From April 19 to June 28, the Toronto Reference Library (789 Yonge Street) hosts From Hanga to Manga: The Graphic Art of Japanese Storytelling—hanga being the Japanese art of woodblock printing, and manga being your otaku nephew's reason for living, that is. The exhibition features a collection of rare illustrated books, woodblock prints, and comics from the libraries of the TPL Special Collections, the ROM, and Japan Foundation Toronto. In conjunction with the exhibition,......

Panel from Emily Pohl-Weary and Willow Dawson's Violet Miranda: Girl Pirate #4, courtesy of Willow Dawson. Ten weeks of fantastic, free writing workshops have just been announced as part of the Parkdale Street Writers program. Coordinated by the multi-talented poet, YA author, and Kiss Machine founder Emily Pohl-Weary, the workshops start April 1 and are led by some kick-ass local writers and artists, including Mariko Tamaki, Willow Dawson, and Kristyn Dunnion. You don’t have......

Detail of photo by the Frankfurt School from the Torontoist Flickr Pool.. This week is Freedom to Read Week, a national event that encourages Canadians to value their right to choose what they read, and to recognize the individuals who fight to protect that right. Celebrations against censorship are happening across the country—locally PEN Canada is presenting an evening of readings and performances to promote a new anthology, Writers Under Siege: Voices of Freedom......

Next Monday, February 4, Keep Toronto Reading will launch its One Book program at the Toronto Reference Library. There will be performances by Soprano Mary Lou Fallis, who will sing popular songs from the 1850s, and Ross Manson who will perform two dramatic readings from Consolation. The event will be hosted by Tina Srebotnjak, who will interview Michael Redhill, author of Consolation. You can check out all One Book events here. As part of Keep......

Carol Schwartzott, A Brief History of the Fan, Lilliput Press, c2003. Lovers of books, art, art books, and book art should check out Art Under Cover, an exhibition of "books as sculpture" which opens today at the Toronto Reference Library (TRL). The show features a selection of rarely-seen pieces from the TRL's special collections. Artists' books have been an integral part of 20th century art practice, from the Dada and surrealist movements to the......

In addition to some upcoming online renovations based on some questions they are asking, the Toronto Reference Library has announced a revitalization project that will physically transform the library throughout the next five years. Being the first renovation of its kind since the library opened its doors in 1977, the project will cost $30 million. Original architects Moriyama and Teshima will be responsible for the library's redesign. The first phase of the project will......

Photo courtesy of WordFest. This Thursday the Toronto Reference Library will host a LongPen event with Margaret Atwood—inventor of the device—who will interview BBC personality and author Kate Mosse (not the model), who will be in Sussex, England. Conducted via video conferencing, Mosse will read from her newest work, Sepulchre, and answer audience questions, and will be able to sign books with the LongPen. Mosse's book will be available through Nicholas Hoare Books at......

Photo by ilkrender. The Toronto Reference Library will be celebrating the big 30 this Friday, and you're invited to its open house birthday party. Beginning at 10:30 a.m. with Breakfast Television host Kevin Frankish, Mayor David Miller, and architects Raymond and Ajon Moriyama, the event includes poetry readings, music, artist demonstrations, library tours, workshops, etc. The library will also launch Your Stories, a collection of personal narratives about the library's role in the lives......

The grand dame of Toronto's performing arts venues, the Royal Alexandra Theatre, celebrates its 100th birthday tomorrow. To mark the event, the Mirvishes have organized a free open house from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., during which you can go on a self-guided backstage tour, eat free grub at the BBQ in front of the theatre (weather permitting), or catch a tribute performance from the original members of the 1969 Canadian cast of Hair.......

Stage Struck: 100 Years At The Royal Alex, a free exhibition commemorating the Royal Alexandra Theatre's centennial, opened yesterday at the Toronto Reference Library. Torontoist was at the opening to oggle at the rare playbills, posters and other paraphernalia that would make any theatre geek weak in the knees. Organized by the Toronto Public Library, the Stage Struck exhibit features photos, design sketches, scripts and souvenir books that highlight the long history of the......

In light of Montreal’s Fraser Hickon Library’s recent shutdown, it’s good to know Toronto’s own book havens are as strong as ever. On top of the newly introduced Museum and Arts Pass, the summer kids' programs and all the help the library gives to incoming immigrants looking to get familiar with the city, the Toronto Reference Library provides a varied wealth of hard-to-wrangle books along side wireless, air conditioned luxury. Now this oasis at Yonge......

The Toronto Public Library is the only good thing to have come from amalgamation. One of the worst things to have come from amalgamation, on the other hand, is City Council's insistence that everything that it doesn't do is a result of not being able to afford to do it, and that everything that it does do is a result of not being able to afford not to do it. Last Wednesday morning, June......

A happy National Poetry Month to you! Established eight years ago by The League of Canadian Poets, National Poetry Month brings together schools, publishers, booksellers, literary organizations, libraries, and poets across the country to celebrate poetry. In April, you might trip over poems in some of the oddest places. Today, the festivities kicked off over breakfast at Toronto Reference Library’s Beaton Auditorium. With a morning of short readings hosted by The Globe and Mail’s Books......

Next time you visit the library, take a look at the carpeting and furniture. Does it make you want to linger with a good book or run through the checkout as fast as possible? The Toronto Reference Library, which celebrates its 30th anniversary in November, was breaking itself in when today's ad appeared. Judging from the number of people seen sleeping there, the carpet colours may be too easy on some readers' eyes. Architect Raymond......

We're a little late with this week's music listing--blame the election! Er, okay, maybe someone just got immersed in learning a bit of Flash and let it slip. It won't happen again. If you're looking for some local flavour, you've got a few really good choices this week, including Melissa McClelland, Ohbijou, Elliott Brood, and the Great Lake Swimmers. All highly recommended, particularly Melissa--her voice is like honey. On the not-so-local side, Axl Rose......

Here we go. The biggest week of the year for book lovers, the International Festival of Authors, is upon us. Torontoist will have extensive coverage of this year’s IFOA. For now, here are a few non-IFOA events taking place this week. Monday Tonight, you have the choice of heading over to the Smiling Buddha Bar – 961 College – for this week’s Freedom Readings, starting at 6pm (and free) or checking out Margaret MacMillan......

Excuse me for the lateness of this week’s listing. I’m still on Nuit Blanche time. And yes, I made it until 7am. This is an absolutely fantastic week for word nerds. And check this – if one of your friends is more into sports, you can bring them to a literary event disguised as a boxing match. For a boxing fan like me, it doesn't get any better. Tomorrow at noon, there’s a special launch......

Earlier this week in the concert listings, we briefly told you of the upcoming free shows that the Toronto Public Library were holding. Now that the full details have been released, here's the low-down. To celebrate the recent acquisition of a new local music collection, the Toronto Public Library is throwing two live shows in October. The hope is that this initiative will engage young people into using library services. Judging by the diverse......

Everyone sufficiently recovered from Word on the Street? Over 200,000 people braved the wind and rain and descended upon Queen’s Park for a celebration of books. I have a book hangover, thus the lateness of this week’s listings. Tomorrow night, This Is Not A Reading Series goes Hollywood! Journalist and filmmaker Bruce Yaccato launches Screen Legends, a chronicle of the “Canadian film pioneers who helped build the Hollywood we know today.” Joining Bruce will be......

This fall is shaping up to be a busy one, as everyone and their dog seems to be touring right now. If you haven't spent all of your OSAP money yet, might want to stash away a few pennies for some concert tix. However, if you've already blown your student loan on cheap beer and (even cheaper) Ikea furniture, take comfort in the fact that you can visit your local public library to catch......

This weekend the Toronto Reference Library opens a graphic novel show with works by "leading graphic novelists such as Seth, Chester Brown, Art Spiegelman, Chris Ware, Julie Doucet, Marjane Satrapi, R. Crumb and many more." It'll be up at the TD Gallery Space until March 20, but there will be intermittent gallery talks as well, including a free one in February with Chester Brown, creator of the brilliant (and brilliantly stolen from TOist by an......

We know we're risking grave nerd status for life, but we love Sherlock. So much so that we pilgrimaged to London's 222 Baker Street and had our twelve year-old mug photographed in every room of the good sleuth's townhouse. It was only when we got a little wiser, or at least older, that we were informed that, much like Santa Clause, Sherlock wasn't real. Egads! Having come to terms with that fact, we still like......