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  • 6y

    Covers of Spirit Hunters and The JumbiesChildren’s librarian Kaitlin Frick writes: “Pumpkins on stoops? Leaves littering the sidewalks? Candy and costumes sitting front-and-center in all your favorite shops? These signs can only add up to one thing: It’s October, the best month of the entire year in this humble librarian’s opinion! Scary books make the perfect accompaniment to this season, so I’ve asked some of my favorite librarians to share their October reading recommendations. From picture books to novels and even a bit of nonfiction, we’ve got you covered for spine-chilling titles to share with your patrons.”

    ALSC Blog, Oct. 14

  • Latest Library Links

    • 3h

      Boy reading a mapacStacy Gilbert writes: “When we try to force an entire year’s worth of procedures into a single lesson, we lose the room, exhaust ourselves, and miss the mark. My ultimate goal for orientation can be summed up in one phrase: for students to want to come back and know how to. If you’re refining your plan this season, here are 7 common orientation traps that librarians fall into and tips for avoiding them.”

      Knowledge Quest, Sept. 3

    • 5h

      Discussion at a tableAlejandro Marquez writes: “Like many of my library colleagues, I’ve found this year has felt … heavy. Working in a higher education environment, particularly now, can feel like wading through a relentless stream of depressing news, budget cuts, censorship concerns, and strategic crises. It’s not a dramatic, explosive kind of heaviness, but an endless stream of bad things, each one subtly eroding the foundations of what I believed was a stable and valued profession. For a little while, it felt like real progress was happening. Now, it feels like libraries are stuck.”

      Choice 360: Toward Inclusive Excellence, Sept. 1

    • 21h

      From the Trustees by Brett BonfieldBrett Bonfield writes: “Because of its financial deficit, ALA needs stability. Therefore, in April, ALA’s Endowment Trustees updated the target allocation for the Association’s investment portfolio, reducing our holdings of stocks and increasing our holdings of bonds. As a result, we are sacrificing some projected returns to limit projected risk. If stocks boom as they have in the past few years, ALA’s portfolio will not increase as much as it would have. On the other hand, if stocks crash, ALA’s portfolio will not take as big a hit as it would have.”

      American Libraries Online, Sept. 3

    • 23h

      From the Executive Director by Dan MontgomeryDan Montgomery writes: “With a fresh school year underway, it’s the perfect time to lift up professionals who not only boost student learning and achievement but also help to make their schools welcoming, magical places of endless opportunity. I’m talking, of course, about school librarians and library support staff. School librarians work hard to turn their classroom—the library—into the well-loved hub and heart of the school. It’s a tall order, but they are up to the task.”

      American Libraries column, Fall

    • 1d

      Students playing Pictionary at a whiteboard in a school libraryReema Saleh writes: “Since fall 2024, each school day at Grant High School in Portland, Oregon, has started the same way: Roughly 2,100 students line up to place their phones in gray and green Yondr pouches as they enter the building. There’s been one unexpected outcome of the school’s effort to limit phone use on campus: More students are spending time in the library, where they’re browsing the collection or hanging out during free periods, says teacher-librarian Paige Battle.”

      American Libraries Trend, Fall

    • 2d

      Screencap from The Librarians featuring a woman entering a door with Librarian written on it.The Librarians, a documentary directed by Kim A. Snyder that follows librarians as they work to protect children’s rights to access books, won the Emmy for Exceptional Merit in Documentary Filmmaking at the 78th Emmy Awards on September 5. In a Facebook post, the production team wrote: “We are so proud to stand here in solidarity with all our fierce librarians and Freedom to Read advocates, and so many others across the nation who continue to fight to defend our First Amendment rights. This award is such an honor–and it HONORS ALL OF YOU—American patriots, truly heroes!” The film is available to stream on PBS.

      The Television Academy, Sept. 5; American Libraries Online, July 28, 2025

    • 6d

      Dolly PartonLibrarians joined the world in mourning Dolly Parton and remembering both her artistic achievements and her philanthropy. Parton’s award-winning Imagination Library initiative, inspired by her father’s inability to read or write, has put hundreds of millions of books into the hands of children, and she considered it one of her greatest achievements. ALA conferred Parton with honorary lifetime membership, its highest honor, in 2023. American Libraries interviewed Parton in 2018 as the Imagination Library was delivering its 100 millionth book. Libraries, including Knox County (Tenn.) Public Library and Cedar Rapids (Iowa) Public Library, created commemorative displays and book lists, while the University of Louisville (Ky.) Archives and Special Collections and the University of North Carolina Libraries shared rare photos and recordings.

      I Love Libraries, Aug. 27; American Libraries Trend, Jan./Feb. 2018; Knox County (Tenn.) Public Library, Aug. 26; Cedar Rapids (Iowa) Public Library, Aug. 26; University of Louisville (Ky.) Archives and Special Collections, Aug. 27; Chapelboro.com, Aug. 27

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