Libraries deserve our love. They are one of the last spaces left for civic gatherings that involve neither sports nor payment. Today’s libraries are often at the forefront of community contact with social services, internet access, and a safe, bullying free place for kids. The best podcast episode I’ve ever heard about libraries is actually no longer available on iTunes, but can be heard directly from the source: https://www.theguardian.com/books/audio/2015/may/01/libraries-inside-story-books-podcast. The sad state of the UK library system really makes me so happy to live in Toronto which has such a vibrant public library with 100 branches.
Catherine Cole is a self proclaimed bookaholic, with a particular affection for libraries. But returning library books has never been high on her list of priorities. Which was OK, until the day she in...Show More
Orlean discusses “The Library Book,” and Reid Hoffman talks about “Blitzscaling.”
The bestselling American writer talked to Eleanor Wachtel about her new title The Library Book, which tells the story of the devastating fire at the Los Angeles Central Library - and the significance ...Show More
Libraries get rid of books all the time. There are so many new books coming in every day and only a finite amount of library space. The practice of freeing up library space is called weeding. When the...Show More
Social Infrastructure is the glue that binds communities together, and it is just as real as the infrastructure for water, power, or communications, although it's often harder to see. But Eric Klinenb...Show More
Christopher de Hamel discusses his recent book Meetings with Remarkable Manuscripts, which has just won the Wolfson History Prize. Meanwhile, we speak to Jonathan Ruffle, creator of the BBC Radio 4 dr...Show More
As National Libraries Day approaches, we salute these temples of learning with the writers Ali Smith, Jackie Kay and Tom Holland, and head across the Channel to find out what’s on the shelves of the l...Show More
Ma'ayan Plaut is the podcast librarian at RadioPublic. But she’s not like the typical master of the Dewey Decimal System you know from your local public library. And she just so happens to be the only...Show More
Ever wonder where Library and Archives Canada (LAC) stores, protects and preserves Canada’s diverse and rich documentary heritage? Join us for this episode as we take you on a walking tour of LAC’s Pr...Show More
Benjamin Franklin founded the Library Company of Philadelphia in 1731. Today, you can visit his library and its amazing collections, which begs the question: How has the Library Company managed to sta...Show More
The unlikely battle between the creator of the New York Public Library children's reading room and the beloved children’s classic Goodnight Moon. Goodnight Nobody Pre-order The 99% Invisible City
We go back in Internet history to witness the Food Timeline's birth and learn about the amazing woman behind it.
Inside a living, breathing collection of sourdough starters in Belgium. Read more in the Atlas: https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/sourdough-library
Melvil Dewey, the father of library science and the inventor of the most popular library classification system in the world, was a known racist and serial sexual harasser. Forced out of the American L...Show More
EPISODE 308 In the final decades of his life, steel tycoon Andrew Carnegie -- one of the richest Americans to ever live -- began giving his money away. The Scots American had worked his way up from...Show More
In much of the western world, alphabetical order is simply a default we take for granted. It’s often the one we try first -- or the one we use as a last resort when all the other ordering methods fail...Show More
This week, we look at the ways libraries market themselves. If you think libraries are quiet, you’ve got another thing coming. We’ll talk about a library video series that played like a TV cop show - ...Show More
A lot had changed since Melvil Dewey came up with a classification system to organize all known and not-yet-known knowledge into a string of numbers and search terms. And yet, hundreds of thousands of...Show More
Libraries weren't always located in their own stately buildings. Many of our branches used to operate out of pharmacies, laundry rooms, storefronts, and more! In celebration of our first new branch in...Show More
Andrew Pettegree and Arthur der Weduwen delve into the history of libraries, from the humble book lover’s private selection to the most lavish literary collections. In conversation with Emily Briffett...Show More
A grand library in Portugal has some unexpected nighttime caretakers -- tiny bats. READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/mafra-palace-library-bats
Tom and Greg visit Hyde Park, New York, and Springwood, the estate of Franklin D. and Eleanor Roosevelt. Learn about FDR's life in Hyde Park, tour his home, visit the couple's private cottages and go ...Show More
For centuries, humanity has had a love affair with books. But these volumes are far more than just receptacles for stories. They have been tools to spread religion and empire, and have contained dange...Show More
Now she’s fighting back.
Physical media like floppy disks and optical discs have a limited lifespan, and their time is running out. Because of this, a whole generation of games are at risk of being lost forever. While we can’...Show More
This episode contains strong language. In the contentious debate over who controls what happens in America’s schools, a new battleground has emerged: library books. This is the story of what happened...Show More
It’s 1988, and Somalis are fleeing the city of Hargeisa. People are trying to get out, trying to save their families. But in the city’s radio station, staff are packing cassettes and reel to reel reco...Show More
At the dawn of the digital era, a group of engineers tasked with audio compression had to decide what information to keep, and what to leave behind. What was signal, and what was noise? Fast forward t...Show More
Libraries are under literal attack in Ukraine, and ideological attack amid North America’s culture wars. Oxford librarian and author Richard Ovenden is not about to stay quiet about it. He argues that...Show More
Coffee shops, churches, libraries, and concert venues are all shared spaces where mingling can take place. Yet the hustle and bustle of modern social life can pose challenges to relationship-building—...Show More
William the Conqueror undertook a remarkably modern project. In 1086, he began compiling and storing a detailed record of his realm: of where everyone lived, what they did and where they came from. 9...Show More
The latest instalment of our monthly series sees Hannah Skoda and Rana Mitter explore the long history behind the Post Office Scandal, the historical precedents behind recent developments in US politi...Show More
Ada Louise Huxtable, who “invented” the profession of architecture critic, wrote countless articles for two great daily newspapers and had a gigantic influence on our understanding of the work of arch...Show More
An exploration of the often deep ironies involved in why some objects from our past get saved…and others don’t.
At the human library you borrow a person you wouldn’t usually meet for a half-hour frank conversation. The volunteers have various book titles from polyamorous to former prisoner. The aim of these fac...Show More
epekilis recommended:
I’m the “Bu I’m Never late how can you charge me .25!” monster they describe at the tail end. It’s totally not the .25. I am just so ashamed about that one day late. And I am a serial renewer too, b...Show More