Today begins winter break which generally means I will try to cram as much reading as I can into each 24-hour day while tidying up around the house, visiting friends, and driving my boys to their job and hangouts with friends. It also means bottomless cups of tea thanks to my Breville teamaker.
I have a few professional titles to read including Jarred Amato’s Just Read It: Unlocking the Magic of Independent Reading in Middle and High School Classrooms and Ashley Hawkins, Emily Ratica, Julie Stivers, Sybil “Mouna” Toure, and Sara Smith’s Manga Goes to School: Cultivating Engagement and Inclusion in K-12 Settings.
And plenty of YA and middle grade titles especially that have started piling up on my Netgalley shelf as I prepare for a new set of presentations with my amazing colleague and presenter, Stacey.
Where will you find me? At home bouncing between the couch with a book or tablet or bouncing around the house with my Shokz headphones listening to an audiobook getting chores done.
Yesterday I spent the first morning of winter break donating platelets, which if you’d done it, means about 2 1/2 hours sitting with both arms immobile. I can’t read a book and while I could potentially listen to an audiobook, I’d just be staring around the room, so I took the opportunity to watch a movie since they provide you with this entertainment. I was prepared to watch a movie I’d been wanting to watch on one streaming service but it wasn’t working so I was on another and saw The Martian available. I had been surprised by my love for the book. I had borrowed it digitally a few years back and was prepared to skim read the science fiction story because it’s not usually my jam. But I was sucked in and ignored other responsibilities one summer day to finish it because I loved Mark Watney’s voice. Done. I’ll watch the movie adaptation.
I’m usually suspicious of movie adaptations but have followed Angie Thomas’ tweet from years ago when the adaptation of her book was coming out and she was inundated with messages about it. She likened a book versus the movie as fraternal twins: they share the same DNA however they are different entities. As the mom of fraternal twins and a bookworm rather than a movie buff, it spoke to me on multiple levels.
Eventually I end up watching most movies that have been adapted but I don’t want a lot of movies in general (I prefer documentaries). And just like the book, I was wowed by the movie. Damon is a fantastic actor and the scenes, dark humor, and immediacy of his situation were wonderfully evocative in the movie.
There have been a few others that I’ve enjoyed similarly: Kristen Stewart’s awkwardness as Melinda in Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson matched. The adorableness of the music and characters in To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han spoke to me (more) in the movie version than the books. Dumplin’ by Julie Murphy was brought to life with all the confidence of Dumplin herself, Danielle Macdonald.
This isn’t what you’d expect from a title like that. I’m not going to literally list all of the other things libraries offer because it differs from community to community. Instead, I’m going to highlight one that I’m buzzing about that happened last night.
Open Mic Night.
For three years, I have helped shape three open mic nights per year in our new library space. Luckily, another teacher at the school who pitched the idea of these recurring events is a casual artist himself and the best emcee. Collaboratively, we organize one fall, one winter, and one spring open mic night that allows students in our high school to flex their creative muscles in front of a live audience.
The lights get dimmed. The chairs are intimately pushed toward the microphone. The hot chocolate and baked goods smell wafts in the air. And these teens show up and they perform.
Spoken word (recitation and original)
Songs (original and borrowed, solos and duets, rap, Broadway numbers, pop hits)
Artistic expression (song and dance and break dancing)
What other things do libraries offer? Places to see and be seen. To build confidence and skill by offering something as simple as a small stage with a microphone.
Growing up, I was a reader. My mom had bodice ripper paperbacks bought at garage sales. My dad has his magazines. My middle brother was decidedly not a reader and the youngest brother was a casual science fiction and fantasy reader. We were sporadic library visitors.
Fast forward to my retired parents: Mom attends a needlecrafters group at the library weekly and used to attend chair yoga. She participates in their winter or summer challenges and is plugged in to the activities of the library. My dad has a stack of books he reads, generally about history, natural disasters, and conspiracy theories. Both have a Libby account and now that my dad has a pair of headphones he likes, he’s listening to audiobooks like a fiend.
And talking to people while standing in line at the public library to add get themselves a New York Public Library card since we live in New York State to add to their already extensive collection of ebooks and audiobooks from our library system. I had overheard her talking to the library employee that she was over paying for ebooks and audiobooks like she was before and how amazing having a library card was.
Strangers or family, either way, what have you done to turn people on to the library and/or Libby? Have you done visited in a while? Is the app on your phone or tablet? What are you waiting for?
Yesterday I ran into a student in one of the offices at school. I haven’t seen her in a while and as we chatted, she said she was busy with after school activities, but that she was still reading but missed being in the library.
Over the weekend, I bought a gift card for a local convenience store to give to a student from us in the library to recognize her participation in our #ReadLikeAFalcon Day during testing week in which she came in and spent the ENTIRE DAY drinking hot chocolate and reading. We expected students to come in for an hour or two, but not the entire day. She didn’t need the gift card, the reward of reading all day was gift enough.
Last week, I talked on the phone with a former student (it’s been over a decade, so I should probably stop referring to her in this way) who I occasionally meet for tea and conversation about life and books but whose distance makes it easier now to catch up over the phone. Where did we end our conversation? What we’ve been reading. We started the conversation talking about a podcast she told me to listen to about libraries.
Whether it’s a Sunday morning where I have my tea while reading a book after the newspaper or my nightly cup of tea and reading before bed, or frankly any time of the day that I’m reading, it’s always better with a cup of tea.
Or… is it that tea is better when reading a book?
Either way, they’re inextricably linked on my arm and it’s a winning combination.
Currently, my public library is in a transitional phase as the old library had to be abandoned due to the overwhelming cost of structural repairs that was needed to make it safe for visitors. Our city decided to purchase an old bank building that had been vacant for many years right in the heart of our downtown, but it also needs significant structural repairs and a redesign but with a revitalization grant, it was a supported opportunity. In the meantime, the library has been in a small pocket of a senior center owned by the city. Our director and small staff has made the best of the situation.
I’m also lucky enough to have more intimate details about the running of the library after being appointed to the Board of Trustees, so I went from an avid user to an avid user and Board member. I encourage anyone who might have the time and energy to dedicate to this volunteer opportunity, to do it. Or simply volunteer, if that’s an avenue at your library. And if that isn’t available, attend the programs. Borrow the books. Check out other materials or if the library has one, their “library of things” or museum passes. Sit in the library for a spell to suck up the energy.
I’ll say what’s often repeated which is that the public library remains one of the last locations that doesn’t ask anything of its visitors. It equalizes access to things like the internet and resources. It provides community connections and aids for literacy.
Therefore, if you haven’t visited your local public library in a while. Now’s your chance.
Ironic that I’m posting the day after Library Shelfie Day that looks to be the fourth Wednesday of January because yesterday was the day I should have taken a library shelfie! I was damn proud of spending a few days finishing up weeding nonfiction after having done a cursory weed of fiction about a month ago and the other section of nonfiction at the beginning of the year.
The work of actually deleting them from the system and moving them to free carts, teacher classrooms, donations, and new life in another library pales in comparison to the backbreaking (and knee burning) of the weeding itself. Plus of course the feeling of levity when the torn or yellowed pages, smashed spines, and seriously outdated books get tossed because no one needs to that on their shelf. It dulls the shine of the wonderful books on the shelves, so I’m glad they’re shining again.
Yet, like a tale or soap opera entitled “Ourshelves” it’s like laundry at home– the minute I think I’m done, there’s more to do. And in this case– the elegance of pristine shelves with all of the books sitting upright, sitting *just right* on the shelf, nothing backward or tipped over– will all be over as soon as students are back in full force on Monday. Do I wish it could last a few days? Of course, but then I wouldn’t be recognizing that the reason they’re messy is that they’re being used.
On November 24, 2023, I posted Over this next year that explained a challenge I was embarking on to read forty books that had affected me since I was turning forty. Challenge complete.
Pacing myself throughout the year, I listened to some of the books and read others but I did purchase a few of the titles that I hadn’t previously owned. As I read each one, I flipped it to show my progress over the year.
Ultimately, a few of them will not remain on my shelf because that’s the thing about rereading books, it’s not always the same the second time around. But I’m glad for it because it shows I’m not the same person. Tastes and interest shift in books the same that it does with food or decorating or clothing. That’s to be celebrated and one of the reasons I wanted to undertake the reflective practice of rereading because I rarely reread and prefer to remember the feelings about the books rather than the content. What I learned:
Mood as a literary device is important to me a reader. The books that remain impactful are a direct result of the book’s atmosphere such as The Virgin Suicides, The Girl From the Other Side, and Mudbound.
Nonfiction, especially food memoir, literally takes the cake. Read: Crying in H Mart and Dessert Can Save the World. But books about food are right next to them like Chicken Every Sunday, First Bite, and Lessons in Chemistry.
The classics on my list didn’t hold their own unfortunately. Sorry Brave New World, The Catcher in the Rye, and Jane Eyre. But neither did the epic first book in the Mayfair Chronicles The Witching Hour, though I heart Anne Rice forever and always.
Strong, whip smart, sassy, or otherwise memorable characters are hard to forget. Benny from Circle of Friends, Naomi from Out of Darkness, Maddie from A Northern Light, Lena from Between Shades of Gray, Anne from Anne of Green Gables, Melinda from Speak, Carey from If You Find Me, Charlotte from The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle, and Hazel from Anatomy: A Love Story.
Significantrelationships tug at my heartstrings which is why I carry a torch for all of the creatures in The House In the Cerulean Sea and Saga; the dystopian community in The Giver, Werther opining in The Sorrows of Young Werther, the ultimate friendship trio in The Serpent King, and the whole crux of what Turkle stands for in Reclaiming Conversation. And as long as there will be star-crossed lovers, there will be Edward and Bella from Twilight.
Innovative formatting or a unique approach to storytelling keep me thinking about a book long after I’ve finished it. Think The Lovely Bones‘ from beyond the grave, mental illness in Challenger Deep, Long Way Down‘s mystery elevator, Crank‘s verse, The Vagina Monologues‘ well, monologues, Milk and Honey‘s Instagrammable poetry and illustrations, the library in The Midnight Library, and Calvin and Hobbes‘ daily and Sunday strips.
Picture books say so much without having to say much at all. This is where pictures speak a thousand words and the author creates the write words to allow the pictures to shine which is why Farmhouse and My First Day by Quang and Lien were on my list. Both I’ve gifted several times over.
And let’s just say I ripped a page right out of The Power of Moments to create this personal challenge, which is why I’ve relished this project over this last year; celebrating book love by reading Book Love, which was a gift from a friend. I couldn’t have asked for a more fulfilling opportunity and urge others to find a moment to reflect on your own reading journey– whether it’s been a few months or years or a lifetime.
Readers Be Advised 