Welcome to Check Your Shelf! This is your guide to all things book talk worth knowing to help librarians like you up your game when it comes to doing your job (& rocking it).
“Check Your Shelf” is sponsored by Bas Bleu Books and Gifts.
Wear your love of libraries proudly when you accessorize your favorite outfit with this whimsical necklace from Bas Bleu. Modeled after those vintage date-stamped checkout cards we all remember so fondly, our Library Checkout Card Necklace boasts a miniature “date due” card in a delicate pewter frame suspended from a sterling silver chain. Need earrings to match? Done! Library lovers, treat yourself to the full set…or wrap them up as a gift for the dedicated librarian you know!
Libraries & Librarians
- Buzzfeed reported on libraries that are facing backlash for their LGBTQ-themed programming. Some of these programs are drawing protests and even death threats for the librarians.
- Paige Thomas, a Boise Public Librarian, is hiding kind, sympathetic, and encouraging notes inside books waiting to be checked out as part of her #guerrillakindnesBPL project. Many of these notes come from patrons, who leave messages inside a box at the circulation desk.
- A new school book borrowing policy in New Jersey limits the number of times students can check out books in favor of increased library computer usage.
- To celebrate its 100th birthday, Finland is opening a gorgeous new library in Helsinki for its citizens!
- 32 Twitter users on why they became a librarian.
Book Adaptations in the News
- Barracoon: The Story of the Last “Black Cargo” by Zora Neale Hurston is being adapted as a limited TV series.
Books in the News
- Margaret Atwood announces a 2019 sequel for The Handmaid’s Tale! Get your holds lists ready!
- The controversial upcoming graphic novel, A Suicide Bomber Sits in the Library, has been pulled from publication by Abrams. Writers, teachers, and readers have spoken out strongly against the book’s Islamophobic storyline.
- Emily Danforth, author of The Miseducation of Cameron Post, announces a new book slated for early 2021 publication.
- George RR Martin talks about his Game of Thrones prequel, Fire and Blood.
- Diane Setterfield talks about reading, writing, and her upcoming novel, Once Upon a River.
- Sarah Jessica Parker has named her next book club pick: Heartland: A Memoir of Working Hard and Being Broke in the Richest Country on Earth by Sarah Smarsh.
By the Numbers
- Indie bookstores are seeing a resurgence after their numbers dropped 40% between the mid-90’s and 2009.
Award News
- The Staunch Prize, awarded to mysteries & thrillers that do not depict violence against women, announces its inaugural winner: On the Java Ridge by Jock Serong.
- Mystery writers, including award-winning author Attica Locke, are speaking out against the Edgar Award’s decision to have author Linda Fairstein serve as Grand Master at the 2019 Edgar Awards, since Fairstein played a significant role as a prosecutor in the incarceration of the Central Park Five.
Pop Cultured
- If you’re a Doctor Who fan, you’ll be excited to learn that Tom Baker (Doctor #4) is writing a novel based on a previously planned Doctor Who film.
All Things Comics
- 8 graphic novels that make for thoughtful & unique gifts.
- And on a related note, a 2018 gift guide for comic book lovers.
- 8 underrated romance manga.
Audiophilia
- AudoFile Magazine: 50 Best Audiobooks of 2018
- The 10 best Stephen King audiobooks, ranked. (And a bonus suggestion from me that didn’t make the list: From a Buick 8 is absolutely brilliant on audio!)
Best Books of 2018
Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists
- 50 best historical fiction books for kids.
- YA books for middle grade readers.
- If you liked The Poet X…
- Books for the pop culture fan in your life.
- YA graphic memoirs.
- Buzzfeed: 35 recent books that librarians have loved. (Shameless self-promotion here – I have a blurb featured for book #5 on the list!)
Bookish Curiosities & Miscellaneous
- Check out the book that was voted as the Oddest Book Title of the Year. (And check out the other contenders…)
- Dictionary.com picks “misinformation” as 2018’s word of the year.
- Here’s what college freshmen are reading.
Level Up (Library Reads)
Do you take part in LibraryReads, the monthly list of best books selected by librarians only? We’ve made it easy for you to find eligible diverse titles to nominate. Kelly Jensen created a database of upcoming diverse books that anyone can edit, and Nora Rawlins of Early Word is doing the same, as well as including information about series, vendors, and publisher buzz.
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Thanks for hanging out and I’ll see you again next week!
–Katie McLain, @kt_librarylady on Twitter. Currently reading Bluebird, Bluebird by Attica Locke.