It's National Library Week!

It's that time of year again, where we all celebrate the importance of libraries in our communities. We at New@MPL and the Monroeville Public Library join libraries in schools, campuses, and communities nationwide in celebrating National Library Week, a time to highlight the value of libraries, librarians, and library workers.

Today’s libraries can help you and your family discover a new and exciting world. Visit your library for computer resources for teens and adults, help with your job search, access to subscription databases, library-recommended websites, and homework help. You also can obtain information about how to become a U.S. citizen, bilingual resources, and neutral financial information to help you make important decisions. Libraries are an oasis if you are looking for adult education classes, or for a recommendation on the best books or e-books to expand your horizons.

Open the door to change -- visit your library!

To see what's happening this month at Monroeville Public Library, check out our events calendar here.

And check out this video to see what author Judy Blume has to say about the value of libraries!






--Post by Tracy

30 Years of Celebrating the Freedom to Read

"There is more than one way to burn a book. And the world is full of people running about with lit matches." - Ray Bradbury 

This week marks the 30th annual Banned Books Week, an event sponsored by such organizations as the American Library Association, the American Society of Journalists and Authors, the National Coalition Against Censorship, and the National Council of Teachers of English, among others. Celebrated by libraries, schools, authors, publishers, and many other individuals and organizations, Banned Books Week focuses on celebrating the freedom to read.

This week gives free speech advocates the chance to raise awareness on issues of censorship and intellectual freedom. Check out the articles below to learn more about the history and current issues surrounding banned books:


-- Timeline: 30 Years of Liberating Literature -- Check out the history of significant banned and challenged books.

-- Bill Moyers Calls Out Book Censorship -- Journalist Moyers is one of the Honorary Co-Chairs of this year's Banned Books Week. Watch a video on his thoughts here.

-- Banning Books in the Age of Information -- An article from the Huffington Post about the effects of technology on book-banning and intellectual censorship ... worldwide.

-- Yes, Virginia, They Still Ban Books in Tucson, Arizona -- An update on the outlawed Mexican American Studies program of Tucson, Arizona, shut down by the Tucson Unified School District last school year.

-- After the War: The Librarian: Books Spirited to Safety Before Iraq Library Fire -- I don't think you can be a librarian and not love Alia Muhammad Baker, an Iraqi librarian who formed an "underground railroad" to save 30,000 books from her library's collection.


-- Post by Ms. B

September is Library Card Sign Up Month

I'm a Librarian, so of course, I have a library card. Mine gets used quite frequently. If I didn't work at the library I would still be a regular visitor to my local library. I've had many different cards through the years, depending on where I lived. I even had one when I lived in Germany several years ago. The large city where we lived had a great English language section that really helped me out. 

September is Library Card Sign-up Month, a time when the American Library Association (ALA) and libraries across the country remind parents and caregivers that a library card is the smartest card you can own. 

When it comes to achieving academic success, a library card provides students with access to a world of both print and electronic resources. Students can access free databases, online homework help and attend programs, activities and clubs that provide an added value to the educational experience. It’s easy to see why eighty-four percent of Americans agree that the public library is important to education. 

Having a library card is important to adults as well as children. The public library provides a wide variety of materials for anyone interested in expanding their horizons. Whether it's just out of simple curiosity or because you are continuing your formal education, the library has many of the tools you need to succeed in life.

Pittsburgh native and playwright, August Wilson, is a fine example of this. He had to drop out of school in ninth grade but he educated himself at the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh. While this is not the ideal path for students, Wilson was able to improve his life and go on to be one of the most celebrated playwrights America has ever had. 

Another example is Ray Bradbury, who I wrote about here. 

And for an added bonus the Pittsburgh Steelers own Troy Polamalu is the Honorary Chair for Library Card Sign Up Month!

If you, or anyone in your family, doesn't have a library card yet, please take a moment to stop by Monroeville Public Library (or your local public library) and sign up today!

-- Post by Tracy

The Bradbury Chronicles

"First of all, I don't write science fiction. I've only done one science fiction book and that's Fahrenheit 451, based on reality. Science fiction is a depiction of the real. Fantasy is a depiction of the unreal. So Martian Chronicles is not science fiction, it's fantasy. It couldn't happen, you see? That's the reason it's going to be around a long time -- because it's a Greek myth, and myths have staying power."  Ray Bradbury

Ray Bradbury was well known for the two books mentioned above, but he was a writer who was so much more than just those books (although they are my personal favorites). Bradbury wrote over 500 published works which included screenplays, television scripts, plays, and, of course, novels. His stories touched so many lives in his sixty-plus years as a published author. And though his most well-known works were published in the 1950s and 1960s, he never stopped writing.

Bradbury was born in Waukegon, Illinois on August 22, 1920. His family moved around in the early part of his life, but he ended up settling in Los Angeles by his early teens. He did not attend college, but he earned his knowledge and skills as a writer by spending much of his time at the public library.

“Libraries raised me,” Mr. Bradbury said. “I don’t believe in colleges and universities. I believe in libraries because most students don’t have any money. When I graduated from high school, it was during the Depression and we had no money. I couldn’t go to college, so I went to the library three days a week for 10 years.” (New York Times article).

In 1943, Bradbury became a full-time writer, and by 1947 he had his first collection of short stories, Dark Carnival, published. A few years later, The Martian Chronicles was published in 1950, and Fahrenheit 451 in 1953. He never stopped writing after that; his last book was published in 2007.

I have to admit that I have not read a lot of Ray Bradbury's work, but what I have read has had a profound effect on me. A long time ago, there was a miniseries made out of The Martian Chronicles, which is a collection of short stories that tell a tale of the colonization of Mars. I don't think the mini-series was really that good, but it made me want to read the book. And the book has always stuck with me. A few years ago, I decided to re-read it, and it moved me just as much the second time around as it did the first. In many ways, this contributed to my love of sci-fi, even though Ray Bradbury did not consider this book to be sci-fi -- which now, as an adult, I see more clearly.

The other book that I love is Fahrenheit 451. I also read this when I was a teenager, and I was so moved by these people who risked their lives to save books that it might even have influenced me, in some subconscious way, to become a librarian. For someone who had loved reading all of her life, it was hard for me to fathom that anyone would want to destroy books.

There are several other books of his that I still want to read, and now with his recent passing at the age of 91 on Tuesday, I am even more inspired to read them. Here are the ones that I am most interested in, along with a few other of his works:

Dandelion Wine (1957) - In 1928, Douglas Spaulding wanders around Green Town, Illinois, with his brother and realizes that he is alive.

Farewell Summer (2006) - Celebrating the final days of summer, thirteen-year-old Douglas Spaulding and his friends declare war on the stuffy older set of their community, an effort for which the boys plot to stop the courthouse building clock as a means of staying young forever.

Something Wicked This Way Comes (1962) - A story of two young boys who begin to encounter evil secrets when a lightning rod salesman gives them one of his contraptions covered with mystical symbols.

I Sing The Body Electric! (1969) - A collection of twenty-eight classic Bradbury short stories and one poem is set in a variety of locales, ranging from the verdant Irish countryside to the coldest reaches of outer space.

The Illustrated Man (1951) - Eighteen science fiction stories deal with love, madness, and death on Mars, Venus, and in space.

And if you would like to read a more in-depth biography of Ray Bradbury check out The Bradbury Chronicles: The Life of Ray Bradbury by Sam Weller.



"You don't have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them." -- Ray Bradbury


-- Post by Tracy

Drop Everything And Read

Mrs. Whaley printed four big letters on the blackboard, and as she pointed she read out, "D. E. A. R. Can anyone guess what these letters stand for?"

The class thought and thought.

"Do Everything All Right," suggested someone. A good thought, but not the right answer.

"Don't Eat A Reader," suggested Danny. Mrs. Whaley laughed and told him to try again.

As Ramona thought, she stared out of the window at the blue sky, the treetops, and, in the distance, the snow-capped peak of Mount Hood looking like a giant licked ice-cream cone. R could stand for Run and A for And. "Drop Everything And Run," Ramona burst out. Mrs. Whaley, who was not the sort of teacher who expected everyone to raise a hand before speaking, laughed and said, "Almost right, Ramona, but have you forgotten we are talking about reading?"

"Drop Everything And Read!" chorused the rest of the class. Ramona felt silly. She should have thought of that herself.

-- From Ramona Quimby, Age 8 by Beverly Cleary

April 12 is National Drop Everything And Read Day. A program designed by such organizations as the National Education Association, the American Library Association, and HarperCollins Children’s Books, the day was designed to "remind and encourage families to make reading together on a daily basis a family priority." Celebrating the holiday is simple: take 30 minutes today to read a book!


And why April 12? Simple: it's Beverly Cleary's birthday.

Turning 96 today (she was born in 1916), Cleary is a children's book author who says she got her ideas for her characters and stories merely by a desire to write the sort of books she wanted to read as a child -- but could never find. She wanted to read books about children who were just like herself. And since her books made their first appearance over fifty years ago, they've been loved the world over for their extraordinary "ordinary" characters: Henry Huggins, Ralph S. Mouse, Leigh Botts, Ellen Tebbits, Otis Spofford, and, of course, Ramona Quimby.

Born and raised in Oregon, Clearly was initially a slow reader -- struggling to learn, in part, because she found the books she was assigned to read to be uninspiring. But in third grade, she had a life-changing experience when she tried The Dutch Twins, by Lucy Fitch Perkins. For the first time, a story had hooked her. "In this story, something happened. With rising elation, I read on. I read all afternoon and evening, and by bedtime I had read not only The Dutch Twins but The Swiss Twins as well. It was one of the most exciting days of my life."

Cleary would go on to become a librarian, only to find that she was in agreement with the children of her library that many of the books geared to kids weren't that engaging. So she wrote a book of her own: Henry Huggins. The book was accepted by the first publisher she sent it to, embarking Cleary on a career that has spanned more than half a century. Her books have been adapted into a television series and films, and statues of her most famous trio of characters (Henry, Ribsy, and Ramona) are displayed in a park in Portland, Oregon (Ramona's "hometown").

So what makes Cleary's books so popular?

In some ways, they are among the first of their kind. Cleary did not want to write books with morals and messages, about children who "learn their lesson" by the end of the story and become better-behaved. She wanted to write about realistic children, with problems and situations that real kids could relate to. Her characters don't learn an Important Moral by the last page -- they simply change and grow from their experiences, getting closer to becoming adults. (As Ramona herself notes at the end of one novel, she's "winning at growing up.")

I understand Cleary's connection to The Swiss Twins as the first book that made her love reading. Cleary's Ramona books were the first books I ever read on my own, and were the first "chapter books" I ever loved. I read and reread my Ramona books until the covers fell off, and Ramona herself became both a character I related to and a role model I looked up to. Ramona was stubborn, determined, enthusiastic, curious, confused, wise, and imaginative -- all while tackling the sort of problems any "ordinary" kid could relate to. Ironically, Cleary's determination to write books without "a moral" allowed her to tell stories that inspired.

Such is Cleary's talent that she didn't just make me fall in love with Ramona. She made me fall in love with reading. She's done the same for millions of children -- now adults -- worldwide. So celebrate this former librarian's birthday by taking a few moments today to Drop Everything And Read!

-- Post by Ms. B

Happy National Library Week!

Whether you are a job seeker looking for resources to land a new job, a parent looking for free activities for children or a student searching for your next favorite book, you belong @ your library.

Today's libraries help level the playing field by making both print and digital information affordable, available and accessible to all people. Libraries provide cultural heritage and genealogical collections, materials in print and electronic formats, job seeking resources, English as a second language and citizenship classes and many other creative and resourceful programs.

Libraries have historically served as our nation's great equalizers of knowledge. The strength of libraries has always been the diversity of their collections and commitment to serving all people. This National Library Week, join our nation's libraries and librarians by celebrating the place where we all belong.

First sponsored in 1958, National Library Week is a national observance sponsored by the American Library Association (ALA) and libraries across the country each April.

A fan of audiobooks?  Stop by Monroeville Public Library this Wednesday from 1:00 - 5:00 p.m. for our Playaway Day. We'll be talking all about Playaways -- pre-programmed mp3 players that make it easier than ever to listen to your favorite audiobooks on the move. Stop in to learn more -- and to help yourselves to some free treats we're giving away in honor of National Library Week!

Author, host of the History Channel's "Decoded" and Honorary Chair of National Library Week, Brad Meltzer on the value of libraries and librarians.

Pittsburgh's Day of Giving

Pittsburgh's Day of Giving @ Monroeville Public Library

October 4, 2011


On October 4, all charitable donations made to Monroeville Public Library through the Day of Giving website will receive a portion of The Pittsburgh Foundation's pool of matching funds (totaling $500,000).

You can give to Monroeville Public Library at anytime on that day (from 12:00 a.m. midnight to 11:59 p.m.) to see your donation matched. It's simpler than ever to make a difference -- here's how!

• Go to www.PittsburghGives.org at any time on October 4.

• Click on "Donate Now."

• Enter your name, email address, and phone number in the appropriate boxes.

• From the drop down box, select "Monroeville Public Library Fund."

• Enter the donation amount and your credit card information.

• Click "submit."

And -- that's it! So mark your calendar now for this year's Day of Giving on October 4th. And check out our website for additional details on this important day. (You can also check out our profile at the Pittsburgh Gives website.)

Many thanks for your continued interest in and support of Monroeville Public Library!

"I prefer to let George Lucas disappoint me in the order he intended."

In many ways, it's a fine time for anybody who, like myself, has a bit of an Inner Nerd. The relaunch of 52 new DC comic books has brought about record-breaking sales, Star Wars is coming out on Blu-ray, and we've even got a new Lord of the Rings (well, actually, it's The Hobbit) coming out next year. Not to mention what a great summer Pittsburgh has had ...

(Speaking of The New 52, I'm excited to say that Monroeville Public Library has added some of the new issues to our collection! Be sure to stop by the Magazine Room or Teen Area at the Library to check them out.)

And yet, despite all the excitement, not all of us sci-fi and superhero fans are happy. Because much of this excitement hinges not on something new, but rather on something old being changed. And there is a bit of a stereotype about sci-fi fans and their dislike of change to their favorite stories. This accusation is not always completely without merit -- as the brouhaha over, for instance, Wonder Woman's new pants goes to show.

Or take the upcoming Star Wars Blu-ray set (874 customer reviews on Amazon.com, most of them negative, and the discs hasn't even come out yet). You may wonder about the pessimism; surely Star Wars fans should be excited to have all six movies coming out in crisp Blu-ray release? But fans are already up in arms about the more-than-a-few changes that George Lucas has inserted into the set. It's certainly not the first time Lucas has used modern computer effects to tinker with his original low-budget sci-fi stories. (Remember, if you can, a time when a Star Wars movie could actually be considered low budget?) Fans have generally decried each and every tweak, however -- and, while some of these newest additions (blinking Ewok eyes) don't sound particularly heinous, others (Darth Vader crying "NOOOO!" as he steps in to save Luke from the Emperor) are less promising.

You'd think, from some of the subject headings to various Amazon.com reviews ("For shame" -- "Please make it stop"), that people were posting about the economy, the job crisis, or any one of the other political issues currently affecting the country. Which makes it easy to take pot shots at the overreacting fanboys and fangirls who are getting worked up about a DVD release. C'mon, people, you find yourself thinking as you read through the internet vitriol. It's just a movie ... just a comic book character ... just fiction. What's the big deal?

But I found myself reflecting, while scrolling through negative review after negative review of the new Star Wars, that it's unfair to think this is a geek-only sort of problem. Because whether you enjoy science fiction and fantasy films or not, odds are pretty good that you're simply not a big fan of change.

The odds are good for this because most people aren't particularly wild about change. Human beings are good at adapting, but that doesn't mean we enjoy it. And it often doesn't matter if the changes take place in our politics, our jobs, our home lives, or even our fiction -- where change happens, somebody somewhere is not going to approve.

The nature of and need for change are topics particular relevant to libraries in this day and age, as changing technology and shifting culture affect what it is people need and expect from their libraries. From the introduction of ebooks (which we've got here!) to "virtual" librarians and reference texting, the face of the modern library is changing along with its services.

And change is tricky, not only because of the adjustment time but because it's hard to know what changes to embrace and what changes may merely be a passing fad. Do we, for instance, start a virtual online "chat" reference service when text messaging seems to be almost completely replacing instant messaging? Should we continue MPL's Facebook Page or jump on the Google+ bandwagon? What's here to stay and what isn't?

In a world changing as rapidly as ours, that's a question even the best of reference librarians may be stymied in trying to find an answer to. And so the answer, to me, seems to be the same sort of advice I'd give to anybody facing a change, whether in libraries, politics, or even a new sci-fi film release:

Give the new stuff a chance. And if it doesn't work out, well ... you can always change it again. Change, as they say, really is the only true constant.

Even in Star Wars.


(By the way, you get bonus Nerd Points if you recognize where my subject quote is from.)


-- Post by Ms. B

Welcome to Mallville Library

Several months ago I was lucky enough to attend the American Library Association's annual conference. There were a lot of amazing seminars and fantastic resources put on display that weekend, but a definite highlight of the conference was the chance to meet Gene Ambaum and Bill Barnes -- and to thank them for their awesome online comic, "Unshelved."

"This comic improves the quality of my life!" I gushed to Gene Ambaum as he was signing my book of collected "Unshelved" comics, prompting a smile from Ambaum.

"We like to hear that," said Barnes, who had already signed my book, along with drawing a picture of Merv (one of my favorite "Unshelved" characters) for good measure. I'm hardly the only librarian to be a big fan of "Unshelved" -- although, as Ambaum and Barnes like to point out, their comic strip is definitely not meant just for librarians.

"Unshelved" is a daily comic strip which chronicles the adventures and misadventures of the library staff members at the fictional Mallville Public Library. Characters include Colleen, the "old school" reference librarian who doesn't care for all this suspicious new technology; Buddy, the library page (who was originally hired to be the summer reading mascot and still wears his beaver costume to work); and my favorite, Dewey, the comic-book-loving teen services librarian. (Can't imagine what would draw me to him.)

"I'd like to check out some Spider-Man comics."

New strips are released Monday through Friday, with "rerun" comics featured on the weekends. Despite its central cast of librarians, however, "Unshelved" is something which can be read and enjoyed by anybody who loves their local library.

The writing is sharp and witty; I've laughed out loud at punchlines more often than I can count. And the artwork matches up to the writing; I love the cartoony aspects of the characters, particularly their more exasperated and exaggerated facial expressions.

Stephen King observed in his writing memoir that "people like to read about work. I don't know why, but they do." (I suspect it has something to do with the fact that we spend so much of our time at our jobs!) One need only to look as far as the success of a show like "The Office," which is all about the awkward and hilarious dynamics of the workplace.

"Book Returned 47 Years Late."

What makes "Unshelved" so special is that it manages to combine the workplace humor that so many people enjoy with a genuine love of books, reading, and libraries. This must be due in large part to the fact that Ambaum is a librarian himself, and both Ambaum and Barnes are clearly book-lovers (they review their latest reads every Friday).

Their affection for the world of reading -- and for the world of libraries -- adds a dash of heart to their comic strip, making it a truly unique read. So if you're a library-lover, be sure to check it out.

… no pun intended, of course.

Check out more "Unshelved" by checking out their collections in our Catalog!

Unshelved
What Would Dewey Do?
Library Mascot Cage Match
Book Club
Frequently Asked Questions
Reader's Advisory
Large Print