Best of the ALA Blogs - Saturday | American Libraries Magazine

As seen in ALA blogs on Saturday, June 25:

The Red Cape Event of the Season—ALSC Blog
Heather Acerro reported that “The poopiest place to be at #ALA11 tonight was the Super Diaper Baby 2 party. Here are some highlights: Tinkle tinis and hot dogs were served. Yes, tinkle tinis—get it? The super-awesome and talented Dav Pilkey signed copies of Super Diaper Baby 2: The Invasion of the Potty Snatchers and let us take them home with us even though the book hasn’t been released yet! He also showed us a moving video about his inspiration for the book—it will be available on his website in a week or so; take a few minutes to watch it, it will squeeze a few tears out of you. There were plenty of red cape–wearing librarians in attendance.”…

There’s a Map for That—ALA Membership Blog
Alison Ricker wrote, “No fewer than seven librarians gave a whirlwind tour of map sources and mapping tools during the Map and Geography Round Table(MAGERT) sponsored session, generously supported by SimplyMap. Intended for the non-specialist (especially the general reference librarian who may feel slightly panicked when leading a patron to the library’s map collection), the session organizers brought together experts with excellent suggestions for finding maps, with information on freely accessible resources and step-by-step demonstrations and handouts. Three types of maps were covered…”

How Audiobooks Have Been Successfully Used to Engage Readers—The PLA Blog
Stephanie Hill shared her experience at a session about audiobooks, reporting that “It was a panelist format where three knowledgeable librarians did a Q&A where either the host of the session asked the questions or audience members posed the questions and that is what the presenters encouraged mostly—audience participation. I like these kinds of sessions because instead of someone lecturing to you, you are now engaged and obtaining the information and questions you have. Basically, the take-home message for me was that audio books are no less important than regular books. So many of us librarians may focus on the act of reading so much that we forget listening is also a very important skill we need to help our children and adults with.”…

Learning about Sensory Storytimes—ALSC Blog
Mary Voors wrote, “Many children with Autism Spectrum Disorders are visiting our libraries. Many more families of kids with ASD want to feel welcome in our libraries. Current statistics show that one in every 110 children is diagnosed with autism, and some studies suggest that the prevalence rate of autism is increasing 10–17 percent annually—statistics that clearly show that families needing this type of storytime are in our communities. How we can best work with these kids and their families was the focus of a session today called “Sensory Storytime: Preschool Programming that Makes Sense for Kids with Autism.”…

Stimulating Discussion at Friday’s ALA Unconference—ALA Membership Blog
Jessica Horvath reported, “Friday’s ALA Unconference presented a unique and rewarding opportunity for librarians to share experiences. Free of agendas, the group dictates the flow of conversation. The morning’s group consisted of divergent perspectives, leading toward a wide scope of discussion topics. One may assume this on-a-whim approach would lead to chaos, the moderators Young Lee (University of La Verne Libraries) and Erin Dorney (Millersville University Libraries) kept the conversation lively, organic, and productive.”…

Galleystravaganza—ALSC Blog
Abbylibrarian wrote about that conference favorite, ARCs. “Books on the tables. Books on the floor. Books on the ceiling…Okay, maybe I made that last one up, but there were definitely books pretty much everywhere at the opening reception for the Exhibit Halls last night. While the highlight of the conference is definitely the personal connections I make with other librarians, I love to get my hands on some ARCs (Advance Reader Copies, a.k.a. galleys). Reading ARCs helps me keep up with what’s new and hot in children’s and YA lit. And the teens in my teen advisory group love to read pre-publication books and write reviews for me so that I know what THEY think is hot.”…

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Karin Greenberg writes: “There’s something about reciting a memorized poem that induces calm and shuts out the rest of the world for a few seconds. During National Poetry Month in April, I focused on this often forgotten activity. After putting together a display of poems by various poets, I posted them in a Canvas announcement titled ‘April Poetry Challenge.’ Most students who come into the library during lunch or free periods want to relax or do work. With the lure of a gift card, though, I got dozens of participants.”

Knowledge Quest, May 13
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Becky Spratford writes: “We are less than two weeks away from Memorial Day, the unofficial start of summer. Summer Reading lists will start coming fast and furious, so best to get ready now. We know that some lists [such as those from Publishers Weekly] are meant to generate excitement about books that are coming soon, but the average reader does not understand that they are not out yet. If they see a book on a list, they expect you to have it. We need to be ready in a couple of key ways.”

RA For All, May 14
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Lisa Zhuang writes: “As a second-generation daughter of immigrants, I am often saddened by the stories that will be forever lost between my mother and me. Yet, as I grow as a reader and writer, I see the potential between the cracks: a chance to insert myself into my culture’s history. It is inevitable that myth will mutate with time. The right author will make the best of it. Below are eight works of fiction based on Asian folklore.”

Electric Lit, May 8
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Kara Arundel writes: “A newly issued federal rule to ensure web content and mobile apps are accessible for people with disabilities will require public K–12 and higher education institutions to do a thorough inventory of their digital materials to make sure they are in compliance, accessibility experts said. The update to regulations for Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, published April 24 by the US Department of Justice, calls for all state and local governments to verify that their web content—including mobile apps and social media postings—is accessible for those with vision, hearing, cognitive and manual dexterity disabilities.”

K–12 Dive, May 6
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Andrew Albanese writes: “Amid a three-year nationwide surge in book bans, 2024 began on a hopeful note for freedom-to-read advocates, with legal victories in book-banning lawsuits in Iowa, Florida, and Texas. But after some early successes, several cases are poised to enter a critical next phase. As the wheels of justice grind on, Publishers Weekly rounded up the status of some of the more closely watched book-banning suits.”

Publishers Weekly, May 10
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Tess Vrbin writes: “The Arkansas State Library Board on Friday voted down two motions to withhold state funding from public libraries that board member Jason Rapert put forth in his ongoing opposition to the presence of certain books on library shelves. Rapert reintroduced a motion he proposed at February’s board meeting to suspend funding for libraries suing the state [over the state’s 2023 obscenity law]. He also moved to withhold funds for ‘any library that allows unrestricted access to books or materials that contain sexually explicit, obscene or pornographic materials to minors,’” Both motions failed 6–1.

Arkansas Advocate, May 10, Feb. 9
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Jennifer Matthews and Ane Turner Johnson write: “A focus on digital resources requires careful consideration of library policies by policymakers to ensure that they reflect the university’s public mission and ensure the success of all students. At Rowan University in Glassboro, New Jersey, one such endeavor was to embark on this study to determine if our policies actually reflected the ways in which the student body used the library collection. Through a mixed-methods study, our team discovered that both continuing-generation and first-generation students primarily prefer print books for course materials.”

College & Research Libraries News, May