CLP Spotlights: Kyley Coleman from Black Owned PGH

Welcome to our new feature #CLPSpotlights, our monthly series highlighting individuals and organizations that make a difference in their community. This month, we interviewed Kyley Coleman from Black Owned PGH promotes Black-owned businesses in the interest of economic equity.  … Continued




Preservation Highlight: Caring for the Collection with Tie-Boxes

Sometimes, the best way to preserve a book and its information is to leave it in its delicate condition and make a sturdy safe place for it to live. This is where our custom made boxes come in! We use preservation grade materials and best practices to ensure the longest life for our collection. The last thing we want is to harm the books by using acidic boards or glues that will speed their deterioration.


Summer Reading, Pittsburgh Style!

This year, we’re striving to read 180,000 books for Summer Reading! While ANY books, magazines and graphic novels count toward our goal, some of the books we’re promoting this year have a common theme—the city of Pittsburgh!


Welcome to Pittsburgh: The Steps of Pittsburgh

According to Bob Regan’s Pittsburgh Steps: The Story of the City’s Public Stairways, Pittsburgh has, “more city steps and bridges than any other city in the world.” Additionally: Pittsburgh has hundreds of streets complete with street signs, and oftentimes houses, composed entirely of steps. These “paper streets” are municipal rights-of-way and appear on many maps as valid thoroughfares, much to the consternation of unsuspecting motorists.




Throwback Thursday: Pittsburgh’s Gerald Stern Proves He’s Still Around

One of my very favorite poems is “Lucky Life” by Gerald Stern, born and raised in Pittsburgh and now living in Lambertville, New Jersey. It is somewhat embarrassing for me to have discovered this well-known poem only two years ago – I mean, it was published in 1977 – but discover it I did, last year, while spending some time down at my beloved Jersey shore. It found me at exactly the most perfect time, as if he was writing directly to me. I thought about it during our vacation this year and I’ve thought about it again, several times over the course of what has been a rather challenging month, personally-speaking.


Join Us April 8 for a Local Book & Author Fair

Do you like to read books about Pittsburgh or by Pittsburgh-area authors? Ever wanted to hear an author describe their creative process? Have you wondered what it takes to get a book published? Do you yourself write and want to network with other local writers? If you answered “yes” to any these questions, then you’re in luck!