Cuts to federal agency threaten Madison’s public libraries 📖

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March 30, 2025

Our libraries are in danger.

Since March 14, when the executive order threatening the Institute of Museum and Library Services was released, I've been thinking a lot about libraries. One memory resurfaces with force, above even my fondest childhood recollections of storytimes or movie screenings. When I was 20 years old, I moved from Buffalo, New York, to Sitka, Alaska, as an AmeriCorps volunteer. For the first few months, I struggled: I was thousands of miles from friends and family, existing (narrowly) on a volunteer stipend, and sharing a house with five other girls in the same situation. On my days off, I started spending hours at Sitka's small public library. It was free, it was quiet, and it had a few truly excellent squashy chairs. It was there that I found an aisle labeled "Alaska," full of hiking memoirs, collections of the stories and myths of indigenous groups, novels by local authors and books about the life cycle of salmon, the fishing industry and more.

Those books — that shelf, likely lovingly curated by a librarian or volunteer — gave me a sense of place, a context that allowed me to understand and appreciate the extraordinary experience I had stumbled into. It was an education. It was a lifeline.

I've moved twice more since living in Alaska. Each time, I've gotten my new library card before I've unpacked.

In the joint statement released by the Madison Public Library and the Madison Children's Museum on March 19, I was moved by the image of a submitted "Share Your Story" card: "On my first day living in Madison, we went to the main branch library downtown. When I asked the reference librarian a question relevant to newcomers, she became the welcoming source for Madison information," read the card, signed by "Janelle." (For her favorite MPL location, she wrote "the one I am close to.")

Libraries are ⁠more than just a place to find books. They offer free computer access, job assistance, tax support, creative programming like Madison's nationally-recognized Bubbler program and more. I'll end by repeating the press release's call to action: Call your representatives. Tell your library story. It matters.

Amid all of this local and national change, let's talk about the changes you might have noticed in this newsletter, too: I am not Maggie Ginsberg, who has left the magazine to take another job. This newsletter will inevitably evolve without her voice, so we'd like to know exactly what you enjoy most and would like to continue seeing in this monthly newsletter. Do you scroll right to Book of the Month? Or maybe the Book Bites event listing has become a regular resource? Send us your feedback here.

And if you just want to say hello and tell me about your favorite book, I'd love to see your name in my inbox.

Anna Kottakis is digital editor at Madison Magazine. She curates this monthly newsletter. Reach her at akottakis@madisonmagazine.com.

Hot off the press from the current issue of Madison Magazine

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The cover story in the April issue (on newsstands April 2) is all about bugs. While many see insects as pests, they are critical to the survival of the very humans they purportedly bother. Join us as we celebrate Wisconsin's tiniest creatures.

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The books behind it all

The inspiration for this month's cover story — co-written by Maggie and me — came from these two books, each of which reveals fascinating details about insects: "The Insect Epiphany" by Barrett Klein and "Where the Grass Still Sings" by Heather Swan.

Spotlight in print: Read this issue's Editor's Pick

As a former editor of Isthmus and current co-editor of On Wisconsin Magazine, Dean Robbins is best known for his journalism and, most recently, a slate of delightfully educational children's picture books that highlight his many heroes. With "Wisconsin Idols: 100 Heroes Who Changed the State, the World, and Me," Robbins is bringing his passion for spotlighting prominent individuals to a grown-up audience.

Don't miss Robbins' conversation with Doug Moe on April 15 at Mystery To Me.

Published by the Wisconsin Historical Society Press, release date April 1.

Favorites from past issues

At Lake City Books' Spring 2025 Preview event on March 13, owner Molly Fish shared a list of the spring's hottest titles. Here are a few of those soon-to-come releases.

"The Griffin Sisters' Greatest Hits" by Jennifer Weiner is a feel-good family drama about two sisters catapulted to pop star-level fame in the early aughts ... before an unknown dispute breaks up the band. Now, a daughter is determined to get the family back together.
"The Lilac People" by Milo Todd follows Bertie, a trans man, and his girlfriend Sophie in WWII-era Germany. Fans of "All The Light We Cannot See," this one is for you.
"The Butcher's Daughter" by David Demchuk and Corinne Leigh Clark tells the story of Mrs. Lovett from Sondheim's musical "Sweeney Todd." It's a villain origin story like "Wicked" ... but even wickeder.
"Atmosphere: A Love Story," Taylor Jenkins Reid's latest, is the fast-paced and emotional story of Joan Goodwin, one of the first female astronauts at NASA.

P.S. Remember our March Book of the Month, "Funny Because It's True"? Don't miss author and historian Christine Wenc at Arcadia Books in Spring Green on April 6.

I do occasionally get to read books by authors beyond Wisconsin's borders. Here's what's on my reading stack this month.

The cover of "There Are Rivers in the Sky" by Elif Shafak.

Elif Shafak is a Turkish-British author who first charmed me with "The Island of Missing Trees," a Reese Witherspoon Book Club Pick which also landed on the shortlist for the 2022 Women's Prize for Fiction. "There Are Rivers In The Sky" earned a (very rare) five-star Goodreads rave review from me.

It follows three interconnected narratives — a brilliant boy in poverty-stricken Victorian London, a young girl living by the River Tigris during the rise of ISIS and a hydrologist living in London in 2018. It blew me away. If you like historical fiction, add it to your TBR.

New book releases, author events and other local literary news

"The Tomb of Dragons" by Katherine Addison (released March 11) wraps up The Cemeteries of Amalo series, which follows Thara Celehar as he communicates with the recently deceased to deliver justice. Addison will read from the book (and answer audience questions) at a live author event at Stoughton Public Library on April 8.
"The Marlin's Fiery Eye and Other Tales from the Extraordinary World of Marine Fishes" (released March 15), is a fun and accessible introduction to the fascinating and remarkable lives of marine dwellers, written by biologist Joe E. Meisel. The book was illustrated by local artist Mariah Robinson.
Doug Moe's latest, "Saving Hearts and Killing Rats: Karl Paul Link and the Discovery of Warfarin" (released March 20), is a biography of the colorful UW biochemist whose discovery of warfarin made medical history in the 20th century.
How do fruits, vegetables and grains go from the farm to our plates? "Our Food Grows" (releasing April 1) is a collaborative endeavor of author Sarah M. White and illustrator Tessa Gibbs that aims to spark children's interest in the natural world with simple explanations and bright, collage-based illustrations. White and Gibbs will read the book and offer activity stations for kids at Verona Public Library on April 5.
Jennifer Chiaverini's "The World's Fair Quilt" (releasing April 1) alternates between 2004 and 1933 to stitch together a story about family, community — and, of course, quilting. Don't miss Chiaverini's April 29 event at Mystery To Me.
"Shelter and Storm: At Home in The Driftless" by Tamara Dean (releasing April 22) is a collection of essays that follows Dean's search for sustainable ways of living amidst environmental crises. At the book's launch event on April 24, Jane Elder will join Dean in conversation at the UW Arboretum.

Meet a Wisconsin author

On the right, a portrait of Erin Gleeson. On the right, the cover of "The Watercolor Feast."

Erin Gleeson celebrates new book with three events

"The Forest Feast" author and California transplant's new watercolor tutorial book releases on April 15. Gleeson will celebrate with a book launch party, a watercolor workshop at the historic Haney's Tavern and a special themed dinner at The Deliciouser.

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