Tagged Fiction
Indulge Yourself: Exploring Fanfic and Fan Culture with Field Teen Center
If you’re a teen who likes to read and write fan fiction, or if you know a teen who does, you’re in good company at the Field Teen Center . Fan fiction, also called "fanfic" or just…
Dena's Favorite Books of 2022
Welcome to Year 11 of my annual list of favorite books and the third year of pandemic reading! I've started getting my reading mojo back and have been spending a bit more time reading than watching tv this year—268 books read…
Explore Creative Careers with Field Teen Center!
Throughout the month of July, Field Teen Center recorded interviews with a voice actor, four game designers, and a comic book writer. If you’re interested in creative jobs or if you just want to learn more about how your favorite…
Ulysses at 100
February 2, 2022, will mark the centennial of the publication of James Joyce’s masterpiece Ulysses . Constructed as a modern parallel to Homer’s Odyssey , Ulysses takes place over the course of a…
Dena's Favorite Books of 2021
It's that time of year again for my annual list of favorite books from the Philbrick Hall Fiction Department at Parkway Central Library ! Welcome to the tenth anniversary of this yearly list and the second year of pandemic reading!…
Scary Reads for Autumn Chills | Horror Fiction Recommendations
Greeting fiends! The brisk winds of autumn are finally here, bringing colder nights for spooky reading... So much great horror fiction has been hitting our stacks, here are some of my current favorites. My Heart Is a Chainsaw by…
Women's History Month | Ursula K. Le Guin Honored with Commemorative Stamp
Ursula K. Le Guin 's award-winning writing often depicted futuristic alternative worlds steeped in the themes of politics, the natural environment, gender, religion, sexuality, and ethnography. Now her legacy will live on in a…
What Philadelphia Read in 2020
The longest year ever is coming to a close. (Amen.) That means that it’s time to peruse some Best of 2020 book lists! Across the web you can find tons of these kinds of lists. Two of my favorites are Book Riot’s Best Books…
Join Our New YA and Adult Multicultural Book Club!
Are you interested in reading new authors? Are you looking for a safe place to discuss literature and culture? Then this book club is for you! The YA / Adult Multicultural Book Club has a focus on authors of color and expanding cultural…
New Titles Coming to the Free Library in July!
In this time of self-reflection and evaluation of our own and our society's biases and attitudes around race, our suggestions include new titles in which race is a central theme, as well as a primer on voting and why it matters. We…
Curl Up with a Cozy Mystery
Are you looking for some binge-worthy reading that has nothing to do with the quasi dystopian reality outside your front door? Look no further than the literary comfort food that is the Cozy Mystery! Here is Goodreads' excellent…
Spring 2020 Author Events Preview
As we head into the roaring '20s, let’s look forward to the Spring 2020 Free Library Author Events schedule , highlight a few of our guests, and offer up some other important details... Tickets go on sale to the public today,…
Dena's Favorite Books of 2019
It's that time of the year again! Working in the Fiction Department of the Parkway Central Library means that I am always surrounded by excellent books to read. I read over 330 this year, and in narrowing it down to my top 30…
Happy Birthday to Kurt Vonnegut (and Kilgore Trout?)
Yes, I am one of those: I keep a list of books saved in my phone—books that I will eventually read once I reach that magical point of life when I stop desiring new books and therefore stop adding to the dang list—and…
New Titles Coming to the Free Library in October!
Our October suggestions are a mix of fantasy, history, romance, health, and adventure—truly, something for everyone—and they’re all coming to a neighborhood library near you this month! Young Children (Up to 2nd…
Happy Birthday, Agatha Christie!
In the course of a casual conversation with a new acquaintance this summer, chatter turned—as it inevitably does, when one of you works in a library—first to books, then to mystery novels, and then to my minor obsession with…
Fall 2019 Author Events: Cultural Connections
During this fall season of Free Library Author Events , we’re seeing a lot of cultural connections between our authors and speakers. Let’s talk about the events taking place two days in a row, both off-site at the same…
Celebrate National Read a Book Day!
Today is National Read a Book Day , and as a book lover and Free Library staff member it’s my sworn duty to encourage everyone I meet today to pick up a book, so expect some recommendations here. Reading can be so much more than…
Are You an N.K. Jemisin Fan Yet?
In my version of a perfect world, there are two kinds of fiction readers: Those who have already read (and loved) multi-award-winning author N.K Jemisin 's work and those who will. Soon. If you find yourself in neither category (!),…
The 2019 Pulitzer Prize Winners Are...
The winners of the 2019 Pulitzer Prizes were announced at Columbia University in New York City on Monday, April 15. The Pulitzers recognize achievements in newspaper, magazine and online journalism, literature, and musical composition,…
Jennifer Weiner | The Breakaway
TICKETS Jennifer Weiner is the no. 1 New York Times bestselling author of more than a dozen “funny, fanciful, extremely poignant” ( The Boston Globe ) novels, including That Summer , Mrs.…
James McBride | The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store
REGISTER James McBride is the author of the National Book Award-winning The Good Lord Bird , “a brilliant romp of a novel” ( The New York Times Book Review ) in which a young boy born into slavery joins…
Mapping Imagination: The Art of World-Building
The Free Library’s newest exhibition, Mapping Imagination: The Art of World-Building explores the creative and artistic choices that mapmakers use to build worlds and enhance storytelling. The exhibition delves into the…
Mapping Imagination: The Art of World-Building
The Free Library’s newest exhibition, Mapping Imagination: The Art of World-Building explores the creative and artistic choices that mapmakers use to build worlds and enhance storytelling. The exhibition delves into the…
Mapping Imagination: The Art of World-Building
The Free Library’s newest exhibition, Mapping Imagination: The Art of World-Building explores the creative and artistic choices that mapmakers use to build worlds and enhance storytelling. The exhibition delves into the…
Cristina García | Vanishing Maps: A Novel
REGISTER Cristina García is the author of eight “languid and sensual, curt and surprising” ( The New York Times Book Review ) novels, including The Lady Matador’s Hotel , The Agüero…
“Mapping Imagination” Curator-Led Exhibition Tour
The Free Library’s newest exhibition, Mapping Imagination: The Art of World-Building explores the creative and artistic choices that mapmakers use to build worlds and enhance storytelling. The exhibition delves into the…
Hands on History: Mapping (More) Imagination
Have you seen the exhibition Mapping Imagination: The Art of World-Building and want to learn more? Now’s your chance with this hands-on event featuring materials that were considered (but sadly not included) in the exhibition.…
Hands on History: Mapping (More) Imagination
Have you seen the exhibition Mapping Imagination: The Art of World-Building and want to learn more? Now’s your chance with this hands-on event featuring materials that were considered (but sadly not included) in the exhibition.…
Jake Tapper | All the Demons Are Here: A Thriller
TICKETS In conversation with Jim Gardner Jake Tapper is the Washington, D.C., anchor and chief Washington correspondent for CNN, where he hosts the weekday program The Lead with Jake Tapper and the Sunday morning…
“Mapping Imagination” Curator-Led Exhibition Tour
The Free Library’s newest exhibition, Mapping Imagination: The Art of World-Building explores the creative and artistic choices that mapmakers use to build worlds and enhance storytelling. The exhibition delves into the…
“Mapping Imagination” Curator-Led Exhibition Tour
The Free Library’s newest exhibition, Mapping Imagination: The Art of World-Building explores the creative and artistic choices that mapmakers use to build worlds and enhance storytelling. The exhibition delves into the…
A Taste of How Long 'til Black Future Month?
Chef Tonii Hicks will prepare an citrusy herb soup inspired by N. K. Jemisin's short story, "Red Dirt Witch" from How Long 'til Black Future Month? as we discuss Black history and future. Register at…
One Book One Philadelphia Finale After-Party: Karaoke!
To conclude the 2023 One Book, One Philadelphia season, join us after the concluding talk at the Asian Arts Initiative for a karaoke party! There will be drinks and free food, with karaoke facilitated by Sara Sherr of Sing Your…
One Book One Philadelphia Finale: Author Conversation
Join us at 6:00 p.m. at the Community College of Philadelphia for a celebration to conclude the One Book, One Philadelphia 2023 season. This event will feature an in-person conversation between Charles Yu and Dr. Michelle…
Christine Pride and Jo Piazza | You Were Always Mine
REGISTER In conversation with Alexandra Auder, author of Don't Call Me Home: A Memoir Publishing industry veteran Christine Pride has held a variety of editorial positions at Doubleday, Simon & Schuster, and…
Book Discussion: Interior Chinatown
Join the Haddington Library for a discussion of the One Book, One Philadelphia selection. Interior Chinatown is a deeply personal novel about race, pop culture, immigration, assimilation, and escaping the…
Third Thursday Teen Book Club: Pride Month Edition
Celebrate LGBT+ Pride with Field Teen Center's final monthly book club of the season, Friday, I'm in Love by Camryn Garrett. Teens who register at the Field Teen Center can pick up their free copy of this…
Book Discussion: Interior Chinatown
Join the Overbrook Park Library for a discussion of the One Book, One Philadelphia selection. Interior Chinatown is a deeply personal novel about race, pop culture, immigration, assimilation, and…
One Book, One Philadelphia Storytime
We will be reading Drawn Together , written by Minh Lê and illustrated by Dan Santat. In this children’s book, a child and his grandfather spend a day together. They don’t speak the same language until their love for…
LitFinder *
Discover literature content from more than 150,000 full-text poems, 840,000 poem citations and excerpts, 7,100 full-text short stories and novels, 3,800 full-text essays published in the 16th-20th centuries, 2,400 full-text speeches, and…
Books & Authors *
Discover fiction and non-fiction books that match your interests! Books and Authors (powered by Gale's popular What Do I Read Next? series) is for readers from every level of reading proficiency and enables users to explore the endless…
James Comey | Central Park West: A Crime Novel
In conversation with George Anastasia The director of the FBI from 2013 to 2017, James Comey captured international attention for his investigations into Hillary Clinton’s emails, Russian interference into the 2016 presidential…
Hernan Diaz | Trust
Hernan Diaz ’s bestselling and Pulitzer Prize winning novel Trust , "a genre-bending, time-skipping story about New York City’s elite in the roaring ’20s and Great Depression” ( Vanity Fair ), presents a literary puzzle about the…
Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah | Chain Gang All-Stars with Daniel Torday | The 12th Commandment
With characters situated in surreal, Twilight Zone -esque, yet all-too-familiar positions of oppression within our most venerable institutions, Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah ’s 2018 debut fiction collection, Friday Black , was praised as…
Dave Barry | Swamp Story: A Novel
A “genuine genius” ( The New York Times Book Review ), Dave Barry won the Pulitzer Prize for commentary in 1988. He wrote for the Miami Herald for 30 years, where his column was syndicated in more than 500 newspapers. His dozens of…
One Book One Philadelphia Kickoff: Community Fair and Author Conversation
Charles Yu is the author of four books, including Interior Chinatown (the winner of the 2020 National Book Award for fiction), and the novel How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe (a New York Times Notable Book and a Time…
Vanessa Hua | Forbidden City
In conversation with Pia Sarkar A former longtime columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle , Vanessa Hua has written about Asia and the diaspora from countries such as China, Burma, and South Korea, and has contributed articles to The…
Emily St. John Mandel | Sea of Tranquility
In conversation with Laura McGrath, Assistant Professor of English at Temple University A “soul-quaking” ( Los Angeles Review of Books ) meditation on the everyday miracles we take for granted set amongst the travels and travails of a…
Paul Harding | This Other Eden with Hanna Pylväinen | The End of Drum-Time
Paul Harding won the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for Tinkers , “an astringent meditation on loss, family ties, and the presence of the past” ( The Guardian ) in which a dying elderly man wanders through the rooms of his life’s…
Jamila Minnicks | Moonrise Over New Jessup
Jamila Minnicks’ debut novel Moonrise Over New Jessup tells the story of a 1950s-era, all-Black Alabama town that is resistant to desegregation and the opposing political viewpoints that threaten a young couple’s burgeoning romance.…
Sadeqa Johnson | The House of Eve
In conversation with Jennifer Weiner Acclaimed for their explorations of marital fidelity, friendship, and the difficulties of connecting in modern life, Sadeqa Johnson ’s novels include And Then There Was Me , Second House from the…
John Banville | The Singularities
In conversation with Colum McCann “The heir to Nabokov” ( The Sunday Telegraph ), Irish novelist John Banville won the Man Booker Prize for The Sea , a story of loss and the fickle nature of memory. His many other novels include The…
Orhan Pamuk | Nights of Plague
In conversation with Laura McGrath, Assistant Professor of English at Temple University The winner of the 2006 Nobel Prize in Literature, Turkish writer Orhan Pamuk “is one of the great novelists of his generation” (The Washington…
Yiyun Li | The Book of Goose with Elizabeth McCracken | The Hero of this Book
Yiyun Li ’s “remarkable” ( The Washington Post ) debut fiction collection, A Thousand Years of Good Prayers , won the Frank O’Connor International Short Story Award, the PEN/Hemingway Award, and the Guardian First Book Award. Her other…
Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan | Mad Honey
In conversation with Jo Piazza A “quite prescient and worthwhile” writer who “understands her characters inside and out” ( The New York Times Book Review ), Jodi Picoult has authored many No. 1 bestsellers that are renowned for…
Vladimir Sorokin and Max Lawton | Telluria and Their Four Hearts
In conversation with Mark Krotov, publisher and editor of n+1 Vladimir Sorokin is one of contemporary Russian literature’s most popular writers. Banned by the Soviet Union, his numerous novels include The Queue , The Blizzard , …
Ian McEwan | Lessons
In conversation with Wesley Stace “The most psychologically astute writer working today, our era’s Jane Austen” ( Esquire ), Ian McEwan won the Booker Prize for his novel Amsterdam . His 16 other novels include Atonement , winner of…
Gary Shteyngart | Our Country Friends
In conversation with Laura McGrath, Assistant Professor of English at Temple University “Quirky and often darkly hilarious” ( Mother Jones ), Gary Shteyngart is the author of the culturally reflective novels The Russian Debutante’s…
Diane McKinney-Whetstone | Our Gen
Acclaimed for crafting “sharply drawn characters, exuberant prose,” and “plenty of period detail” ( Los Angeles Times Book Review ), Diane McKinney-Whetstone is the author of six novels, including Tumbling , Tempest Rising , Trading…
Alice Elliott Dark | Fellowship Point
In conversation with Beth Kephart Alice Elliott Dark is the author of the critically acclaimed novel Think of England and the short story collections In the Gloaming and Naked to the Waist . Her stories, essays, and reviews have…
Chinelo Okparanta | Harry Sylvester Bird
In conversation with Asali Solomon Nigerian American author Chinelo Okparanta ’s acclaimed debut novel Under the Udala Trees celebrates the act of loving fearlessly, even amidst the strife of prejudice and civil war. Selected…