Urban Fiction Reigns at ALA

July 6, 2010

The urban fiction panel, “PHAT Fiction: Engaging Hip Hop Literature in the Public Library”, co-moderated at ALA by  librarian, (Evanston Public Library) Susan McClelland, and Chicago Public Library Book Club Coordinator, K.C. Boyd, was a rousing success! The Monday, June 28, program featured four urban fiction authors (Coe Booth, Paula Chase, Kia DuPree, and Tachelle Wilkes) and […]


Libraries and Librarians in the News

July 6, 2010

Where it’s unsafe to be outside, libraries provide haven for kids ————————————————– Chicago Tribune (IL)-July 6, 2010 Author: Lolly Bowean, Tribune reporter It was a warm and sunny day outside, but Xavier Parker, 10, was deep into a computer game at Thurgood Marshall Public Library when his father walked in and told the boy he […]


Wendell Berry Burned Up By Coal

July 3, 2010

If one knows anything for certain about writer Wendell Berry, it is that he is a man of ideals and deeply held convictions. Throughout his long career spanning countless novels, short stories, poems, and essays Berry has written extensively about what he believes constitutes a life worth living. Key among Berry’s beliefs is the idea […]


Beryl Bainbridge, author of “bleakly funny” novels, dies

July 3, 2010

Beryl Bainbridge, who wrote short, incisive novels based on her own experiences in postwar Liverpool, and later based on historical figures and events, has died at the age of 75 (British newspapers), or 77 (American papers). Two of her stories were made into movies, The Dressmaker (1989) and An Awfully Big Adventure (1994). She was […]


Chicago bookseller Stuart Brent 1912-2010

June 30, 2010

According to Chicago Sun-Times staff reporter Maureen O’Donnell “It wouldn’t be enough to call Stuart Brent a bookseller. For many, he was a Chicago treasure.” Read more about his interesting life in this obituary. (Laura H., Reader’s Services)


Digital Challenges For U.S. Public Libraries

June 21, 2010

Timely article on libraries’ efforts to juggle the provision of Internet services against cutbacks in funding and hours. Rural libraries in particular are often the only location to access the Internet for many patrons.


Vinyl Answer

June 21, 2010

File this one under “Coolest Thing Ever,” with a cross-reference for “Take That iPod, iPad, Kindle, Nook and Reader.” In news that has me beaming from ear to ear, The Daily Telegraph reports that a new British audio journal called Underwood: Stories in Sound has begun releasing vinyl records featuring new short stories read aloud […]



Calling all book group members

June 15, 2010

Are you a member of a book group? The Evanston Public Library has created a brief survey asking readers to share titles their club has read recently and to rate the books on how the discussion went. It’s a fairly common question we librarians get–“What are the book groups reading these days?” Some patrons are […]


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