Blog Posts by Subject: Books and Libraries

The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts has an extensive dance collection. I love the kinesthetic artistry of physical movement. I was curious about dance libraries and museums, and below are some that I found.

We here at AskNYPL get regular requests for digital images on different topics and we're always happy to share the New York Public Library's very own Digital Gallery. While the NYPL Digital Gallery does a wonderful job with its collection, making things easy to find and accessible, we don't always have the content folks are looking for. These instances lead us outside NYPL's resources and we've found some spectacular image resources.

It’s hard to believe that 2012 is almost over. As we look forward to the new year, I am proud to present our upcoming Reader’s Den online book discussion titles for 2013. With an eclectic mix of book discussion leaders hailing from Jefferson Market, Columbus, Mulberry Street, Spuyten Duyvil, and the Mid-Manhattan Library, this is sure to be our best year yet!

I'm happy to present a review of how the Music Division contributed to knowledge for 2011-2012. Although my information is based on the fiscal year ending June 30, 2012, December seems like an appropriate time to post this information.

July dawn. A passerby finds a scavenger lying in the mud by the Mumbai airport road. Crying for help — leg mashed and bloody — probably hit by a car. "Thousands of people passed this way every morning." ... "At 2:30 p.m., a Shiv Sena man made a call to a friend in the Sahar Police Station about a corpse that was disturbing small children."

This week, we are wrapping up our second semester of French classes at Jefferson Market. After Saturday's class, we caught up with Shauna, one of the students.

I took figure skating lessons on roller skates when I was five years old, and for us, skating was a family affair. My sister, brother, mother and I skate. I knew when I moved to New York City that I would cave eventually and begin ice skating, since there is only one roller skating rink in New York City at the southern tip of Staten Island. It would take me three hours to get there... much too long.

My sister just took some amazing photos of me on my aunt's horse, which reminds me just how awesome photography is. I visited the International Center of Photography library near Bryant Park, which has amazing photography books. I have always loved the composition design aspect of photographs, and I took well over 100 photos of my queen and her three orange kittens that I had this spring. Below are some photography libraries and museums that I found.

Run to failure: meaning operate your equipment (business) all out, don't bother to care for and maintain it (much less inspect it) properly — until everything has been pushed beyond its limits. To add insult to injury, ignore, and even penalize, your front-line people when they alert you to, or object to, the deliberate neglect.

Visit NYPL's BiblioCommons for these lists and many more. See below for some interesting staff picks from the past couple months, on topics both timely and timeless:

I am a vegan, natural health food nut, and now I am on a gluten-free diet, so I was interested to see what food libraries are out there. I used to be a big fan of the Food Network Channel; I loved watching the Food Network Challenge show, which I believe has been discontinued. I cook natural grains and I made my own bread and apple pies as a teenager. I love vegetables, fruit, and health food stores. Below is a selection of the food libraries and museums that I found.

On Sunday, December 4, 2011, the annual Holiday Open House was held at the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building on an unseasonably warm day. Prior to 1 p.m., the start of the party, the line outside the 42nd Street entrance near the Children's Center at 42nd Street ran alongside the building to the corner of 42nd Street and Fifth Avenue, then snaked back on 42nd Street to the entrance again.

I've always been curious about Neil Peart. You could say he's the George Harrison of the band Rush. He's the quiet one, but he is anything but silent. In addition to the complex time keeping duties the drummer extraordinaire is also the band's lyricist. With the song's varied themes ranging from philosophy to fantasy you have to assume he is well read.

I absolutely love animals. I have fostered many cats, including a queen and her three kittens this spring. I have been riding horses since I was nine years old. I volunteered in two zoo libraries, and I walked dogs for six years in various animal shelters. I used to be a big fan of Animal Planet and Steve Irwin and the Australia Zoo. Animals are cute, adorable, and they just make me happy.

I took a Theatre, Film and Dance class while I was studying abroad in Australia, and I also took an acting class at my undergraduate college in New York State. I loved attending the student theatre productions at the beloved Firehouse Theatre at my undergraduate college, and later at the new Performing Arts Center. Below are some theatre libraries and museums that I found.

An active library patron, Edward Patrick Grigg's latest group of artwork is inspired by the library books he has enjoyed reading from the New York Public Library after returning from Eastern Europe from January 2012 to the present.

Great news for Nook tablet owners and readers looking for more new titles in ebook format.

I have been intrigued by why and how people commit crimes since I was young. This interest led to me devouring true crime stories as a child and true crime TV shows as an adult. I also got a master's degree in forensic psychology, and I have interned in several jails. Below are some criminal justice libraries and museums that I found.

(with apologies, in advance, to the amazing Chris Raschka.)

"Google can bring you back 100,000 answers, a librarian can bring you back the right one." —Neil Gaiman

In September 2015 the Picture Collection, which is located on the third floor of the Mid-Manhattan Branch of The New York Public Library, will celebrate its centennial.