Everyone has an idea of what they consider the perfect mother. She may live in a novel or in real life. For those fortunate enough to have been raised by a fabulous mother, we salute you. And for those whose mothers are still with us, count your lucky stars. In celebration of Mother's Day 2021, we offer you a mom-approved list of Mechanics' Institute staff favorite books (fiction and nonfiction) featuring a diverse cast of unique moms.
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For Earth Day 2021, we chose to read about living simply and reveling in the wonders of the natural world. While we are aware of climate change and the many other challenges to our overpopulated planet, we wanted a brief respite from dire predictions.
Rest assured you won't find any portents of doom on our Mother Nature reading list. Join us in celebrating her great bounty and wishing her a lasting legacy. All titles are available for checkout through our ...
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April is National Arab American Heritage Month (NAAHM) and also the beginning of Ramadan in 2021. Expand your literary horizons while learning more about Islamic culture with our introductory fiction list by Muslim authors.
To browse our shelves, call 415-393-0101 and reserve your library visit on Monday, Wednesday or Friday or request titles from our catalog and pick up library materials through our "To Go"...
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PRINT BOOKS
FICTION
Te-Ping Chen Land of big numbers
Patricia Lockwood No one is talking about this
Sarah Penner The lost apothecary
Chris Whitaker We begin at the end
Jane Smiley...
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NON-FICTION
Arts, Architecture & Crafts
Jane Hall Breaking ground: architecture by women 720.82 H140
Biography & Genealogy
Ingrid Seward Prince Philip revealed 941.085 P551s
Tom Gallagher Salazar: the...
E-AUDIOBOOKS
David Attenborough A life on our planet: my witness statement and vision for the future
Jon Fasman We see it all: Liberty and justice in an age of perpetual surveillance
Frank Wilczek Fundamentals: ten keys to reality
Alan P Lightman...
This year has been a banner one for scholastic chess at Mechanics’ Institute (MI), despite most schools hosting classes remotely. So far, MI has organized two sponsored events, offering free participation to all students.
On Saturday, March 13th, MI hosted a special 5-round scholastic tournament sponsored by the Thompson Family Foundation (TFF), an organization started by the family of...
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San Francisco has now moved to the moderate orange tier of California's color-coded system for tracking COVID-19 cases. That means the number of cases in the City and County have decreased sufficiently enough to allow limited reopening of most businesses. According to state and national statistics, San Francisco handled its early response to the pandemic admirably. Local officials throughout the San Francisco Bay Area were quick to issue stay-at-home orders, large tech corporations...
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When you shop on Amazon, you can give back to the Mechanics’ Institute! AmazonSmile will contribute 0.5% of eligible purchases once you select us as your charity of choice. If you’re a frequent Amazon shopper, this is a great way to give back to the library effortlessly!
To shop via AmazonSmile and donate to us, follow these steps:
Go to sm...
