This Book Is Overdue!

I love the cover of this book -- and I also like the topic! For any librarian in need of consciousness-raising, for all my relatives and friends predicting my imminent demise, and _especially_ for the couple of Wellesley library patrons who've asked me over the years if:

----we get to read a lot on the job

----if I like to do crafts because I spend a lot of time stamping things

---- or.... if we're all volunteers here (!!!!)

I want you to read this This Book is Overdue! Library Journal writes that: "Librarians and archivists, in all their eccentric, tech-savvy, and service-oriented glory, are celebrated in this highly complimentary and lively survey of their professions." Yay!


maf

JD Salinger, 1/1/19 - 1/27/10

Yesterday news outlets around the world reported the passing of the great JD Salinger, best known for The Catcher in the Rye, a title that has become required reading whether in high school or just passing through adolescence.

A couple of items of note are the obituary from the New York Times, and this article from The Canadian Press about how locals in Cornish, NH fiercely protected the literary icon's privacy.

It's interesting to note how the attitudes of (or at least perception of) librarians towards challenging literature have changed, as the NY Times' piece notes that "not everyone, teachers and librarians especially, was sure what to make of [The Catcher in the Rye] . . . ."

With JD's passing comes speculation about what will happen to his long-suspected troves of unpublished material--and like some authors (and musicians) who have seemingly published more posthumously than during their time among the quick, will his unpublished works exceed his published ones?

We Are What We Remember

At the reference desk I am often asked for websites that have primary historical materials. So, I thought I would list a few for you to browse.




History Central




Chronology of Historic Documents




Chronicling of America






Working Women



TB

Who Can Resist?

In the pre-Internet days (or as my kids would say, in ancient times), you might show your collection of comic book covers to your friends and relatives. Now fast forward to 2010. Not only can you collect cover images from other obsessors round the globe, but you can display your 450,000 comic book (and magazine) covers for the world to see. But wait, there's more! You can search them, tag them, download them, buy them, compare movie images with comic book images and more. It's the coverbrowser.com site. Be sure to check out the Speech Bubbler in the lab section, where you can insert your own words into the speech bubbles of selected covers. (See Archie above.)
And don't neglect its sister site, vintageadbrowser.com, where you can find vintage ads--123,000 of them, from 1851-2008. They are arranged by subject (and within subjects, by decade) and keyword searchable.
Thanks (once again) to ResearchBuzz for the tip.
--RL

Ugly American Author , William J. Lederer

The term "ugly American" has been bandied about a lot recently and its roots can be traced to the 1958 book, The Ugly American, by William J. Lederer and Eugene Burdick. This book, which the authors said was more fact than fiction, was the basis for the 1963 Marlon Brando film, The Ugly American. Mr. Lederer died this past week and left several books as his legacy.

Another of his books, Ensign and Toole and Me, was semi-autobiographical and was used as the basis for the Dean Jones tv series in 1962-1963 titled Ensign O'Toole. Other titles by William J. Lederer are:


Our Own Worst Enemy - an expose of war profiteering.

A Nation of Sheep - Discusses the effects of the apathy and ignorance of the American people on United States foreign policy, relations with other nations, and use of foreign aid funds.

Sarkhan - Another book that puts a small country in the middle of the struggle betweeen Communism and Democracy and the methods used by each side to claim it as its own. SH

Aid for Haiti Earthquake Victims

In the aftermath of the tragic earthquake in Haiti, many of us would like to donate our time and resources to help save lives and restore some normalcy to a devastated country. The choices of where to send aid are numerous. Following are links to several humanitarian agencies which are coordinating donations.

• International Committee of the Red Cross
• American Red Cross
• Doctors Without Borders
• Care International
• Oxfam America
• Partners in Health
  
• Save the Children
• World Vision
• UNICEF United States Fund
• UN Foundation for the UN Central Emergency Response Fund
  
• Salvation Army
• AmeriCares
  
• ActionAid International
• Clean Water for Haiti
  
• International Medical Corps
  
• Catholic Relief Services
  
• Beyond Borders
  
• United Methodist Committee on Relief

-DB

The Library on a sitcom

Librarians and other library employees don't often make it into TV shows or movies. When we do, we often don't come out looking too good. Check out this episode of Parks and Recreation:

http://www.hulu.com/watch/106737/parks-and-recreation-ron-and-tammy#s-p2-so-i0


maf

Coming in January--Word 2007

Excitement fills the air as we look forward to the upgrade to Microsoft Word 2007 on the public computers at the Wellesley Free Library!

If you have not had the opportunity to experience this user friendly edition of Microsoft Word, sign up for a computer class in Jackie's Room to assist you with the transition OR call the Information Desk at 781-235-1610. Stay tuned! SH

What Makes a Library a Library?

A very nice video of Creekview High School (Canton GA) students answering that very question.
--RL