Join the Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge on Sunday, February 11, 2-4 p.m., for the premiere
of Louisiana Short Stories: An Anthology from America’s Most Storied State. This book was
the culmination of ACGBR’s fall Creative Aging Writers’ Workshop, facilitated by award winning author, Rannah Gray. The Louisiana-based short stories reflect the culture and resiliency of the state
and its people written by the 20 participants, all age 55 and older. The diverse group was a mixture of previous workshop participants and first-timers, including six PhDs. Copies of the book will be available at the event and are also available on Amazon.com. Proceeds benefit the Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge, which provides resources and support to artists and arts organizations in 11 parishes.
Category: EBRPL Book
2024 One Book One Community Pick: Tasting History by Max Miller
Come explore the past through 4,000 years of recipes! From Babylon, circa 1740 BC, all the way to 20th century U.S.A, immerse yourself in cultures and cuisine! Join us this spring in reading our 2024 One Book One Community selection, Max Miller’s Tasting History! The 18th annual One Book One Community initiative will highlight Miller’s book as well as many other culinary and historical programs for all ages throughout the Library system. It all begins with a FREE Kickoff Party for the whole family on Friday, March 8, 5-7 p.m., at the Main Library at Goodwood, featuring live
music by RJ & Zydeco Smoove, free food, children’s activities, community organizations, and more!
The six-week celebration will culminate in a special presentation by Max Miller at the Main Library at Goodwood in April. For more information, please visit here.
Virtual Author Talk Series: Kim Scott
The Library continues its Author Talk Series with three new authors in February! Each live, virtual event features a different bestselling author, along with an interactive Q&A session where participants can ask questions directly to the author. See February selections and dates/times below.
Visit here to register for these virtual events, learn about other upcoming conversations with bestselling authors, and view previous author talk recordings. For more information about these and other virtual events, visit here.
Wednesday, February 28 at 1 p.m. – Why is feedback so difficult, and how can we make it easier? The idea is simple: You don’t have to choose between being a pushover and a jerk. Kim Scott, New York Times bestselling author of Radical Candor: Be a Kick-Ass Boss
Without Losing Your Humanity, will explain the Radical Candor feedback framework and how you can practice it today. She’ll offer practical, tactical tips for how to solicit criticism, give praise and criticism, gauge how what you’re saying is landing, and build a culture of Radical Candor. She’ll also discuss ensuring that bias, prejudice, and bullying don’t masquerade as feedback. Radically
Candid relationships with team members enable bosses to fulfill their three core responsibilities: creating a culture of compassionate candor, building a cohesive team, and achieving
results collaboratively. Keep your humanity while living your life with Radical Respect and Radical Candor. Register now to start your practice!
George Washington Carver
Celebrate African American Read-In with the Carver Branch on Tuesday, February 27 at 4:30 p.m. by listening to George Washington Carver by Katie Marsico. Afterwards, we’ll talk about other famous African Americans, then ply bingo to reinforce what we learned. Refreshments will be served. Registration is required. To register, please call 389-7440.
Books and Music with the Kids’ Orchestra Feb. 24
Collect new musical skills! Discover new library books! Learn new dance steps! Kids’ Orchestra invites children, ages 5-11, to an experiential program that combines library books with music education. Each month, children will explore a theme as they learn about an instrument, sing a song, explore a dance, and play a game – all inspired by a book in the East Baton Rouge Parish Library collection. Books & Music is celebrating this carnival season by placing a spotlight on “When the Saints Go Marching in,” a traditional spiritual that you are very likely to hear during February in Louisiana. You might also hear it at a New Orleans Saints football game. Brass bands in parades often play this melody. Come see Ashley Bryan’s beautiful illustrations in the book Let It Shine. Also, play a partner song game, meet a professional musician, and practice solfege syllables and hand signs. What are those? Come and fi nd out!! See below for opportunities to attend this fun program! All children under the age of 9 must be accompanied by an adult. Registration is required.
Saturday, February 24 at 11 a.m. – Jones Creek Regional Branch
Train Time
Preschoolers ages 2-5 are welcome at the Pride-Chaneyville Branch on Tuesday, February 20 at 11 a.m. for readings of Trains by Mary Lindeen and Trains Run! by George Ella Lyon and Beth Lyon. Afterwards, we’ll play with Start-Up Circuits and Mega Bloks, plus glue shapes together to make a train picture. Registration is required. To register, please call 658-1560.
Breaking Barriers: A View from the Bench
As part of the Library’s Special Collections Lecture Series, join Judge Freddie Pitcher, Jr. at the Main Library at Goodwood on Wednesday, February 21 at 6 p.m. as he describes how he made history in Baton Rouge by becoming the first African American to be elected to judgeships at three different levels of the court system. His new book, Breaking Barriers: A View from the Bench, highlights his personal story of humble beginnings— from the bench outside the local grocery he and his
friends frequented as young boys— and how he rose from “the bench to the bar to the bench”—the judicial bench. Judge Pitcher will shed light on the perseverance and determination required to overcome obstacles. He is now with a nationally known law firm and a professor at Southern University Law Center.
Science Discovery
Join us at the Delmont Gardens Branch on Saturday, February 17 at 11 a.m. where children ages 3-6 will listen to A Super Sticky Mistake by Alison Donald and Rea Zhai and unleash their inner scientists with cool density experiments. Which liquids are heavier? Find out!
Virtual Author Talk Series: Jason Mott
The Library continues its Author Talk Series with three new authors in February! Each live, virtual event features a different bestselling author, along with an interactive Q&A session where participants can ask questions directly to the author. See February selections and dates/times below.
Visit here to register for these virtual events, learn about other upcoming conversations with bestselling authors, and view previous author talk recordings. For more information about these and other virtual events, visit here.
Tuesday, February 20 at 3 p.m. – You’re invited to join us as we talk to New York Times bestselling author Jason Mott about his recent novel, Hell of a Book. This magnificent work of fiction is deeply honest, at times electrically funny, and is a book that goes to the heart of racism, police violence, and the hidden costs exacted upon Black Americans and America as a whole. In Hell of a Book, a Black author sets out on a cross-country publicity tour to promote his bestselling novel. That storyline drives Hell of a Book and is the scaffolding of something much larger and more
urgent: Mott’s novel also tells the story of Soot, a young Black boy living in a rural town in the recent past, and The Kid, a possibly imaginary child who appears to the author on his tour. Unforgettably told, with an electrifying plot and characters who burn into your mind, Hell of a Book is the novel Mott has been writing in his head for the last ten years. And in its final twists, it truly becomes its title. Register now!
Crossbow Craft
Kids ages 8-11 are invited to join is at the Baker Branch on Saturday, February 17 at 2:30 p.m. to read Arms and Armor by Michelle Byam and make a cool Q-tip crossbow! Registration is required. To register, please call 778-5960.