Listen in on one of BPL's most popular art programs: a theater workshop where, once a week, budding thespians come together to read plays, talk about character motivations, and dig into some surprisingly emotional and political topics. Read a transcript of this episode on our website.Join fellow thespians at Central Library's theater workshop. Or, find a creative writing workshop at branches across BPL.Read along with the theater workshop by checking out the plays on our booklist.The Library...

We revisit an episode from January 2021 in honor of National Library Workers Day, and ask: what do librarians do all day? When they're not planning programs or working the reference desk, these librarians are also obscure trivia players, birders and ... sword fighters!  Read a transcript here. Have a minute? Vote for Borrowed and Banned in the Webby's! We were nominated for an award in the "Best Writing for Podcasts" category. Celebrate National Library Workers Day by thanking your favorite...

Teens and older adults are perhaps the two age groups you might think have the least in common. But a new program at BPL seeks to bring the two generations together ... by having them debate. Read a transcript of this episode on our web page. Resources mentioned on this episode: Learn more about services for older adults at BPL and programs for teens!Listen to "Bridging the Gap," a podcast series on our BKLYN Community Audio feed and check out these books about debate.Take this very short...

Brooklyn has 62 neighborhood libraries, each with a distinct architecture, culture, and soul. To kick off the new season and to celebrate our audio stories coming home to Brooklyn, we'll take a tour of the borough with the help of our neighborhood libraries and some of our stalwart patrons who visited all 62 of them ... in a matter of days! Read a transcript of this episode.Take our Browse the Branches challenge! Not in New York City? You can read your way through the branches with this book...

Student activists in York, Pennsylvania organized a silent protest when hundreds of books were banned from their classrooms, paving the way for lasting change in their community. In this final episode of the series, we tackle the challenge head-on: from encouraging open dialogue about the books on our shelves to the ongoing work of protecting the freedom to read.  Read the transcript here. Our call to action for this episode: How will you use the stories you’ve heard over the course...

Library workers often risk their livelihoods when they speak out against censorship, spurring community members to pick up the fight for intellectual freedom. We tell the story of how one Louisiana parish came together to defend their library amidst book challenges, tip lines, and even sign burning. Read the transcript here. Our call to action for this episode: Find the people in your community who care about public libraries and get together with them. More resources: ...

Maia Kobabe's debut memoir, Gender Queer, was the most frequently banned book in 2021 and 2022. We talked with em about what it's like to be on the recieving end of so many challenges, and the importance of public libraries. Read the transcript here. More resources: Check out Gender Queer. Find Maia's resources for defending Gender Queer, and eir recent comic about book bans and libraries. Read The Washington Post's article on book bans.  

Despite being one of the most frequently banned authors, Toni Morrison’s work has inspired countless others to tell stories outside the mainstream. We take a closer look at Morisson's writing, her legacy, and her impact on the anti-censorship movement. Read the transcript here. Our call to action for this episode: Learn how you can support and defend public libraries at Libraries for the People. More resources: Read Toni Morrison's books. If you're a young person, you can apply...

George M. Johnson talks about their debut Young Adult memoir All Boys Aren't Blue, the support of their family, their love of Toni Morrison, and the importance of standing against book bans.  Read the transcript here. Resources: Check out All Boys Aren't Blue by George M. Johnson.  Read about Johnson's family supporting their book when it was challenged in Glen Ridge, New Jersey. Access other banned books with our free Books Unbanned library card for teens.  

Mike Curato talks about his award-winning graphic novel Flamer, his writing practice, and how it feels to have his story vaulted into national headlines as parents, politicians, and school boards campaign to remove his book from school and library shelves. Read the transcript here. Resources: Check out Flamer from BPL, or other books by Mike Curato. See what books were most frequently challenged in 2022, according to the America Library Association. This conversation touches on...

Over the past few years, school board races have become more heated and more political — and books have become the center of that political storm. We look at what happened in Keller, Texas when an ultra-conservative group took over the school board. You can read a transcript of this episode here. Our call to action for this episode: Find out when the next school board meeting is happening in your community, and show up. Unite Against Book Bans has an Action Toolkit with advice for how...

It’s an off-week for Borrowed and Banned, but we do have something special to share. We’re doing a collaboration with PRX’s Radiotopia, and they sent along an episode from one of their shows that is really relevant to our series.    This Day in Esoteric Political History is a podcast that tells the story of one moment from US history that took place on a particular day -- and discuss what it might have to teach us about our current moment. Back in 2020, the hosts did an episode about...

The birth of obscenity laws in the 1870s provides a cautionary tale for the present moment, when far-right conservatives incorrectly label books “sexually explicit” as a way to provoke outrage in communities nationwide. This episode, we delve into the parallels that history can reveal and hear from students in Texas fighting for their freedom to read.  You can read a transcript of this episode here. Our calls to action for this episode: Be an ally and an advocate for the teens in...

When a high school teacher in Norman, Oklahoma shared a QR code with her students that would grant them access to BPL’s digital collection, she took a stand against a restrictive state law. That act of resistance made her first day of school ... also her last.  Our call to action for this episode: Get a library card! Wherever you live, sign up for a library card in person or online. If you're between the ages of 13 and 21, you can apply to our free Books Unbanned e-library card....

Last year, over 2,500 unique titles were challenged in libraries across the country. That’s the highest number in over 20 years. On Borrowed and Banned, we tell the story of America’s ideological war with its bookshelves by talking with the people most impacted: the students on the frontlines, the librarians and teachers whose livelihoods are endangered when they speak up, and the writers whose books have become political battleground.  Read the transcript and find resources:...

We’re doing something a little bit different today and sharing an episode from a totally different podcast we love … it’s called Grown, and it’s from the Moth.   Grown is all about the experience of growing up. There's conversations, true stories told live, and young people grappling with big questions. Read more about Grown and subscribe at grownpod.com. We hope you enjoy!   About the episode: "Natural hair. A culture festival. Middle school jerks. In this episode, we hear stories of...

Over 14,000 patrons have signed up for their first library card since Jay-Z's exhibit came to Central Library in mid-July. We talk to Brooklynites traveling around the borough to collect all 13 Jay-Z library cards, and ask what The Book of HOV means to them.  Learn more about the exhibit and our signature library cards: https://www.bklynlibrary.org/podcasts/jay-z-library 

Kesha Powell and Amen Emile have been working at BPL for over 20 years in various roles, from public safety to circulation manager. Thanks to BPL's Pathways to Leadership program—a scholarship and mentorship initiative designed to diversify the field of librarianship—they will soon be fully-certified librarians.  Read the transcript and find further resources here: https://www.bklynlibrary.org/podcasts/pathways-leadership 

If you ask Hannah Jean what would be her greatest wish, she will say running Brooklyn Public Library. Last month, she got to do just that.  Read the transcript and check out our book list: https://www.bklynlibrary.org/podcasts/meet-our-almost-six-year 

Meet the Luddite Club, a group of library-loving, flip-phone-toting teenagers in Brooklyn who come together every week out of a shared sense that social media and smart phones just aren't working for them.  Read the transcript and check out additional resources here: https://www.bklynlibrary.org/podcasts/teens-are-offline    Listen to Undiscarded: Stories of New York: https://undiscarded.org/ 

Asylum seekers continue to arrive in New York City. We look at how one faith-based organization is responding to the continuing crisis in the hope that these personal narratives offer a window into the experience of migrants in Brooklyn today. For a transcript of this episode in English and links to resources, visit: https://www.bklynlibrary.org/podcasts/seeking-asylum 

Este episodio es sobre los solicitantes de asilo en la ciudad de Nueva York. Estamos compartiendo estas narrativas personales con la esperanza de que escucharlas devuelva la humanidad a esta crisis.  Para leer el episodio en inglés y más recursos: https://www.bklynlibrary.org/podcasts/buscando-asilo 

Last year, New York City began to see an increase in the number of migrants seeking asylum. The library is a small part of the city-wide response to help those seeking refuge. This episode, we'll talk about library and city efforts with Manuel Castro, the Commissioner at the Mayor's Office for Immigrant Affairs. Links to resources and the epiosde transcript are here: https://www.bklynlibrary.org/podcasts/place-refuge