Birmingham Public Library Blog

It’s never too late to start building a better understanding of your personal finances and begin developing a plan for the future. To assist you in this endeavor, the Birmingham Public Library (BPL) is partnering with the staff of the Regions Institute for Financial Education at UAB to offer a series of Money Matters workshops at the Central Library on the first Wednesday of each month from July 2016 to May 2017. Please join us on the dates below to take part in discussions about a variety of money management issues and learn ways to help you achieve your economic goals. When:  First Wednesday of the month Time: 12:00-1:00 p.m. Place:  Central Library/Linn-Henley Research Library/Regional Library Computer Center/4th floor Dates/Workshops 12/7/2016 – Protecting Yourself Against Targeted Fraud ( This program has been rescheduled for December 14 ) 1/4/2017 – Dealing With Debt 2/1/2017 – Where to Invest Your College Money 3/1/2017 – Your Credit Report 4/5/2017 –...

Adrienne Stroud talking to staff at the Business, Science and Technology Dept. Adrienne Stroud was homeless for over two months during the summer of 2014. Today, she is a homeowner. Stroud gives much of the credit to Birmingham Public Library (BPL) staffers who provided assistance and access to information that helped turn her life around. “The Birmingham Public Library helped me find a homeless prevention program to get off the streets, and put me in touch with people who help those who’ve lost jobs,” Stroud said. "A lot of people aren’t aware you can call the library to get information and take advantage of valuable programs for free.” Stroud is one of 1.5 million lives a year touched in a positive way by resources and workshops available for free to the public at BPL’s 19 locations. Stroud in particular credits Jim Murray, head of the Business, Science and Technology Department at the Central Library, and Robert Jones, a librarian in the department, for taking time ou...

Jesse Allen, one of the lucky winners of the Thanksgiving basket giveaway Three patrons who checked out books at the Smithfield Branch Library during November won Thanksgiving baskets as part of a giveaway at the library November 22. The winners are: Jesse Allen, who checked out The Color Purple ; Charles Smith, who checked out a Willy Wonka book; and Demetrius Hayes, who checked out To Kill a Mockingbird . All three patrons won Thanksgiving baskets from the Smithfield Library that included a turkey, canned goods, bread rolls, celery, tomatoes, and other vegetables. Allen said he was surprised to find out that he had won one of the Thanksgiving baskets. “I’m really excited because I never win anything,” Allen said. “Thanks to the Smithfield Library. I visit this library all of the time because I live in the community.” Felicia Cooper’s decision to drop by the North Birmingham Regional Branch Library last week to check out Debbie Macomber’s novel, The Inn at Rose Harbor , ...

The Birmingham Public Library (BPL) is accepting donations as part of the #GivingTuesday campaign . #GivingTuesday is a global day of giving fueled by the power of social media and collaboration. Donations help BPL’s 19 locations to serve nearly 1.5 million people a year throughout Birmingham, granting them access to information, programs, and resources at no cost. BPL has been educating the public for over 129 years, as noted in a national spotlight feature in the  Atlantic . The Robotics Marathon , held recently at the Central Library as part of Teens Engineer Birmingham, is among many free activities held in BPL’s 19 libraries daily. The afterschool program teaches engineering skills to dozens of teens weekly at the Southside, Woodlawn, and Central Libraries. Because of the generous contributions of people like you, BPL can continue its mission of enriching the lives of Birmingham citizens like Calvester Sanders and the teen engineer participants featured below: Re...

Allaire Doussan and fellow engineering students at a recent robotics program University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) engineering student Allaire Doussan participated in a robotics program at her high school. When she found out the UAB School of Engineering was teaching a summer engineering program at the Birmingham Public Library (BPL) last year, she volunteered to be a part of it to help give back to area teens who shared her joy of robotics and engineering. A year later, Doussan has advanced from volunteer to a paid UAB internship helping teach students who participate in BPL’s weekly afterschool Teens Engineer Birmingham program at the Woodlawn, Southside, and Central Libraries. “It has been great and rewarding teaching the kids,” said Doussan, a biomedical engineering major. “They seem to really enjoy learning.” As part of the program, Doussan and fellow UAB students assist Dr. Abi Yildirim, director of outreach for UAB’s School of Engineering, in teaching roboti...

Calvester Sanders credits free beginner computer classes at Central Library for taking her from being afraid to use a computer to mastering it on the job Before June 2016, Calvester Sanders had no knowledge of how to use a computer. Today, thanks to two months of free basic and advanced computer classes she took during the summer at the Central Library, Sanders is no longer afraid to use a computer. “The classes helped me tremendously,” said Sanders, supervisor of housekeeping at the Redmont Hotel downtown. “Before I took them, I couldn’t even turn on a computer. Now I’m familiar with computers and not afraid of them anymore. I can communicate with my staff using the computer now. I now know how to print out documents.” Sanders is one of 1.5 million lives touched in a positive way by resources and workshops available for free to the public at BPL’s 19 locations. She is appreciative of her supervisor, Redmont Hotel General Manager Nicole Schrader, who found out about Central Li...

Check out a book from the North Birmingham Regional Branch Library and you may win a free turkey. The North Birmingham Library is hosting a contest called “Thanks for Being Our Patron" Turkey Drawing. Adults who check out one adult book or audiobook may enter the drawing. The winner’s name will be pulled on Tuesday, November 22, at 1:30 p.m. Patrons do not have to be present to win. For more information, call the Adult Department at 226-⁠4025.

by Mary Anne Ellis, Central Library, Southern History Department Christmas with Southern Living 2016: The Complete Guide to Holiday Cooking and Decorating By editors of Southern Living Magazine A Christmas book in November? Well, why not? It never hurts to get an early start on the holiday season, with “early” meaning anything after Labor Day. If you’re the one in charge of a major holiday celebration, and especially if you’re already a fan of the magazine , then the Christmas with Southern Living book series is something you should check out. Our department has just received the 2016 version and even if you don’t feel your crafting and cooking abilities are in the Martha Stewart category, you can still revel in the gorgeous photography and cherry-pick the best ideas that will fit your celebration and skill level. And who knows? Some of the decorating schemes and recipes are fairly simple and you may find something you’d like to try. On page 39 there is a recipe for Salted Brow...

What:  "A Christmas Memory" performed by Dolores Hydock When: Sunday, December 4, 3:00 p.m. Where: Central Library, Linn-Henley Research Library, Arrington Auditorium, 4th floor Details: Free and open to the public The Christmas season doesn’t really begin until you have experienced Birmingham storyteller Dolores Hydock’s incredible one-woman performance of " A Christmas Memory ," Truman Capote's poignant reminiscence of his boyhood in rural Alabama. As an added treat Birmingham Breadworks will join us to share their own fruitcake creations. In "A Christmas Memory" Capote lovingly describes making fruitcake with a favorite relative. Birmingham Breadworks will offer a new twist on an old holiday favorite. For more information on the program contact Jim Baggett at jbaggett@bham.lib.al.us or 205-226-3631. And catch up with Dolores Hydock at  http://www.storypower.org/ . There is always a full house for this performance, so come early an...

Representatives of Alabama Regional Medical Services will present several free affordable health care workshops in partnership with the Birmingham Public Library (BPL). The workshops will be held at different city libraries the next four Wednesdays, beginning at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, November 16, 2016, at the Pratt City Branch Library. During the workshops, Alabama Regional Medical Services experts will present facts on the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the national health insurance program better known as Obamacare. No registration is required. Alabama Regional Medical Services is a Birmingham company certified in the ACA, Four workshops will take place at BPL locations between November 16 and December 7. They are free and open to the public; no registration necessary. The schedule is as follows: November 16, 1:00 p.m., Pratt City Branch Library November 23, 10:00 a.m., Smithfield Branch Library November 30, 10:00 a.m., North Birmingham Regional Branch Library Dec...

What: Book Feast reading challenge for grades K-12 When: November 14-28, 2016 Where: Any Birmingham Public Library Details: Register online at  http://www.bplonline.org/programs/bookfeast Thanksgiving is a wonderful holiday for fun activities such as cooking, eating, shopping, watching football, and spending quality moments with friends and family. The Birmingham Public Library (BPL) has a new program in place to help make sure that Birmingham city school children don’t leave out one of the most important and fun activities: reading. BPL is encouraging students in grades K-12 to join its inaugural online Book Feast reading challenge. Once students register, they will have the opportunity to select their own avatar, set up the theme for their account, and read to earn virtual badges and awards. Janine Langston, coordinator over youth programs for BPL, encourages participants to visit their favorite BPL location to check out books and receive an achievement code in or...

One of the most exciting events of the year is about to take place next week.  Every year I think about it, plan for it, discuss it with my friends and coworkers, and wait with great anticipation for its arrival.  It’s not the Iron Bowl, it’s not Thanksgiving , it’s BLACK FRIDAY!!!  There are few things more exciting than buying a flash drive at 6:00 am on Friday morning for pennies on the dollar.  Finding these incredible deals takes planning.  If you’re like me, you head to The Summit on Wednesday evening when the Thanksgiving edition of The Birmingham News first becomes available.  Forget finding one on Thanksgiving Day, it won’t happen.  The anticipation of taking that 10-pound newspaper home to uncover the great deals can only be compared to waiting in line to ride a roller coaster.  You know it will be thrilling and can’t wait for the experience. Although nothing compares to flipping through ad after ad to see which ph...

If you are looking for a job, desiring to protect your business from cyber criminals, or desiring tips on how to fight off foreclosure, make plans to visit the Birmingham Public Library’s downtown location on Monday, November 14, 2016 . The Central Library will host three free workshops: The Hiring Process for Jefferson County, How to Avoid Foreclosure, and Cyber Security Made Simple. See details about the workshops below: Cyber Security Made Simple, Monday , noon-1:00 p.m., Central Library, Linn-Henley Research Library, Arrington Auditorium, 4th floor Presented by Sawyer Solutions, a Pelham-based information technology company, this seminar will offer tips for small business owners on how to make their websites more secure from cyber criminals and hackers. The seminar is free, but advance registration is required. To register, go to the Birmingham SCORE website at www.birmingham.score.org and click on the seminar title in the Upcoming Events section. Hiring Process for Jef...

Chef E cooking healthy What: Eating Well Fall Cooking with Chef E  When: Tuesday, November 15, 2016, 11:30 a.m. Where: West End Branch Library Details: Free and open to the public; no registration necessary Do you need tips on healthy cooking of good holiday meals? Then mark your calendar to visit the West End Library next week as a popular Birmingham chef holds a free cooking demonstration. Eating Well Fall Cooking with Chef E will take place November 15, 2016, at the West End Library. During the workshop, Erica Threatt, better known in Birmingham as Chef E, will share tips on how to prepare healthy, delicious dishes for the holidays. Chef E has worked closely with the Birmingham Public Library for several years, sharing exciting cooking tips and recipes. She is the owner of The Caring Chef, a personal chef business that provides the metro Birmingham community with healthy cooking classes.

Birmingham Public Library Board and Innovative and Cool Award winners Students participating in afterschool programs at the Inglenook Branch Library will soon get to play classic 1980s-era video games as the library is purchasing the new retro Nintendo Entertainment System Classic Console. On December 7, the East Ensley Branch Library will hold an afterschool craft session in which students will make Christmas ornaments and decorations for hospice patients at a Birmingham nursing home. At the Five Points West Regional Branch Library, new programs are being added to Active Living, a senior citizens group who gather on Wednesdays to participate in exercise classes, cooking demonstrations, and assorted craft workshops. And the Wylam Branch Library is adding two new programs: wreath making and holiday decorations for adults, and purchasing new board games for youth who attend afterschool programs there on weekdays. Those four libraries are the latest recipients of the Birmi...

by David Blake, Fiction Department, Central Library On Friday, November 11, 2016, crowds coming from all over the metro area, the country, and perhaps even some international visitors, will converge in Birmingham for the 69th annual National Veterans Day parade which starts at 1:30 p.m. Birmingham can take pride in the fact that the National Veterans Day was originally established here in 1947. Raymond Weeks, other local veterans, and interested parties established Veterans Day to replace Armistice Day, which only focused on veterans of the Great War (World War I). National Veterans Day was signed into law in 1954 by President Eisenhower only seven years later. It was designated to take place annually on November 11 to honor all U. S. veterans from all wars involving U. S. troops. Many parades take place on this date, but Birmingham’s parade is the oldest and is still the largest. We are now acknowledging the 100th anniversary of the Great War and much attention is being given...

The Birmingham Public Library (BPL), in partnership with the Birmingham Children’s Theatre (BCT) and Junior League of Birmingham (JLB), would like to invite you to attend From Page to Stage: A Christmas Carol: The Musical –  A Readers’ Theater Workshop for Children. In anticipation of the upcoming BCT performance of A Christmas Carol , BPL will be hosting free workshops at several of its area libraries. Children, aged 5 to 12, will learn how stories come alive through the magic of theater. JLB members will coach the children and introduce them to similar literature located in their local library. Each child will receive two free tickets (one child and one adult ticket) to the BCT A Christmas Carol production in December 2016. Ebenezer Scrooge is a prosperous curmudgeon who believes personal wealth is far more valuable than the happiness and comfort of others. With an infuriated "Bah! Humbug!" Scrooge summates his feelings of Christmas tidings and charitable giving, ...

What: Cyber-Security Made Simple small business owners workshop When: Monday, November 14, 2016, noon-1:00 p.m. Where: Central Library, Linn-Henley Research Library, Arrington Auditorium, 4th floor Details: The seminar is free but advance registration is required. To register, go to the Birmingham SCORE website at www.birmingham.score.org and click on the seminar title in the Upcoming Events section On November 14, the Central Library will host a program for small business owners titled Cyber-Security Made Simple. The program is sponsored by the local chapter of SCORE (Service Corps of Retired Executives), a nonprofit organization committed to providing mentoring to small business owners and entrepreneurs. The program presenters will be computer specialists from Sawyer Solutions , a Pelham-based information technology company. Frequently, small business owners think that, due to the size of their operations, they will not fall victim to the same kind of data hackers and...

(l-r) William "Billy" McDonald, Claire L. Chennault, and John "Luke Williamson Florida Air Races, Miami, 1935 What: Author visit and book signing by William "Billy" McDonald III, author of The Shadow Tiger: Billy McDonald, Wingman to Chennault When: Thursday, November 10, 1:00-2:00 p.m. Where: Central Library, Linn-Henley Research Library, Arrington Auditorium, 4th floor Details: Books will be available for purchase and at the event As a young child, William “Billy” McDonald III heard his father share fascinating tales of his adventures as a World War II fighter pilot for the United States. Now thanks to determination—and some luck—McDonald is sharing the story with the world through the publishing of a book that his father first started 52 years ago. McDonald recently co-authored The Shadow Tiger: Billy McDonald, Wingman to Chennault  along with Barbara L. Evenson. In honor of Veterans Day, he will hold a talk about his dad, a World War II avia...

(l-r) Juliette Watts, Kendall Glenn, and Saundra Ross A 10-year-old girl from North Avondale won the drawing for a free community quilt held at the North Avondale Branch Library on Thursday, November 3, 2016. The giveaway was organized by Juliette Watts of the Hands On Youth Activities Program, a Birmingham-based nonprofit. Thirty-four people ranging in age from 7 to 80 met 74 times over a six-month period to stitch the quilt. Every time a participant helped, their name was placed in a drawing. Kendall Glenn had her name in the drawing three times, Watts said. Ironically, 10-year-old Myia Pressley, who won a contest to draw the name, had the best chance as her name was in the pot eight times since she helped stitch at eight meetings. The quilt was 66 by 65 squares. You can read more about the North Avondale Community Quilt Project on the Birmingham Public Library website at http://bplolinenews.blogspot.com/2016/11/community-quilt-to-be-given-away-at.html . Watts, a Commu...

Mary Anne Ellis at the Jump into the Gene Pool genealogy class in August 2016. This is just one of many genealogy classes offered by the Southern History Department that range from introductory to advance levels. November is a month of firsts for the Birmingham Public Library (BPL)’s Southern History Department: the department will be offering a new class on DNA testing services, the Trussville Public Library will be the first location to offer the class on Ancestry.com Library Edition in the evening, and Fold3 will be taught on a Saturday afternoon as part of Birmingham Genealogical Society's monthly meeting. The Southern History Department will also be hosting its first ever book talk on The Shadow Tiger on November 10 at the Central Library. The book by William McDonald III of Birmingham shares the story of his father, Billy McDonald, one of Birmingham's World War II aviation heroes. Read a review of The Shadow Tiger by Mary Anne Ellis, librarian in the Southern H...

What: D&E’s Foreclosure Prevention Workshop: Preserve Your Home When: Monday, November 14, 2016, 5:30-7:30 p.m. Where: Central Library, Linn-Henley Research Library, Arrington Auditorium, 4th floor Details: The workshop is free, but registration is required. To register, please complete the form on the D&E website: www.depower.org/preserve-your-home Home ownership is a tremendous responsibility and sometimes the pressure of making monthly mortgage payments can be quite a heavy burden to bear. If you have become concerned about your mortgage payments and are fearful that foreclosure is a real possibility, then plan on attending D&E’s Foreclosure Prevention Workshop: Preserve Your Home at the Central Library. The workshop will provide information about home retention, foreclosure options, and special programs offered to Alabama homeowners. In recent years, the Obama Administration has implemented a number of initiatives to assist homeowners who are at risk of ...

Seven of the Birmingham Public Library locations will begin their winter hours on Monday, November 7, 2016 . Neighborhood libraries East Ensley, Ensley, Inglenook, North Avondale, Powderly, Woodlawn, and Wylam will maintain this temporary schedule through early March 2017. The hours of operation will be as follows: Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays from 8:00 a.m. to noon and from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. On Wednesdays, the libraries operate from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. The seven neighborhood libraries will be closed for lunch from noon to 1:00 p.m. weekdays. All other BPL locations will maintain their regular schedules.

by Richard Grooms, Fiction Department, Central Library Made in America: An Informal History of the English Language in the United States Bill Bryson I delayed reading Made In America for years because I’d already read Bill Bryson’s The Mother Tongue , a history of English in Britain. I assumed, even after skimming bits of Made , that it’d cover too much of the same territory. Once again, I underestimated Bryson. It of course has been wholly absorbing and stimulating to read. And not quite what the title, or the book’s subject headings, indicates. At least half the book is an unconventional history of America. True, Bryson says you have to know the social context to understand American English, but he uses this as a springboard to write that history of his native land he must’ve always wanted to. He drives a truck through this premise and I was glad to be a passenger. And because this is a Bryson take on our history, you get a gadfly approach, a revisionist plea, a wandering ...

Juliette Watts works on the community quilt Since May 2, 2016, adults and youth alike have been gathering at the North Avondale Regional Branch Library, sewing one square at a time on what is being called the North Avondale Community Quilt Project. Led by longtime quilter Juliette Watts, 54 people ranging in age from 7 to 70 have gathered weekly, stitching what will end up a 70-by-70 square community quilt. The group has bonded over the past six months, building friendships and seeing excitement grow as they near the end of a project they have poured countless hours into. To make the project more engaging and interesting, Watts decided to put all of the participants’ names in a pot each time they come to work on the quilt. Now that the community quilt is finished, Watts will hold a special program at 3:30 p.m. on November 3, 2016, in which the grand prize winner whose name is drawn will win the community quilt. Though Watts told participants that some church, business, mus...

In the age of 24/7 news and social media, the American people will find out who the next president is fairly quickly. In 1916, the Birmingham Age-Herald had an innovative way to let people know who won the election between the Republican candidate, Charles Evans Hughes, and Democrat candidate, Woodrow Wilson.  If you were in downtown Birmingham, you could find out the results by looking at the side of  the  Age-Herald building where they would be displayed on a screen. If you were out of town, the Age-Herald put a spotlight on top of its building and used pre-arranged signals to let you know who had been elected president. The searchlight beam would point straight up if Wilson won; if Hughes was the winner, the searchlight beam would point toward north at an angle of 45 degrees.  The 1916 election was a tight election, and early results in the newspapers predicted Charles Evan Hughes to be the victor, much to the chagrin of Alabama voters and the rest...