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Welcome to Check Your Shelf! This is your guide to help librarians like you up your game when it comes to doing your job (& rocking it).
Libraries & Librarians
News Updates
- A Florida county commission denied the public library’s request for a subscription to the New York Times for its patrons, saying that the NYT promoted “fake news.” I have no words.
- Since making the decision to go fines free, the Chicago Public Library has seen a remarkable 240% increase in book returns!
- Library advocates deliver the signatures of nearly 160,000 people against the Macmillan eBook embargo to the Macmillan headquarters in New York City.
- Other library systems pledge to boycott Macmillan eBooks until the embargo is removed.
- The Illinois Department of Corrections revises its book ban policy.
- The Little Free Library organization and the founder’s family are clashing over the future direction of the organization.
- The late Philip Roth leaves $2 million to the Newark (NJ) Public Library! Holy cats!
- Firefighters successfully protect the Ronald Reagan Public Library from the encroaching California wildfires.
- Librarian Emma Boettcher is returning to Jeopardy for the Tournament of Champions!
- Raccoons take over the Arkansas State Library! Look at those little trash pandas!
Cool Library Updates
- When the library comes to the homeless shelter.
- The Horror Writers’ Association, Library Journal, and other partners announce the second annual Summer Scares Reading Program.
- This rural library added a horse shelter and a car charging station for its patrons.
- The Montana State University library acquires a collection of fly fishing materials from Fly Fishers International.
Worth Reading
- How to host an escape room at your library.
- How academic librarians support video game scholars.
Book Adaptations in the News
- Gossip Girl gets a reboot on HBO MAX.
- Hulu is adapting the Clive Barker horror anthology, Books of Blood.
- Amazon is adapting The Power by Naomi Alderman.
- Julie K. Brown’s upcoming book about Jeffrey Epstein is being adapted as a limited series.
- James Patterson’s upcoming book The House of Kennedy is being adapted for streaming with CBS.
- City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert gets picked up for a film adaptation.
- Alexa Martin’s football-themed romcom, Intercepted, is getting an adaptation with Starz.
Books & Authors in the News
- Lee Child says that he has no problems killing off Jack Reacher, if necessary. Librarians everywhere tremble at the thought of all those angry readers bearing down on the library.
Numbers & Trends
- 4th and 8th grade reading levels have dropped since 2017.
- In the 1980’s, women were writing 60% of Star Trek tie-in novels. In the 2010’s, that number has dropped to 12%.
Award News
- ALA reveals the 2020 Carnegie Medal shortlists for fiction and nonfiction.
- Attica Locke wins the Texas Writer of the Year from the Texas Book Festival!
- The World Fantasy Award winners were announced.
- Lots of crime award winners were announced this week with the Anthony Awards, Shamus Awards, and Macavity Awards.
Pop Cultured
- Take a peep at the full lineup for HBO MAX, including two new seasons of Dr. Who. HBO MAX will begin streaming May 2020.
- Trailers for The Witcher and The Mandalorian.
- Fantastic Beasts 3 production will likely begin in Spring 2020.
Bookish Curiosities & Miscellaneous
- Tips for raising kids who read.
- If you haven’t seen this viral twitter thread yet about this person reading Dracula for the first time, you really need to. (NSFW, but holy cow is it funny!)
Found on Book Riot
- The Chicago Teachers’ Union strike may abandon school librarians.
- Sex, nudity, and satanism are why parents believe in school book censorship.
- 59 quotes about libraries & librarians.
- Adapting adult books for young readers.
- What exactly are pre-orders, and why do they matter?
- 50 Harry Potter gifts for all your 2019 gift-giving needs.
Thanks for hanging! See everyone on Tuesday!
–Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter.