My name is Vanetta Rivera, I am a new librarian assistant at the Grand street branch. I enjoy reading poetry because I feel like it’s very therapeutic and there is always a poem that can help me relate to how I am feeling. With poetry it is like any complicated topic is put beautifully into words. Rupi Kaur and Cleo Wade are currently two of my favorite poets. Both poets have helped me to understand the world around me in a clearer perspective.
Rupi Kaur’s latest book Home Body has only four chapters and is a very short, yet interesting read. The chapters are Mind, Heart, Rest, and Awake. After reading the first chapter I could not put the book down to stop reading. My favorite chapter was Mind, there are so many poems in this chapter that are relative to everyday life. The poems in this chapter also inspire those going through difficult times to not give up. For example the poem on page 19,” you are lonely but you are not alone -there is a difference.” You can read a post about Milk and Honey, a previous book of poetry by Kaur, here.
Cleo Wade’s 2018 book, Heart Talk: Poetic Wisdom For a Better Life has also been a page turner. Cleo Wade is most popularly known for her poetic affirmations that she posts on social media daily. Heart Talk: Poetic Wisdom For a Better Life, jumps right into self care poetry. As stated in the book the poems consist of loving, being and healing. One of my favorite poems in this book can be found on page 37. ( included below )
Clean Out Your Thoughts – They Have The Power to Cover Your Entire Life In Dirt
If you’re interested in reading books written by these two awesome poets, their books are available in the BCCLS library system.
Written by : Vanetta Rivera Librarian Assistant at the Grand Street Branch
Hello everyone! My name is Bernadette, and I’m the new Information and Digital Services Librarian at the Hoboken Public Library. Before I came to HPL, I had internships at New York Public Library, Pratt Institute Libraries, and the independent news program Democracy Now!. In the Philippines, I worked at the National Film Archives of the Philippines and the Cinematheque Center Manila, where I developed a love for cinema that engages communities and inspires social justice and societal transformation.
COMMEMORATING WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH March marks Women’s History Month, which celebrates women’s contributions to history, culture, and society. The National Women’s History Alliance designated the 2022 theme as “Women Providing Healing, Promoting Hope.” Immediately, this theme made me think of the remarkable Filipino journalist Maria Ressa, who was awarded the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize for her courageous fight for freedom of expression in the Philippines and around the world. Not only is she a Nobel Laureate, she is a Princeton alum and proud resident of New Jersey.
As a journalist and CEO of the news outlet Rappler, she has defended human rights by shedding a critical light on Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte’s controversial “war on drugs,” which has killed tens of thousands of Filipinos in the last five years. Because she exposed his administration’s track record of corruption, state-sanctioned violence, disinformation campaigns, and repression of the people, Rappler—and Ressa herself—was targeted by the Philippine government.
Ressa’s struggle for truth, democracy, and freedom of the press in the Philippines is chronicled in two thrilling political documentaries available with a Hoboken Public Library card.
A THOUSAND CUTS Directed by Ramona S. Diaz, the documentary A Thousand Cuts depicts the war between the press and the government, between truth and disinformation. Ressa and her team combat falsities spun by government officials seeking to lie their way to power. The Philippines’ democracy hangs in the balance—and so does Ressa’s own life and freedom.
It is available to borrow on DVD from the Hoboken Public Library – BCCLS Libraries.
WE HOLD THE LINE Another documentary We Hold the Line follows Ressa and her team. It gives the audience rare behind the scenes access as her team continues their brave journalism amidst threats to their work and lives. The documentary weaves together narratives from various perspectives—victims of the drug war, critical politicians in hiding, and even members of death squads commiting summary executions—to give insight into the real “war on drugs” of president Duterte.
We Hold The Line is available for streaming on Kanopy with a Hoboken Public Library Card.
IN RESSA’S WORDS The Duterte government’s systematic crackdown on press freedom has led to 114 documented cases of attacks against media practitioners and journalists in the Philippines, including 19 killings. These attacks come at a critical time and weakens democracies globally, polluting the atmosphere of information dissemination. What can the community do when the people and the truth itself are under attack?
Ressa shared her wisdom and calls to action in her Nobel Peace Prize lecture delivered last December. “We’re at a sliding door moment, where we can continue down the path we’re on and descend further into fascism, or we can each choose to fight for a better world. … The destruction has happened. Now it’s time to build – to create the world we want.”
Written by: Bernadette Patino Information and Digital Services Librarian
Hoboken Library Staff Picks 