parks?
Congratulations, Chicago, you've made it to summer! If you're reading this, though, you're probably stuck inside wishing you were enjoying one of Chicago's amazing parks instead. Now you can experience the parks virtually. We're proud to announce our Chicago Park District Photograph Digital Collection. Explore 10,000 images from parks all over the city and from…
Caught Reading: Summer Learning Challenge
School is done, which means it's time for the Summer Learning Challenge! Celebrate the Earth, the environment and just plain fun this summer at home and your local library. Kick off your Earth exploration with a good book. Here’s what we caught kids reading at a few of our libraries across the city. We spotted…
Teen Novels by Debut Authors
Always looking for the newest teen fiction? Check out these four debut authors talking about their books at the Teen Debut Author Panel at Sulzer Regional Library on Saturday, July 14. Their novels represent a variety of genres including realistic fiction, fantasy and fairy tale retellings. In Megan Bannen's The Bird and the Blade, a Chinese…
Happy 80th Birthday, Joyce Carol Oates!
Joyce Carol Oates, born June 16, 1938 in Lockport, NY, is an incredibly prolific author who's also versatile in different formats—novels, short stories, essays, plays and memoirs. Having written a hundred books, Oates has covered a wide range of topics, from boxing, starlets and rebellious teenage girls to serial killers, gothic horror tales and dysfunctional…
Tales of Tricky Gods
Gods give us wisdom and virtue, but the tricksters are the ones we remember. Modern authors tend to highlight the more positive aspects of their character as they give them a contemporary spin. Fasten your seat belts and get ready for humorous adventure. Where to start in recent literature of trickster gods than Neil Gaiman's Anansi…
50 Years of Special Olympics
The Special Olympics celebrates its 50th anniversary this summer here in Chicago. From July 17 to July 21, the international sporting event for people with intellectual disabilities returns to the Windy City, where it was born in the Chicago Park District in 1968. In 1965, a young park district employee named Anne Burke began teaching…
Fish, Fish, Fish! Fishy Tales for Little Minnows
We've added a few new friends to our Summer Learning Challenge this year—baby trout! The Thomas Hughes Children's Library at Harold Washington Library Center and Brighton Park Branch each have a tank of baby trout to care for this summer. Visit our fish friends and watch them grow throughout the summer until they are released into…
Novel Destinations: Florence
If you've never been to Florence, Italy, and have the chance to go, I highly recommend it. Whether you're there for art or history, or just want to eat and shop, Florence has something for you. Of course, if you're not going to make it there this year, I have some books to ease the…
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