Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Recommend a great text book to you!

In the past three days, I have been reading William Lawrence Neuman's Social Research Methods. This book is very well-organized. But the most impressive part of this book is that the author utilizes simplicity words to explain the complicated concepts and theories.

I recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a good book for distinction between quantitative and qualitative research methods.

Monday, August 30, 2010

Book: Everything I Need to Know I Learned from a Children Book

Yes it is a young adult book; but yet it shows how a children book impacts on the young readers. This Book, Everything I know I learned from a Children Book was written by Anita Silvey. This book collects individuals’ experience with children books – how the books make such a great impact on their lives. The contributors include journalists, writers, illustrators, business man and woman, athletes, politicians. I cannot imagine anyone who grew up without books.

Those little colorful children books remind me the late children librarian in my home town – her smile, her recommendation of books, her lively stories, and her patience with the little ones. She was very funny but strict. Her voice arose from behind the Desk, “Please walk! Don’t run!” All the little kids slowed down in front of her Desk and then ran off quickly to the other side of the library.

Thank you, Miss Donna!

Famous Quotations from Your Librarians

I just couldn't help but re-read this small little book, The Librarian's Book of Quotes. But actually the quotations in this book also include non-librarian such as the President Obama - well he was not the President when he gave the speech at ALA in the year of 2004.

I like this book because the quotes are from the personal working or living experience. The quotes are plain but yet humorous - all about the libraries and librarians; or even the wisdom from the experience of dealing the library patrons. This book makes me smile in my heart.

Sunday, August 29, 2010

A New Generation College Students

 New semester has begun two weeks ago. I have noticed that the new students are all busy with their iPods, cell phones, and texting and typing on the keyboards. The scene is definitely very different when I was at college - the student were moving between stacks. But look now - there is hardly to find student at the stacks! Oh boy it is certainly NOT my mother’s library anymore. (sigh)

I also notice that some young freshman came to the library with their parents who are still trying to pamper their kids and assisting them to get a student ID! Oh boy those kids have a long way to go.

I certainly do not recall any of my college buddies brought their parents to help them at the library.

I definitely am living in different era.

Lost in Translation?

Have you had any experience with French speaking people? Here is my personal experience - they do not say THEY DO NOT UNDERSTAND when THEY DO NOT UNDERSTAND. They are "too proud to admit" that they do not understand English.

Working at the library gives me so many chances to encounter different people. I have to say that most American are STRICTLY FORWARD. When they do not understand what you say, they most likely say HONEY' I DO NOT UNDERSTAND. WOULD YOU PLEASE SAY ONE MORE TIME?

If you have opportunity to travel abroad, next time pay attention to those different people and you probably will find out what I mean "too proud to admit."

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Librarian on the "Travel Trail"

Visiting libraries is the major event on my travel plans. It is great to know that there are "two type" of keyboards at the libraries over the world: one is called 'American keyboard" one is "European keyboard."

Last year when I was in Belgium Katholieke Universiteit, cataloging rare books. The very first thing I noticed was that the keyboard was very different - I made many mistakes. The arrangement of the letters is not the same as the one I am familiar, such as the "M" is not on the third row, instead it is on the first row. So are other letters.

Then this summer I visited Bibliotheque de Ile des Soeurs and Bibliotheque d'Laval. The keyboard again "hit" me immediately.

Keyboard is a funny thing. It reflects the different cultures in its own way.

"When you are NOT in Kansas anymore..."

Have you read One Thousand and One Places Before You Die? I have. It is a great book for deciding you next travel destination. I surely enjoy this book. But after I put it down, I keep thinking... There are many places in the book I am not familiar with the cultures and languages. So when you travel to these places, you might not even be able to ask for direction or order a meal. It is more stressful than enjoyable of the trips. SO when you feel you are NOT in Kansas anymore. What can you do?

Sunday, August 22, 2010

"Curse against Book Stealers"

From the book The Librarian's Book of Quotes:

"For him that stealeth a Book from this Library, let it change into a serpent in his hand and rend him. Let him be struck with Palsy, and all his Members blasted. Let him languish in Pain crying aloud for Mercy and let there be no surcease to his Agony till he sink in Dissolution. Let Bookworms gnaw his Entrails in token of the Worm that dieth not, and when at last he goeth to his final punishment, let the flames of Hell consume him for ever and aye" - Monastery of San Pedro, Barcelona.

In my opinion, the punishment is too HARSH. What do you think?

Friday, August 20, 2010

A farewell poem

Farewell is part of our lives. We all come and go, passing each others. We meet by chances and we depart by choices. Here is a Tang Dynasty's popular poem for saying farewell to friends:

(唐) 李白《黃鶴樓送孟浩然之廣陵》
Li Bai (Li Bai, 701-762 AD): Farewell to Meng Hao-Ran

故人西辭黃鶴樓,(I say goodbye to an old friend at the west of the Yellow Crane Tower)
煙花三月下揚州。(My friend is leaving for Yangzhou in Mid-Spring when flowers are falling)

孤帆遠影碧山盡,(The shadow of my friend's loely body gradually fades into the blue sky)
唯見長江天際流。(I watch my friend until he disappers at the end of the Yangzi River)

Book: Fortune Cookie Chronicles

Jennifer Lee's The Fortune Cookie Chronicles takes the reader to the world of Chinese food. This delightful book traces back the history of Chinese food in the United States; it also provides social and cultural history of China. It unveils the fact that the Chinese food American knows is not REAL Chinese food. For instance the most popular dish, chop suey is NOT a popular dish in China. If you know the meaning of "chop suey", you probably won't order this dish next time you go to a Chinese restaurant. The phrase "chop suey" literally means stir-fry the "left-over".

By the way, in China and major Asia cities, there is even no such thing called "fortunate cookies"!

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Information Gaps OR Generation Gaps?

Academic librarians in the past decade have faced so many changes at their working environment. It is certainly NOT our mothers' libraries anymore - you name it - Web 2.0, library blogs, library chat 24/7, library blogs, and electronic resources. The tools we deliver library research and bibliographic instruction classes are very different from when we were students 10 or 20 years ago. Plus we also found that we are now serving different types of students - most of them grew up in a digital environment. Some librarians say that we are now serving the new generation. We, the librarians, have "generation gaps" with our students. Actually we should say that we have both information gaps and generation gaps in our current library world.

June 29, 2010 The Chronicle of Higher Education article called "Overdues at the Library" has very useful information about how we, the librarians, cope with the new library

http://chronicle.com/article/Overdue-at-the-Library-Good/66086/

Jail Time for Library Fines? - Are you kidding?

When visitors come to our library, one of the most common questions is, "Do you charge overdue books/items?" I usually tell them, "Don't worry, we won't put our students in jail for libray fines."

Jail time for library fines? Yes, I am NOT kidding. Most public libraries collect fines. Some libraries even "go further." They make the patrons either pay for the overdue items or go to the jail. In August 21, 2008, a Wisconsin was arrested and handcuffed for failure to pay the $30 over two overdue paperbacks, White Oleander, Demon & Angels. In March 2010 a Colorado man was taken to County jail for not returning library books.

The common practice is that the college library simply charges students for the price of the books or items they did not return over a long period of time. And if students do not pay the fees, then they won't get their diploma!

Oh Boy! - The policy of jail time for library fines has gone too far.

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Book: The Napkin, the Melon & the Monkey

Barbara Burke, The Napkin, the Melon & the Monkey: How to Be Happy and Successful by Simply Changing Your Mind

I found this book when I do the ILL processing at the Desk. I was very skeptical when I read its subtitle - how can one be happy just by changing your mind? I couldn't help but flipped the pages. Then I decided to request a copy from the library.

I am particularly like the number 12 "Aha!" - Great supervisors follow the golden rule and do the right thing and the number 18: Success comes from bringing out the best in others.

It is a great book.

Monday, August 16, 2010

A Fun Little Book: Ex Libris:

Don't let the subtitle of this book "Confessions of a Common Reader" fool you or stop you from reading this fun little book!

Anne Fadiman's Ex Libris is collection of short essays on books and related topics. When I read about how she and her husband to house their personal book collections, I have a big smile on my face. I believe books are personal "things" and we should be able to house whatever we would like to without being interfered by anyone, not even your parents or spouses! - It is just the very beginning of the book. I found myself keep reading and smiling until the last page of the book.

If you want a fun and little book to enjoy your evening, that's the one!

Thursday, August 12, 2010

"I am NOT in Kansas anymore."

The Wizard of Oz (film) was first screen today 71 years ago! - 1939! As a Midwesterner, I have watched the film so many many times and I still love it! I particularly love the lines Dorothy said, "I have a feeling that I am not in Kansas anymore," "No place like home." - When I feel "displaced, I always remember that line.

This American fantasy film was based on a children novel written by L. Frank Baum (1856-1919). Oz is an imgainery place where Dorothy and her dog were transported by a cyclone. The adventure story is "similar" to Alice in Wonderland. The Wizard of Oz came out when America was facing the failure economic and social arrangements. This magical movie certainly gave people some degrees of “getting out of the reality” and has a moment of living in an imaginery world. Most important it also provided "hopes."

I am the person who always prefers reading the book rather than watching a movie. Books generally are better than movies when depicting stories. But this movie is exceptional well done.

The only thing I always wonder ...Was The Wizard of Oz the first color film?

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Librarian's Quotations

Someone gave me this book as a gift yesterday - The Librarian's Book of Quotes. This little book is full of wisdoms and inspirational quotations from librarians!!!
"It's funny that we thionk of libraries as quiet demure places where we are shushed by dusty, bun-balancing, bespectacled women. The truth is libraries are raucous clubhouses for free speech, controversy and community. Librarians have stood up to the Patriot Act, sat down with noisy toddlers and reached out to illiterate adults. Libraries can never be shushed."

"A good library will never be too neat, or too dusty; because somebody will always be in it, taking books off the shelves and staying up late reading them."

"A university is just a group of buildings gathered around a library. The library is the unviersity."

"The death of a library, any library, suggests that the community has lost its soul."

Here Comes the Bookmobile!

Yesterday I heard the NPR on my way back home after work. I heard the author of Ever Is a Long Time: A Journey into Mississippi's Dark Past A Memoir, W. Ralph Eubank talked about his boyhood down in Mississippi. He described how he escaped the summer heat in a library bookmobile. He said:

 "When I feel the summer heat steaming from the pavement, my childhood memories of the bookmobile provide a cooling sensation to my spirit. This feeling came back last summer on a visit to Chicago when I happened upon a parade of bookmobiles of various ages. There it was: an old Ford grille with big, round headlights that was a dead ringer for the bookmobile that stopped at my house as a child."

"All of a sudden, I was transported into my boyhood self, waiting in the heat of my front porch for the Pine Forest Regional Library bookmobile to arrive at my house in rural Mississippi."

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128362133

We all know that libraies has been shaped so many young lives in decades; but it is the first time I heard someone "acknowledged" the amazing work of a library bookmobile. - Waht a wonderful story to share!

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Lost Identity in OCLC's Worldcat

When the OCLC/LC converted the Pinyin system to catalog Chinese mateirals, there are so many problems. I consider myself as "one of the Chinese authors who lost her identity" for this conversion.

Chinese transliterated their Chinese names in English according to the sound of their individual dialect. The problem is that the multiplicity of dialects spoken by the Chinese in different regions caused different romanized forms of names. Some of the Chinese authors "lost their identities" if they insisted to maintain their originality of romanization their names. And they won't be able to find their own publications if they do not use the Pinyin romanized format to search the OCLC's Worldcat. - I am one of those who lost identitiy in the OCLC records. I did not notice that I am listed as the co-author with one of my professors. The book was published 24 years ago. It is simply because my name is romanized in Pinyin. Oh boy! It took me 24 long years to find out the book is existed. My name is not the romanized in the way on my birth certificate.

Problems in Cataloging Chinese Names
http://www.lib.niu.edu/2000/il0004251.html

Monday, August 9, 2010

August 9, 1945 Nagasaki

When all the attention of the world on the Hiroshima bombing, the second city in Japan, Nagasaki experienced the horrible atomic bom on August 9, 1945 - just three days after the bombing in Hiroshima.

http://iconicphotos.wordpress.com/2010/08/09/nagasaki-august-9th-1945/

Sunday, August 8, 2010

We, the librarians, have many hats!

I by chance turned on the TV and found a documentary film called "The Hollywood Librarian" film which portrayed the role of librarians and the libraries. The program is very informative.

I remember there was a scene that a librarian who questioned a young reader about her choice of books at the Checkout Desk. It was 1949. WOW! she can do that? I think she violated the library privacy issue. I do not believe we, the librarians should make comments on the books our patrons take home. Well, it was 1949. The library law and librarian ethics codes might be very different back then.

The school librarians are the center of the elementary schools. They have very rich knowledge of children books; they also have knowledge of children behavioral psychology. The children librarians at the public libraries provide endless story time for the young patrons. They are energetic and they promote reading. The correctional center librarians no doubt play a very important part of the inmates - They provide reader materials for the inmates, and they arrange literary classes for them.

We, the librarians, have "many hats"!!

Friday, August 6, 2010

I love this book! - Miss Brooks Loves Books! (and I don't)

This is a favorite book for EVERY librarian!!! What is the story? It is about "A librarian and a contrarian face off in this tale of a very reluctant reader."

I REALLY enjoy this book! It reminded me so much of our Children Librarian Miss Donna. I love the illustrations. The little girl in the book is so cute; but she hates books, and her teachers even though they adore her. Did it remind your days when you were first grader? - The story touches my heart. If you read this book, I am sure yuo wil have the same feeling. Highly recommended.

Title: Miss Brooks Loves Books ! (and I don't)
Author: Barbara Bottner
Illustrator: Michael Emberley
Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf

Another thought on the 65 years of Hiroshima Memorial

It is said that the US officials first time attended the 65 years of Hiroshima Bombing memorial in Japan: "Government welcomes representative, but some who see the bombing as unjustified want the United States to apologize."

I think that's exactly what the Chinese are waiting for. They are waiting the Japanese to apologize for the lives they took during the Sino-Japanese War, especially to the victims of Nanking Massacre and the young women who were forced to be Japanese soldiers' sex-slaves-comfort women.

Thursday, August 5, 2010

A Photo-Essay on the Hiroshima Bombing

http://www.english.illinois.edu/maps/poets/g_l/levine/bombing.htm

A Photo-Essay on the Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
...
- The bomb was delivered by a US B29 bomber, nicknamed Enola Gay, from the Pacific island of Tinian. Dropped by parachute it exploded about 580 m. (1,885 ft.) above the ground
- Almost immediately a fireball was created from which were emitted radiation and heat rays, and severe shock waves were created by the blast.
- The terrain was flat and congested with administrative and commercial buildings, and the radius of destruction for the many reinforced concrete structures was about 500 m. (1,625 ft.), though only the top stories of earthquake-resistant buildings were damage or destroyed.
- Altogether an area of 13 sq. Ikm. (5 sq. mi.) was reduced to ashes and of the 76,000 buildings in the city 62.9% were destroyed and only 8% escaped damage.
...

65 Years ago Atomic Bombing of Hiroshima 広島

August 6, 1945 - a mushroom cloud rose over Hiroshima and ended the Sino-Japanese War. There are so many books, documents, archives reminder us the victims of the bombing, and as well the terrible scar of a war.

Though, I would like to mention comic book series called Barefoot Gen written by Keiji Nakazawa. The series describe the horrible bombing and the aftermath in a "pictorial" format. This series not only provides the historical event, most important the message that: not all the Japanese citizen is pro-war. For those anti-war Japanese were actually portaited as the "traitors" of the Rising Sun nation. Most libraries store this series at the Young Adult collection - in my opinion, the series should be also classified as graphic novels for adult readers.

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Poems: "Are You a Book Person?" and "A Classic"

Here are two poems by Patrick Lewis that I found in the same book titled, Please Bury Me in the Library.

Are You a Book Person?
A good book is a kind
Of person with a mind
Of her own, Who lives alone, Standing on a shelf
By herself
She has a spine, A heart, a soul,
And a goal -
To capture, to amuse,
To light a fire
(You're the fuse),
Or else, joyfully,
Just to be,
From beginning
To end,
Need a friend?

A Classic
A children's book is a classic
If at six, excitedly
You read it to another kid
Who just turned sixty-three

Poem: "Please Bury Me in the Library"

I found this poem in one of our children books collection. - But why in a children picture book? Actually it doesn't matter. I enjoy reading it!

Please Bury Me in the Library by Patrick Lewis

Please bury me in the Library
In the clean, well-lighted stacks
Od Novels, History, Poetry,
Right next to the paperbacks

Where the Kids' Books dance
With True Romance
And the Dictionary dfozes.
Please bury me in the library
With a dozen long-stemmed proses.

Why back by a rack of Magazines,
I won't be sad too often,
If they bury me in the library
With Bookworms in my coffin.

Book: The Obama Diaries - Fictional diary entries?

A new book came out on July 13 called The Obama Diaries by Laura Ingraham. It is said that the creation of this book ...

"On May 20, 2010, Laura Ingraham received a package from an anonymous source;"
"While retrieving her automobile from the underground garage at the Watergate complex, Ingraham discovered a manila envelope on the hood of her car.;"
"The envelope contained copies of what appeared to be diary entries written by President Barack Obama, his family, and high-ranking administration officials."

Laura Ingraham is a former Supreme Court law clerk and white-collar criminal defense litigator, she lives in the Washington, D.C., area with her two children.

- Is the source reliable? Information came from nowhere? Source is found on the hood of her car? (You must be kidding)
- What is the reaction of the Obama administration and his family?
- Is this book simply another political opinion/talk?
- Has the author been biased and subjective?

I have no answers for my questions. But I am sure that the author certainly receives a large amount of royalties by using the President's name in her title. Well it is a capitalism society. If she has a chance to make money from a public figure, then why doesn’t she?

Joe Strupp, New York Times Book Editor siad, ""[this book] contains fictional diary entries purportedly written by President Obama and members of his administration." - Fictional diary entries?? That's very interesting.

Oh!... by the way, today is our President's birthday. Happy Birthday, Mr. President!

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Film of Russian novelist, Leo Tolstoy ( Lyev Nikolayevich Tolstoy)

I read Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina, War and Peace when I was a seven grader (trnslated versions). I aprticularly liked his war and peace at my young age out of curious with other cultures. At that time, I did not pay too much attention to the life of the author; but the stories of the books. Recently I came across a fim called The last Station which is a historical drama which iillustrates Tolstoy’s struggles between his fame and ideology at his final year of life in 1910. This film successfully illustrates the scope, breadth and vivid depiction of 19th-century Russian life and attitudes. But it provides a look inside the world of Leo Tolstoy which I did not know.

Book: Adeline Yeh Ma's Falling Leave

Someone asked me whether I have read Adeline Yeh Ma’s Falling Leave: The Memoir of an Unwanted Chinese Daughter. Yes I did. Do I like this book? Yes I like it. It is not because I am impressed by Adeline’s unfortunate childhood but the colorful and lively description of the customs, history and social upheaval of China from roughly the late 1800's until the 1970's.

I have to point out that Meh’s childhood is not a typical Chinese childhood. As I flipped over the pages, unfortunately I only sensed Adeline’s “nonstop” complaints. I am NOT impressed by the stories she depicted. After all it is only “one-side” story. From this book we learned from Adeline that her stepmother was cruel and manipulative; and how she treated her and her siblings unfairly compared to her own two children. But were the incidents in the book truly happened? We do not know. Considering Adeline’s mother died giving birth to her, she surely had some degree of resentment and guilt. She probably resented that her stepmother took over the mother role in the household. There’s always two-side story when dealing with family life. Did we hear her stepmother’s side story? No. Did we really know what her father’s role was? No.

I have to say that I felt less and less sorry for Adeline as I read towards the end of the book. And, please don’t think it is a typical Chinese family story.

Monday, August 2, 2010

We all come and leave this world “quietly”

In the past two days I kept thinking of my two former professors who passed away within three months ago respectively. Life is definitely short. We all come and go to this world just for a short time.

徐志摩的《再別康橋》

輕輕的我走了,(I leave quietly )
正如我輕輕的來;(As quietly as I came here)
我輕輕的招手,(I wave my hand quietly)
作別西天的雲彩。(I say goodbye to the clouds in the Western sky.)