From all of us at the Los Angeles Public Library, at the Central Library, and the 72 branches, we are pleased to announce the best books of 2023 as selected by our staff, who volunteered their…
Over the centuries, various forms of expression have been banned or destroyed, and their creators have been censored, imprisoned, tortured, killed, exiled. At the present time, all types of libraries…
From all of us at the Los Angeles Public Library, at the Central Library, and the 72 branches, we are pleased to announce the best books of 2022 as selected by our staff, who volunteered their…
From all of us at the Los Angeles Public Library, at the Central Library, and the 72 branches, we are pleased to announce the best books of 2021 as selected by our staff, who volunteered their…
The novels and poetry of Charles Bukowski continue to have devoted, admiring fans, who can never get enough of his books. We have those books in hard copy, and there is a good representation in…
It is a good thing that the lives of children’s authors are not always reflected in the books they wrote. Some of the most enduring and well-loved of these books were written by people whose lives…
Other than indigenous peoples, we are a nation of immigrants, those who came by choice and those who came by force. As our country keeps growing and changing with new people arriving all the time…
As Women’s History Month ends, we would like to offer you a few e-books and e-audiobooks about intrepid, adventurous women who traveled for the sheer joy of doing something different, to escape from…
The TV serialization of two novels, Sharp Objects and Big Little Lies, has brought attention to a new crop of novels. They are edgy, psychological, thriller, suspense stories with distinct…
In retrospect, it is ironic that the fire took place when it did: April 29, 1986. On that day, progress was quietly continuing with plans for a renovation of the original Central Library and a new…
Chef José Andrés tells us, “This book is dedicated to everyone who understands the power of a hot meal in a time of need.”This is the first cookbook from the World Central Kitchen, aka the WCK. The organization was the inspiration of José Andrés, professional chef and humanitarian. “Since 2010 the...
Lois Ellen Frank is the Chef and owner of Red Mesa Cuisine, where she cooks and works with Chef Walter Whitewater. In this book she highlights basic indigenous foods: corn, beans, squash, chiles, tomatoes, potatoes, vanilla and cacao as starting points for scrumptious modern recipes. She refers to these ingredients...
Sandra Guzmán has compiled a monumental collection of writing by women, whom she designates as Latine, the gender-inclusive form of “Latino” and “Latina.” She states, "This is a journey into a luminous universe of texts that navigate across time and space, genres, styles, languages, and traditions. The Daughters gathered in...
In the prologue to this memoir Frieda Hughes says, “The things I longed for, other than health, happiness and wealth, probably in that order, were plants, pets, and a home of my own that I would never have to move from. The plants and pets were the embellishment and confirmation...
Years ago, there was an advertisement for fur, “What Becomes a Legend Most?” For Dolores Conchita Figueroa del Rivero Anderson, best known as Chita Rivera, this razzle-dazzle memoir/autobiography is far more becoming than all the high-end luxury goodies that money can buy. Hardworking, full of energy and talent, she cut...
Bricia Lopez and Javier Cabral lay out the facts, “Carne asada is not just a taco . . . in millions of backyards across Southern California, asada means family, friends, memories, great music, cold drinks, good times, and the community you’ve built.”--in all its multivarious forms.This is a cookbook that...
The Colorado River was, and still is, one of the most dangerous rivers in the world: wild, unpredictable, and more challenging to navigate than skilled, seasoned river runners could imagine. In 1938 two botanists, Elzada Clover and Lois Jotter, joined a group of river runners in order to chart the...
This essay collection about Los Angeles includes the works of Eve Babitz, Alexander Cockburn, Mike Davis, Lynell George, Thomas S. Hines, Jeremy Larner, Rubén Martínez, David Reid, Carolyn See and David Thomson.This is an updated version (1994) of the previous edition (1992). The preface to this edition by David Reid offers...
It is not necessary to be interested in the world of haute couture to find this biography of Karl Largerfeld compelling and engrossing. The creative genius of Karl Lagerfeld is the magnetic star that will captivate you. His childhood interests were drawing and painting until a fateful December, 1949 when...
For the most part, Los Angeles architecture has made its mark and numerous international and domestic architects will compete for an opportunity to design a residence, a public, or a commercial building. This was not always the case. There was someone who recognized the value, quality, originality and importance of...
