Goodbye, audible.com

I'm not sure what to make of audible.com's new "Don't Read" ad campaign.

No, I kinda *do* know what I think of it. I guess I'm just afraid of sounding like I have no sense of humor whatsoever.

So, what do I think?

Blech.

In my experience -- as a librarian, a voracious reader, and a fan of audio books -- people who listen to audio books are people who love books. Sometimes we want audio to avoid accidents that could be caused by reading while driving, sometimes we realize that we simply cannot knit and read at the same time, sometimes we just love to hear the author (or reader) speaking the story to us. I came to Frank McCourt through hearing him read portions of Angela's Ashes on "A Prairie Home Companion". I read the book and loved it, but I wanted the audio, too. Now, whenever I read him, I can hear his gorgeous voice reading along with me and it definitely enhances the experience for me.

Also, no matter how hard I tried, I could NOT read Moby Dick (and I did try, Readers). However, during a solo drive to Massachusetts (to see literary Concord, natch), I listened to an unabridged reading of the book and *loved* it. When I got home, I decided to try, once more, to read the book.

No go. I couldn't do it. This tale, which read aloud captivated me was tortuous on the page.

So, yes. I love audio books. And when I listen to a book, I consider that I have "read" it. I have found that many audio book admirers are book people, people who also read.

So why would audible.com crap on us this way?

I *get* that it's a spoof. I get that it is meant to be a parody of the ALA READ posters. I understand that the questions on the FAQ are meant to be tongue-in-cheek. For example, the first question reads: "Should I burn my books? No. A stack of burning books pollutes the air, and worse - it kinda thumbs its nose at the First Amendment. So Don't burn books. Without them, libraries would be just big empty rooms."

Actually, No. We wouldn't. There would still be computers, copiers, programs, storytimes, crafts, microfilm, newspapers, tutoring help, literacy programs, and more.

I just don't find it very funny.

It seems like poor marketing strategy on their part, too. I am so glad I did not purchased the gift subscription to audible.com I had been planning. And although I had planned to renew my own subscription in the new year, that's done, too.

I know my measly few consumer dollars won't matter much to their company, but forget it. I work hard for my money. I don't need to give it to people who advocate an anti-reading stance to the world...

We shall all be poorer...

Just after midnight, convicted murderer, gangster, and children's book author, Stanley Tookie Williams, will be executed by the state of California.

There is no question in my mind that the crimes he committed were heinous. There is also no question in my mind that his work in turning children away from the gang life he once embraced makes him more valuable alive than dead. I don't think he should neccessarily walk free, but if he lives, he can continue his pwerful message of being able to transcend our wrongdoings to become useful members of society. When he is murdered, I think it may send a message that there is little point to trying to change, since it may not do any good anyway.

I don't even know if I am making sense. I am pretty opposed to the death penalty in general. In this case, though, seeing how powerfully his books have affected children I have worked with, children on the brink of making bad decisions who reconsidered after hearing Tookie's story, this seems like a horrible, preventable loss.

The words of John Donne seem appropriate to me now:

"No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friend's or of thine own were. Any man's death diminishes me because I am involved in mankind; and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee."

Rosa

You can hear Nikki Giovanni talk about her beautiful new picture book, Rosa, on the NPR site.

Well, at least we're moving up...

Chicago has ranked number 46 in a list of the most literate cities in America.

Last year, we were number 58, so at least there's some improvement.

Still, I would have thought that, with all our commitment to public libraries, and the wonderful literary programs the libraries provide (including author visits), we'd be higher on the list.

Sigh.

The entire study is available for your perusal here.

"Snow, snow, I want to play in the snow...!"

Make a snowflake to share with the world!

Thanks to Amy for the link.

Early Christmas gift for poetry lovers

Wow! Check out the rockin' cool Poetry Archive!

Honestly, it gave me shivers to hear Langston Hughes reading his poem, "I, Too." What a great gift that we can hear this amazing man read one of his (in my mind, anyway) greatest poems.

(Maybe too many "greats" in that sentence, but every one is true!)

"It was the shower hose that clinched it"

"A passage describing a male character's genitalia as 'leaping around like a shower dropped in an empty bath' helped British food critic Giles Coren win the 13th annual Bad Sex in Fiction award Thursday for his debut novel, Winkler.

Read the rest of the article.

You can read excerpts of the work of the candidates for this award here. Looks like he (cough, cough) beat out some pretty (ahem) stiff competition.

(And, yes, shame on me.)

Library of Congress Evacuated

That's about all of the story that's out there. In it's entirety, the item reads: "The main building of the Library of Congress was evacuated Wednesday morning while a hazardous materials team investigated what people in the building said was a suspicious odor.

Capitol Police officer Dan Kurtz said two people in the Jefferson Building, located across the street from the Capitol, complained of feeling faint. One was treated at the scene and another was taken to a local hospital."

I hope all is well...

Stan Berenstain has died

He was 82. Read the obit.

(Sorry this isn't the lengthier entry he deserves, but this is making me very sad. I will try to come back and write something better later.)

Happy Birthday, ICDL!

Today marks the 3rd Anniversay of the International Children's Digital Library! This amazing site was "designed to provide children ages 3 to 13 with an unparalleled opportunity to experience different cultures through literature and an unequaled ease in accessing online books."

The ICDL now features 829 free children's books in 32 different languages. Definitely worth a minute (or 10) of your time, to see what kinds of stories children all over the world are sharing and cherishing.

Does the NBA predict the Newbery winners?

Okay, I did some digging (well, not digging so much as compiling easily found data) to see if the National Book Award for Young People’s Literature is a good predictor of which title will win the Newbery Medal.

It looks like the first National Book Award for Young People’s Literature was presented in 1996. [A note about the appearance of date discrepancies in the comparison: Because the National Book Award is presented at the end of the year (November) and the Newbery Medal is presented at the beginning of the year (January), the 1996 National Book Award for Young People’s Literature is drawn from the same pool of books as the 1997 Newbery Medal winner. A bit confusing, but true, nonetheless.]

So, is the National Book Award for Young People’s Literature a portend of things to come in January?

Nope.

Only once have the two committees agreed, and that was on Holes by Louis Sachar. (And really -- who *did* argue with that selection?) This isn’t a bad thing, I think, since it brings more quality books for young people to the attention of the book-buying public.

So, what does this mean for The Penderwicks? Probably nothing. Just something I was wondering about and thought I might as well share since I spent time figuring it out…

(I will add links later, when I have more time.)

THE DATA:

1996
National Book Award: Parrott In the Oven: Mi Vida by Victor Martinez
1997
Newbery: The View from Saturday by E.L. Konigsburg


1997
National Book Award: Dancing on the Edge by Han Nolan
1998
Newbery: Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse

1998
National Book Award: Holes by Louis Sachar
1999
Newbery: Holes by Louis Sachar

1999
National Book Award: When Zachary Beaver Came to Town by Kimberley Willis Holt
2000
Newbery: Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis

2000
National Book Award: Homeless Bird by Gloria Whelan
2001
Newbery: A Year Down Yonder by Richard Peck

2001
National Book Award: True Believer by Virginia Euwer Wolff
2002
Newbery: A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park

2002
National Book Award: The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer
2003
Newbery: Crispin: The Cross of Lead by Avi

2003
National Book Award: The Canning Season by Polly Horvath
2004
Newbery: The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread by Kate DiCamillo

2004
National Book Award: Godless by Pete Hautman
2005
Newbery: Kira-Kira by Cynthia Kadohata

2005
National Book Award: The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall
2006
Newbery: ?

To Smoke or Not to Smoke?

From the New York Times: In the great green room, there is a telephone, and a red balloon, but no ashtray. "Goodnight Moon," the children's classic by Margaret Wise Brown, has gone smoke free.

The controversey is apparently over a picture of illustrator Clement Hurd from which a cigarette has been digitally erased. Why not just find a picture in which Hurd was not smoking instead of altering the other one? *I* don't know. But it's causing a fuss.

There's a website that discusses this, too: Goodnight Moon Reality. There, you can vote for which version of the picture you prefer.

Chris Van Allsburg at MSI

There's a special exhibit of Chris Van Allsburg's artwork at the Museum of Science and Industry. Yay!

Penderwicks Prevail!

The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy by Jeanne Birdsall is the winner of the 2005 National Book Award for Young People's Literature.

The judges said, "This enormously heartwarming and satisfying novel honors and enriches the beloved tradition of the classic children's family story. The Penderwicks are worthy companions to Alcott's March sisters or Nesbit's Bastables—endearing and enduring characters whose company we can cherish."

I read the book, somewhat reluctantly, and was utterly charmed. It is a gentle tale that doesn't fall into cloying sentimentality. I am not sure I agree these sisters *quite* hold up to the March sisters (although they, too, have a writer, a gentle, shy animal lover, a mothering sister...), but they are a lovely family nonetheless.

I would be interested to know how many times the same book has won the Newbery as the National Book Award? Hmm... Mayhaps I shall take a look at that.

Meanwhile, some other people won stuff in other categories, too. Check it out.

How was this even a debate?

It seems shameful that this was even a question, but thankfully it has been resolved: "Libraries in Nobel Prize winning author John Steinbeck's hometown of Salinas, California, will remain open after voters approved an increase in the local sales tax, according to election results posted on Wednesday."

Read the rest.

I kinda hate this commercial...

... for DHL. Am I being too sensitive?

Actually, I often get a kick out of the librarian stereotypes. Just, when I saw this, I wished there was a teensy bit more balance in the way people saw us. Like, if so many people didn't believe that this was the truth of most librarians, it would be funnier.

SIGH. Guess it's good to have a library on tv, anyway.

In Memoriam: John Fowles

John Fowles, author of seven novels, including The French Lieutenant's Woman and The Collector, has died at the age of 79.

An obituary is here.

New Norton Anthology

From the Boston Globe: "Why are adult readers so drawn to children's literature? A lavish new Norton anthology suggests some answers."

Read the the review.

Another reason I love Chicago

Toward the end of the day, Science Boy calls me and tells me to meet him at "the Chagall" after work.

And I can.

It has just been filling my heart to think that our beautiful City has public art on the order of Chagall's Four Seasons, just on a corner by the El.

We are so lucky.

Woo-Hoo!

YAY! for our fabulous Chicago White Sox on their World Series Win!

Talked to Jim, my brother in Phoenix, right after the game. He was sad not to be here, but turned his ambulance siren on in solidarity. He said his son has been wearing the Sox shirts I sent him this week. I just sent both kids new t-shirts this past weekend, so we'll make sure they remain Sox fans, even from far away.

Science Boy and I watched the games from home. Last night, he made sure we put on some white socks during the sixth innning. Curiously, they scored shortly thereafter. (Actually, the night before, they were behiond when he realized he wasn't wearing white socks so he changed. The Sox surpassed the Astros soon after, so maybe he's on to something.)

We are not big Party People, but we did walk down to our neighborhood bar to share a quick beer and some celebration there. It was really cool to see so many people so happy and hugging each other. (Plus, our favorite bartended gave me back my moeny once she realized it was us and told us it was on the house.)

So, I'm not really a Cubs fan (though I guess I'd cheer them on if they ever made the series), but there is an article by a Cubs fan in the Trib this morning.

I am rambly, I think. And REALLY tired. (My brother, Wilhelm, called from Vegas around 1:45 this morning. Eek!) Nothing more to say, except:

Woo-Hoo!!