Books into Movies

With the popularity of recent movies that have come from books, Rebecca Vnuk proposes an interesting library display idea in the March/April issue of Public Libraries (vol 51, no 2, p.56).  Why not create a display of lesser known books that have been made into movies?  It's a great way to showcase some of the gems on your shelves that people may not know about - and often the movies do not have the same name as the book.  When people love a movie so much that they just want to get some more this is a great way to offer it to them and possibly even get them interested in books (after the Twilight movies came out, my niece became a rabid reader!)

Here is a list of possibilities provided by Rebecca:

• About Schmidt (2002) - loosely based on the 1996 novel of the same name, by Louis Begely. (The 3rd book of the trilogy is due to be released this spring)
• Paper Moon (1973) - based on the novel Addie Pray by Joe David Brown
• Thank You for Smoking (2005) - adapted from the Christopher Buckley novel
• The movies all came Richard Matheson books of the same name:
• Somewhere in Time (1980)
• What Dreams May Come (1998)
• I am Legend (2007) - 2 other films also came out of this book, The Last Man on Earth (1964) and Omega Man (1971)
• Philip K. Dick's short stories have been made into the following films:
• Blade Runner (1982) - based on "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep"
• Total Recall (1990) - based on "We Can Remember It for You Wholesale"
• Minority Report (2002) - based on "The Minority Report"
• The Adjustment Bureau (2010) - based on "The Adjustment Team"
• Election (1998) and Little Children (2004) - based on the Tom Perrotta novels of the same name
• Drive (2011) - based on the novel by James Sallis
• Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day (2008) - based on the Winnifred Watson novel from 1938
• Up in the Air (2009) - based on the Walter Kirn novel
• Million Dollar Baby (2004) - based on the short story collection "Rope Burns: Stories from the Corner" by F.X. Toole
• Sideways (2004) - adapted from the Rex Pickett novel
• Winter's Bone (2011) - based on the novel by Daniel Woodrell
• Primal Fear (1996) - adapted from William Diehl's novel

Thanks for the great idea Rebecca!  (P.S. I highly recommend reading Rebecca's columns and books - you may have noticed I've referenced her before.  She is the author of 2 nonfiction readers' advisory titles for Libraries Unlimited: Read On ... Women's Fiction: Reading Lists for Every Taste and Women's Fiction Authors: A Research Guide)

Come and Play Awhile!

At last month's Alberta Library Conference I attended a great session presented by Anne O'Sullivan of Calgary Public Library called "Come and Play Awhile: Making it Fun at Calgary Public Library."  Many people only associate "play" with children and children's programming, but what Anne taught us is that "play" can and should be incorporated in other areas of service as well.


I want to share some of the AMAZING program ideas that she told us about!


"New Friends and Neighbors" is a club geared towards newcomers (mainly women) that gives the ladies a chance to meet new people in the community, practice their English skills and talk about their experiences as a new Canadian.  This club is so popular, that staff frequently have to kick the group out of the meeting room because they need it for another program!  The ladies don't mind though - they just continue their conversations elsewhere in the library!


"Mom and Baby Playdate" is a new program that CPL is trying out because they found that during storytime programs all the moms wanted to do was talk!  This program is one intended for just that purpose.  They put on the coffee, put out some toys and books for the kids and let the moms chat away. Easy and fun.


"Edible Books Day," held on April Fool's Day invites local bakeries and adventurous patrons to create cakes inspired by books.  The entries are judged by other patrons in the library - even if you didn't submit an entry, you still get to participate in this fun event.  (CPL believes that offering open-area programming creates a sense of wonder in the library; even a passerby can get a little bit of enjoyment out of a program.)  


"Fiber Arts Day" is an event that showcases fiber arts of all kinds (quilting, knitting, weaving etc.) and teaches customers about these art forms.  Quilts and other tapestries were hung throughout the library and the local weavers guild even set up a loom so that customers could try their hand at weaving.  The loom was so popular that CPL staff had to ask the weavers for more supplies!


These are just a few examples of the great programs that are promoting fun in the library.  Anne O'Sullivan explained that by surprising people with unexpected fun (like the loom) they could encourage the idea that the library is a fun place to be for adults and children alike.


Share your great ideas for adding play to the library in the comments!

Branching Out With EBooks

At this year’s Alberta Library Conference in Jasper, Alberta's Public Library Services Branch announced that it would be making the eBook product, Freading, available to Alberta public libraries. Created by LibraryIdeas, Freading operates on a token-based system where patrons are given a set amount of tokens which they can exchange for eBooks. Although available since May 1, 2012, Chinook Arch Regional Library System launched this service today in order to give our library managers and their staff a chance to learn about and prepare for this product. For more information visit http://www.chinookarch.ca/content/welcome-freading

The introduction of Freading to our eBooks options comes at a very opportune time. Since the beginning of this year we have seen over 1000 new patrons register for our OverDrive eBook service. We are on track to more than double the number of OverDrive titles borrowed this year as compared to 2011, with 14,179 titles being checked out in the first quarter alone. Not only will Freading offer patrons another option to borrow eBooks through our member libraries, but it will avail them to offerings from publishers not currently represented by OverDrive. With this new service, we are able to expand our collections and offer further options for those using, and wishing to use, library eBook services.

Libraries and Pinterest: A new love affair?

There has been quite a stir lately about how or if public libraries will fully incorporate Pinterest to their growing arsenal of social media platforms.  Facebook and Twitter are the obvious big contenders but Pinterest offers a unique experience that is visually appealing but also fun and informative.  For those who are entirely new to Pinterest I'll provide a brief description. It is a social media platform that concentrates on social image sharing.  Images are generally pooled into collections that attend to different themes.  For example, Stratford Public Library has "Book Art" collection of images. Take a look!

I’ll admit that I do occasionally browse Pinterest but have not yet developed a serious level devotion. Curious about what libraries and book lovers are covering on the social website – I have come across some beautifully curated Pinterest boards.  Libraries are sharing staff information, communicating details of programs and services, popular reads and new titles, craft/repurposing ideas, book covers and artwork, programming suggestions, inspiring quotes, and much more. 

In mid-April we had quite a few links circulating that highlighted Pinterest’s influence, how to optimize Pinterest boards, and its role as a marketing tool.  Developing a Pinterest board for your library could be a fun yet intense task.  Pinterest boards require time and ability for curation and this is not for everyone.  However, I recommend taking the time to browse library and related boards and see what kinds of pins speak to you.  Even if a library chooses not to develop a board of their own, the opportunity for inspiration (and having a new outlet to lose yourself and decompress!) is also valuable.  

Here are few helpful links and also some fun public library Pinterest boards to browse.

Enjoy!  

Some Background and Tips:

http://savedelete.com/pinterest-revolutionizing-the-way-libraries-are-used.html

http://edudemic.com/2012/03/20-ways-libraries-are-using-pinterest-right-now/

Edmonton Public Library, Alberta:

http://pinterest.com/EPLdotCA/

Stratford Public Library, Ontario:

http://pinterest.com/splibrary/pins/

Canadian Coalition of Municipalities Against Racism and Discrimination

Over the past couple of years myself, and fellow Consultant Librarians, have conducted a number of community needs assessments for our libraries in the development of their Plans of Service.  One of the most prevalent needs we hear is for communities (and libraries) to celebrate the diversity of their population.  Celebrating diversity includes making all cultures, religions and races feel welcome and included in the community.  Libraries have a large role to play here, as a municipal service, community meeting place and one of the last remaining public buildings in many communities. 

UNESCO has put together a toolkit for Municipalities, Organizations and Citizens for the Canadian Coalition of Municipalities Against Racism and Discrimination.  The coalition itself invites municipalities to join the cause against racism and discrimination, but the toolkit provides some valuable information and resources for any organization to use.  Here is a summary of what the toolkit contains:

• Practical Information on how to join the Coalition, develop and implement a Plan of Action, monitor your community’s progress, engage youth, collaborate with Aboriginal communities, and much more.
• Examples of Good Practices documenting promising municipal initiatives linked to the Ten Common Commitments and offering practical advice to advance the Coalition.
• Useful Tools such as examples of press release and media advisory, examples of resolutions adopted by City Councils, samples of Plans of Action, and many other tools.
• Additional Resources about international and national days/weeks/months, awards, funding, media resources (many of them free) as well as a list of films related to the Ten Common Commitments prepared by the National Film Board of Canada (NFB). 

In particular, you might want to check out Chapter 6 on engaging Aboriginal communities, Chapter 7 on youth engagement, and Chapter 8 on promising practices.  However, best practices are scattered throughout the toolkit, with some really interesting examples of what communities are doing in this area.

Libraries are often the model in the community for positive community engagement and providing a welcome environment, so this is a natural fit for us!  If Celebrate Diversity is one of your library's strategic goals (or even if it's not) this is a great place to start.

For more information on the Coalition, or to download the toolkit (either in whole or chapter by chapter) go to: http://www.unesco.ca/en/interdisciplinary/coalition/CoalitionofCanadianMunicipalitiesagainstRacismandDiscrimination.aspx

Did you know about our vimeo channel?

If you don't already know, Chinook Arch has a vimeo channel! We use the channel to post video training sessions and videoconferences that are relevant to Chinook Arch libraries. If you haven't already checked it out, you should. Here's the link: http://vimeo.com/user5260068

The RISE network also has a vimeo channel where several recorded videoconferences are uploaded: http://vimeo.com/channels/risenetwork

You may want to subscribe to both of these channels to stay informed when new videos are uploaded!

Hunting for Manly Titles

From March 14 to 17, Chinook Arch Regional Library System shared a booth with Lethbridge Public Library at the Lethbridge Home and Garden Show. While there, one of our librarians heard from a few male patrons that our OverDrive eBook and audiobook collection was somewhat feminized.

In response to this feedback, I decided to go hunting for purported experts of manly titles. According to the American Library Association’s 2011 State of America’s Libraries Report, women are significantly more likely (72%) to have visited a library, including visits in person, in the last year as compared to men (58%). To encourage male readers using our OverDrive collection and assist our collection purchasers in finding titles that might be of interest to this user group, I located the following sources:

• Books for Dudes: Library Journal has devoted an entire column to this subject under Collection Development on their website. Douglas Lords writes on what up-and-coming novels could be of interest to men or, as his column title states, dudes. His picks are wide-ranging, from Thrillers to Biographies to Graphic Novels to Love Stories.
• The Literate Man, a Book Blog for Men: Admittedly pre-disposed to the classics, TLM is edited by Patrick James O’Connor, a lawyer and writer who recently published, “The Last Will and Testament of Lemuel Higgins.” Featuring author interviews, guest posts, and reviews of new and “unheralded” books, this blog makes for informative reading.
• Men Reading Books: The subtitle of this blog says it all: “Book summaries and opinions by guys about books that other guys might consider reading.” The contributors to this blog have dubbed themselves vardaman99, East Coast Don, Midwest Dave, and West Coast Don. What really is great about this source is the sheer amount and breadth of titles reviewed. These gentlemen appear to be bibliophiles indeed.

In the last few years there has been a lot of focus in the library and education world on encouraging boys to read. Although we may assume that adult male readers will find what they want on our shelves, we should continually consider unique preferences and interests that specific groups may have. Now, to fish out a few good books ...

(Note: All of the above sources include titles written by both male and female authors.)