Now on view at the Rosenbach, Of Two Minds: Creative Couples in Art & History showcases the creations of romantic couples who inspired, instructed, or even assisted one another in making art or knowledge. In honor of Women's History Month this March, we shine the spotlight on two remarkable women who were artists,… continue reading Violet Oakley and Edith Emerson: Painters and Partners
By written by Sara D. March 8, 2018
On February 7, we opened a new exhibition celebrating the art and achievements of romantic couples, from the powerful royalty of the 16th century to cinema stars of Old Hollywood to local artists creating together today. Of Two Minds: Creative Couples in Art and History not only challenges the notion that creativity and authorship… continue reading Celebrating History's Unsung Creative Couples
By written by Sara D. February 14, 2018
Greetings from Frozen Philadelphia! After a snowy beginning to the new year and a lot of single-digit temperatures, we're bundled up and back in the office. And as we shiver on our way to and from the museum, we're thinking about some of our favorite authors, who shivered during an unseasonably cold summer 202 years ago.… continue reading Winter Reflections on the Year Without a Summer
By written by Sara D. January 22, 2018 1
On January 1, 1818, the London publishing house Lackington, Hughes, Harding, Mavor, & Jones published a book titled Frankenstein , or The Modern Prometheus . The publication did not name its author, but the book had a preface written by Percy Bysshe Shelley and a dedication to writer and philosopher William Godwin, so some… continue reading Frankenstein200 at the Rosenbach
By written by Sara D. January 16, 2018
Since Frankenstein & Dracula: Gothic Monsters, Modern Science opened on Friday the 13th of October, I’ve fielded a few questions from surprised visitors: Dracula , really? It’s not difficult to see the connection between Frankenstein and the scientific theme of the Rosenbach's new exhibition,… continue reading The Science of Bram Stoker's Dracula
By written by Sara D. November 10, 2017
As the opening date for Frankenstein & Dracula approaches, we've been revisiting some of the strange ( and occasionally salacious ) stories from the lives of the Romantic authors whose dark and imaginative stories inspired two of history's greatest monsters. A favorite among our staff is the grim tale of Percy… continue reading Mary Shelley's Indestructible Heart
By written by Sara D. August 30, 2017 1
![Daniel Defoe, Moll Flanders. London: Printed for, and sold by W. Chetwood; and T. Edling, 1721 [i.e., 1722]](https://libwww.freelibrary.org/images/blog/FLPBlog/resized/mollflanders.jpg)
I was in graduate school when Oprah Winfrey confronted author James Frey about fabricating portions of his memoir, A Million Little Pieces . Oprah, who had previously defended Frey’s memoir as a meaningful book with or without a strict adherence to the facts, apologized to her viewers: “I left the impression that the truth… continue reading #MysteryMonday: How True Do We Want True Crime To Be?
By written by Sara D. June 26, 2017
James Joyce is said to have told his acquaintance, artist and writer Frank Budgen, that he wanted his novel Ulysses to "give a picture of Dublin so complete that if the city suddenly disappeared from the earth, it could be reconstructed from my book." Devoted Joyceans and Ulysses fans seem to have taken this as a challenge: some of… continue reading Mapping Ulysses
By written by Sara D. June 14, 2017
June 16 is observed around the world as a celebration of James Joyce and his epic Ulysses , a novel that has been called everything from masterfully moving to hilariously obscene. Nowhere in the United States is this global literary holiday marked with more excitement than in Philadelphia, where the manuscript for Ulysses has made its home at… continue reading Re-Joyce: The Rosenbach Celebrates James Joyce with its Annual Bloomsday Festival
By written by Sara D. June 7, 2017
![An Acccount of the robberies committed by John Morrison and his accomplices in and near Philadelphia, 1750… Philadelphia, 1750-1. Collection of the Rosenbach [A 750a].](https://libwww.freelibrary.org/images/blog/FLPBlog/resized/morrison gang 1.jpg)
In 1750, Philadelphia was plagued by a series of domestic robberies over several weeks. The items targeted with primarily the luxury goods that were becoming increasingly available to residents who had financial means: jewelry, fine cloth, and good silver. Although the colony of Pennsylvania was still largely an agricultural economy, the City… continue reading #MysteryMonday: To Catch a Thief in the Days Before Detectives
By written by Sara D. June 5, 2017
Crossposted to the Rosenblog . One of the first things you may see when you enter Clever Criminals and Daring Detectives is a wall of extremely odd words in bold typography: Peg tantrums. Tip the velvet. Potatoe trap. What could these strange expressions mean? These colorful idioms come from A Dictionary of the Slang and Cant Languages by… continue reading #MysteryMonday: "Cant" Stop Wondering about Criminal Slang?
By written by Sara D. May 8, 2017 1
New Orleans is always on my mind at this time of year. Mardi Gras is more than just Fat Tuesday in the Big Easy, and the celebrations extend far beyond Bourbon Street: parades take place all over the city for several weeks, culminating in a weekend-long party with multiple parades per day. Schools and offices close for Lundi Gras and Mardi… continue reading Literary Scenes from New Orleans
By written by Sara D. February 23, 2017
In The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time , Christopher Boone’s investigation into the death of a neighborhood dog is inspired by his love of detective fiction. In particular, he is an avid fan of Sherlock Holmes , whose legendary powers of observation help make Christopher proud of his own ability to perceive and remember… continue reading #OneBookWednesday: The Curious Appeal of Sherlock Holmes
By written by Sara D. December 14, 2016
One of the joys of reading The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is experiencing the world through the eyes of Christopher Boone, whose powers of logic and perception work so differently than mine. Christopher describes his mind at various points as a machine, a computer, or a film: he notices many small details that other people… continue reading #OneBookWednesday: How Does Your Mind Work?
By written by Sara D. November 30, 2016
You know that pile of books on your nightstand—the ones you keep meaning to start but just haven’t gotten around to yet? Or the book that everyone was talking about last year but when you went to check it out, there was a long waitlist? Or perhaps there is a classic novel you were supposed to read in school but didn't, which now… continue reading #FLPNoShameNovember: The Books I Haven’t Read
By written by Sara D. November 21, 2016 1
I play video games. I’m not talking about casual games you download on your phone—not that there's anything wrong with that. In fact, the increasing visibility of casual gaming is a part of why I finally felt comfortable telling people that I own a gaming console. I favor games with sweeping narratives, lots of little side… continue reading #FLPNoShameNovember: Confessions of a Girl Gamer
By written by Sara D. November 7, 2016
With F. Scott Fitzgerald's 120th birthday approaching, we found some interesting connections between his writing and the Rosenbach collection hiding within our literary treasures. Our rare book library includes some fascinating American historical documents but not many examples of… continue reading When Fitzgerald was Literature's Biggest Fan
By written by Sara D. September 21, 2016
