Zhen Tu's Story
There is no better way to understand the impact of the Library than through the personal stories of those who rely on it for learning and inspiration. Zhen Tu first came to the Library as a young girl after moving to the US from China. Watch the story of how the Library helped her become the person she is today.
Enjoy a lively discussion with three multi-genre, Minnesota Book Award-winning authors. Moving Words is an opportunity for writers and readers to explore various themes together: the impact of literature in their lives, their connection as fellow Minnesotans, and the lens through which we read. Featuring: Jack El-Hai, Lise Lunge-Larsen, and Steve Sack.
Presented by BNSF Railway Foundation, Moving Words is a program of The Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library as the Library of Congress-designated Minnesota Center for the Book. Additional support is provided by the University of St. Thomas Libraries and Graduate Programs in English, Education Minnesota, Friends of the Duluth Public Library and the Lloyd K. Johnson Foundation. This program is made possible in part by the State of Minnesota through a grant to the Minnesota Department of Education and the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund. Book sales provided by Zenith Bookstore.
Join The Friends and Park Square Theatre for an evening with cast members from the upcoming production of Ken Ludwig’s Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery.
The game’s afoot in this hilarious thriller that’s anything but elementary! Five actors play over 40 comical characters in this fast-paced comedy about everyone’s favorite detective solving his most notorious case. When the wealthy Henry Baskerville is threatened by the fable of a bloodthirsty hound on the moors, Holmes and Watson are on the case to sniff out the culprit.
Enjoy a behind-the-scenes look at this evening of mayhem and mystery with cast members McKenna Kelly-Eiding (Sherlock Holmes), Sara Richardson*(Watson), and set designer Eli Schlatter.
SPECIAL HALF-PRICE TICKET OFFER:
Attendees of the library program are invited to purchase up to four (4) half-priced, standard tickets to see a performance of the show at Park Square Theatre (June 28 – August 5). All tickets must be purchased in advance of the June 27 discussion program at Saint Anthony Park Library and can be picked up that evening. Register for the event below and get the code to access the discount.
*Member of Actor’s Equity Association
With The Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library, moderator Jeff Kamin brings his unique take on a public book club show to Saint Paul every first Tuesday of the month (with some exceptions). Even if you don’t like the featured book, he “guarantees a good time at our entertaining discussions.” All are welcome to try this moderated reinvention of the book club. No registration required.
5:00 Happy Hour Social | 6:15 Discussion
They Can’t Kill Us Until They Kill Us by Hanif Abdurraqib
Our July discussion will focus on They Can’t Kill Us Until They Kill Us –Hanif Abdurraqib’s breathtaking collection of largely music-focused essays.
In an age of confusion, fear, and loss, Abdurraqib’s voice matters. Whether he’s attending a Bruce Springsteen concert the day after visiting Michael Brown’s grave, or discussing public displays of affection at a Carly Rae Jepsen show, he writes with a poignancy and magnetism that resonates profoundly.
In the wake of the nightclub attacks in Paris, he recalls how he sought refuge as a teenager in music, at shows, and wonders whether the next generation of young Muslims will not be afforded that opportunity now. While discussing the everyday threat to the lives of black Americans, Abdurraqib recounts the first time he was ordered to the ground by police officers: for attempting to enter his own car.
In essays that have been published by the New York Times, MTV, and Pitchfork, among others–along with original, previously unreleased essays–Abdurraqib uses music and culture as a lens through which to view our world, so that we might better understand ourselves, and in so doing proves himself a bellwether for our times.
With The Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library, moderator Jeff Kamin brings his unique take on a public book club show to Saint Paul every first Tuesday of the month (with some exceptions). Even if you don’t like the featured book, he “guarantees a good time at our entertaining discussions.” All are welcome to try this moderated reinvention of the book club. No registration required.
5:00 Happy Hour Social | 6:15 Discussion
Vision: The Complete Series by Tom King, illustrated by Gabriel Hernandez Walta and Michael Walsh
Join us for an August discussion of Vision: The Complete Series, Tom King’s widely acclaimed and Eisner Award-winning series about Marvel’s Vision and his quest to be a human.
Vision wants to be human, and what’s more human than family? So he heads back to the beginning – the laboratory where Ultron created him as a weapon, the place where he first rebelled against his destiny and imagined that he could be a man. There, he builds a wife, Virginia, and teenage twins, Viv and Vin. They look like him. They have his powers. They share his grandest ambition – or obsession? – the unrelenting need to be ordinary. Theirs is a story of togetherness and tragedy and one that will set the Android Avenger on course for a devastating confrontation with Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.
Considered one of the most celebrated graphic novels of the decade, Vision: The Complete Series features all twelve issues of the series, and also contains over a hundred pages of bonus content, including interviews, variants, original scripts, concept art, ink and coloring progression, and letters by the creative team.