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In the Spotlight

February Book Club Event: Black Buck by Mateo Askaripour

Thurs, Feb 25 | 7 PM
Join Mateo Askaripour, author of this month's book club pick, for a livestream discussion and Q&A about his debut novel, Black Buck. Readers can download the book on the Library's free e-reader app, SimplyE, and join our librarians for discussion groups leading up to this author talk. Don't miss Askaripour in conversation with Get Lit with All of It host Alison Stewart, who will announce our March book club pick during the event.

New Schomburg Center Online Exhibition, Black History Month Reads, Events & Resources 

In honor of Black History Month, the Library’s Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture has launched a new online exhibition, Georgia on My Mind: Black Politicians in Congress. Inspired by the election of Reverend Raphael Warnock, Georgia's first Black senator, this exhibition tells the story of the 22 remarkable Black men elected to Congress between 1870 and 1898. Plus, discover book recommendations, events, and more as the Library’s Black History Month celebrations continue.

New York Forever: Find Your Next Read

Explore our list of great books about New York City for kids, teens, and adults to commemorate the city we call home! Our love letter to NYC offers something for everyone, including fiction and nonfiction, plus recommendations for history buffs, poetry lovers, and so much more. Readers can find titles available in accessible formats and world languages, reflecting the diverse audiences NYPL serves every day. Check out the list and get inspired as the Library celebrates all things New York with #NYForever, an initiative that empowers New Yorkers from every walk of life to build a stronger and more equitable city for us all.

Featured Events

Four Lost Cities: Annalee Newitz and Amal El-Mohtar

Wed, Feb 17 | 8 PM
Journalist and io9 founder Annalee Newitz explores what the rise and fall of four ancient cities can tell us about the potential fate of urban landscapes in the present day.

After the Insurrection: How to Build a More Resilient Democracy

Thurs, Feb 18 | 1 PM
Preet Bharara and Christine Todd Whitman, co-chairs of the Brennan Center for Justice’s National Task Force on Rule of Law and Democracy, join CNN senior political reporter Nia-Malika Henderson to talk about the reforms needed to bolster American democracy alongside former lieutenant governor of Maryland Michael Steele and Brennan Center president Michael Waldman. Copresented by the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law.

Racism’s Hidden Costs with Heather McGhee

Thurs, Feb 18 | 8 PM
Economic and social policy expert Heather McGhee discusses the deeply personal journey she took, from Mississippi to California to Maine, to investigate the impact of racism on our financial well-being.

The Harry Belafonte Black Liberation Speaker Series, with Thanks to Kenneth Cole

Charles Blow with Hilton Als

Tues, Feb 23 | 8 PM
Acclaimed columnist and political commentator Charles Blow joins the Library to discuss his new book, in which he advocates for Black Americans to amass political power and fight white supremacy. Copresented by the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture and LIVE from NYPL.

More from LIVE from NYPL

Surviving the White Gaze: Rebecca Carroll with Zoe Kazan

Mon, Mar 1 | 8 PM

 A Desolation Called Peace: Arkady Martine

Tues, Mar 2 | 8:30 PM

Saving the Future: Elizabeth Kolbert with Jeff Goodell

Thurs, Mar 4 | 8 PM

For Kids & Teens

Behind Black Panther: Hear from the Authors

Thurs, Feb 25 | 8 PM
Get the inside scoop on what it was like to create a new Black Panther adventure from Steven Barnes, Tananarive Due, and Geoffrey Thorne, three of the co-authors of Marvel's Black Panther: Sins of the King, in which T’Challa must defeat an army of the undead with the help of his long-lost father. Appropriate for teen readers and older.

Read the Book! Marvel's Black Panther: Sins of the King 

NYPL and Serial Box have teamed up so NYPL cardholders can start reading the Marvel's Black Panther: Sins of the King e-book now using our free e-reader app, SimplyE—no holds or waiting! Don't have a library card? Download SimplyE today and sign up for a digital library card to access over 300,000 e-books and audiobooks. SimplyE for iOS | SimplyE for Android

Live Storytimes with Your Local Librarian

If you miss seeing your local librarian and other families in your neighborhood, reconnect with them at one of our new Storytime Live events. In addition to the pre-recorded storytimes posted every weekday on our website, you can now watch live online storytimes from your favorite librarians. Enjoy songs, rhymes, stories, and early literacy tips from our expert children’s staff alongside other families.

KidsLIVE: Angela Johnson

Tues, Feb 23 | 3:30 PM
Award-winning author Angela Johnson joins us to discuss her new book, A Girl Like Me, featured on NYPL’s 2020 list of Best Books for Kids. Johnson will talk about her life as an author and what her process of “accidental writing” looks like, then answer questions from NYPL librarians.

TeenLIVE: Echo Brown

Tues, Feb 23 | 4 PM
Join author Echo Brown for a conversation with our YA librarians about their debut work, Black Girl Unlimited: The Remarkable Story of a Teenage Wizard, about a teen wizard who transfers to a new school.

KidsLIVE: Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow

Fri, Feb 26 | 4 PM
Join us for a special program with Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow, author of Your Name Is a Song. Thompkins-Bigelow will chat with NYPL librarians about her inspirations for the book and what it’s like to be an author.

NYC Teens: SUNY Application Week on Now

Through Fri, Feb 19
SUNY Colleges are still accepting applications for the fall semester! With program offerings at every level in subjects from accounting to zoology, every student can find and follow their unique passion at SUNY at an affordable price. Use your midwinter break to get started on your future.

More Events & Resources

Doc Chat: Teaching the #Syllabus

Thurs, Feb 18 | 3:30 PM​
The Schomburg Center's Zakiya Collier and Dr. Yarimar Bonilla of Hunter College and CUNY Graduate Center explore the Hashtag Syllabus Project, a crowdsourced movement to build knowledge and reshape the way we teach. Together, the two will look at the Schomburg Center's #Syllabus web archive collection and the Puerto Rico Syllabus, a list of resources for teaching and learning about the current economic crisis in Puerto Rico.

Films at the Schomburg | American Masters: UNLADYLIKE2020

Wed, Feb 24 | 6 PM
Join the Schomburg Center for a screening of short films highlighting the lives of activists Charlotta Spears Bass, the first African American woman to run for vice president, and the civil rights activist and educator Mary Church Terrell.

When Harlem Saved a King: Mental Health in the Black Community Then & Now

Fri, Feb 26 | 12 Noon
ThriveNYC and NYPL partner for a discussion about mental health in the Black community featuring Harlem Hospital's Chief of Staff, Dr. Sylvia White, and mental health expert Dr. Jeff Gardere. A clip of the documentary When Harlem Saved a King, about the aftermath of the 1958 stabbing of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., will be screened.

NYPL TechTalks | Artificial Intelligence: Tackling Race, Bias & Inequality

Fri, Feb 26 | 6 PM
Artificial intelligence is increasingly impacting our lives and interacting with the biases and inequalities that exist in our society. Join our panel of experts—Julia Stoyanovich, a professor at NYU and member of the NYC Automated Decision Systems Task Force; Eric Corbett, a researcher at NYU Center for Urban Science and Progress; and authors Safiya Noble and Brian Christian—for a lively discussion about how artificial intelligence is transforming our society and what might be around the corner.

Virtual Citizenship Study Groups 

If you're preparing for the naturalization test to become a United States citizen, get help with the exam while having fun, meeting new people, and getting expert advice using materials from the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. 

Your Voice Matters: Local Voices Network

The New York Public Library wants to hear from you! Library staff and community partners are recording neighborhood conversations on the issues important to New Yorkers. These recordings will be shared on a searchable website for journalists, decision-makers, and other local stakeholders to tune into the community’s real concerns. Together, we’ll create a platform where anyone and everyone is invited to speak and be heard. Find Local Voices events online, hosted by a branch near you!

Learn Microsoft Office Tools in Just 12 Weeks

Info Sessions Available Through Feb 20
If you’re looking to improve your skills for work, school, or your own business, join our 12-week course and learn how to use Microsoft Office programs including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneDrive. Info sessions are offered through Saturday, February 20, and are required to participate—so sign up today!

New & Noteworthy

Lunar New Year at NYPL

This February, join the Library’s Lunar New Year celebration welcoming the spring and what it brings (planting and harvests, new beginnings, and fresh starts) with a selection of blog posts, online programs, resources, and more.

The New York Times Features Schomburg Center Anthology 

The New York Times named Unsung: Unheralded Narratives of American Slavery & Abolition, edited by the Schomburg Center's Dr. Michelle Commander, as one of the new and noteworthy books of the week. 

Quiz Yourself on These Romantic Literary Quotes

From Jane Austen to Jasmine Guillory, romance is one of the world’s most popular genres. Whether you love the classics or wait with bated breath for the latest release, see if you can match these famous quotes with the popular novel.

Reading the 2021 Golden Globes Nominations

Whether or not you pay much attention to awards season in Hollywood, you may enjoy reading some of the works that these films and television series were adapted from.

The Librarian Is In: Great Dialogues of Plato and Blacktop Wasteland 

In their newest episode, Frank talks about "The Meno" from the Great Dialogues of Plato, while Rhonda picked up a gritty crime noir, S.A. Cosby's Blacktop Wasteland. Don't miss their conversation—and the reveal of their next book club pick!

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