If you or someone you know is an immigrant that is applying for a United States visa through the Electronic Diversity Visa Lottery Program, we can help! On Saturdays and Sundays beginning October 17, head to one of our five Learning Centers to get free access to computers, the internet, digital cameras, scanners and assistance with filing lottery applications online.

You can take advantage of this service through November 29. Visit our website for the addresses of the Learning Centers and the times at which you should visit.

If you’ve searched our online catalog for a book or DVD in the last week, you’ve probably noticed it has a great new look. But it’s more than just a pretty face. The catalog is easier to use, and it’s got some cool new features, including:

• Freeze a hold: If you won’t be able to pick up a hold that is about to be available (say you’re going on vacation), you can freeze it and not lose your place in line

• Number of holds is shown alongside number of copies: Get an idea of how long you’ll have to wait for that new bestseller

• Rate the books you’ve read (up to 5 stars!)

• Reading History: Keep track of the books you’ve checked out

• Pay fines and fees securely online: Use your credit or debit card (Visa, MasterCard or Discover)

• Search in more languages: Russian, Chinese, French, Spanish and English!

Click here to start searching!

Authors are coming out for what will be a very literary week at Central Library’s Dweck Center. First up is Pulitzer Prize-winning author Michael Chabon on Thursday, October 8, at 7 PM. He’ll be reading from his nonfiction work Manhood for Amateurs: The Pleasures and Regrets of a Husband, Father, and Son. His previous books include The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay (winner of the Pulitzer Prize), The Yiddish Policemen's Union and Wonder Boys. This will be Chabon’s only stop in the city, so this is definitely not an event to be missed.  

Then on Saturday, October 10, at 4 PM, Elizabeth Nunez will read from her latest novel, Anna In-Between. This award-winning author is also the provost at Brooklyn’s own Medgar Evers College. 

There will be plenty of other cultural events at the Dweck Center this month, including more author talks. Visit our website to see what’s happening.

On Monday, October 5, the unimaginable occurred—a new Winnie-the-Pooh book hit shelves. It’s confusing enough that the author of previous Pooh books, A.A. Milne, has been dead for over 50 years, but suddenly a new character has appeared! Okay, I’m not truly up-in-arms about this, but people around the world have voiced strong opinions about adding Lottie the Otter to this classic children’s series.

Objections ring out when any classic is altered by its creator or, even worse, someone else. But voices get particularly loud when it’s a childhood classic. Take the soon-to-be-released film version of Where the Wild Things Are—I’ve heard a lot of trepidation from those for whom the iconic book was a pivotal early reading experience.

On the one hand, the belief is that a new generation of readers will discover these classic books if they’re introduced in a new way. On the other, isn’t what makes them classic the fact that they are a product of their time and have gone unchanged for generations? Which side do you fall on the issue—is Lottie welcome in Hundred Acre Wood? 

Dr. Seuss said it best when he said “The more you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go.” 

Adults can get in on the reading fun as well. Brooklyn Public Library will team up with the Weeksville Heritage Center for The Big Read. Come out to the Weeksville Historical Society on Wednesday, October 7, for a reading of Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451.
On your mark, get set, READ!