The Education of a Librarian

Reading Rainbow

2009-08-29T21:34:00.004-05:00

Yesterday I was greatly saddened to hear that Reading Rainbow was being canceled after 26 years of inspiring children to read. The show is as old as I am and I remember watching LeVar Burton introduce me to all sorts of things, my favorite being the episode about bees. Reading Rainbow (and my mother) told me that reading could take me anywhere and I took that to heart. At a young age I became an avid reader and have not stopped to this day.

In a roundabout way Reading Rainbow also inspired me to become a librarian so that I could inspire children to become avid readers as well. And since I always wanted to be one of the kids reviewing a book on Reading Rainbow here are a few reviews of kids books that are just coming out.

Nerds by Michael Buckley, expected publishing date September 2009, Audience: 8-12.

NERDS stands for National Espionage, Rescue, and Defense Society. Its newest member is Jackson Jones aka Braceface who became a nerd when he had to get braces. Before becoming a nerd Jackson was the typical cool kid who thought the world liked him. When he joins NERDS he realizes what a bully he had been and learns he needs to earn the trust of the rest of the NERDS by saving the day and the world.

Nerds is a promising new series by Michael Buckley. It interacts and includes the reader in the story and had a nice mix of illustrations, not quite a graphic novel but it has a manga feel; perfect for the reluctant reader.

The Pharaoh's Secret by Marissa Moss, expected publication date October 2009, Audience: 9-13.

The Pharaoh's Secret takes place in modern day Egypt with flashbacks to ancient Egypt during the time of Hatshepsut, the first (and unlike Cleopatra) powerful female pharaoh. The story centers around a young teen, Talibah who visits Egypt with her father and younger brother. In many ways Talibah is older than her years, mostly due to taking care of her brother after her mother died. While in Egypt Talibah is drawn to the story of Hatshepsut and a mystery surrounding her steward, Senenmut. With the help of her younger brother and father they are able to solve the mystery and get closure about her mother's death.

This is a great book for children interested in historical fiction, Egyptology, and strong female characters.

Marie Curie: Mother of Modern Physics by Janice Borzendowski, 2009, Audience: 8-12.

This biography of Marie Curie tells the story of Curie's life, her discovery of polonium and radium and their importance in later scientific developments. Related topics to Marie Curie's life such as Polish history, radiation, and the role of women during Curie's time are also explained to give a well rounded explanation of the choices Curie made and the impact she made on science.

This was a great read for children and adults looking for information about Marie Curie that is explained in an easy to understand way. For a person not interested in science it is easily understood and for someone who is drawn to science will want to learn more.

More reviews

2009-08-08T19:07:00.003-05:00

Sadly I am already behind on writing reviews. Which is kind of pathetic since they aren't very long to begin with. This next one isn't so much a review but just some thoughts I had about this particular book. I couldn't really write about it in a way that sounded like a review.

Stay With Me, by Garrett Freymann-Weyr, 2006. Audience: teen.

This book (along with a few others I have recently read) was about the death of a loved one and this one specifically about suicide. Leila had two half-sisters from her father's first marriage. One of them commits suicide and Leila goes to live with her other sister while her parents are out of the country for a year. During this year the two remaining sisters strengthen their relationship (which was not very close before) and help each other cope with the loss of a sister.

One thing I found slightly disconcerting in this novel is the inclusion of the older boyfriend. Leila is 16/17 years old and begins a relationship with a man in his thirties. This is viewed as a relatively natural thing in the book because the women around her have also fell in love with older men. The difference is they did it as adults and Leila is not an adult. The way the author gets around this is having Leila turn 17, the age of consent in New York but this still leaves it somewhat odd.

I also found that the use of the World Trade Center attack a bit strange. While the book was published in 2006 the time in the book is 2002. There are a few moments when Leila mentions "the attack on the city" but I must not have been paying much attention because I didn't realize what she was talking about until she mentioned the 1st anniversary of the event. Since this is a book meant for a young adult audience I wonder how they pick up on it. By 2006 the teens that are reading this book could have been as young as nine when the attack happened, and by 2009 they could have been as young as 5. The way this book uses the World Trade Center attack dates the book in a way that makes it almost historical when it was published, let alone in the years to come.

Review #3 - Nothing Like You

2009-07-24T16:23:00.003-05:00

Nothing Like You, by Lauren Strasnick, Audience: teen

Nothing Like You is a quick summertime read about Holly and her relationships with a pseudo-boyfriend, a boy best-friend, and her father. It begins with Holly losing her virginity to the pseudo-boyfriend (who has a real girlfriend) and the secret that this creates. As the story unfolds we learn that Holly's mother died less than a year ago and because of this has become emotionally numb. While the story is intriguing and the relationships that Holly has with the men in her life are interesting there is something in the writing that is a little grating. Maybe the writer is just trying to channel the way teenagers talk but parts of Holly's inner monologue such as: "Jeff is my dad, FYI" can be twinge inducing.

What saves this novel is the story and honesty of the characters and the knowledge that Holly will eventually be ok due to the support of her best friend and father.

Review #2 - Long Past Standing

2009-07-23T21:32:00.002-05:00

Long Past Standing, by Oran Canfield, Audience: teen-adult

Long Past Standing is a memoir about a young man who is addicted to heroin and the crazy path his life took before his addiction. The chapters alternate telling stories about his childhood and about his addiction and recovery. Throughout most of this book the stories of his childhood: learning to juggle, joining a circus, living in Guatemala and Mexico and many others are the more interesting parts of the story. The chapters dealing with his addiction felt vaguely familiar as if I had read them before, which is partly true: any story about addiction tends to have similarities. Towards the end of the book a shift of interest evolves where the stories of his childhood (by this point his high school years) have less interest as his obvious need to kick heroin for good become more and more important.

Having recently read another memoir about drug addiction and crazy family life it seems this story has been told many times. However this particular one was written well, which does not always happen and was able to inspire continued reading.

Review #1 - The Mysterious Benedict Society

2009-07-16T19:01:00.003-05:00

As promised here is my first book review:

The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart (2007), Audience: tweens.

The Mysterious Benedict Society instantly calls to mind Harry Potter and The Series of Unfortunate Events. Reynard (Reynie) Muldoon is a gifted child living in the local orphanage. Due to his high intelligence he is educated not with the other orphans but with a tutor. While he and his tutor are having breakfast he notices an advertisement in the local paper for "gifted child[ren] looking for special opportunites." This ad lead him to a series of tests that he and three other similarly orphaned (or runaway) children pass.

These four become the Mysterious Benedict Society led by Mr. Benedict who sends them on a spy mission to foil the plans of a mad scientist. Each of the four children have unique qualities that help them along the way. Reynie is the natural leader, George "Sticky" Washington remembers everything he reads and can read in many languages but cannot speak them, Kate Wetherall with the help of her bucket full of equipment can get into or out of any situation, and Constance Contraire is very stubborn.

While the tropes may be familiar the story is definitely not boring or usual. This is a story full of highjinks and adventure and with two follow-up novels is sure to become a beloved series and perfect for the reader who read all Harry Potter and Series of Unfortunate Events and is looking for something similar.

Conferencing

2009-07-14T20:38:00.003-05:00

In the past week I was lucky enough to attend two library conference, at least in part. I went to one program at the Association for Jewish Libraries and spent two full days at the American Library Association conference.

The program I attended at the Association for Jewish Libraries conference was about German libraries' (specifically the Berlin State Library) possession of books that were formerly owned by Jews prior to the Holocaust. In the case of the Berlin State Library they are trying to find the past owners of these books (or their heirs) and return them. While I feel this is a noble deed it is creating hours of research and sometimes does not gain any return. The director of the Berlin State Library was the speaker at this program and she said she will not keep any stolen books in the library. The problem with this statement is that if a library were to truly uphold that statement there would be no antique books in the library because at one point or other they were all stolen.

Also as a Jew who has grown up with the Holocaust, Nazi Germany, and World War II thrown at me from every angle I am tired of hearing about it. There is more to Judaism than the Holocaust and there comes a point where we need to find a happy medium between remembering what happened and moving on. Perhaps it would be better for the Berlin State Library to put a bookplate each "stolen" book to commemorate how it came to the library and make a note in the online catalog that corresponds with the bookplate. This allows the memory of these books and their previous owners to live on but also allows us to move on.

I was able to spend more time at the ALA Conference because it was held over the weekend. I attended sessions on Saturday and Sunday as well as visiting the exhibit hall. This was my first ALA Conference and I was immediately overwhelmed by the sheer amount of librarians that were all in one place.

Each day I was there I spent the mornings in the exhibition hall and the afternoons in programs. The exhibits are full of anything a library might need from book publishers to shelves to put them on. I spent most of my time in the publisher exhibits seeing what was new in children's and YA books. I ended up taking home about 20 new books, some for free and some for a nominal price, many of them were also signed by the author. I would have loved to spend more time in the technology pavilion but since I was not working in a library I did not have a technological need that needed to be met.

The two programs I attended were sponsored in part by the Office of Intellectual Freedom. The first one was called Libraries, Librarians, and America's War on Sex and talked primarily about how difficult it is to educate children about sex because a large part of America wants to demonize sex. The book It's Perfectly Normal was used as an example. Many adults believe this book is pornographic because it shows drawings of naked men and women with different body types and at different ages. The point of these drawings (really cartoons) is to demonstrate how everyone's body is a little different and that is ok.

The second program was titled Why is Tango So Scary? and was about the brilliant children's book And Tango Makes Three. This book is a true story about two male penguins from the Central Park Zoo that fall in love and raise a penguin baby (Tango). The couple that wrote it was at the panel (along with their own baby girl) as well as some librarians who have experience dealing with outraged parents who try and attack this book. GLBTQ children's books have always been challenged but this book in particular gets a lot of challenges. Perhaps it is because it is a real story or maybe because it is about penguins and this shows that homosexuality is in nature and not a choice. But most likely it is because it is a book that is about a happy gay family that does not in any way depict sex, which is perhaps even harder for the homophobes to deal with than one that does depict sex.

I attended the GLBT Roundtable Social on Saturday which was also part of the ALA Convention. Here I met two wonderful YA librarians who were fairly new librarians. They were very encouraging about my quest to find a job and I was very excited that they read Garrett's column in Public Libraries magazine (which makes them a-ok in my book). The three of us also got together to meet for lunch the following day, it was really fantastic to make some friends.

I have decided that with all of the free books I got last weekend I would use this time to read and learn to write book reviews (a good skill for a librarian) which I will post here for all to see. So hopefully I will start updated this blog a bit more and have some useful information for others to read. If I can't be a librarian in a library I will try to be a librarian online.

Not much going on

2009-06-26T16:18:00.003-05:00

In the past my reason/excuse for not updating was a lack of time. Since graduation I have plenty of time but not a lot to blog about. My life in the library world is limited to my time volunteering which is wonderful but I don't get to do it often, mostly because of the limited hours of the library.

I have had a lot of free time to read, take bike rides and I have joined a Jewish congregation but sadly there is not much (i.e. any) time devoted to going to interviews. I have been sending out many applications and resumes but I have not had a single interview. In the past 24 hours I have received a total of three rejection letters. Well not specifically rejections since I never interviewed but letters about the position being filled and they will keep my resume for future positions. I don't know if I like that they are rejecting me without having met me or if I would prefer that they do that after I have been to an interview.

While this can be disheartening I realize that this is a bad time to be looking for a job, that there are few positions out there and there are many qualified candidates including those who have years more experience than I do. Also I want to be unselfish and say that it is better for an unemployed person to be getting a job rather than myself since I am employed but it is hard to be that altruistic sometimes.

So I keep trying and hope that it gets better.

What I Have Learned

2009-04-16T16:35:00.002-05:00

Ok, I can definitely say that I am not much of a blogger. This is not my only attempt at blogging and it may not be the last but I will need to be more conscious of it in the future if I really want to become a blogger - and I am not sure that I do.

The real reason for this post is to say that the formal education of this librarian is coming to a close. I will be graduating from library school in a few weeks and am looking for a job as a real life librarian. It is possible that I could go back to school for another masters degree, perhaps in Gender Studies, but I am definitely taking an education break.

If I were to try and list the things I learned about being a librarian in my classes I would have to say there was very little. I learned a lot from volunteering at libraries, talking to librarians and students but learned little during my classes. Yet at the same time the classes were important, they raised my consciousness about issues, even if accidentally, they allowed me to meet students and librarians that I otherwise would not have been able to, and they made me think about how I would teach a subject if I were the one planning the class.

Now I am looking forward to learning what it is like to work full time in a library. I am interested to see how I fit into a library setting and how I benefit the library and the community I serve. This type of informal education is what I have been looking forward to since I decided to become a librarian and now I finally get to go out into the world and do it.

Now I just need a job.

Young Adult Literature

2009-01-15T20:22:00.002-06:00

I have been preparing for my Library Materials for Young Adults class and am finishing up all the assigned reading. I had originally assumed that I had read some of these books and was surprised to find that I read very few. Thinking back I realized this is because I skipped young adult literature as a young adult. I went from reading the Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder to reading Of Mice and Men, Jane Eyre, and Gone with the Wind.

It is definitely a lot of fun to go back now and read these books. I can read about one a day and they are all very well written and usually fun reads. There were only two that I have not enjoyed in some way, and that will happen with any book list someone is given. This is definitely a part of my library education that needs improvement since I was not much of a reader of young adult literature prior to this and I am glad that I am working on it now as I am getting ready to apply for jobs.

Too long

2008-12-29T00:02:00.002-06:00

It has been way too long since my last post to really catch up with what has happened. Basically this past semester was overwhelming -- far more overwhelming than I expected.

Volunteering at the special library has been going well except they are having financial difficulties and had to lay off a number of the staff. I have been helping out as best I can but the whole thing is frustrating. I am not sure how an institution that supports a college and a museum thinks closing the conservation lab and the archive is a good idea. Ugh!

I have also begun looking for librarian positions, I figure in this economy the earlier I start looking for a job the better the chance that I will have a new job near graduation in May. I am casting a wide net, looking at public and academic library positions as well as archives. This is furthering my belief that I was right when choosing classes that created an overall education rather than specializing in one type of librarianship. The whole thing is making me nervous, I was not planning on the economy to completely collapse...really not part of the plan.

I am definitely ready to be done with the library school part of this, I don't think two more classes are going to make me any more of a librarian than I am already. On the bright side one of my classes is an online course and the other is a weekend class so I am only on campus for about six days this semester. Which is good because if the snow these past few weeks is any indication it is going to be a bad winter.

Fall Semester

2008-08-08T14:33:00.004-05:00

It is a miracle but I am actually signed up for the classes that I want for fall semester. I had to get the dean's permission to take one of the classes but after a letter and a series of phone calls I am in the archiving class I needed. I am also taking Preservation and Conservation as well as Searching Electronic Databases.

I am starting to get anxious about finishing school. While I like my job I am getting to the point where I want something else. I definitely ready to finish this degree so I do what I want to do.

I had taken a break from volunteering since I was in a class that met on Saturdays, maybe getting back to doing librarian things will help this ease this anxiety.

New Class and Fall Registration

2008-07-13T21:17:00.003-05:00

This weekend I began my last summer class. This one is entirely devoted to serials and the consistent inconsistencies about them. The class meets all day on Saturday as well as Tuesday and Thursday evenings but is over in three weeks. It is an intense few weeks but I am kind of looking forward to it. Originally it was one of the only classes that was still open when I registered but now it is relevant to my volunteer work since I have begun cataloging bound and fragile periodicals. However there are some things about the class I do not like: we spent the first Saturday defining serials and that took the entire class time, and there is not only a final paper/presentation but a final exam as well.

I will be registering for fall semester in about a week. This has caused some anxiety because the archiving classes are only offered in the fall and I will have a hard time getting into them. One of the classes that I very desperately want to take has a prerequisite that is also only offered in the fall which makes things very difficult. I am sure that if I could register for both at the same time it would be alright except the prerequisite conflicts with another class I desperately want to take. A conversation with my advisor is the best course of action. The part that really irritates me is that if I were in the School Library Media concentration I would be able to take the classes I miss in the fall in the following spring. I really can't wait until the following fall to take these classes, I need to graduate in the spring.

Calm Before the Storm

2008-06-27T23:49:00.003-05:00

The first summer school class ended this week. I was very busy during the class which is why I haven't had an update in so long. On average I was reading 10 books a week and even though they were children's books a 200 page chapter book is still 200 pages so my time free or otherwise was spent reading.

The class went well although I wish there was more emphasis on how to get a child interested in reading or how to chose the right book for a child. For that matter how to conduct a reference interview with a child would be good to learn how to do as well since we barely covered that in my reference class. This again proves my point that no amount of theory will prepare a librarian for actually working in a library. I could have read every book in the library but if I don't know how to match up a child to a book it really doesn't matter. But then again I suppose a children's librarian is born it is not taught.

I have a two week break between the class that just ended and the serials class that I will take for the section section of summer. The next class is probably going to be boring however it may come in handy because the work I am doing at the special library has moved into cataloging serials. This is interesting mostly because many of the titles are in foreign languages and trying to match up the title and the information in OCLC is difficult. (OCLC = Online Computer Library Center)

Right now I am just enjoying my break, I will still be working but being able to come home at a reasonable hour every day and have the option of walking or biking to work will be very nice.

Summer Semester

2008-05-23T21:48:00.003-05:00

I am not sure if my university realizes this but the summer starts in June technically the last third of June, which is why I was not prepared for summer semester to begin in the first half of May.

Either way I am now two weeks into summer semester.

I received my grades for the spring, all A's as I was hoping although one professor (who is referred to as "the douche") gave me an A- which I believe was to send me a message because one assignment was turned in late. But all in all I am happy with my grades and this proves that I can take three classes in a semester and not only survive but thrive.

Hopefully I will remember this as I get through this semester. Currently I am taking a class that is titled "Library Materials for Children" which is basically a children's lit class. This is a very good class for the summer because it is fun, I get to read children's books and it gives me new book ideas for the wee red-head. On a side note I should really start calling the wee red-head the wee blonde or the wee strawberry blonde but I don't think that is as cute nor is it as indicative of her inherent adorableness so I will continue to call her the wee red-head.

As I was saying I am in this children's lit class which is actually very good. The reading list is pretty good, Neil Gaiman and Mo Willems as well as some other favourites of mine are on it so I can choose some books that I have already read as well as branching out to read new ones. And the assignments are practical: creating booklists and doing booktalks for specific age groups, doing a readers theatre project, writing a book review - all of these are things a children's librarian would do. The only thing I wish could be done is to actually have an experience working in front of a group of children; it really doesn't matter how prepared a person is, if they don't learn how to work in front of a group of kids it just won't work. But I realize that is a time issue since we only have seven weeks, and most of the people in my class are already working with children either in a school or library setting.

After this class is over I will have about a week and a half before my second class begins. This one is about serial management and the problems one faces when cataloging serials. At first I thought this might be a waste of my time and really just a space filler so I could get financial aid for the summer but it might actually be useful. This usefulness is because my duties at the library that I volunteer are going to be changing a bit. I have apparently caught up the library with most of the processing and now I will be weeding through the periodicals and deciding what to keep and what we can toss. I am really excited about getting more responsibility at the library and that they are allowing me to be doing something closer to "librarian work" as opposed to volunteer work. If all goes well they will find that they can't live without me, or at least that is my hope.

So it looks like I won't be getting much of a break until August and then I will definitely take some time off...I promise.

Almost done

2008-04-30T23:46:00.003-05:00

I know I already posted my end of semester blog but I just finished my last final exam. Its a take home thing so I still have to go to class tomorrow but I am just so relieved that this semester is over! I didn't realize how busy and tired and overextended I was until I realized I had 10 days off before summer session started and how happy that made me. I just wish I had more time off.

Oh and that cat is happy too, now I have time to play fetch with her. We have been playing for about an hour, poor starved for attention kitten.

Two down three to go

2008-04-27T23:16:00.003-05:00

Two semesters down, three to go and then I'll be done. Well technically this semester isn't done until next week but I needed a break from doing final exams/papers so I thought I would write this a little early. All I really have left is about 2/3 of a take home final exam and then I will be done.

This semester was a bit more tolerable than the previous because I finally got to take a class that was not required by the program. In general I have come to the conclusion that I just need to get through most of the classes and that although there may be some interesting moments or topics for the most part it feels like busywork full of theory without any practical use to offset the information I am getting from a book.

I realize it is a little silly for a future librarian to be complaining about the information found in books but when one is learning to be a librarian there is a lot that can only be learned by doing. Working at the special library has really been the practical experience that I needed. One of my latest finds has been a copy of Faust translated into Hebrew from the 1860s. There is something very odd about such a Catholic text being translated into Hebrew. It must have been odd for the person first reading it, almost like a book of witchcraft - deals with the devil and all that.

This summer will be a busy time. I will be taking two classes and probably starting a new internship in addition to continuing to work at the special library and with the wee redhead. Somehow I will fit this all into four months (since according to the university the summer begins in May).

I will be going to a student archivist meeting in a few weeks, I am excited about that. The university I am attending seems to ignore the needs of students interested in archives and offers all the archivist classes in the same semester. Hopefully we can organize a way to bring this to the attention of the school.

This brings me to the realization that I had about my dream job. When I was in my Early Books and Manuscript class I realized that as much as I would love to work with such texts the probability of doing so is pretty slim. I would most likely need a second Masters degree probably in history or even linguistics and I would need to learn more languages and probably Latin. At this point I realized that I am more interested more modern materials that need archiving. When working at the film center library I loved finding artifacts of film history and when I visited the local GLBT library I loved that they had an archive of GLBT history. It is this type of thing I would rather care for, things that could easily be overlooked because they are relatively new but in time will be a part of history. I would like to preserve these things before they are lost and before they begin to fall apart.

Been A While

2008-03-28T18:39:00.002-05:00

I realised I hadn't posted anything new in a while. This is mostly because not much has been happening/I have been ill most of March.

Aside from midterms there hasn't been much going on in the Education of Librarian Elise. One would think that midterms would be educational but sadly they are not. However one of my midterms was a presentation/paper on a library visit. This was helpful both as a future librarian and as a current nanny.

I decided not to go to one of the city branches because frankly they all disappoint me by doing the bare minimum of programming and outreach and sometimes they even fall short of that. Last autumn I tried to find a storytime/lap-sit to take the wee redhead too in the winter months but there was nothing in our area. I called about four different branches and they didn't offer anything.

Anyway I decided to got to the nearest north suburb to see what they were offering children and young adults. I got to talk to the director of the library (which was the main point of this assignment since it was for my management class) and I talked to a young adult librarian. Both of these individuals were highly interesting and reminded me that library school is not indicative of actually working in a library. They were able to answer my questions and were very happy to talk to me. I imagine it would be nice to see a future member of your profession, a sort of confirmation of the work you are doing.

The library itself was amazing. This is one of the more wealthy suburbs and they recently renovated their children's and young adult sections. I will need to take the wee redhead to the children's department, it is like an indoor version of The Secret Garden, I was truly in awe of what I saw. The young adult section was similarly awesome, it is full of bright colors and comfortable seating along with a wall of television/computer monitors for video game nights.

The programming is really phenomenal too, there were lap-sits for the 0-12 month crowd, storytimes for the toddlers and preschoolers, and after-school activities for the elementary students and young adults as well as adult programming. It was really fantastic to see a library really trying to reach their community, especially in the young adult age group, those are the kids that are difficult to get into the library but the most important since they will become library supporting adults.

It is really sad that I live in a city with one of the largest public library systems in the country but the suburban library just outside the city is outdoing and outshining that system. This is one of the reasons people move out of the city when they have children and it is truly a waste of librarians and resources.

No Time

2008-03-03T22:13:00.003-06:00

No time seems to be my new catchphrase. I had class this weekend and between that, my Thursday class and the laundry room in my building closing at 10pm I did not have time to do my laundry. This led to me doing it at work. This isn't necessarily a problem but it was a bit weird. It caused my employer to remind me that I can take some time off work if I need to. I have vacation days that I have not as of yet used but I always feel guilty about using them. I haven't even used a sick day, even when the wee redhead gave me a cold. So I am taking a few days around my birthday and the Monday after my next weekend class. This should help me from going too crazy.

This weekend wasn't actually all that bad. Like the previous class weekend we had a presentation due at the end of the second day and a paper due in a few weeks. My group did a presentation on the Luxeuil Abbey and the Luxeuil miniscule that they created which can be seen here http://medievalwriting.50megs.com/scripts/examples/luxeuil.htm
My group and I tried to recreate the script and the illuminations used as best as possible. Part of the presentation was do to a mock page of text to try to better understand the life of a scribe.
I don't know if I understood the life of the scribe that well but on Sunday night my neck and shoulders hurt so bad from the tension due to writing that I couldn't sleep.

I also introduced the others in my group to Google docs and to Refworks. Since we are all writing the paper together and because there aren't really clear divisions of the topics it makes sense to write it together in Google docs. This way we can all share the information as we go. Hopefully this will also make editing the parts together a bit more streamlined. Refworks is a really great tool when doing a bibliography, it will format it once the sources are entered into the program. You can also put websites into it by using RefGrab-It. This makes paper writing so much easier, it even does the in text citations.

I was very lucky to have Garrett's help this weekend. He encouraged me to enjoy the art project that I was assigned (even though I paid thousands of dollars for this class only to be assigned an ART PROJECT!). And even better he took Miso (the cat) for the weekend so that I would have uninterrupted rest. Most nights I get kept up until late hours because she decides to randomly bite my arm or she wakes me at 5am with her call of the wild moments that last for about an hour. Although it was very nice to have her back Sunday night, she fell asleep next to me by about 10:30 and stayed that way most of the night. I think I was missed.

Technically this week is spring break but next Tuesday I have a presentation to give about a library visit for my management class. I spoke to the library director today and will visit the library tomorrow evening. There is also a corresponding paper due the week after the presentation and a midterm take home exam for my cataloging class. Combine this with the paper for my early books and manuscripts class so I don't really have a Spring break at all.

I am debating my decision to take three classes next fall. This has been a very busy semester however part of the difficulty have been that these are the last of my required classes and the added problem of snowy commutes. I hope that taking classes that I want to take and in weather more conducive to commuting I should be ok. I think I will register for three but drop one if need be.

Early Books and Manuscripts

2008-02-12T00:07:00.000-06:00

This weekend I started my Early Books and Manuscripts class. Overall I am really enjoying it, during undergrad I never had a chance to take a Medieval History class and that is essentially what this class, at least this weekend was.

The workload isn't too bad, for each of the three sessions we have a 10 page group paper and the majority of the reading has already been done. Most of the groups are three people, unfortunately someone dropped the class so my group is only two, which makes the part of the paper I am writing longer. Next session we switch groups so hopefully I will be in a group of three.

My only criticism of the class is that we are only focusing on Medieval Europe, I wish we would cover non-Europe texts, I would love to learn about Middle Eastern and Asian texts. I don't believe the school offers a class like that. But to be honest I didn't expect to have a more global coverage.

This is my first non-required class and I am so glad that I finally got to take one this semester. Taking a third class does add a lot of work but this is the only class that is truly enjoyable and should help make the other classes a little easier to take.

Volunteering is also going well. I was able to go in on Friday since I had the day off work. I got some work done and met more of the library staff. They all seem pleased that I am there, although there were moments when I wished they would leave me to my work and stop asking questions, but they were just being friendly. I am looking forward to going back on Sunday when it is quiet. Out of all of my responsibilities this is the one thing I am enjoying the most, sadly it is the one thing that I can only do occasionally and will be the first thing to cut if I don't have the time.

Busy Bee

2008-02-04T19:05:00.000-06:00

In order to procrastinate just a bit I thought I would write a bit about last week. The weather here in Chicago has been absolutely insane which has made the commute to class very difficult. In both my classes last week the professor ended an hour early in order for us to take our time getting home.

On Tuesday the day started at 50F but dropped into the single digits by 9pm. Getting into class it was about 40F and raining but when I left it was very cold and snowing. Unfortunately Thursday was even worse, it snowed all day and it took me 90 minutes to get to class, making me half an hour late, then since the professor let us out an hour early I was only there for an hour and a half then repeating the process going home. The only upside to that entire trip was the cheaper suburban gas.

Homework has been getting heavier, I had multiple chapters to read in each class and have started the Anglo-American Cataloging Rules, Second Edition. This is insanely boring. There are multiple pages about the different ways to enter a title into a bibliographic record depending on if there is a subtitle, secondary title, title in a non-English language etc. Then the same number of pages for the "statement of responsibility" which is essentially the author.

But on the upside I am starting to feel a bit like a librarian. I began volunteering at the museum library this weekend. While it does take away from the weekend "break" period I have and cut into study time it is well worth it. Just being there reminds me of why I am doing all of this craziness in the first place. I am not doing very interesting work but it is helping out the librarians quite a bit. Mostly I will be processing books - getting them ready for the shelves. They are already cataloged but need to be stamped with the library stamps (along side of the book, if it is reference or non-circulating), mylar covers need to be put on dust jackets, spine labels need to be made, magnetic strips put inside the spine to deter stealing, that sort of thing. I actually really like the process, although my supervisor told me many times that I will soon bore of it and if I want to do something different to let her know.

I know it is a small thing but I feel like I am really helping the overall workings of the library. In a small way I am helping patrons find the information they are looking for. Just by making sure the spine label is correct I am helping someone find the book they are looking for, that is pretty cool.

Bit of an update

2008-01-27T21:14:00.000-06:00

I am starting to feel a bit overwhelmed with everything. Homework is starting to get more involved and to make matters worse I caught a cold from the wee redhead. I was able to write a paper today that is due early next week so I am somewhat caught up but I still have one assignment and a lot of reading to do.

My cataloging class is going better than expected, I did well on the first paper (the standard library visit paper). And I do seem to be understanding the topics presented although our first real assignment is this week so we shall see.

Also to add to my responsibilities I am starting to volunteer at the library next weekend. I am really excited about this because I feel the need to be working in a library but I am worried about how much time this will take up.

Lots of new

2008-01-16T00:08:00.000-06:00

I began my first two classes of the semester in the last week. My third class doesn't start until February but I am already doing assigned reading.

Cataloging is going to be a lot of work, which I was expecting, but luckily the professor seems to understand that cataloging is not for everyone. It is the only class that we can really be tested on material because like math there is a correct and incorrect answer without any room for discussion, luckily the exams are take-home, that eases my nerves considerably.

Today I started my Library Management class, this professor's ego is so large that I am surprised that we fit into the room. And he did one of the things I cannot stand in professors, he assigned his own articles as assigned reading. It is better than assigning one's own book (since we then have to purchase said book) but it is still very frustrating. We are already getting his opinions during the lecture we do not need to read his opinions as well.

I also found a new route to class that seems to be a much better and faster way of getting there. Instead of taking the expressway I take a side street that is large enough to have proper traffic lights but small enough that it isn't used much during rush hour. Hopefully it will stay that way.

I went on my "interview" at the museum library that I want to volunteer. I don't really want to call it an interview because they are very happy to be getting free help from a library student and when I went to talk to them it wasn't a matter of if I could volunteer but what would I like to do. Assuming that the background check they did on me goes through, which should unless I committed a crime while sleepwalking, then I should be starting to volunteer on weekends soon. Most of what I will be doing is getting new books ready to be shelved but I am happy for the experience and ready to feel part of a library.

Done

2007-12-23T19:08:00.000-06:00

The semester is officially over, my last class was this week. It seems that I have gotten through it with pretty good grades. I have about a three week break until next semester starts and I am already purchasing books for my new classes, since I need nine books it is best to spread out their purchase.

I wish I could say that I have learned a lot about librarianship and that this new knowledge has further confirmed my want to be a librarian. Sadly this is not the case. I still know that I am supposed to be a librarian but the classes did not give me much new knowledge and did not help confirm my desire.

The lack of knowledge given in class has in a way been beneficial, it makes me seek it out in other ways. Conversations with Garrett and looking into things by myself has increased my understanding of librarianship.

There were a few things I learned from classes, although this is probably not what the course objectives were:

do not talk or engage with the old lady classmate, she will tell you why she has not been in class, her time in hospital and the tests and diagnosis. She will also ask your help with assignments she has missed and state that she knows nothing about technology.
Do not trust your professor to properly explain or even know what you are supposed to include in an assignment. They seem unable to properly convey their wants.
Some classmates can be much more informed than professors and can be the best resource.
A small university is no better at managing bureaucracy, getting the personal touch, providing a better education than a large university, and it almost makes me miss UIC, at least there was no pretense.

Wrapping up

2007-11-25T16:25:00.000-06:00

I was finally able to register for next semester's classes. Luckily I was able to get the classes I wanted especially considering there was a hold on my registration since the school did not have my final transcripts from my previous school. Would have been easier for them to tell me I needed those about 5 months ago since they only gave me a week to get those to the registrar. Oh well I always expected idiocy when it comes to university bureaucracy.

Hopefully I will soon be starting an internship/volunteer type of thing too. There was a point recently when I realized that the problem I was having with my classes is that they didn't make me feel like a librarian. Actually working in a library would help fix that feeling I was having.

I should be working on final assignments right now but I am listening to Smodcast and writing this instead.

End of the Semester

2007-11-11T13:28:00.000-06:00

I still have about a month of this semester left but it definitely feels like I am at the end. My last weekend session was last weekend so I am practically done with my reference class although I still have two assignments left.

The two assignments are the first things I have done that feel relevant to a working librarian. One of the assignments is a subject guide about Geography that I am creating for the university's library. Theoretically this would be used by geography students however there is not a geography major and no actual geography classes offered by the school. Apparently there are geography classes within the Education department but that is as far as geography education goes in this school. While the subject may not be relevant the creation of a subject guide is. It is a list of materials that the school has in its collection as well as websites and suggested materials for purchase.

The second assignment is a proposal for a new reference tool for a library of our choice. We are to chose a library that we would like to work in and hypothetically create a proposal for a new reference tool. Since this is something I could very easily be doing in the future I am pleased to be doing it. It is the assignments that feel irrelevant that I do not like doing.

I also have a paper in my other class that is due in about a month but I haven't started working on it, its only eight pages, I can do that in a day's time.

Getting Close

2007-10-30T23:28:00.000-05:00

I am getting close to the end of my first semester. I have less than two months left and the last session of my weekend class is this coming weekend. I will still have assignments due for that class but at least I won't have to go anymore.

I started looking at next semester's schedule. Looks like I will be taking Cataloging and Management during the week and taking another weekend class possibly History of the Printed Word or Preservation/Conservation. It depends on what I can get into.

I am still heavily bored in my Intro class but luckily I found a comrade who is equally bored and appreciates my sarcastic comments. This makes things much easier.

Tired, very tired

2007-10-12T21:27:00.000-05:00

I have been meaning to update for about a week and have not had the time or the brain power to do so. Luckily I had a spur of the moment day off of work and have recovered from the past two weeks of business.

In personal news I was the happy surrogate kitten momma to Capote for a few days last week and he and Miso got along quite well. I was doing this because 812 N. Productions was filming another short and Capote lives on the set. The shoot went well and soon we should have a finished product, more later when that happens.

Between being a P.A. on set and having an extra cat at my place I was already tired a bit worn out when I went to my second weekend session of my Reference class. Luckily this one went better than the first weekend. Mostly this is due to my ability to get back into the school groove. The first weekend was my first time in a classroom in four months and I was a bit rusty. Now I am back on track and feeling more comfortable about the subject matter. Having used libraries for so long and dating a librarian I felt pretty confident that I knew quite a bit already. This is still true but I think my knowledge is being enhanced, at least in my reference class.

My introduction to library and information science class is not so enlightening. I wish it was since I go to it every week instead of once a month but sadly it all feels like a waste of time. The hour long drive in rush hour traffic there, the three hours in class and the half hour it takes to get home are just a misuse of my time. Especially when the instructor does not seem to know what he is doing. We were supposed to construct an annotated bibliography about a given subject and he posted information on blackboard about what we needed to include in the assignment but he forgot to tell us how long it needed to be. I emailed him at this point and responded on the day it was due to check the information posted. By this point it was far too late and I had already done the assignment. I had eight entries, hopefully that will be enough. I would have made it an even ten but some of my sources were from the same publication and I didn't want to repeat myself too much.

And now my rant is done. I am just tired of the disorganization.

Speaking of organization I am looking into what classes I need to take next semester. This includes Organization of Knowledge and Management. Organization of Knowledge is a big phrase for cataloging. Cataloging for non-catalogers is not fun, again like most classes it needs to be separated from those that do want to catalog and those that don't. It would be much easier for all involved. Management I am not too worried about, perhaps if I have the right instructor it could even be useful. I am also going to take a second class next semester. Hopefully something fun that will balance out the two dull classes. Perhaps storytelling...that could definitely help improve this blog. There are also some children's lit and young adult lit classes that would be interesting. It all depends on what fits in my schedule which looks like it might be busy because a special/academic library wants me to volunteer at the beginning of the year. I am very excited.

Bored

2007-09-27T23:44:00.000-05:00

I was severely bored in class this week. As my instructor was going through a powerpoint presentation that was also available on blackboard I decided not to listen and instead write my service report that is due tomorrow for my other class. I was particularly irritated because it was Garrett's birthday and I felt my time was being wasted when I could have been celebrating the day of my boyfriend's birth, by far the more important event of the day. At least I was able to manage my time so it wasn't a complete waste. Having a computer that picks up the school's wifi is a fantastic thing.

Disorganized

2007-09-19T22:12:00.000-05:00

It always amazes me when librarians are disorganized. Part of the job is a certain level of organization at least in their professional life in order to be good at their job, for instance, being able to find a book because it is in the correct place. It seems my Intro to Library Science instructor missed that piece of information when getting his MLIS. The class this week was all over the place, he was randomly searching the internet to find examples of things for us (the computer being hooked up to a projector so we could all see his meandering), and the lecture -- what little of it there was confused more than enlightened me. Perhaps he is the opposite of if you can't do, teach; he can't teach maybe he can do but I really don't know. Right now I am learning what not to do.

I am just going to do what I have to do and remind myself that I just have to get through it and its only 12 classes before graduation.

First Week

2007-09-13T22:50:00.001-05:00

I have officially finished my first week of library school and I feel I am off to a good start. I have to say after doing my undergrad work this actually seems kind of easy. In my Intro to Library Science class we are assigned an 8 page final paper. My professor called it a "big paper" and I couldn't help but laugh. My first history term paper four years ago was 20 pages, and the semester after that I had three 10 page papers all due within days of each other. Eight pages for this paper and 6 for my other class is really easy.

I was nervous before I started but now I can say with relative confidence that I will do just fine. Also I may be getting an internship/volunteer position soon, more on that when I know more.

First Day

2007-09-09T20:36:00.000-05:00

This weekend was my first day of class. My bizarre weekend class meets three weekends throughout the semester for 8 hours at a time. It was an intense weekend and now my brain is mushy.

The class is a reference class that covers both print and online sources. While sitting in class and being instructed on how to search the library's online catalog for books as well as using online databases I grew frustrated because these were systems I had already learned to use during my undergrad career. I realized that there really needs to be two separate classes for reference services. One for the "mature" student is going back to school after many years away and one for the student who recently finished their undergrad or another master's program. Having two separate classes that better fit the needs of the students would be more beneficial to our studies. To be honest there is little I know about print resources because of the emphasis of online sources during my high school and college education. It would be more advantageous if I were spending time learning about these instead of reviewing information about online resources that I have known about for a long time.

It is not a bad class on a whole but I think when it is presented in this format the days are very long and you just get bored and antsy. Yet at the same time this is a great option for people with tight schedules.

More updates in a few days after my Intro to Library and Information Science class

Day Before Class

2007-09-07T16:12:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow is my first day of class, today I went to campus to get i.d. card, parking permit and last textbook that I need. Roaming around campus and getting lost made me appreciate the simplicity of my undergraduate campus for the first time. It was an ugly campus, very industrial but it had a symmetry that made it easy to find where you needed to go with clearly marked buildings. The new campus is much smaller but less organized and I got a bit turned around while there. But this was good because I now know where my classes are and where the parking lot is which will make tomorrow all the easier.

I got home and finally accessed my campus email address which was good because I have five chapters to read for this weekend and two handouts. I was also able to access the powerpoint presentations and syllabus. I am feeling prepared, slightly excited and a little nervous.

Visit to Special Library

2007-09-06T19:30:00.001-05:00

Today I visited a special library. These tend to fall into two categories small and organized or completely disorganized and scary, sadly this was the latter.

I had high hopes for this library, I had wanted to volunteer there since it's interests and mine match well and they run on an entirely volunteer staff. I figured this would be a good way for me to get some additional experience in a library without the hassle of having "experience". So I decided to check it out and see if it would fit my needs.

I am very glad I did this instead of immediately deciding to volunteer without checking it out. Here is what I observed:

the smell, there was a distinct odor of rotting books and a need to clean
the man eating behind the desk, this could have contributed to the smell
clutter and disorganization, there were piles of books everywhere and the ones on the shelves were difficult to get to, also many computers that had no purpose
volunteers were not properly identified as staff
book sale being organized while open, random books that were not for public use and not properly labeled
scary and outdated displays
expensive benefit tickets starting at $250

All of this contributed to my not wanting to volunteer there. In reality they could benefit from my help but I feel that they would not be receptive to it.

If I were running the library this is what I would do

get dehumidifier and cleaning crew in to fix smell problem
no eating at the desk, that is what a break room is for
reorganize material so it is accessible, also get rid of multiple copies of books, no need to have three copies of same text
volunteers should have name tags or buttons saying "I work here" or something like that
organize book sale after hours so that patrons are not confused
displays must be reorganized to promote community in a positive and up to date way, posters from the 1980's while having a historical value should be put into perspective of the current issues
library benefit tickets should be affordable for all those in the community and should have a starting donation of $50 or $100 instead of $250 and up

I believe I will write to this library and let them know how I feel. I think they need to be awakened to the possibility that even though they have been around for 20 years they need to update.

Library Internship

2007-09-01T16:52:00.000-05:00

I applied for a library internship at a suburban library. The position was for a children's literacy aid, developing programs and storytimes for children. Realistically I knew that I didn't have time for it but thought I should at least apply and maybe interview.

Sadly I was informed by this library that as a Certified Professional Governess and as a library school student I did not have enough experience for the internship. There were other applicants that had more experience in libraries and with groups of children. The funny part is that if I need experience to get the internship how am I supposed to get the experience. That is the whole point of internships.

I am not entirely bothered by this, there is a volunteer based library in the city that I am going to try to work at in my spare time. I have a feeling they will be more receptive.

Orientation

2007-08-29T20:50:00.000-05:00

Today was orientation at library school. I am still not entirely sure why I bothered going. We received a packet of information, some of it helpful some of it useless and were talked at for two hours.

We were told we were the librarians of the future, librarians of the 21st Century that had to be technologically proficient in all areas, why then were we given a powerpoint presentation? I thought that was technology of the 20th Century.

It was acknowledged that most of us were commuter students and many coming back to school after time away, that we had busy schedules outside of school. Yet at the same time we were told that there were student organizations we should be a part of and that we should attend seminars that were given. The seminars are always held at the same time of day on weekdays, those of us with busy schedules don't really have time to drive out to school another day during the week.

We were also given stuff. This is what I really went for, if I am paying them thousands in tuition per semester they better be giving me things. We got a planner, a children's book, and a t-shirt. I will never wear the t-shirt, the planner is slightly useful and the book, well it was a pathetic selection, but I think I picked the best one possible.

I suppose it was useful to go, I met a few people and it helped me get into the school zone, but mostly I felt that it was only useful so I could take a trip out there at roughly the same time I will be going to class to see if I can get there on time after work. Which I am happy to say I will be able to do.

I was happy to see that many of my classmates were on the younger side and that there was a good sized group of men -- now if we can only get men positions in libraries, we will be in good shape.

First Post

2007-08-22T00:04:00.000-05:00

The suggestion that I start a blog about my experiences as a grad student began this experiment. I have had blogs in the past but never one devoted to something. So here it goes....

I was accepted into library school over the summer and will be starting classes in September. Orientation is next week, it is not mandatory but they are providing food and considering the amount I pay in tuition I should take full advantage of my contribution.

One of my books for class arrived in the mail yesterday, Reference and Information Services in the 21st Century. I looked through it a bit and am preparing for boredom.