Tag Archives: Library Journal

Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

2013 Best Books: Self Help

Image by Czarina Alegre. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons' licensing.
Image by Czarina Alegre. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons’ licensing.

I believe, one of the greatest abilities humans possess is the aptitude to continue to learn and grow from experiences. As the year comes to an end, and with a new one just beginning, this can be an opportunity to reflect on events from 2013. If you are in the process of searching for helpful resources, for yourself and/or your library, CMLE’s book list this week features the Best Books 2013: Self Help, by Library Journal (December 2013.) For additional books, click on the post from O (Oprah) Winter Reading by Leigh Newman, Don’t Go It Alone: 9 Books That Will Help You Clean Up Your Life.  O’s book list inspires and encourage positive changes both personally and professionally.

Special note: According to Brandon Gaille (November 2013), a small business blogger for entrepreneurs, “The self improvement industry [which includes a variety of market segments] is estimated to be worth $11 billion in the United States alone.” Gaille surmised that the American self help book industry is estimated to be worth $776 million.

Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist

2013 Book List: Crafts/DIY

Books, books and more books.

Image by cannelle-vanille. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons' licensing.
Image by cannelle-vanille. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons’ licensing.

On December 5th, Library Journal (LJ) released their top picks for Best Books: 2013 Craft and Do-It-Yourself (DIY), just in time for the holidays. Don’t forget to check out another post this week with bookish craft projects-just for fun. However, if crafting books are not in high demand with your users, perhaps they would rather be in the kitchen? Consider LJ’s Best Books: 2013 Cookbooks to keep your collection current.

Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Best Books 2013: Graphic Novels

Tis the season-for lists! Over the next month, CMLE will highlight the “best of” 2013 books.

Image by sirexkat. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons' licensing.
Image by sirexkat. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons’ licensing.

This week, we would like to share the Library Journal’s list of top picks for graphic novels, published in 2013.  Graphic novels are a continuation of the popular superhero comics from the 1940’s and 50’s. According to Internet Public Library 2 (IPL2), one of the first novels recognized in this genre was, A Contract With God and Other Tenement Stories, published in 1978 by Will Eisner.

Packed full of dynamic illustrations, with minimal text, these quick reads are also resources for librarians/media specialists to engage reluctant readers. Additional information about graphic novels can be found online at http://tinyurl.com/6q6rjca.

Tip: A free webinar on graphic novels will be held on December 13th. Click here to learn more.

Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Webcast: Data-Driven Academic Library

Image by Bionic Teaching. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons' licensing.
Image by Bionic Teaching. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons’ licensing.

ProQuest, Springer, Library Journal and ER&L are sponsoring a series of upcoming webcasts. The first in the series addresses how academic libraries use data to make decisions. Identifying best practices to effectively communicate data to various stakeholders.  

This webcast will include presentations from both Sarah Tudesco, Assessment Librarian, Yale University and Bonnie Tijerina, Head of E-Resources and Serials, Harvard Library. 

What Is a Data-Driven Academic Library?
Wednesday, December 4, 2013
2:00-3:00 PM CT

Registration

Here are the links for the next two webcasts in this series:

  • Click here to register for Part 2 of this series: The Evolution of Usage: Analyzing and Benchmarking Use.
  • Click here to register for Part 3 of this series: Measuring Impact: Redefining Scholarly Value Through New Data.
Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Library Journal’s Top Ten Books in 2013

Image retrieved online at Library Journal 11/19/13.
Image retrieved online at Library Journal 11/19/13.

Aha, we are getting close to the end of a calendar year, and the flurry of lists begin, which is always popular! And book lists rank supreme with our readers!

Library Journal’s review editors are now sharing their Top Ten  List, and as you read their blog post you feel their pain. They  briefly chronicle their struggles in just choosing ten titles. They lament a bit about the “ones that got away” too, simply because other books  grabbed them with more intensity.  I like that image….

Some of us read for plot, others for character development (that’s me), and yet others for flowery language (not me) among other things, so it is possible you will love a title  on the discard list too! Take a look at their More of the Best List too!

Tip: If you read one of these books and would like to submit your short review to our offices,  we can include it in our Featured Book blog posts. Thanks!