Reading Behind Bars: A True Story of Literature, Law, and Life as a Prison Librarian


Jill Grunenwald - 2019
    But the economy had a different idea. Jill got a job was behind bars as the prison librarian at a men’s minimum-security prison.Over the course of a little less than two years, Jill came to see past the bleak surroundings and the orange jumpsuits and recognize the humanity of the men stuck behind bars. They were just like every other library patron—persons who simply wanted to read, to be educated and entertained through the written word. By helping these inmates, Jill simultaneously began to recognize the humanity in everyone and to discover inner strength that she never knew she had.

A Splendor of Letters: The Permanence of Books in an Impermanent World


Nicholas A. Basbanes - 2003
    Basbanes continues the lively, richly anecdotal exploration of book people, places, and culture he began in 1995 with A Gentle Madness (a finalist that year for the National Book Critics Circle Award) and expanded in 2001 with Patience & Fortitude, a companion work that prompted the two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and biographer David McCullough to proclaim him "the leading authority of books about books." In this beautifully packaged edition, Basbanes brings to a close his wonderful trilogy on the remarkable world of books and bibliophiles.

Start a Revolution: Stop Acting Like a Library


Ben Bizzle - 2014
    At the Craighead County Jonesboro Public Library in Arkansas, Bizzle and his colleagues defied common practices by using creative risk-taking in marketing and outreach to transform their library into a dynamic institution that continues to grow and thrive. Here they recount their story, sharing techniques for success alongside a provocative marketing philosophy that will spur libraries to move beyond their comfort zone. Focusing on creative ways to pull patrons in rather than just push the library out, this book-Steers libraries towards defining their brand, explaining why it is crucial to meeting the needs of their users and potential users-Offers strategies for getting stakeholders on board and engaged, including how to address budgeting concerns-Demonstrates the importance of the library’s website as the digital “main branch” of the library, with guidance for creating and promoting it-Details the systematic marketing campaign undertaken at the Craighead County Jonesboro Public Library, encompassing both traditional and new media channels such as billboards, posters, newspapers, TV and radio, and mobile technology-Takes the mystery out of how to use social media platforms as public awareness tools, complete with detailed strategies and step-by-step instructions-Shows how to pull it all together into a manageable campaign through strong leadership and teamworkBy the time readers have finished this book, they’ll have a roadmap for revolution at their own institution.

Real Men Don't Rehearse


Justin Locke - 2005
    It is filled with dozens of humorous tales of musician antics and concert meltdowns. Outsiders are rarely allowed such access, but at last you can have your own personal tour of the mystical and magical realm of professional orchestras and the people who play in them. "Real Men Don't Rehearse" was written by Justin Locke, who spent 18 seasons as a professional freelance double bassist in Boston. He played with the Boston Symphony and the Boston Pops, as well as for ballets, operas, and Broadway shows. He is also well known in the symphonic world as the author of "Peter VS. the Wolf" and "The Phantom of the Orchestra," which are internationally acclaimed programs for orchestra family concerts. This is the perfect gift for your favorite music lover! This is a book no musical library should be without!

The Catalogue of Shipwrecked Books


Edward Wilson-Lee - 2018
    This is but a fraction of one man’s life spent collecting every book on every subject – including antique and modern worlds, science and law, as well as playing cards, pornography, and popular music.Who was Hernando Columbus and how did he achieve this?Set to the backdrop of Christopher Columbus’ paradigm-defining explorations of the New World and beyond, and cutting across events of the Renaissance and Reformation, this book follows Hernando Columbus’ bibliomania and curation of the first ever library of its kind.

A Place For Everything: The Curious History of Alphabetical Order


Judith Flanders - 2020
    For, while the order of the alphabet itself became fixed very soon after letters were first invented, their ability to sort and store and organize proved far less obvious. To many of our forebears, the idea of of organising things by the random chance of the alphabet rather than by established systems of hierarchy or typology lay somewhere between unthinkable and disrespectful. The author fascinatingly lays out the gradual triumph of alphabetical order, from its possible earliest days as a sorting tool in the Great Library of Alexandria in the third century BCE, to its current decline in prominence in our digital age of Wikipedia and Google.

Glory and the Lightning


Taylor Caldwell - 1974
    Born in the Greek city of Miletus, Aspasia was destined for a life of tragedy. Her wealthy father vowed to abandon any female child, so Aspasia was secreted away, educated independently of her family, and raised as a courtesan. She discovered at an early age how to use her powers of intellect as ingeniously as those of the flesh.   Ensconced in the Persian harems of Al Taliph, she meets the man who will change her fate: Pericles, the formidable political leader, statesman, ruler of Athens, and Aspasia’s most cherished lover. She becomes his trusted confidante, his equal through scandal, war, and revolt.   From the eruption of the Peloponnesian War to violent political and family rivalries to a devastating plague, author Taylor Caldwell plunges the reader into the heart of ancient Athens. In bringing to life the tumultuous love affairs and gripping power struggles of one of history’s most complicated and fascinating women, Glory and the Lightning is thrilling proof that “Caldwell never falters when it comes to storytelling” (Publishers Weekly).  This ebook features an illustrated biography of Taylor Caldwell including rare images from the author’s estate.

Empowering Learners: Guidelines for School Library Media Programs


AASL - 2009
    The focus has moved from the library as a confined place to one with fluid boundaries that is layered by diverse needs and influenced by an interactive global community. Guiding principles for school library media programs must focus on building a flexible learning environment with the goal of producing successful learners skilled in multiple literacies. Defining the future direction of school library media programs is the purpose of the newest set of guidelines from the American Association of School Librarians (AASL), entitled Empowering Learners: Guidelines for School Library Media Programs

The Library: An Illustrated History


Stuart A.P. Murray - 2009
    At the heart of the story of libraries and books is the story of the reader, who also has changed from era to era. Profusely illustrated, with fascinating is a comprehensive look at libraries that will interest book lovers and librarians.

Burning the Books: A History of the Deliberate Destruction of Knowledge


Richard Ovenden - 2020
    Today the knowledge they safeguard faces purposeful destruction and willful neglect; deprived of funding, libraries are fighting for their very existence. Burning the Books recounts the history that brought us to this point.Richard Ovenden describes the deliberate destruction of knowledge held in libraries and archives from ancient Alexandria to contemporary Sarajevo, from smashed Assyrian tablets in Iraq to the destroyed immigration documents of the United Kingdom’s Windrush generation. He examines both the motivations for these acts—political, religious, and cultural—and the broader themes that shape this history. He also looks at attempts to prevent and mitigate attacks on knowledge, exploring the efforts of librarians and archivists to preserve information, often risking their own lives in the process.More than simply repositories for knowledge, libraries and archives inspire and inform citizens. In preserving notions of statehood recorded in such historical documents as the Declaration of Independence, libraries support the state itself. By preserving records of citizenship and records of the rights of citizens as enshrined in legal documents such as the Magna Carta and the decisions of the United States Supreme Court, they support the rule of law. In Burning the Books, Ovenden takes a polemical stance on the social and political importance of the conservation and protection of knowledge, challenging governments in particular, but also society as a whole, to improve public policy and funding for these essential institutions.

A Family of Readers: The Book Lover's Guide to Children's and Young Adult Literature


Roger Sutton - 2010
    It’s divided into four sections:1. Reading to Them:Choosing and sharing board books and picture books with babies and very young children.2. Reading with Them:Launching the new reader with easy readers and chapter books.3. Reading on Their Own:Exploring what children read—and how they read—by genre and gender.4. Leaving Them Alone:Respecting the reading privacy of the young adult.Roger Sutton knows how and why children read. He must, as the editor in chief of THE HORN BOOK, which since 1924 has been America’s best source for reviews of books for young readers. But for many parents, selecting books for their children can make them feel lost. Now, in this essential resource, Roger Sutton and Martha V. Parravano, executive editor at the magazine, offer thoughtful essays that consider how books are read to (and then by) young people. They invite such leading authors and artists as Maurice Sendak, Katherine Paterson, Margaret Mahy, and Jon Scieszka, as well as a selection of top critics, to add their voices about the genres they know best. The result is an indispensable readers’ companion to everything from wordless board books to the most complex and daring young adult novels.

Libraries


Candida Höfer - 2005
    Since nobody photographs libraries as beautifully as Hofer, it seemed only natural to dedicate one of her publications to the splendid and intimate cathedrals of knowledge across Europe and the US: the Escorial in Spain, the Whitney Museum in New york, Villa Medici in Rome, the Hamburg University library, the Bibliotheque nationale de France in Paris, the Museo Archeologico in Madrid, and Pierpont Morgan Library in New York, to name just a few. Almost completely devoid of people, as is Candida Hofer's trademark, these pictures radiate a comforting serenity that is exceptional in contemporary photography. Now available in an unchanged reprint.

The Whole Library Handbook 4: Current Data, Professional Advice, and Curiosa about Libraries and Library Services


George M. Eberhart - 1991
    Eberhart (Senior Editor of "American Libraries" magazine for the American Library Association) provides a complete understanding of library functions, orders, procedures, and perspectives focused on people, materials, guidelines, technology, operations, funding, staff development, issues, diversity, the internet, and librarians.

The Public Library: A Photographic Essay


Robert Dawson - 2014
    Today, the more than 17,000 libraries in America also function as de facto community centers offering free access to the internet, job-hunting assistance, or a warm place to take shelter. And yet, across the country, cities large and small are closing public libraries or curtailing their hours of operation. Over the last eighteen years, photographer Robert Dawson has crisscrossed the country documenting hundreds of these endangered institutions. The Public Library presents a wide selection of Dawson's photographs— from the majestic reading room at the New York Public Library to Allensworth, California's one-room Tulare County Free Library built by former slaves. Accompanying Dawson's revealing photographs are essays, letters, and poetry by some of America's most celebrated writers. A foreword by Bill Moyers and an afterword by Ann Patchett bookend this important survey of a treasured American institution.

Bookhunter


Jason Shiga - 2007
    The excitement is fulfilling. The year is 1973. A priceless book has been stolen from the Oakland Public Library. A crack team of Bookhunters (aka. library police) have less than three days to recover the stolen item. It’s a race against the clock as our heroes use every tool in their arsenal of library equipment to find the book and the mastermind who stole it.Will the detectives catch this scoundrel? Find out in Bookhunter, the greatest comic of the new millennium. What a roller coaster ride of excitement! What an unexpected twist takes place! Do not begin Bookhunter unless you are prepared to finish it in one sitting.