Welcome to Check Your Shelf. The return of in-person conferences means the return of conference FOMO, and even though the thought of spending time in a convention center with hundreds of other people doesn’t exactly do it for me right now, I’m always sad to miss big library gatherings. However, my shelves (and my shoulders) are glad I’m not carrying around four bulging tote bags filled with ARCs.
Libraries & Librarians
News Updates
Why states are changing the laws that govern public libraries.
A funding dispute leads to drastic hourly cuts for King William (VA) libraries.
Cool Library Updates
The Detroit Public Library is reopening 10 branches that have been closed for the past two years.
Worth Reading
Weeding in the academic library.
Supporting patrons with legal information needs.
Book Adaptations in the News
Emma Straub is adapting her latest novel, This Time Tomorrow for film.
Netflix is developing a four part series based on Michael Pollan’s book on psychedelics, How to Change Your Mind.
Zoe Kazan is developing a limited series adaptation of East of Eden, 70 years after her grandfather Elia Kazan directed the film adaptation of the same book.
Jon Snow is returning in the upcoming Game of Thrones sequel series.
PBS Masterpiece is adapting a four-part series based on Gill Hornby’s historical fiction novel, Miss Austen.
Casting update for the Percy Jackson TV series and Dune 2.
A third Paddington Bear movie is in the works.
Here’s the teaser trailer for Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin.
Banned & Challenged Books
As state and local elections continue across the country, I wanted to share a link to the School Board Project, which is a volunteer-created searchable Excel spreadsheet of every school board and school board election in the country. States with upcoming school board elections are being prioritized, but the plan is to get through every state, and hopefully then move on to library board elections. The second round of updates has just been announced, so take a look for yourself.
George M. Johnson has been named the honorary chair for Banned Books Week.
The Proud Boys who stormed the Drag Queen Story Time at the San Lorenzo Library (CA) are being investigated for hate crimes.
After weeks of heated debate, Ketchikan’s (AK) public library hosts its first Drag Queen Story Time. However, a former assembly member is asking the borough to cut more than $500,000 in funding for the library in retaliation for the event, saying that defunding the library “the only avenue left to force a community discussion on the library’s activities.”
Texas AG Ken Paxton wants to help defend Llano County officials who are being sued for removing and banning books from the public library.
The Texas Education Board is bracing for a showdown over social studies curriculums.
An Abilene (TX) resident expressed concerns about the people serving on the Library Advisory Board and their “agendas.” This comment, however, appears to be directed at Jason Hernandez-Marshall, who is openly gay and has been serving on the board since 2021.
The Pulaski County (KY) Public Library is facing questions about the removal of a Juneteenth display.
Pennsylvania governor Tom Wolf has vowed to veto any legislation that restricts access or discussion of sexual orientation or gender identity in schools.
Pittsburgh parents are suing the Mt. Lebanon School District for allegedly teaching students about gender identity without parental consent.
The Littlestown Area School District (PA) was once again bombarded with questions about “contentious” library books during a recent meeting.
The Central Bucks School Board (PA) approves a first reading of its controversial new book policy, which multiple people say contains too many vague terms and is likely to be in violation of First Amendment rights if put into place.
The Aaron Cutler Library (NH) has had to deal with recent “Hide the Pride” activities, particularly when a patron asked a librarian to remove the books from the Pride display, and when the librarian refused, they checked out all of the books instead.
How one book (Out of Darkness) quietly disappeared from Dare (NC) school libraries.
Drag Queen Story Time is officially a go at the Apex (NC) Pride Festival.
However, the Union County Library (NC) abruptly backed out of plans to participate in local Pride events. Organizers said that the decision came from county government leaders.
Hanover County (VA) School District elects to keep A Place Inside of Me: A Poem to Heal the Heart by Zetta Elliott in school libraries, but moves it from the picture book section to the poetry section to decrease the likelihood of younger readers checking out the book.
A Pride Month display was taken down at the Forest Library (VA) after receiving complaints.
In response to the Lafayette Public Library’s decision to remove books about specific “ethnic or social groups” from display areas, a local advocacy group responded, “The Library’s current policy of showcasing book displays organized around “classic” texts and traditional genres and themes claims to be neutral; yet, in reality, it privileges the stories of certain races, classes, ethnicities, genders, and cultures over others.” YUP. LIBRARIES ARE NOT NEUTRAL. Never have been, never will be.
Another advocacy group, Lafayette Citizens Against Censorship, made a similar statement in regards to the new display policy.
Palm Beach County (FL) teachers are being told to go through their classrooms and preemptively remove any books that might violate Florida’s new laws, including the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, which go into effect on July 1st.
The Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association sent a letter to Edina Public Schools, criticizing an elementary school’s use of the book Something Happened in Our Town: A Child’s Story About Racial Injustice.
Anderson’s Bookshop in Naperville (IL) has discovered dozens of books pertaining to LGBTQ people or people of color have been hidden in the bookstore, most likely part of the recent “Hide the Pride” movement, or something similar.
Illinois librarians brace for book banning efforts “to get a lot worse” as challenges grow.
These Indiana schools made racial equity their mission. Now they face hostile legislation.
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian has been returned to the Evans Middle School (IA) curriculum.
A number of Gillette (WY) librarians protest the budget cuts made by Campbell County Commissioners. Specifically, the county is electing to eliminate the Optional 1-Percent Sales Tax funding that has annually been spent on children’s books and programs, believing that the library hasn’t been transparent in the way it purchases new books and discards old ones.
An opinion piece regarding the book banning situation in Nampa, ID: First ban the books, then decide how to justify it.
The Utah Library Association and LGBTQ+ advocacy groups criticize the Orem City Council for its censorship of the library’s child-oriented Pride Month display.
Kent and Tahoma (WA) parents speak in separate interviews about their concerns with books found in their children’s middle school libraries.
In the understatement of the century, school librarians are under pressure.
The book business ecosystem is under attack.
Comics librarians are up for the fight.
Where does a sex ed book belong in the public library?
Books & Authors in the News
Upswell publisher Terri-ann White talks about how trust has been breached by the author John Hughes, whose novel The Dogs uses identical and nearly identical extracts from books such as The Great Gatsby, Anna Karenina, and The Unwomanly Face of War by Nobel laureate author Svetlana Alexievich.
Simon & Schuster is reportedly distributing a Skyhorse edition of the January 6 report, but with a foreword by Darren Beattie, who is a former Trump speechwriter with white supremacist ties and a known conspiracy theorist. S&S has commented, saying that they don’t have control over Skyhorses’s publication decisions, but the question remains whether S&S will be responsible for disseminating false information about January 6th.
Celebrating 100 years of Ulysses.
Numbers & Trends
Over 50% of adults have not finished a book in the last year.
Award News
Ruth Ozeki wins the Women’s Prize for Fiction for The Book of Form and Emptiness.
The 2022 Boston Globe-Horn Book Award winners have been announced.
Bookish Curiosities & Miscellaneous
Why do we forget books that we’ve read?
There’s a new video game that’s based on the poems of Emily Dickinson.
On the Riot
Don’t make it a monster: this reader talks about overcoming their toxic relationship with the library.
Alternatives to the Dewey Decimal System.
6 times lost library books found their way home.
Current bookish trends, as observed by a very online bookseller.
Why do books make us feel things?
Don’t forget you can get three free audiobooks at Audiobooks.com with a free trial!
Here’s a picture from Dini’s life this last week. If you look closely, you may notice that he’s chewing on a toy mouse, but you’ll definitely notice his claws caught in the blanket. He’s a very busy boy and needs to multitask with his playing!
It’s the weekend. Stay cool, stay hydrated, and take a nap. I’ll check in on Tuesday.
—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter.