The Library will be closed on Thursday, November 28 & Friday, November 29, 2024, in observance of Thanksgiving.

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Author Emily C. Hughes and her first book, Horror For Weenies: Everything You Need to Know About the Films You're Too Scared to Watch
Photo of author: Oliver Scott Photography
Daryl M., Librarian, West Valley Regional Branch Library, November 21, 2024

Emily C. Hughes (she/her) wants to scare you. Formerly the editor of Unbound Worlds and TorNightfire.com, she writes about horror and curates a list of the year's new scary books. You can find her writing elsewhere in the...

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Collage of Shaun Barger and his first novel, Mage Against the Machine

Interview With an Author: Shaun Barger

Daryl M., Librarian, West Valley Regional Branch Library, Thursday, December 6, 2018

Shaun Barger is a Los Angeles-based novelist who detests cold weather, idiot plotting, and fascism. He splits his days between writing, resisting the siren’s call of Hollywood’s eternally mild summer climes, and appeasing a tyrannical three-pound Chihuahua with peanut butter and apple slices.


Bette Davis signs books for fans at a Hollywood book store,1988.

Bette Davis, a Life in One Archival Folder

Christina Rice, Senior Librarian, Photo Collection, Wednesday, December 5, 2018

The library’s Los Angeles Herald Examiner photo collection spans seven decades, from the mid-1920s to 1989 and is a treasure trove of all things Los Angeles.


California native garden

Let’s Plant California Natives!

Julia G, Librarian, Frances Howard Goldwyn - Hollywood Regional Branch Library, Tuesday, November 27, 2018

We think of springtime as the season for planting gardens, but that’s not the case here in Southern California, where summers can be scorching and rains only come in the winter. Here in L.A. County, November and December are the perfect time to start a garden.


Rendering of the NASA InSight lander on the martian surface.

Mars: We’ve Been Wrong Before

Andrea Borchert, Librarian, Koreatown Media Lab, Tuesday, November 13, 2018

Science is a long and occasionally embarrassing process. Take for example the exploration of Mars. From the natural philosophers of ancient times to the InSight Mars Lander heading to Mars today, we always have some idea of what we’ll find on Mars. But we have been so very, very, gloriously wrong!


Robert Masello and his current novel The Night Crossing

Interview With an Author: Robert Masello

Daryl M., Librarian, West Valley Regional Branch Library, Thursday, November 8, 2018

Robert Masello is an award-winning journalist, television writer, and bestselling author.


Charlize Theron in Atomic Blonde

Good Gals Gone Bad, Gone Good...Maybe

Sheryn Morris, Librarian, Literature & Fiction, Thursday, November 1, 2018

The TV serialization of two novels, Sharp Objects and Big Little Lies, has brought attention to a new crop of novels. They are edgy, psychological, thriller, suspense stories with distinct characteristics.


close up view of Forest Lawn Cemetery

Where the Souls Sleep on All Saints Eve

Glen Creason, Librarian III, History & Genealogy Department, Wednesday, October 31, 2018

Halloween has become a huge, month-long celebration in these modern times and not just for candy and death as I recall it meant when I was a brat.


ghost lady walking through the library

The Library’s Haunted History: I Ain’t Afraid of No Ghosts

Tina Lernø, Librarian, Digital Content Team, Wednesday, October 31, 2018

When you work at Central Library, at some point in your career, you will be taken on a stairwell safety tour which guides you through a maze of long lonely corridors snaking under and around the staff side of our beloved building. When it was my turn, I had to ask, is this place haunted?


Judy Aldrich, 8, receives pumpkin treat from Donna Lewis

What Halloween Looked Like in Vintage Los Angeles

Tina Lernø, Librarian, Digital Content Team, Tuesday, October 30, 2018

I'll be the first to admit it, Halloween is my favorite holiday! I love everything about it from the spooky atmosphere and dressing up in a costume, to—I confess—all the candy! As an adult and a parent, it's also been a joy to create costumes for my family and take my little ghosties trick or treating.


vintage Halloween postcard

Halloween Fun and Folklore

Julia G, Librarian, Frances Howard Goldwyn - Hollywood Regional Branch Library, Monday, October 29, 2018

Jack-o’-lanterns, trick-or-treaters, clever costumes and spooky decorations—Halloween is one of the most beloved holidays in the United States. But where exactly did Halloween come from? What customs and folklore evolved into the festive holiday we celebrate today?


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