Reader’s Place

As of this writing, many borders are closed to US travelers. That shouldn’t stop anyone from thinking about and planning for when the world opens back up. This is also an opportunity to explore within the US itself. Bon voyage!

This month the Maplewood Township Committee issued a proclamation declaring June 2020 Caribbean Heritage Month. Since 2006, June has been designated as Caribbean American Heritage Month by Presidential Proclamation. This month-long observance promotes the rich culture and heritage of the Caribbean American people and their contributions to the United States.

GAY PRIDE TITLES

We celebrate the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer community in all its infinite variety.

As readers, we have many resources available to us for educating ourselves about racism and antiracism. This list includes selected nonfiction titles which are available to borrow from our eLibrary. The list is not intended to be comprehensive but rather to serve as a starting point.  Share and discuss what you read so that you may engage in antiracist conversations and begin to transform your thoughts and words into meaningful action.

Reading fiction helps to build empathy as much as reading nonfiction helps to inform. These stories by Black writers, which range from literary to speculative to romance to family fiction, speak to the variety of lived experiences of Black people. We encourage you to use this selected list as a jumping off point to seek out other works by these authors and others.

This just might be the time to re-invent yourself or start your own business. Here are some titles in e-format to help you get started.

Although the Maplewood Ideas Festival is postponed and the Library is closed to the public, the library’s online resources are available to Maplewood Library cardholders around the clock. Here is a selection of works by this year’s participants available online as an eBook or eAudiobook.

This year’s Pulitzer Prize winners are available in e-format for the following titles:

May is Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, a celebration of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the United States, recognizing the achievements and contributions that generations have made to our society and culture.

Romance titles come in a variety of subgenres: Sci-fi/supernatural, LGBTQ, Suspense, Contemporary, Holiday, etc. Maplewood Library cardholders currently have access to eBooks in the Romance Bookcloud collection.

It’s National Poetry Month again, and here are samplings from some new poetry anthologies to consider:

It’s all about love this month: love of another, of self, of country.

New year, new beginnings, a focus on the future

Darkness and light 

As we prepare again for the darkest time of the year, here is some fiction to shed light, or shade, as the case may be.

No sun - no moon!

No morn - no noon -

No dawn - no dusk - no proper time of day.

No warmth, no cheerfulness, no healthful ease,

No comfortable feel in any member -

No shade, no shine, no butterflies, no bees,

No fruits, no flowers, no leaves, no birds! -

November!

Thomas Hood

Reproductive technologies have made it possible for people who in previous generations would not have had the option, to become parents. But deciding whether or not to parent remains one of the most life-altering decisions a person has to make.