Social Responbility

When you think of a library, bookshelves lined with tomes comes to mind.  If you are a bit younger, rows of computers may spring in there.  These days, some libraries are so busy, you see more of the people than of the contents--which is good!

Libraries and librarians want to be busy.  Librarians LIVE to serve.  We live to answer questions (maybe not all of us live to answer questions from living people, but instead wish to answer a long standing theoretical question.)  I like to answer people's questions.  I like to dig into something and come up with material.  I like to read.

One of the biggest debates in librarianship is how far do we go in our service to the patron?  Do we simply fulfil their requests or do we promote our services and skills to the public/private sector that may even cross lines into the more controversial areas of life?

I have no problem putting myself out there to provide information (so long as it is sound and factually supported).  I have no problem supporting another's viewpoint, again so long as it can be factually supported.  Ethically, I cannot withhold information when asked for within the context of patron seeking information.  In schools, parents would challenge THAT whole idea and I would have to be prepared to say I will provide it within the bounds of the school board and following the curriculum.

Social responsibility.  Just how far should a library go to aid the public it serves?  It has been well documented that public libraries have served their communities in astounding ways and means.  In MN, we have some very well known libraries.  William Mitchell Law (St Paul Central); Rondo Community Library; Roseville Area (Ramsey County's main); James J. Hill; Mpls/Hennepin County Main; etc.  Our libraries serve a diverse and expanding community of new Americans.  We have East African, Southeast Asian,  Russian, Polish, Egyptian, Middle Eastern and Chicano/Latino communities in full bloom.  They have schools, mosques, temples, churches, clubs, stores, and more.  They are integrated on a daily basis and have taken on the tasks to learn the English language, obtain jobs, utilize services, and contribute.  Some of the populations have reached out asking for the services.  Some have not.  Do we have a responsibility to say, "Hello.  My name is....  I can help you find information/learn skills/apply for a job/apply for aid/take the citizenship test/'fill in your choice here'?"  I think we do.

More Mysteries

I have to start with a new warning.  I have added a warning that there might be adult content on this blog because even though I add a great deal about students and young readers, many of my posts also include adult reading.  Some adults do not like their children reading about this stuff.  I don't use "bad words" or "offensive language".  I keep it as real as possible and draw from the language of the authors I write about.  Take what I say in context and no one should be offended.

That said--thanks, Mom for another great author!  Louise Penny writes mysteries, set in Canada.  According to Sarah Weinman (have to look up her credentials), Penny writes in the same style as Agatha Christie.  AC is one of my very favorite authors, so it's not unusual I've gotten to really like the Chief Inspector Gamache series.

Amazingly enough, a great many murders seem to take place in a very small and sleepy township in the middle of nowhere, Canada.  The town of Three Pines isn't even on maps!  You instantly form a relationship with many of the characters of the town--the Morrows, Olivier & Gabri, Ruth, Kay, and Myrna.  Of course, those from Montreal's Surete are just as memorable--Gamache, Beauvior, Lacoste, Nichol, Lemieux.  You never know what is going to happen either.  There are secrets not only in the town's past, but also in the past of Gamache.  CI Gamache is constantly in conflict with the higher powers of the Surete because of a decision he made in a previous case.  Penny refers to bits and pieces, but doesn't fully reveal what happened.  Even in the second book, A Fatal Grace, we only hear the end result of the case and why potentially Gamache could be on the chopping block.  In the meantime, we read about the current mysteries.

Penny has a way of leading you to different potential suspects with iron clad motives.  Only in the end, true to a Poirot-like reveal, Penny pulls away the wool to reveal the real clues and the real suspects.  In true modern fashion, she also creates a great deal of suspense and the possible, and sometimes actual, loss of innocents.  A good reader can follow the clues and help to solve the mysteries.  Just like Poirot, Gamache likes to exercise "the little grey cells".

English Authors

I've read a few English authors--mostly those that are dead. I've read quite a few American authors who like to write about the UK, such as Elizabeth George. One English author who is very good and still alive is Jeffery Archer. His mysteries are well spun and multi-faceted (that means many sides). He doesn't have just one line of inquiry, but several and you find they are tied up together in some of the most bizarre, yet plausible methods. Thoroughly enjoyable for the modern mystery reader, these stories make you think about modern crimes and the criminal system.

Sony eReader

Let's talk tech. Now that Independence Day is past and my reading is getting done, let's talk about technology and it's impact on the world. Obviously the internet is HUGE. People wonder where we would be without it. I say, exactly where I left it in the '90's. Duh.

I didn't have the 'net when I was in school (undergrad). I had MS DOS. I had one of the first versions of Word. I had 5" floppy disk drives to store stuff. I worked on Commodores and Apple IIe's. I had to WAIT to get to a phone to call people, usually at my house. It had a cord and was attached to the wall--permanently. It also had a dial, not buttons. I functioned at a high rate. Life moved fairly easily and people knew to keep $.25 in case there was a need to call a taxi or $.23 to mail a letter.

Today, I can't keep up with the new software, hardware and in between ware. In class this semester, we open gadget boxes. Wii, iTouch, webcams, document cameras, Flip Mino's, Sony eReaders, and more. This week we are having a techology fair, demonstrating the gadgets we've worked with all semester. My gadget was the Sony eReader. It was...slightly impressive.

I guess I'm just a book kinda a gal. It was neat that you download a book lickety split and many (500,000) were free, but I really like the hunt for that elusive paperback; the smell of those old moldy shelves like you find at Uncle Hugo's; the first edition autographed Hemingway (still have that, Sue?); and the beauty of wondering if those overly stacked shelves might really withstand the mountain of books stacked upon it.

But back to the Sony. It's a simplified version of the Kindle 2. It downloads similar formats/file types. It holds less, 160 vs 1500. It costs less, $299 vs $499. It has less resolution, 6 shades of grey, three font sizes vs 8 shades of grey and 6 font sizes. It does well for that frequent traveler who likes to kick back with a good paperback. Kindle has a flat rate for their recent publications of $9.99. Sony will sell them for $8-20 per book or set. You can find some deals. If you really want power and the ability to create; to read journals and news, get the Kindle 2. If you don't really need it for more than reading, get the Sony.

We had to evaluate if they would work in a classroom and what usage would be possible. I think the Sony fits the lower grades because it's easy to use. The buttons are elementary and it holds more than enough, including picture books. For higher grades and academe, I would recommend the Kindle because of the journal downloads. Either would certainly save space in the classroom & library for those standard novels read in English each year. It would save on wear & tear of said books. The trade off is the cost and maintenance. Keeping it powered and out of the miriad of liquids teens tend to find and apply to school items. Sharing is huge issue. Once purchased, the book cannot be lent between devices. Copyright issues are very touchy in some cases and could cause problems. Let's face it, we don't know yet to what extent someone might be offended or claim copyright infringement.

Gov. Schwarzy wants these in every classroom and for every student in CA. The state can't even pay the electric bill. Govenor, how are you thinking to fund the Kindles? We also talked about the colleges that offer up iPods and Apples to entice students enrollment. Even Apple will give a free iTouch/iPod with the purchase of a qualifying laptop for students. What a boon! But at what cost? Remember one of the largest drawbacks to technology is the rapid decline of support and the ever increasingly short "life" of the technology. Last I checked, paper and ink hadn't really had all that much of an improvement and still work just fine. Uh, kids? You still know that paper and ink are for writing, right?

Fun little items, but what is their longevity? iPod and iPhone have already started their,what is it now, 4th generation devices? Well, when the electricity goes out and the towers fall, don't come looking to borrow my paper and ink. Get your own.

National Council of Teachers of English - Homepage

National Council of Teachers of English - Homepage