Author Archive: Terra Dankowski


Amanda Gorman reads from her new book, Something, Someday, at the Closing Session of the American Library Association's 2023 Annual Conference and Exhibition in Chicago on June 27.

Beauty from the Refuse

June 28, 2023

Together, working together, beginning, over and over, over and over, Until you’re no longer beginning, you’re winning. Gorman began the Closing Session of the American Library Association’s 2023 Annual Conference and Exhibition in Chicago on June 27 by reading this passage to the audience. “I’m sure I’m not the only adult feeling a little weepy,” … Continue reading Beauty from the Refuse


Author Linda Sue Park (left) and We Need Diverse Books CEO Ellen Oh speak at the ALSC President's Program at the American Library Association's 2023 Annual Conference and Exhibition in Chicago on June 26.

Leading the Way

June 28, 2023

These were the questions that guided the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) President’s Program at the American Library Association’s 2023 Annual Conference and Exhibition in Chicago on June 26. ASLC President Amy Koester, learning experiences manager at Skokie (Ill.) Public Library, moderated “Leading with Your Hands and Your Heart: A Conversation about Leading … Continue reading Leading the Way


Native Hawaiian teacher, author, filmmaker, and transgender woman Hinaleimoana Wong-Kalu speaks at at the American Library Association’s 2023 Annual Conference and Exhibition in Chicago on June 25.

Role and Responsibility

June 27, 2023

Wong-Kalu was a featured speaker at the American Library Association’s (ALA) 2023 Annual Conference and Exhibition in Chicago on June 25. In conversation with ALA President Lessa Kanani’opua Pelayo-Lozada, Wong-Kalu discussed what it means to be māhū, her recently released picture book Kapaemahu, and what advice she would give to young people in these contentious … Continue reading Role and Responsibility


Stacey Goddard, public services manager at Spokane County (Wash.) Library District, and Lori Hench, adult and community engagement specialist at Baltimore County (Md.) Public Library, present at “Creating Opportunities to Shop Small: Two Approaches for Public Libraries,” a June 25 session at the American Library Association’s 2023 Annual Conference and Exhibition in Chicago.

A Boost for Business

June 27, 2023

Since 2019, the library’s Pop-Up Shops program has provided a marketplace where local entrepreneurs can connect with customers on Small Business Saturday, routinely held the Saturday after Thanksgiving. “The Pop-Up Shops is essentially a vendor event,” said Karly Feinberg, small business consultant for BCPL. “Since [vendors are] not paying to participate, this can be seen … Continue reading A Boost for Business


Children’s book author and poet Nikki Grimes at the American Library Association’s 2023 Annual Conference and Exhibition on June 24.

Completing the Walk

June 25, 2023

Children’s book author and poet Nikki Grimes strode to the podium and read passages from her forthcoming title, A Walk in the Woods (Neal Porter Books, September). The audience at the American Library Association’s 2023 Annual Conference and Exhibition on June 24 was rapt. The room was still, except for some rustling and verse, a … Continue reading Completing the Walk


Attorney and social media influencer Emily Amick at “Fight Book Bans: Frame the Debate, Fill the Seats, and Create Connections,” a June 25 session at the American Library Association’s 2023 Annual Conference and Exhibition in Chicago.

Methods for Mobilizing

June 25, 2023

“What Moms for Liberty isn’t doing is advocacy—it’s a takeover,” said Emily Amick, an attorney, social media influencer, and founder of political change nonprofit For Facts Sake. “I want to push you to think bigger about what we’re up against and how to fight it.” Amick was the featured speaker at “Fight Book Bans: Frame … Continue reading Methods for Mobilizing


Rachael Bild (left), teen services librarian at Skokie (Ill.) Public Library, and Analú María López, Indigenous studies librarian and assistant curator at the Newberry Library in Chicago, at “An Introduction to Organizing and Collective Bargaining in Libraries,” a session at the American Library Association’s 2023 Annual Conference and Exhibition in Chicago on June 24.

The Reasons for Unions

June 25, 2023

At “An Introduction to Organizing and Collective Bargaining in Libraries,” a session at the American Library Association’s 2023 Annual Conference and Exhibition in Chicago on June 24, a panel of five Chicago-area library workers addressed these questions by sharing their experiences with organizing, winning recognition for their unions, and negotiating contracts at their respective libraries. … Continue reading The Reasons for Unions


Comedian, actor, and disability advocate Maysoon Zayid speaks at the American Library Association's 2023 Annual Conference and Exhibition in Chicago on June 24.

The Power of One

June 24, 2023

“I am Palestinian, I’m Muslim, I’m a woman of color, I am divorced, I am disabled, and I live in New Jersey,” she said. “But I don’t want anyone in this room to feel bad for me, because I got 99 problems and palsy is just one.” Zayid appeared at the American Library Association’s 2023 … Continue reading The Power of One


An illustration depicting COVID-era service adaptations by Gaby FeBland

From Makeshift to Mainstay

March 1, 2023

Three years on, which early-pandemic adaptations have stuck around? Which trends went by the wayside? American Libraries asked public, academic, school, and special librarians to reflect on how COVID-19 changed their work in the short and long term, and what these innovations taught them about their workplaces and users. Curbside service is here to stay … Continue reading From Makeshift to Mainstay


Man wearing a VR headset

On the Cutting Edge

March 1, 2023

American Libraries spoke with the creators of two initiatives—virtual reality programs for medical students at Greenblatt Library at Augusta (Ga.) University (AU) and a specialized book club for pediatric staff at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA). Both innovations were presented at the 2022 Medical Library Association’s Annual Conference and demonstrate the impact of medical librarianship. … Continue reading On the Cutting Edge


Javier Barrios, Hilary Swett, Lauren O’Connor at the Writers Guild Foundation’s Shavelson-Webb Library in Los Angeles

Bookend: Flipping the Script

March 1, 2023

The library’s ephemera provides an illuminating look at Tinseltown and a record of the guild and its members: a Cold War–era FBI file on blacklisted screenwriting couple Hugo Butler and Jean Rouverol, two lifetime achievement awards given to seven-time Oscar recipient Billy Wilder, and screenwriter Linda Woolverton’s correspondence related to the development of Disney’s animated … Continue reading Bookend: Flipping the Script