Posts in 2018

2018: A Year In Review

Posted on December 19, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

As you enjoy the holiday season, helping patrons and settling down with a good book yourself, let’s take a look back at some of the tips, trends, and opinions we shared with you this year! We’ll close with a glimpse of four major conferences we attended, too.

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The Librarian Did It!

Posted on December 19, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

We hear a lot these days about diversity and marginalized people’s need to see themselves represented in books. Librarians, however, don’t generally have that problem—there are LOTS of books about libraries and librarians.

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Clean Eating

Posted on November 21, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

"Dis-moi ce que tu manges, je te dirai ce que tu es." --Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, 1826

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Trends in Mystery

Posted on November 21, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

How does one identify current and forthcoming trends? First and foremost, as a selector, I am constantly reviewing and monitoring new titles. I can often spot some emerging trends simply by looking for patterns in the books I see. For a deeper dive, my "go to" sources include writers, publishers, booksellers, book reviewers, and librarians. I targeted some of those folks in researching this topic.

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Trends in Readers' Advisory Services

Posted on October 24, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

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Frankenstein

Posted on October 17, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

The English author Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley began to pen her classic novel Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus in 1816, when she was 18 years old and in the midst of an extended trip throughout Western Europe.

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Pet Lit

Posted on October 17, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

I was browsing through a bookstore recently and found myself suddenly attracted to a display of pet books, all of which had colorful, appealing covers that immediately evoked an emotional response. The cuteness lured me in – I was powerless to resist.

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Tiny Houses

Posted on September 19, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

In the movie Field of Dreams, the disembodied voice of “Shoeless” Joe Jackson famously proclaimed, “If you build it, he will come.” We Americans have adopted a less inspirational but equally emphatic motto: if we build a big house, we will fill it—with our stuff! (nod to George Carlin).

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When Books Spawn TV Series

Posted on September 19, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

Some call it Peak TV. In 2017, there were nearly 500 original series available on TV and through streaming services, and the number is expected to grow. Studies have shown that it’s easier to adapt a completed work than to develop a new story from scratch—in other words, take a book and turn it into a TV series!

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Libraries and Diversity

Posted on August 22, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

What is diversity and what does it mean? It has become a buzzword, to say the least. The word diversity encompasses many implications, including gender identity, sexual orientation, people of color, individuals with physical or mental disabilities, people of differing religions, and people who don’t “look like us” or “think like us.”

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Know Your Sources: Breaking Down Journal Reviews

Posted on August 22, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

Know Your Sources: Breaking Down Journal Reviews - Read More

John F. Kennedy

Posted on August 15, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

President John F. Kennedy was both a highly popular and polarizing figure. More than a half-century after his passing, he still looms large in people’s minds. In particular, Kennedy’s assassination on Nov. 22, 1963 is one of those seminal points in U.S. history.

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John Lewis

Posted on July 18, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

John Lewis is a multitalented man who has led an interesting life. He counts civil rights activist, United States Congressman, and graphic novelist among his many accomplishments.

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Middle Grade Titles

Posted on July 18, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

Eleven-year-old Tommy said to his school media specialist, “I just read Wonder. It was the best book I ever read! Could you help me find another like it, please?” Every librarian loves to hear words like that. We’re born to play the role of reader advisory.

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Carla Hayden

Posted on June 20, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

Carla Hayden, the first African American Librarian of Congress, will be at the ALA Annual Conference in New Orleans this year to receive the 2018 Newberry Award for her lifelong service to libraries.

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What is Brodart Reading?

Posted on June 20, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

We at Brodart are pretty interesting readers. I recently polled staff to find out what we have been reading these past few months and I am in awe of the results! Wow, we have eclectic tastes and we do like to read. As I put this list together, I kept stopping to add titles to my own “must read” list and I will bet money that you can't go through this without doing the same.

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What Do Teens Want?

Posted on June 20, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

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Celebrity Cookbooks

Posted on May 16, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

I have read that cookbooks and children’s books are keeping the entire publishing industry afloat. That may be hyperbole, but it’s certainly true at my house!

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Shelf Support

Posted on May 16, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

Physical books are still an important asset of the vast majority of libraries. Without a more appealing way of displaying your books, the print titles that are shelved spine-out may spend their lives hiding from potential borrowers. Is your library taking advantage of opportunities to showcase what’s in your print collection?

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Get to Know the Supreme Court

Posted on April 18, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

For most of our nation’s history, the Supreme Court was a somewhat mysterious institution. Imagine nine men (until Sandra Day O’Connor in 1981), all white (until Thurgood Marshall in 1967), hanging out in a building that looks like a Roman temple, projecting an imperious and priestly vibe.

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Children Refugees

Posted on March 21, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

A May 2017 report released by UNICEF counted 300,000 unaccompanied child refugees worldwide in 2015 and 2016. Of those, 100,000 were caught trying to cross the border between Mexico and the U.S. Overall 200,000 asked for asylum in 80 countries. These are staggering numbers.

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Bibz Selector

Posted on February 21, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

The latest release of Bibz includes some helpful new features. As a selector, I use Bibz every day, and I am excited about these new enhancements, which will make selection much easier for me—and for you as well. Here are some examples.

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Banned Books

Posted on February 21, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

I received my first article of banned book clothing for Christmas last year: a pair of socks from the philanthropic company Out of Print. One sock listed a compilation of banned books; the other noted the same books, but they were redacted.

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Hot STEAM Titles

Posted on January 17, 2018 in Posts in 2018 by Brodart

If your library works with students, you are probably familiar with STEM—or STEAM—education. Science, Technology, Engineering, (Art) and Math puts the STE(A)M in education. While educators in the United States have been bemoaning students’ declines in the hard sciences for decades, adding art to the equation is a relatively new concept.

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