Welcome to Check Your Shelf. We had our first winter storm this week, but instead of the predicted 3-6 inches of snow, we got 2-3 inches of semi-frozen slush. It’s all very typical for the Midwest, but there’s really nothing like having to bring groceries into the house while trudging through a parking lot of slush puddles. Is it spring yet?
2024 is the tenth year of the Read Harder Challenge! Join us as we make our way through 24 tasks meant to expand our reading horizons and diversify our TBRs. To get book recommendations for each task, sign up for the Read Harder newsletter. We’ll also keep you informed about other cool reading challenges, readathons, and more across the bookish internet. If you become a paid subscriber, you get even more recommendations plus community features, where you can connect with a community of passionate, like-minded readers in a cozy and supportive corner of the internet. Sign up today!
Libraries & Librarians
News Updates
OverDrive reports another record year for digital library circulation.
Nichelle Hayes, former interim CEO of the Indianapolis Public Library, has resigned from the library as of last week.
The L.A. Public Library is getting into publishing — why it makes total sense.
Book Adaptations in the News
Page-to-screen adaptations coming in 2024.
Trailer for The Three Body Problem.
Censorship News
Data overwhelmingly supports libraries and library workers.
Librarian and anti-censorship activist Amanda Jones tells her story.
How a conservative group’s videos gained a foothold in classrooms with help from Republican officials. This is in regards to PragerU.
Florida Republicans have introduced a new bill that would make it defamation to accuse someone of racism, sexism, homophobia, or transphobia.
“A federal judge this week said Attorney General Ashley Moody’s office can argue in support of the Escambia County School Board [FL] during a Jan. 10 hearing in a battle about removing or restricting school library books.” The AG’s position is that removing books from a public school is a form of government speech and not subject to the First Amendment. Some of the restricted books include the Guinness Book of World Records and the dictionary.
Many of the books targeted for banning at the Pine-Richland school district (PA) show low circulation numbers, but a) that’s not a reason to justify their removal, and b) students are probably reading the books in the library as opposed to checking them out. Traditional circulation numbers don’t tell the whole story.
Not surprisingly, the vast majority of tips submitted to the new Alabama Book Ban snitch line have been from people trolling the system and advocating to keep books on library shelves.
How queer Louisianians are fighting book bans — and winning.
Cape Girardeau Public Library (MO) says there are no pornographic or obscene materials in the collection. The fact that libraries have to make this announcement is incredibly sad.
A proposed bill in Tennessee would allow parents to sue school districts if they disagree with the district’s decision to retain a book. Senator Mark Pody said this in favor of the bill: “‘This is something where we are trying to hold the line right here to some of the values that we have that are biblical values that are constitutionally sound,’ Pody said. ‘Parents are going to be in charge, not public schools.’” (Emphasis mine.)
The New Prairie United School Corp (IN) is dealing with challenges to six books.
The new Illinois law banning book bans has officially gone into effect.
The Hutchinson School Board (MN) is considering a new policy that will make it easier to remove books, and there’s at least one person in the community who has absolutely no idea what school librarians and media specialists do. “‘The decision of appropriateness is left entirely to the viewpoint of that media specialist,’ she said. ‘There’s no objective guidance for specialists to decide what materials to include.’” Insert a head-exploding GIF here because I just cannot.
Oregon libraries are facing budget cuts on top of safety issues and a record number of book challenges.
Seaside Public Library (OR) will retain And Tango Makes Three and When Aiden Became a Brother.
A planned drag queen story hour at the Soldotna Public Library (AK) was postponed due to online backlash.
The Northern Justice Project and the ACLU of Alaska have filed a preliminary injunction to return 56 books to Mat-Su school library shelves.
Books & Authors in the News
The man who stabbed Salman Rushdie in 2022 has had his trial postponed due to the release of Rushdie’s memoir later this year.
Taylor Swift fans have a conspiracy theory that T. Swift is the mystery author behind the mega-buzzy spy thriller Argylle.
Numbers & Trends
The Washington Post has a recent breakdown of Americans’ reading habits in 2023.
The best-selling books of the week according to all the lists.
Pop Cultured
The Mandalorian & Grogu is the next Star Wars movie to hit the big screen.
Bookish Curiosities & Miscellaneous
Vignette Books is a bookstore that offers titles exclusively through the “blind date with a book” format!
When should you give up on a book?
On the Riot
The best bookstores and libraries to follow on TikTok.
How to create achievable reading goals.
Plus, you don’t have to treat reading like going to the gym.
7 types of BookToks that skyrocketed this Rioter’s reading by 1000%.
How to diversify your BookTok FYP.
Well, Dini’s been getting most of the newsletter space the last few issues because Gilbert has been hanging out a lot in the closet, where he’s hard to see. Why? I have no idea. He’s eating fine and enjoys being petted in the closet, but he’s just suddenly decided that’s where he wants to spend 95% of his time. So here’s another photo of Dini being a very snuggly and needy boy!
Catch you all next week!
—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter