Library Blog

August 4th 2014

by Eileen and Sujei

If you’re like me, you have a ton of things on your mind/plate. And although I knew July was International Zine Month, I couldn’t quite pull the trigger on this blog post till now. But, all this information is still valid – and it's always a good time to enjoy and make zines.

But wait – I should slow down, back up – and address a question you may have: What is a zine anyway?

A zine made by women over 40. Found at the Papercut Zine Library.

 ... Read Post

July 30th 2014
Since our Muslim Journeys series began at SPL, I've been reading quite a bit about Islamic history and culture and taking note of events in the Islamic calendar. As with Christianity and Judaism, the Islamic year is based on a lunar calendar. Ramadan, the period when Muslims must fast between sunrise and sunset, ended recently. A writer for The Atlantic brought up an issue that had never occurred to me: how can Muslims be expected to fast between sunrise and sunset in a place where the sun is... Read Post
July 18th 2014
Boston University professor Linda Heyw0od gave a great talk last night on Prince Among Slaves, one of the titles in our Muslim Journeys bookshelf. Prince is the story of Abdul Rahman, a Fulbe prince captured and sold into slavery in Mississippi and his quest for freedom. The book is also a fascinating portrait of antebellum Natchez, the heart of the "Cotton Kingdom." Dr. Heywood is a  dynamic speaker who  did a fabulous job placing the events and people of the book in their historical context,... Read Post
June 4th 2014

Somerville Public Library’s central branch is marking its centennial this year. Way back in January of 1914, the Italian Renaissance-style building at 79 Highland Avenue opened for patrons after its dedication on Dec. 17, 1913.

Famed library architect Edward Lippincott Tilton designed the new building. According to the Somerville Journal in an article dated Dec. 12, 1913, the library was constructed at a cost of $125,000 (which is $2,993,333 in today’s dollars). Great library... Read Post

June 3rd 2014

Books for Somerville Reads 2014 have arrived and are now available at all SPL locations! Somerville Reads is a project that promotes literacy and community engagement by encouraging people all over the City to read and discuss the same book. The book that has been selected for 2014 is Dark Tide: the Great Boston Molasses Flood of 1919 by Stephen Puleo. A companion children's book has also been selected: The Great Molasses Flood: Boston, 1919 by Deborah Kops. Both of these authors will be... Read Post

May 20th 2014
One of the most interesting books I've read this year  has been Thomas Jefferson's Qur'an: Islam and the Founders. I would have been drawn to it anyway because of my love of history, but I was especially intrigued by the book's subject because I'm in charge of the library's programming series Muslim Journeys.   Thomas Jefferson's Qur'an is a fascinating look at one of the most astonishing episodes in American history: the establishment of America as a secular state, one where there were no... Read Post
May 5th 2014

For most of us today is just another Monday, or at most an excuse to go out for Mexican food tonight or make a margarita at home. For Mexican-Americans and Mexicans residing in the US, today is a celebration of Mexican heritage. But what is Cinco de Mayo? The holiday commemorates the highly unlikely victory of a Mexican army over invading French forces on May 5, 1862, near the city of Puebla, Mexico. Here's the background: after the U.S. invasion of 1846-48 and two civil wars, the... Read Post

March 11th 2014

Visitors to the Central Library often comment on the frieze in the main reading room that runs along the perimeter of the room just below the ceiling.

It's a partial reproduction of the friezes on the Parthenon, one of the finest surviving buildings of Classical Greece and a symbol of Western civilization. Ever since this building opened a century ago, library staff have been telling anyone who asks that the frieze depicts the Panathenaic Procession, which concluded the annual... Read Post

January 29th 2014
Somerville Public Library was one of ten libraries in the U.S. chosen to be a StoryCorps recording site! If you don't know what StoryCorps is, it's a foundation dedicated to honoring the lives of Americans by recording their stories. That means anyone. That means you. The story you record and share with us doesn't have to involve historic events or famous people. It just has to be important to you. That's what makes these stories matter. To hear some examples of StoryCorps recordings go here.... Read Post
January 13th 2014
For the next few months we will continue our series of NEH/ALA-sponsored programs Muslim Journeys, an effort to educate the public about Islamic history and culture.  In keeping with the spirit of Muslim Journeys, I thought I should note that Mawlid, the celebration of the birth of the Prophet Mohammed, begins at sunset today. Observances of Mawlid vary from country to country. Some Islamic scholars actually discourage celebrating Mawlid, pointing out that as far as anyone knows Muhammed ... Read Post
December 13th 2013

The sound systems in supermarkets and shopping malls are blaring Christmas music, your neighbors have extra lights that are well on their way to frying the local electrical grid and you're trying to figure out an appropriate gift for the uncle who last year gave you From Prairies to Peaks: A History of the Rocky Mountain Region of the U.S. Forest Service, 1905-2012.

Well, maybe you would like to avoid Yuletide this year. Maybe you're not in the mood for wreaths and eggnog. Take heart... Read Post

November 25th 2013
Somerville Public Library is one of ten public libraries in the United States to be selected as a StoryCorps @ Your Library pilot site. Through this oral history project, we aim to record the stories, thoughts, and ideas of a diverse mix of 30-40 Somerville teens. Teens may be interviewed by or interview friends, family members, mentors, etc. Trained community facilitators will guide the interview process and handle all technical aspects for a comfortable interview experience. For more... Read Post
November 18th 2013

Somerville is a community of makers. It's home to the Artisan's Asylum, a community and school for hobbyists, inventors and tinkerers. It's a place where imaginative historical markers can spring up overnight and robots will soon roam the streets. So today's post is a nod to that Übermaker, Leonardo da Vinci. Among the many inventions Leonardo envisioned was the "viola organista:" a piano combined with a cello. No one has ever made, let alone played, a viola organista.... Read Post

November 15th 2013
Last night's Muslim Journeys event was great. Harvard Divinity School professor Leila Ahmed participated in a discussion of her book, A Quiet Revolution: The Veil's Resurgence, from the Middle East to America.  We had a good turnout, and everyone who participated in the discussion had interesting questions and shared well-informed opinions. The conversation ranged from  the history of this highly symbolic garment to the differences in religious practice and culture in various Islamic nations... Read Post
October 30th 2013

In honor of Halloween, some denizens of the Interwebs are indulging their list-making mania by compiling lists of scary books or movies. Below is a brief list of my own: six works—three books, three movies—that were created with one purpose in mind: to scare the bejesus out of us.

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
This 1959 novel is the haunted house story. Hill House is a long-abandoned country residence with an unsettling reputation. An investigator of psychic... Read Post

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