Alison Stewart: This is All Of It on WNYC. I'm Alison Stewart. It's time to start reading our March, Get Lit with All Of It Book Club selection. We are reading Mothers and Sons by Adam Haslett. The novel follows a New York City-based asylum lawyer named Peter. He's gay and he became estranged from his mother after a night of violence 20 years ago tore their relationship apart, but now Peter is faced with the case of a young gay man that reminds him of what happened that night and the secret he and his mother share.

I will be in conversation with author Adam Haslett and you on Wednesday, April 2nd at the New York Public Library Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library Branch. To get your tickets and learn how to borrow your e-copy from our partners at the New York Public Library, head to wnyc.org/getlit. Now, tickets are free, but they tend to sell out quickly, so reserve yours today. Again, that's wnyc.org/getlit. Now, that's about a month from now at the New York Public Library.

Right now, let's get this hour started with the Brooklyn Public Library.

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Alison Stewart: Have you ever dreamt of spending a night in the library? This Saturday you can, at the Brooklyn Public Library. There'll be a whole lot more than just books there. BPL's Night in the Library event is this Saturday from 7:00 PM to 2:00 AM. It's the 10th year and the theme is The Sky Above Brooklyn, The Philosophy of the Sublime. All throughout the main branch at Grand Army Plaza, there'll be music, dance, talks, poetry, even psychotherapy, clothes mending, a man recreating sounds of birds. Joining me now with a preview is Adwoa Adusei, manager of the BPL's new Library for Arts and Culture. Adwoa, welcome.

Adwoa Adusei: Thank you so much, Alison.

Alison Stewart: Since we're talking about how libraries can be so much more than just books, we want to know from our listeners, this is the call out, what is something you've taken out of a library that isn't a book. Brooklyn Public Library has lots more available to you. It could be an instrument, an album, a tool, an article of clothing or something we didn't think of. Let us know. 212-433-9692, 212-433-WNYC. You can call in and join us on the air or you can text to us at that number, 212-433-9692. This year's theme is The Sky Above Brooklyn, The Philosophy of the Sublime. Can you break that down?

Adwoa Adusei: Oh wow. It's very poetic. It's definitely about unwinding and unhooking from our devices and meeting one another face to face in the library, talking things down, talking things through. Whatever's going on in our world today, just really thinking through together.

Alison Stewart: I went through that list of things. I went on the library's website and I was like, "Oh, you can do this. Oh, you can hang out with dogs. Oh, music. Oh, there's psychotherapy. Oh, there's a man imitating bird songs." When you think of all of these things together, how do they all fit together?

Adwoa Adusei: That's a really good question. I feel like it's almost overwhelming, but in the best way possible. Not overwhelming in the way that the news can be today, but overwhelming in the artistic outlets that we have at our disposal at any given time.

Alison Stewart: How will the activities be organized?

Adwoa Adusei: They're in time chunks, essentially. 30 minutes, an hour, and it's all throughout the library at the Central location.

Alison Stewart: Anything that you are particularly excited about?

Adwoa Adusei: I definitely want to see Katie Mertz's work, the installation that she's done.

Alison Stewart: Katie Mertz?

Adwoa Adusei: Yes, Katie Mertz.

Alison Stewart: Katie Mertz, you mean, who did our windows downstairs and our 100 Centennial bags?

Adwoa Adusei: Exactly. She's also done the murals at the new Library for Arts and Culture. I'm excited to see what she brings out for Night at the Library. Then also we have some ER doctors from Amandi's who will be doing a moth-like story time session to talk about care and healing.

Alison Stewart: This is the big picture question, is why does this event make sense at a library?

Adwoa Adusei: It's been going on. Like you said, it's in its 10th year, and it's a way for people to see behind the curtains. It's obviously larger scale than we ever do at most libraries, but the library is a place for people to gather and we're doing it on the largest scale possible. It just makes sense.

Alison Stewart: Is the event free?

Adwoa Adusei: The event is absolutely free.

Alison Stewart: Do I need a BPO library card to get in?

Adwoa Adusei: You don't need a card to get in, but you can create a card while you're there. You can check out books while you're there. You can check out some of our LPs. It's first come, first served.

Alison Stewart: How can people learn more?

Adwoa Adusei: Definitely go to our website, bklynlibrary.org to learn more.

Alison Stewart: I'm speaking to librarian Adwoa Adusei about the Brooklyn Public Library's Night in the Library this Saturday. We're also talking about their instrumental and music resources as well as the Public Song Project we will be talking about in just a moment, and we are taking your calls. Tell us about something that you've taken out of the library that wasn't a book. Our number is 212-433-WNYC, 212-433-9692. While you're here today, we wanted to talk about the BPL's year-round resources.

Each year around this time, we invite listeners to submit songs based on things in the public domain. We call it the Public Song Project. For the last couple of years, the BPL has been a partner with us on it. We point out to people about all these non-book resources that you have that they might not know about? Tell people what's available to them.

Adwoa Adusei: Yes. For inspiration on the Public Song Project, you can come in for sheet music, you can come in for musical instruments to borrow. Both of those things are available at Central Library. You can check out vinyl at Central and soon at the Library for Arts and Culture as well. Those are the top three things, and then obviously books about musicians and music.

Alison Stewart: One of the unique things about the library is the Musical Instrument Lending Library. Tell us a little bit more about that.

Adwoa Adusei: Sure. Yes, that's coming out of Central.

Alison Stewart: Central means Grand Army Plaza.

Adwoa Adusei: Yes, Grand Army Plaza. It's been going on for a few years now as one of the first items that you could check out from the library that wasn't a book.

Alison Stewart: How does it work?

Adwoa Adusei: You will need your library card, and you go to Central and request the item. Then I believe the checkout is still three weeks that you can have the item on loan, and then you also return the item back to Central.

Alison Stewart: What kind of instruments are we talking about?

Adwoa Adusei: A little bit of everything. We have string instruments. Sorry.

Alison Stewart: Need some water?

Adwoa Adusei: I need some water. Yes.

Alison Stewart: Adwoa Adusei is the manager of the BPL's Library for Arts and Culture. She's joining us. Take a sip of water?

Adwoa Adusei: Yes. Thanks.

Alison Stewart: Okay, go.

Adwoa Adusei: String instruments, some percussive instruments, mostly things that are small and that you can carry with you.

Alison Stewart: We got some great texts. This says, "My library in Lynbrook has a telescope to borrow." That's exciting. This one says, "Fishing equipment." Let's talk to Charles from Merrick, Long Island. Hi, Charles.

Charles: Hey, how you doing?

Alison Stewart: Doing great. You're on air.

Charles: Longtime listener, first time caller.

Alison Stewart: Nice.

Charles: I was saying to your call receiver that I may be dating myself, but I use our local libraries here in Merrick for DVDs, Blu-rays, I also use them for other resources, legal documents, and things. I regularly take out the DVDs. My wife and I are going to my daughter's elementary school today. Not today, on Friday. They're having what's called International Night. We've taken out a couple of DVDs on Buddhism, which my wife is an immigrant and she's Buddhist. We'll be showing the movie Kundun, which is a Martin Scorsese movie about [inaudible 00:08:16].

Alison Stewart: That is a great idea. Thank you so much for sharing that with us. We really appreciate it, Charles. The Brooklyn Library also has, I should point out, recording studios. How does that work? How can they be used?

Adwoa Adusei: The recording studio, the main one is at Central Library, 10 Grand Army Plaza, at our Info Commons. Again, you would need a library card to set up a time slot in that location and you can just walk in and talk to the people at the front desk.

Alison Stewart: Do you need to be a Brooklyn resident to do that?

Adwoa Adusei: No. As long as you have a BPL card which extends to New York State, you're good to go.

Alison Stewart: The BPL has some resources to help you get inspired. Say you want to join the Public Song Project, you mentioned sheet music and vinyl records. What kind of things are in the collection?

Adwoa Adusei: In our collection, for inspiration beyond music, there are also DVDs. Whether it's Early Film America DVDs, you can check those out. That could be a source of inspiration. We have ebooks, we have poetry books, plays that all fall in the public domain. You can ask a librarian to help you research which items are in the public domain. There's not a way to just search for that tag line. We also have Creative Commons databases that we subscribe to. Whether it's World Digital Library, Creative Commons, Directory of Open Access Journals, we can use those online resources as well to find what you're looking for.

Alison Stewart: You folks have been really helpful in helping people figure out what's in the public domain. You've got things like Agatha Christie that's on your list, Virginia Woolf, the Marx Brothers, some old editions of Better Homes and Gardens. Can you throw out some of your personal highlights that are on your public domain list?

Adwoa Adusei: Some things that didn't make it to the list just yet were from the 2023 reveal of what's in the public domain. Sheet music from artists like Bessie Smith or Louis Armstrong. Those are documents that are also available within our catalog.

Alison Stewart: Let's talk to Robbie from Irvington. Hi, thanks for calling All Of It. You're on the air.

Robin: Hi, my name is Robin. I live in Irvington, New York. One thing I wanted to say is that most libraries offer museum passes that you can check out and go to reciprocal museums. You just have to check your local library.

Alison Stewart: Thank you for the tip.

Robin: I've done it many times.

Alison Stewart: We appreciate it. This said, "I taught an artist books workshop at the NYPL Hudson Library Gallery. More than 80 people came and learned how to make sculptural pop up books with me." That's great. "This is back in the day, the summer before 9/11. I used to borrow foreign art house films and episodes of Sex and the City from the Brooklyn Public Library and work out while watching them in my Fort Greene living room." That's a great text.

Hey listeners, have you ever borrowed something from a library that wasn't a book? We are talking to you. Call in or text us. Tell us what you've taken out of the library that was not a book. 212-433-9692, 212-433-WNYC. All those things that you mentioned about the Public Song, we'll put up on our website wnyc.org/publicsongproject for more information on how to get involved. I wanted to ask you about your job. All excited. You are the manager of the BPL's new Library for Arts and Culture.

It opened last month at the L10 Arts and Cultural Center in downtown Brooklyn. First of all, congratulations.

Adwoa Adusei: Thank you.

Alison Stewart: That's huge. Tell us a little bit more about it.

Adwoa Adusei: Library for Arts and Culture and L10 are pretty unique within the ecosystem of libraries and cultural institutions in Brooklyn. It's the first of its kind where four cultural institutions are coming together under one roof to put on programming. It's ourselves, MoCADA Museum, 651 Arts and BAM. We're the first ones that are fully open to the public. A slow rollout for the rest of the partners, but the library space, I like to think of it as a reading room for L10 for the rest of the partners.

We are reacting and acting to their programming and whatever programming is happening at BPL and within Brooklyn and the city at large. It's 20th and 21st century art, music, fine arts, sculpture, film, lots of different things.

Alison Stewart: What are you excited to do with this new space and this new job?

Adwoa Adusei: Really, so far it's been about seeing how people are reacting when they come in and learning about not holes in our collection, but ways in which we can grow our collection and make it be as responsive as possible to what Brooklynites and New Yorkers need.

Alison Stewart: Let's talk to, I hope I say this correct, Yesha, who's calling from Brooklyn. Hi, Yesha.

Yesha: Hi there. This is Yesha. I'm a children's librarian at Brooklyn Public Library.

Adwoa Adusei: Hey, Yesha.

Yesha: Hi. Excited to hear Adwoa on the phone there too. She's a well-loved colleague. I'm just excited to share with you guys. I'm a children's librarian at Brooklyn Public Library, and just so you know, you can also-- You need an adult library card for this, but you can also borrow all sorts of board games. You know all those really expensive board games that you want to try out, but it would break your bank if you bought them all? You can borrow them for free from the Brooklyn Public Library and you can use your library card to get into all kinds of museums and cultural institutions for free all around the city. Sorry, one more thing.

Alison Stewart: Keep going.

Yesha: I'm so excited that you're featuring Brooklyn Public Library, Allison, because I get so jealous every month when you do the Get Lit Book Club, and I'm like, "Why only New York Public Library? Give Brooklyn some love too."

Alison Stewart: Oh, we've been talking about it. We've been trying to figure something out. You know what? Maybe you need to just email me and we can put our heads together. That's all I'm saying. We've got seeds. This is a text. Seeds. "I can coordinate a seed library at our local library in Pleasant Valley, New York. Folks can take out three packets of seeds each month." This says, "My boyfriend and I used to check out 16 millimeter films," heavy, "To project for friends in our apartment in Soho in the '80s."

"I'm in Stratford, Connecticut, and our library has an extensive collection of fun-shaped cake pans to borrow." This is very funny. This just in, this is from the Brooklyn Public Library. "We are no longer accepting RSPs for this event, but we encourage you to come to the central library and we will admit patrons as capacity allows." Apparently, walk-ins are welcome, but they really do the same number of people because different people show up every year. Is that the case?

Adwoa Adusei: Yes.

Alison Stewart: That is happening this Saturday night at the Brooklyn Public Library, the main branch. Oops, another text here. "Hello. I live in Westport, Connecticut, and we have a fantastic library. So much more than books. I have borrowed an old-school 40-cup coffee maker and a large size Jenga game." This is getting funnier. "I've often gotten music scores and chamber music parts from the New York City Performing Arts Library. A much appreciated, great service." Before I let you go, Adwoa, just give me your pitch for why the library is a great place.

Adwoa Adusei: Oh wow. The library is a great place because everyone is welcome there, period, full stop, and it's absolutely free.

Alison Stewart: "We borrow Happy Birthday lawn signs and backyard games like badminton sets from Rogers Memorial Library in Southampton." That is from Stephanie. Sounds like a lot of people use their libraries for a lot of things.

Adwoa Adusei: Lovely.

Alison Stewart: I've been speaking to librarian Adwoa Adusei about the Brooklyn Public Library's Night in the Library. It is happening this Saturday. Thank you so much for coming by.

Adwoa Adusei: Thank you, Allison.