2012 in libraries

I tracked the libraries that I visited this year. I have also done this in 2011, 2010 and 2009.

I went to thirty-five different libraries in eleven states for fifty-four visits total. I’m sure I have forgotten some. Here’s the short annotated list of what I was doing in libraries last year. Foursquare really helped me keep this list up to date. Top three libraries are the same as last year.

  • Kimball Library, Randolph VT – this is the library where I work as an on-call part timer since I live up the street, and also where I check out books
  • Hartness Library, VTC, Randolph VT – this is the good college library nearby me where anyone in the state can get a library card. I’ve got renewed interest in it since I started watching TV series on my ipad when at the gym.
  • Westport, MA – the library in the town where my father lived and where I still spend a good amount of time. Great booksale.
  • Lawrenceburg, IN – was here for a conference, stopped at the library twice, lovely place
  • Kilton Library, Lebanon NH – saying hi to Virgil again
  • Cranston, RI – hung out with Ed Garcia and got to see his cool library
  • Keene State, Keene NH – got a tour from the library director after a talk there
  • Carthage, MO – stopped by on my way cross-country
  • Nashville TN – stopped in en route to the TN Library association conference, really nice place, amazing renovations
  • Knoxville Public, TN – a library in need of some serious renovations, stark contrast to Nashville
  • NYPL/SIBL, NY – always a favorite, sorry it’s going away
  • Worcester PL, MA – checked the place out after a conference, a really well designed place
  • Ellis (Mizzou), Columbia MO – one of those wacky places with an old and a new part that don’t quite line up. Enjoyed my tour.
  • S. Boone County, Columbia MO – a nice newish library
  • Cranston, Hall Branch, RI – a fancier cousin to the main Cranston library, neat basement
  • AVA South Studio Library, NH – attached to an art gallery, a nice selection of books
  • East Providence, RI – waited here before meeting someone at a nearby comedy club when it was raining, nice staff
  • Hudson, MA – an old funky building, terrific hang out spot
  • Midstate, Berlin VT – we had an unconference here which was a great time
  • Watertown, MA – a neat new and old library with huge collection and a lot of neat places to hang out
  • Chelmsford, MA – saying hi to Brian
  • Mendik/NYLS, NY – chilling out after a busy conference, a neat basement library
  • Cambridge, MA – hanging out waiting for Jim to get out from his colonoscopy, thumbs up!
  • Pasadena, CA – an odd old building only sort of repurposed for modern uses
  • Hartland VT – my friend Mary doesn’t work here anymore!
  • Keene Public, NH – scooted by here on my way out of town
  • Fall River, MA – lovely old building
  • Chelsea, VT – saying hi to my friend Virgil
  • Howe/Hanover NH – stopping by en route to meeting some friends in from out of town, playable piano out front
  • St Louis – Machacek – this library did not have wifi, I was stunned
  • Berlin MA – such a cute small and awesome library
  • Blount County/Maryville TN – a neat middle-of noplace branch, super well designed and hoppin’
  • Rochester, VT – doing a lot with not very much
  • CUNY, NY – in an old department store building, fun tour
  • Charlotte, NC – an amazing bustling city library with some weird old empty parts to it

How not to write about libraries – some guidelines for reporters


We get it. Times are tough. The public sphere is shrinking in the US and elsewhere. Libraries are around and open, doing stuff. Their funding cycle is cyclical and short and up to the whims of various people, sometimes mysterious. The public library system belongs to everyone. There is a lot to talk about; a lot of things happen there. Many people have strong opinions about how public spaces are used and public money is spent and about the library in specific. You have a 24 hour news cycle, with pages or screens to fill. That’s terrific. We’re often happy for the attention.

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At the same time, there are a few tropes that do none of us any favors. You look like people who haven’t done your research or who go for the easy cliche and we look like people who can’t take a well-meaning joke (which we’ve heard for the thousandth time). Let’s get to a place where we’re all feeling good about the whole endeavor. Here are some suggestions. Hope this list, patterned off of How Not To Write Comics Criticism, is helpful. It’s called

How Not To Write About Libraries

1. Your library joke is tired, even if it’s new to you

It is almost impossible for you to make a library play on words that has not been done a million times before, even something that sounds contemporary like riffing off of “adult graphic novels”. You’re probably annoyed that you got the job writing about the library funding crisis but don’t take it out on us. Notify the headline writer also, please. We know you’re doing your best but we should never see “turns the page” or “starts a new chapter” when a new building is built or a librarian gets a new job, retires, or dies, or any sort of bun/shush/dewey/cat pun again ever. That “Overdue book returned years late” story? Heard it. Thank you.

2. Quit it with the wardrobe policing

You try working nights and weekends in a landmark building with a heating and cooling system that dates back to Carnegie times. Dressing in wool and layers is practical and smart, as is keeping your hair out of your face when you might have to crawl under a desk to fuss with a computer. Sixty-four percent of Americans wear eyeglasses, that number jumps to 90% after age 49. We’re not absurdly myopic from all that reading, we’re normal. Saying “OMG they can be sexy too!” is not actually a good response to this; as professions go we’ve always been pretty anti-censorship and sex positive.

3. We’re not all women, not even close

In 2008 the gender split among new grads was 80% female, 20% male. Last year it was more like 78% to 22% and the female/male gap is shrinking. We come from many ethnic backgrounds and we speak many languages. We date and marry people of many genders. A good number of us are just out of library school and share the characteristics of other people in our cohort: tattoos, body jewelry, a penchant for cocktails. Many of us are not just out of library school and enjoy the same things. Nothing unusual. Diversity of all kinds is important in any sort of public service position when you work for the entire public; please try to respect and represent the diversity of our population as it exists in the actual world not as it existed in the movies thirty or even fifty years ago.

4. Many different people work in a library building

This frequently comes up when there is a crime or another scandal at a library and someone gets interviewed who is invariably called “a librarian” and is later revealed to be a page, a volunteer, or maybe just an interested and chatty patron. Librarians (usually) work in libraries, but not everyone who works in a library is a librarian. There are many schools of thought on the importance of these distinctions and while we don’t expect you understand the subtle nuances of the differences between a reference librarian and a cataloger, or a circulation clerk and a shelver, it’s simply important to know that there are many different jobs within the library and not all of them are “librarian” and if you are not sure what the job title is of the person you spoke with, you should ask them. Many professional librarians, though not all, have Master’s degrees from accredited institutions. People call this level of graduate education “library school” and graduates have degrees ranging from MLib. (mine) to MSIS to MLS to MLIS.

5. There are some amazing things hidden in special collections

…and your chances of getting to see them diminish if you continually represent library archives as dusty, musty, smelly, unkempt, or populated entirely with hobbits and wizard-beings, strange and unknowable creatures unschooled in human customs. Introduce yourself and spend some time there and you’re likely to see some amazing things and learn some nifty things about your location, your neighbors or your academic institution.

6. No one with any credibility thinks “It’s all on the internet” and there are reasons why it isn’t

This is an untrue straw man argument, so you don’t have to keep bringing it up. There is a strong case to be made that the push for increasing digitization will be a net good for a society that is increasingly looking to satisfy their information needs online. However we are far from that point now, the digital divide is real and formidable. The vendor-based silos of information which are inaccessible without a payment or a password vex us as much as, if not more than, they vex you. We are trying to help people access the information they want and need. We’re sorry that the shift to digital content is causing trouble for some businesses’ bottom line, but we’ve always been publishers’ best customers and that will change only if they force it to. We would prefer that digital rights management were less onerous too. We would be happy to talk with you at length about why it’s easier to buy something from Amazon.com for personal use than it is to borrow it from the library on your Kindle. Blame copyright and capitalism, not the library.

7. The money thing is complicated, take some time to understand it

Libraries are funded differently from state to state and sometimes from county to county. Reporting on a funding “crisis” when it’s just a possible budget adjustment does us all a disservice with the “sky is falling” approach. Giving people real information about what is happening with and to the budget, and why, would be a great service. More information less doomsaying please. And, as always, if you need the numbers we’ll be happy to give them to you. They’re public. Public libraries have regular meetings of the library board that are open to the public and worth attending if this sort of thing piques your interest.

8. Not all libraries are public libraries

I work in a public library and so I fall into this trap myself. The public library system in the US is a sort of amazing decentralized mutual aid sort of creation, but it’s not the only library system in the US. School libraries and academic (college and university) libraries and law libraries and medical/hospital libraries and other special libraries all have their own systems and procedures and governing bylaws and mission statements and professional associations. Make sure that you are not reporting on one and ascribing it the values and traditions of another entirely different type of library.

9. The entire public is welcome in the public library

…including types of people you may dislike or find distasteful. And possibly including people who find you distasteful. With few exceptions people who are spending entire days or weeks in the library or who are looking at things on their computer screen that people might feel they should be viewing in private are doing so because they lack better or more genuine options. This is a larger societal problem and we are trying to help, making the best of a difficult situation within the structure of our mission statement and policies and procedures. The situation is complicated and deserves a better treatment than the usual “Porn in the library!” headline-grabbers.

10. Libraries are full of joyful noise

Not always, but often enough to say goodbye to the tut-tutting and the shushing and the QUIET PLEASE canards. While we try to have spaces that can accommodate quiet reading as well as rambunctious storytimes and group projects, libraries’ approaches to this are as varied as our buildings. Libraries are more popular than ever by most measures of library popularity and are still tremendously well-loved cultural institutions that are available to and for every single person. The reports of our demise have been greatly exaggerated, especially on the internet.

However it is true that most of us like cats and mostly do not hate Wikipedia.

Here are some more pointers to places to get good, factual information about libraries in the US.

ALA’s Library Bill of Rights
ALA Library LibGuides
ALA’s research and statistics section including the Library ROI bibliography
IMLS (Institute of Museum and Library Services) reports
ALA’s State of American Libraries report
Library Journal’s Placement and Salaries Survey

Now translated into Portuguese!

All images come from the Library of Congress’s Prints & Photographs Online Catalog and have no known restrictions on publication. Article specifically inspired by this tweet. Thanks to Andy Woodworth for reading the draft. Made a few small edits in response to recent feedback.

How do you search for something that’s NOT online, a fun and fascinating homework assignment

“Over the last week in my new first-year undergraduate course, Media Fluency for the Digital Age, my students have been wrestling with a very counterintuitive digital media assignment, and I think it’s worth exploring why these members of the “born digital” generation found this assignment so difficult — and so rewarding.” Professor Greg Downey discusses the results of his “hardest ever” homework assignment. Be sure to read down to the librarian shoutouts, and feel free to leave him a comment. [via @debcha]

2011 in libraries

As with last year and the year before, I tracked the libraries that I visited this year. I usually take pictures if I can. I use Daytum to track visits. The graph it produces is weird because the one big chunk is the library I work in but the other big chunk is called “twenty-four more items” which is sort of a weird way to display data. If anyone has a better lifetracker app they enjoy, please do let me know.

I went to forty-four different libraries for eighty-three visits total, I’m sure I have forgotten some. It’s a big increase over last year. Here’s the short annotated list of what I was doing in libraries last year. I have a few library photos in this Flickr photoset.

  • Kimball Library, Randolph VT – this is the library where I work as an on-call part timer since I live up the street, and also where I check out books
  • Hartness Library, VTC, Randolph VT – this is the good college library nearby me where anyone in the state can get a library card
  • Westport, MA – the library in the town where my father lived and where I still spend a good amount of time. Great booksale.
  • Fletcher Library, Ludlow VT – I was part of the e4VT program here and taught a basic skills computer class with ARRA grant money, a lovely old school library
  • Ann Arbor PL, MI – gave a few talks over a few days and got to hang out here, love this place
  • Milwaukee Public, WI – a library I hadn’t been to in a long time, an impressive building that maybe used to be a zoo?
  • Howland Green, New Bedford MA – one of New Bedford’s “not the main library” libraries.
  • Terraza PL, Austin TX – a cool little branch near where I was staying.
  • UNT – Willis – got a tour, enjoyed the open spaces
  • Hudson PL, MA – a small funky branch right by a river
  • Chapel Hill NC – in the mall for the time being, but pretty neat for a temporary library
  • Lubec, ME – lovely and small with great furniture and mosaics outside
  • Central Branch, Portland OR – long been one of my favorites
  • Marquette, Milwaukee WI – got a tour from a friend and saw the abandoned old entrance
  • SIBL/NYPL – the best place to check email downtown
  • Southworth PL, Dartmouth MA – another small branch in Southern MA
  • Emily Fowler Library, Denton TX – got some local history and learned about local architecture here
  • Central Branch, Austin TX – another perennial favorite – got some books for the plane
  • Ryerson Library, Grand Rapids MI – an impressive library with a lot going on inside
  • Pierson, Shelburne VT – underneath the town hall with a good board game collection
  • Kalamazoo Public – neat and fancy, got a tour of the basement
  • UNT – Eagle, Denton TX – checked out the new learning commons getting set up
  • Denton North Branch, Denton TX – a weird side-of-the-highway large branch
  • Kent District, Kentwood MI – neat suburban library with some cool public art and terrific views
  • Bar Harbor, ME – got a tour while they were setting up for the booksale
  • Lawler PL, New Bedford MA – another small New Bedford Library, sort of sad looking
  • Roanoke PL, Roanoke TX – a small library doing a lot with what they had
  • Twin Oaks PL, Austin TX – a fancy new little branch
  • Bailey-Howe, UVM, Burlington VT – one of my faves, especially the special collections in the basement
  • TWU, Denton TX – got a tour from my friend Greg and enjoyed the history and the air conditioning
  • Maine State Library, Augusta ME – a great hideout after a long day conferencing
  • Ransom PL, Plainwell MI – one of the little libraries we saw driving from Kalamazoo to Grand Rapids
  • Kilton PL, Lebanon NH – tour from my friend Virgil! Neat new branch.
  • Olin College, Needham MA – tour from the head librarian, neat materials science collections
  • Alling PL, Williston VT – a small library good for checking email when on the road
  • Hartland VT – my friend Mary works here!
  • Allegan District Library, MI – a pretty straightforward library
  • Parchment PL, MI – a diaorama of the parchment factory is hidden in the basement here
  • Peabody Institute, Danvers MA – a beautiful building with a lovely landscaped grounds, nice for hanging out
  • Putney PL, Putney VT – warm and small with a lot going on for a teeny place
  • New Bedford PL, New Bedford MA – beautiful old building sort of clunkily repurposed, always great for a visit
  • Ferguson Library Stamford CT – went to a CLA event here and bought expensive books from their booksale
  • Holland MI PL – fancy and with turtles
  • Brooks PL Brattleboro VT – some neat open source stuff going on there, got a tour after giving a talk

The People’s Library is the collective, public, open library of the Occupy Wall Street leaderless resistance movement.

There’s a lot going on in the news lately. It’s a busy time of year. Several people have sent me this image over facebook and elsewhere. What people may not know is that there is a library at Occupy Wall Street and one at Occupy San Francisco. And possibly more. Like many other temporary autonomous libraries, details are distributed and not always accurate. I suggest, for interested folks, keep an eye on the People’s Library blog (specifically this call for librarians if you want to get involved and these library ground practices) and get in touch with the folks from Radical Reference tonight if you’re in NYC. If anyone knows of either Occupy Ann Arbor or Occupy Milwaukee have libraries, please drop me a note. I’ll be on the road for a little bit.