At the Australian School Library Association conference in October 2011, Executive Director Karen Bonanno offered several excellent insights in her keynote (Vimeo, 31:46) that are useful to all librarians in this era of tightened budgets and job opportunities. School librarians in particular may want to implement Bonanno’s five-finger mnemonic to craft that one-minute elevator speech … Continue reading Making Progress by Fives
For compiling best lists, that is. I either make or participate in the making of at least three different kinds of best-book lists every year. First, there’s the Booklist Editors’ Choice list, published in our January double issue, but I’m only one voice among many in putting together that annual compendium. Then there’s my Back … Continue reading It’s That Time of Year
Despite the opposition of library boosters in Osceola County, Florida, to the proposed outsourcing of county library operations there, the county commission has approved a five-year contract with Library Systems and Services, Inc. (LSSI) to run the library. The 3–2 vote to approve the nearly $25-million contract, which LSSI has assured officials will save the … Continue reading LSSI Gets Its First Florida Library Contract, Eyes Simi Valley
Welcome to the first Outside/In, our new column for American Libraries. Some readers may remember us from Public Libraries magazine, where we wrote the Internet Spotlight column about web topics relevant to librarians and the public library sector. Our goal with this new column is to share practical information, news, and tips about emerging web … Continue reading Add to Your (Library) Cart
A few years ago an earnest-sounding college student called the ALA Library to gather information about librarianship as a career, adding that she didn’t want to work with computers. We all have days we’d be happy to see our technology replaced with pen and paper that doesn’t crash. But that is not our world, and … Continue reading Occupying Technology
The world needs more hard-boiled mysteries written by soft-boiled poets. This admittedly peculiar insight occurred to me as I was reading poet and novelist Jim Harrison’s first crime novel, The Great Leader. The book immediately reminded me of another mystery written by a poet—my favorite modern poet, as a matter of fact—Richard Hugo. The interesting … Continue reading Hard-Boiled Mysteries and Soft-Boiled Poets
Public librarians have come up with all kinds of reasons why their communities should support them. Some of these reasons are even realistic: Many people enjoy reading or listening to a good book; Free Wi-Fi and electricity are attractive perks; Preschoolers love story hours and puppet shows; Students need a place to do homework assignments; … Continue reading Taking Care of Business
The digital “revolution” has been a major topic of public attention and discussion among librarians this year, as we are confronted by daily developments, announcements, and headlines related to ebooks. The transformation being brought about by digital media has been a strong emphasis of the Association as well. During the fall meeting October 21–23 at … Continue reading Transforming Libraries, Transforming ALA
ALA provides a strong, unified voice for our libraries. Much of the Association’s strength comes not just from our divisions, round tables, and other ALA units, but also from our chapters and affiliates. Each year, many chapters and affiliates invite the ALA president to participate in their conferences, providing a wonderful opportunity for both ALA’s … Continue reading Chapters, Affiliates Display Their Strength
With all types of libraries suffering budget crises, a key skill is to know where—and how—available dollars might be stretched. In Cost Control for Nonprofits in Crisis, G. Stevenson Smith interprets the principles of cost accounting for use in libraries and other nonprofits. Following an overview of the chapter, Smith provides tools and examples to … Continue reading New from ALA Editions
Like many catalogers, I have been dragged to RDA. But, the other day, I had an epiphany. My mind drew a connection between RDA—at least in the way I code the beast (|erda)—and goat cheese. Just bear with me while I explain. I first tasted goat cheese in the ’90s, while I was the guest … Continue reading RDA: Food for a Cataloger’s Soul
If you haven’t googled the word “Santorum,” now would be a good time—otherwise most of what follows won’t make a lot of sense. Fair warning: What you find won’t be pretty (i.e., it will be explicit), but it will be instructive. Now that we’re all on the same page, let’s examine this phenomenon. The neologism … Continue reading What’s in a Name?
