Blog Posts by Subject: Holidays and Customs

A once-annual holiday local to New York City, Evacuation Day was formerly equal in importance to the Fourth of July. Referring to the evacuation of British troops from New York City following the Revolutionary War, the celebration of the troops’ departure was observed yearly throughout the early 20th century.

The birth of our government is celebrated on September 17, also known as Constitution Day.

How many candles on that cake? Books and other library materials about birthdays.

Is your dad a climbing mountain? Is he the captain of family adventures, or the king of bedtime stories? I have it on good authority that my dad is in fact the best dad in the world. If your dad is also the best in the world (and he probably is) celebrate Father's Day by letting him read a story to you.

Need some ideas for Father's Day? We have two exhibitions your dad is sure to enjoy. Pick up some paternally-themed books too.

Ready for Christmas with dinosaurs? Then this is the book for you. Tyrannoclaus (a Tyrannosaurus rex) has presents for stegosaur girls. He has tasty treats for 

This wombat likes eating, sleeping, and getting Christmas stockings. He particularly likes eating carrots. When he finds Christmas reindeer eating his carrots, the wombat gets grumpy. Creatures stealing his carrots is not acceptable behavior.

Luckily, however, he finds a way to get the reindeer to help him find more carrots! He rides on the runners of the reindeer's sleigh in search of carrots across the globe, from toucans in Central American rainforests to igloos in Canada.

It is Christmas at the library for the kitty! Dewey has come a long way since last winter when he was rescued by Spencer Library director Vicki from the book-return drop. This year he is ready and enthusiastic for Christmas at the library. He loves everything about the season: gift bags, red yarn galore, and a Christmas tree that 

Are you shopping for Christmas on a budget? Santa's Bag - Christmas Gift List app will help you to stay organized and on budget for Christmas. This app by Clay Pot Software, LLC is amazing. You can add recipients manually or add them by importing your contacts from you device or Facebook. The budget portion is great because you can set an overall budget for what you want to spend and as you get a gift for each person it will automatically update the amount you have left in your budget to spend on gifts. You can even set a budget for how much you want to spend on each person on the 

Santa glides across the sky in a spaceship-like vehicle pulled by four metallic reindeer above a city that is reminiscent of Futurama cartoons. 

On the first day of Christmas, the robot gets a cartridge in a gear tree. Every day, for a week and a half, the happy robot receives mechanical approximations of the gifts bestowed in the original

Jim and his mother were making gingerbread men on Christmas eve one year, and Jim suggested transforming the cookies into gingerbread pirates. His mom concurred. However, Jim did not want Santa to eat Captain Cookie (complete with a toothpick peg leg), so he took him to his bedroom that 

I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Color GuardHave you heard those words—the Pledge of Allegiance—recited recently, by a group of adults?

I hadn't, until I attended a naturalization ceremony at the Library. This past September 17, one of 180 special naturalization ceremonies held across the country to commemorate

In college, I studied American History and Politics, but my interest in these subjects was sparked long before that, when as a child, I was exposed to several books, movies and TV shows that celebrated American history.

Three items in particular had a tremendous impact on me, and made me want to learn more about my country. Schoolhouse Rock was a series of educational shorts that ran in between the cartoons on Saturday mornings. Almost anyone of my generation will tell you that they 

Sexology, the interdisciplinary scientific study of sex has been an integral component to the study of humanity. If you are currently researching any topics relating to the areas of sexology, sexuality or sex, consider visiting The New York Public Library's research collections! Whether you find sexology to be deeply fascinating or 

If you had to say, who is the person most responsible for instilling your love of reading? Was it your local librarian? Was it your mom?

If you are like me, then the one thing you would like about Valentine's Day is the day after: chocolates on sale!

Godiva, Ferrara, chocolate truffles, M&Ms, you name it — all those brand name sweets at 50% off or on a buy-one-get-one-free basis totally makes up for this senseless tradition.

Though the only people actually winning from this scheme are your dentists and candy makers, who's really counting your cavities when the most-ridiculous "holiday" of the year just ended?! (In my humble opinion...)

Don't get me wrong, I am not 

As I prepare for the upcoming Chinese New Year, my thoughts often go back to my favorite childhood memories of our family celebrations.

The best part of Chinese New Year was being allowed to stay home from school. My sisters, brother and I would dress in new clothes, eat the special pastries my Mom made and wait for our relatives to arrive. Then, while the adults sat and talked, my cousins and I would have the entire day to play. And before my Aunts and Uncles left, we would all be given hongbao (red envelopes) containing "lucky money" for the new 

According to the Chinese Lunar Calendar, 2013 is the Year of the Snake. In the Chinese zodiac, the snake is equivalent to the Taurus in Western tradition. February 10th, 2013 to January 30th, 2014 will mark the Year of the Snake.

In the Chinese zodiac calendar, the snake is the sixth animal and symbolizes grace and calmness — it is introspective, cunning, and modest, but also mysterious, deceptive, and possessive. Those born in 2013, 2001, 

This snowy Saturday afternoon has brought to mind a couple of scenes from nineteenth-century children's books in the Rare Book Division. First, a scene of "Wintervergnügen" (winter fun) from Jugendspiele zur Erholung und Erheiterung (Tilsit, 1846). This is a two-volume work, one devoted to girls and one to boys. Sledding is categorized as one of the boys' games (Knabenspiele), but of course that needn't stop