10.25.2007

Drug-Dealing Children's Librarians and Sinister Wednesdays in Brooklyn

This comes courtesy of my American Libraries Direct email: “A Vision of Students Today," created by Michael Wesch in collaboration with 200 students at Kansas State University. This was truly brilliant and, even though it’s centered around the college experience, it absolutely has relevance to modern-day elementary and high school education. Everything has to change.

This is also courtesy of my American Libraries Direct email. It’s a short preview for the new series, The Librarians, in Australia. Check out the children’s librarian! LOVE IT! I’d look like that too if my bra size was bigger. I’m just so giddy that someone finally realized that libraries are a comedic gold mine. The series debuts on October 31st and apparently you can download shows from the ABC website (unless you somehow subscribe to Australian TV).

Also, Your Neighborhood Librarian reviewed What Happens on Wednesdays by Emily Jenkins. I have to admit that I see her point. This was not my initial impression of the book. My first impression was that the book was, indeed, about “happy, hip parents escorting their, hm, 4 year old? daughter through their adorable Brooklyn neighborhood.” I didn’t see the sinister side of it until YNL pointed it out. Wow. I don’t think I’ll be able to look at that book the same way again. Which isn’t a bad thing. That’s why I’m such a blog-whore: I enjoy getting a fresh perspective on the books I’ve read. And for the record, YNL, there’s no way they can afford Brooklyn Heights. Yeah, Carroll Gardens. Or Bed-Stuy. Also, for the record, I do buy scarves still. I buy them from “the crafty neo-post-feminist” selling them in Columbus Circle around the holidays.

Last but not least, I have to direct you to this post on Sarah Miller’s blog. She did a visit to a school classroom, and it just sounds like it was the most wonderful experience. And as I said to Sarah, it is stories like this that renew my faith in the state of the world. As clichéd as it sounds, literature and reading do have the power to enact change and inspire children. It’s our job, as librarians, authors, teachers, and parents, to help children make that meaningful connection. (To put an even bigger smile on your face, check out the comments in response to Sarah's blog posts. The kids from the class posted on her blog to thank her for visiting!)

No comments: