Score One For the Library Over Amazon

"But it turns out librarians haven't just been sitting around shushing people while the Internet drove them into irrelevance. More than 90% of American public libraries have amassed e-book collections you can read on your iPad, and often even on a Kindle. You don't have to walk into a branch or risk an overdue fine. And they're totally free."

So says The Wall Street Journal  in its timely article "Why the Public Library Beats Amazon - For Now." The author explored a variety of best seller lists and found that public library e collections have many more of these titles than subscription services like Scribd, Oyster, and Kindle Unlimited. And of course - no monthly fee. The library card is still free! Certainly drawbacks like wait lists and due dates still exist. But - a variety of popular titles, for free should be hard for serious readers to resist.

Because of a grant, I was able to create an fairly substantial e book collection in my library.  Students are pretty excited to be able to check out books on their devices, day or night, in any place that they can connect to the internet.  I am pretty excited because these books are never returned three months late and/or damaged.  While the older students seem to prefer physical books, the junior high kids are loving the accessibility of our e book collection. 

Go libraries!

Blood of My Blood - A Review

Lyga, Barry. Blood of My Blood. New York: Little, Brown and Company, 2014

The conclusion to the I Hunt Killers trilogy is a tough and compelling read; I could not put it down. Jazz Dash is on a mission to hunt one of the nation’s most notorious serial killers and his gang – the man who raised him, his father.  He is wounded, on the run from the police and the FBI, and completely uncertain if he is the killer his father believes he is or a kids who has strength through friends to rise above his father’s madness.  The book is an adventure packed and brutal look at unspeakable crimes and criminals.  The voice of the killer is distinct and chilling. The voice of his son is intense and confused, heartbreaking.  As Jazz unravels the clues left by his dad to lure him into his web of killers the mystery of his identity intensifies. This kind of dark story is often meant for adult readers, but my mature readers will surely be drawn to this complex and rich story that challenges us to consider among other things nature vs. nurture and the complexity of interracial dating. While I will certainly recommend this to them, I am unlikely to carry it in my 7-12 library because many of my younger readers would just not be ready for the content.

Poetry Matters...to W.S. Merwin

In this fascinating article, Pulitzer Prize winning poet W.S. Merwin, 86,  says of poems, "I wrote the last one about 10 days ago, it doesn't stop and and don't know where it comes from..." 

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/prize-winning-poet-still-age-86-124924676.html

He further discusses his motivations for writing and his hopes for his next collection.  He notes that he must write in increasing larger longhand as his eyes are not what they used to be.  In a world where I continue the discussion about the relevance of poetry, this article was a refreshing read!

Tweens or Teens?

Publisher's' Weekly takes on the question that is often on my mind as a 7-12 librarian.  How do we draw lines between books intended for middle school kids and those for high school kids.? I suppose even more importantly, we sometimes question whether or not we should even draw these lines.  Much needs to be considered in school library land: community expectations, parent expectations, teacher expectations, student expectations.  We are often dancing on that fine line as we try to meet the reading needs of our wide variety of students.  Librarians of a more public library leaning often gasp and wonder if we school libraries are censoring our. Our world is and must be different in the public school system.  I confess that I rely just a bit on reading programs to steer my younger kids toward age appropriate titles. I am relieved at some level to read that book store folks think seriously about this issue as well.

http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/childrens/childrens-industry-news/article/63358-middle-grade-and-ya-where-to-draw-the-line.html