from the archive


Tag: Princeton


Sylvia & Co.


“No one that I ever knew was nicer to me…she was delightful and charming and welcoming and behind her, as high as the wall and stretching out into the back room which gave onto the inner court of the building, were shelves and shelves of the wealth of the library.” -Ernest Hemingway, A MOVEABLE FEAST If […]


Getting to brighter days


For many, the challenges of life are what make the day exciting; for others, those same challenges can seem dreadfully insurmountable. While the quest for that ever-elusive answer to why things are the way they are can be debilitating at times, maybe comfort comes in knowing that you are not alone. The Princeton community is filled with resources to support you and those you care about when facing struggles of mental illness, grief, loss, and other hardships.


Hooray for preschool


It's no secret that Princeton is an extraordinary place for high quality education at all levels, and preschool is no exception. With more than 20 schools offering preschool and pre-kindergarten programs in Princeton municipality alone, parents have a wealth of options – and the choices can be overwhelming. These schools provide a wide range of philosophies, techniques and services for providing the very best in early childhood education. What it really comes down to is finding the best fit for each individual child and their family.


It’s the great (Princeton) pumpkin


Fall is in full swing, and all over town the leaves have turned beautiful shades of red, yellow and gold. The air is cool and crisp and people are gearing up for Halloween. Recently, I was taking a stroll through the leafy Princeton University campus and a novel sight stopped me dead in my tracks: a colossal pumpkin!


We’ve got answers


In addition to fielding questions about great reads, library staff members try to be ready for anything. Sometimes people just want to test our knowledge, but more often than not customers are looking to the library to answer or verify something that has them either baffled or idly curious. In a time where there is an overwhelming amount of information available the library can help people ferret out what is true and relevant. A lot of questions are ones that you might expect:
"Can you suggest an author I might like to try?"


Michael Graves: an everyday treasure


Crossing Witherspoon Street from the library, the shiny blue tiled Arts Council of Princeton building beckons, a Graves design. Scattered in rooms throughout my home, there’s a small but mighty collection of beautiful everyday objects, practical to use, pleasing to view and to handle. I live with the gift of Michael Graves’ creativity every day. Not a day goes by without my taking a moment to appreciate this man’s work.


A community of readers


This month in a Kirkus Reviews interview, our readers’ services librarian, Kristin Friberg, gives her thoughts about our Princeton-centric corner of the publishing industry. We’re very pleased to see our library’s readers’ advisory services and the broader local reading community recognized as a trend-spotting mecca in one of the premier journals previewing books before their publication.


Getting to brighter days


For many, the challenges of life are what make the day exciting; for others, those same challenges can seem dreadfully insurmountable. While the quest for that ever-elusive answer to why things are the way they are can be debilitating at times, maybe comfort comes in knowing that you are not alone. The Princeton community is filled with resources to support you and those you care about when facing struggles of mental illness, grief, loss, and other hardships.


Read all about Princeton


So you live here, work here, maybe you even walk the streets daily, but how much do you really know about Princeton? As you may have guessed, the Princeton Public Library has a wealth of information about this fine place we all know and love. Did you know there are even several murder mystery books set right here in town?


Into the woods


Spring has sprung (almost!) so now is the time to start planning some outdoor adventures. Even though it feels as though we are trapped in a tangle of highways and a sea of asphalt here in central New Jersey, there are a surprising number of hiking trials, open space areas, and wilderness spots practically at our doorstep. So take a look at some of these websites, grab a map, the dog, your kids or partner and step out into the wilds of New Jersey.


File it away


Did you ever wonder how librarians answered questions before the age of the Internet, when there were no computers, and Google, Wikipedia, online bookmarks, and saved files were not available at your fingertips?  All librarians had were print reference books, the circulating collection, print magazine indexes, hard copy magazines, the telephone, and each other.
How did we keep track of all those little bits of pertinent information and answers to commonly asked questions?
We had the Funny Facts File.


Happiness is a cup of joe


Coffee and I have a love affair that has been raging ever since I was a little girl, accompanying my dad to Chock Full o’Nuts on West 57th, across from Carnegie Hall. It’d be after dance lessons that we’d go for a treat. He’d have his straight up, while I had hot chocolate, waiting to discover why my father could not be parted from a steady stream of black coffee. 


The artist currently known as James McPhillips


If you have spent any time in Princeton recently you have probably seen a drawing of the musician Prince with "TON" written below it on a bumper sticker or t-shirt. This play on image/word was created by local artist and frequent library visitor James McPhillips. He currently has a solo show of this image and more "serious" art at Small World Coffee on Nassau Street.


The Gargoyles of Princeton


Did you know that Princeton University is home to many gargoyles? These grotesque, carved figures of humans or animals reside along the corners of many University buildings. Often they are found along the gutters, acting as water spouts for rain.
On Tuesday, July 10 at 2:00 pm Youth Services librarians Allison Santos and Martha Perry-Liu will lead a tour on the University campus and help you discover these gothic creatures.We plan to highlight 13 of these unusual beings and offer a brief history of each.


12th-century treasures


After leaving work recently, I took my daughter to the Princeton University Art Museum to browse the collections. Our first stop was on the lower level where we viewed the 12th-century celadon glazed stoneware called Melon ewer with lotus-flower design. It is Korean, from the Goryeo dynasty and was recently acquired by the Princeton University Art Museum. Simply put, it's gorgeous.

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