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Borrowed & Returned — Arts
Borrowed & Returned

Brooklyn Public Library is full of stories. Borrowed brings the best of them to you.

Current podcast series:

Borrowed & Returned is a new podcast series that examines what our reading public borrowed in the past, and what we’re all reading now. In conversations with library workers, authors and readers across the country, we’ll return to the books that changed us, and changed America, too.

Previous podcast series:

Borrowed and Banned is BPL’s Peabody-nominated series about America’s ideological war with its bookshelves. From September to December 2023, we released ten episodes featuring the stories from students, librarians, and teachers on the frontlines of intellectual freedom, and writers whose books have become political battleground. This series also won a Webby Award and was nominated for an Ambie Award.

BPL’s Anthem Award-winning podcast is a narrative show about superhero librarians, neighborhood stories, and what it means to be a free, democratic place in today’s changing world. We’ve told stories about libraries during natural disasters, the challenges of homelessness, and NYC’s fraught relationship with trash.

For transcripts, pictures, book lists, and resources, please visit our web page: bklynlib.org/podcasts

The views, thoughts, and opinions of the guests do not represent the views, thoughts, and opinions of Brooklyn Public Library.

Copyright: © 2025 Borrowed & Returned

Latest Episodes:

New Libraries, Old Places Jan 28, 2022

Show notes

Libraries weren't always located in their own stately buildings. Many of our branches used to operate out of pharmacies, laundry rooms, storefronts, and more! In celebration of our first new branch in nearly forty years—Adams Street Library, located in a former factory in DUMBO—we're bringing you stories of new libraries in old places.

Read our transcript and check out our book list here: https://www.bklynlibrary.org/podcasts/new-libraries-old-places

Goodbye to All Fines Dec 21, 2021

Show notes

On October 5th, 2021, all three public library systems in New York City eliminated late fines. The change was 125 years in the making, and it made us think: why did public libraries start charging late fines in the first place? And how will the library have to adapt now that we're truly free and truly for all? Read our transcript and check out our book list here: https://www.bklynlibrary.org/podcasts/goodbye-all-fines

Happy Birthday, BPL! Nov 30, 2021

Show notes

In this season of Borrowed, we’ll take a look at what the library was like 125 years ago, the radical ideas that founded public libraries across the country, as well as our missteps along the way.

Building Brooklyn: We've Been Here Before Oct 27, 2021

Show notes

The story of Canarsie in reverse, from the racial unrest in the 1990s, to the anti-integration school boycotts in the 1960s, the community of Canarsie's Black residents in the 19th century, all the way back to Brooklyn's first residents, the Native Lenape people, who gave the neighborhood its name.

Read our transcript and check out our book list here: https://www.bklynlibrary.org/podcasts/building-brooklyn-weve

Building Brooklyn: Finntown Oct 20, 2021

Show notes

In the early 1900s, if you walked around Sunset Park, you might have heard Finnish being spoken on the streets. That's because the neighborhood was home to the largest concentration of Finns in New York City, and though most have since gone from Brooklyn, they left behind their co-operative spirit. The Finns built the first non-profit co-operative apartment buildings in the nation, many of which are still standing today.

Read our transcript and check out our book list here: https://www.bklynlibrary.org/podcasts/building-brooklyn

Building Brooklyn: Eighth Avenue Oct 13, 2021

Show notes

Brooklyn is constantly changing. This episode takes a look at the changes on just one street in one neighborhood: Eighth Avenue in Sunset Park, which many call Brooklyn's Chinatown. In the early 1990s, BPL and the Museum of Chinese in America collected oral histories about Sunset Park. We dive back into that archive, with help from Professor Tarry Hum, urban planner and former Sunset Parker.

Read our transcript and check out our book list here: https://www.bklynlibrary.org/podcasts/building-brooklyn-eighth

Building Brooklyn: Women on the Waterfront Oct 06, 2021

Show notes

At the start of World War II, 200 women were employed at the Brooklyn Navy Yard. That number ballooned to 7,000 at the height of the war, but afterward—women workers were gone as rapidly as they appeared. We tell the story of this unique moment in history, using oral histories from women who worked at the yard during the war, and an interview with author Jennifer Egan, who helped create the collection and used it as research for her award-winning novel, Manhattan Beach.

Read our transcript and check out our book list here: https://www.bklynlibrary.org/podcasts/building-brooklyn-women

Building Brooklyn: Like Coming Home Sep 29, 2021

Show notes

In the middle of the 20th century, a ten square block area in North Gowanus was home to the largest Mohawk settlement outside of Canada. We hear about the Mohawk women who built that community while their husbands and fathers were building skyscrapers. And, we go back hundreds of years in Gowanus and tell the story of the original inhabitants of Brooklyn: the Lenape people, who gave the neighborhood its name. Read our transcript and check out our book list here: https://www.bklynlibrary.org/podcasts/building-brooklyn-coming

Building Brooklyn: From Gowanus to Canarsie Aug 31, 2021

Show notes

We're launching a mini-series about four neighborhoods that made Brooklyn the vibrant, diverse borough it is today! “Building Brooklyn” will take you to Gowanus, the Navy Yard, Sunset Park, and Canarsie to discover some of Brooklyn’s most unique and over-looked stories.

Episode transcript: https://www.bklynlibrary.org/podcasts/building-brooklyn-coming

New Yorkers: Rank Your Vote! May 27, 2021

Show notes

It’s the start of summer, which means block parties, beach trips, and also, big primary elections here in New York City. This will be the city's first election cycle where voters will get to cast their votes for up to five candidates for each position. It’s called ranked choice voting. Read our transcript and check out our book list here: https://www.bklynlibrary.org/podcasts/new-yorkers-rank-your

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