Eliza Reid is a journalist, editor, and co-founder of the annual Iceland Writers Retreat. Eliza grew up on a hobby farm near Ottawa, Canada, and moved to Iceland in 2003, five years after winning a…
In order to showcase the technology available in the Octavia Lab, celebrate the diversity of Los Angeles, and demonstrate how library resources, such as Tessa, the library's online digital archive…
For many years it was hard to find and watch many classic and influential films by African-American directors: they were not widely distributed, they were not released on home video, or they were…
California Nouns: People, Places, and Things Deserts Did you know that deserts make up about 25% of the total surface area of the state of California? Although some consider them barren wastelands, if…
We Americans owe a profound debt of gratitude to activist Judy Heumann. The chutzpah she has demonstrated through decades of direct action has solidified fundamental civil rights for people with…
Thích Nhất Hạnh, the influential Vietnamese Buddhist monk who achieved a worldwide following with his message of mindfulness, peace, and compassion, died at age 95 on Saturday, January 22, 2022…
If you've heard it once, you've heard it a million times—the book was better! There's nothing like debating the differences between a favorite book and its translation to the screen. But if you don't…
Eva Jurczyk is a writer and librarian living in Toronto. She has written for Jezebel, The Awl, The Rumpus, and Publishers Weekly. The Department of Rare Books and Special Collections is her first…
Originally published on Friday, February 1, 2019, now updated for 2022.Since we last left you here…The Rams did play in Super Bowl LIII against New England. And they lost, 13-3, in one of the weirder…
You Chung (“Y.C.”) Hong (1898–1977) was a community booster, social activist, and immigration lawyer based in Chinatown in Los Angeles and is profiled as a part of Archives Alive: Stories and Voices…
Jenna Freedman is the founder and curator of the Barnard Zine Library. She's been making zines for most of the 21th Century, most recently a series about pandemic life called Unprecedented. She writes…
One of the most enjoyable aspects of having a Los Angeles Public Library card is the wide variety of lifelong learning opportunities available. Discovering new hobbies and learning for pleasure is…
Born in Illinois, Marie Rutkoski is a graduate of the University of Iowa and Harvard University. She is a professor of English literature at Brooklyn College and a New York Times bestselling author of…
In October 2019, Alma Velasco—an adult learner at the Echo Park Branch Library—got serious about becoming a US citizen. Alma sent in her application to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services, and…
Joseph Knox was born and raised in and around Manchester, England, where he worked in bars and bookshops before moving to London. His debut novel, Sirens, the first in the Aidan Waits trilogy, was a…
Liana Jegers is an illustrator in Los Angeles, CA. She also helps run a small publishing house with her husband called Caboose Books. How did you get interested in zines? I'm not sure when I first…
112 years ago a remarkable event took place on Dominguez Hill in what is now the City of Carson, Los Angeles County. A scant six years after the Wright Brothers’ historic flight at Kitty Hawk, North…
If you've heard it once, you've heard it a million times—the book was better! There's nothing like debating the differences between a favorite book and its translation to the screen. But if you don't…
Kim Newman is a popular and respected author and movie critic, known for his acclaimed alternate-history series, Anno Dracula. He writes regularly for Empire magazine and contributes to The Guardian…
The SoCal Readers are the Teens Leading Change participants at the Chatsworth library. They are creating programming around the issue of reading engagement among those with learning disabilities…
Goldy Moldavsky was born in Lima, Peru, and grew up in Brooklyn, New York, where she lives with her family. She is the New York Times–bestselling author of Kill the Boy Band and No Good Deed. Some of…
During the stay-at-home pandemic order, it became evident that mental health was an increasingly problematic issue. Being sequestered in their homes, teens would also be impacted by events in their…
Tomas Moniz’s debut novel, Big Familia, was a finalist for the 2020 PEN/Hemingway, the LAMBDA, and the Foreward Indies Awards. He edited the popular zine and book Rad Dad and Rad Families. He has two…
bell hooks (born Gloria Jean Watkins) stands out as one of the nation’s pillars of both feminism and African American studies. It’s no exaggeration to say that every media outlet of note has…
