LFPL's At the Library Series

If being a dad is a full-time job, being a father and the president of the United States is a whole other ballgame. And yet nearly every president has performed both roles, leading Joshua Kendall to write First Dads, an original take on family, politics, and the politics of family.

Dr. Joe Brewster and Michèle Stephenson's new book "Promises Kept: Raising Black Boys to Succeed in School and Life" is an unprecedented guide to helping black boys, regardless of socio-economic background, achieve success at every stage of their lives - at home, at school, and in the world.

In his latest book, The Defender: How the Legendary Black Newspaper Changed America, award-winning author, publisher, and journalist Ethan Michaeli recounts the incredible story of a newspaper that changed the course of history in segregated America.

From New York Times bestselling author James McBride comes "The Good Lord Bird: A Novel" -- the story of a young boy born a slave who joins John Brown's antislavery crusade - and who must pass as a girl to survive. McBride's landmark memoir, "The Color of Water," is considered an American classic and read in schools and universities across the United States.

In his book, "Turn Me Loose: The Unghosting of Medgar Evers," Frank X Walker explores the void left by the horrific slaying of the civil rights activist - taking on the voices of Evers' family, Evers' killer, and others surrounding the events in Mississippi in 1963. Join Kentucky's Poet Laureate for an evening of poetry.

The summer months of 1776 witnessed the most consequential events in the story of our country's founding. In "Revolutionary Summer," Pulitzer Prize-winning American historian Joseph Ellis meticulously examines the most influential figures in this historic moment, including George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and Britain's Admiral Lord Richard Howe and General William Howe. He weaves together the political and military experiences as two sides of a single story, and shows how events on one front influenced outcomes on the other.

The Pulitzer Prize-winning author of "Peter the Great", "Nicholas and Alexandra," and "The Romanovs" returns with the extraordinary story of "Catherine the Great," one of the most remarkable, powerful, and captivating women in history.

If you think "old-fashioned" means intimidating, time-consuming, pressure-cooker canning, think again: Wiche is a fan of traditional techniques like salting and drying, poaching and preserving-in-oil that save flavor, time and energy. Jeneen Wiche writes farm and garden columns for community newspapers across Kentucky and Southern Indiana and feature columns for Back Home in Kentucky and Edible Louisville.

Emily Bingham, author of Irrepressible: The Jazz Age Life of Henrietta Bingham. Images described in this podcast are available for viewing at www.lfpl.org/podcast.html

Fans of New York Times bestselling author Dorothea Benton Frank’s Carolina Lowcountry will delight in her twentieth novel, Queen Bee. An evocative tale that returns readers to her beloved Sullivan’s Island, Queen Bee tells an unforgettable story where the Lowcountry magic of the natural world collides with the beat of the human heart.

"Women, Leadership and Success" with former Chanel CEO Maureen ChiquetMaureen Chiquet, the former global CEO of Chanel, is an expert on much more than fashion. Join her at the Main Library for a discussion of her new book: Beyond the Label: Women, Leadership and Success on Our Own Terms, an insightful read that blends Chiquet's own story with advice on creating a life that's uniquely your own.

In a discussion of his first-ever book, Tim Shanahan will reflect on his forty-year friendship with Louisville’s own Muhammad Ali. Running with the Champ chronicles the real-life adventure of knowing a celebrity athlete, full of stories of Ali’s generosity, athleticism, and famous friends.

In the aftermath of a flood that washes away much of a small Tennessee town, evangelical preacher Asher Sharp offers shelter to two gay men. In doing so, he starts to see his life anew--and risks losing everything: his wife, locked into her religious prejudices; his congregation, which shuns Asher after he delivers a passionate sermon in defense of tolerance; and his young son, Justin, caught in the middle of what turns into a bitter custody battle.In this stunning literary page-turner about judgment, courage, heartbreak, and change, bestselling author Silas House wrestles with the limits of belief, and with love and its consequences.

Join Civil War General, astronomer, and founder of the Cincinnati Observatory, Ormsby Mitchel (as portrayed by Frazier History Museum Teaching Artist, Tony Dingman), and American astronomer Guy Consolmagno, Director of the Vatican Observatory and winner of the 2014 Carl Sagan Medal for Excellence in Public Communication in Planetary Science, as they discuss their work in the field of astronomy.

Inspired by the wartime experiences of her late father-in-law, award-winning author and Kentucky native Bobbie Ann Mason's latest novel follows an American World War II pilot shot down in Occupied Europe. Intimate and haunting, The Girl in the Blue Beret is an affecting story of love and courage, war and redemption, and the startling promise of second chances.

Pulitzer prize-winning author and journalist David E. Hoffman, author of the Billion Dollar Spy.

Psychologist and author Guy WinchGuy Winch is a licensed psychologist, author, and keynote speaker. His TED Talk, "Why We All Need to Practice Emotional First Aid," has been viewed over 5 million times. Winch's latest book, How to Fix a Broken Heart, focuses on two types of emotional pain that are often marginalized—romantic heartbreak and the heartbreak that results from the loss of a cherished pet—and reveals how these two grief experiences impact our brain and our behavior, and the steps we can take to take control of our lives, heal, and move on.

Celeste Ng is the New York Times bestselling author of two novels, Everything I Never Told You and Little Fires Everywhere. Just released in paperback, Little Fires Everywhere was Amazon’s #2 best book and best fiction book of 2017, and was named a best book of the year by over 25 publications. This complex suburban saga was a Reese Witherspoon Book Club pick and is currently being adapted for an eight-episode series on Hulu, starring Witherspoon and Kerry Washington.

Lee Child is the #1 internationally bestselling author of thirteen Jack Reacher thrillers, including The New York Times bestsellers "The Enemy, One Shot, and The Hard Way." His latest in the series, "The Affair," is actually a prequel, taking readers back to the start of it all.

Join author Alexander McCall Smith for a discussion of his latest book Emma—a retelling of Jane Austen’s classic story, with a modern-day twist.