TASLA 2011: A Little Bit More

I did not get this information posted in a timely manner relating to the administrator's conference in June. Life, my topsy-turvy life, got in the way! I wanted to go ahead and include it here, particularly because of the author Lester Laminack and his books! Charming word-involved picture books, but more importantly a master in drawing you into how to use his books or anyone else's for matter to convey an idea, share knowledge or create a mood. If you ever get the chance to experience him go for it! You will not be disappointed!

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Day 2 is not starting off well...our Internet is being clunky! A room full of Librarians not connected is not a happy place. Grrr.


PSJA Reads Together...Catch the Reading Wave...Read!

A 7-year old community wide reading promotional program coordinated through the Library Department of PSJA ISD. Nora Galvan, one of my favorite TASLA friends, passionately is explaining it to us. It is a multi-level, multi-age program using lots of donated and half-pice books. Lots of book clubs giving the students a chance "to belong." Timeline seems to run by six-weeks periods.

Cute book Shiver Me Letters was part of her presentation. A very touching tribute to the New Orleans tragic hurricane--the film produced by middle schoolers was very emotionally charged for the book Ruined by Paula Morris. The high school example was for Speak. Another great production was for Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater. Incredible student productions! (with editing help from the district) You can't help but want to read the books.

Some of the featured books (and others) are here on a YouTube collective video.

Maybe this can be adapted for a school who could work with a high school video crew???? A collaborative opportunity.

Project Share - Lannon Heflin, Region 13 ESC

You can have a url as a part of this program..space online for you

www.epsilen.com/[your name once you register]

use it as a "teacher page", a training area, a whatever!

it can be your professional portfolio...something you really need to develop if you haven't!

There is a course catalog with projects developed and shared by others. You can see them by date or subject.

TEKs - updates & materials available for use

Digital resources .. free and otherwise

• science resources will be here in place of the no textbooks plan.
• open source content
• NY Times digital archives - the speech example

Professional networking

Districts have space for PD (moodle, Blackboard idea)

student learning access - probably secondary level most beneficial. This part is just know starting, in the infancy stage.

Life-long teacher account. Has to be set up within an institution connection, but is ongoing.

Texas Education Itunes U - videos from colleges, univerisities, other entitites, free to use!

OnTrack - end of course prep materials

The Faces of Project Share - each school district has a presence.

Phase 3 - student account portion.

• earth to space High School course - official online course for credit
• OnTrack end of course info
• other things I didn't capture

Lester Laminack - author

Three Hens and a Peacock

the after lunch speaker

keeps a writer's notebook

telling a good story is his reason for writing

The book he is currently working on ---Sam Loves Pink , 4 1/2 rough & tumble boy who just likes the color. A real-life experience he has had with a young kid; sounds fabulous.

Discussion of picture book uses...explanation of war

Playing War

Faithful Elephants - personally one of my favorite books..is NOT for young children or those who can't get through emotionally charged material!

Harmonica

Yellow star

erica's story

The woman's hat

scene from number the stars

railroad in the sky

under the the quilt of night

Ruby Brdges

Through my Eyes

Remberence

bullying

accentuate that we are the same

there is difference

be good to eddie lee

momma zooms

human beings can be acting based on their feelings love and fear

show active violent reactions...direct bullying

One (another title Zero)

the terrible thing

Bystander

Thank you Mr turrupt

critical literacy

Getting Boys To Read

ABDO has a list on web site

sophisticated media consumers by the time they enter school!

collection development ideas from boys' pajamas

using video games to develop collection

duty to have great football collection football literacy on the website

TASLA 2011: One More Time

Eighth year for my very favorite professional gathering!

The Texas Association of School Library Administrators conference...a small group of school library folks, about 75-100. Heard attendance is around 90 this year even in the midst of the changes and cuts. Many, many new folks on board...lead librarians were really encouraged to come this year.

Remember when you read this...it is a rough cut!!

Selecting Multicultural Materials and the Tejas Star Book Award

Good list of books from ESC Region One for the 2011-2012 award.

5th year for this award. Let's get more students involved in these books..from across the state.

These books were originally written in Spanish or true Spanish/English bilingual format.

The year's list are all in the bilingual format.

Other lists to consider when working on collection development:

Pura Belpre Award

Mildred L. Batchelder Award - published in another language and translated into English

Americas Book Award

Tomas Rivera Mexican American Book Award

more later!

Facts worthy of thinking about:

English language learners in Texas schools - involves 86 different languages...86!!! 830,713 students. Almost 91% of these 830 thousand + students are Spanish speakers learning English.

Hispanics currently make up 16% of the U.S. population but only 2% of the books published have Hispanic characters and Hispanics make up only 2% of authors publishing.

African-Americans currently make up 12% of the U.S. population but only 5.2% of the books published have Black characters and African-Americans are only 2.7% of the authors publishing.

Advocacy for School Library Leaders: A Call to Action

Advocacy Action wiki

Judy Moreillon

What ONE role of the five that we do will save us!

The group voted this way:

leader 24

instruction partner 15

info specialist 11

teacher 7

program administrator 0

her group when she initiated this study chose instructional partner as the most influential.

My personal choice is teacher...in order to survive I believe we must be seen as a teacher first and foremost because the power brokers understand that position, that term itself. The other roles are natural partners to being an effective teacher.

As is my problem often, I think instructional partner is a semantic issue...to me collaborative teacher is the same thing!

And what I have know for a VERY long time is we must be ALL FIVE all the time!

But I still stick with teacher being my primary role if I am to survive as a school librarian.

Feel free to share your own thoughts!

LEGISLATIVE UPDATE

God bless her, Gloria Meraz of TLA is trying to update the legislative/school financial issues as best she can with the positive approach she always presents. I just can't capture all the ideas in my head, much less try to put it on the blog. Read the papers, go to the internet, read what you want, write to who you think can influence the issues...it is just TOO much for me at this moment...maybe I can make sense out of it later. And remember one of the best ways to tell them how you feel...whatever side you are on, whatever group you support..VOTE. The primaries in March, the general election the next November.

Questions

SB8 vote next week

SB6 / HB6

instructional materials allotments

use the money to purchase databases, technology or textbooks "super fund"

must be spent on things that related to assessments....STAR, the tests

another version...must be spent on things that cover the TEKs

remember that allotments do not always get funded!

Moving from ratings to distinctions

School can earn distinctions in

fine arts

physical fitness

acquisition of foreign language, 2nd language (ASL)

academics

21st century workforce

and the new 6th one advanced learners - high performers ...this one is still in development

it will still be a "competition"

but think about how you as a librarian can help your school achieve these distinctions!

Remember - SILENCE GETS YOU NO WHERE

Ok...I need to close out this session...more later. I am overwhelmed thinking about all of this AND all the side conversations going on both in sessions and breaks and meals!!

027.8 District 8 Overview: A Worthy Gathering

Ok, I'm going to do my best to get back on track with my blog. I actually have missed writing and so many good thoughts and ideas are gone because I simply had no time.

So, let me begin my renewal with a short review of our TLA District 8 meeting that was held this past Saturday.

I was charmed by the author Gwendolyn Zepeda, a native Houstonian who has written both adult fiction and children's books. Her children's titles include Sunflowers/Girisoles and Growing Up with Tamales/Los Tamales de Ana, both bilingual books for children from 3-8. She shared wonderful little personal vignettes about her experiences in libraries as a child, a young mother, and as an author of children's books. It was was delightful! Being from the area, she might be someone you might consider for a visit.

The District 8 program offered a variety of things. Two colleagues presented sessions that turned out to be quite popular. As soon as I get their permission, I will link to their topics. I did a review of five things you can do to quickly become 2.0! Much of our time was discussing the difference between copyright and credit and how in an educational setting you have access to many things, but you still must credit them! That and the importance of hyperlinks..or making the info hot! such a simple thing, but o so important in adding depth to the online world.

Update: here is one of the sessions: Making It Work Together: Integrating Reading, LA, and 2.0 Tools

It was quite a memorable day for us. One colleague was asked to serve on a TLA committee and
the other was recognized for her length of service in libraries...36 years so far!! (and that doesn't count her many classroom years!) Yours truly...well, I have been to so many District 8 meetings no one (including me) can remember.

A good day, but I think for me personally, the highpoint was running into so many of my library school students...the ones who are working on their certification and degrees to become great school libraries. The eagerness and ethusiasm that registers on their faces and comes out in their comments really does me good. I am glad I have had a tiny little part in creating their readiness to take on one of greatest jobs, if also not one of the hardest jobs, in the world. They certainly helped me remember why I do it!

028.9 TeenBookCon 2010: Some Reflections

Enjoyed a nice day this past Saturday volunteering for a good pal at the TeenBookCon 2010. Got to hang out with some fun librarians from the local area, folks from our favorite neighborhood bookshop and some creative and clever authors!

I had a variety of little jobs that allowed me to interact a bit with teens who love and appreciate good stories. It was fun seeing their enthusiasm for the event and their excitement over the anticipation at being in the same room with the likes of Sharon Draper. All the buzz about "how good her books are " and "I don't think I could just say one is my fav" gave my librarian's heart a good jolt of "feelin' good!" One district Librarian colleague and I checked in some of the 400 students who attended and took their lunch orders. Who knew choosing between pizza nad Chic-fi-la would be so hard a task at 10:00 in the morning? Sometimes we had to revert to reference interview techniques to get an answer and get the line moving! (KR, enjoyed working with you as always...and solving several of the world's problems as well! :-))

One of my favorite duties of the day was monitoring the authors' break room and making sure they had plenty of coffee, food, cold water, food, sodas, food, ice, and did I mention, food! And the ever-so-important chocolate, of course! (My pal and I had had a fun adventure a few days earlier wheeling a cart thru Costco's aisles picking out just the right things.) Another Librarian in my circle allowed me to move into her slot in the break-room while she went off to serve pizza to the teens (Thanks CL, I owe you in more ways than one.)

Her generosity allowed me to have that few minutes of up close and personal where, among the delightful conversations I overheard, was the discussion four authors were having, not over the finer points of book writing and publishing, but the latest and greatest in oversize scanners. It made me laugh that they were deep in discussion about technology at a book convention! But I also learned something...the scanner is important in the working with large graphic panels that they create for their novels! (The weirdest little things just fascinate me.) They assured me they were having lots of book talk too! L to R: Terry Moore, the Fillbach Brothers, and Jimmy Gownley.

AND I also got to meet a blogger (& author)that I have been following for all the years I have been messin' with blogging...and if you want the skinny on anything bookwise, you should follow Cynthia Leitich Smith's blog . You can also read her take on the day. Yes, I feel connected online with all the folks I follow, but a f2f encounter is a grand ol' cherry on top of the hot fudge sundae.

Here's the whole wonderful group of authors and info about them!

Photo credits:

Pizza Handlers - from FlickrCC by libraryink

Registration - from FlickrCC by libraryink

4 authors - by VWB

CLS - by VWB
Author group - from flickrCC by libraryink

028.6 Cybil Awards: Round 4

The 4th set of Cybils Awards list is out.

For those who may be unfamiliar with this book award, all of these winners have been selected by a panel of bloggers who took extensive lists of nominated titles made by blog readers! All books were published with in the last year since the previous contest so these are the latest and greatest out there!

There are various catagories for different reading tastes and different ages. The groups include fiction picture book, nonfiction picture book, easy reader, early chaper book, poetry, graphic novel, fantasy and science fiction, middle grade fiction, YA nonfiction, YA graphic novel, YA fantasy and science fiction, and YA fiction.

Here is a list of the top nominees in each of the catagories for 2009. If you are looking for new additions to your collection you may want to take a look at these choices and see if they meet your needs.

Past winners for 2008, 2007, 2006

Artwork: used wth permission by Cybils

028.162 Bluebonnet Reviews in a Snap!

ReaderBuzz has a short, sweet and to the point list of  reviews for the current list of Bluebonnet books. Takes about a minute to read her good and bad points about each title!

...and we agree on our favorite one!  ribbit!

Enjoy!

P.S. She also has thoughts about books for older readers.

028.5 Multi-tasking Librarian: In the Right Place

I have said it many times, but it is never enough. I work with the greatest bunch of school librarians. I have made a promise to try and show them off as much as I can. I started my efforts here and here.

Check out the latest efforts of this elementary librarian. When a gift fell into her lap, she jumped at the chance and gave some of her students a wonderful experience with an author and his very popular books...all the same time she was preparing an outstanding presentation to give to administrators seeking answers to how libraries (and more importantly, librarians) can impact student success! Check out the Animoto of her kids. She is a walking advertisement for that type of success.

028.6 Cybil Awards for the 3rd Time

The winning titles of the Cybil Awards for the 2008 year have been announced and can be reviewed here in detail.

I love the nonfiction picture book Nic Bishop's Frogs selection of course...in fact used it in a catalog class situation last week. It is a perfect example of why kids can't get enough visually-stimulating science books! Here is a podcast with the author of the winning book from the Just One More Book site!

The only other winner I am familiar with enough to even mention knowing is the haunting, somewhat disturbing, YA novel Hunger Games. So much to think about on many levels.

Information about past winners can be found here for 2006 and here for 2007.

Happy Reading!

920 Author Interviews: Pulse Blogfrest

Want to know what is on the mind of 120 YA authors with regards to a series of 14 questions posed by teens?

Visit the Pulse Blogfest...sponsored by Simon & Schuster, it has been going on for about a week already (ok, better late than never!), but that's the beauty of the blog format...you can jump in today or start at the beginning!

Current question: What issues should teens be thinking about? Do they live thru their characters?
March 14th question: What would you be doing if you hadn’t made it as a writer? Phyllis Reynolds Naylor's response. Judy Blume's response.
March 17th question: How did you survive as a teen? Susan Cooper responds. Chris Lynch answers. Sharon Draper's response.

Feel free to comment back to your favorite authors on their thoughts!

028.6 Cybils : And the Winners Are...

Took you thru the nomination process and the finalists lists so I need to bring closure to the experience...here are the books selected winners in the 8 different categories. ( a couple have sub-divisions.)

Each title is linked to SmartLinks, a personal browser. Click on the little blue arrow next to each title for additional information. (You can go to the site and create your own search tool for subjects of personal or professional need.)

P.S. YES...the hole is making me crazy. I have moved them around and around, but I have learned to let it go!

028.6 2007 Cybils: Nomination Finalists Part 2

The rest of the Cybils finalists were released today.

YA Fiction - 7 titles from 123 nominations!!

A lot of discussion about Twight title not being on this list (or even the sci fi/fantasy list of last week)...I know a librarian or two who will not like this result, I bet (but hey, the Meyer's books arewinners on their own!) The Absolutely True Story of a Part-time Indian is a particular favorite of mine based on a couple of book talks I witnessed and all the press I have been reading about this title.

Non- Fiction Picture Books - 7 selections from 45 nominations.

I "read" One Thousand Tracings in the bookstore over the holidays...made me cry!

Graphic Novels - 5 each for the high school level and the elementary/middle school level from 34 nominations

Middle Grade/YA Nonfiction - 45 nominations were narrowed down to 7 finalists.

O, BTW, the awards will be announced February 18th. And if you want to review Part 1 (4 other sets of finalists)

Here is a pdf file of all finalists...includes short description of title.

92 Jon Scieszka: the "Stinky" Kids' Ambassador

Jon Scieszka has been name the first Ambassador for Young People's Literature, a new position created jointly by the Library of Congress and the Children's Book Council. A panel of five made the selection.

A major portion of his responsibilities will be to visit with children AND parents about the value of reading and books in this time of emphasis on technology. Scieszka does take advantage of the 2.0 world to help promote reading and encourage kids through his Guys Read website and includes girls in the encouragement as well!

I really hope you are at least familiar with his books, if not a fan, as I am. There are currently 25 and many are in Spanish as well! His often illustrator Lane Smith is a kick too...I have never had the opportunity to be around Scieszka, but did get to facilitate Lane Smith's presentation at TLA a few years ago..and it was a hoot. no wonder their books are so much fun!

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The next two years surely should be interesting!

Other articles:

NY Times announcement - check out his "newer" photo!

Washington Post article

Voice of America audio version

DayLife a group of reports

From the Newsweek article...something I hope I can overcome as well!

Newsweek: Especially now that you're the children's laureate, we need
to make sure everyone gets your last name right. You tell people that it's the
Polish word for "path" and that it rhymes with Fresca. Does that usually do the
trick?
Jon Scieszka: That's a good start, but people still butcher it.

028.6 2007 Cybils: Nomination Finalists Part 1

The first four final nominations lists for the Cybils are out.

Science Fiction and Fantasy - 94 nominated books down to 10 finalists divided into 2 groups based on age level.

Fiction Picture Book - from 118 nominations down to these 7 finalists.

Poetry - these 7 were selected from 94 nominations.

Middle Grade Fiction - 8 finalists from a wide ranging group of 75 nominations

I hope you see some of your favorites listed here OR you find some great new titles to add to your collection.

The other four catagories will be released next week (and yes, I will put them up for you!)

The winners will be announced later...(February? March?...I have forgotten!)

P.S. If you are not familiar with the Cybils, take a look.

028.6 Cybils Nominations for 2007 Are Up

Thought you might want to see the various titles in each catagory...may be useful for collection development ideas?

Fantasy & Science Fiction

Fiction Picture Books

Graphic Novels

Middle Grade Fiction

Nonfiction: Middle Grade & YA

Nonfiction Picture Books

Poetry

Young Adult Fiction

The winners will be picked by a group of blogger judges and annouced after the first of the year.

hope some of your new favorites are there!

028.5 Author Visit: Bringing a Bluebonnet to Life

Several schools in my sphere of influence enjoyed a visit from Obert Skye, author of one of this year's Bluebonnet nominees, Leven Thumps and the Gateway to Foo.



The book is a fantasy of the adventures of an Oklahoma kid named Leven and a neglected girl known as Winter Frore as they travel to the magical land of Foo.
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Part of the author's message included what he called secrets... Have Courage - Think Big - Be Great.
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He talked a lot about the writing process and especially the concept of brainstorming that one librarian reported was so important to the teachers present...they had been working on that very thing in class and how great to have it emphasized by the popular author. He also talked to the students about writing a draft and then improving on it.

Not even surprise visitors (plastic cockroaches!) could take the students attention away!

There was plenty of other fun, too...Skye held a game show and the students enthusiastically answered all of the questions correctly...they new the details of the story!...and won coveted T-shirts, etc. He signed books...personal copies and library copies, too. Some students enjoyed themselves so much, they wre making plans to visit the bookstore where he was appearing Friday night!

023.8 TLA Distirct 8: Professional Development & a Little Social Networking!

The area TLA District 8 meeting was yesterday...around 275-300 members attended, I hear. It was a nice opportunity to learn and share information and visit with professional friends.


At the general session, among the welcomes including TLA president Steve Brown, we heard a little bit about the coming of Encyclopedia Britannica Online to all the school libraries as an addition of TexShare things we get as a result of the the recent legislation change. That is quite exciting!

The speaker for the general session was Rene Saldana, children's author and education professor at Texas Tech University (his blog). His new book is A Sky Full of Stars, a book about friendship. In his remarks, he shared with us some of his favorite books as a child. He spoke fondly of things like The Hardy Boys and admitted he liked Nancy Drew stories even more because of "one chick being able to do more than 2 guys" and he also loved the Little house books as well.


The most enduring moment for me was when he told us how he takes his 4-yr. old son to the public library only one a month because the child checks out 50+ books at a time (yea for that librarian/library) and that on the first day of "real" school, he intends to take his son FIRST to the library to meet the librarian before going to the classroom or filling out the "mountains of forms" required of parents!

If you would like to participate in a live chat with him about this book, go to http://alan-ya.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=109&Itemid=2 at 8:00 pm CENTRAL time on Wednesday Oct. 17th.

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Among the many sessions offered, I attended one on copy cataloging pointers and helpful sites. During the Q&A portion, I did find out the records from WorldCat are not downloadable as I suspected...it was not my inability to make it work after all! But the info for many items including AV can be found. "Copy & paste" is still faster than original cataloging.

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A colleague reported that in the session on transitioning from high school research to college research that bib cards are still required by many professors at her college (although she doesn't necessarily agree with that practice) and when asked how to help more traditional teachers understand there is NO difference between an article in print that is identical online, the speaker said "good luck and just keep plugging way one teacher at a time to make them understand and accept the online version!"
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Then it came time for my presentation on blogging. The room was overflowing and VERY warm, but the audience was so gracious and enthusiastic and attentive...even when we discovered that virtually ALL of the blogs (including my own!!) were blocked. Yup...the firewall and the technology department got us right where it hurt...nothing got thru except for Library Stuff and some Teacher Tube videos. This was the pitiful situation despite the careful planning by the people in charge to obtain the list of websites, blogs, etc. that I needed unblocked well in advance of the date.


Thank goodness for PowerPoint...I had planned for this situation because it had happened before...not this badly, but before nevertheless, and screen shots are not as good as the "real" thing, but with the enthusiasm of the audience and the slide show, we had a great discussion on the power of blogging and the many things that you can do with it. And needless to say, we a had a very frank discussion on what we all have to do in order to make administrations and tech people understand that this type of situation can NOT continue. It is unfair to our students...the very reason we were all in that hot room on a beautiful Saturday morning!

HANDOUT for those who did not get a copy!

028.6 Cybils Book Award for 2007 : Nominations are Open

Nominations for this year's Cybils are now open. It is a book award process that is completely done thru the online world. Anyone with an email address may make a nomination and then a group of bloggers narrows down the lists and eventually selects the winners.

This will be the second year for this award. Here is the list of last year's winners. Here are the finalists from each group. A printable list here with synopses included. Another BOOK SELECTION TOOL!

There are categories for children's and YA's titles:
Fantasy/Science Fiction
Fiction Picture Books
Graphic Novels
Middle Grade Fiction
Non-Fiction: Middle Grade
Young Adult Non-Fiction Picture Books
Young Adult Fiction
Poetry
Go to the blog to communicate with the various organizers for each of the categories.

If you want to see a book considered, send it in! It must have been published in 2007 and you may only submit one title per category. You have until November 21st.

92 Some of My Thoughts About Books

Don't usually respond on this blog to the various memes floating around, but this one that I saw over at Goddess of YA made me think a lot about books and I thought I'd share my thoughts...especially since some people out there suspect I don't "read" because all they ever see is me "on the computer"!!

1. Hardcover or paperback, and why?
Hardback because they are “real” books to me…do I practice what I prefer—no. Practicality does not allow me to do so…and many books are only available in paper now anyway. But if I could make a law…books would only be hardback with rich papers and beautiful tradtional covers…and they would not cost a gazillion dollars to be like this!

2. If I were to own a book shop I would call it…
The Book End…had a newsletter of the same name several years ago because the library was at the end of the hall…would want the shop at the end of the street or row of shops in the shopping center!

3. My favorite quote from a book (mention the title) is…
Can’t help it... 3–part answer!
A. The newest one from Gordon Korman’s recent book Born to Rock:
"There are two kinds of people in this world--those who have had a cavity search, and those who haven't. This is the story of how I wound up in the wrong category."
This is just so Korman…and so bizarre that it makes me laugh…a lot!

B. Another favorite from a few years ago…again humorous and made even more special because the author Gary Paulsen can NOT read these short stories from How Angel Petersen Got His Name without laughing out loud himself.
In talking about the extreme sports of his youth, he states:“I want you to remember two important facts— 1. We were quite a bit dumber then. 2. There wasn’t any safety gear.”

C. And one more that came from a life-changing book for me, The 7 Habits of Highly Efffective People where Covey states:
"We are free to choose our response in any situation, but in doing so, we choose the attendant consequence.”
A sort of “for every action, there is a reaction”…I have often thought about which set of consequences do I want to deal with when trying to make a decsion on which way to go.


4. The author (alive or deceased) I would love to have lunch with would be ….
Living: Frank McCourt…to talk with a “real” Irishman who also happens to be a teacher who tells such wonderful stories
Dead: Mark Twain and Louisa May Alcott and Harper Lee and…


5. If I was going to a deserted island and could only bring one book, except from the SAS survival guide, it would be…
a laptop or gigantic I-pod type device full of all the books I would want around me…1 book—you gotta be kidding me—impossible mission!


6. I would love someone to invent a bookish gadget that….
Can’t for the life of me think of anything I need unless it would be something even better to accomplish #6…and make the content “feel” like it was in a real book.

7. The smell of an old book reminds me of….
Wonderful memories reading books from my parents’ shelves, some which belonged to my grandmother. I know they are now considered unhealthy, but “old” books are like old friends.


8. If I could be the lead character in a book (mention the title), it would be….
Josephine March of Little Women...or one of the children from the original Boxcar children stories. I thought would have been cool to live in a boxcar…or Atticus Finch


9. The most overestimated book of all times is….
This one will probably get me in trouble…it is SUCH a classic, but, hey, we are entitled to our opinions aren’t we…Gone with the Wind.


10. I hate it when a book….
takes 90% of a book to draw out the story with great descriptions, wonderful character development and lots of action, only to have the author realize he/she only has “X” number of pages (as set by the publisher or page police) to finish everything up and so zooms thru to the end, forgetting to continue the great descriptions, wonderful character development and action to the last page. Can I think of a title as an example? not at this moment, but it happened to me so often, I have almost given up fiction because of it.


I welcome anyone to respond...looking forward to your selections!

098.1 Banned Books Week: Free People Read Freely ®

This week, Sept. 29th – Oct. 6th is the official week to reflect on the freedom to read and think about how to provide that right to those who come under our influence. ALA’s theme for the event this year is Free People Read Freely and as usual the organization’s website is full of all kinds of information.

It amazes me that in this day of fighting the battle of access to the Internet and its resources riches, that we as librarians still need to be sure our patrons have that same access to the printed word! When reviewing the list of the most banned books over the years I always find some of my very favorite books (To Kill a Mockingbird, Fallen Angels, The Face on the Milk Carton, On My Honor, Huck Finn)…some long-time authors…and as always some new titles -- HP!

I have always had to deal with this issue within the framework of the school setting…a little different perspective than a public or academic librarian. I always tell school librarians—
1. KNOW YOUR COMMUNITY and select materials that go along with the curriculum where you can. Have choice available so that all concerned can find something that fits their parameters, whatever they may be.
2. KNOW YOUR BOOKS and be able to explain the good (and bad) points of the books and the authors who wrote them. Keep up with the recommendations, both from professional reviewers and colleagues in our business…a huge benefit of the blogging world!
3. ENCOURAGE CHOICE and make sure the teachers you work with understand that concept. No child should have to read one particular book…or be singled out as the only kid not reading the “class novel.” Multiple choice just makes sense…groups reading various books just makes sense…and the benefit…kids are exposed to even more books thru group discussions, projects, etc. (And advise a teacher to be sure and READ the book(s) he/she wants to "teach"--YES, I have had to advise more than one teacher of this!)
4. BE PREPARED and have a procedure in place for those time when parents and others may question one of the books in your collection. Careful reconsideration policies usually can defuse a situation and bring about a solution that pleases all.

Some other places to check information about the freedom to read…
Kidspeak!
Judy Blume Talks about Censorship
As If – YA Authors Support Intellectual Freedom (includes YouTube video)
ALA’s Banned Book Week in Cyberspace – some of these sites will be blocked, but hopefully the general info won’t be…guess we will see
Celebrate the Freedom to Read post from Google blog
Banned books and the Presidents
Chicken Spaghetti's short observation
Fahrenheit 451: Banned Books blog

FIC The Outsiders: A 40-Year Run and Still Going Strong

The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton celebrates 40 years this year.

Here is a NY Times review discussing its longevity.

All the secondary libraries in my sphere have multiple copies and a nice number of copies are currently checked out. Good stories are timeless.

S.E. Hinton on the book:

"The Outsiders is definitely my best selling book; but what I like most about it is how it has taught a lot of kids to enjoy reading."

More background available at Wikipedia.