Bucket List Check

I've served on three previous ALA book award committees (Nonfiction, Alex and SFNotables). Last week, I got an email asking if I was interested in stepping in for someone who had withdrawn from the William C. Morris YA Debut Novel Award committee. It took me about a nanosecond to say "yes". Morris has been a…

Stop gatekeeping

Every few years (sometimes more frequently) there's a tweet/article/blog post like this: https://twitter.com/wclodfelter/status/1634609783750680576?s=43&t=sbio11dN4TJgB3SdKXpteQ To which I say, UGH. Make that several "ughs". The biggest program for "leveling" books was founded in 1986, after I left college. I'm just wondering what would have happened had it existed when I was in school because I certainly read…

They’re kidding, right?

I'm sure by now everyone has heard about the increase in book banning, often on the flimsiest of grounds. This tweet sums up the "WTF"ery of the supposed reasons: https://twitter.com/notthecarkia/status/1628810855209992195?s=43&t=BdVptMNhhFbvbKQjX770nA If you look at the reason for the responses to that tweet, it's what one of the Moms for Liberty says (on it's surface it's…

Please, don’t

Over the many years of my career I've had the pleasure(?) of weeding/deaccessioning many books. Four of the five collections I've worked with have needed serious updating and reworking -- and that's not including the collection that burned down and needed to be completely replaced. Post-fire, I also seriously weeded my personal collection, getting rid…

Friends that read together

Last week, I got a text from my childhood BFF: This started a great conversation: That book she didn't remember? Hitty: Her First Hundred Years. A friend at work had her copy (also from 1971) and I re-read it immediately. That's one of the best things about being a reader, and being friends with readers.…

My Year in Reading (2022 edition)

This year was a difficult reading year for me, with very few OMG YOU MUST READ THIS books. Still, there are few I will recommend, if you haven't discovered them already: Because there were so few five-stars this year, I thought I'd highlight some of the Really Good Reads that juuuust missed. I've also excluded…

Minor Musings

Wow, it's been a while since I did one of these.  As we move into the Winter Break season, here are some links to enjoy/bookmark/get inspiration from. Books, Reading, etc. The Cybils are always a good RA tool, and now they have playlists!  What could be better to share with students? Yes, this is a…

It’s that time of the year, right?

Every week my friend Chuck posts a list of blog posts that have caught his eye. Some posts really catch my eye, some don't really. C'est la vie, or something like that. This past Saturday there was a post by J. Eric Smith listing 100 books that meant something/had shaped him. And because it's time…

Kindness

Don't you love it when there's something you've been mulling over and the universe responds without being prompted? What I've been thinking about is "kindness" and lo and behold, Sunday was Mr. Rodger's Birthday. His vibe must have been influencing things. Sunday was also the night my book club met, and last month's book was…

My Year in Reading (2021 edition)

And my choices for the best books of 2021? (posting this on January 31 because I know I won't have time to finish the book I just started, so that will be my first book of 2022!)