Latest Library Links
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Lindsey Simon writes: “Searching for the perfect presents for the book lovers in your life? We’ve curated some of the coolest posters, accessories, activity books, and more for readers and librarians. The best part: the profits from all of these items support ALA’s efforts to promote equity and access to information for all. Your purchase helps our nation’s libraries get the resources, training, and funding they need to help their communities thrive.”
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Natalie Portman will serve as honorary chair of National Library Week, April 4–10, 2021. In her role, she will help highlight the essential role libraries, librarians, and library workers play in serving their communities, especially during challenging times. Portman is an Academy Award–winning actor, director, producer, and activist whose film credits include Black Swan, Jackie, and the upcoming Thor: Love and Thunder. A lifelong fan of books, she shares on her Instagram feed titles that she’s reading—as part of Natalie Portman’s Book Club—using the hashtag #WhatNatReads. Natalie Portman’s Fables (Feiwel and Friends, 2020) is her debut picture book.
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Jodi DiPerna writes: “Despite the recent reversal on permitting books from approved sellers, there is a long and storied history behind the availability of books within the Allegheny County (Pa.) Jail, including claims made by officials that ‘leisure libraries’ exist inside the walls, though their use of the term is vague. The Pittsburgh Current has spoken to a multitude of people to try to understand how many books are inside the jail, how accessible they are to inmates, and whether official descriptions of a leisure library on every pod are accurate.”
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Halle Kiefer writes: “This fall marks 30 years since the death of children’s author Roald Dahl, writer of beloved books like James and the Giant Peach, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matila, The Witches, and The BFG. In a statement posted to the official Roald Dahl website, the author’s family apologizes for the anti-Semitic beliefs he expressed during his lifetime.”
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Emily R. Aguiló-Pérez and Melody Leung write: “The ALSC Library Service to Underserved Children and Their Caregivers committee is devoting the 2020–2021 calendar year to creating a vibrant, dynamic toolkit that provides ALSC members with up-to-date resources for working with marginalized populations. This month, our LSCUTC Toolkit focuses on resources for serving Spanish-speaking populations. According to Census data, Spanish is the second most spoken language in the United States with approximately 42 million speakers.”
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Phil Davis writes: “Earlier this fall, Clarivate Analytics announced that it was moving toward a future that calculated the Journal Impact Factor based on the date of electronic publication and not the date of print publication. If your first reaction was ‘What took you so long!’ you are not alone. Online publication dates back to the mid 1990s, with several forward-looking journals hosting some or all of their content on this futuristic thingy known as the World Wide Web.”
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Kelly Jensen writes: “Despite its collection development policy clearly stating that the library does not serve the role as parents, a number of parental complaints to the Lincoln Parish Library in Ruston, Louisiana, has led to LGBTQ+ books being pulled from the children’s section of the library. The books are now only available via parental request.”
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Hundreds of families received food packages after Cobb County, Georgia, residents donated produce and shelf-stable food items to help those in need. The items were distributed to 370 families a drive-through pantry at the Stratton branch of Cobb County Public Library System. Agencies including Atlanta Community Food Bank, the teamwork of CCPL staff with colleagues from Cobb Parks, Cobb Water, Cobb State Court, and Cobb County Sheriff’s Office assisted with organizing the donations.
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Librarian Abby Johnson writes: “A few years ago, our library restructured and created our first collection development librarian position. I was hired for the position of doing all collection development for my library. Children’s, adult, teen, print, digital, periodical—you name it, it was my job. In June, while our library’s doors were closed due to COVID, I started our Grab Bag program and began taking patron emails myself and filling the grab bags. And it completely changed how I was doing collection development.”
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Bing Crosby’s “White Christmas” is one of America’s most popular holiday tunes. That recording, along with more than 3,000 record albums and CDs, are part of the Bing Crosby Collection recently acquired by the University Library System’s Center for American Music, housed at the Stephen Foster Memorial.
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A former city library has been tentatively declared historic—which could stop plans to demolish it for a new Children’s Wisconsin clinic on Milwaukee’s south side. The city Historic Preservation Commission voted November 30 to permanently designate the former Forest Home Branch Library. The petition to designate the building was filed after plans surfaced for a $5.4 million medical office building at the site.
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A crowdfunding campaign has been started to purchase and restore the longtime home of author J. R. R. Tolkien and turn the property into a museum. Project Northmoor, as the group effort is called, began a three-month campaign on December 2 to raise at least $5.3 million to buy the house on the outskirts of Oxford, England, where he wrote The Hobbit and much of the Lord of the Rings trilogy.
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