The evening lights of Atlanta are glowing and #alamw17 is off to a brilliant start. I hope to bring the delights and conversations of the day directly to you. I want you to smell that new ARC scent through your screens. I want you to see the amazing picture books up close. If we are lucky, maybe rub elbows with an author or illustrator. So let’s get started! The first event of the evening was a gathering of librarians but this was not just any party, it’s a Holiday House party. The publishing house was founded in 1935. The brilliant John H. Briggs ran the publishing company from 1965 to 2016 when it purchased by Trustbridge Partners. I really love their recent title Cat on the Bus by Aram Kim. While at the event, I got to meet new librarians and reconnect with former colleagues. This is what I asked…
Tag: #alaleftbehind
#alamw15 LeVar Burton’s Words of Wisdom
Full of nostalgia from a Reading Rainbow childhood, LeVar Burton’s voice carried me away as he read his book The Rhino Who Swallowed A Storm. The story contains a lovely message of love and support from friends and families in a world of chaos. Levar wants to become a resource for children that face tragedy in honor of one of his heroes, Mr. Fred Rogers. LeVar learned to use television as a part of a larger ministry devoted to making a better place for children. Fred Rogers also taught him to be true to himself. LeVar said the “idea (for his new book) sprang from the headlines of the day.” He wanted to create a new myth about recovery from depression and anxiety caused by the world we live in. He felt that children didn’t have many examples or role models to help them deal with their feelings and fears. With the stigma that…
#alaleftbehind
This is not the first time I’ve found myself #alaleftbehind, but the more I think about, it this is probably the best time to be in this situation. Think about it. Before the prevalence of blogs, smartphones, twitter and the like, librarians who weren’t at conference might have had to wait for official publications to be mailed to their homes. There would be no way to react to or participate in what was going on. But now, we can follow hashtags (#alaannual, #alaleftbehind, #alsc to name a few), we can read Cognotes, follow divisional blogs and the blogs of our librarian colleagues. Admittedly, I may feel a pang or two as I see the photo feeds of far flung friends of mine enjoying each other’s company. However, I do know that they will be live tweeting sessions I would have attended and are likely to be microblogging as well. I…