When a sledgehammer isn’t really an option.
THE SLAB OF CONCRETE IS more than a foot tall, ten inches wide, and two inches thick. It weighs about 20 pounds, and it is cataloged in the University of Chicago’s library system as a book.
December 2022
Do You Know Where These Authors (and Their Characters) Have Lived?
NY Times Book Review Quiz Bowl
Thoughts of “home” often dominate the last two weeks of the year as people celebrate the holidays, so this week’s quiz is about novels at least partly set in states where their authors have also lived at some point. To play, just make your selection in the multiple-choice list and the correct answer will be revealed.
Author Jerry Craft: Most kids cheer for the heroes to succeed no matter who they are
This essay by Jerry Craft is part of a series of interviews with — and essays by — authors who are finding their books being challenged and banned in the U.S.
Author Jerry Craft: Most kids cheer for the heroes to succeed no matter who they are
St. Paul libraries face moment of reckoning
Libraries are expanding their role, from social workers to helping homeless patrons. But some say staff are stretched too thin.
https://www.startribune.com/st-paul-libraries-face-moment-of-reckoning/600239371/
A Music Historian Takes a Top Job at the New York Public Library
Brent Reidy, the new director of Research Libraries, said he hoped to help democratize the 127-year-old library by reaching a younger generation.
Ten Stories That Shaped 2022
It’s again time (for the 20th time!) for a look back at the notable library stories from the last year.
The Good
10. Lizzo at LOC
In September, Lizzo toured the Library of Congress, stopping to play a crystal flute that once belonged to James Madison.
9. New Federal Open Access Memo
In August, another federal policy guideline was released encouraging publishers "to make the results of taxpayer-supported research immediately available to the American public at no cost."
8. More Institutions End Late Fees
Libraries continue to drop the policy of assessing late fees for books returned past their due date.
7. Controlled Digital Lending Gains Support
News flash: libraries are allowed to lend books. And there is no legal provision restricting the format for doing so. Controlled Digital Lending makes use of this, although the practice faces challenges.
The Bad
6. WorldCat Monopoly Continues
After making waves by announcing a new, free shared catalog service called "MetaDoor," Clarivate responded to a lawsuit against the plan from OCLC by shuttering the project.
5. Theft of Presidential Documents
Unless you were hiding under a rock this year, you heard the story of a certain former President making off with confidential records.
4. Library Vendors and Surveillance Capitalism
The practices of several companies in the library industry also profiting from the monetization of personal data have made for an uneasy mix with privacy advocates.
The Ugly
3. E-Book Licensing Hits Snags
Multiple efforts to curtail publisher moves at making more restrictive electronic book agreements, including in Connecticut, Maryland, and New York, resulted in limited success.
2. Labor Disputes Aplenty
As documented in multiple reports and studies, library workers are enduring many hostilities in their working environments. It’s little wonder, then, that many worker movements happened in response this year, including in Illinois, Texas, and Washington.
1. Book Bannings Continue
The ongoing and very widespread challenges to library materials is again this year’s top story. How has your library been impacted?
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