Continuing our "Cool Library People" mini-series, in which we introduce you to a variety of library workers from across the state of Michigan! This week on the podcast, the spotlight is on Troy Public Library with Director Emily Dumas! alittletooquiet.podbean.comBy Ferndale Area District Library

This isn't a test, you can totally copy from our lists! Get some recommendations from our staff when we reveal our "To Be Read" lists for 2025, i.e., books we're looking forward to reading in the New Year! The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi by Shannon ChakrabortyIn Other Lands by Sarah Rees Brennan Moby Dick by Herman MelvilleThe Brothers Karamazov …

It's the last episode of the year! We're catching up on the books we're currently reading and previewing an upcoming change to the organizational layout of items in the Kids Corner!By Ferndale Area District Library

This week, pod cohost Mary Grahame is back, and we're catching up on all the good things we've read and watched this year. Plus, we'll share our thoughts on WICKED and A CHRISTMAS CAROL!By Ferndale Area District Library

It's our continuing series, "Cool Library People," where our staff (here at Ferndale) help introduce you, dear listener, to a variety of library workers based all around Michigan. It's a fun chance to hear different perspectives on the awesomeness of libraries, as well as get to know other institutions, as we do today, with the Berkley Public Libra…

Our staff provide you with their personal recommendations, listing their favorite books of 2024!By Ferndale Area District Library

This week, we're spotlighting the Van Buren District Library with our guest, Elissa Zimmer! Elissa is currently Van Buren's Assistant Director. Still, she was once, not too long ago, a Youth Librarian here at Ferndale, which will explain why our hosts are so familiar with Elissa from the get-go. Van Buren District Library serves residents with seve…

On this week's episode, we have a panel discussion focusing on BAKING SEASON! Staff are talking about their favorite (and sometimes least favorite) things to bake, as well as playing a fun True-False-structured quiz to dispel myths and spread knowledge! We ALSO have some fun recommendations of books to check out from the library!…

This week, we're interviewing Rae Stoloff, the community engagement librarian at the Madison Heights Public Library. We're also joined by a special guest cohost, Becca Russell (former guest, as well), from the Royal Oak Public Library! We're talking about makerspaces, third places, libraries of things, and so much more! https://www.madison-heights.…

Every once in a while, our staff will pick up a book that has a bit of a strange premise, something that might be a little difficult to describe... Today, we're providing a roundup of odd books that we loved, weird books that we'd still recommend, eccentric reads that we found appealing!By Ferndale Area District Library

Part of our ongoing series of chats with "cool library people," we're interviewing Sean Peacock from the Center Line Public Library! Sean is a library clerk at Center Line Library and has generated some amazing content for social media, but he's also an illustrator and comic artist! Find "A Little Too Quiet" wherever you get your podcasts! https://…

Our staff provide you with a round-up of scary book recommendations!By Ferndale Area District Library

This week, Jeff and Mary Grahame are chatting with Katie Rothley from the Northville District Library. Katie is the Marketing & Public Relations Librarian at Northville! She has a lot of energy and ideas and plenty of interesting things to share about her library and the resources it offers to the community of Northville! https://northvillelibrary.…

What's a book you Did Not Finish? This week, our staff confess to some of their unfinished reads that still haunt them to this day! Sometimes it's just because we couldn't stand the book, but often it "just wasn't the right time..."By Ferndale Area District Library

This week, we're starting a new series where we invite librarians and staff from other libraries to chat with us about a number of different library-adjacent topics, particularly giving our guests a chance to talk about the specific libraries where they work. This week, Becca Russell, Youth/Teen Librarian at ROPL, joined us to talk about her passio…

We're back, after a brief hiatus, here on the last day of 2024's Banned Books Week. Hosts Jeff & Mary Grahame talk about the importance of observing Banned Books Week and why they prefer a bit of a cuter phrase for it, such as "Freedom to Read 'Em." This ongoing podcast is hosted and produced from inside the Ferndale Area District Library, just one…

This week, we're chatting with Metro Detroit's own Josh Malerman, the NY Times Bestselling author of Bird Box, as he looks ahead to the forthcoming release of his latest work of suspenseful (and supernatural) horror, Incidents Around The House (out on June 25, via Del Rey). Malerman talks about his deep dive into the literary tradition of "haunted …

Looking for something to read this summer? We've got you covered! Not only can you get a list of great recommendations from our staff, but you can also mark your calendars for SATURDAY, JUNE 8, when we will host a Summer Reading Kickoff Party here at the library! Swing by to sign up for our fun reading challenge! www.fadl.org/kickoff The Summer Boo…

Tune in to the podcast this week to hear our chat with Sheela Lal, the host of Ferndale Radio 100.7 FM's South Asian Shuffle (streaming Wednesday nights)! We also chatted with Sheela about the Unerased Book Club, which she co-founded back in 2018. Oh, and we ALSO chat about our monthly Chess Club! https://www.unerasedbookclub.com/ https://ferndaler…

Sacha Lamb is a 2018 Lambda Literary Fellow in Young Adult fiction, and graduate in Library and Information Science and History from Simmons University. Their debut novel, When The Angels Left the Old Country, is a Sydney Taylor and Stonewall award winner, a Printz Honor book, and a National Jewish Book Award finalist, and received the Mythopoeic F…

Ruth Behar is a Cuban-American author and currently a Professor of Anthropology at the University of Michigan. Her work, spanning fiction, poetry, and memoir, includes Lucky Broken Girl, Letters From Cuba, and her latest, Across So Many Seas. As you'll hear on the podcast, Ruth has a lot of fans here at the Ferndale Library. About her latest book, …

This week, we're chatting with esteemed studio artist Boisali Biswas, who specializes in mixed-media fiber arts. Biswas recorded this podcast episode just before the closing of her exhibition, which was hosted here at the Ferndale Library throughout the late winter and featured some of her painted weavings and quilts. Biswas has an incredible story…

We went ahead and recorded an entire episode using the phrase "Third Space," which is used significantly less than the original phrase: "Third PLACE." But oh well. As library staff, we like the word "space" because it just seems to imply much more possibility! Anyway, whether you say "Third Place" or "Third Space," the idea is simple: it's not your…

Felicia B. George is a native Detroiter who loves Detroit history and culture. She earned her doctorate in anthropology from Wayne State University, where she is now an adjunct professor. Her new book, When Detroit Played The Numbers, tells the true story of how Detroit entrepreneurs created a thriving - if illegal - lottery system to support thems…

Roman Historian, author and podcaster, Emma Southon joined us on the podcast (all the way from Belfast) to discuss two of her recent books, A Fatal Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum: Murder in Ancient Rome and A Rome of One's Own: The Forgotten Women of the Roman Empire. Emma Southon has a PhD in Ancient History from the University of Birmingh…

This week, we have a panel comprised of DOCTOR WHO fans who are not only ready to discuss their favorite "doctors," their favorite episodes, and their favorite companions, but they're also here to explain the long popular British science-fiction television series to the "uninitiated," and get them excited about diving in. In fact, curious new fans …

They're considered classic for a reason, right? This week, our film-loving staff are talking about movies that have stood the test of time, from 1934's The Thin Man, to 1979's Alien, to a pair of John Carpenter picks, including 1988's They Live. Find us on social media and tell us YOUR picks for "classic films that still hold up..." And remember, y…

We're talking about music books! Books about musicians and music history! In your local library, following the Dewey Decimal System, you'll likely find them between 780-782, as far as call numbers go. Titles discussed include: Meet Me In The Bathroom by Lizzy Goodman Life by Keith Richard Please Kill Me by Gillian McCain and Legs McNeil Season of t…

Our staff discuss some of the most historic and alarming "snubs" in the history of the Oscars (aka The Academy Awards), all of which are, of course, subjective. But we also remind you that your public library is already circulating nearly all of the films that have received nominations this year. Plus, there's still time for you to mark your calend…

Fresh off her appearance on The Today Show, having had her most recent book, The Waters, selected as their January 'Read with Jenna' Book Club pick..., the acclaimed Michigan-based author Bonnie Jo Campbell joins us on our podcast! A master of rural noir returns this winter with a fierce, mesmerizing novel about exceptional women and the soul of a …

Dan Cafferty is a multifaceted artist with several unique projects spanning the genres of rock, R&B, soul, and funk. He'll be leading an upcoming SONGWRITERS IN THE ROUND event, here at the Ferndale Library on Sunday, February 18, at 2pm, featuring Steve Taylor, Emily Rose, and Michelle Held. Find more information on Dan Cafferty here: https://www.…

Join us on February 8th for an Opening Reception to Mara Magyarosi-Laytner's exhibition and book launch: The Untended Garden. The Untended Garden is a visual reflection structured in three acts – the expectations of women as informed by society and culture, the transformation that women reach as they break through during their coming of age, and th…

The staff of the Ferndale Library can often be found...OUTSIDE OF THE LIBRARY. Learn about all of the valuable community partnerships we've forged over the years and listen to exclusive interviews with local organizations and businesses like Drifter Coffee, the Ferndale Project, Ferndale Public Schools, and Affirmations Community Center.…

This week, Jeff and Mary Grahame are looking back at their recent presentation at the Michigan Library Association's annual conference--a session on HOW we talk about Intellectual Freedoms with our library patrons. At that conference, our podcast hosts were greeted by Matthew Lawrence, who currently works at the Herrick District Library. Lawrence w…

Our staff provides reading recommendations from our non-fiction sections! We have three librarians on this panel discussion providing their favorites among the many recently added titles, covering the arts, the sciences, the histories, and everything in between! Unruly: The Ridiculous History of England's Kings and Queens by David Mitchell Alice Ne…

Join our staff on a (tabletop) adventure, doing a quick play-through of a Role-Playing Game that's available here in our library. We have quite a few options, actually, which we'll list off at the end of this episode. Listen to find out whether or not our three competing panelists can work together to forge intergalactic peace and solve a cosmic co…

Flashing back to our very first episode, ever! This podcast started four years ago (nearly to the day!) This weekend, we're listening back to our debut, when we sat down with local author Josh Malerman, discussing his 2019 novel, Malorie. For more information on Josh, visit his website. www.joshmalerman.com But, you can also find more information o…

A look back at some of the highlights from our conversations with bestselling authors, including Lucy Clarke, C.J. Box, Steven Rowley, Grady Hendrix, Riley Sager, and J. Ryan Stradal. You can dive back into our recent episodes to hear the full interviews with each of these authors.By Ferndale Area District Library

Looking for some year-end reading recommendations? Tune in for our latest episode where we hear from several members of our staff, providing a wide variety of selections from various genres. Titles & Staff include: Rodi - Every Rising Sun by Jamila Ahmed Kricket - Impossible People: A Completely Average Recovery Story by Julia Wertz Damon - Dear Mo…

Jacqueline Suskin is a Detroit-based author of eight books. Along with her writing and poetry, she is also an educator who has been teaching workshops, hosting retreats, and creating spontaneous poetry around the world since 2009. With her project Poem Store, she has composed over forty thousand improvisational poems for patrons who chose a topic i…

We're talking about our favorite things to bake (and, specifically, which recipes we enjoy during certain seasons of the year). We also talk a lot about our extensive cookbook collection! Snacking Cakes Snaking Bakes Snackable Bakes Still We Rise Home Cooking Taste of Home's Fall Baking Everyday Bread by America's Test Kitchen The Brownie Diaries S…

Abby and Daniel, the hosts of Save Me From My Shelf, joined us via Zoom (from England!) for another literary discussion of weirdo protagonists. This time, we've got a gothic round-up that includes John Thorpe (from Jane Austen's 'Northanger Abbey'), Count Dracula, Macbeth, and a special shoutout to Edgar Allen Poe! https://www.savemefrommyshelf.com…

Today, we're returning to a tried-and-true topic for us, Information Literacy! The American Library Association would describe Information Literacy as a set of abilities requiring individuals to “recognize when information is needed and have the ability to locate, evaluate, and use effectively the needed information... We first hosted a series of p…

This week on the podcast, we're sharing potentially unpopular opinions! We're talking about books that everyone else seemed to love, but that we....weren't very impressed with... 💔📚 Fair warning, we brought a "buzzer" to the table for anyone who wanted to dispute the titles that were being criticized. But, it should be noted that no matter what boo…

Get ready for Horror Movie Trivia at 215 West (October 9 at 7:00 pm): fadl.org/trivia. Also, tune in this week for our discussion covering our favorite horror films! What's YOUR favorite scary movie?By Ferndale Area District Library

We have another game-show styled episode where our librarians "guess the title of the book" based on designedly vague descriptions. Librarians, on a daily basis, perform this feat, where a patron might ONLY recall very scant details about a book, and 99.99% of the time, we always help them find what they're looking for! Find "A Little Too Quit" whe…

Donald Levin’s ‘Arsenal of Deceit’ is a compelling and thought-provoking exploration of the intricate web of deception that shapes the world of politics and racism. With meticulous research and a keen eye for local detail, Levin exposes the hidden agendas and manipulative tactics employed by governments and intelligence agencies. A seamless blend o…

Let's talk about LIBRARY CARDS: why they're amazing and why YOU should sign up for one asap! Hear directly from our circulation specialists as they tell you everything you need to know about applying for and using your library card! September is Library Card Sign-Up Month! www.fadl.org/library-cardsBy Ferndale Area District Library

Sunday Times bestseller Lucy Clarke is the author of eight destination thrillers. They include Waterstones Thriller of the Month, The Castaways, Richard and Judy Book Club pick, One of the Girls, and most recently, The Hike. Leaving behind their everyday lives, four friends hike out into the beautiful Norwegian wild – nothing between them and the m…

Listen to two millennials and one elder-zoomer share their love of the 1980 musical-comedy The Blues Brothers. It was almost 45-years ago, to the day, that John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd performed at the Universal Amphitheatre, in L.A., essentially kicking off the fervor of popularity for the dynamic duo. It's also, sadly, the 5 year anniversary of t…