Three Views of Seattle

Seeing your city through different eyes can be revelatory, bringing to the fore details you may not have noticed. Whether you’ve lived here your whole life, just moved in, or are somewhere in between, pick up one of these books for a new lens on Seattle.

Seattle Walk Report
Exploring 23 Seattle neighborhoods, Seattle Walk Report uses charming comic book-style illustrations to highlight landmarks, history, and the quirky people, places and things she’s seen on her walks since 2017. How many people did she see jaywalking in Ballard? What did she observe in the span of five minutes on the corner of 8^th Ave S. and S. King St.? Who is Ernestine Anderson? What are the top three poses you can strike in front of the Gum Wall? Read this book and you’ll know.
— The artist behind Seattle Walk Report will be in conversation with Paul Constant (co-founder of Seattle Review of Books) at the Central Library Tuesday, Aug. 13 at 7pm.

Seattle Rep’s TINY BEAUTIFUL THINGS: Beyond the Theatre

Seattle Repertory Theatre presents TINY BEAUTIFUL THINGS by Nia Vardalos, adapted from the book by Cheryl Strayed from May 17 to June 23, 2019. Librarians at Seattle Public Library created this list of books and films to enhance your experience of the show.

Before she wrote a runaway bestselling memoir of solo hiking the Pacific Crest Trail, before she was portrayed on the big screen by Reese Witherspoon, Cheryl Strayed gave advice to strangers. From 2010 to 2012, she wrote an anonymous advice column, Dear Sugar, for the online magazine The Rumpus, which was collected in Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar in 2012.

Strayed’s book inspired actor and playwright Nia Vardalos’ adaption of the same name which opens at the Rep next week. You may be familiar with Vardalos from her sleeper hit 2002 film, My Big Fat Greek Wedding. But you may not know that she’s also written a funny and poignant memoir about her experiences as an adoptive parent, Instant Mom.

 For more suggested reading and viewing before the play, check out this resource list.

~posted by Abby B.

 

New and Notable Northwest Nonfiction – 2019 edition

Are you new to the Northwest, or a lifelong resident looking for some historical perspective? 2019 is shaping up to be an exciting year for publishing about our region, so let the reading begin!

The University of Washington Press is releasing a number of regionally relevant titles. Explore local fashion with Seattle Style by Clara Berg, which features garments and accessories from the collection at the Museum of History and Industry (MOHAI). In Transit, Jim Kershner looks back at 125+ years of trolleys, trains and buses that have served the region. Sculpture on a Grand Scale by Tyler Sprague explores the work of Jack Christiansen, whose design of the Kingdome combined thin shell concrete with a modern aesthetic.

New Digital Collection Highlights Lives of Seattle Pioneers

This month we’ve launched a new digital collection which reveals a glimpse into the personal lives of some of Seattle’s early pioneers. The Lu Jacobson Collection of Latimer and Denny Family Material includes materials focusing on Alexander Latimer, his wife Sarah Chesney Latimer and their five daughters: Narcissa Latimer Denny, Eliza Alice Latimer Fowler, Harriet Ellen Latimer Stephens, Clara Latimer Bickford, and Emma Chesney Latimer Reynolds.

Narcissa, Alice, Hattie, Clara, and Emma Latimer, circa 1880.

The descendants of the Latimer family played a significant role in the founding of Seattle. Alexander Latimer’s sister, Sarah Latimer, married her first husband, Richard Boren in 1822. Their children, Mary Ann Boren Denny, Carson Dobbins Boren and Louisa Boren, were in the group of Seattle’s first settlers who landed at Alki on November 13, 1851. They were accompanied by Arthur Armstrong Denny (husband to Mary Ann Boren Denny) and David Thomas Denny (soon to be husband to Louisa Boren). Arthur and David were the sons Sarah Latimer’s second husband John Denny from a previous marriage.

Party Like It’s 1918!

I’ve never been one to enjoy the large crowds underneath the Space Needle on New Year’s Eve night; rather, I like to ring in the New Year with friends at smaller events in the city. One year was spent wandering around Tacoma during First Night and when I lived in West Seattle I would ring in the New Year at a local masquerade. This year, though, I wasn’t quite sure what I wanted to do.

That got me thinking … how did Seattleites spend past New Years? What events were taking place a hundred years ago in 1918? So I looked through the Seattle Times archives and discovered, not much has changed in the way we celebrate the coming of the New Year!

In 1918 you could enjoy a home cooked New Year’s Dinner at the Woman’s Exchange and in 2018 you can enjoy dinner and music at many venues throughout Seattle!