Author Archive: Megan Bennett

A 1981 concert flier for Dr. Cool and Cold Crush Brothers, archived in the Hip-Hop Collection at Cornell University Library

By the Numbers: Music Libraries and Collections

By Megan Bennett | September 3, 2024

1,000 Number of event fliers in the Hip-Hop Collection at Cornell University Library (CUL) in Ithaca, New York. These handmade fliers, made between 1976 and 1984, advertise early live performances by genre trailblazers like Grandmaster Flash and the Cold Crush Brothers. To date, CUL has digitized about half of these fliers. 1,900 Number of items … Continue reading By the Numbers: Music Libraries and Collections →

Max Greenfield reads his new book during a June 30 talk at the American Library Association's Annual Conference and Exhibition

Newsmaker: Max Greenfield

By Megan Bennett | August 12, 2024

“It’s totally normal to be scared of a shark if you’re in the water and a shark is swimming toward you,” says Greenfield, an actor most known for his roles on sitcoms New Girl and The Neighborhood. “It’d be weird if you weren’t scared. But if you’re thinking about a shark when you’re lying in … Continue reading Newsmaker: Max Greenfield →

A series of photos of Annual attendees taking photos of themselves or others.

Bookend: Say Cheese!

By Megan Bennett | July 24, 2024

Clockwise from top: Haley White, reference department manager at Springfield-Greene County (Mo.) Library District, takes a selfie with actor and author Max Greenfield during a book signing for his upcoming children’s title, Good Night Thoughts; Newbery Medal–winning author Jerry Craft captures a photo of the crowd during fellow Newbery winner Kwame Alexander’s talk on June 29; … Continue reading Bookend: Say Cheese! →

Council III: Update on Filling President-Elect Vacancy

By Megan Bennett | July 2, 2024

Council approved the meeting’s agenda (CD#8.6), and Drabinski announced memorial resolutions for: Joseph John Harzbecker, Jr. (M#7) Nancy E. Gwinn (M#8) Karen Crane (M#9) William Noel (M#10) Carole J. McCollough (M#11) Phyllis Jean Fisher (M#12) Linda Anne Dougherty (M#13) Delaine Andree Eastin(M#14) Jodie Gambill (M#15) Carolyn V. Neal (M#16) Marcia Goodfellow Schatz (M#17) James (Jim) … Continue reading Council III: Update on Filling President-Elect Vacancy →

(From left) Angela Watkins, Kathleen Nubel, and Christina Gavin participate in the American Library Association's President's Program during June 30 during its Annual Conference and Exhibition in San Diego.

‘In this Work Together’

By Megan Bennett | July 1, 2024

“That [memory] still moves me to want to help others, especially children in our community,” said Watkins, director of Aztec (N.Mex) Public Library. “There’s nothing like watching the joy on the face of a person when they learn to read.” At the American Library Association’s (ALA) President’s Program, held during ALA’s 2024 Annual Conference and … Continue reading ‘In this Work Together’ →

Max Greenfield discusses his new book during a June 30 talk at the American Library Association's Annual Conference and Exhibition

Putting Anxiety to Sleep

By Megan Bennett | June 30, 2024

“I’m scared of sharks and straight men,” Greenfield recalled Jordan saying in his signature Tennessee twang. Those conversations inspired Greenfield, best known for his roles in the sitcoms New Girl and The Neighborhood, to write his forthcoming book Good Night Thoughts (G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers, September), which focuses on anxiety and how … Continue reading Putting Anxiety to Sleep →

Allison Frick (left), lower school STEAM librarian, and Sara DeSabato, first grade teacher at Friends Select School in Philadelphia, present “Let's Talk About Sex: Gender and Sexuality Education in Elementary School Using Age Congruent Literature"

Expanding Gender, Sexuality Education

By Megan Bennett | June 29, 2024

“When they think sex education, they think of themselves in middle school where all the girls go into one room, all the boys go into another, and then they learn about completely different things and never talk about it again,” she says. “We want to make it really, really clear that is not what we’re … Continue reading Expanding Gender, Sexuality Education →

Council I: Elevating Intellectual Freedom

By Megan Bennett | June 29, 2024

The Council rules (CD#5.1) and agenda (CD#8.4) were adopted. The minutes from ALA’s 2024 LibLearnX Conference in Baltimore (CD#2.2) meetings were approved. Interim ALA Executive Director Leslie Burger shared the Executive Board’s actions since LibLearnX (CD#15.1) and the implementation of Council Actions from the January conference (#9.1). Cindy Hohl, ALA president-elect and Committee on Committees … Continue reading Council I: Elevating Intellectual Freedom →

Photo of the bronze Dr. Seuss and Cat in the Hat statue outside Geisel Library, the main library of University of California San Diego

By the Numbers: Literary San Diego

By Megan Bennett | June 3, 2024

The American Library Association’s 2024 Annual Conference and Exhibition will be held June 27–July 2 in San Diego. 4 Number of crown-shaped chandeliers designed by author L. Frank Baum for the Hotel del Coronado, located on San Diego Bay. The hotel, where Baum frequently stayed as a guest, is said to have inspired the Emerald … Continue reading By the Numbers: Literary San Diego →

Kelley Woolley poses with items from the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance library collection

Bookend: From A to Zoo

By Megan Bennett | June 3, 2024

“I’ve been a huge animal person my whole life,” Woolley says. Today, she oversees the library and archive for the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance (SDZWA), the nonprofit that runs the zoo and park. Her workplace is one of a handful of zoo libraries across the US that employs a full-time librarian. SDZWA’s 16,000-item library comprises … Continue reading Bookend: From A to Zoo →

Newsmaker: Kathleen Hanna

By Megan Bennett | May 10, 2024

Hanna’s new memoir Rebel Girl: My Life as a Feminist Punk (Ecco, May) chronicles the challenges and triumphs of her life before, during, and after navigating the male-dominated genre during the 1990s, spurring the Riot Grrrl movement and paving the way for other women artists. American Libraries caught up with Hanna ahead of the … Continue reading Newsmaker: Kathleen Hanna →

A photo of a piece of sheet music from University of Michigan's collection of Thomas Edison's sheet music.

By the Numbers: Inventors

By Megan Bennett | May 1, 2024

May is National Inventors Month 135,850 Number of items in the Edison Sheet Music Collection, housed at University of Michigan Library in Ann Arbor. Thomas Edison, who invented the phonograph in 1877, spearheaded this collection as a way for his phonograph company to select vocal and instrumental scores to record. 44 Number of agricultural bulletins … Continue reading By the Numbers: Inventors →

Latest Library Links

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Kevin Maher writes: “With so much going on in government, now is the time to take stock of progress on library priorities, particularly when it comes to federal funding and the upcoming budget showdown. Here’s where things stand with federal budgeting for FY2026.” Maher explains the status and importance of appropriations bills, recissions, the recent reconciliation bill, the reauthorization of the Institute of Museum and Library Services, and recent court cases for federal library funding.

AL: The Scoop, July 15
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David Lemmons writes: “The gray area of whether a source is useful or whether you can trust it has become grayer and grayer over time, with the advent of accessing most of our information online. Checklists, like CRAAP, RADAR, and SIFT, are designed to help students navigate this gray area and are very commonly used across library instruction sessions. For me, though, the simplification afforded by this checklist approach misses a lot of the nuance. So, instead of relying on a specific checklist, I follow an approach I call asking crucial questions.”

Info Literal, July 9
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Geraldine Castro writes: “Sonia Beatriz Hernández never imagined she would one day be using a computer to digitize memories that included her. A transgender woman and a senior citizen, she learned everything she knows about being an archivist at her current job. Hernández is part of the Trans Memory Archive of Argentina (Archivo de la Memoria Trans Argentina), an initiative that not only preserves the history of gender and sexual dissidence, but has also inspired others throughout Latin America and the Caribbean to create their own collections.”

Wired, July 13
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Len Bryan writes: “People generally fall into one of two camps when it comes to weeding library collections. Either a person approaches weeding with great enthusiasm and a desire to clean up the collection and make it more accessible for students, make the space more inviting, create places for displays, and secure additional library funding. Or they approach weeding with great dread and trepidation, afraid they are going to throw away something that someone might need someday, that they may never get the funding needed to replace weeded books, and of possible pushback from teachers or parents about the process.”

Knowledge Quest, July 14
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Chelsea Heinbach writes: “The Librarian Parlor team knows how important it is to foster connection and community with fellow researchers, so we developed Research Community Bingo as an open resource that can be adapted for various contexts. I tested Research Community Bingo at my institution, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. After a brief introduction explaining the rules, participants received their bingo cards and began mingling. The energy in the room quickly shifted from initial hesitation to enthusiastic conversations.”

The Librarian Parlor, July 11
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Michael Blackwell, Jennie Rose Halperin, Catherine Mason, and Carmi Parker write: “The data forces us to conclude, reluctantly, that not only does print still offer libraries a far better bang-per-book than digital, but that for most popular titles, digital collections are becoming increasingly difficult to sustain. Some smaller and independent publishers are, however, now more likely to be present in the market and offer some hope for long-term and cost-effective holdings.” ReadersFirst has additional data and analysis that was cut for space from the published article.

Computers in Libraries, July/Aug.; ReadersFirst, July 7
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“Disability Pride Month is a time to honor the history, achievements, and diverse experiences of people with disabilities. This curated collection features fiction and nonfiction titles for all ages that explore disability through the lens of pride, empowerment, and identity. Highlighting both visible and invisible disabilities, these stories reflect the richness and resilience of the disability community and the ongoing movement for inclusion and equal rights. Explore the display and celebrate the voices that challenge stigma, expand understanding, and inspire change.”

Baltimore County Public Library, July 1

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