President's Page
Greetings to one and all as we enter this season of peace and joy! I can scarcely believe that 2011 is just around the corner! I hope you find time to relax and enjoy the holiday season with your family and friends.
The Program Committee provided a wonderful opportunity for mingling with CAHSLA Colleagues on December 8, 2010 at the William Howard Taft National Historic Site on Auburn Avenue. The home was decorated in turn-of-the century Christmas décor – including a Christmas tree hanging from the ceiling on the bedroom of one of the Taft’s children. Our guide provided an entertaining look into the everyday life of the Taft family. Following the tour we enjoyed a variety of delicious hors d’oeuvres and desserts in the Taft Education Center.
Another CAHSLA tradition I enjoy and anticipate each year is looking at the children’s books our membership collects for a non-profit. This year we collected over 40 books! It is so much fun to look through the books to see what the members select. Many of the books are ones I enjoyed reading to my girls. It is inspiring to know that CAHSLA might be helping another generation fall in love with reading and adventure. The recipient of this year’s book collection is the Interfaith Hospitality Network of Greater Cincinnati. The IHN serves homeless families in our area with many needed services including education for the children of these families.
Treasurer and Membership Chair Cathy Constance reminds us that it is not too late to submit your membership dues to CAHSLA. I encourage you to join and to recruit someone from your library as a new member. You receive many networking and educational event opportunities throughout the year as a benefit of CAHSLA membership.
One of the interesting tidbits I learned during our tour was a quote attributed to William Howard Taft’s mother. She is said to have described President Taft’s family home in Cincinnati as his "inspiration to everything that was good." I hope that CAHSLA will continue to be our inspiration for achieving good in the local health sciences library community, as well as, to the larger Cincinnati community in the new year.
Many blessings to you this holiday season.
Regina Hartman, President
CAHSLA Membership Meeting
Findlay Market October 7, 2010 5:30-7PM
Attendees: Brigid Almaguer, Carole Baker, Cathy Constance, Emily Kean, Amy Gullen, Regina Hartman, Amy Koshoffer, Sandy Mason, Mary Piper, Val Purvis, Cecil Rahe, Emily Rahe, Edith Starbuck, Amy Stoneburner, Jane Thompson
The annual membership meeting was held at Cincinnati’s Historic Findlay Market. We met at the Farmer’s Shed where our tour guide, Cheryl Eagleson, described the history of the market including its inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places, its origin as a “public market”, and its rich 19th Since its renovations in 2004, Findlay Market has been managed by the private, non-profit Corporation of Findlay Market (CFFM) and is currently 100% merchant occupied. century architecture.
Our next stop was the pastry, sandwich & chocolates shop of Skirtz & Johnston for a delicious, catered assortment of hors d’oeuvres, drinks and desserts enjoyed by all – thank you Emily!!!
The business meeting was called to order at 6PM by President, Regina Hartman with an introduction of the officers for 2010/11. Next on the agenda was news from VP/Program Chair, Emily Kean who outlined the possibilities for this year’s upcoming meetings. A resurrection of COCLS was discussed as a platform to share information about emerging technologies. Meetings would be scheduled to occur in the months between CAHSLA meetings. Emily asked that any ideas for a Spring workshop or training be emailed to her.
Annual membership dues were paid to Cathy Constance, Treasurer who reported that the treasury currently holds $2797.
The meeting was adjourned at 6:30PM .
Respectfully Submitted, Brigid Almaguer, Secretary
Financial Report 2010-2011Year to Date
Checking Account Balance as of 6/17/2010 $ 179.62
Deposits
Dues (16 regular, 1 student) $248.00
Transfer from savings $200.00
Withdrawals
Shipping Meredith’s books $ 14.60
Findley Market Fund donation $ 75.00
Oct meeting – food $160.00
Balance as of 12/3/2010 $ 378.02
Savings Account
Balance as of 6/17/2010 $2581.43
Deposits
Interest – 5 mo. $ 1.29
Withdrawals
Transfer to checking $200.00
Balance as of 12/3/2010 $2382.72
Cash
Balance as of 6/17/2010 $ 35.52
Balance as of 12/3/2010 $ 35.52
Total Assets $2796.26
Paid members
Regular 16
Student 1
Life members 11
Total 28
Submitted by:
Cathy Constance, Treasurer
Tis the season - to be part of CAHSLA
The season of holidays is here again and what better present to yourself than a membership in CAHSLA! OK, there are probably a few things better – a winning lottery ticket does come to mind; but, in terms of being part of a great library community, you can’t beat it. Please join us in networking, resource sharing, educational opportunities, and did I mention, fun and socializing. I’ll be glad to accept dues by mail. Membership $15; student membership $8.
Catherine Constance
Medical Librarian
VA Medical Center
3200 Vine St
Cincinnati OH 45220
513-475-6315
CAHSLA Holiday Party
William Howard Taft National Historic Site
Attendees: Brigid Almaguer; Carole Baker; Cathy Constance; Donald Crews; Kathleen Dannemiller; Mike Douglas; Peggy Frondorf; Regina Hartman; Nonnie Klein; Amy Koshoffer; Lisa McCormick; Diana Osborne; Mary Piper; Val Purvis; Cecil Rahe; Emily Rahe; Edith Starbuck; Barb Slavinksi; Jane Thompson; Katie Wolf
The annual holiday party was held at the William Howard Taft Education Center Auburn Avenue
Fruit punch, appetizers and desserts were provided by CAHSLA through Emily Kean and Regina Hartman.
Carole Baker entertained us with games of Christmas riddles, word scrambles and who’s who in holiday movies proving that most of us are not ready for Jeopardy anytime soon. Holiday wrapped door prizes and game prizes were awarded to some lucky recipients by Carole Baker.
More than 40 children’s books were collected for the Interfaith Hospitality Network of Greater Cincinnati.
Respectfully Submitted, Brigid Almaguer, Secretary
Upcoming CAHSLA Programs
The next CAHSLA event will be the training session held in either February or March. As we’ve done in the past, we’re planning to have a vendor come to us for a training session and would like some input in selecting the product that would be of the most interest to the most CAHSLA members. Please watch your email for a short survey after the first of the year.
For the April business meeting, Lisa McCormick, Manager of The Jewish Hospital Health Sciences Library, will give a presentation about her trip to visit Jewish Hospital’s sister hospital in Netanya, Israel. The meeting is tentatively scheduled to be held at The Christ Hospital, but if anyone would like to volunteer their space, please let me know.
The Planning Committee is already looking ahead to summer as well. We’ve been discussing hosting the annual summer picnic at Drake Park since so many CAHSLA members enjoy the location. We are open to another location for the picnic; please let me know as soon as possible if you have a suggesion.
Many of you noticed that we slightly broke from tradition at the holiday party this year and had CAHSLA provide the food. We thought we’d switch things up a bit this year and have everyone bring a dish to the summer picnic instead. We’ll send more information as the June picnic date gets closer, but feel free to start thinking of your favorite summer side dish or sweet treat to share!
Emily Kean
Emily.kean@thechristhospital.com
Patient Centered Communication and Low Health Literacy: What is Ohio Doing to Advance Best Practice?
The Ohio Collaborative for Clear Health Communication is a statewide interest group for health professionals in public health, academia, and hospitals with the goal of bringing attention to the complex problem of low health literacy and promoting best practice for health care organizations to respond to the challenges this issues presents for preventive health and health care delivery. Currently, I am serving as OHSLA representative to the Collaborative. For those of us in hospitals, we have recently heard more about the impact of low health literacy as it relates to patient education and patient rights as part of the Joint Commissions new standards for 2012.
The Collaborative maintains a web page with links to important health literacy resources. The group is also looking at best practices in clear health communication throughout the country. One such model program that has been identified is Health Literacy Missouri which has been very successful in obtaining grant funding for their programs and initiatives.
The Collaborative presents an annual educational workshop related to developments and best practice in clear health communication/low health literacy. This year the all-day workshop was held at the newly opened Ohio State University Ohio Union. This magnificent building is the new “student union” for OSU, but it is like no student union I have ever seen! If you ever have the chance to visit, please do, so that you can enjoy the multi-story great hall with stone fireplaces, mosaic terrazzo floors, and cozy nests of seating. OSU President Gordon Gee took time from his schedule to personally welcome the attendees to the workshop.
The workshop covered many important aspects of health literacy with many excellent speakers. For this report, I will highlight a few of the topics and speakers. Dr. Sandy Cornett, Director of the OSU/AHEC Clear Health Communication Program at the OSU College of Medicine gave an overview of the National Action Plan to Improve Health Literacy. Ryan Squire, BA, Program Manager, Communications & Marketing, OSU Medical Center spoke to the importance of social media in addressing health literacy. Mira Katz Ph.D., presented some remarkable results of the work she has done with Ohio’s Amish community. Some of the lessons she has learned in the Amish community may have value in working with other underserved populations. Dr Katz is Associate Professor, Health Behavior & Health Promotion, OSU College of Public Health. Diane Moyer RN, MS, Associate, Director, Patient Education, OSU Medical Center provided the audience with practical yet challenging information regarding how we might ensure that written materials and translated materials meet low health literacy standards. She also gave an overview of the Patient Centered Communication Standards that will become part of the Joint Commission Survey process in 2012.
In conclusion, if you have an interest in clear health communication/low health literacy, I invite you to become familiar with the Ohio Collaborative for Clear Health Communication. The Collaborative provides some valuable resources, including networking opportunities and continuing education. I will be sure to spread the word to CAHSLA when the workshop for 2011 is announced so that you can plan to attend.
Lisa McCormick
OHSLA Fall Meeting
On Oct 18th, I attended the Fall 20 10 OHSLA meeting in
She started the presentation by talking about what leaders do, i.e. create compelling futures, model behavior, inspire others to do their best and to participate in creating futures, succeeds and leaders create leaders. She discussed a model of leadership to help the participants understand where they are in the hierarchy and to see how leaders think and act in this model. The three tiers of the model were Task, Management and Leader. In this model, most people are at the task level and have a short outlook of a few months. Management tends to think in terms of months to a few years. Leaders think in terms of years 5 to 10 years. Pat described leaders as time travelers who try to visit the future and then create opportunity in the present to achieve their vision of the future. She mentioned that the task level has many attractions and that people are comfortable that this level. The work can feel like real work and gives immediate satisfaction. Remaining at this level did not push one out of their comfort zone. Pat discussed that leaders take risks and she discussed ways of improving risk tolerance. One way was to look at the best and worst case outcome for actions. She also discussed three steps to influence behavior: 1) build rapport 2) collect information to understand the big picture 3) take actions with understanding of choices. Pat encouraged all to become leaders to improve your work situation and to help move you up the ladder.
Pat also took a few minutes to talk about Strategic Planning. She actually had a handout called The Five minute Strategic Plan. Let me know if you would like a copy.
There was also an OHSLA business meeting held during the lunch hour. I am including a link to the minutes. http://www.ohslanet.org/voice/Minutes/fall2010draft.pdf. One item that came out of this meeting is that a survey is being created in hopes of determining how OHSLA can better serve Ohio Health Science Librarians and how to encourage higher meeting attendance. One member present talked about his feelings that the meetings do not have enough time for interaction between members. Holly Burt also attended and gave a GMR update http://nnlm.gov/gmr/about/gmrupdate.html.
There was much information to assimilate. Pat told many great stories about her father and made the sessions entertaining so the day flew by very fast.
Amy Koshoffer
Upcoming SWON Events
Friends of PLCH Book Sale--Special Preview for SWON Libraries
January 12th, 8:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Friends of PLCH Warehouse
January 12th, 8:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Friends of PLCH Warehouse
eBook 101!
January 13th, 10:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
SWON At your desk--through the Online Classroom
January 13th, 10:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
SWON At your desk--through the Online Classroom
Digital eBook Sites
January 20th, 10:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
SWON At your desk--through the Online Classroom
January 20th, 10:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
SWON At your desk--through the Online Classroom
LOC Newspaper Project
February 10th, 10:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
SWON At your desk--through the Online Classroom
February 10th, 10:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
SWON At your desk--through the Online Classroom
Governmental Resources
March 10th, 10:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
SWON At your desk--through the Online Classroom
Book Repair Workshop
March 24th, REGISTRATION OPENING SOON
SWON At Wilmington Public Library
March 24th, REGISTRATION OPENING SOON
SWON At Wilmington Public Library
The GMR has appointed a Print Retention Task Force to advise and assist us with planning for a print retention program to be put in place during the next 5-year contract. The current focus is on gathering data about legacy journal print collections in the region.
The group was tasked with analyzing the data obtained from a recent Resource Library (RL) survey, looking at SERHOLD data, interviewing RL Directors and others in the region to identify interests and scope, and recommending an action plan for the design and implementation of next steps. The goal is to produce a framework for further action by April 30, 2011 to hand over to a steering committee for further work in the next RML contract.
Additional information can be found in the GMR blog at:
http://nnlm.gov/gmr/blog/2010/12/14/gmr-print-retention-task-force-update/
If you are unable to access the blog through your institution and would prefer an alternate method to receive blog news, please contact the GMR blog editor:leskovec@uic.edu.
You will be hearing more from the GMR about this initiative in the months to come. Please be assured that we will be involving all health sciences libraries in this process as we move forward.
Welcome to New Members
Darlene Strain
Library Coordinator
Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
Edward L. Pratt Library
Joie Linser
Library Assistant
Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
Edward L. Pratt Library
Donald Crews
Boone County Public Library
Kristen Burgess
NLM, Associate Fellow 2010-2011
3424 Shaw Ave, Apt. 1
Cincinnati OH 45208
kristen.burgess@gmail.com
Life in Retirement Where the Livin' Is ... Busy!
Barbarie Hill writes "I have signed up to go with a Newcomers group to Washington, D.C. for a White House Christmas tour on December 7th. We have to be there at 7:00 a.m. so I'll be sleeping on the bus. It'll be a very long day, but I'm looking forward to it. I am now our Friends Meeting newsletter editor, and I joined the Charlottesville Women's Choir. Tom and I are regular attenders with the shape note singers (we did a demonstration for an Early American Music class at UVA last week), and I started my own book club, so I'm reading books for four different groups now. I made the Halloween costumes for the grandkids, and I've started several sewing projects for
Christmas along with making Christmas cards. I'm probably going to get involved in the Books Behind Bars project that sends books to prisoners around the country. It's great to be able to do all the fun things I want to do.
Sympathy
We extend our sympathy to Emily Kean (TCH) on the recent passing of her grandmother.
Kudos
The University of Cincinnati’s Henry R. Winkler Center for the History of the Health Professions has received a $100,000 grant from the John Hauck Foundation. The grant puts the University of Cincinnati Libraries beyond its total fundraising goal for the completion of the construction project critical to the preservation of Cincinnati’s rare and fragile medical collections. The new facility will specifically provide the following improvements to the Winkler Center’s ability to preserve fragile collections:
From Amy Stoneburner at Fortis College: We have a part-time opening here. We would like to have someone in place by the beginning of the year. They will be full-time during my maternity leave and then drop back down to part-time. If you have any questions, please contact Amy Stoneburner, Learning Resource Center Manager, Fortis College-Cincinnati -- AStoneburner@FortisCollege.edu
Season's Greetings from the GMR
We invite you to view our holiday greeting on the GMR blog, The Cornflower.
http://nnlm.gov/gmr/blog/2010/12/14/seasons-greetings-from-the-gmr-2010/
Thank you for supporting the mission of the National Network of Libraries of Medicine. Happy Holidays!
Barbarie Hill writes "I have signed up to go with a Newcomers group to Washington, D.C. for a White House Christmas tour on December 7th. We have to be there at 7:00 a.m. so I'll be sleeping on the bus. It'll be a very long day, but I'm looking forward to it. I am now our Friends Meeting newsletter editor, and I joined the Charlottesville Women's Choir. Tom and I are regular attenders with the shape note singers (we did a demonstration for an Early American Music class at UVA last week), and I started my own book club, so I'm reading books for four different groups now. I made the Halloween costumes for the grandkids, and I've started several sewing projects for
Christmas along with making Christmas cards. I'm probably going to get involved in the Books Behind Bars project that sends books to prisoners around the country. It's great to be able to do all the fun things I want to do.
Sympathy
We extend our sympathy to Emily Kean (TCH) on the recent passing of her grandmother.
Kudos
The University of Cincinnati’s Henry R. Winkler Center for the History of the Health Professions has received a $100,000 grant from the John Hauck Foundation. The grant puts the University of Cincinnati Libraries beyond its total fundraising goal for the completion of the construction project critical to the preservation of Cincinnati’s rare and fragile medical collections. The new facility will specifically provide the following improvements to the Winkler Center’s ability to preserve fragile collections:
- An environmentally controlled and secure facility for the Winkler Center’s rare, unique, and fragile collections by achieving temperature and relative humidity standards.
- Monitoring capabilities to ensure security of the collections.
- An additional exhibit gallery that will attract more visitors to view the center’s treasures.
- Secure research room for visitors to use the Center’s materials.
- An archival services area where staff will process new collections and curate and preserve existing collections such as the Albert B. Sabin archives.
The final phase of the Winkler Center’s construction is expected to be completed by September 2011.
From Amy Stoneburner at Fortis College: We have a part-time opening here. We would like to have someone in place by the beginning of the year. They will be full-time during my maternity leave and then drop back down to part-time. If you have any questions, please contact Amy Stoneburner, Learning Resource Center Manager, Fortis College-Cincinnati -- AStoneburner@FortisCollege.edu
Season's Greetings from the GMR
We invite you to view our holiday greeting on the GMR blog, The Cornflower.
http://nnlm.gov/gmr/blog/2010/12/14/seasons-greetings-from-the-gmr-2010/
Thank you for supporting the mission of the National Network of Libraries of Medicine. Happy Holidays!
The GMR Staff
In the Literature and on the Web
Books for Christmas?
Check out this 3-year-old's reaction http://www.wikio.com/video/books-for-christmas-4807272?infoid=237022501
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December 17, 2010
Tool Finds Trends in Google Books By Jane Seo, CRIMSON staff writer
Source:
A team of Harvard researchers has created a new tool that analyzes language patterns in published books to quantify cultural and historical trends from 1800 to 2000. The innovative research tool made its debut yesterday in an article titled “Quantitative Analysis of Culture Using Millions of Digitized Books,” which was published online in the journal Science and launched as a feature on Google. Dubbed “culturomics,” the tool enables the public to use the Google Books database as a “genome of culture,” according to Adrian Veres ’12, one of the article’s authors. “Fundamentally speaking, you can see what society is interested in by tracking the frequency of the word,” Veres said. “The more common the word, the more important it is.” Google’s launching of the online tool will allow users to type in a word or a phrase and see how their usage has changed over the past two centuries.
Google Books is a set of digitized texts that includes about 4 percent of all books ever printed. While more than 70 percent of the books are printed in English, the database also includes texts in French, Spanish, German, Chinese, Russian, and Hebrew. This publicly accessible database provides a “quantitative aspect to the social sciences and the humanities that has never been paralleled before,” said Veres, adding that he believes published books provide important historical insights, as they reveal traces of culture as perceived by people. “These books are a meaningful representation of what’s important at [a specific] time,” he said.
In addition to discussing how the tool was conceived, the article showcases the type of analysis it provides. For example, users can see how language and grammar have evolved, how lexicography and censorship have trended over time, and how individuals have garnered fame by elucidating the frequency
of their names in published works. Psychology Professor Steven Pinker, a co-author of the article, noted the academic significance of the tool, which will enable linguists to see how often and in what context certain words were used. “The tool revolutionizes the humanities by answering questions about the
influence of humans and ideas quantitatively,” said Pinker, who focused in the article on past tense and lexical ‘dark matter’—a term that describes infrequently used words that do not appear in standard dictionaries.
of their names in published works. Psychology Professor Steven Pinker, a co-author of the article, noted the academic significance of the tool, which will enable linguists to see how often and in what context certain words were used. “The tool revolutionizes the humanities by answering questions about the
influence of humans and ideas quantitatively,” said Pinker, who focused in the article on past tense and lexical ‘dark matter’—a term that describes infrequently used words that do not appear in standard dictionaries.
Led by two Harvard affiliates, Jean-Baptiste Michel and Erez Lieberman-Aiden, the team included researchers from Harvard, Google, Encyclopaedia Britannica, and the American Heritage Dictionary.
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Librarian's Annual List of "Top Quotes" Gets Lots of Attention
Fred Shapiro, associate librarian at Yale Law School, recently released his fifth annual list of the most notable quotations of the year. The original Yale Book of Quotations was published in 2006. Since then, Shapiro has released an annual list of the top 10 quotes. He said they will be incorporated into the next edition of the book. According to Shapiro, he picks quotes that are famous, important or revealing of the spirit of the times. The quotes aren't necessarily the most eloquent or admirable. This year there is a tie for first place.
1. (TIE) "I'm not a witch." - Christine O'Donnell, television advertisement, Oct. 4.
1. (TIE) "I'd like my life back." - Tony Hayward, comment to reporters, May 30.
3. "If you touch my junk, I'm gonna have you arrested." - Airline passenger John Tyner, remark to Transportation Security Administration worker at San Diego airport, Nov. 13.
4. "Don't retreat. Instead - reload!" - Palin, tweet, March 23.
5. "Chi! Chi! Chi! Le! Le! Le! Los mineros de Chile!" - Chant at Chilean mine rescue, Oct. 13.
6. "I hope that's not where we're going, but you know, if this Congress keeps going the way it is, people are really looking toward those Second Amendment remedies. They're saying: My goodness, what can we do to turn this country around?" - Sharron Angle, radio interview in January.
7. "We have to pass the (health care) bill so you can find out what is in it." - Pelosi, speech to National Association of Counties, March 9.
8. "I'm going to take my talents to South Beach." - LeBron James, television broadcast, July 8.
9. "You're telling me that the separation of church and state is found in the First Amendment?" - Christine O'Donnell, Delaware senatorial debate, Oct. 19. (The Associated Press reported the quote: "So you're telling me that the separation of church and state, the phrase 'separation of church and state,' is in the First Amendment?")
10. "They should never have put me with that woman. ... She was just a sort of bigoted woman who said she used to be Labor." - Gordon Brown, comments about a voter he met while campaigning ahead of the British general election, April 28.
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Let's not turn the page on picture books
By KAREN MACPHERSON Scripps Howard News Service
Source: http://www.cincyschoolzone.com/dpp/daycare/daycare_news/let%27s-not-turn-the-page-on-picture-books
For lovers of children's literature, the headline of a recent New York Times article came as a shock: "Picture Books No Longer a Staple for Children."
In the article, author Julie Bosman noted that the picture book "has been fading," a victim of both the economic downturn (picture books are costly) and parental pressure to have kids reading chapter books at an earlier age.
But the article looked only at publishers and bookstores, leaving out the place where many parents and children connect with picture books -- the local public library. At the Takoma Park, Md., Library, where I work as a children's/teen librarian, picture books still account for one of our biggest circulation categories. Instead of paying up to $18 each for a picture book, parents are instead checking them out for free from the library.
Yet Bosman did, unfortunately, get it right when it comes to the issue of parents urging their kids to read chapter books at earlier ages. As the children's librarian, I increasingly encounter parents who want their 3- and 4-year-olds to read chapter-book series like "The Magic Tree House" instead of picture books, even those picture books that have won the prestigious Caldecott Medal, given annually by the American Library Association for the best-illustrated children's book.
Is this necessarily a bad thing? No, but it's not necessarily the best thing for kids and reading, either. As a public librarian, I firmly believe that it's up to parents to determine what their children read. Yet parents themselves often need and welcome guidance as to the best reading choices.
That's definitely the case with picture books, which make a wonderfully rich reading experience for children long after they've made the jump to chapter books. Ask any reading expert, and they'll tell you that the vocabulary in many picture books is generally much more sophisticated than that in beginning readers, early chapter books or series books.
But the text, of course, comprises only one-half of a picture book. The illustrations also are an integral part of the book and must be "read" as well. For the youngest readers, the illustrations usually are what they focus on when they snuggle up with you for family story time. And this is a good thing, as focusing on the illustrations gives young readers lots of practice in visual literacy -- a key skill in our highly visual world.
In the best picture books, the text and illustrations are inseparable, each of them carrying a part of the story. Picture-book illustrations shouldn't just show what's written in the text, but instead add detail, depth and color that stretch the story.
For example, in this year's Caldecott Medal winner, "The Lion and the Mouse," illustrator Jerry Pinkney sets the classic Aesop fable in the Serengetti and gives the mouse a family. With these artistic decisions, Pinkey's illustrations give the traditional tale an entirely new spin, enriching our understanding of Aesop's story.
It's also important for parents to know that picture books come in all types. Some, like those of Laura Vaccaro Seeger and Denise Fleming, are aimed at the very young. These books feature simple texts and bright illustrations, making them just right for toddlers and preschoolers.
Other picture books are best for older children. For example, several of the books by author/illustrator Patricia Polacco, such as "Pink and Say" and "The Butterfly," not only have lengthy texts, but they also deal with death and other difficult issues that are better understood by older readers and even adults.
At our library, we try to help guide parents and children by placing "For Older Readers" stickers on books that are focused on difficult issues, have lots of text or are based on previous knowledge. For example, both "The True Story of the Three Little Pigs" by Jon Scieszka and "The Three Pigs" by David Wiesner require young readers to know the original story and to have at least a rudimentary understanding of satire.
Overall, children thrive on a varied diet of reading choices, including picture books. Just ask your local librarian if you need help finding the right mix for your child's reading pleasure.
If you've got a hankering to know more about children's literature, or just to read some great stories, head on over to the amazing new daily blog by children's-book expert Anita Silvey at http://childrensbookalmanac.com/.
Silvey, who started the blog in late October, promises to write about a different children's book each day for an entire year. In addition to telling how famous children's books came out, or giving brief biographies of famous authors or illustrators, Silvey also notes other children's-literature-related events for particular days.
Silvey eventually plans to turn the blog into a book. Meanwhile, checking out her blog is a wonderful addition to the day of any fan of children's literature.
(Karen MacPherson, the children's/teen librarian at the Takoma Park, Md., Library, can be reached at Kam.Macpherson@gmail.com
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Chickens in Libraries
A chicken walks into the library. It goes up to the circulation desk and says: "book, bok, bok, boook".
The librarian hands the chicken a book. It tucks it under his wing and runs out. A while later, the chicken runs back in, throws the first book into the return bin and goes back to the librarian saying: "book, bok, bok, bok, boook". Again the librarian gives it a book, and the chicken runs out. The librarian shakes her head.
Within a few minutes, the chicken is back, returns the book and starts all over again: "boook, book, bok bok boook". The librarian gives him yet a third book, but this time as the chicken is running out the door, she follows it.
The chicken runs down the street, through the park and down to the riverbank. There, sitting on a lily pad is a big, green frog. The chicken holds up the book and shows it to the frog, saying: "Book, bok, bok, boook". The frog blinks, and croaks: "read-it, read-it, read-it".
That's what you get for trying to please a frog.
Feb/Mar ?? CAHSLA training session
Apr ?? CAHSLA business meeting and presentation by Lisa McCormick on
trip to visit Jewish Hospital's sister hospital in Netanya, Israel
Jun ?? CAHSLA end of the year picnic
May 13-18 MLA annual meeting, Minneapolis, MN
Jun 12-15 SLA annual meeting, Philadelphia, PA
Oct 8-11 Midwest Chapter/MLA annual conference, Indianapolis, IN
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