The Scoop

UNESCO Withdrawal Will Slow Progress on Global Library Initiatives
By Michael Dowling | October 18, 2017
Currently the US provides 22% of UNESCO’s budget; our withdrawal will have a profound impact on the organization’s ability to provide invaluable information resources worldwide and training and programs on human rights issues such as gender equality. The American Library Association (ALA) values the promotion and advancement of education and libraries around the world. ALA … Continue reading UNESCO Withdrawal Will Slow Progress on Global Library Initiatives →
Libraries Fill the App Gap
By Rachel Décoste | October 17, 2017
‎ And many libraries are getting the help they need through the American Library Association’s (ALA) Libraries Ready to Code project. The project is expanding to ensure that libraries have the resources, capacity, and inspiration to embrace activities that promote computer science (CS) among our nation’s youth. Libraries can help encourage CS education by promoting the … Continue reading Libraries Fill the App Gap →
11 Questions with Jessica Hughes
October 13, 2017
Hughes answered our “11 Questions” to introduce herself to ALA members. Coffee, tea, other? To steal a line that’s often misattributed to Benjamin Franklin: “Caffeine is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.” What’s the first website or app you check in the morning? I usually check Instagram to see if there … Continue reading 11 Questions with Jessica Hughes →
Policy Corps: A New Generation of Advocacy
By Timothy Inklebarger | October 13, 2017
Neal says the Association has always had a group of library workers with practical and policy experience it could call on to testify before national committees and speak with the press on behalf of libraries. But that advocacy network, which was already small, is shrinking even more as longtime advocates retire or move out of … Continue reading Policy Corps: A New Generation of Advocacy →
New Pick for Book Club Central
October 11, 2017
The selection helps kick off the 12th annual National Friends of Libraries Week, October 15–21, an initiative of United for Libraries. The celebration recognizes the advocacy and fundraising efforts of Friends groups across the country. Parker is an honorary lifetime board member of United for Libraries, a division of ALA. United for Libraries President Steve … Continue reading New Pick for Book Club Central →

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Professional Day at the Comic Con
By Emily Drew | October 10, 2017
A wide variety of panels and workshops offered practical advice on using comics in the classroom, getting involved and engaged as professionals, and getting the scoop on highly anticipated new titles. The day started with a conversation between Laurie Halse Anderson (Speak, Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, February 2018) and Ngozi Ukazu (Check Please!, First Second, … Continue reading Professional Day at the Comic Con →
Dewey Decibel Podcast: Dewey Goes Global
October 4, 2017
First, American Libraries Associate Editor and Dewey Decibel host Phil Morehart talks with Sandra Uwiringiyimana, author of How Dare the Sun Rise: Memoirs of War Child (HarperCollins, 2017), which chronicles her life as a survivor of the 2004 Gatumba massacre in Burundi and as a refugee in the United States. They discuss the book, the … Continue reading Dewey Decibel Podcast: Dewey Goes Global →
A Library Ally You Didn’t Know You Had
By Carrie Russell | October 3, 2017
But much of that defense would not be possible if not for a person most librarians don’t even know: Jonathan Band, who for nearly 20 years has represented libraries on behalf of the American Library Association (ALA) and other library associations. Band is this year’s recipient of the L. Ray Patterson Copyright Award. Band wrote … Continue reading A Library Ally You Didn’t Know You Had →
Rebuilding Communities after Disasters
By Timothy Inklebarger | September 29, 2017
Now librarians around the country are working to assist in recovery efforts and connect patrons—particularly those of Hispanic and Latin heritage—with support groups, aid organizations, and other resources. Loida Garcia-Febo, president-elect of the American Library Association (ALA), who was born and raised in Puerto Rico, said the disaster there is personal: Her family is still … Continue reading Rebuilding Communities after Disasters →
Small Press Expo: Indie Comics for All
By Amie Wright | September 22, 2017
The Ignatz Awards recognize new talent and are a vital collection development tool for identifying indie comics and up-and-coming artists, similar to the Indie Next Picks for literature. Much like other prizes like the Eisner, Harvey, and Doug Wright Awards, the Ignatz Awards can provide a foundation to build and grow expansive, responsive, and diverse … Continue reading Small Press Expo: Indie Comics for All →
Your Efforts Are Helping to #saveIMLS
By Jim Neal | September 20, 2017
I am pleased to report that on September 14, the full House of Representatives voted as part of a large spending package (H.R. 3354) not to make any cuts in federal funding for IMLS. This includes all funding for IMLS programs under the Library Services and Technology Act, and for the Department of Education’s Innovative Approaches to … Continue reading Your Efforts Are Helping to #saveIMLS →
Visiting Egypt’s Libraries
By Laurie D. Borman | September 19, 2017
The new Biblioteca Alexandrina The Bibliotheca Alexandrina complex comprises not just a library building but also a planetarium and conference center. A large fence with guard stations about every 25 meters runs along the corniche. This was once where you could enter the grounds, but due to security precautions prompted by political turmoil, the entrance … Continue reading Visiting Egypt’s Libraries →

Latest Library Links

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YALSA has announced the official titles of its 2017 Teens’ Top Ten. Teens all over the world voted from August 15 through Teen Read Week (October 8–14). A video and list featuring the winning titles can be found on the Teens’ Top Ten page. The Teens’ Top Ten is a “teen choice” list, where teens nominate and choose their favorite books of the previous year. Teens aged 12–18 can nominate their favorite titles to be considered as a 2018 Teens’ Top Ten nominee via the public nomination form through December 31.

YALSA, Oct. 19
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In August, New York University and the Library Freedom Project—an organization that trains librarians on using privacy tools to protect intellectual freedom—received a $250,000 IMLS grant. Its purpose: to train librarians to implement secure protocols on their own web services and to teach members of the community to evade the prying eyes of governments, corporations, and criminal hackers. The group aims to create what it calls “a privacy-centric paradigm shift in libraries and the communities they serve.”

Christian Science Monitor, Oct. 17
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Lisa Nowlain writes: “Going on the radio to promote early literacy and library services was surprisingly fun, and a great outreach tool in my rural county where people aren’t always able to make it to the library and storytimes. Here is a comic about my experience.”

ALSC Blog, Oct. 19
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Michael Muchmore writes: “Digital video tools get more powerful and easier to use every year, and that’s especially true when it comes to the video editing software that targets nonprofessional enthusiasts. Every year, new formats, new techniques, and new capabilities trickle down from professional-level software. Higher-quality video content produced by nonprofessionals is exploding in volume, thanks to phones that record in 4K, DSLRs, mirrorless cameras, drones, and action cams that can capture motion-picture quality video.”

PC Magazine, Oct. 10
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Kevin Maher writes: “This week, the US Senate is slated to take up the 2018 Budget Resolution, which provides a target framework for congressional spending. Meanwhile, the FY 2018 appropriations process is on hold until a temporary ‘continuing resolution’ expires on December 8, as reported last month in District Dispatch. So, where does this leave direct library funding? To understand how library—or any federal funding decisions—are made, it is important to differentiate between budgets and appropriations.”

District Dispatch, Oct. 19
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A new compilation from editor and maker Ellyssa Kroski, 63 Ready-to-Use Maker Projects, published by ALA Editions, spotlights a multitude of creative projects that you can tailor for your own library. Included are projects for artists, sewers, videographers, coders, and engineers. The handy reference format will help you quickly identify the estimated costs, materials, and equipment; and because several projects don’t even require a dedicated makerspace, every library can join in.

ALA Editions, Oct. 19
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Elisa Schoenberger writes: “My high school teacher assigned us Rick Moody’s short story collection Demonology for our writing class. One story, ‘Wilkie Fahnstock: The Boxed Set,’ told the story of its protagonist through song titles. Later, I read the glorious and frustrating Ulysses by James Joyce, where he wrote each chapter differently, and it whetted my appetite for books with inventive story structures. Here are six texts that play with the structure of a novel or short story in unusual ways.”

Book Riot, Oct. 19

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