In her new book, “Chinatown Opera Theater in North America,” music scholar Nancy Yunhwa Rao tells the story of how Chinatown opera, performed initially to entertain Chinese immigrants, developed into an important part of America’s musical culture. Drawing on new Chinese- and English-language research—including sources at the Library of Congress—she unmasks the backstage world of …
The library card catalog was one of the most versatile and durable technologies in history—a veritable road map for navigating a “wilderness of books”—says Peter Devereaux of the Library’s Publishing Office. His new book on the subject, “The Card Catalog: Books, Cards and Literary Treasures,” explores the history of this once-revolutionary system and celebrates literary …
This post by Margaret Wagner of the Library’s Publishing Office first appeared on “Teaching with the Library of Congress,” a blog that highlights the Library’s resources for K–12 teachers. Describe what you do at the Library and the materials you work with. I am a senior writer-editor in the Library of Congress Publishing Office, the …
Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden announced today that Denis Johnson, author of the critically acclaimed collection of short stories “Jesus’ Son” and the novel “Tree of Smoke,” will posthumously receive the Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction during the 2017 Library of Congress National Book Festival, Sept. 2. The National Book Festival and the …
(The following is a repost from the National Book Festival blog. The author is Lola Pyne of the Library’s Office of Communications.) Earlier this week, Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden made an exciting video announcement detailing the stellar authors who will headline this year’s Library of Congress National Book Festival. She was joined in front of a …
Between August 1914 and November 1918, World War I eradicated empires, ignited the Russian Revolution, reconfigured the world map and marked a turning point for the United States. A new book by Margaret E. Wagner, “America and the Great War: A Library of Congress Illustrated History,” published by Bloomsbury Press in association with the Library …
Joan Nathan is the author of 11 cookbooks, including “King Solomon’s Table: A Culinary Exploration of Jewish Cooking from Around the World,” published in April. Her previous cookbook, “Quiches, Kugels and Couscous: My Search for Jewish Cooking in France” was named one of the 10 best cookbooks of 2010 by National Public Radio and Food …
This is a guest post by Cheryl Fox, Library of Congress archives specialist in the Manuscript Division. The Library’s Thomas Jefferson Building is bordered by a number of impressive trees. One of them, a Japanese elm at the southwest corner of the building, was planted on Dec. 7, 1920, in memory of four Library of …
Gene Luen Yang, National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, launched his Reading Without Walls program during a Library of Congress event on April 10. It challenges young people to explore, through books, worlds outside their comfort zone. “Reading is a fantastic way to open your minds and hearts to new people, places and ideas,” said …
