NYPL Wire–The New York Public Library

A quote from about.com’s “Books for Harry Potter Lovers” with NYPL’s Elizabeth Bird —

“Small persons with wings refers to fairies. You don’t want to call them fairies. If you do, then they will hurt you.”

The Hon. Powell Clayton: Union general, US senator, governor of Arkansas, and first ambassador to Mexico. Survived an assassination attempt by Ku Klux Klan members in 1868, when violence ripped through the state during the presidential election, and succeeded in creating Arkansas’ first free public school system despite rampant Republican party in-fighting. Also rocked a great beard we’ll call the “Kentucky Colonel.

Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture / General Research and Reference Division

Another Thanksgiving is in the books - and we want to hear all about your menu. Did you have turkey? Turnips? Sushi? Eels? What did you do with your leftovers? Do you have any unique traditions? Share with us! Visit NYPL’s newly launched Thanksgiving Project to submit photos, videos, stories or audio clips about your experiences with one of the year’s most beloved midday meals - Thanksgiving. Select stories will be part of an upcoming exhibition focused around “lunch.” So share! We want what you’re having!! In the meantime, we have some amazing examples in our Digital Gallery of prior Thanksgiving meals, including The Plaza Hotel’s menu from 1899, a soldier’s hand-written description of Thanksgiving in 1918 and a menu from a train passenger station from 1899 (which is seen above and included potato chips, celery and green peas).

These two wonderful essayists joined LIVE from the NYPL on Monday. If you missed it, check out the interview online. C’mon, it’s the Wednesday before Thanksgiving - you’re not really working, are you?

Here’s the link:  http://fora.tv/2011/11/21/Joan_Didion_in_Conversation_with_Sloane_Crosley

In honor of Veterans Day, we thought we’d share this photo from 1913 depicting Civil War vets who fought at Gettysburg. The photo shows them on the 50th anniversary of the battle, and is currently in our Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs. We salute and thank you, vets! By the way, NYPL is closed today for the holiday, but you can still download our eBooks (just like many New York soldiers, who continue to download our eBooks when they’re stationed overseas).

… well, it’s starting to get cold outside, which makes it the perfect time to stock up on winter fashion. Here at the Library, we’re thinking of scarves, hats, mittens - you get the picture (like this one above from the Mid-Manhattan Picture Collection - available in our digital gallery). Whether you’re a beginner, amateur, or expert knitter (or crochet-er), the Library has classes throughout the City that will help you (and your like-minded cohorts) complete your winter accessories before we get our second snowfall. (That October snow was shocking wasn’t it?) Check out the classes here!