January/February 2014

Features & Trends

Detroit Public Library Provides Food to Fight Child Hunger

By Megan Cottrell

“Our kids come to our library branches starving,” says Merritt, executive director of the Friends of the Detroit Public Library Foundation. “They can’t concentrate.” Luckily, the person who asked the question was also someone who was poised to help—Brian Glowiak, vice president of the Chrysler Foundation, the charitable arm of the Detroit-based car company. The … Continue reading Detroit Public Library Provides Food to Fight Child Hunger →

A Country of Hope and Promise

By Leonard Kniffel

Cafés, bars, souvenir vendors, and street artists line the narrow and densely populated promenades in the old colonial center of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, where hawkers lure customers with promises of bargain prices. At night, throngs of young people stroll the oceanside of the Malecón, eating sweets and listening to street musicians, while the museums … Continue reading A Country of Hope and Promise →

Contagious Marketing

By Peggy Barber

We live in a world of communication clutter. From the internet to endless TV commercials, newspapers, magazines, signage, the inside and outside of buses—ads are everywhere. But consider: What makes you decide to try a new restaurant, read a certain book, or see a particular movie? Is it because you saw an ad, or because … Continue reading Contagious Marketing →

How to Get the Edge on Technology Access
By Larra Clark and Mary Hirsh
Taking Aim at the Reality of Guns in Libraries
By Beverly Goldberg
Newsmaker: Ishmael Beah
By Mariam Pera
Philadelphia: 2014 Midwinter Preview
By Mariam Pera
How Harry Potter Changed
This Man’s Life
By Mariam Pera
2013 Year in Review
By the editors of American Libraries
Referenda Roundup
By Kathy Rosa

Columnists

Just a Game?
By Meredith Farkas
Treasure or Trash Heap?
By Will Manley
Two Debuts That Will Thrill
By Bill Ott
Changes and Connections
By Ingrid Parent
It’s Time to Act
By Sandra Hughes-Hassell and Casey Rawson
A Cautionary Tale
By Joseph Janes
Organizing Content
By Karen Muller
Web-Scale Discovery Services
By Marshall Breeding
Advocating for School Librarians
By Barbara K. Stripling
Fear of Flying
By Laurie D. Borman
The “Kitchen Table” Conversations and ALA
By Keith Michael Fiels

Latest Library Links

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Bobbi L. Newman writes: “This week, an article from the BBC caught my attention: ‘Without support, many menopausal workers are quitting their jobs.’ Supporting employees going through menopause is important for those experiencing it and for everyone’s wellbeing. It reflects a commitment to employee wellbeing and a strategic approach to workforce management. Libraries can adopt strategies to support employees experiencing menopause, enhancing their wellbeing and workplace productivity. Remember, with all wellbeing, the goal is to support and empower staff to make the choices that best improve their health. Here are some practical approaches.”

Librarian by Day, Apr. 19; BBC, Apr. 9
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Libraries have a long history of helping to deliver on a wide variety of development goals, from literacy and school readiness to research productivity and urban cohesion. Their unique potential has been recognized not just by the governments or others that traditionally fund them, but also by a range of other funders, private and public alike. The International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions has created a dataset to help librarians easily discover examples of private philanthropic grants, as well as other funding sources, that other libraries have been able to leverage.”

International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions, Apr. 22
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Jackie Jennings writes: “It feels like the debate over whether #BookTok is bad has been raging since the moment the term was first coined. I’m starting off with a strong stance: BookTok is indeed bad. However, the problem with BookTok is not crappy books or bogus influencers. The problem with BookTok is TikTok itself. BookTok isn’t actually a community driven by fans, writers, influencers, or even publishers: it’s part of a social media corporation, controlled by the most mysterious, fickle god of all, the algorithm.” Not surprisingly, librarian recommendations can overcome some of BookTok’s limitations.

Jezebel, Apr. 18; Book Riot, Apr. 22
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ALA announced the launch of its state Intellectual Freedom Helpline grant program April 22. Over the next two years, 10 pilot program sites will operate a confidential reporting system that will help connect those experiencing censorship attempts with professional support, in-state peers, or referral to ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom, as appropriate. State or school library associations or agencies wishing to either establish an Intellectual Freedom Helpline in their state or expand existing efforts may apply for $10,000 grants through July 14.

ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom, Apr. 22
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In celebration of the release of his latest nonfiction title, The Secret Lives of Booksellers & Librarians, bestselling author James Patterson is honoring select American Bookseller Association and American Library Association members with bonuses. He announced plans April 11 to give $200 each to 250 library workers across the country. The deadline for ALA members may nominate members to receive bonuses through April 30. Winners will be announced at ALA’s 2024 Annual Conference in San Diego.
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Catherine Hollerbach writes: “In early 2020, when the world shut down for COVID, many people got interested in houseplants. Anne Arundel County (Md.) Public Library’s Crofton Library embraced this trend and then some!” While preparing to reopen after the COVID shutdown, the library installed plants at the information desk to discourage patrons from sticking their heads through gaps in newly installed acrylic shields. They were well received and cared for, and the library gradually added more plants and built educational tools, programming, and partnerships around the plants.

Public Libraries Online, Apr. 18
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Rodney Freeman writes: “I am proud to be a librarian—and rare. Less than 7% of librarians in the US are Black. Libraries symbolize the literacy that was denied to so many of our ancestors. For our enslaved forebears, something as fundamental as learning to read was illegal and dangerous, but they did it anyway. Separate but ‘equal’ schools and ‘colored’ libraries filled with cast-offs from white libraries were key features of the Jim Crow era. Today we are seeing the same impulse to distort access to information into a tool to suppress and control, and to make some people ‘other.’”

Newsweek, Apr. 16

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