JMRL book club discusses sci-fi novel by Becky Chambers

It’s summer reading season and Jefferson-Madison Regional Library coordinates a variety of book clubs for all ages. One of JMRL’s recurring offerings is the First Thursday Book Club, a hybrid (in-person/virtual) meetup for adults hosted by Greene County Library and Friends of the Greene County Library. Facilitated by Branch Manager EJ Dowling, each month’s featured […]

Lara Call Gastinger’s guide to viewing nature

As an artist and botanical illustrator, Lara Call Gastinger’s work reflects our local environment, detailing native plants near her Charlottesville home and in the nearby mountains. She was the chief illustrator for the Flora of Virginia Project, a botanical reference book and app cataloging the rich biodiversity of our Commonwealth, and she is also widely […]

In conversation with poet Sophia Terazawa

Sophia Terazawa is a Vietnamese-Japanese poet, novelist, and performance artist whose work explores diasporic identities and experiences of exile as well as polyvocal and experimental forms of writing. She is the author of four books, including Oracular Maladies, her new poetry collection, and Tetra Nova, her debut novel. Terazawa teaches in Virginia Tech’s MFA creative […]

Lauren Catlett on working with Carmelita Estrellita

Recently re-released in a 10th anniversary edition, Little Star is the memoir of Carmelita Estrellita, a trans poet, artist, and educator who lived in Charlottesville until her death in 2016. Edited by Lauren Catlett, the book combines Estrellita’s writing, stories, and drawings to share reflections on her life and to offer comfort, affirmation, and inspiration […]

Community study calls for new local arts council

When you’re exploring local art galleries, attending an author event, or going to see a concert or play, it’s easy to see Charlottesville as a city that’s invested in arts and culture—a refuge of the type of creative self-expression and community-building that often feels under attack these days, whether by artificial intelligence, federal funding priorities, […]

A.D. Carson on his new book Being Dope

Dr. A.D. Carson is a musician, performance artist, and writer, in addition to being an associate professor of hip hop and a Shannon Center Fellow for Advanced Studies at the University of Virginia. His album, i used to love to dream, was the first peer-reviewed rap album and received UVA’s 2021 Research Award for Excellence […]

Poet MaKshya Tolbert discusses ‘Shade is a place’

MaKshya Tolbert practices poetry and placemaking in Virginia, where her grandmother raised her. She is the 2025 Art in Library Spaces artist-in-residence at the University of Virginia and co-stewards Fernland Studios, an open-ended studio insistent on rest, rejuvenation, and reciprocity as a core compositional practice. Tolbert was the 2024 New City Arts Fellowship guest curator, […]

Kathryn Scanlan discusses the uncanny in real life

Known for her honed and exacting prose, Kathryn Scanlan is a writer of essays and novels, including Aug 9—Fog, The Dominant Animal, and Kick the Latch. From her tightly constructed short stories to novels informed by real-life stories and research, Scanlan is intensely dedicated to form and craft.  In her “Notes on Craft,” published in […]

Cozying up to the second annual Crozet Book Fest

If you think spring is the season of book festivals, think again. The Crozet Book Fest will take place on October 25, featuring free panel discussions and book signings with authors of fantasy, suspense, and romance, as well as middle grade and picture books. Now in its second year, the Crozet Book Fest is presented […]