Our First Storytime

Emily and I went to our first storytime at the library today. She was the youngest baby there, but she had a good time checking out all the other kids. She was starting to nap when we arrived and I was nervous that she would throw a fit at being woken up, but the new setting and faces kept her enthralled enough to forget she was tired for half an hour. And I learned that storytime is apparently the place where moms size each other up, and then act ridiculously silly once the activities begin.

Maybe it was because it was Monday morning, or maybe I just picked the uppity library, but there were no friendly smiles, no hellos from the other moms. But as soon as the music started they were all willing to make utter fools of themselves for their kids.

Why act like a hardass when, in 30 seconds, you're going to be singing "My Little Red Wagon" and bouncing your kid around on your knee? Plus it's the midwest. Get over yourselves.

I did have a good time, though. I loved getting to interact with Emily this way, and I can definitely see storytime becoming a permanent fixture in our weekly schedule. And if I'm the only friendly mom there, then that just means my kid will have better manners than theirs. So ha.

It's Banned Books Week!

I feel it's fitting that Banned Books Week starts today, considering it was only last week the Free Library of Philadelphia learned it was going to have the necessary budget it needed to stay open. I know libraries in Indiana have been struggling due to budget and tax cuts, and it's a scary thought that our free public libraries could suddenly just disappear. Imagine the resources that would be lost - including free access to banned and challenged books.

September 26-October 3 is National Banned Books Week, hosted by the American Library Association. It celebrates "the freedom to read and the importance of the First Amendment" and "highlights the benefits of free and open access to information while drawing attention to the harms of censorship by spotlighting actual or attempted bannings of books across the United States." For a complete list of the challenged, restricted, removed, or banned books from 2008-2009, click here.


One of my favorite books to bring up that has been challenged in the past is The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle. Why has this book been challenged? Because it endorses gluttony. Never mind that the caterpillar realizes that eating junk food makes him feel yucky, and only when he eats his leafy greens does he turn into a beautiful butterfly.

And, since the movie is coming out soon, I should also mention Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak has also been challenged. Why? Because he threatens his mother ("I'll eat you up!") and instead of being punished is taken on a magical trip where he celebrates with beasts and, when he returns home, is immediately forgiven.


And these are children's classics. Think of the possibilities with new children's books (And Tango Makes Three and Uncle Bobby's Wedding - read the response to this challenge here; one of the best I've ever read), not to mention the scores of adult books and classics (including my favorite, Gone With the Wind). Actually, most of my favorite books have been challenged at one time or another, but that's what I love about them. They give me a different perspective on the world, give me something new to think about. How boring life would be if everything we read was bland enough to please everybody!


Please leave me a comment telling me your favorite banned book - I always love adding to my To Be Read pile!

"Every burned book enlightens the world."

~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Celebrating the Freedom to Read

Today begins the American Library Association's 27th annual Banned Books Week. A quote from their website that I think is great follows.

"[Banned Books Week] celebrates the freedom to choose or the freedom to express one’s opinion even if that opinion might be considered unorthodox or unpopular and stresses the importance of ensuring the availability of those unorthodox or unpopular viewpoints to all who wish to read them. After all, intellectual freedom can exist only where these two essential conditions are met."

Here's a definition of the difference between banned and challenged books according to the ALA, before I get into the top 10: "A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. A banning is the removal of those materials."

The top 10 challenged books of 2007:

1) “And Tango Makes Three,” by Justin Richardson/Peter Parnell Reasons: Anti-Ethnic, Sexism, Homosexuality, Anti-Family, Religious Viewpoint, Unsuited to Age Group

2) The Chocolate War,” by Robert Cormier Reasons: Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language, Violence

3) “Olive’s Ocean,” by Kevin Henkes Reasons: Sexually Explicit and Offensive Language

4) “The Golden Compass,” by Philip Pullman Reasons: Religious Viewpoint

5) “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” by Mark Twain Reasons: Racism

6) “The Color Purple,” by Alice Walker Reasons: Homosexuality, Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language

7) "TTYL,” by Lauren Myracle Reasons: Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language, Unsuited to Age Group

8) "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,” by Maya Angelou Reasons: Sexually Explicit

9) “It’s Perfectly Normal,” by Robie Harris Reasons: Sex Education, Sexually Explicit

10) "The Perks of Being A Wallflower,” by Stephen ChboskyReasons: Homosexuality, Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language, Unsuited to Age Group

The ALA also has lists of the most challenged authors, and a much more comprehensive list that includes a couple of decades.

I think if I ever wrote a book, I'd be proud to have it on the banned or challenged books lists. It just means that it made enough of an impact that people have strong feelings about it. It'd be like a badge of honor.

And finally, my favorite quote on this subject by Ralph Waldo Emerson. "Every burned book enlightens the world."

Should OUR Library Do This?

I really don't think so, but I do think this is a funny story. Seriously, who gets arrested for not paying library fines?

How to Respond When a Library Book is Challenged

A wonderful, well-written response to a mother with a strong moral objection to the inclusion of Uncle Bobby's Wedding in her library's catalog. Please take the time to read the director's response - it's one of the best I've ever seen. Not only does he compliment this obviously offended and upset patron, but he provides her with solid evidence as to why it has been included on their children's department's shelves.

National Library Week

Celebrate National Library Week! Come to the library this week and learn about all the great things the library has to offer. To top it all off, ACPL has launched its download-able audio books section! Getting started is incredibly easy, and audio books are a great way to keep up on your favorite titles when you don't have the time to sit down and read.

Hurra!

I just had a great experience with a patron. This is the second time that this man has come in and I've helped him; he's Spanish-speaking but is trying to learn better English. Want to know his secret for doing this? I've got to tell you, it's a great idea. He's checking out books on CD along with the actual book itself! So far he's told me he's read The Little Prince, Hatchet, and my last recommendation, Matilda, and today he went home with Bud, Not Buddy. It's a little hard to make recommendations to someone you don't really know, so I went with a couple I thought were good. It's also somewhat difficult to always find a book on CD and the book itself, especially the same version so the words will match up, but I think it's great that this young man is doing this, and in a way that helps him become knowledgable about our literary culture as well! It's situations like these that make me so glad to be a part of the library!

The Hyperlinked Library

Michael Stephens made a presentation this morning at work (8 a.m. and I was there! be impressed!) and it was totally worth the lack of sleep. Stephens is an assistant professor at Dominican University GLIS. He spoke about a lot of different things, including how libraries should go outside their buildings to connect with the community, IMing a librarian (I believe I mentioned something about this!), applying gaming principles to libraries, being a trendspotter, and how technology is a cultural shift, not a shiny new toy (love that phrase), and how we don't have to be perfect before we launch something.

One of the points the he mentioned that I connected with is applying gaming principles. I suppose I would fit into the category of "gamer" even though I got a late start compared to my peers. In my apartment there are more game systems than I care to mention, and I (as I type this) am using one of them (which is making this take a very long time because I'm only typing while the game is loading). And it's true. Gamers, in general, have a mentality that if you fail, you try again. (I can't help but think of Futurama when Fry gets eaten in a PacMan game and comes back saying, "It's okay! I had another guy!") I never really thought about how this applied to real life, but I agree with it. If there's a good idea out there, run with it, and if it doesn't work, try something new but don't give up on it. So there. Video games are good for you.

Another point I thought was interesting was the idea that things don't have to be perfect before we put them into practice. The truth is, nothing is perfect, even if it's the final product and we're no longer trying to improve it. But the idea of purposefully putting a product out there before it's ready, well that goes against my perfectionist side (could you imagine publishing a book before it was completed? no? I didn't think so), but when it comes to technology, it really is an interesting idea. In fact, I might even go so far as to call it a good idea. Except when it comes to video games and video game systems, because I don't want to have to download add-on packs just so the thing will work right. So let me rephrase. When it comes to the Internet, I think it's a good idea. Because who knows better what they want than the people using it? Here we have to come back to Google, because they have an amazing system. You can actually see and test the new applications they are coming up with (Google Labs) and then give them feedback. How awesome is that?!

All in all, I think the presentation was great. Michael Stephens gave us some great ideas on how to connect with our patrons and become more technology-savvy. I'm glad I went.