All posts by Theresa

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Ways That Libraries Use Instagram!

Fuji X100 with Gordy's Camera StrapThere are some great ways libraries can utilize Instagram.  The New York Public Library is a great leader to look to.  They use some really great “hooks” for followers – from posting old book reviews to #bookfacefriday.  This is a way that they use to encourage followers to contribute.  Users can connect with The New York Public Library and send images to them.  You might end up on their Instagram, like these two from Palm Beach County Library!

While having some simple fun is great, Instagram can help you get more patrons in the door for those great events you’re planning!  Amy Mollett and Anthony McDonnell, of The London School of Economics and Political Science, have a great blog post about more ways to use Instagram.  A couple things they recommend are posting teaser pictures of event posters, or of people getting ready for the events.  Let your followers know what’s going on at their local or school library, and encourage them to contribute to the conversation!

Are you already on Instagram?  We’d love to see what you’re posting.  Please share your library photos with us (via Facebook, Twitter, or even e-mail)!

Image credit: http://tinyurl.com/nsrltvb, licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Meet Theresa Gilbertson

photoThe CMLE office is excited to welcome Theresa Gilbertson as our new Project Assistant.  What follows is a bit about her and her interests.  You’ll see her name on a few blog posts and at CMLE events this year.  Please join us in welcoming her to CMLE! 

Hello, Theresa here!  I was an anthropology major at Hamline University and am currently enrolled in the Cultural Resource Management (CRM) Archaeology graduate program at St. Cloud State University.  I grew up in a library – we didn’t have one in my hometown, but there was one in the neighboring town (where my parents worked, where we got our groceries, where I attended dance & voice lessons. . .).  At the very least, I went to the library once a week, and was always excited about it!  The librarians knew me and my parents, and probably could have made some money betting on what I would be checking out each week.  At that age where I was too old for a babysitter but too young to drive, my parents took me to the library on their way to work so I could volunteer there.  It was usually on a Wednesday – I would get up early, pack my lunch, and spend the day there.  Sometimes they didn’t need me all day, so I would expand my interests by taking the time to look at books that I normally wouldn’t look at during my regular trips.  When I go back to that library, the librarians ask what I’m up to (and ask about my parents, too)!

I took that library experience to Hamline with me, and worked in the theatre department’s library and archives.  Being the newest shop in the theatre department, we had a lot of “getting started” responsibilities as well as those everyday things – lending archival documents to students and faculty, checking out books, and getting our books back!

It’s so difficult for me to choose just a few favorite books, but to keep it short and sweet, here are 9 books and 10 authors: the ‘Harry Potter’ series (JK Rowling), ‘The Catcher in the Rye’ (JD Salinger), ‘Holes’ (Louis Sachar), Roald Dahl, JM Barrie, AA Milne, Lemony Snicket, Jane Austen, Oscar Wilde, and Nicholas Sparks.  I’m currently enjoying ‘Staggerford’ by Minnesota author Jon Hassler.  My interests aside from books include playing and listening to music, getting a little crafty, writing, baking, anything theatre, and spending time outdoors.  My favorite non-holiday day of the year is the day I get out to The Great Minnesota Get Together.  (Hotdish on a stick, guys!  It’s by the horse barn.)

I’m excited to be working at CMLE and hope you enjoy the news I bring you!

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

27th Annual Minnesota Book Awards

MNbookawards-smThe Minnesota Book Awards are a 27-year tradition that celebrates the talent of Minnesota authors and artists.  Each year, nominations are accepted from August until December, and finalists are announced at the end of January.  The eight-month endeavor culminates in the Twin Cities at the Minnesota Book Awards Gala.  At this lovely event, attendees can meet the finalists, purchase their work, (enjoy the cash bar) and discover the winners!  You can find out more about the Minnesota Book Awards here.

Know a potential winner?  Check out all the criteria here, and be sure to meet the deadline!  It’s Friday, December 5th, 2014 at 5:00 PM.

Interested in becoming a judge?  Applications are due this Friday, September 12th, 2014.  All the information you’ll need is here.

Stay tuned for more information (including title lists) on the MN Book Awards!

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

E-book Covers for Public Domain Books

ShutterhacksThey say “don’t judge a book by its cover,” but I do.  When I was a child, I more often than not chose the books I read based on how they looked on the outside.  Of course I grew up and learned not to base my reading decisions off of a picture, but it still plays a part in what books I choose to pick up off the shelf.  And I’m not alone.  Back in August, book lovers were shocked, for good or for ill, by a new cover for Penguin UK’s Modern Classics edition of ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ by Roald Dahl.  Most responses were negative, but some appreciated the dark mood the cover evokes.  The uproar one simple book cover caused shows us just how much importance we put on book covers.  (The Washington Post has a good piece about it here.  It features the new cover image )

We live in an increasingly digital world, and books will always be products of the times.  Instead of heading over to the local bookstore, consumers can head over to the world wide web and download their books.  Buying e-books is faster, more convenient, and cheaper than buying paper ones, and saves some trees.  Many e-books, primarily those that are in the public domain, have problems with book covers.  Some have generic, boring covers, while others have no covers at all.  At first thought, I would wonder why this matters.  However, we know why this matters: we judge books by their covers.

Leonard Richardson, Mauricio Giraldo Arteaga, and John Nowak of the New York Public Library Labs are developing an e-book app for borrowing and reading e-books.  Arteaga is doing the design for the app and wants to add attractive book covers to their e-books.  He says having a generic image for cover-less books is lazy, and I would agree.  In this blog post, he describes the process of making and remaking book covers for the public domain books that the app will offer.  He’s put a lot of thought into how the covers should look and recognizes the power a book cover can have.  He also welcomes feedback for his working designs, so feel free to chime in at the bottom of the page!

How about you?  What are some book covers you grew up with?  What are your favorites?  Have you seen a new book cover for a classic that you just don’t like? Let us know in the comments!

Image by shutterhacks. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Common's licensing.