EVENT
Book talk: Author Michael Wolraich on The Bishop and the Butterfly
Jefferson Market Library
Acclaimed author Michael Wolraich will discuss the scandalous history of the Jefferson Market Library and read from his forthcoming narrative nonfiction book, The Bishop and the Butterfly: Murder, Politics, and the End of the Jazz Age.
The charming, landmarked building that houses the Jefferson Market Library has a dark past. Originally constructed as a courthouse, it included a women’s criminal court in what is now the children’s reading room. The night hearings became a form of entertainment for members of the public, mostly men, who attended hearings to ogle the accused prostitutes.
Michael Wolraich is the author of the critically acclaimed Unreasonable Men (2014) and Blowing Smoke (2010). His writing has appeared in The Atlantic, Rolling Stone, the Daily Beast, New York magazine, Reuters, and CNN, and he is the founder and editor of dagblog.com. Wolraich grew up in Iowa and graduated from Williams College in Massachusetts before falling in love with New York City, where he has lived since 2000.
Presented in the first floor Willa Cather Room. Free and open to the public.
