Past Events
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Thursday, October 12, 2023 - 6:00 PM | The Writing Life | Members’ Room | open to the public | $15 per person | registration requiredLibrary members read from their own short stories, novels, poetry, criticism, memoir, and plays.
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Thursday, October 5, 2023 - 11:00 AM | Reading Group | Whitridge Room | for members only | $75 per person | registration requiredMagda Szabó (1917-2007) is the most famous and most translated Hungarian novelist. This seminar discusses three of her best-known novels spanning 1963 to 1987.
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Wednesday, October 4, 2023 - 6:00 PM | Performance | Members' Room | open to the public | $15 per person | registration requiredRobert Lloyd Parry returns to the Members' Room with two of the wonderfully spooky stories by British horror master M.R. James (1862-1936). “Wonderful, magical storytelling." - The Daily Mail
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Tuesday, October 3, 2023 - 4:00 PM | Children | Whitridge Room | Grades K+ | For members & a guest | $15 per child
Robert Quackenbush’s delightful creatures of mystery come to life as puppets with teaching artist Leah Rubin and Margery Quackenbush, the inspiration for Miss Mallard herself.
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Monday, October 2, 2023 - 6:00 PM | Lecture | Members' Room | open to the public | $15 per person | registration requiredThe bestselling author of The Happiness Project discovers a surprising path to a life of more energy, creativity, luck, and love: by tuning in to the five senses. In this special event, Gretchen Rubin converses with Alexandra Horowitz, author of On Looking: A Walker's Guide to the Art of Observation and other books.
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Thursday, September 28, 2023 - 6:00 PM | Lecture | Livestream | open to the public | $10 per person | registration requiredAward-winning historian Blair LM Kelley illuminates the adversities and joys of the Black working class in America through a stunning narrative centered on her forebears, in conversation with Eloquent Rage author Brittney C. Cooper.
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Wednesday, September 27, 2023 - 5:00 PM | Children | Whitridge Room | Grades 3+ | For members & a guest | $15 per childIn this ongoing series, young writers are invited to join notable authors in exploring different genres. Author and illustrator Ruth Chan leads a discussion about making comics and graphic novels, working with young writers and artists to explore the possibilities of cartooning. Participants will learn the tools needed to create their own comics.
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Wednesday, September 27, 2023 - 11:00 AM | Reading Group | Whitridge Room | for members only | $100 for the six sessions | registration required“Never say you know the last word about any human heart.” That’s one of the great sentences of this great writer, Henry James (1843-1916). In this seminar – which welcomes both experienced readers of James and novices – we discover many more.
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Saturday, September 23, 2023 - 12:00 PM to 4:00 PM | Special Event | open to the public | free of charge | drop inDrop by to bring your questions and talk grammar with expert and Rebel with a Clause author Ellen Jovin!
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Wednesday, September 20, 2023 - 5:30 PM to 7:00 PM | Special Event | Members' Room | for members and their guests | free of charge | drop inEnd your day with wine and light refreshments in the beautiful Members' Room. September's Happy Hour includes refreshments and recommended reading inspired by J.R.R. Tolkien.
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Tuesday, September 19, 2023 - 6:00 PM | Lecture | Members' Room | open to the public | $15 per person | registration requiredA sweeping narrative history of the Chinese Exclusion Act through an intimate portrayal of one family’s epic journey to lay down roots in America.
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Wednesday, September 13, 2023 - 6:00 PM | Special Event | Members' Room | open to the public | free of charge | registration requiredTwo Black sisters growing up in small-town New England fight to protect their home, their bodies, and their dreams as the Civil Rights Movement sweeps the nation in Promise, a “magical, magnificent novel” (Marlon James). The Library joins the Harlem Arts Salon in presenting this special event with National Book Award winner Jacqueline Woodson. Light refreshments will be served.
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Sunday, September 10, 2023 - 2:00 PM | Lecture | Livestream | open to the public | $10 per person | registration requiredA startling new portrait of George Eliot, the beloved novelist and a rare philosophical mind who explored the complexities of marriage. Clare Carlisle, professor of philosophy and author of books on Spinoza and Kierkegaard, discusses her new biography with novelist and editor Christine Smallwood.
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Friday, July 28, 2023 - 10:00 AM | Children | Whitridge Room | Ages 2 and Up | For Members Only
Enjoy favorite nursery rhymes, picture books, and songs.
Capacity is limited. -
Friday, June 23, 2023 - 10:30 AM to 4:00 PM | Special Event | open to the public | free of charge | drop inDrop by to bring your questions and talk grammar with expert and Rebel with a Clause author Ellen Jovin!
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Thursday, June 22, 2023 - 4:00 PM | Children | Whitridge Room | Ages 3 and Up | For Members Only
Get ready for summer travels with these wheely good stories.
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Tuesday, June 20, 2023 - 10:00 AM | Children | Whitridge Room | For Members Only | Ages 24 Months and Younger
Join us for songs, stories, and movement for babies and toddlers.
Pick up a ticket in the lobby. -
Wednesday, June 14, 2023 - 6:00 PM | Lecture | Members' Room and Livestream | open to the public | free of charge | registration requiredTwo scholars of the early Christian movements find new perspectives in the texts that were excluded from the canonical New Testament.
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Thursday, June 8, 2023 - 6:00 PM | Lecture | Whitridge Room & Livestream | open to the public | free of charge | registration requiredAn unconventional history of the world’s largest cellular workhorse, from chickens to penguins, from art to crime, and more. Lizzie Stark chats with Kirstin Chen, author of the bestselling novel Counterfeit.
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Tuesday, June 6, 2023 - 10:00 AM | Children | Whitridge Room | For Members | Ages 24 Months and Younger
Join us for songs, stories, and movement for babies and toddlers.
Pick up a ticket in the lobby. -
Wednesday, May 31, 2023 - 6:00 PM | Lecture | Members' Room & Livestream | open to the public | $15 per person | registration requiredA kaleidoscopic portrait of an enduring metropolis by the New York Times' architecture critic, The Intimate City reveals why New York, despite COVID and a long history of other calamities, continues to inspire and to mean so much to those who call it home and to countless others.
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Wednesday, May 24, 2023 - 12:00 PM | Lecture | Members' Room | open to the public | $15 per person | registration requiredA revelatory account of how the loving marriage of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth saved the monarchy during World War II, and how they raised their daughter to become Queen Elizabeth II, based on exclusive access to the Royal Archives.
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Saturday, May 20, 2023 - 2:00 PM | Special Event | Livestream | open to the public | free of charge | registration requiredThe Library is pleased to offer a new and unique panel in partnership with the New York City Regional Chapter of the Authors Guild. Join us for an exploration of what happens when a writer's imagination moves into worlds and identities that lie beyond expected parameters. Participants will consider the significance of extra-experiential writing for the writer's own creativity as well as its impact on the larger literary community. The panelists are Roberto Carlos Garcia, Maité Iracheta, SJ Rozan, and Jennifer Shyue, with moderator Catherine Martinez Torigian.
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Tuesday, May 16, 2023 - 6:00 PM | Reception | Members' Room | free of charge | registration requiredAward winners and participants are honored at a ceremony and reception, with writing advice and inspiration from the author judges.
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Monday, May 15, 2023 - 6:00 PM | Lecture | Members' Room & Livestream | open to the public | $15 per person | registration requiredA riveting, immersive account of the agonizing decision to use nuclear weapons against Japan—a crucial turning point in World War II and geopolitical history—with you-are-there immediacy by the New York Times bestselling author of Ike's Bluff and Sea of Thunder.
