March 2024 Author Talks, Supported by the LBPLF
Join the Long Beach Public Library for their monthly author talk series! Registration is required for the live events and each comes with the opportunity to submit questions for an author Q&A.
A 50-Year Friendship with RBG with NPR Correspondent Nina Totenberg
NPR Legal Affairs Correspondent and Bestselling Author
March 6 at 1:00 PM PST
20 Years of YA Dragon-Riding Fantasy with International Bestselling Author Christopher Paolini
International Bestselling Author of Eragon, Eldest, Brisingr, and Inheritance
March 14 at 1:00 PM PDT
Retelling Greek Classics: An Exploration of Modern Epics with Madeline Miller
New York Times Bestselling Author of The Song of Achilles and Circe
March 21 at 4:00 PM PDT
Can’t make it to the live event? Watch the recording (and the Library’s past talks) in the author talk archive!
March 2024 Highlighted Programs at Michelle Obama Neighborhood Library!
- The Long Beach Public Library is partnering with Girl Scouts of Greater LA to provide free Girl Scout activities to North Long Beach families. The events will provide the opportunity to earn a badge, and the organization will provide support for those who want to join or start their own troop. The event is geared towards girls, but all are welcome if they fall into the age range. The event for kinder and first graders is on Tuesday afternoon, March 19. The event for all ages up to 12th grade will take place at 12:00 on Saturday, March 23.
- The Long Beach Public Library is partnering with the LBCC Foundation to host One Spark, a one-day photographic exhibit honoring Dorothy Pitman Hughes, a noted community organizer and civil rights activist who visited Long Beach in 2019. Following the exhibit, the photos will be permanently installed at LBCC. This is an all-ages program, and the Library will have an interactive art activity that goes along with Women’s History Month, Friday, March 22.
- On Tuesday mornings, the Long Beach Public Library is beginning their own Preschool Without Walls. We’ll begin this week on March 5, 10:30-12:30.
- The Long Beach Public Library is also trying out a monthly series of Mental Health workshops in partnership with the LA County Dept. of Mental Health, geared towards adults, specifically older adults, on Wednesdays. There will be an English series one week, and the following week will be the Spanish series, beginning March 13 for English and March 20 for Spanish, at 12:30.
Long Beach Leaders are Readers: Billie Jean King, Long Beach Hometown Hero and Equality Champion
Long Beach Leaders are Readers: Sharon L. Weissman, Long Beach Public Library Foundation Board of Directors and Community Leader
Long Beach Leaders are Readers: Everett Glenn, Long Beach Nonprofit Founder and Community Leader
Long Beach Leaders are Readers: Sean Reilly, LBPLF President-elect
Long Beach Leaders are Readers: Diane Jacobus, Long Beach Community Leader
Long Beach Leaders are Readers: Carmen O. Perez, Long Beach Community Leader
Long Beach Leaders are Readers: Ellie Perez, LGBTQ Community Leader and Activist
Long Beach Leaders are Readers: Long Beach’s First Ever Youth Poet Laureate, Claire Beeli
Long Beach Leaders are Readers features leaders in our community as they share their recommended reads. This month, we have a very special featured leader: Long Beach’s very first Youth Poet Laureate, Claire Beeli. Ms. Beeli has shared the following reading recommendation. Enjoy!
The Dispossessed
by Ursula K. Le Guin
The Dispossessed taught me much of what I know about writing, by virtue of the quality of Le Guin’s work. More than that, though, this book unifies love, science, family, and revolutionary political commentary in a way that is both personal and Earth-spanning. It is a master class in storytelling—I wish I could give every young writer a copy!
-Claire Beeli
Long Beach 2023 Youth Poet Laureate
Claire Beeli is a local high school student, published poet, community volunteer, and an advocate for literacy, the library and the arts! You can view her winning submission for the Youth Poet Laureate competition here.
Learn more about the Youth Poet Laureate program on the Long Beach Public Library website.
Part of our Long Beach Leaders are Readers program includes inviting the featured leader to sign the inside of their book recommendation so that future patrons who check the book out will be able to learn about the significance of the book to our local leaders. Keep an eye out for the signed recommendations at your local branch!
Find “The Dispossessed” at your local neighborhood branch here.