Future Themes!

Barb Huntington and Rhonda Puntney recently attended the annual CSLP Meeting in Seattle, where the 2012 themes were decided.

Children’s: Dream Big – Read

Teen’s: Own the Night

Adult: Between the Covers

2013 General concept is “Underground."

Karla's Reviews

Red Sings from Treetops: A Year in Colors by Joyce Sidman, Illustrated by Pamela Zagarenski

An entire book of poems about colors and weather ~ how can it possibly keep the reader's interest? I was skeptical.

However, Joyce Sidman's images are so evocative and so crisp, that I was completely captivated. "In spring, Red sings from treetops: cheer-cheer-cheer, each note dropping like a cherry into my ear/Red turns the maples feathery, sprouts in rhubarb spears; Red squirms on the road after rain." I read the whole thing cover to cover in one sitting. Pamela Zagarenski's fanciful and colorful illustrations perfectly enhance the images in the poems. What a delight! (Children's)


Hold Still
by Nina LaCour

Caitlin's best friend, Ingrid, commits suicide, and all Caitlin is left with is her journal. She has to try to make sense of Ingrid's senseless death. Caitlin's process of grieving and coming back to life herself is gracefully and poignantly drawn. A lovely, sad, but ultimately hopeful read. (YA)


~ by Karla Giraldéz, BCL- Southwest

CCBC Choices and Workshop

The 2010 CCBC Choices books have been distributed to member libraries. The Choices presentation will take place this summer!

CCBC Choices Workshop
Wednesday, June 9; 1 - 3:30 pm
NFLS Meeting Room

Websites Faves

AdViews: A Digital Archive of Vintage Television Commercials

While watching television commercials might seem like a form of torture to some, this amazing archive is a treasure trove for those with an interest in media studies and popular culture. The AdViews digital archive consists of several thousand vintage television commercials from the 1950s through 1980s, and it is part of the John W. Hartman Center for Sales, Advertising & Marketing History at Duke University. First-time visitors should check out the "About" area for a bit more background on the project, and then type in some keywords like "peanuts" or "toothpaste" into the search engine. The results are returned in a grid format, and the commercials are played back via iTunes. The "AdViews Expert Interviews" area contains talks with former advertising executives, professors of marketing, and media studies experts. The site also has a nice blog that highlights new items in the collection and a quiz to "Test Your Ad Knowledge." (Copyright 2010 Internet Scout Project, http://scout.wisc.edu, 3/19/10)

StoryCorps: Recording The Lives of Everyday Americans

StoryCorps' mission is to provide "Americans of all backgrounds and beliefs with the opportunity to record, share, and preserve the stories of our lives". Since 2003, 50,000 Americans have taken that opportunity, and some of their stories can be heard on NPR's radio show, Morning Edition. The StoryCorps website has links to over a dozen stories on its homepage, along with photos of those key to the story. To "Read the StoryCorps Blog", visitors should go to the menu on the right side of the page, under "Follow Us Online, On The Road". The stories of these Americans range from heart-rending to humorous. Some of the titles include "A Boy Raises a Man-And Becomes One Himself", about a 16-year-old who raises his son as a single dad; "Boy Scout Tells Leader Why He Stayed 25 Years", about a Boy Scout troop for special needs scouts; and "Coping With Memory Loss as it Spans Generations", about a 55-year-old woman who has early onset Alzheimer's disease, and is dealing with her mother, who also has Alzheimer's. (Copyright 2010 Internet Scout Project, http://scout.wisc.edu, 3/19/10)

Heritage Preservation

The Heritage Preservation: The National Institute for Conservation is a 30-year-old non-profit in Washington, DC, that is concerned with preserving the treasures of the United States that are already in institutions, such as museums, historical societies, and libraries, as well as those historical treasures that are in people's homes, basements, and attics. Their website is comprehensive, and lists the programs they run to help accomplish this monumental task. Under the "Programs" tab visitors will find links to the "Conservation Assessment Program" and "Heritage Emergency National Task Force", which is like FEMA for historical objects. "Rescue Public Murals" and "Save Outdoor Sculpture!" are also programs the Heritage Preservation runs. Visitors can see photographs of "Murals That Have Been Lost" and "Murals That Have Been Saved". Finally, the link under "Programs" to the "Heritage Health Index" provides a full online report of the "first comprehensive survey to assess the condition and preservation needs of U.S. collections". (Copyright 2010 Internet Scout Project, http://scout.wisc.edu, 3/19/10)

- CEO, Youth Services Update, Issue 341, April 14, 2010

Lois Lenski Covey Foundation Grants

The Lois Lenski Covey Foundation, Inc. annually awards grants for purchasing books published for young people preschool through grade 12. Grants for 2010 will range from $500 to $3000 and are specifically for children’s book purchases rather than administrative or operational uses.

The LLCF library grant program provides grants for public libraries, school libraries, and charitable organizations [501(c)(3)] that have lending libraries where children up to age 18 may check out books to read or to use for gathering information. We will also consider applications from non-profit abuse centers, rehab centers, detention centers, etc., as long as a lending library is actively maintained on the premises. Only libraries or organizations within the United States, its territories, or commonwealths are eligible. he Foundation gives to libraries or organizations that serve economically or socially at-risk children, have limited book budgets, and demonstrate real need.

The library grant program provides grants for purchasing children’s books. The books may be fiction or non-fiction. The library grant program DOES NOT provide grants for book-donation programs, classroom libraries, atlases, dictionaries, basal readers or similar texts, workbooks or similar instructional tools, or for textbooks or encyclopedias. Grant applications for audio books will be considered only in the cases of children with special needs, where audio books would be particularly appropriate in addressing those needs.

In order for a library to be considered, it must have been in operation for at least three years. County or district library systems cannot apply as a whole; public or school libraries within a county or district system are eligible to apply individually. A link to a downloadable application is available at the Grant Application web page. The deadline to apply is June 15, 2010.

Bits from Barb

YSS Webpage Site has SLP Resource Information

Just a reminder that all the handouts for the SLP resources from the State SLP Conference are still available on the YSS page at www.wla.lib.wi.us/yss/summerreading2009.htm. The information includes the DNR contacts for Angler Educators who are willing to do free programs related to fishing this summer, as well as the Aquatic Specialists who are willing to bring a boat and trailer to public libraries interested in doing the "Clean Boats, Clean Waters" story program. Part of the program involves taking the group outside to look for the invaders who are "hiding" on the boat and trailer.

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Five Wisconsin Libraries are on the NFI Top Twitter Libraries

Five Wisconsin public libraries are listed on the NFI's web site of top public libraries on Twitter. NFI Research is a U.S.-based research firm that identifies and analyzes trends and attitudes in business, organizational management, information technology and organizational behavior.
These libraries on the list:
1) regularly update their page and communicate with their followers
2) use Twitter to advance/promote communication with their community
3) have a proportionate number of followers to following and
4) are currently active on Twitter.

100+ Followers
Milwaukee Public Library, Milwaukee http://twitter.com/MilwaukeePubLib

200+ Followers
Boscobel Public Library, Boscobel http://twitter.com/BoscoLibrary
Lester Public Library, Two Rivers http://twitter.com/lesterpublic
Madison Public Library, Madison http://twitter.com/madisonlibrary

500+ Followers
Oshkosh Public Library, Oshkosh http://twitter.com/oshkoshlibrary

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2010 Best Books for Young Adults

YALSA announced its 2010 list of "Best Books for Young Adults." The list of 90 books recommended for those ages 12-18 meets the criteria of both good quality literature and appealing reading for teens. The list comprises a wide range of genres and styles, including contemporary realistic fiction that reflects the diversity of the teen experience, nonfiction that brings to teens an awareness of the world they live in and its history, and fantastical stories told in both narrative and graphic formats. The complete list, including annotations, can be found on the YALSA website at www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/yalsa/booklistsawards/popularpaperback/popularpaperbacks.cfm
—American Libraries Direct, January, 27, 2010

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Ezra Jack Keats Award

The Ezra Jack Keats Foundation has issued a call for proposals for $500 mini-grants to public libraries and public schools to support creative programming. The deadline for submission of proposals is September 15., 2010. For more information go to www.ezra-jack-keats.org/programs/minigrant.html
—American Libraries Direct, January, 27, 2010

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Third American Indian Youth Literature Awards announced

The American Indian Library Association (AILA), an affiliate of the American Library Association, has selected "A Coyote Solstice Tale" written by Thomas King and illustrated by Gary Clement; "Meet Christopher: An Osage Indian Boy from Oklahoma" by Genevieve Simermeyer, and "Between the Deep Blue Sea by Me: A Novel" by Lurline Wailana McGregor as recipients of the third American Indian Youth Literature Awards.

The winners of the 2010 awards are:
The recipient for Best Picture Book is "A Coyote Solstice Tale," written by Thomas King and illustrated by Gary Clement, published by Groundwood Books, 2009.

For Best Middle School Book, the winner is "Meet Christopher: An Osage Indian Boy from Oklahoma," by Genevieve Simermeyer, with photographs by Katherine Fogden, published by the National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution in association with Council Oak Books, 2008.

Best Young Adult Book "Between the Deep Blue Sea and Me: A Novel," by Lurline Wailana McGregor and published by Kamehameha Publishing, 2008.
—American Libraries Direct, January, 27, 2010

- System Youth Services Liaison Posting

March, 2010, Barbara Huntington, DLTCL