A Solemn Anniversary

With today being the 70th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz Concentration Camp in southern Poland, I feel compelled to take a moment to reflect on it.

No words can do justice in describing the atrocious mass murder of the estimated 1.1 million Jews, Poles, Roma, political dissidents, homosexuals, and others at this one particular death camp alone.  Miraculously, despite the odds of survival against them, a number of people lived through the experience of the camp to tell the world about one of the darkest chapters in humanity's history.

Sadly and expectedly, survivors of Auschwitz and other concentration camps are passing away due to age.  As time goes on, there will be fewer and fewer survivors to tell their stories until eventually they will all be gone.

The stories of the Holocaust, however, will live on in books and in videos.  After making Schindler's List, Steven Spielberg founded the Shoah Foundation in order to film survivors providing their testimonies so that later generations can learn of what happened.  Through Spielberg's efforts and those of others, the memories of what happened will be preserved.

In the future, it will be libraries, archives, museums, and historical foundations that will give voice to those who experienced the horrors of the death camps.  Today with more people around the world denying that the Holocaust even existed, it will be increasingly important that such institutions provide a voice for the victims and to educate so that history will never be repeated.

Be sure to visit your local library or other institution to obtain materials on Auschwitz and the concentration camps.  If you can, spare some time to think about the past while casting a hopeful eye to the future.

Respectfully yours from the perch.

Ease Into the New Year

Are you feeling like me?  You hustle and bustle through the Holiday Season, buying and wrapping gifts, decorating, eating, traveling, and squeezing more things than normal into your days?  And now you're at the point when you collapse on your sofa feeling dazed and confused until you go bleh?

Then maybe we both need to take a break with the New Year, slow down, breathe, reconnect with ourselves, and bring some peace back into our lives.

We got a number of books at the library to help you get your groove again.  Whether you're looking for books on meditation, finding a new hobby, or looking for ways to organize your life.

Not catching the reading bug at the moment?  Don't forget we also have some great Easy Listening CDs, from Josh Groban to Barbra Streisand.  Additionally, there are new DVDs to borrow if you feel like hibernating in your warm, cozy lair on a cold winter's night.

If you do feel like venturing out, however, and want to do some fun things with others, we have some interesting programs going on.  For starters, we now have 2 Spin-a-Yarns a month on the 2nd Tuesday and 4th Thursday.  There's a Chocolate for the Spouses Soul planned for February when we get to decorate tote bags and, of course, eat chocolate.  Furthermore, there's the Big Read coming up, and we'll have all kinds of things, including a book discussion, on Jack London's The Call of the Wild.

So, be good to yourself, relax, and ease into the New Year.  You deserve it.

Namaste from the perch.

Gone Author?

In the literary sense, authors never really die.  They live on through the books they leave behind for countless future generations to enjoy.  In the literal sense, however, authors have mortal bodies like the rest of us and eventually pass on.  So how does Robert Ludlum, V. C. Andrews, and other writers who have been dead for years continue to churn out new books?  Living writers publishing under the names of dead authors.

I don't know about the rest of you, but books written by someone other than Ludlum don't make them Ludlum's books.  Books continued by other writers are outside what I would deem the "true cannon."  Call me a purist, but I prefer to read the words of the original author, not those by someone else.  Years ago, I read The Mystery of Edwin Drood, the novel that Charles Dickens left uncompleted at the time of his death.  The edition I read contained Dickens' work plus the work of another writer who concluded the story.  Personally, I think it's a disservice to Dickens and to his fans to have someone else try to assume what Dickens would have written, but I suppose some readers aren't satisfied when a book or series dies along with the author.

Why can't readers be content with the books that an author has gifted us within his or her lifetime?  Why can't we accept that all things come to an end?  And if we really do want a story or a character to continue, why can't writers continue the original author's work under their own names?  I don't think book sales will hurt just because another writer takes up the story of Jason Bourne.  Do the many Pride and Prejudice spin-offs suffer because other people write them under their own names and not Jane Austen's?

Let's have authors take credit for their own writing and give new writers the chance to emerge from the shadows of established names to become authors in their own right.  And let's make room for new authors to develop new characters, new stories, and new books to give to the world.  As readers, it's nice to revisit the past, but we shouldn't sacrifice the present and future to it.

My soapbox moment on the perch.

Thanksreading

I don't know about the rest of you, but it's irking me that Christmas is being pushed everywhere I go.  Don't get me wrong--I love the ho-ho-ho's and goodwill-to-all-men business.  I just don't want to hear it right after the trick-or-treating's done. 

The local radio station started playing Christmas music just 1 week after Halloween.  Christmas movies have been playing every night on TV since before Veterans' Day.  And Wal-Mart is already decked out with fa-la-la-la-la.  Yesterday morning, I had to walk further in the store, beyond all the Christmas trimmings, to find anything related to Thanksgiving, which is just a couple of weeks away.

Remember Thanksgiving?  That big all-American holiday with the turkey?  And the stuffing, the potatoes, the cranberries, and the pumpkin pie?  That non-commercial holiday that's about being thankful for what we have and being together with family and friends?  The one that's not about buying and getting more stuff?  Sometimes I feel that Thanksgiving is falling by the wayside for the big red and green (as in dollars) holiday.

Well, while I'm on this perch, I'm not going to let Thanksgiving be shoved in the corner!  No way, no how!  Let's have some respect for the turkey and give thanks for the things we have.  Let's be grateful for the people in our lives and reflect on the moment.  The moment that's in November.

And with the spirit of Thanksgiving in mind, I'd like to share some websites with all things Thanksgiving--books, history, and fun stuff.  So take some time to enjoy the holiday that's happening this month, not next month.  Happy Thanksgiving!

Thankfully yours from the perch.

Books

• Books About Thanksgiving in Literature
• Giving Thanks for Romance
• A Harvest of Thanksgiving Novels
• An Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving by Louisa May Alcott 

History

• First Thanksgiving
• First Thanksgiving Dinner
• The Real Story of Thanksgiving
• Thanksgiving History

Fun Stuff

• 11 Awesome Family Activities for Thanksgiving Day
• Black Dog's Thanksgiving Fun and Games
• Grateful for Fun
• Thanksgiving Activities for Kids

 

LibraryReads

I discovered a relatively new website today that I'm really excited about, and I just had to share it with all of you, my ever loyal fans!

The website is LibraryReads, created in 2013, and it posts the "top ten books published this month that librarians across the country love."  Actually, it's not just librarians.  Anyone working in an American library can vote for a newer book that he or she has enjoyed.  The 10 books with the most votes then go on the top ten list for the current month.

If I may give my humble 2 cents, I think it's cool to see what other people dealing with books all day consider to be the most interesting selections of the moment.  It's about what library professionals think are good reads; it's not necessarily about what's bestselling, although many of the books are bestsellers.

Each book is accompanied by a review written by a library employee.  You can read the reviews for this month's books, or you can go to the archives and read the book reviews from other months.

If you're looking for a new book to read but aren't sure what you feel like reading, LibraryReads is a great reader's advisory tool to give you different ideas.  Maybe you'll even find a book that was nowhere on your radar before.  I've already found out about some good new books that I'm just itching to read.

So, if you're looking for new and different ideas for your future reading, give LibraryReads a try.  It's worth a look.

Happy reading wishes from the perch.

Literary Halloween Costumes

With our Not-So-Scary Halloween Party coming up next week, I couldn't help thinking about Halloween costumes.  Of course, there are the standard witch, zombie, and ghost costumes, but are you looking for something different?  Maybe something along the lines of your favorite book?  What about one of your favorite literary characters?

Dressing up as a book character is nothing new, but it's gaining momentum.  I know I'm biased as a perch librarian, but going around as a literary character is a fun way to connect with your favorite stories.  Here are some ideas for literary Halloween costumes that are suitable for kids (and kids at heart):

• Alice from Alice in Wonderland
• The Cat in the Hat from The Cat in the Hat 
• An oompah loompa from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
• Harry Potter from the Harry Potter series 
• Hermione Grainger from the Harry Potter series
• Junie B. Jones from the Junie B. Jones series
• A hobbit from The Lord of the Rings
• Madeline from the Madeline book series
• Waldo from the Where's Waldo series
• Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz

If the above costumes don't fall into your style, check out the following websites for more literary costume ideas:

• 14 Amazing Bookish Halloween Costumes for Children
• 16 Literally Awesome Book-Inspired Halloween Costumes
• 21 Children's Book Characters Born to Be Halloween Costumes
• 100 Book Character Costumes
• Simple Book Week Costume Ideas

Whatever costume you choose to wear, hope you have a happy and safe Halloween!  And if you're wondering what costume yours truly will be wearing at the party, I will only tell you that I won't be late for a very important date!

Bookishly yours from the perch.

 

What's Your Library Story?

I'm sure all of us have a library story to share.  My story is that of a girl growing up in New York's Hudson River Valley.  My father was a school bus driver and my mother was a stay-at-home parent, so money was tight.  I didn't feel the strain of household finances, though, thanks to the library which always gave me somewhere to go and something to do.  It was a safe, welcoming place where I could lose myself in the different worlds the books offered.  When I was a teenager, I worked as a library page through my high school years, putting books away and helping people find things on the shelves.  Although I initially entered the teaching profession, I eventually found my way back to the library, going to library school and becoming a librarian.

One of the library vendors, Gale, is asking people for their library stories.  I think this is a great venture which shows the influence of libraries on people from all places and backgrounds.  When you stop and think about it, what really brings a community together nowadays?  I suppose you could argue the local mall, but does it make a lasting impact beside shopping?  I don't think so.  The library is the primary place that draws people and makes a difference.

Everyone's probably heard the expression that libraries change lives.  It may sound like a sweeping statement, but it really is true.  Read some of the stories at My Library Story and you'll see all the many ways libraries have affected people and their lives.  Kids needing a place to go after school and librarians introducing them to different books.  Adults self-educating themselves, working on their GEDs, and going through college.  People getting resources to deal with special needs children and aging parents.  The stories go on.

What story do you have about the library?  How has the library influenced or changed you?  What are your memories of the library?  If you have a moment, share your story at mystory.gale.com.  For each library story submitted through February 28, 2015, Gale will donate $1 to an advertising fund promoting libraries in the mainstream media during National Library Week 2015.  Please do your part and support the libraries that have supported you.

Just sharing my story and thoughts from the perch.