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When we discuss access to information, that includes information about our bodies and our health. Libraries have long been a lifeline to patrons looking to connect with health care resources, dispel misinformation, and find answers discreetly—even when our institutions are under attack. In
Episode 82, Call Number with American Libraries explores sexual and reproductive health information at the library. The podcast team interviews Barbara Alvarez, author of The Library’s Guide to Sexual and Reproductive Health Information, and Beth Myers, director of special collections at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts....
AL: The Scoop, Apr. 17
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Time magazine has named ALA Executive Director Tracie D. Hall to the TIME100, its annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world. The list, now in its twentieth year, recognizes the impact, innovation, and achievement of individuals. “Hall’s life’s work teaches each of us that the love of libraries and books can free us from hatred and lies not just for the present generation but for the liberation of all to come,” author Min Jin Lee writes in her tribute to Hall. The full list and related tributes appear in the April 24 issue of Time, available on newsstands now and
online....
ALA, Apr. 13; Time, Apr. 13
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On April 17, ALA announced that applications for its Building Library Capacity Grants had opened. Sixteen $10,000 grants will be awarded to libraries at minority-serving institutions across the US and its territories that have experienced economic hardship because of the pandemic and its aftermath. The funding is intended to increase academic support and achievement for students by bolstering library operations and services, including technology, collections, digital instruction, staffing, and outreach.
The deadline to apply is May 24....
ALA Chapter Relations Office, Apr. 17
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Ed Lavandera, Andy Rose, and Ashley Killough write: “A rural Texas county voted Thursday afternoon to drop discussion for now of possibly defunding the county’s library system after a
federal judge ordered it to return more than a dozen banned books to library shelves. By a unanimous vote, the Commissioner’s Court in Llano County, Texas, removed an item from their agenda to consider whether to ‘continue or cease operations of the current physical Llano County Library System pending further guidance from the federal courts.’ Judge Robert Pitman had ordered the county to make the disputed children’s books available on library shelves again, including books regarding sexual identity and racism.”...
CNN, Apr. 12–13
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Grant St. Clair writes: “Recently, another batch of
25 culturally significant recordings were added to the Library of Congress’ National Recording Registry. Among them? Koji Kondo’s ‘Ground Theme,’ which has served as the theme of countless videogames, TV shows, and, yes, now three whole feature films all about the Super Mario Brothers, since 1985. If anything, it’s just surprising it took this long—Mario is easily one of the most iconic characters in all of pop culture, and even people who have never touched a videogame know him by sight.”...
Boing Boing, Apr. 16; Library of Congress, Apr. 12
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Chelsey Roos writes: “In my area, libraries are bringing back their prepandemic range of programs, but one program is mostly missing: sensory storytime. I live in a busy, urban area, and yet in my entire county, only one library system has a weekly sensory storytime. My family needs a disability-friendly storytime if we’re going to be able to attend. For Autism Acceptance Month, let’s talk about why these types of storytimes are so important, and why they can be so hard to get (or keep) in the lineup.”...
ALSC Blog, Apr. 13
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Anna Claire Vollers writes: “Kathryn Hammond has applied for a spot on the literacy committee in the central Florida school district where her son attends school. Parents who want books inclusive of race and gender in their children’s school libraries have to be willing to speak up, said Hammond, even if they lack the organization and funding of the groups calling for bans.” Coinciding with National School Library Month, Vollers provides tips for parents who want to advocate for keeping books in their kids’ schools, including how to speak out and show up, join a committee, and align with anticensorship groups and campaigns, such as
ALA’s Unite Against Book Bans....
AL.com: Reckon, Apr. 11
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Ed Vulliamy writes: “The National Library of Ukraine for Children in Kyiv, a city at war for more than a year, is defiantly open, busy, and creative. My late mother—Shirley Hughes, beloved author and illustrator of several hundred children’s books—would have found a corner of heaven in this place, were she not a citizen of the real thing. This place is what she dreamed of, and this is why much of Mum’s collection of her own books arrived here last month, why Dogger—who, along with Alfie and Annie Rose, was her most famous character—had to come to Ukraine.”...
The Guardian, Apr. 9
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Donna Seaman writes: “Candid medical memoirs, new takes on medical history, and fresh approaches to self-care, each distinguished by narrative power and emotional richness, stand as the most compelling health and wellness titles reviewed in Booklist over the past 12 months.” The list includes Twice as Hard: The Stories of Black Women Who Fought to Become Physicians, from the Civil War to the 21st Century by Jasmine Brown, The Day I Die: The Untold Story of Assisted Dying in America by Anita Hannig, and Breathless: The Scientific Race to Defeat a Deadly Virus by David Quammen....
Booklist Online, Apr. 15
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