Just Getting Started: Edmonton Public Library's First 100 Years, 1913-2013

By Todd Babiak

"The contribution made by the Edmonton libraries to the sanity and support of the citizens cannot be estimated. No Annual Report can gauge things of this sort." -Annual Report of the Edmonton Public Library, 1931 The Edmonton Public Library turns 100 in 2013! Novelist, journalist, and Edmontonian Todd Babiak tells the story of EPL's birth and coming of age within the bustling narrative of the growth of city and province. Rich with anecdotes and historical photos, records of personal conversations, and tales of expeditions to branch libraries, Just Getting Started immerses readers in a personal journey to the heart of culture in one of Canada's biggest cities. Babiak's history is one-of-a-kind; it reads like a novel, mirroring the institution it commemorates. Edmontonians, librarians, politicians, and historians may glimpse themselves within these pages; all will see how vital a successful public library is to reflecting the needs and aims of a diverse population.

• Language: English
• Publisher: The University of Alberta Press
• Release date: Oct 1, 2013
• ISBN: 9780888648150

Todd Babiak

TODD BABIAK is an award-winning author and screenwriter. His most recent novel, Come Barbarians, was a Globe and Mail book of the year and a #1 regional bestseller. His earlier work includes The Garneau Block, which was a #1 regional bestseller, a longlisted title for the Scotiabank Giller Prize and the winner of the City of Edmonton Book Prize; and Toby: A Man, which was shortlisted for the Stephen Leacock Medal and won the Alberta Book Award for Best Novel. Todd Babiak is the co-founder of Story Engine, a consulting company based in Edmonton and Vancouver.

Book preview

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