Brian Jones with Bettina L. Love and Jesse Hagopian: Black History Is for Everyone
In this episode of Library Talks, Educator NYPL staff member and author Brian Jones joins Library Talks to discuss his new book Black History Is for Everyone. He is joined by Dr. Bettina L. Love and Jesse Hagopian. In Black History Is for Everyone, Brian Jones offers a meditation on the power of Black history, using his own experiences as a lifelong learner and classroom teacher to question everything—from the radicalism of the American Revolution to the meaning of “race” and “nation.”
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The New Yorker Editorial Roundtable
In this episode of Library Talks , in honor of The New Yorker’s 100th anniversary, editor David Remnick is joined by Henry Finder, Tyler Foggatt, Susan Morrison, and Daniel Zalewski for a rare editorial roundtable. They offer an insider’s view into how articles are assigned, crafted, and brought to life—from first pitch to final publication—and how the magazine reflects and builds on its storied past. Presented in conjunction with The New York Public Library’s major exhibition A Century of The New Yorker, on view through February 21, 2026, which draws on NYPL's collections, including the magazine's voluminous archives and the papers of many of its contributors, to bring to life the people, stories, and ideas that made The New Yorker.
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Jill Lepore with Jamal Greene: We the People
In this episode of Library Talks, American historian Jill Lepore joins Library Talks to discuss her latest book We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution. She is joined by constitutional law expert Jamal Greene. On the eve of the 250th anniversary of the nation’s founding, Jill Lepore’s We the People reexamines this foundational text not as a static artifact but as a living document shaped—and often stalled—by the will of the people. Drawing on research from the Amendments Project—a searchable archive of all the proposed amendments to the Constitution from 1789 to the present—Lepore traces more than two centuries of attempts, mostly by ordinary Americans, to amend a document designed both to resist change and to permit it through peaceful, democratic means.
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Tricia Hersey with Glory Edim: We Will Rest!: The Art of Escape
In this episode of Library Talks, multidisciplinary artist and theologian, Tricia Hersey joins Library Talks to discuss her latest book We Will Rest!: The Art of Escape. She is joined by Glory Edim, author of Well Read Black Girl. Tricia Hersey is the founder of The Nap Ministry. She is the global pioneer and originator of the “rest as resistance” and “rest as reparations” frameworks, and collaborates with communities all over the world to create sacred spaces. This talk was recorded as part of the Schomburg Centennial Festival.
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Lauren O'Neill-Butler with E.C. Feiss and Ciarán Finlayson: The War of Art
In this episode of Library Talks, Author and editor Lauren O’Neill-Butler joins Library Talks to discuss her latest book, The War of Art: A History of Artists' Protest in America. The War of Art tells the history of artist-led activism and the global political and aesthetic debates of the 1960s to the present. In contrast to the financialized art market and celebrity artists, the book explores the power of collective effort — from protesting to philanthropy, and from wheat pasting to planting a field of wheat.
Join The New York Public Library and your favorite writers, artists, and thinkers for smart talks and provocative conversations from the nation’s cultural capital.
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