Story Tags

Barefoot in Babylon by Bob Spitz

Peace, Love, and Rock 'n' Roll

Celebrating Woodstock 50 years later

August 15, 2019 marks 50 years since the first Woodstock in Bethel, N.Y. Revisit inimitable acts such as The Who, Jimi Hendrix and The Grateful Dead to celebrate the enormous cultural impact the “three days of peace and music” had on America and the world. From nonfiction tell-alls from those who had a hand in organizing the festival to young adult novels written from today’s perspective, there’s something groovy for everyone here.

Girls of Paper and Fire

Do "Q" Believe in Magic?

Queer YA Fantasy Reads for Pride

Queer young adult literature has been making fantastic strides in contemporary reads over the last few years, but over the last year --especially the last six months -- there have been some amazing new fantasy releases. In honor of Pride Month, I've rounded up a few below.  

Sun is Also a Star

People of Color Protagonists in Romance-ish Novels

Growing up, romance novels were not on my radar. At all. I thought they were cheesy and I had the image of Fabio associated with the genre. Additionally, I never found Young Adult romance books with characters that were not white or middle class. However! I have gotten older and wiser and now *love* cheesy romance and romance-ish novels (fiction books with a sprinkle of romance) and have found books with fulfilling diverse characters of different races and socioeconomic statuses.

Kushiel's Dart

Fantasy PRIDE

Fantasy Novels Featuring LGBTQ+ Characters

Nerd culture is all the rage these days, and it’s never been cooler to be into science fiction, horror, and fantasy than it is right now. Fans are diving deep into mythologies and histories of invented worlds, finding themselves in the sword-fighting, spell-casting, dragon-riding, and laser-shooting heroes that dominate our media. But what if you’re a queer lover of space opera and epic fantasy and superhero smackdowns?

So You've Been Publicly Shamed

"The Right to Be Forgotten"

A reading list for the Arena Stage Production

What is “the right to be forgotten?"  Besides the name of the play coming to Arena Stage in October, it is also a legal right in much of Europe, which allows individuals to apply to media and internet companies to have links to past indiscretions like debts and small crimes erased from search results. Advocates claim utility for people like victims of revenge porn, while those opposed contend it can allow history to be re-written and violates free speech rights.

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

A Short History of Harry Potter Events with Tolonda Henderson

The DC Public Library first hosted Harry Potter scholar Tolonda Henderson in 2015, with the presentation “When Fandom Wears a Cap and Gown: Academic Perspectives on Harry Potter,” which took place at the Watha T. Daniel/Shaw Library. Since then, Mx. Henderson has presented lectures at Tenley-Friendship Library, Southeast Library, and the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library on the significance of birthdays in Harry Potter, banned books and information in Hogwarts’ library, plus “Ask a Harry Potter Scholar.” Mx.

Kindred by Octabia Butler - PKL YA Book Club recommendation

Parklands-Turner Teen Readers' Corner

YA Book Club Recommendation - Kindred

Kindred by Octavia Butler Book Review by Kiara Nickens

Bone Gap by Laura Ruby

Young Adult Fabulism

7 stories of magic grounded in reality

Fairy tales aren’t just for children. These seven young adult novels will chill teens and adults alike with spooky and haunting bits of magic and fables woven into reality. From a man who moves like corn stalks to a journal that takes its writers to an impossible past in the now, these books will make you want to settle in for the weekend and explore their strange, strange worlds.

The Selection by Kiera Cass

Royalty Gone Awry

Hard times for royals in fiction

As Lorde sings, “we’ll never be royals,” and maybe it’s for the best. This list includes stories of the royal life not being all it’s cracked up to be. Although we might have dreamed of running our own kingdoms as kids, now fiction tells us how fraught that experience would be. Enjoy your peasant status while you read about stressful politics, assassination, kidnapping and other trials in the court.

The Serpent King

Northern Virginia Teen Book Festival Authors

Journey with these characters before you journey to NoVa

The Northern Virginia (NoVa) Teen Book Festival is on Saturday, March 30th at the George C. Marshall High School in Falls Church, VA. You can take the metro to the school or drive to it. It's a fun free event, and I'm going to tell you a little bit about some of the books by the festival's featured authors. 

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