And with the help of original documents, including letters of petition by schoolteachers, bankers, and civic leaders from across the United States, he provides valuable insights into life in turn-of-the-century American towns and the values and aspirations of their citizens.
Carnegie and the Carnegie Corporation provided funding for 1,681 public library buildings in 1,412 U.S. communities between 1889 and 1923. This philanthropy had a great impact on the growth of public library development in the United States. Free public libraries supported by local taxation had begun with Boston in 1849 and slowly spread throughout the country. The Carnegie benefactions made them leap forward. This internationally famous celebrity chose libraries as one of the primary sources for his philanthropy. He also attached two conditions to his offer of money for a public library building--the local community had to provide a suitable site and formally agree to continuously support the library through local tax funds. The latter solidified acceptance of the concept of tax support for libraries.
Familiar landmarks in hundreds of American towns, Carnegie libraries have shaped the public library experience of generations of Americans and today seen far from controversial. In Free to All, however, Abigail Van Slyck shows that the classical facades and symmetrical plans of these buildings often mask the complex and contentious circumstances of their construction and use.
Andrew Carnegie is remembered as one of the world's great philanthropists. As a boy, he witnessed the benevolence of a businessman who lent his personal book collection to laborer's apprentices. That early experience inspired Carnegie to create the "Free to the People" Carnegie Library in 1895 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In 1896, he founded the Carnegie Institute, which included a music hall, art museum, and science museum. Carnegie deeply believed that education and culture could lift up the common man and should not be the sole province of the wealthy. Today, his Pittsburgh cultural institution encompasses a library, music hall, natural history museum, art museum, science center, the Andy Warhol Museum, and the Carnegie International art exhibition. In Palace of Culture, Robert J. Gangewere presents the first history of a cultural conglomeration that has served millions of people since its inception and inspired the likes of August Wilson, Andy Warhol, and David McCullough. In this fascinating account, Gangewere details the political turmoil, budgetary constraints, and cultural tides that have influenced the caretakers and the collections along the way. He profiles the many benefactors, trustees, directors, and administrators who have stewarded the collections through the years. Gangewere provides individual histories of the library, music hall, museums, and science center, and describes the importance of each as an educational and research facility. Moreover, Palace of Culture documents the importance of cultural institutions to the citizens of large metropolitan areas. The Carnegie Library and Institute have inspired the creation of similar organizations in the United States and serve as models for museum systems throughout the world.
In this "crackling domestic suspense" filled with "wry humor and deft pacing" (Alyssa Cole), no one bats an eye when a Black reality TV star is found dead—except her estranged half-sister, whose refusal to believe the official story leads her on a dangerous search for the truth. Edgar Award Finalist for Best Novel • Anthony Award winner for Best Hardcover Novel • Lefty Award winner for Best Mystery Novel • A Book of the Month Club Pick • An Oxygen Book Club Pick • A Today Show Spring Fiction Pick • A New York Post Best New Book of the Week • A New York Public Library Best Book of the Year • A South Florida Sun-Sentinel Best Mystery of the Year • A CrimeReads Best Psychological Thriller of the Year “A mystery that has everything I love most: an intriguing set up; an absorbing storyline that kept me guessing; a satisfying ending; and, most of all, incredibly well-developed characters I kept thinking about long after I finished the book.” ―Jasmine Guillory, Today Show “I found out my sister was back in New York from Instagram. I found out she’d died from the New York Daily News.” When the body of reality TV star Desiree Pierce is found on a playground in the Bronx the morning after her twenty-fifth birthday party, the police and the media are quick to declare her death an overdose. A tragedy, certainly, but not a crime. Yet Columbia grad student Lena—principled, headstrong, and allergic to the spotlight—knows that can’t be the case. Despite the bitter truth that the two hadn’t spoken in two years, they were half-sisters. Lena knew Desiree. And Desiree would never travel above 125th Street. Something is very wrong with the facts. So why is no one listening? While the two sisters had been torn apart by Desiree’s partying and by their difficult father, Lena becomes determined to find justice for Desiree. Even if that means untangling her family’s darkest secrets—or ending up dead herself. “A briskly plotted, socially astute thriller.” ―Los Angeles Times “Equal parts charm and heartbreak, with razor-sharp insights on class, race, and family.” —Laura Lippman “Dishes up the glitz of the haves and the struggles of the have-nots, infusing classic noir storytelling with Big Apple glamour—#pageturner.” —Oprah Daily “A twisty murder mystery with nuance and heart.” ―BookPage “Noir for the media-struck generation...Original and witty.” ―National Public Radio
Between 1910 and 1922, seventeen Montana communities built libraries with money given to them by the era's richest man, Andrew Carnegie. Fifteen of those libraries stand today, and their story is compellingly told here by architectural historian Kate Hampton. Just as he did in Hand Raised: The Barns of Montana, photographer Tom Ferris provides stunning detail of both the classic and unusual architectural elements of these iconic buildings. Hand-drawn architectural renderings and other historical images combine to create a detailed portrait of Carnegie's rich legacy in Montana. All book proceeds benefit Montana historic preservation!
"Sasha Marcus was once the epitome of contemporary success: an internet sensation, social media darling, and a creator of a high-profile wellness brand for women. But a confrontation with an abusive troll has taken a horrifying turn, and now she's at rock bottom: canceled and doxxed online, isolated in her apartment while men's rights protestors rage outside. Sasha confides in her oldest childhood friend, Dyson--a failed actor with a history of body issues--who hatches a plan for her to restore her reputation by becoming the face of his new business venture, The Atmosphere: a rehabilitation community for men."--