Since Ontario Place's future has been in the news lately, I thought, why not do a quick visual tour of its history? These photographs are from the Toronto Public Library's Digital Archive, courtesy of the Toronto Star Photograph Archives, which is housed at the Toronto Reference Library. The vintage postcards are digital scans of items […]
While some old books enjoy the fortune of having circulating copies ten, thirty, even a century after publication, many, often unfortunately, live on only as reference copies. Here I'd like to shine the light on a batch of books still seminal in the treatment of their subjects, most of which can only be found in […]
We invite you to Enchanting Stories: Fairy Tales Made New for Adults – An Exhibit at the Merril Collection of Science Fiction, Speculation and Fantasy. The exhibit features retellings (in books, from the 1980's to the present) of some of the best known fairy tales from the western European tradition, including Little Red Riding Hood, […]
Gale courses, one of TPL's popular eLearning resources, offers a great array of courses and video tutorials on business, accounting, finance, and computer applications. If you've considered enrolling in a course, but found the commitment a bit cumbersome, a great way to follow through with it is to join a TPL hosted learning circle. Learning […]
We invite you to Alice Adjacent: Lewis Carroll and his Victorian World, an exhibition of historical and modern children's books. Located at the Osborne Collection of Early Children's Books, on the fourth floor of the Lillian H. Smith branch, this exhibit was developed by Liz Derbecker. It is also a companion exhibit to Alice Opens […]
Free movies, free programs, free classes. All at the Toronto Reference Library. Click on each image to enlarge or download The January 2019 Toronto Reference Library calendar. For a full listing to browse or search, visit our Programs, Classes and Exhibits.
If you're looking for an interesting gift to give these holidays, here's a suggestion: a great book, the best literary fiction or poetry in the world. Among the world literary winners this year are: In Fiction The Nobel Prize has been postponed this year. The Red Word by Sarah Henstra (Canada), winner of the Governor General's […]
You would be pardoned for thinking the numbers in the blog title were related to the Kabbalah. But … in fact they're part of the promotion for the 2019 MYTORONTO calendar that Ve'ahavta has brought together with members of the local community. You can support the photographers by buying calendars or cards online (or in person) and you […]
Free movies, free programs, free classes. All at the Toronto Reference Library. Click on each image to enlarge or download the December 2018 Toronto Reference Library calendar (PDF). For a full listing to browse or search, visit our Programs, Classes and Exhibits.
What programs did Toronto Public Library offer 150 years ago? It's a bit of a trick question. From 1830-1883, it was the Toronto Mechanics' Institute — the library's forerunner — that offered comparable educational programming. The institute was for working class Torontonians. So what programs did it offer? Several printed broadsides (posters) from our Digital Archive reveal […]