Tag Archives: Author

The collection is all around

The Collection All Around: Sharing Our Cities, Towns, and Natural Places

Contact:

Rob Christopher
Marketing Coordinator
ALA Publishing
American Library Association
(312) 280-5052

 

CHICAGO — Public libraries’ mission, skills, and position in their communities make them ideal facilitators of public access to local resources. In other words, the collection is all around, and libraries can help citizens discover historical, cultural, and natural riches that they might otherwise overlook. Providing smart planning and implementation advice, “The Collection All Around: Sharing Our Cities, Towns, and Natural Places,” published by ALA Editions, shows public libraries how to make the most of these outreach opportunities. Using ideas drawn from libraries from around the country, author Jeffrey T. Davis covers:

  • why this type of initiative is important, demonstrating how this model strengthens libraries with regard to community and institutional support;
  • programs for brokering public access to cultural venues via ticketing platforms;
  • using library event calendars to feature the programs and meetings of other city agencies, community organizations, and affiliated institutions;
  • the joint use of library cards as IDs, for banking, and as parking/transit passes;
  • ways that libraries can act as guides to local resources, including such examples of “pathfinding” as historical/cultural walking tours, navigating social services, and providing guidance on government benefits and civic involvement;
  • parklets, crosswalk murals, food truck roundups, and other programs for extending the public library beyond its walls;
  • initiatives for improving access and connections to natural surroundings such as nature-play environments, offsite StoryWalks, nature maps, and circulating outdoor gear and state parks passes; and
  • talking points for new and existing partner buy-in, planning advice for getting started and managing the launch, budgeting guidance, technology considerations, and other helpful tips. Continue reading The collection is all around

Notable Date to Celebrate: November 29th is C.S. Lewis' Birthday

You probably already know that at CMLE, we offer a service called “Notable Dates for your Noggin” which feature special holidays and birthdays of authors, as well as publications of well-known books. In an effort to help you get more from this service, we’ve decided to select one “Notable Date” each month to feature. We will include a few fun programming and activity ideas too, all for you to use!

aslan-and-c-s-lewis
Happy birthday, C.S. Lewis!

November 29th is C.S. Lewis’ birthday. Lewis is well known for his series The Chronicles of Narnia and also for his many Christian texts. According to Biography.com, even as a very young boy Lewis had an active imagination that contributed to his love of fantasy. 

You can celebrate his birthday by reading these 6 books exploring his life and influence, or by contemplating these famous C.S. Lewis quotes. 

turkish-delight
Looks delicious!

Or bring Narnia to life, by making your own forest of snow globes or test your culinary skills by making some Turkish Delight! And here’s a link to a site that has tons of Narnia-related learning resources, like lesson plans, worksheets, and coloring pages. 

For more on C.S. Lewis, take a look at the official website and blog.

Tiny homes of famous authors

reading-chair
Write and read in a cozy place!

Tiny Homes is a trend that’s gaining popularity, but it seems that famous authors have been on top of this idea for years!

This article from Book Riot explores the cozy living and writing spaces of a few famous authors. I love Philip Pullman’s magical-looking retreat!

I did a little more looking around online, and writers in tiny homes is actually a pretty popular phenomenon! Here’s an article from Tiny House for Us with a few more homes profiled, and another from Apartment Therapy. (Sorry for some duplicates!)

If you are a writer, or reader (of course you are!) do you have a favorite small space that you like to inhabit while enjoying books? Personally, I usually just like to be outside! Preferably by a campfire or in a boat! 🙂

A spooky book recommendation!

A Guest Blog contribution from author Alisa Libby.

Alisa M. Libby has been writing stories since she first learned how to properly grip a crayon. Growing up in Natick, Massachusetts, she dabbled in other potential careers in her formative years (trumpet player, actress, astronomer, unicorn) but instead attended Emerson College for a degree in creative writing. While at Emerson she wrote numerous short stories about the “blood countess” of Hungarian legend, which years later evolved into The Blood Confession, her first novel. Fascinated by history, Alisa’s second novel, The King’s Rose, follows Catherine Howard and her brief marriage to King Henry VIII. Currently working on a new book, Alisa has recently moved to Attleboro with her husband and daughter.
the-blood-confession
Eek! A great Halloween read!

In honor of Halloween, I’m happy to share with you the origin of my first published novel, The Blood Confession. It’s appropriate for the time of year as it is, indeed, very bloody.

Growing up I had a tense relationship with horror novels and movies—my wild imagination and tendency toward insomnia could not match my intrigue. Often my bedroom light stayed on all night, while I was plagued by images from movies that seemed a great idea during daylight hours. Carrie, by Stephen King—Brian DePalma’s movie even more so than the book—traumatized me for a while at age 13. But I couldn’t help myself. Why was that prom queen covered in blood? I needed to see it, even if I would later regret it. Continue reading A spooky book recommendation!

Notable Date to Celebrate: September 25th is Shel Silverstein's birthday

You probably already know that at CMLE, we offer a service called “Notable Dates for your Noggin” which feature special holidays and birthdays of authors, as well as publications of well-known books. In an effort to help you get more from this service, we’ve decided to select one “Notable Date” each month to feature. We will include a few fun programming and activity ideas too, all for you to use!

where-the-sidewalk-ends

September 25th is Shel Silverstein’s birthday. Silverstein is well known for his children’s literature, poetry, and music. You can listen to him read his poem Backward Bill here, and even subscribe to the Shel Silverstein YouTube channel for more content.

If you are looking for some biographical information on Silverstein, check out this article from LibraryPoint.org which talks about his life and also gives some fast facts about the writer, including that he won a Grammy award in 1969 for A Boy Named Sue performed by Johnny Cash.

Love The Giving Tree? Celebrate by making some Giving Tree apple cupcakes!

Make math more fun with these poetry inspired activities.

Get creative and pick your favorite Shel Silverstein poem to draw some accompanying illustrations!

Want more Shel Silverstein activities or information? Check out this website for wallpapers, e-cards, and lesson plans.

 

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Looking for more fun holidays or days to celebrate? Check out our Notable Dates Page!