The Book Van

Book Van driver Sisto unloads the Book Van

Recently, we were able to take a ridealong in the Public Library's Book Van. What is the Book Van, you ask? The Book Van provides free public library service to senior living facilities whose residents cannot easily access neighborhood branch libraries. It has been active since 2001, when it was bought with funds raised by Friends For the Public Library.

The Book Van set up in a facility's common area

The Book Van has a list of sixteen facilities which it delivers to, stopping at most once every three weeks.  It makes deliveries three days a week, going to two locations a day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, stopping for about an hour in each location. The Book Van is now loaning DVDs, Playaways, and books on CD as well as books, and tries to get books for residents in Spanish as requested. Once set up in the common room of the facility, a mobile hotspot is used to connect to the library so that its two staff members can make library cards, check-in, check-out, and place holds. They also answer questions on a variety of topics, including helping residents with their Kindles.

The reference desk and checkout in one

Before the delivery day begins, staff members must get the Book Van ready, assembling holds and refreshing the materials to be loaded on for the day's stops. The van is custom-made with a special frame to hold four book trucks, three for fiction titles and one for non-fiction. They also have a bin for returns and a bin for holds which have been placed for the residents. New books are added to the mix as needed - there are around 600 titles available to the Book Van at any given time, with the emphasis on current and high demand adult fiction and large print materials.

If you know someone at a senior living facility, have them check if the Book Van stops there so they can take advantage of this great resource! If your senior is not at one of the stops listed, the Book Van is not currently adding new stops, but there is a wait list.

One Block, Nine Maps: Are You Ready For the Map Festival?

Compass Rose from map of sewer system, 1890-1892?

A guest post written by Eileen O’Connell, Branch Manager of Special Collections.

To celebrate our rapidly approaching map festival, we thought it would be fun to trace the history of one city block using nine maps. To orient the contemporary view, take a look at the 2016 aerial map of the 500 block of 12th Street NW. The block is block number 24 of the Perea Addition, bounded by Lomas Boulevard on the north, 11th Street on the east, Fruit Avenue on the south, and 12th Street on the west. The number superimposed over the structures are address numbers.

The earliest map we have at Special Collections that clearly shows this block was published in 1889 and was compiled by the Real Estate Title Insurance Company of New Mexico. It labels the block as block 24 of the Albuquerque Town Site Co. Addition. Of the north-south streets visible in this photo, only Tijeras's name remains unchanged. Block 24 is bounded north and south by Otero and Harrison avenues, respectively.

The W.4 designation refers to the Fourth Ward, a political boundary for the voting and school district.

This map is one of a set of maps produced by H. D. Johnson and Edward A. Pearson that show the layout of Albuquerque's Sewer System. It is also a puzzle for the researcher. We estimate it was produced between 1890 and 1892. An April 18, 1891 article in the Albuquerque Weekly Citizen takes citizens to task for "indulging in adverse criticism" of the contractor tasked with building the system. Johnson is listed in the 1892 Albuquerque city director as an architect. The 1892 city directory also shows that the north-south street names are now New York Avenue and Fruit Avenue.

Real estate records show that Block 24 of the Albuquerque Town Site Co. Addition became block 24 of the Perea addition in 1900. Although block 24 of the Perea Addition is shown on the index sheet for the 1908 Sanborn map, this map from the Sanborn Maps eResource is the first to show the block in detail. Thomas T. Skinner is listed in the 1913 city directory as a resident in the dwelling on lots 9 and 10; his occupation is listed as manager of the family's grocery store.

Digital Sanborn Map of Albuquerque, New Mexico, May 1913, Sheet 7

Although the 1920 map compiled by J.F. Brozo for the Albuquerque Title Guaranty Co. is more colorful, the 1920 sewer map is more interesting. The sewer map lists names of property owners to be assessed for sewer extensions and improvements. Amid the familiar Albuquerque names on block 24 and block 8 (due south) are Huning, Hebenstreit, Luna, Mann, and Simms. Running crossways along the west side of block 24 across lots 3-8 is the name Soo Hoo Pong. The exclusion laws severely limited Albuquerque's Chinese population, but brothers Soo Hoo Pong and Soo Hoo Nong and business partner Ah Kee were well known as proprietors and managers of the Los Angeles Restaurant at 217 West Central. The Records indicate that the brothers were real estate investors as well.

1920 Brozo Map

1920 Sewer Map

The 1924 and 1931 Sanborn Maps show rapid development on the west half of block 24 in the six year interval between map editions. The scale for both maps is 100 feet to 1 inch, "D' over the outline of a structure indicates "dwelling."

1924

1931

Although it doesn't label lots and blocks, the 1952 First National Bank map of Albuquerque still references the Perea Addition. It also shows the new name and new alignment for the former New York Avenue. Lomas Boulevard was the result of a street realignment that affected New York Avenue, Las Lomas, Campus Boulevard, and the Menaul Diagonal. The realignment was part of a larger traffic plan for Albuquerque which was accompanied by several street name changes and the shift to the quadrant system that divides Albuquerque NE, NW, SE, SW along the Central Avenue and Railroad Axes.

Literary Links: Personal Libraries

MADE IN ITALY. ACRYLIC ON CANVAS, HOME INTERIOR WITH RED WALLS, BOOKSHELVES AND ANIMAL SKIN RUG.. Photography. Encyclopædia Britannica ImageQuest. Web. 17 May 2016.
http://quest.eb.com/search/300_1827175/1/300_1827175/cite

Working in the stacks all day, you start to have increasingly specific opinions about books and how they are displayed.  How do you organize your home library - in order by author? Color-coded? By size? "Organising book collections can be therapeutic; dividing them after a break-up can be heartbreaking; while blending them with a new partner can unearth hitherto unknown personality traits," Emma Jacobs writes in the Financial Times. People have posted their "shelfie" to Instagram. Do books reveal something about the reader, as The Millions claims? You decide. But here are some very pretty personal libraries for you to drool over while you mull over these issues. 😊


The Library at Grey Gardens [Paris Review]

The Libraries, Studies, and Writing Rooms of 15 Famous Men [Art of Manliness]

A Peek Inside the Libraries of Famous Writers [Flavorwire]

Libraries of the Rich and Famous [Book Riot]

These 10 Home Libraries Are For People Who Really, Really Love Their Books [HuffPost]

Happy Birthday, San Pedro Library!

The San Pedro Library was the the 6th branch of the library system, opening in 1967 (not including Old Main, which is now Special Collections). Measuring 7000 square feet, it helped serve a growing local population - 243, 751 Albuquerqueans by 1970. The idea for the branch first germinated in 1961, with construction beginning in 1966. When it opened, it had 7,500 volumes, with a capacity for 25,000 - by 2007, the collection had grown to 57,000 items. In 1967, 4.828 books were checked out by the branch for a two-week checkout; in 2015, San Pedro circulated 116, 485 items for a three-week checkout. The library was renovated in 1999/2000. In 2011, the International Collection  of materials arrived at San Pedro thanks to a campaign spearheaded by Rey Garduño, then Albuquerque's City Councilor for District 6. The collection features materials for adults and children written in Spanish, French, Arabic, Vietnamese and Mandarin languages.

It's been an interesting 50 years! If you'd like to learn more about the history of the San Pedro Library and the library system, join Special Collections librarian Eileen O'Connell for Making Change: San Pedro Library on June 10th. The San Pedro Library will also be celebrating 50 years of outstanding public service with cupcakes, crafts, and photographs of  the library through the years at 11 a.m.on June 16th. Don't miss it! There will also be a scavenger hunt, a memory box, a historical photo identification contest, and more.

Photo: Jerry Goffe, ca. 1967. ABC Library Archives

What's all the hoopla about hoopla?

"What is hoopla? Bringing you hundreds of thousands of movies, full music albums, audiobooks and more, hoopla is an all in one digital service made available to you through the ABQ-BernCo Library. From Hollywood blockbusters to best selling artists and authors – not just the hits, but the niche and hard-to-find as well – you’ll soon discover that hoopla provides you the freedom you've been searching for to experience, explore and enjoy what you want, when you want, and where you want. Simple to access and use, without the hassle of having to return the items you've borrowed, all you need is your library card, a web browser, smart phone or tablet to get started."
~from our website

Library customers can check out 5 titles (eVideos, eMusic, eAudiobooks, eComics, and eBooks) a month - videos checkout for 72 hours, music for 7 days, audiobooks for 21 days. There are no holds, wait lists, or late fees. It's easy to find hoopla material when searching the library catalog -  in a search, you will see a designation to the left of the item of eVideo, eMusic, eBook, or eAudiobook:

 If you look in the record, you can see the designation on the left, and "hoopla digital" will be nestled amidst the record's information, and of course, if you click on "Access". it will take you to hoopla.

We have found it easiest to search in hoopla itself for available material. Here's the in-app view:

You can view or listen to your checked out items as many times as you wish and return at will, but when you return an item and you have already checked out 5 for the month, you don't get to check out another item. Titles return automatically on their due date if not already returned.

It's easy to sign up! To register for a hoopla account,visit hoopladigital.com from your PC, or by using our mobile app on your iOS or Android device. You will need to provide an e-mail address, create a password, and have your library account information ready. The free mobile app can be found in the App Store and the Google Play store.

If you are an avid comic fan, be sure to check out hoopla's panel-by-panel comic reader! Just open up your checked-out graphic novel and double click on the first panel to activate.

Visit our digital media guide for more information, including a list of supported devices, help for iOS and Android, walkthroughs, links to app downloads, and information about using the service.

Community Picks:Checkout Suggestions From Our Customers

Many library branches offer Staff Picks to their customers, be they books, movies, or other media. We love to recommend the things we have discovered and enjoyed from the library catalog - you can find 1243 items labeled "staff pick" just by searching the catalog! But there is often a give and take to checkout suggestions - we have found out about some really interesting titles from talking with our customers! So, we thought we might turn the tables for a change, and publish some of our customers' recommendations. We've enlisted the help of some library users from the community for this post, but we are always looking for more - let us know your suggestions in the comments or email your name and recommendations to abcreads@gmail.com and we'll post them next time.



Keif from the Guild Cinema recommends some DVDs from the library catalog:

Pickpocket: un film de Robert Bresson

Theory of Obscurity: A Film About the Residents

También la lluvia

Hunt for the Wilderpeople

Rumble Fish

Rebelle [War Witch]


Brandon, a deejay on KUNM's Afternoon Freeform, would like to put in a good word for some of our music CDs!

Camel's Back by Psapp

Feitiço Caboclo by Dona Onete

Metropolis: The Chase Suite by Janelle Monáe 

Sketches Of Ethiopia by Mulatu Astatqé

Black Power: Music Of A Revolution by Various Artists

Artemis by Moussu T et Les Jovents


And Neal from AMP Concerts, a seasoned library user, would like to share some of his favorite library items and services:

I have the pleasure of working in the libraries regularly, as AMP hosts free concerts at the libraries twice a month.  It’s always a fun adventure to get to visit different parts of town and play with the different spaces.  We have some music-loving regulars who follow us around the county, as well as some groups that sometimes come en masse, but the bulk of our attendees come from the local communities, which is a lot of what the program is about.

So I’m guaranteed at least two library visits a month, though I often find myself popping in to some of my regular library stops more often than that.  There are so many features to love in the libraries, and all of our libraries have so many different personalities (which is probably a blog post on its own).

Several years ago I reconnected to my youthful love of comics and started catching up on the book length volumes of GRAPHIC NOVELS that I had missed over the years.  The library has a great collection of graphic novels.  They are a great alternative to my regular reading and it seems like I regularly have a half dozen out at any time.

Every once in a while, I’ll find a hole in the series that I’m reading.  That’s how one of the librarians turned me on to the magic of the INTERLIBRARY LOAN.  For no extra charge, you can put in an ILL and usually in short order, some dedicated librarians somewhere else in the country have shipped the book off to Albuquerque for my enjoyment.  

I usually have my own plans for what I’m reading, but I’m in the libraries enough that I always have time to browse the STAFF PICKS, where I frequently find myself knocked onto a new reading course that’s always been interesting and rewarding.

I’m old fashioned and like books, but I’ve been traveling a lot lately and the books I’m reading are too bulky for long trips.  While I’m not won over, the fact that I can get EBOOKS from the library is a pretty cool thing (and even readers too!)

I also like the history that our libraries capture - from the historic ERNIE PYLE house to our beautiful first library, re-opened as the SPECIAL COLLECTIONS LIBRARY (which even makes a star turn in "Better Call Saul”).  I’ve caught a few history lectures at the libraries too, which are a nice compliment to the buildings and collections.

Those are just a handful of the many great experiences I’ve had at our libraries.  I’m looking forward to my next visit!

 

Picture credit: The Striped Tablecloth. Fine Art. Britannica ImageQuest. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 25 May 2016. http://quest.eb.com/search/107_3349913/1/107_3349913/cite. Accessed 18 Oct 2016.

New & Novel @ Your Library

The Public Library ABQ-BernCo is always trying to meet the needs of a changing world. We're not just books - we're eBooks! We're a Seed Library! Check out cake pans, Kindle Fire Tablets, Kill-a-Watt Energy Detectors! Subscribe our our email book recommendation newsletters! Our databases and subject guides are open 24/7, with your valid library card - learn a new language with Pronunciator or look up the list of Caldecott winners. Are we missing something you need? Suggest a purchase or get it via interlibrary loan. Do you need to book a meeting or study room for your group? We've got those. And more! Here are some of the latest additions to our library offerings, as well as some older programs of which you might not be aware:

Freegal Music 
Freegal is a free music service which offers download or streaming access to more than 9 million songs and over 15,000 music videos, including Sony Music’s catalog of legendary artists. In total the collection is comprised of music from over 28,000 labels with music that originates in over 100 countries. Freegal works with almost all computers, players, tablets, and smartphones. No special software is needed, but there are Apple and Android apps available for a more mobile friendly experience. To access your Freegal benefits, your library account needs to be in good standing. You can download 3 songs per week and stream 3 hours per day using your library card number and PIN to log in.

Friends for the Public Library
For information about donating at library branches, book sales, and more.

Genealogy Center
The Genealogy Center is located at the Main Library. Contact the center to schedule a tour at the Genealogy Center or to come to you with a half hour presentation about the many resources available for free from the Public Library ABQ-BernCo and the Genealogy Center to support family history research. Or stop by for Research Day (last Tuesday of the month) or Military Research Day (first Tuesday of the month). The American Ancestors database is only accessible at this location.

Gizmo Garage
Want to meet eReaders and learn how to borrow eBooks, eAudiobooks, and digital magazines from the library? Visit our Gizmo Garage for hands-on experience with devices and in-person assistance with library downloads. 

Making Change   
A local history lecture series at Special Collections presented by The Public Library ABQ – BernCo, Historic Albuquerque, Inc., and Oasis Albuquerque.

Mergent Intellect Global
Access comprehensive information such as Company descriptions & history, Products & services, Structure & operations, Competitors, SEC filings, Annual reports with synopsis, and Business news & industry trends. Use company information to research companies and competitors in your industry, find new business opportunities. Find information on 245 million private/public & inactive global businesses companies. Also, access full family trees including domestic and international subsidiaries and branches.

Mobile Hotspot
Use your library card to check out a Hotspot providing you with free, and mobile, internet access! The Public Library ABQ-BernCo is very pleased to be working with T-Mobile to offer mobile Hotspots for check-out.

• The mobile Hotspots may be checked out at all ABQ-BernCo Library locations.
• Customers must have a valid ABQ-BernCo Library card.
• Hotspots may be checked out by adult cardholders with full access accounts, in good standing.
• Hotspots can be checked out for 3 weeks.
• Hotspots are not eligible for renewal.
• All components (Hotspot, charger, cord, and piece case) must be present upon return for the library to consider the item checked in.
• Instruction cards are included with the hotspots.
• Replacement for the Hotspot is $120.
• Hotspots must be returned to a staff member at the Circulation Desk.

Museum Discovery Pass Program 
Check the catalog (a keyword search of "family pass" will bring up all of them) or call a library branch and ask them to check the library catalog - the passes are first come, first served, and you cannot place holds. If the pass you're looking for is not currently available, keep checking the Museum Discovery Pass LibGuide for updates on new program dates!

• Albuquerque International Balloon Museum - Current program has ended, new program dates are pending.
• Albuquerque Museum of Art and History - Passes available through August 31, 2017.
• Explora! - Passes available through September 30, 2017.
• Indian Pueblo Cultural Center - Passes available through August 31, 2017.
• Maxwell Museum of Anthropology - Passes available through August 31, 2017.
• National Museum of Nuclear Science & History - Passes available through August 31, 2017.
• New Mexico Family Pass - Visit any of 15 state museums and historic sites throughout NM; Passes are active.
• ABQ BioPark - Passes for free admission up to 4 people to the BioPark will be available through December 31, 2016.

TREP Center
The TREP Center is Public Library ABQ-BernCo’s hub for small business owners, entrepreneurs, inventors and researchers. At the TREP Center, you'll find information resources curated with the startup community in mind. In addition to print and digital resources, the center is home to Book-a-Librarian. Make an appointment for a consultation with a librarian with special training in connecting citizens to innovation and planning resources throughout Albuquerque.

Upcoming Events
Programs and events at all branches of the Public Library ABQ-BernCo.


Photo credit: Library attendant. Photograph. Encyclopædia Britannica ImageQuest. Web. 18 May 2016.http://quest.eb.com/search/108_1087746/1/108_1087746/cite

Location, Location, Location: Better Call Saul at the Library

Art Sculpture the Book Warden by Melissa Zink wearing Better Call Saul Season 2 Locations T-Shirt.

A guest post written by Eileen O’Connell, Branch Manager of Special Collections.

On June 5, 2015, I got an email asking me to list all of the events booked at Special Collections Library from July through October. The library had been scouted as a location for Season 2 of AMC's Better Call Saul, and the location coordinators wanted to schedule filming dates.

The filming is long over. Season 2 has aired. Season 3 is a go. It's hard to see the plot bending back toward our location, but I'm looking forward to saying hello to the crew if I see them setting up to shoot at Mike's house, which is half a block away from the library. I learned a lot during the weeks I managed a local history library that was briefly a swanky Santa Fe law firm, and there's no better way to befriend librarians than teaching us new things.

I'm a local history librarian in my own hometown. I identify and offer the tools that help researchers piece together how Albuquerque came to be what it is. During the filming, I was immersed in a current in Albuquerque's history that some future librarian will curate and communicate to a future generation. I have no clue how to classify this experience, but I've enjoyed sharing it.

My job during the filming was to open the doors and get out of the way. My Special Collections Library staff and the Library's administration, Maintenance and IT departments worked hard to notify customers about schedule changes and shift equipment and vehicles. Customers were generously tolerant of inconvenience and interruptions. The Albuquerque Film Office and the location coordinators eased and explained the process and ensured that the library's space was respected during filming and restored afterward.

Eight days over three months of set decoration and filming turned into 4 minutes of glorious screen time. I got to watch! I have to say THANK YOU to Better Call Saul production team, cast, and crew: you broadcasted a vision of the Albuquerque landmark that is my professional home to audiences I could never hope to reach.

Worldwide exposure is a new thing for The Public Library of ABQ BernCo. We are pretty good at sharing information and entertainment with people that enhances their quality of life. Sweeping crane shots are not our expertise. I will always cherish the way you saw and shared the beauty of Arthur Rossiter's building and Gustave Baumann's decorations beyond our borders. I have forgiven you for turning us into Santa Fe.  A native Albuquerquean's gratitude doesn't go any deeper than that. Congratulations on Season 2, and best of luck with Season 3.

You can find the first season of Better Call Saul in the library catalog, and check out our Breaking Bad/Better Call Saul subject guide!

Freegal

Have you checked out Freegal yet? Freegal is our music streaming eResource! Freegal Music gives you access to over 9 million songs from over 28,000 labels including the Sony Music catalogue of your country. To use, you simply have to have a valid library card.

Freegal has playlists such as "Today's Grammy Hits", "Broadway", "One Hit Wonders", and "Classic Rock" to choose from as well as standalone albums. The Home page will show you Top Albums and Top Singles, and also has a list of Featured Artists and Composers - everything from One Direction to Barbra Streisand to Miles Davis. You can also see our library system's Top 10, New Releases, and you can search by genre. Freegal also stores your streaming history for 2 weeks, so you can go back and find titles or listen again.

How Freegal Music Works:

• Library users have a weekly download limit of 3 songs per week, and have a streaming limit of 3 hours per day. You will be able to keep track of your downloads in the upper right corner of the site. "My wishlist" is a tool for you to use when you have reached your weekly download limit. You can add your email address to receive twice-weekly email reminders of your available downloads.
• Every song has a sample clip you can listen to before you download. You must be logged in to enjoy the sample clips. The downloads on this site are all in the MP3 format with no DRM, and videos are in the MP4 format with no DRM. This service will work on almost any computer, player, tablet or smartphone. The Freegal Music mobile app is free in the Apple® App Store and in Google® Play.
• Music videos will cost you 2 of your allotted downloads. If you do not have 2 downloads available you will not be able to download a music video.
• The search engine is both a simple and advanced search, and will return results primarily by the album that the song is from. You can "Search All" for Albums, Artists, Composers, Songs at the same time. For example: Elvis Blue Suede Shoes.

 Give Freegal a try, and let us know what you think!
 

#librarianproblems #rant

Does anybody else have the problem of checking out too many books at once - so that so many accumulate that you get overwhelmed and end up returning several that you've barely begun reading? I had to do that this weekend.  About 5 books that I decided I would probably never finish at this rate came back to the library.  I have to tell myself that if they're important enough, I'll remember them later. I don't even make a list of them, because that would just add to my overwhelm. Which is not really consistent with the fact that I have a running list of possibly hundreds of "to read" books.  I use it so that I can completely ignore all of the books I want to read.  I tell myself that if it's important enough, I'll have an urge to read it whether it's on the list or not, and that this list is just to refer back to in the event that I run out of things to read.  Like THAT will ever happen!  I'm a book addict working in a library.  But at least I borrow instead of buy - my house would be made of books and I would be completely broke if I did that. 

I know I have librarian problems,* but I'm also aware that my threshold is very low.  Because I know that I get overwhelmed when too many items are on my account, I try really hard to say no to most of the books I drool over as they pass under my nose at work.  (Thus, the "to read" list, which I'm realizing also makes me feel like someday I might read all of the books I've ever wanted to read... more wishful thinking.)  As I said earlier, I returned about 5 books, but all I had checked out were 11 in total at that point - which is relatively few in light of the 50 item limit that full privilege cardholders have.  But I don't have time to read 11 books at once!  And if I focus on just one, it will take me a month to finish it unless I become totally antisocial or stop doing the dishes.  (I may not read very much.)

So there's a taste of the struggles and joys we who work at the library (and/or love books too much) face day to day.  If you would like some books about working in a library atmosphere to take home or add to your "to read" list, I've listed some below for your browsing pleasure.  (Don't take them too seriously!)

 

Rex Libris: I, Librarian by James Turner

Quiet, Please: Dispatches from a Public Librarian by Scott Douglas

Weird Things Customers Say in Bookstores by Jen Campbell

Librarian for a Day  by Julie Tibbott

At the completion of the writing of this post, I have already accumulated 6 more books that I will not have time to read.  But maybe I'll give myself a pass this once since I will be on vacation for a week very soon.  I would be making up some excuse to take them home even if I weren't, though - let's be real. 

*To honor my colleagues who are actual librarians, I will admit here that I'm only a paralibrarian - I did not work my behind off in school to achieve librarianhood.  When customers call me a librarian, I have to explain that I am not, in fact, that formally educated.

September Is Library Card Sign-Up Month.

Now its even easier to get a free ABC Library card. You can apply in person or complete an online application. If you want to apply in person, you can print out the application, fill it out, and bring it to any ABC Library branch.

If you choose to go with an online application, it will expire within 21 days if it isn't completed in person at a library branch. Be sure to bring your current photo I.D. and proof of your mailing address.

When you complete your application in person, you will receive your library card. You can then check out books, DVDs, music CDs, magazines, cake pans, and access eResources, devices, and eBooks.  

The Library: An Illustrated History by Stuart A.P. Murray

Library: An Unquiet History by Matthew Battles    

The Meaning Of the Library: A Cultural History edited by Alice Crawford

The Public Library: A Photographic Essay edited by Robert Dawson

I Work At a Public Library by Gina Sheridan

Library 2020: Today's Leading Visionaries Describe Tomorrow's Library edited by Joseph Janes     

The Repurposed Library: 33 Craft Projects That Give Old Books New Life by Lisa Occhipinti

The Long Overdue Library Book: Stories Librarians Tell Each Other by Sandy Bradley and Elsa Pendleton

The Library At Night by Alberto Manguel

Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World by Vicki Myron

The Librarian of Basra: A True Story From Iraq written and illustrated by Jeanette Winter

The World's Strongest Librarian: A Memoir of Tourette's, Faith, Strength, and the Power of Family by Joshua Hanagarne                                      
      

Happy Birthday, Ernie Pyle!

How much do you know about Ernie Pyle, Pulitzer Prize-winning WWII war correspondent?  Did you know that there is an Albuquerque library and middle school named for him? Did you know that in 1945, the New Mexico Legislature approved a resolution declaring his birthday (August 3rd) to be Ernie Pyle Day? Have you seen the 1945 movie based on Pyle's writings, starring Burgess Meredith and Robert Mitchum?

If you would like to learn more about Ernie Pyle, the library catalog features several books by and about him, including:

Ernie Pyle In The American Southwest by Richard Melzer

The Story of Ernie Pyle by Lee G. Miller 

Ernie Pyle's Southwest illustrated by Bob Bales ; trail-notes by Ed Ainsworth

Ernie Pyle's War: America's Eyewitness to World War II by James Tobin

Ernie's War: The Best of Ernie Pyle's World War II Dispatches edited with a biographical essay by David Nichols 

Brave Men by Ernie Pyle 

Home Country by Ernie Pyle 

The Ernie Pyle Library has organized some events this year in celebration of Ernie Pyle's birthday, including a movie (to be shown at the Special Collections Library), a memoir workshop, and a reading discussion.  You can find out more about Ernie Pyle Day events on the library's event calendar.

The Ernie Pyle Library is one of the three branches in our library system named after a famous New Mexican (or New Mexico transplant) - the others are Erna Fergusson and Tony Hillerman.

Links

Ernie Pyle [Indiana University School of Journalism]

America's Most Loved Reporter: Ernie Pyle Organized by The Albuquerque Museum [City of Albuquerque]

Erna Fergusson: First Lady of American Letters [New Mexico Office of the State Historian]

Tony Hillerman, Novelist, Dies at 83 [New York Times]

Literary Links: Libraries in the news

This April 26th marked the 114th anniversary of steel magnate and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie's gift of 60 library branch buildings to the New York Public Library. Carnegie donated 1,679 library buildings throughout the United States. We feel honored to be part of the library tradition in this country!  Here's some links to recent articles about libraries:


At This Fashion Library, You Check out Clothes Instead of Buying Them [Co.Exist]
"The library currently has 1,200 items in stock at any moment, and another 500 checked out to customers. Eventually, they hope to expand to other cities around the world. 'Our dream is to go on holidays with some hand luggage and your library card, and have access to a big LENA wardrobe wherever you are,' says Smulders."

Baltimore Libraries Stay Open Through Riots, Because 'The Community Needs Us' [MTV]
"With a state of emergency declared and schools closed citywide Tuesday morning, the Enoch Pratt Free Library has chosen to stay open, providing a hub of comfort and community to all Baltimore neighborhoods, including the ones most affected by the mayhem."

A Long Way From Wax Cylinders, Library of Congress Slowly Joins the Digital Age [NPR]
"The Library of Congress has a trove of online content. You can hear Louise Bogan recite a poem... Or listen to a recording of a former slave, Fountain Hughes, recalling his life."

Libraries Make Space for 3-D Printers; Rules are Sure to Follow [NPR]
"And in an age where digital and technical literacy is stressed alongside traditional reading and writing, libraries are setting up plenty of space for the unexpected."

Denying New York Libraries The Fuel They Need [New York Times]

"So the city’s libraries have more users than major professional sports, performing arts, museums, gardens and zoos — combined. No one who has set foot in the libraries — crowded at all hours with adults learning languages, using computers, borrowing books, hunting for jobs, and schoolchildren researching projects or discovering stories — can mistake them for anything other than power plants of intellect and opportunity. They are distributed without regard to wealth."

'Improbable Libraries' Beautifully Depicts the Fun Side of Libraries [Huffington Post]
"Whether it's a bicycle delivering books or a serene literary retreat, these institutions remind us of the ineffable power of holding a book in your hands and seeing the signs left by previous attentive readers -- a power digital texts can never replicate."

Libraries help close the digital divide [Washington Post]
"The people in the 25 million households without Internet access may not know they can get online at their local library. Books are important, but computers are necessary. For people without Internet access at home, libraries fill the gap."

Unusual Library Collections Around the World [Flavorwire]
Includes the Cornell University Witchcraft Collection, the New York Public Library's collection of vintage Valentines, the Betsy Brown Puppetry Collection, and more!

Librarians Versus the NSA [The Nation]
"By 2003, librarians around the country had launched a revolt. Librarians in Paulding County, Ohio, among other places, posted signs warning computer users that 'due to national security concerns,' their 'Internet surfing habits, passwords and e-mail content' might be monitored by law enforcement. Others distributed informational handouts or organized community hearings about the government’s new surveillance powers. Libraries began to destroy computer-use wait-lists, hard- drive caches, and other records."

In the Memory Ward [New Yorker]
"It is a library like no other in Europe—in its cross-disciplinary reference, its peculiarities, its originality, its strange depths and unexpected shallows. Magic and science, evil eyes and saints’ lives: these things repose side by side in a labyrinth of imagery and icons and memory."

Do We Really Need Libraries? [NPR]
"Today's libraries still lend books, he says. But they also provide other services to communities, such as free access to computers and Wi-Fi, story times to children, language classes to immigrants and technology training to everyone."

What Do Librarians Read? Part One

It might go without saying that librarians (and library support staff - we answer to "librarian", but in truth we go by many titles) like books! Library workers are encouraged to read (though not at work), and to have a working knowledge of the library's holdings - helpful for book recommendations, book clubs, and the like. With that in mind, and inspired by an article from Book Riot (because when we're not reading books, we're reading about reading books), we asked a smattering ABC Librarians to share their reading habits, including:

1. What I'm reading now
2. What's on my to-be-read list
3. How I choose my next book
4. Favorite book to recommend

Here are their responses!

Kelly

1. What I'm reading now: I'm currently reading The Paradox of Vertical Flight by Emil Ostrovski, Sure Signs by Ted Kooser, and The Carnival at Bray by Jessie Ann Foley.

2. What's on my to-be-read list: My to-be read list is really big. Here are the next five on the list:
    A. 100 Sideways Miles by Andrew Smith
    B. Like No Other by Una LaMarche
    C. Period 8 by Chris Crutcher
    D. Caged Warrior by Alan Sitomer
    E. Love Letters to the Dead by Ava Dellaira (this one's a re-read)

3. How I choose my next book: I'm currently choosing my next book based on a list of books I have to read for a paper that I'm writing for YALSA. Typically, though, I choose my next book based primarily on my mood.

4. Favorite book to recommend: My favorite book to recommend is The Beginning of Everything by Robyn Schneider. It has an amazing opening chapter, and I just really loved it.


Brandon

1. What I'm reading now: Prince Lestat, by Anne Rice

2. What's on my to-be-read list: Next up is Bertie's Guide to Life and Mothers, by Alexander McCall Smith

3. How I choose my next book: Either choose something new by a favorite author or try something I saw a good cover for - I will initially judge a book by its cover, but follow up with a read of the jacket description before I commit

4. Favorite book to recommend: I love to recommend The Caliph's House, by Tahir Shah; it's the entertaining story about a London man who buys a run-down house in Morocco, and the year-long struggle to refurbish it to its former glory - it's educational and funny; never a dull moment


Barbara

1. What I'm reading now: Revival, by Stephen King

2. What's on my to-be-read list: What If?: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions, by Randall Munroe

3. How I choose my next book: Favorite author, interesting return coming down the rollers, word of mouth

4. Favorite book to recommend: Depends way too much on who I'm recommending it to


Carrie

1. What I'm reading now: I’m reading A Darker Shade of Magic by V. E. Schwab. I just started it, and it’s been some time since I put it on hold, so I can’t remember much about it! But, I think this says it all:  STEP INTO A UNIVERSE OF DARING ADVENTURE, THRILLING POWER, AND MULTIPLE LONDONS.

2. What's on my to-be-read list: So many books, but these are the ones that immediately come to mind: A Dangerous Place (Jacqueline Winspear), Blackout (Connie Willis), As Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust (Alan Bradley), The Girl on the Train (Paula Hawkins), Chew vol. 8 & 9 (John Layman and Rob Guillory)

3. How I choose my next book: I follow a few different libraries on social media which adds to recommendations from my colleagues. I also read reviews from NPR, Slate, Wired, io9, and a few other places. And, I look for new books from my auto-read authors.

4. Favorite book to recommend: I like to recommend The Dog Stars (Peter Heller) and To Say Nothing of the Dog, or, How We Found the Bishop's Bird Stump at Last (Connie Willis) for very different reasons. One makes me laugh just to think of, and the other affected me so deeply during the read that I still think about it a year later.


Laura

1. What I'm reading now: I’m reading Without You There is No Us: My Time With the Sons of North Korea’s Elite by Suki Kim and just listened to Another Man’s Moccasins by Craig Johnson (Audiobook)

2. What's on my to-be-read list: Next up is Deep Down Dark: The Untold Stories of 33 Men Buried in a Chilean Mine, and the Miracle That Set Them Free by Héctor Tobar
 
3. How I choose my next book: I choose books to read by NPR reviews, through book ordering, and checking in other peoples’ holds!

4. Favorite book to recommend: No real favorites - I read a lot of nonfiction about Afghanistan, North Korea and the Middle East because I think we ought to know what the history there is. Things that have relevance to current events - like Ghettoside by Jill Leovy. And about once a year I go back and reread To Kill a Mockingbird because it just is such an amazing and thoughtful piece of literature to me.


Alan

1. What I'm reading now: The Whites, Richard Price, writing as Harry Brandt

2. What's on my to-be-read list: Night at the Fiestas, Kirstin Valdez Quade
    World Gone By, Dennis Lehane
   Girl in a Band, Kim Gordon

3. How I choose my next book: New and Recently Released Library List, New York Times Book Review

4. Favorite book to recommend: A Visit from the Goon Squad, Jennifer Egan


Shana

1. What I'm reading now: The Almost Nearly Perfect People: Behind the Myth of the Scandinavian Utopia by Michael Booth; A Woman Unknown by Frances Brody; Small Victories: Spotting Improbable Moments of Grace by Anne Lamott

2. What's on my to-be-read list: The "Want" list I've created in my library account has 95 items, but I'll just list the ones that sound most interesting right now - The Wicked + The Divine: Vol. 1, The Faust Act by Kieren Gillen; 100 Essays I Don't Have Time to Write: On Umbrellas and Sword Fights, Parades and Dogs, Fire Alarms, Children, and Theater by Sarah Ruhl; Life, On the Line: A Chef's Story of Chasing Greatness, Facing Death, and Redefining the Way We Eat by Grant Achatz and Nick Kokonas; A Life of Barbara Stanwyck: Steel-True 1907-1940 by Victoria Wilson; My Struggle: Book Three - Boyhood by Karl Ove Knausgaard

3. How I choose my next book: I'm not doing any reading challenges right now, but sometimes those are a great way to put some variety into your reading (or just get you through your TBR pile).  A good site to find lists of book challenges is An Adventure in Reading. I once did a challenge called "Take a Chance" that listed some unusual methods of selecting your next read - very fun!

4. Favorite book to recommend: Tana French and Donna Leon if they like mysteries; Alice Munro, because I think short stories get short shrift by a lot of readers, and hers are some of the best; Fruits by Shoichi Aoki for arty types; Finn Family Moomintroll and The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Aged 13 3/4 by Sue Townsend for the young at heart; The Who, The What, and The When: 65 Artists Illustrate the Secret Sidekicks of History compiled by Jenny Volvovski, Julia Rothman, and Matt Lamothe is a light read, but illuminating; "They Call Me Naughty Lola": Personal Ads From the London Review of Books edited by David Rose and The Sisters: The Saga of the Mitford Family by Mary S. Lovell for fellow Anglophiles; and if they like graphic novels, Bad Houses by Sara Ryan or Air 1: Letters from Lost Countries by G. Willow Wilson.