Hart House Library

06/29/2022

The Library is happy to announce that our selection of new books for 2022 is in!

In addition to works on contemporary events in Canada, we've expanded our collection to include diverse perspectives on music, games, movies, and more. Individual books will be showcased soon, but for now you find these books at our featured section near the library's entrance today.

Our full catalogue and list of recently added books are always available here: https://www.librarything.com/catalog/HartHouseLibrary

05/26/2022

Looking for a fun and casual read while you wait for your next appointment? The Library has a growing collection of graphic novels for you!

While they are usually grouped together with comics, graphic novels tell a self-contained story through a combination of visual media and text. We'll feature more of these novels in the coming days, but for now you can find both popular and interesting works on our shelves today!

05/24/2022

Did you know that we have a New Arrivals shelf at the Library?

In keeping with contemporary and interesting publications, our 2022-2023 acquisitions are arriving soon! As such, we will be rotating out this section with more books of interest for your perusal.

Enjoy last year's selection of books before they're reshelved today!

05/18/2022

The next time you stop by the library, try out the World's Easiest Book Club! To participate, simply spend 15 minutes reading the featured book and then place a tack on a rating of your choice. Sticky notes are also around to leave your thoughts for others to read.

This month's featured book is Ifran Ali's "Accretion," combining lyricism, memory, and music to reflect upon our recent past.

03/23/2022

Did you know that the Hart House Library has an extensive selection of art and photography books? These long form, large format titles have fascinating visuals to look at and are a great way to take a break from studying.

Peter Miller, a U of T alumn and avid photographer who began his love of film photography at Hart House, has graciously donated some of his works to add to our collection. Featuring scenes from a vanishing livelihood in Vermont, stories of people and their livelihoods in rural America, and essays on life in general, Miller's passion for photography and stories is on display now in the Library's showcase section.

02/24/2022

Rounding up our showcase for this month are On the Come Up by Angie Thomas and Boyz in the Void by Gra Asim!

Thomas' Young Adult novel tells the story of Bri, an aspiring sixteen year old rapper, and her struggles to find success with her music admist her family's struggles. Thomas' work reflects upon passion, art, and finding yourself in your formative years.

Asim's work follows in a similar vein, telling the story of his and his brother's hardships through Hip-Hop and other musical genres. Asim's biography acts two-fold as context for other commentaries on culture, masculity, and Black Identity in the 21st century, and as a celebration of the various influences on his life.

We hope that you've enjoyed this showcase for Black History Month. Visit the Library for these books and other fascinating works of Canadian Literature today!

02/15/2022

This week's featured books for Black History Month are 49th Parellel Psalm by Wayde Compton and They Said That This Would Be Fun by Eternity Martis.

Compton's collection of poetry depicts the hardships and experiences of Black Immigrants from San Francisco to Canada during 1858, revisiting themes of racism, uncertainty, and the hope for a new life through its subjects' journey to British Columbia.

Martis' newly published memoir on the other hand conveys a contemporary account of university life as a student of colour. Struggling to navigate her way through schoolwork, newfound independence from her closely-knit family, and instances of casual racism and sexism, Martis' memoir shines a light on the struggles that young adults of colour face today.

Find these books and more during your next visit to the Library!

02/08/2022

Our next two featured books are Butter Honey Pig Bread by Francesca Ekwuyasi and What Doesn't Kill You Makes You Blacker by Damon Young. Ekwuyasi's debut fiction novel conveys the experience of diaspora through an estranged family split across three continents by their mother's belief that she is haunted by a Ogbanje, or a supernatural spirit that brings misfortune to the possesed. Circumstances lead them to be reunited a decade later but how should they reconcile their differences after years of childhood trauma and grief? Young's work distills his experience as a young man in Pittsburgh into a series of essays that interrogates our notion of masculinity, Black identity in America, and his experiences with white supremacy. Find these books and other contemporary works at the Library today!

02/03/2022

Our first two featured books for Black History Month are Black Like Who? by Rinaldo Walcott and Black Futures by Kimberly Drew and Jenna Wortham, narratives that both revisit the past and look towards the future. Writing in 1997, Wilcott presents a series of critical essays that looks at African Canadian identity in the media and questions the reductionist trend towards a single definition of Black identity in Canada. Drew and Wortham's work on the other hand takes a more contemporary approach as a collection of art, poetry, photography, and essays that celebrates Black creators in the 21st century. These inspiring works are available for you to browse at the Library today and can be found in our new Fiction section at its entrance.

02/01/2022

The Library is proud to showcase our collection of African Canadian Literature and other works by Black authors in support of Black History Month. Stories of resilience, hope, and struggle are among the novels, essays, and poetry in this selection. We'll cover these works in detail over the coming days, but for now be sure to find these books available for reading today! Other related events at Hart House can also be found here: https://harthouse.ca/series/black-futures

01/12/2022

Happy New Year everyone! If you've stopped by the Library recently, you might have noticed that some of our shelves and sections have moved around. While we create a new map for our patrons to browse with, our updated catalog at the link below may be helpful for your visit. See you here soon!

LibraryThing is a cataloging and social networking site for booklovers

12/24/2021

Happy Holidays! While Hart House remains open during the winter break, the Library will be closed for a brief period from Dec. 28th - 30th. We'll see you again soon in the new year with more exciting books and events to come!