Happy New Year! It’s that time of year again, when folks wrap up their previous reading year, recommend the best books they read, and set reading goals for the new year. Do YOU set a reading goal or reading resolutions? It’s great if you do! But, though there might be a lot of pressure to set one, you don’t have to.
Category: Slice of Life
posts about daily life experiences and reflections by ALSC members
The Right Book in the Right Hand at the Right Time
I am writing this blog post on the night before I return to work from bereavement leave. My dad was diagnosed with Glioblastoma Multiforme in late February. I once heard GBM referred to as the “great white shark” of brain cancer because of its relentless rate of growth and spread, and the lack of effective treatment. My parents moved in with my family right after Dad received the diagnosis; we put their house of 53 years on the market, moved their stuff into storage, and buckled up for the wild ride of surgery, radiation and chemotherapy while maintaining our “normal” work, school, church and home duties. Needless to say, it’s been a lot. I don’t know if you all experience this, but when I am particularly stressed out, I sometimes find that I cannot read. I just can’t allow myself to enter into a story. I can’t put my life…
Restorative Justice at the Public Library
Restorative justice is one of those buzzwords that has been going around in education for the last decade, and has been making it’s way to the public library over the last few years.
They’re Back and They’re Excited
Covid numbers are down in Los Angeles County! The mask mandate has been lifted, and life is feeling more akin to pre-Covid days. In the library, storytimes have moved inside, playtime afterwards has been reinstated, and we are living it up! After two years of outside or virtual programming, it feels wonderful!
Thoughts From a New American Librarian
An immigrant from Bangladesh finds herself at home in libraries New York City, with its towering skyscrapers and endless avenues, is one of the most diverse and multicultural cities in the world. It is home to 3.1 million immigrants with new Americans arriving each day. Twenty years ago, as a Bangladeshi teen, I was one of those newcomers.
Memoirs of a Process Committee Member: How ALSC Has Helped Me Strengthen Skills
As I try to write my final blog post as a member of the Membership Committee, I have found myself reflecting quite a bit about my two years with this fun and engaging process committee. I recall getting my committee appointment from past president Cecilia McGowan and the excitement of being appointed to my first ALSC committee. I had been involved in ALSC as part of the Peer Mentoring Program in 2016 and served as an Emerging Leader in 2018 but committee work was different. I also had a vague understanding of what serving on Membership would be like and the reality far exceeded my expectations. Here of some highlights of skills I got to strengthen while being a part of this fantastic committee.
The Library as a 3rd Place
In his book The Great Good Place, author Ray Oldenburg talks about the importance of having a space that is neither work or home, but a third place that serves as a location for the community to come together and gather. For many people and communities, that place is a public library. I saw this first hand when I worked at a public library, and it is one of the things I miss most about working in that environment. Patrons would come in, bring recipes they were experimenting with for others to try; talk with one another about movies and tv shows they recommended; play mahjongg. When I started at my school and was asked what kind of library I wanted to build, I knew I wanted to work to try and create our own version of a third place. I envisioned a place that wasn’t a classroom or an…
Changes: Turn and Face the Strange
We’ve had a lot of changes in the past year, haven’t we? Changes in lifestyle, in government, in health. In our work lives, we’ve had nothing but change! It looks like there’s more change to come for all of us as we creep back, ever so cautiously, to something that looks like a life and work pre-pandemic. I had some big changes this month. I was promoted to Senior Children’s Librarian, which meant I moved branches and completely changed the scope of work that I do. A lot of it scares me, to be honest. I have to know DETAILS. DATA. There are EXCEL SPREADSHEETS involved. People expect me to know things. Is this my strongest skill set? Not even slightly. However, I have the opportunity to work in brand new and really exciting ways that do build on my existing skills. I can stretch and grow, and that is…