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Brendan Dowling Author Archive

Email: bdowling@ala.org  

Juneteenth Freedom Day 6/19/1865

Public Libraries Celebrate Juneteenth

This weekend, public libraries around the country are celebrating Juneteenth and Black freedom with events, discussions, book recommendations and more.

Love Maps? GIS Mapping Exchange info

GIS-Mapping Exchange Grant Program

Lessa Kanani'opua Pelayo-Lozada, incoming ALA President

Brave Communities – A Conversation with Lessa Kanani’opua Pelayo-Lozada

Natalie Jacobson Author Photo

“Whatever Job You Give Me, I’ll Learn” — Natalie Jacobson Reflects on Her Illustrious Career in Television News

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HOW TO Manage Fiction Series

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New Podcast Episode! Celebrate National Voter Registration Day @ Your Library

Jennifer Close Author Photo

Jennifer Close on How Politics, Pasta, and 90’s Cover Bands Informed Her Hilarious New Novel About a Family in Crisis

Sara Baume Author Photo

“I’m Always Writing in Extremity of My Life” — Sara Baume on Her Gorgeous and Poetic New Novel

Azar Nafisi Author Photo

Azar Nafisi on How Reading Is Crucial To Our Survival

Ruchika Tulshyan Author Photo

“To Make Meaningful Long-Term Change We Have to Take a Systemic Approach To It”—Ruchika Tulshyan on Creating a More Inclusive Workplace

Jane Pek Author Photo

Jane Pek on Subverting Genre Tropes and the “What If” Scenario at the Heart of Her Ingenious New Mystery

Renee Branum Author Photo

Renée Branum on Buster Keaton, Giving Herself More Freedom, and Her Secret Shelf at the Library

Book Cover of Correctional by Ravi Shankar

Ravi Shankar on His Revelatory Memoir and The Embrace of The Totality of The Experience

Tim O'Brien Author Photo

“Memoir is a Strange Word When you Don’t Remember a Whole Lot” – Tim O’Brien on How Memory, History, and Literature Inform his Joyous New Book

Lynne Truss Author Photo

“Anything That Strikes You As Very Different From Now Is A Very Good Place to Start” – Lynne Truss On Creating The Delightfully Funny World Of Constable Twitten

Jeffrey Lewis Author Photo

“My Process is Usually One of Necessity and Escaping Disaster” — Jeffrey Lewis On His Haunting New Novel

Kevin Young Author Photo

Kevin Young on the Poets in Conversation in His Extraordinary New Anthology

Jo Hamya Author Photo

Jo Hamya on Virginia Woolf, The Worst Bits of Twitter, and The Smell of Library Hand Soap

Elinor Lipman Author Photo

Elinor Lipman On How The Secret Service, An Optometrist, and Shirley Maclaine Helped Craft Her Delightful New Comedy of Manners

Azareen Van Der Vliet Oloomi on Intense Friendships, Memory, and the Alchemical Quality of Language

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“January 2026 Early Literacy Calendar from the Public Library Association. The page shows a month-long grid of daily early-literacy activities for families, organized by categories such as Singing, Counting, Reading, Writing, Playing, and Talking. Each date includes a simple activity—for example, singing a nursery rhyme, counting household objects, retelling a favorite book, going on a scavenger hunt, or drawing together. The design features winter-themed illustrations such as mountains, snow, and friendly animal characters throughout. The calendar is colorful and structured with pastel sections for each week.

The 2026 Early Literacy Calendar Is Here!

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Cover of Public Libraries magazine, November/December 2025 issue. The background is a gradient light blue. Centered on the page is a cluster of flat, modern line-art illustrations related to data and strategic planning—charts, graphs, gears, arrows, a globe, a map pin, a pie chart, a bar graph, and a document with a bar code. At the top, the masthead reads “Public Libraries” in blue and gold, with the subtitle “A Publication of the Public Library Association,” and a banner above that states “The Strategic Planning Issue.”

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