Summer Lovin'

OK, OK...maybe not Summer Lovin'...maybe Summer READIN', but after living with Grease my entire life, you can't say "summer" without hearing "lovin'" in your head.  (True story.)

Even though it's not summer yet, and all these poor Uni students still have Finals to get through, the Seniors' last day is THIS FRIDAY, MAY 15.  I've gotten to know a lot of them, and I'll miss them.  I wanted to give them some summer reads before they left.  (And, as of this post, TWO have already been checked out.  Considering the display has only been up since Thursday, that's a good goin'-rate around here.)

The theme of this display is Summer Reads.  There are a lot of summer love stories out there, but I didn't want to just focus on those.  I also chose some island books: classic (The Mysterious Island, Robinson Crusoe), survival (Lord of the Flies), and futuristic (Nil).  I put our big Woodstock book on display, hoping some music-loving students would want to flip through its pages to learn more about the Summer of Love.  And, there are also some books that take place during the summer, which are just really good stories (A Beautiful Lie).  I was excited to also offer two excellent summer/beachy graphic novels for the display, This One Summer (which was checked out so quickly that it's not in the photos) and Robot Dreams, respectively.

I hope you have a lot of summer reading on  your to-do list for the next couple of months.  Remember, even if you don't get a summer break, it should still be a time of rest and rejuvenation.  I hope you get some time to yourself to rest, rejuvenate, and READ! 

Book List Spotlight: NPR

I love trolling for book lists on the internet.  I usually do this for book displays and book talks...and because I'm a glutton for finding more books that I'll NEVER have the time to read.  Maybe if I stopped daydreaming about all the books I want to read and actually read them...but that's for another time.  Anyhoo...I found three stellar lists today, all via your good friend and mine, N.  P.  R.

They Came, They Saw, They Cooked: Five Food Memoirs

Hmmm...food memoirs.  My weakness.  After recently viewing Spinning Plates (which is amazing, and I highly recommend it), a documentary about three VERY different restaurants in the US, I really want to read Grant Achatz's memoir, Life, On the Line (there IS a double meaning there, if you can't see it yourself after reading this quick blurb).  He created a 3 Star Michelin restaurant in Chicago and then got diagnosed with Stage 4 Tongue Cancer, and doctors said the only way to save his life was to cut out his tongue.  A chef.  Cutting.  Out.  His.  Tongue.  Could he find another option for survival?  Read his memoir to find out.  The other memoirs look awesome, too. 

Your Picks: Top 100 Science-Fiction, Fantasy Books

This one will cause me the most problems for my Want to Read List.  I've only read 16 of these...SIX.  TEEN.  Ridiculous I say!  I gotta get my hands on some of these ASAP.  So much Neil Gaiman.  Have to read more.  I've only read his picture books and YA stuff.  NEED to read Stardust.  And, I've never read 1984.  Never!  I don't know about Lord of the Rings, though.  I've never envisioned myself reading those, but they are #1. 

Your Favorites: 100 Best-Ever Teen Novels

Oh, I have thoughts about this list.  LOTS of them.  Like John Green having TWO in the Top 10?  He's so new!  We don't know if those will stand the test of time!  I should get over it, but still...I have only read 24 of these, which is even more shocking than the Sci-Fi List.  I thought for sure I would've read half of them, but there is a lot of repeat authors (Ursula K. LeGuin, Tamora Pierce, John Green) and new authors that I haven't read (ok, I've read ONE John Green, and it WASN'T The Fault in Our Stars).  I was pleasantly surprised to find that Francesca Lia Block's Weetzie Bat series, Dangerous Angels, made the cut.  About a group of misfits who find each other and make a family together in HollywoodLand, these beautifully lyrical stories weren't around when I was young, but I would have been crazy about them if they had been. 

Anyway, those are my lists for the day.  Very fun, full of excellent reads, and there's something for everyone.  Hope YOU have time to check a few of them out!

I Still Believe in 398.2

It's time for a little Once Upon a Time and Happily Ever After.  It's time for our Fairy Tales New, Old, & Retold display!

NOTE: We already had one book, Ruby Red, checked out before I could get a photo taken!

Disney's live action adaptation of Cinderella comes out on March 13, so I thought this would be the perfect time for a fairy tales display.  You can't just do traditional fairy tales, though, can you?  That would be BORING!  You need to include new fairy tales (like Neil Gaiman's Stardust) and fairy tale retellings and reimaginings (like Marisa Meyer's Cinder [which is currently checked out, but will find a home in the display when it's returned] or Donna Jo Napoli's Beast).  Of course we left room for the traditional tales as well.  Philip Pullman's recent collection of Grimm's fairy tales spares no expense at the blood and gore that went into the original tales, and I really hope someone discovers that tome when it's on display.

What would a display be without a lil signage to give explanation to why it's there?? 

(Cause if you didn't know Cinderella was coming out on March 13, this random fairy tale display would probably make no sense whatsoever.)

I hope students have fun revisiting old fairy tales and get to discover some new ones.  It's hard for our Uni students to find time to read books for pleasure, but maybe they'll be able to read a couple of short tales for fun.  

Print is Not Dead

I go through phases with my Kindle.  Sometimes it's all I want to have: clicking from page to page, having free range to dip and dive into several different books, and having so many tomes at my fingertips can be exhilarating.   More often than not, though, I just want to hold a book.

I want to hold a book.  I want to smell it.  I want to be able to turn its pages, write in it, flip through it and hear the pages rustling. 

I do fear, though, that many are not of my opinion.  I fear that many growing up today would rather have an eReader than a book.  But then the internet gives me something like this:

Readers on the NY Subway

Reiner Gerritsen spent over three years collecting these images of readers reading on the NYC Subway.  This was beautiful, marvelous, everything I needed.  I would have loved to be the artist clicking photos of others reading.  I love looking at these photos, and studying the intensity on the readers' faces: the joy, wonder, bewilderment.  I love trying to imagine why they need that book at that very moment.  I'm not trying to be weird or nosy, but I will think about the book I see you holding...just a warning...and this will be the look I get when someone catches me wondering:

WHAT CHU LOOKIN AT, WILLIS???

An eReader might give you and your book choices some privacy, but I also love to shout out to the world what I'm reading.  I like it when a stranger will strike up a conversation with me about the book I'm reading.  That's always lovely, because one of the things I enjoy most is talking about what I'm reading.  (Just ask the students here at Uni: I GUSH about books...I think I overwhelm the students sometimes.  I know cause they look at me funny when I stop for a breath.)

My Kindle is fun, no doubt.  It's good for travel, since I can take a lot of books with me without being weighed down, but it will never win.  Stephen Fry agrees with me, too:

Welcome to 2015!

WHOA!  I totally stopped posting over Holiday Break, but that's what breaks are for...to pause, relax, and rejuvenate.

To be honest, it's been kind of hard to get back in the swing of things.  I think I might have had too much fun over break.  I didn't do much: had lots of Christmas fun, played with the three beautifullest babies in the world, hung out with my awesome husband, spent time with great friends, wore lots of Christmas sweaters...Yes, an outstanding, yet SIMPLE, time to be sure.

However, I was having too much fun and didn't get to do all the reading I envisioned doing.  In fact, I barely started a new book.  My imaginings of having lots of time off from class to read ended up being the reality of spending lots of time with my babes during the day, watching lots of Avengers-related stuff with my husband at night, and then being too sleepy to read.  What a bad librarian!!!

 I did start Stephen King's latest book, Revival.  My son wanted to get me a book for Christmas, and he wanted it to be shiny.  While wandering around the bookstore, my husband saw Revival, showed it to  my son, and he approved.

 You can't tell here, but the physical copy has a shimmering sheen that met with my son's "shiny" approval.

It's off to a great start, with the main character facing moral dilemmas, drug addiction, and losing his mother and only sister in tragic ways...and that's all in the first 160 pages!  My goal was to have it finished by this week, but alas, that hasn't happened.  I hope to finish it soon, even though I have to read two novels by the start of class next Thursday.  I better get to readin'!!!

Here's to a great 2nd semester in the Uni High Library, a strong finish to my time in the GSLIS program, and hopefully I'll get some sleep along the way. 

Holiday Wishes

Even though this is a library blog, I can still talk about some holiday wishes.  Actually, I should make that holiday WISH. 

My holiday wish is to have time to read.

I know that sounds silly.  I'm a graduate assistant in a LIBRARY.  I am getting my master's in LIBRARY science.  I talk about, write about, think about books all day.  But, I don't really get a chance to read them that much.  I am busy at work, in class, taking care of three awesome babies, and writing papers.  When I'm not doing those things, I would really like to spend time with my wonderful husband.  Finding the time to read shouldn't be a struggle, but it is.  

I have a stack of books next to my bed that is almost impenetrable.  It's also close to toppling over.  Everyday I work here I find more books I want to read.  Every time I go on Good Reads I find more wonderful books recommended by my friends, and then I get sucked into their Listopia section, and I'm just toast.

I've never really thought about my own mortality until recently.  As the list of books I want to read gets longer and longer AND longer, I'm more aware of my lack of time on this plain.  I'll never get to read all of the books I want to read.  That is probably the most singularly depressing thought I've ever had.  I don't like that fact.  In fact, I HATE that fact.

Oh, my.  This was supposed to be upbeat, right?  I mean, I'm supposed to be writing about my holiday wish.  Let me see if I can turn this around.

OK...My holiday wish, or GOAL, is to read three books of my own choosing with absolute joy and abandon.  I will choose whatever I want: horror, graphic novels, contemporary literature, young adult...the sky's the limit.  Knowing me, my choices will probably come from this Good Reads list, "Food on the Cover."  I am so into books that center around food these days!  I don't know...it's a recent obsession.  Memoir, YA, picture books, adult fiction...if it has to do with food, I'M IN.

These books have a really good chance of making my holiday read list:

I hope to report back in January and tell you that I've accomplished my goal! 

ALL the New Fiction

Remember all of the awesome new fiction books we got last week?  Well, we got even MORE this week!  We have no room for all of the new books in the New Books display.  So, Amy wanted to try something new.

I took a portion of the new books and put them on the "back book display."  This is where I put most of our bigger displays.  We want to see if the books go faster from the back display as opposed to the New Books display that the students see as they walk into the library.

I've been creating informal tally sheets for each display to keep track of which books are checked out from each display.  I've done the same thing for this "display race."  Both displays have some pretty spectacular new books, so I hope a lot of books get checked out.

WHO WILL WIN???

VS.

For the back display, I did create some signage, so students would know what was up.  I even decided to use some Snoopy, because new acquisitions always make me want to do my happy dance.  Winning.

Finally, our awesome library technician, Paul, came up with some great yellow tags to put in each new book to flag it for students. 

Students here at Uni work so hard in their classes, but several do come in to check out books for pleasure reading.  A lot of them tend to check out the same authors: J.R.R. Tolkien, Tamora Pierce, Kristin Cashore.  All are fantastic, but I hope all of this teamwork to push the new books works, because they are awesome and deserve to be read, too!

NEW BOOKS!!!!!

Oh, Mama Mia!  Look at all of those new books we got this week!  It's always exciting to get new books, but when we get this many at one time, my head reels.  Not because it's a lot of work to process them, wrap them, put them on our blog, etc.  Oh, no, not because of that.  Because I want to read them all!!!  (Mo' Librarian Problems, yo.)

Whenever we get new fiction in for our collection, I enter the title, author, call number, and publisher synopsis into Uni's What Should I Read Next? blog.  It's good fun, but it usually ends up in at least ten new books added to my Want to Read List.  Here are the top two on my list after this acquisition haul:

There's also a new book that shares a name with an awesome song from the 80s, and if you don't know the song, you shouldn't be my friend or be reading this.  The book, however, has NOTHING to do with high school, John Hughes, or breakfast.  It's about a town where every four years a child is released from jail and kills people.  So...yeah.

I also get to enter new graphic novels into our online collection that we keep on LibraryThing.  I am constantly trying to become more knowledgeable about GN's, and I still have no clue about Manga (what's good, what's isn't, etc).  I am making strides in the GN arena, though, and a lot of it is thanks to this task I have.  

We usually get a few good GN's with every new haul, and this time I wasn't disappointed.  I can't wait to check out the new DC offering, Black Canary and Zatanna (love it when the females are let out to play), and Mimi Pond's Over Easy, (about the 70s, greasy spoons, and drugs), looks right up my bleak alley preferences.  

When all of the books are entered, blogged, posted, etc (you know, all that work that makes me feel like I'm a real librarian already), they get to fill the New Book Rack.  This rack, which Amy longs to get rid of, looks pretty nice when it's all filled to the brim with new acquisitions!   

Teen Read Week!

It's Teen Read Week!  

I promised I'd let you know about the shenanigans I'm trying to get our students to participate in, so here we go:

1.  FLASH US YOUR BOOKS!  I'm collaborating with friend Kristi Danger Murray Costello at Arkansas State University Writing Center for this one, everybody.  Her group had the great idea that everyone should flash their favorite books.

They are meeting at their campus' fountain, by the student union, on October 22 at noon.  Everyone will read aloud the first line of their favorite book.  Sounds awesome, right?  Well, we might not have a fountain to gather round here, but I am hoping students AND staff will come take a picture holding up their favorite book, so I can create an iMovie/slideshow.  So far we don't have any takers, but it would be a great way to participate with A-State's Writing Center, and I'd upload the iMovie to our YouTube channel at noon on 10/22, as the A-State students are reading.

2.  RECORD A BOOK TRAILER!  Supervisor Amy and I are hoping that this week's recorded book trailers are just a jumping off point for a year-long trailer drive.  We want to post these on our YouTube channel.  We ask, however, that the students have a small index card to consult during their reading/recommendation recording, so it's not just a bunch of rambling.  We'd like them to have a bit of structure and to have their book with them.  We want to continue to record these throughout the year.

3.  TEEN READ OUT!  We want to end the week with a read out.  During our Uni Period on Friday, we want students to come in and read their favorite poem, short story, or the first chapter of their favorite book.  We will have snacks to try to lure those teens in....MUHWAHAHAHA!

Didn't like my ideas?  Well, for Teen Read Week Inspiration, visit the official website.  There are programming ideas, products for purchase, and other information for this awesome week of reading.

I'm super excited about all of these activities, and I hope there's a high level of participation.  I'd love to have at least ten students present for the Teen Read Out on Friday.  We'll just have to wait and see!  Read on, Teens!  Read on, EVERYBODY!!!

Living in Library Land at Home

I love to read with my kids.  Love it.  I believe with 100% of my heart that as a parent it is your privileged obligation to read to and with your kids.  However, because I love and appreciate other forms of media so much, too, it is sometimes hard for me to set boundaries for my kids.  I love to observe them intently watching a film or TV show, because after it we have detailed conversations about plot, character motivation, and other elements (like setting).  I also love to watch them play video games with their father.  They are gaining great hand-eye coordination AND problem-solving skills.  I mean, how could you ever play any edition of Zelda without developing problem-solving skills.

But, today I'm here to confess something.  Some days my two biggers spend too much time in front of the box instead of between the covers of a book.

I try to reassure myself.  They can't go to sleep without at least one story.  They love to re-read the same books over and over again (especially Halloween books--at all times of year), and the two biggers love to take books to their little sister, so she can open them, feel them, and use them as teething toys.  However, they usually only turn to books when I prompt them.  I feel like I'm giving too much time to the other forms of literacy media in our home, so I've started to try to balance out the time divided between media.  My partner in this?  Roald Dahl.

At the beginning of this week, I started to tell my oldest daughter about a very special book.  A VERY special book with a special girl who has powers and who LOVES to read more than anything.  My daughter's eyes grew wider and wider as I told her about this girl, named Matilda.  She wanted to jump into the book right away.  I feel like this is the perfect starting point to get my kids re-acquainted with asking for book time: the story is top notch (of course), Quentin Blake's illustrations come at least every other page to help them visualize what's going on, and Matilda's mission to bring justice to her friends and Miss Honey will include a lot of grossery and action for us to talk about.

So far #1 has enjoyed immensely and has started to ask,  "When will we be reading Matilda tonight?"  #2, who wasn't too interested at first, has started to take note and peer around the covers of the book to look at the classic Blake illustrations.  But, how did I REALLY know this ruse was working?

Yesterday, when sitting in the optometrist's waiting room, #1 and I were reading Dr. Seuss' The Sneetches.  When McBean started to take off the stars of the Star Bellies (at an exorbitant rate) after putting on stars to the No Star Bellies, #1 made an amazing connection.  She said, "McBean is like Matilda's daddy!  He's taking money from those people and being sneaky about it."

Oh, my.  I could not have been prouder in that moment.  Not proud that my plan had worked, but proud that she is starting to cultivate a love for Roald Dahl and can connect the dots between stories.  YES!