COKIE ROBERTS @ Houston Public Library

HPL had the pleasure of having Cokie Roberts visit Central on May 05, 2009 (Tuesday) from 9:15am-11am in Program Place.
Ms. Roberts' background includes being a New York Times bestselling author, a political commentator for ABC News and a senior news analyst for National Public Radio (NPR). She talked about her revised & expanded edition of We Are Our Mother's Daughters as well as NPR and some of the fascinating women she met and included in her latest book (e. g. Hillary Clinton, Laura Bush, and Dorothy Height). Cokie openly welcomed audience questions and signed books at the end of her talk. 265 people came to this morning program and we even had some people who came from as far as New Jersey just to meet Ms. Roberts. Enjoy the pics!

An Evening With...STEPHANIE ELIZONDO GRIEST

HPL had the pleasure of having Stephanie Elizondo Griest visit us on March 12, 2009 (Thursday) from 7pm-9pm in the Program Place. She talked about her newest book MEXICAN ENOUGH as well as events that took place as she worked on this and her other books. Stephanie openly invited all to ask questions and share their impressions. 75 people came out to see her despite the cold weather. Enjoy the pics of that evening!

2009 International Festival Outreach Opportunities!!

HPL will have a strong presence at this annual downtown Houston event and we are looking for a few good employees to cover the outreach tables.

All participants in this outreach event will have free access to the festival!

The festival itself is open from 12 – 10 Saturdays and 12 – 9 Sundays and you can enjoy the festival before and/or after working your 2-hour shift at the outreach table. Participants will be given a parking pass and free admission to the festival, but all non-employees will need to purchase admission tickets. Please make arrangements for the care of your children during your shift in order to keep the outreach area safe and professional. Make sure you bring a comfortable pair of shoes, as this event won’t be a sit-down affair. Expect to be so busy your 2-hour shift is over before you know it!

Here is a link to the International Festival site for more information:
http://www.ifest.org/

Slots will be filled on a limited first-come, first-served basis. While we encourage you to sign up for as many slots as you’d like, we may have to limit the number each person can have in order to give as many people as possible the chance to earn some of those important outreach EPE credits (and get free access to the festival!)

Here is the current availability:

Saturday, 4/18 (# of slots available in parenthesis)
12 – 2 (4)
2 – 4 (4)
4 – 6 (4)

Sunday, 4/19
12 – 2 (4)
2 – 4 (4)
4 – 6 (4)

Saturday, 4/25
12 – 2 (4)
2 – 4 (4)
4 – 6 (4)

Sunday, 4/26
12 – 2 (4)
2 – 4 (4)
4 – 6 (4)


Please get approval from your supervisor first, then send me an e-mail indicating your interest and the shift(s) you would like to work. I will respond to work out a scheduled time with you.

If you have any questions regarding the International Festival outreach events, please direct them to me and I will respond as soon as possible.


Thanks!


Allen J. Westrick
Library Service Specialist
Central Programming and Outreach
Houston Public Library
500 McKinney
Houston, TX 77002
(832) 393-1518
allen.westrick@cityofhouston.net

--posted by Sheetal Chinoy

An Evening with... CHARLAINE HARRIS

Houston Public Library and Murder By the Book brought in Southern Vampires Series novelist, Charlaine Harris on Tuesday, January 6, 2009. Her appearance drew a crowd of over 350 people. All of the television monitors were tuned in to her presentation when the Program Place got to its fullest capacity.

Charlaine Harris was promoting her hardback release of LIVING DEAD IN DALLAS, the 2nd Sookie Stackhouse book. Those in the audience were able to listen to Ms. Harris give insight on how and why she wrote the book as she did and even talked about the True Blood series.

We even had some avid fans who came with tons of questions and eye-catching t-shirts like the one above. After her presentation and Q&A session, Miss Harris graciously agreed to stay until all of the books were signed and everyone had a chance to meet with her. This was a one-shop stop for Charlaine Harris with no other book visits for this year. So, fans as far north as Maryland flew down to see their favorite Southern Vampire series author.

Here are three locals fans who proudly displayed their autographed copy and Powercards! That evening HPL felt alot of support and appreciation from the fans especially since we stayed until 10PM.

Stay tuned for the next An Evening with... event coming up on February 4, 2009 with Alison Weir! Come join us as she reads from her latest book, MISTRESS OF THE MONARCHY.

LGBT Program: Montrose: Field Studies of a Neighborhood

Freed-Montrose Neighborhood Library
December 13, 2008 (Saturday)
Total Attendance: 43

This class was conducted by Professor Brian Riedel who is currently working on a book about the Montrose neighborhood. Three students were present to read abridged versions of their papers for a fieldwork practicum with Rice University’s Anthropology Department:
--Brian Clark-African Art galleries in Montrose
--Tim Chrissykos- The Neartown Civic Association
--Casper Bendixsen-The Texas Gay Rodeo Association (TGRA)

Picture on the left shows Casper Bendixsen reading from his paper.

The picture on the right has Brian Clark, Casper Bendixsen, Tim Chissykos sitting together at a table during the final Q&A session.

All in all, this was a great class where everyone learned alot about the Montrose neighborhood. For more on this program, please feel free to contact Joanna Collier who graciously provided this information.

Bayou City Arts Festival Outreach Opportunity!!

Dear Colleagues,

We have an exciting Outreach opportunity!

The Bayou City Arts Festival is in town again, and once again, we will have a booth at the event. We are looking for volunteers for all shifts on Saturday and Sunday, October 18th and 19th. Please inquire if interested and we will prepare a schedule.

Note: Please ensure that you have obtained approval from you Supervisor. Thanks!!!!!



Jennifer Schwartz
Librarian, Central Programming and Outreach
Houston Public Library
500 McKinney
Houston, TX 77002
832-393-1652 office
713-775-0868 cell
jennifer.schwartz@cityofhouston.net

FYI - New Outreach Opportunities

Dear Colleagues,

HPL Downtown will have a table at the 18th Annual Houston Turkish Festival this Saturday, October 4, at Jones Plaza in Downtown Houston. The American Turkish Association has been kind enough to offer us a free table at the festival.

The festival runs from 11:00 AM to 10:00 PM, and we will have our table there from 11:00 AM – 6:00 PM.

There's more info re: the festival here:
http://turkishfest.atahouston.org/Home/tabid/36/Default.aspx

This is an excellent opportunity to get those outreach hours in! Here are the available slots:

12:00 PM-2:00 PM (need 2 people)
2:00 PM-4:00 PM (need 2-3 people)
4:00 PM-6:00 PM (need 2 people)

We can be flexible with these time slots if you need to work slightly different shifts. A few of you have already responded to Marty with preferences, which I think we can accommodate. I can work with you directly to organize that.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Please check with your supervisor before signing up for this outreach.

Very Best,
Jennifer Schwartz

Mid-Day Author Series

Author: David Handler

Date: 9/26/08 (Friday)

Location: 1st Floor Sitting Gallery Area



HPL had the pleasure of having David Handler come for today's Mid-Day Author series where he talked about his new book The Sour Cherry Surprise.

All in attendance got to know Mr. Handler and ask questions about his books and life in general. Some questions that came up included:

..."did your books turn out the way you originally planned them to?"

..."what made you go from writing novels to crime fictions?"

..."how do you deal with writer's block?"

..."which do you find easier to write: books/novels OR television sitcoms?"

An aspect of David Handler's bio revealed that he was a member of the original writing staff for some popular television sitcoms. Two of them included Kate & Allie, Charles In Charge. He also wrote under a pseudonym Russell Andrews when co-writing an international bestselling thriller Gideon.

To learn more about David Handler, feel free to visit his website at: http://www.davidhandlerbooks.com/

HPL is definitely going to work on bringing back Mr. Handler in the future so keep an ear open for that.

Upcoming Evening with the Author Series:

Date: 10/2/08 (Thursday)

Author: Archer Mayor

Where: Program Place (4th Floor)

Time: 7pm-8:30pm

Archer Mayor will be talking about his newest Joe Gunther detective adventure entitled The Chase. Please invite all to attend!!

Evening with the Author Series

Author: Mark Doty

Date: 9/4/08 (Thursday)

Location: Program Place
(4th Floor)


There was a great turnout for this author series. Mr. Doty captivated the audience with selected readings from his novel Dog Years: a memoir. This memoir was about the relationship between Mark Doty and his dogs and how they helped him through good times and bad. This adventure can be related by all, regardless of if one is a pet-lover or not.

Those in attendance got a chance to chitchat with Mr. Doty and present questions like the following:
..."what influenced his writings?"
..."did he still have his dogs?"
..."what is next in his lineup of writings?"














If you like Dog Years: a memoir, check out some of these titles:

Still Life with Oysters and Lemon
Firebird
Heaven's Coast
Fire to Fire: New and Selected Poems
Atlantis
Bethlehem in Broad Daylight

Read more about Mark Doty on his webpage: http://www.markdoty.org/


Update:
Due to Hurricane Ike, the next author series has been postponed. HPL is definitely working on rescheduling to have Chef Randy Evans from Houston Downtown's Brennan's restaurant come and talk. Stay tune for upcoming details.

Evening with the Author Series

Author: Emily Giffin

Date: 8/28/2008 (Thursday)

Location: Program Place

(4th Floor)

Despite the rain that poured earlier in the evening, Emily Giffin had a cozy 'round circle' discussion about her book Love the One You're With. This novel centered around a woman who was trying to figure out how she could truly love her husband when she could not forget what she had with her ex.

Those in attendance really got to know this New York Times Bestselling author. Folks enjoyed chatting about topics like:

..."what got Ms. Giffin interested in writing?"

..."what her educational background was in and how she tied that into her books?"

..."what her 'writing style' tricks of the trade were that she had picked up along the way?"

..."which authors Ms. Giffin was inspired by and has met?"

..."who she related to most among her characters?"

We cannot wait to bring Emily Giffin back in the future!!

Be sure to check out some of her other exciting novels until then like Baby Proof, Something Blue, and Something Borrowed.

To read more about Emily Giffin: check out her webpage: http://www.emilygiffin.com/

Stay tune for the next Evening with the Author Series when HPL proudly brings Mark Doty, who is going to talk about his incredible 2007 New York Times Bestseller Dog Years: a memoir

Jazz concert

Author Series

The author readings have been absolutely delightful. Robert Leleux was the most popular by far, and I think this is because of the LGBT series tie-in, and the flyers that were generated for the program. I will post pictures here as often as possible, and please, let me know if there is an author or program you are interested in having at HPL.