Book Launch, Redlined; a novel of Boston

It was a very different time.  The year is 1974.  Jamaica Plain is a community under siege.  The banks have redlined the neighborhood and destroyed property values.  There are thirty-four abandoned buildings between Washington and Centre, the average life expectancy, ten days before they are vandalized, stripped of valuables and torched.  Part fiction, part absolute truth, Redlined tells the gripping story of a group of JP neighbors who came together to fight and save their neighborhood.

Step Inside and Snuggle Up – School Vacation Week Reading Event

STEP INSIDE AND SNUGGLE UP! Come and get cozy at the Loring Greenough House while stepping into the world of some classic children’s books! Step Inside and Snuggle Up is a special series for kids of all ages (and their grown-ups) during school vacation week. Join us for an afternoon of picture book read-aloud of the book-of-the-day, make-and-take crafts, a free book exchange (for kids and adults), and delicious refreshments! Book – of – the – Day Schedule:

Tuesday February 19th, 1-3pm — Mary Poppins
Thursday February 21st, 1-3pm — Duke Ellington: The Piano Prince and His Orchestra

Adults can relax in the parlor with their own book while kids enjoy the read-aloud and crafts!

Holiday Book Sale

A great way to start off your holiday shopping while also supporting the Jamaica Plain Branch Library.  We will offer gently used books and DVDs all with bargain rates (all items just $1 or $2).  Books for all ages and in every genre. Book dealers please note - we ask that you do not use scanners at this December book sale and we will restrict purchases to no more than 20 items at a time.

Step Inside and Snuggle Up – Vacation Week Reading Event

Come and spend a cozy afternoon at the Loring Greenough House exploring the world of The Wizard of Oz, Peter Pan and the Jungle Book! Step Inside and Snuggle Up is a special series just for kids (and their grow-ups!) during school vacation week. LISTEN to a reading of the book-of-the-day! Kids can make themselves at home in the front hall for a read-aloud by one of our volunteers. (Grown-ups can listen too or relax in the parlor with their own book.) Readings at 1:30pm and 2:30pm.

Two Events: Friends of JP Branch Library Hosting Holiday Party and Book Sale

The Friends of the Jamaica Plain Branch Library are hosting two events this week that include a musical performance and a great way to get your holiday shopping started. On Dec. 7th, the Friends of the JP Branch Library are inviting everyone in the community to kick off the holiday season with food and a performance by the Boston Typewriter Orchestra. There will also be a potluck, so please bring an item to share. The event is from 6 to 8 pm.

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Todd Miller: “Climate Change, Migration and Homeland Security”

Join us to hear a bold and unified way, through the lens of climate change, to look at our immigration issues in America and internationally.Veteran Arizona border journalist Todd Miller has covered hot spots in the US and around the planet.  He has worked on immigration and border issues from both sides of the U.S. Mexico divide for organizations such as BorderLinks, Witness for Peace, and NACLA. His new book, Storming the Wall, investigates how the ecological crisis is creating millions climate refugees who are challenging the developed world’s borders and resources. Miller explores how a sense of threat in the United States is giving rise to high-tech surveillance fortresses and fueling calls for an ever-expanding border wall. This program is free and will serve light refreshments to all.

Panel discussion among JP authors at the Connolly Branch Library on Monday, July 17, 2017. From left: Katie Bayerl, Mindy Fried, Beth Castrodale and Katie Eelman

JP Authors Share Their Tips for Getting Into Print

Patience, a willingness to learn, and the ability to revise one’s work extensively: those are just a few of the qualities that were essential to the success of three Jamaica Plain authors who took part in a panel discussion on book writing and publishing Monday evening. The discussion, held at the Connolly Branch of the Boston Public Library, was moderated by Katie Eelman, director of media and events at Papercuts JP and co-founder and editor-in-chief at Cutlass Press, an independent book publisher based out of Papercuts. The story of her blacklisted father

As the panelists noted, it can take years to get from the idea stage to a polished, edited book. “You can’t be impatient because it takes forever and a day,” said Mindy Fried, author of Caring for Red: A Daughter’s Memoir. Fried said that her book began as blog posts about her elderly father’s experiences in assisted living and evolved into a memoir about her role in his care giving, one that offers a sociological perspective on the subject.

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Boston’s Only Spanish Language Used Bookstore, Libreria Donceles, Opens at Urbano Project in JP

Urbano Project will present Librería Donceles, a socially-engaged art project consisting of an itinerant bookstore of more than 10,000 used books in Spanish. While in residence at Urbano, the participatory art installation will be a meeting place for the community, hosting a series of bilingual salon-like gatherings for conversations, performances and workshops designed to encourage cultural understanding, tolerance and social activism. On view January 13th through March 31, 2017, Librería Donceles will be open Monday through Friday, 1 to 6 pm and Saturday, 10 to 2 pm, at Urbano's Gallery space at 29 Germania Street in Jamaica Plain. An opening reception took place on January 13, which included an artist talk and performance at 7:30 pm. Created by New York-based artist and educator Pablo Helguera out of a desire to address the lack of literary outlets that serve the growing Hispanic and Latino communities in the United States, Librería Donceles will be the sole Spanish-language bookstore in the Greater Boston area, bringing attention to the fact that there are millions of Spanish speakers in the US and yet a scarcity of books in Spanish.

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