1. Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins. Perkins has written a trilogy of related romantic tales, and it all kicked off with Anna’s story. Anna’s family decides she should spend her senior year attending school in Paris, and she is less than thrilled until she meets St. Clair. Unfortunately, St. Claire already has a girlfriend. This is a sweet and funny story with great characters.
2. Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell. This romance about two misfits is a 2014 Printz honor book. It tells the story of first love between Eleanor and Park through one school year.
3. Carter Finally Gets It by Brent Crawford. This is American Pie for teens. Carter is a boy just entering high school and this book is all about his hilarious (and often disastrous) adventures in the search for love and sex.
4. Playing with Matches by Brian Katcher. This is the story of how Leon found his dream girl, except she wasn’t exactly how he pictured her. Melody Hennon was horribly burned as a child, but she fulfills everything Leon wants in a girlfriend. This book focuses on Leon dealing with his emotional connection to Melody, and his purely physical attraction to the gorgeous Amy Green. It’s a great book with realistic romance and humor.
5. These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman. This Sci-Fi Romance is about two literal star-crossed lovers. Stuck alone with each other on an abandoned planet, Lilac LaRoux and Tarver Marsden must work together to survive and to find out the secret behind the whispers they hear when no one else is there.

Cover Photo Credit: fly (CC BY 2.0)

The post Get Ready for Valentine’s Day: Romance for Teens first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

Libraries that offer gaming programs or circulate games should consider attending Gen Con to better serve their patrons.  Gen Con is a great place for librarians to learn about and playtest games to add to their collections.  I was at the convention for 3 days, and I still wasn’t able to experience everything.  While there I learned about many games I’d never even heard of. Moreover, I was able to playtest games that are currently out, as well as upcoming releases.  Reading reviews of board games, and even seeing them played on YouTube, are nothing in comparison to getting my hands on the actual games themselves, and playing through with a group of people.

The convention is broken up into an exhibit hall, a large play hall in the back, and multiple rooms with different events happening throughout the convention center.  Purchasing a badge allows you into the gaming area and the exhibit hall, but many of the events cost extra.  Many of these events require tickets, which often sell out very early. Next year I plan on deciding what events to participate in ahead of time and purchasing those tickets as early as possible.

Librarians are able to get a special pass and attend on Trade Day (Wednesday), which I think could be particularly helpful.  I was overwhelmed by all of the information and gaming that was offered throughout the website and at the convention, and I was lucky to attend with friends.  I would suggest that any librarian who is attending Gen Con for the first time should partner up with someone who has been there before.  Another suggestion would be to look through the programming book, available in PDF form on the Gen Con Indy website.  The program book is currently for this year’s convention (which just wrapped up), but should be updated soon.  Even if the program book is slightly out of date, it gives an idea of what is available at the convention.

Gen Con was an amazing experience.  I left the convention with multiple new games, and an even longer list of games that I want to purchase soon.  As a librarian, I am excited to get some more table-top games to add to our ever growing selection.  I can’t wait to attend the convention again next year.

Cover Image Credit: SuSchu

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When signing up for BookBub, the person will enter his or her email address and then select as many book categories as he or she is interested in.  Some of these categories include:  Best Sellers, Mysteries & Thrillers, Romance, Historical Fiction, Fantasy & Sci-Fi,  LGBT Fiction, Children & Middle Grades, Teen Literature, Cooking, and more.  Each day BookBub will send a detailed listing of all its deals in the subscriber’s chosen categories along with links for the subscriber to purchase the deals.

BookBub isn’t the only subscription discount e-book service.  A few of the other good choices are Bookperk (a service from HarperCollins) and Riffle Select (very similar to BookBub). For Kindle Readers, there is the Kindle Daily Deal and the Kindle Monthly selection for $3.99 or less. Another option is the Barnes and Noble 101 Nook Books for $2.99 or less.  As a Kindle user, I know that most of the Barnes and Noble Nook Book deals are also available for the same price on Amazon.

So, if you love ebooks, check out all these deals to improve your digital library today!

The post Get Great Deals on e-Books first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

The Hansel Public Library’s Robotics Club won the Loleta D. Fyan grant this year.  The grant (in the amount of $5000) is awarded every year and “supports a project that will develop and/or improve public library services, will effect changes that are innovative and responsive to the future and have potential for broader impact and application beyond a specific local need.”¹  This club will use LEGO Mindstorms technology and is for pre-teen patrons.

Another library based Robotics Club is from New Rochelle High School in New York.  This club is run by the school’s librarian, Ryan Paulsen.  This group participated in a FIRST Robotics Competition and was started with faculty, parent, and other schools’ help along with a grant from NASA.  Paulsen said that he didn’t have a lot of experience with robotics (aside from watching Battle Bots when he was younger), but that his librarian skills helped him research what his team needed to be successful.  The team also used library space to build their robot.  The New Rochelle High School principal said that the robotics team helps make the library a “place of action” rather than a museum.  According to Paulsen, teams who compete in the FIRST competition are teamed up with senior mentors who help throughout the process.  This makes it much easier for teams to form and get involved in the competition.

Librarians who would like to start a robotics program at their library should decide if they are going to compete, and if so, where.  The FIRST Robotics Competition website has a listing of local teams and events.  The team will need funding, a specific age group, and a place to build.  Even if the library can’t sponsor an on-going robotics club, the library could still purchase some robotics sets and have programming based around the robotics concept.

Resources

1. http://www.ala.org/news/press-releases/2014/03/haslet-public-library-robotics-club-wins-2014-loleta-d-fyan-grant

The post Robotics Clubs At the Library first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

Amy, a librarian in Missouri, has written a blog post about hosting a library LEGO club. If your library doesn’t already have LEGOs to use for a free build or other LEGO related program, Amy suggests an initial purchase of at least $250-300 (she says her library has spent $500-$750 so far on LEGOs). Do not worry too much about getting different sets (including the new pink LEGO sets) because all the pieces will get lumped in together and the colors will get mixed. She also suggests making sure to purchase large building boards and lots of LEGO people. The library may also look for donations of LEGO items, but the library staff must then have a plan to clean all donated LEGO pieces.

Amy suggests holding the LEGO programs at the same time each month, in a space that gives participants more than enough room to build. Each librarian must decide how to limit the age of the participants for the program based on the needs of library patrons. Sometimes splitting the LEGO program into younger and older children works well, other times this will break up siblings and create problems. Each of Amy’s LEGO programs has a theme to inspire builders, and at the end of the program she displays the LEGO creations for other patrons to enjoy throughout the month.

Another innovative LEGO program is held annually in Saint Joseph, Michigan. The Maud Preston Palanske Library, in collaboration with local businesses, hosts the Build Your Way Around Town LEGO event. This is a month long event that allows local amateur builders to showcase their creations, “How to Build” workshops, LEGO Bingo, LEGO Building competition, and a demonstration from a professional LEGO builder. Stephanie Masin, director of the Maud Preston Palanske Library suggests all librarians consult LEGO’s Fair Play section of their site before promoting LEGO events to make sure that are in compliance.

A librarian can choose from many kinds of programs (or develop his or her own) to get into the LEGO craze. One great resource for any library looking to develop a LEGO program is the official LEGO website. This site has searchable LEGO building instructions and galleries of LEGO creations. No matter the library’s budget, librarians can develop and host a successful LEGO program and encourage his or her patrons to display their creativity.

The post LEGO Programs at the Library first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

April 4 – Captain America: The Winter Soldier is a follow up to the first Captain America movie. In it, Captain is getting used to living in modern society. This movie will also feature Scarlett Johansson as the Black Widow.

May 2 – The Amazing Spider-Man 2 starring Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone (a real life and in-movie couple) will feature new villains for Spider-Man to face. This time around he goes up against the trifecta of Electro, Green Goblin, and The Rhino.

May 23 – X-Men Days of Future Past will see the return of Bryan Singer at the helm of the X-Men franchise. This is a film adaptation of one of the more popular X-Men story arcs written by Chris Claremont. The storyline fluctuates between the past and present while the X-Men try to change history to prevent a cataclysmic event. This film will see the return of many past X-Men characters and will introduce American Horror Story alum, Evan Peters, as Quicksilver (the son of Magneto).

June 6 – The Fault in Our Stars, based on many librarian’s favorite author John Green’s novel of the same name, will hit theatres this summer. Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort (who were just seen together as siblings in Divergent) play the romantic leads in this story about two teens who meet and fall in love at a cancer support group.

August 1 – Guardians of the Galaxy is another Marvel Universe movie coming to big screens. This is a lesser known title, but stars some big names, including Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, and Zoe Saldana. Whoovians will be thrilled to see that Amy Pond (aka Karen Gillan) is also making an appearance. This is a sci-fi space tale about an American pilot and a misfit group (which includes an anthropomorphic raccoon) who must band together and save the universe.

August 15 – The Giver will hit screens with a star-studded cast including Meryl Streep, Jeff Bridges, Taylor Swift, and Alexander Skarsgård. This movie is based on a Newbery Award-winning novel of the same name by Lois Lowery. The trailer for this film just came out and it does look like they may have deviated from the book, especially since the actor playing Jonas (who is 12 in the book) is 25 in real life. Audiences will have to see how these changes affect the story.

August 22 – If I Stay, based on the novel of the same name, will star Chloe Grace Moretz (who played another literary character, Hit Girl, in the Kick Ass movies). Moretz will play Mia Hall whose family is in a horrific accident that leaves only Mia alive. In a coma, Mia must now make the ultimate decision to live or die.

The book-based movies don’t stop at the end of summer. Fall and winter will see the premieres of The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Pt. 1, The Maze Runner, and The Hobbit: There and Back Again.

To keep up with all the books being made into movies, check out The Mid-Continent Public Library’s Based on the Book website.

The post Books to Movies: Get Ready for the Summer Season first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

Zaker said she was inspired by the book Punk Rock Aerobics and also her own love of exercise to create a library fitness program under the alt+library category (offering programs to patrons in their 20s and 30s). She successfully planned and launched her Punk Rock Aerobics program with 35 attendees. Since then she has gone on to host other themed fitness activities including: Alterna-Pilates, Brutal Yoga (yoga set to black/death metal music), Holidaze Yoga (where she uses rock covers of holiday songs), Zombie Survival Aerobics, Glam Metal Yoga, Hair-obicis (all the best Hair Band music), and more. She has also set out a list of suggestions to make one of these programs a possibility in any library:

1. Make sure you have patrons sign liability waivers. Zaker suggests asking your library’s legal counsel for help, or using reputable online legal forms databases. She also says to make sure your patrons know that whoever is leading this program is not a trained fitness professional, and that all patrons should go at their own pace and not push too hard.
2. Create your Playlist. Zaker says that she uses the Grooveshark site to create her playlists, but that you could also use a single CD if you wish. Zaker also listens to stations through the Pandora application to research music in specific genres.
3. Develop your routine. Zaker suggests building your routine upon DVDs that are available at your library, that way patrons can check those DVDs out after the program. She specifically says to note what moves look easy to demonstrate to someone else. Then she says to match your moves to your music, and make sure your playlist has a logical flow to it.
4. Promoting your program. To get the word out, Zaker says that you should go to local gyms and talk to the trainers. She also suggests advertising your program online, and that if you choose to make flyers that they be catchy, will appeal to the correct audience, and that they are distributed to non-library venues.
5. Setting the stage. The final suggestion that Zaker has is to make sure that your community space is free of clutter so that patrons can move about without fear of injury. She also suggests dressing the part by wearing attire that fits your fitness program’s theme.

These tips can be used to replicate Zaker’s program, or to create a new one at your library. This program could be tailored to fit any age group or interest. The main thing to remember is to focus on what would make your patrons interested, and to stress that this is a program for fun and enjoyment.

The post Fitness Programs in the Library first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

Many librarians are realizing that there is a definitive shift in the way the library will be serving the public in the future.  With the addition of computers, DVDs, and now e-books and other digital media, the library is becoming a place that people come to for a variety of learning materials, not just traditional print books.  One group in Toronto has taken that idea even further and started a Kitchen Library: a non-profit kitchen tool lending library[1].  Currently, for an annual fee of $50 (Canadian) people can join the library and, as members, may borrow small to medium kitchen appliances for three to five days.  According to The Kitchen Library founder, Dayna Boyer, she got the idea for the Kitchen Library from the Toronto Tool Library[2], a collection of approximately 2000 power and hand tools that members may borrow for household projects. 

Boyer solicited donations from the community and collected about 40 appliances although donations continue to come in.  These appliances help cash and space strapped urban Toronto citizens to create dishes they might be unable to make otherwise.  According to Boyer, the biggest appliance the library carries is a countertop roaster.  All of the items can be carried by one person and fit on public transportation.  Staff encourages people to clean the appliances before they are returned, though all items are washed and dried by hand once they come back to the library.  Since all the items are donated, Library staff cannot guarantee that any item is allergen free, although they are looking to purchase duplicate appliances that they can designate for vegetarian or vegan cooking.

Boyer would like to see the library’s inventory continue to grow and she would like to find a new space that can  hold not only the growing collection but also make it possible to offer programming. Right now the Kitchen Library is looking for donations of juicers, food processors, meat grinders, vacuum sealers, and knife sharpeners.  They are also looking for more volunteers to help staff the Kitchen Library,  which is currently open 20 hours a week.

Currently, the Kitchen Library is not affiliated with the Toronto Public Library, but the institutions do not rule out a cooperative agreement in the future.  The Toronto Public Library already has included nontraditional items in is circulating collection including laptops, pedometers, and museum passes.  The library also offers digital hubs where people can book time to work on digital media and use 3-D printers.

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The purpose of this day of civic hacking is to make data the government has that can be used to improve our lives more accessible to the public; creating “open data.”  Citizens are encouraged to create applications that can help other citizens find local events and businesses, find information on political figures, and more to make their communities better.  The core belief behind the National Day of Civic Hacking is that together businesses, governments, and citizens can create solutions to our shared problems.  This annual event is backed by the White House and mainly sponsored by Intel[2].  A complete list of sponsors can be found on the events website partner page: http://hackforchange.org/page/partners.  The event has its own hashtag #hackforchange, and the event’s website includes a list of challenges that participants could have chosen to try to solve, or they were encouraged to find challenges in their local communities to solve.  Some challenges that were provided for the National Day of Civic Hacking include:

• Develop a cross-platform web-application that allows users to search for organizations or venues that have recently performed, exhibited, or hosted arts events that were funded in part by the National Endowment for the Arts.[3]
• Leverage statistics about every neighborhood in the nation to create useful tools that look at everything from commute times to median income to poverty rates.[4]
• Develop tools that allow citizens and others to interactively explore public library data in new ways / Help explore and enrich our national museum data collection efforts[5]

If you would like to get involved in next year’s National Day of Civic Hacking, and are not technologically gifted, there are many ways you can still participate.  You can host, support, sponsor, or plan an event, or provide raw data that can be technologically transformed and made public.  More information about this event can be found on the events official website: http://hackforchange.org/.  Currently, there is no information about next year’s event.

The post National Day of Civic Hacking Aims To Improve Communities first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

Pop tab bracelets:
This is a popular craft that is very inexpensive. To do this craft you need pop tabs (which staff or patrons can collect ahead of time), elastic, and scissors. This project works best with the pop tabs that have two holes in them, but it could be modified for pop tabs from energy drink cans which are colorful, but only have one hole in them. There is a set of instructions on instructable that explains how to make these bracelets.

Safety pin bracelets:
This craft can be combined with the pop tab bracelets and is also inexpensive. This project requires safety pins, elastic cord, and seed beads. A librarian could combine this and the pop tab bracelets in one project. Instructions for this craft are found on simple crafter.

Clothespin Zombies:

Zombies are huge right now, and here is a simple craft that teens can do to make their own zombie.  The zombies require a few more materials than the bracelets, but they are all still items that any library should have. To make the zombies you will need clothespins, paint, fabric, markers, yarn, scissors, paintbrushes, glue, and anything else you would want to add to the zombie. Let the teens paint the clothespins in any shade of green they can create, and then pin the clothespins to the side of a box to dry. While the pins are drying, the teens can decide how to decorate the zombies and start making clothes and hair. Once the pins are dry, the teens can continue to create their tiny zombies. The inspiration from this craft came from the Scrumdillydo website, and their blog has pictures that can be used for inspiration for this craft.

Recycled “beaded” curtain or wind chime:
If your library can collect enough pop bottle rings, old CDs, and other items then your teens could make recycled beaded curtains for their rooms.  To do this take any plastic donated items and string them together with fishing line.  A librarian may need to help by piercing through some items with a sewing needle.  This idea can also be modified to make wind chimes.  String items together as described for the beaded curtain, but this time add a hook to the top, and bells at the bottom.  Inspiration for this idea comes from this picture found on flickr.

Decorated key art:

Old keys can also be used for recycled art at the library. Patrons can bring in old keys that they no longer want to use and decorate them to make jewelry or cool key chains.  The keys can be painted with nail polish, or decorated with sequins and hot glue, then strung on a necklace or made into a keychain. Samples of decorated keys can be found on the Maize Hutton and My Salvaged Treasures blogs.

Many of these ideas are inexpensive and include recycled items.  For more teen craft project ideas do a  search on Pinterest and also be sure  to check out these books:

Recyclo-gami by Laure Goldrich Wolf

Generaion T: 108 Ways to Transform a T-shirt by Megan Nicolay

The Crafty Diva’s Lifestyle Makeover by Kathy

The post Simple Crafts for Teens first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

One idea that has been popular at my library (Benton Harbor, Michigan) is to host an Iron Chef type of  event.  This program is based on the Food Network television show where two chefs face off making dishes centered on a secret ingredient.  To make the program  more suited to the library, allow patrons to work in teams and have multiple teams face off against one another.  On the show the chefs have an hour to prepare their food once the secret ingredient has been announced and I’ve kept to that when running this program at the library, although you could reduce the amount of cooking time if needed.  To ensure safety I’ve limited this program to “cooking” with a microwave or a blender.  If a team needs to use either appliance, a team member must bring the dish to a library worker, and the staff member will either blend or microwave the item for the patron.  This program can be expensive depending on how many ingredients you offer the patrons to use.  I’ve run this program three times with the teens at my library and so far the secret ingredients we’ve used have been marshmallows, chips/pretzels/popcorn, and fruit.  We usually have at least 30 teens participate each summer.

Another program that can be done with all ages, although it might appeal more to children and teens is cookie decorating.  This program is pretty straight forward, the librarian needs to get a large amount of sugar cookies, frosting, and other cookie decorating materials, and allow patrons to come in and decorate the cookies.  A librarian could buy sugar cookies from the store or bake them him or herself and bring them in.  This program could also be done with cupcakes, or any other baked food that can be decorated.

One food-based program I’ve heard about at conferences, but have not tried at my library yet, is a chocolate party.  During a chocolate party library patrons celebrate chocolate and its awesomeness.  This can be done with a chocolate tasting, or a candy bar trivia game (patrons blindly taste candy bars and see how many they can guess correctly).  A chocolate party could also include cookie or cupcake decorating, other chocolate related trivia, and anything chocolate related that a librarian can think of to include.

An unusual food-based program we’ve hosted at the Benton Harbor Public Library was a food tasting program where teens got to try foods that people with sensitivities and allergies need to eat.  This included foods like lactose free ice cream, almond butter, soy milk, gluten free items, and vegetarian food.  This was a very positive program and the teens were very receptive to the new foods.  The reason we hosted this program was because I have a food allergy, and the teens wanted to know more about it. I thought this would be a way they could learn more about my food allergy and also other food allergies and considerations.

Last, libraries can host instructional cooking programs.  The librarian can invite a local chef or professor from a local culinary program to come and teach patrons how to cook.  This program could be scaled up or down based on the library setting and the age group that it is designed for.  Some local libraries have hosted programs to teach patrons about making food for parties and other gatherings.

There are many food-based programs that can be held in the library.  The only limit to these programs is the librarian’s imagination.   There are many resources for this type of program online.  Mid-Hudson Library System has a page that includes a large amount of creative programming ideas, and one of their creative programming categories is food-based programming.  The American Library Association also has a site dedicated to programs for school-aged kids, and this site includes a couple food-based programs.  Movie Licensing USA also has a website that includes food-related programming ideas.  These programs are broken up into categories for children, teens, and adults. Again, Pinterest can be a great resource for food based programs.  Almost any Pinterest board dedicated to teen programming includes at least a few food based program ideas.

The post Food Programs Appeal to Library Patrons first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

When deciding to pursue a Master’s Degree online, you must make sure that you choose an American Library Association (ALA) accredited school. There are multiple reasons to choose an ALA accredited school including the fact that some employers require an MLA from an ALA-accredited school to be hired in as a librarian, also some states require a degree from an ALA-accredited school to work as a librarian in either a public or school library.  A list of these schools can be found on the ALA’s website.  Once you have picked your school and have been accepted, then the real fun starts.

Online schooling is great because it can allow the student to be flexible and work around his or her schedule.  But, it can be very difficult because you must be dedicated and self-disciplined.  I attended school online for my bachelor’s degree through the University of Phoenix and am continuing to do so at Wayne State University for my Master’s Degree.  The University of Phoenix program required attendance.  I had to check in at least three times a week and post two substantial posts to our discussion boards.  This forced me to make sure I was active in my classes.   Wayne State University does not have this requirement, so I am completely on my own to make sure I get my work done.

I’ve not had an online class yet with scheduled lectures.  So far, all my classes have had professors post lectures that can be viewed at any time.  I often view the lectures in the morning while I am eating breakfast or doing small household chores, and I can break up the lectures if I can’t find a dedicated two-hour block to view the entire thing.  One problem with viewing lectures this way is that if I have any questions I can’t get a response right away.  I can’t raise my hand in class and ask my teacher to explain something, instead I have to email him or her and wait for a response.

This delay can also cause a problem with assignments.  If I wait too long to work on an assignment, and end up having a problem, I can email my teacher but I may not get a response in time to get my assignment completed.  Time management skills are extremely important in online schooling.

One of the biggest challenges is working on a group project.  Since there is no set class time, you are very unlikely to ever meet your group mates face to face.  Finding a time to discuss your project can be difficult, and often group decisions have to be made without all group members being included. Using Skype and other messenger and chat services can be helpful when communicating with classmates

Going to school online can be great for someone who needs flexibility in class schedule or location.  It’s great for someone who doesn’t want to move to go to school, or who works. But, there are challenges with online schooling. To be successful in this kind of program you must be self-disciplined and good with time management.  As we become ever increasingly digital, I think more future librarians will be getting their degrees online.

The post What To Expect From Online Library School first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

Every author writes a book for his or her own audience, although they may write a novel that ends up appealing to a wider range than the author originally envisioned.  In my library we have Diary of a Wimpy Kid books in both the Junior Fiction and Young Adult Fiction sections, and there are many YA cross-over hits that have hit the adult market (Twilight and The Hunger Games especially).  I think that Marion’s reasoning for not wanting his book classified as YA stems from an area of misunderstanding.

Books are classified based on anticipated audience, and while reading level does play a factor, it is not the sole determination of what age group a book is marketed towards.  If this were the case, then most books would be placed in the YA category because according to the U.S. National Adult Literacy Survey[2] most adults read at approximately a seventh grade reading level.  Marion says that his book contains a lot of graphic violence, drug use, sex, foul language, and other adult themes.  These are all reasons to classify it as an adult novel, but none of these items singles out how this book is more complexly written than a YA novel.

In contrast to Marion’s views on the YA classification, just recently the Printz Award winner was announced.  The Printz Award is given out every year to the best written book for teens, and is based entirely on literary merit[3].  This award highlights the YA novels that are complex and well written.  This award is one of the ways in which librarians and other book lovers are trying to reduce the stigma that is still associated with the YA classification.

Each author should be able to write for his or her intended audience.  Hopefully though, more authors and readers will classify books based on something other than reading level.  By his words Marion’s book includes graphic depictions of many adult topics; this alone could be enough to have the book classified as an adult novel.  But, that level of description does not mean that the book is better written than a novel written for a teen audience.  Hopefully, as more adults continue to read cross-over titles, and as the Printz Award ages and gains recognition, readers will see the YA classification as an indication that the novel has themes that will appeal to teen readers, and not see the classification as a comment on the quality of the novel’s writing.

The post YA Classification Not a Commentary on Quality first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

In one library in Greenville, South Carolina, the director allegedly ignored the library’s collection development policy and removed a book from the library’s collection after finding it personally offensive.   The Greenville (South Carolina) County Library (GCL) originally circulated two copies of Alan Moore’s “Neonomicon.”  The books were purchased based on reviews, recommendations, and the author’s reputation[1].  A 14 year old girl checked a copy out; her mother found the book then complained to the library. The mother ended up filing a request for the material to be reconsidered for inclusion in the collection. The GCL handles reconsideration requests by convening a committee, having committee members read the book, and then voting on keeping the book in the collection or removing it. If the patron does not agree with the committee’s decision he or she may appeal to an 11-member library board of trustees[1].

Following procedure, the library committee members read the book and decided in favor of keeping it in the collection, citing the library’s collection development policy, the awards the book has won, and the author’s reputation. That’s when the library’s Executive Director, Beverly  James, decided to review the book herself  and then decided to pull it from the library’s collection.  According to reports, James stated “I can override their recommendation” and “I’m ultimately responsible[2].”

The “Neonomicon” is described as a horror novel that includes the occult, obscenities, racism, and a rape/orgy scene[3]. James described the book as disgusting, and said that removing the book from the system was “de-selection[4].”  So far the committee and the board have not publicly reacted to James’ decision.

While James is entitled to her opinion, removing this graphic novel from the library’s collection strikes me as wrong.  The action of removing the book appears to circumvent the library’s collection development policy. I could understand if the library had chosen not to purchase the graphic novel  in the first place, although one may argue that not including the book in the first place would also be wrong.

It appears that the director placed her personal opinion above the decision of both her collection development staff and the library’s reconsideration committee. GCL patrons can no longer access the  book because it offended her. Librarians remove books from the collection all the time, but this is different. We weed books to keep the collection fresh; we don’t remove books because we personally don’t like them. Librarians are here to encourage and protect patron’s access to information. We should not let our personal biases get in the way of this duty.

The post Collection Development Policy vs. Personal Opinion first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

John has slowly built his following over the years.  In 2007 he and his brother, Hank, ceased textual communication and communicated mostly through videos they posted back and forth on their VlogBrothers YouTube channel. The channel now has over 850,000 subscribers and the videos have been viewed more than 276 million times. The brothers are also very active on twitter and tumblr. Through this use of social media John has built a following of devoted readers.  These readers are so devoted that they voted 5 of his books onto NPR’s list of the 100 Best Teen Novels. The Nerdfighters have raised hundreds of thousands of dollars which has been used to fight poverty, and, according to John’s site, they planted thousands of tree for Hank’s 30th birthday.

John has been a well-respected teen author for many years, but until 2012 he was more of a Young Adult secret, but this year has changed all of that. John’s most recent book, The Fault in Our Stars, has exploded onto the book community. If any one book had to be chosen to represent the fiction of 2012, that book would be The Fault in Our Stars.  The book has been named: TIME Magazine’s #1 Fiction book of the year, a New York Time’s notable Children’s book, one of the Wall Street Journal’s best Children’s Books of the year, Entertainment Weekly’s best Fiction of the year, Goodreads Best Young Adult Book of the year, Indiebound’s #1 Children’s pick, Apples best Young Adult Novel e-book of the year, and more.

The Fault in Our Stars is described on Green’s website as “the story of Hazel Lancaster and Augustus Waters, two Indianapolis teenagers who meet at a Cancer Kid Support Group,”  but to those who have read it, and loved it, the book is so much more. These readers see the book as being a story of life, grief, personal growth, love, and hope.

With all the awards The Fault in Our Stars has already won, I have to wonder if Mr. Green won’t be accepting a second Printz Award this coming year.

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Promoting the Library
You can promote your library many different ways using Pinterest.  The New York Public Library has a great collection of Pinterest boards that don’t just promote the library, but also help patrons do research without having to visit the library itself.  The NYPL has boards titled “NYPL’s Current Events”, “Holidays @ NYPL,” “What’s on the Menu,” “Weddings,” and my favorite “NYPL      ‘s  You.”  NYPL uses these boards to highlight activities or the holidays and to let patrons know what the staff is reading.  The Kenton County Public Library also includes boards that patrons can use as resources even if they are unable to get to the library and talk to a librarian. This library includes a “School & Homeschool Teacher Resources” board which includes links to different teaching resources.  Pinterest is especially well suited to the Ringling Museum Art Library’s collections. They have included Pinterest boards reflecting types of materials the library has including fine art & sculpture, rare books, photography, fashion & decorative arts, and even the circus. Their library boards are exceptional.

Sharing Ideas
Librarians are a collaborative group.  We create mailing lists and attend meetings so we can share information about how to serve our patrons better.  Pinterest can be great in this capacity.  The site is very popular with crafters, and you can narrow your Pinterest display to show only DIY and craft pins.  Many of the crafts on the site are complicated, but most of them could be scaled down for library use.  Most libraries also include boards for crafts and programs on their accounts.  Searching site for libraries and crafts boards pulls up a huge collection of boards with library related crafts.  I’ve started a “For the library” board on my own account, and anytime I come across an idea that I think would work for my library I just repin it to that board.

Pinterest is at its heart a social site.  Multiple people can be invited to pin to a board.  Staff members can all have access to the staff Pinterest boards, and can add as they see fit.  Depending on your library’s patron base, patrons could also be given permission to post on a board.  There are eight different Teen Advisory Board (TAB) boards on the site.  The library’s TAB Pinterest board could be open to any TAB patron who wanted to post to it.

A word of warning, with the rise of Pinterest, there has also been a rise in documenting Pinterest fails.  Many of the projects on Pinterest are not as simple as they seem, or do not come out as advertised.  I suggest that if you want to try any project you find on Pinterest, that you try it well ahead of time to make sure it will produce the desired results.

Happy Pinning!

The post Using Pinterest @ The Library first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

Mr. Piper talks about hands, how important they are, how reading a regular book allows your mind to wander and real learning to begin.  These things still happen even with electronic books.  Reading isn’t just about the physical experience, about reading the words on a page or feeling the paper underneath your fingers, reading is about mentally and emotionally engaging with an author’s work.  There are many different kinds of reading; reading a comic book or a blog is completely different than reading a novel.  I think what Mr. Piper is forgetting is that reading is an individual experience, and different people will relate to books in different ways.  Would Mr. Piper also say that listening to an audiobook isn’t reading?  While it may not fit the technical definition of reading that most people have, I’d argue that listening to an audiobook is still engaging in the author’s work, so yes, it is reading.

One part of Mr. Piper’s argument talks about how a print book fits in your hand, while an e-reader isn’t as natural.  Well, I actually have found the opposite to be true.  My Kindle has a 7 inch display screen and fits in my hands better than most hardcover books.  I can hold the Kindle with one hand, and maneuver around the cats who like to jump on and off my lap.  Reading on the Kindle is intuitive; swiping my hand across the screen to turn the page reminds me of traditional print books.  I find reading on the Kindle kind of exciting, and a little more accessible then reading a print book.  I can see how children would be especially drawn to using e-readers, and I think that these are a way that we can reach reluctant readers of all ages.  If we as book lovers treat e-book readers as though they are not really reading, how many potential readers are we going to discourage?

Another argument Mr. Piper makes is that it’s easier to tell how much of a print book you’ve read because you can physically see how much is left behind your bookmark.  My Kindle tells me what percentage of the book I’ve finished just by pressing the screen once, so I can easily see how much I have left to read.  Again, it is different than seeing the pages left before me, but the process bar at the bottom still gives me a sense of how much I have left.

I’ve only read a few books on my Kindle, but I am about 36% of the way done with a new one, and I can’t wait to get back on the Kindle and keep reading.

The post Who is really out of touch? first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

Core Collection
If your library does not have a manga collection already, and you would like to start one, there are some core titles that should be included.  Naruto (T), Bleach(T), and Dragon Ball Z(T) (all published by Viz Media) are all Shonen manga which is aimed at males and often includes action and fighting.  These series have had anime broadcast on Cartoon Network, so most patrons will be familiar with them.  Shoujo, or manga aimed at females, usually includes romance mixed in with comedy or adventure.  Some core Shoujo titles to include in a library collection are:  Sailor Moon (T), Skip Beat (T), and Vampire Knight (OT).

Expanding Your Manga Selection
If you already have a manga collection developed here are some titles that I suggest you add to your collection.

• Blue Exorcist (OT) is a series that has supernatural elements, and deals with demons (a popular theme in manga).  This is an action series that has been very popular at my library.
• Fairy Tail (T) is another supernatural series, this one is centered on a teenage wizard.  Fairy Tail has been extremely popular with teen boys at the Benton Harbor (Mich.) Public Library.
• Bakuman (T) is a Shonen title about a boy who loves to draw manga; it’s an alternative to the large amount of fighting or battle manga titles out there.
• Soul Eater (OT) is another popular Shonen series.  This series focuses on students at the Meister Academy who are all working on making their living weapons (humans who can transform into weapon form) into the ultimate fighting weapon for Death himself.
• Arisa (T) is a Shoujo series that centers around two sisters, trying to unlock a mystery within their school.
• Vernomia (T) is another action science fiction series that appeals to fans of Fairy Tail.
• Ouran High School Host Club (T) is a gender-bending shoujo series that includes lots of humor.

NonTraditional Manga
Manga is traditionally Japanese, but more American authors are getting involved in the genre.  Yen Press has published manga versions of many popular series.  These series include James Patterson’s Maximum Ride (T) and other series, Darren Shan’s Cirque Du Freak (T), Cassandra Clare’s Infernal Devices (OT), and Gail Garriger’s Soulless (OT) series.  The Cirque Du Freak and Maximum Ride series have been especially popular at my library.  The Scott Pilgrim(T) series, written by Brian Lee O’Malley, is also published in graphic novel format similar to manga (although it isn’t read backwards).  This is humorous series with a movie tie-in that helps increase its popularity. Another great way to find out what manga to add to your collection is by asking your patrons.  I’ve gotten many valuable suggestions from my patrons.

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