Pro Book of the Month

Featured books in the Southwest District of Iowa Library Services Professional Collection

For a complete list of our professional books with links to reviews, see the main Professional Materials page.

Celestial River: Creation Tales of the Milky Way
By: Andrea Stenn Stryer
August House c. 1998

Teens always enjoy fantasy and myth. That’s exactly what you’ll find in this book, “Celestial River: Creation Tales of the Milky Way”. The book offers seven ancient tales about how the Milky Way was created. Each story is from a different culture: Japanese, Greek, Navajo, Australian Aborigine, Maori of New Zealand, Toba Indians of Argentina and the San people of the Kalahari. There is a good variety of stories. Some of the tales are stories of trickery others are stories of warmth and caring. All of them will inspire imagination.

This book can be easily used for programming. Each story opens with a paragraph that explains some of the cultural background of the story. Then, the story itself is only a two or three pages long. Your teens and tweens will all enjoy these fascinating tales.

Fiddle-Dee-Dee: Songs, Stories & Activities
By: Jill Andrews and Linda Bair
Alleyside Press c. 2000

Fiddle-Dee-Dee: Songs, Stories & Activities is by Jill Andrews and Linda Bair. This book is full of storytime programs. But, you will find one unique element to this book. All of the programs are based on traditional children’s songs.

There is material for 36 programs in this book. Each program begins with the lyrics and music to familiar children’s songs. Then you will be offered some interesting suggestions for setting the scene, such as passing out train tickets for the “New River Train” program or making flour footprints around the room for “The Muffin Man” program. There are activities, games and skill building exercises for each program. There are even bulletin board ideas.

The crafts are especially fun. The children will love making their own train engineer’s hat or a-tisket a-tasket basket. Every program has a craft and the masters for photocopying are included. There are also masters for games such as a mouse maze for “Hickory Dickory Doc” and a tangram fox for “A Hunting We Will Go”.

Fiddle-Dee-Dee makes storytime a lot easier. You’ll find just about everything you need for a fun filled program right at your fingertips.

Succession Planning in the Library
Paula M. Singer with Gail Griffith
American Library Association c.2010

Succession Planning in the Library is a book that will help you prepare for the inevitable changes in staff that occur in every library. Whether the change is due to a director’s retirement, illness or a staff member moving onto other endeavors the library can have a plan in place to fill its needs.

This book helps you create a plan for succession. It begins with staff changes. It explains how to identify key elements of each position. It then guides you through how to prepare staff members to be able to fill in for others as changes occur. The book, next, deals with preparing for a director change. In the event of a sudden change others among the staff will be prepared to step in and fill the gap. As for planned changes such as a retirement the board will already know what steps they will take for recruiting for the position.

This book will be useful to both directors and boards. It is full of wisdom and insights that may not have occurred to you previously. Use the helpful risk assessment checklist to help identify needs for your particular library. By preparing in advance and continuously for change transitions can be made with little disturbance in services to the public.

U. S History Through Children's Literature:
From Colonial Period to World War II
By: Wanda J. Miller
Teacher Ideas Press c. 1997

Excite your Elementary and Middle School children with a fun way to involve them in reading and book discussions. U. S. History Through Children’s Literature is a program manual written for teachers but easily adapted for library programs.

Here’s how it works. For each chapter there is a theme about U. S. History from Native Americans to World War II, eight in all. The Chapter opens with a brief introduction about the theme then introduces a book for the theme. There are a few sentences about the book and a paragraph about the author. The kids read the book themselves or you may read it as a group.

Here’s where the fun begins. To go along with each book there are several activities such as finding the locations mentioned in the book on a map, illustrating a scene from the book, or acting out a scene.

At the end of each chapter it is time to celebrate. The Native American chapter includes recipes for a party. For the Exploration chapter the children find out information about different explorers and hold a presentation day. There are more recipes along with ideas for displays acting and writing exercises. The kids will love the entertaining selection of books and all of the activities that will bring them to life.

Organizing Friends Groups
Mark Y. Herring
Neal-Schuman c.1993

Have you ever thought of starting a Friends group for you library, but didn't quite know where to begin? You may wish to start with the book Organize Friends Groups by Mark Y. Herring. Herring started from scratch organizing a Friends group. Now, he is sharing all of the knowledge he wishes he has known before he began the process.

Author, Mark Herring takes you through the entire process of creating a Friends group. He takes you from the first member all the way to planning and publicizing major events. He begins with the basics such as finding interested people for your group, setting membership fees and increasing membership. He then advances onto how to plan, publicize and execute events, everything from book sales to a dinner with a nationally known speaker. Throughout the process Herring offers as much advice on what not to do as what works to create a great organization. A Friends group can be an enormous help to the library. This book has answers to many of your questions and can get you started.

Library Skills Activities Kit:
Puzzles, Games, Bulletin Boards and Other Interest-Rousers for the Elementary School Library
Jerry J. Mallett
Center for Applied Research in Education, Inc. c.1981

Library Skills Activities Kit is a book-load of ideas to teach library skills in fun and exciting ways in the library. Each year students visit the library in groups or individually that need to master the skills of using materials. In this book you will find more than one hundred fun ways to introduce library skills.

Bulletin boards are always a great way to attract attention, but make them interactive and let the learning begin. One bulletin board example features sorting fiction titles printed on peanut shapes. Feed the peanuts to the elephants on the bulletin board in the right order then check the answer key to see if you are correct. Another is opening little doors to discover what is behind the Dewey Decimal number such as sports, travel and animals.

There is much much more. The book includes many puzzle pages and activity pages that you can hand out. There are also simple games for multiple players. The students will love learning as they play the games and solve the puzzles. Arouse interest with mobiles and other colorful displays. Let the children interest each other by voting for their favorite books or telling the book character they would most like to be.

All of the ideas in this book can be easily put into action. Puzzle and activity pages are all ready to print out. Bulletin boards and displays are made from easy to find material such as cereal boxes and construction paper. There are lots of illustrations and reproducible patterns to help you get going. With the help of this book you will find many ways to encourage students to become active users of their library.

Using Children's Books in Preschool Settings
By Steven Herb and Sara Willoughby-Herb
Neal Schuman c.1994

Being exposed to books is essential for young children to develop as good readers. The library setting and storytime can be very beneficial to both children that have little exposure to books at home and those that are read to often. In this book “Using Children’s Books in a Preschool Setting” you will find a wealth of information from why to do programs for the very young to how and what to present.

The book begins by introducing you to the developmental stages of children and what their needs are at each age level. Knowing these stages helps significantly in selecting material for the age group you are working with for the best benefit to the children. Knowing that children begin to interact at 18 -36 months and by 48 months they know some of their favorite book parts by heart is a very helpful aid.

The book continues with information about how and what to present. There is a helpful Q&A section that answers questions about presentation such as how to deal with a disruptive child. There is a section of complete storytime plans that include book suggestions, activities, rhymes and crafts all divided by age group. The bibliography is extensive and is divided by theme.

You’ll find even more in this book: Literacy support for the family, help for working with special needs children, doing song and poetry programs and more. You’ll be amazed how much useful information you will glean from this book.

Designing The Digital Experience
By: David Lee King
Information Today c. 2008

In this book, "Designing the Digital Experience", author David Lee King helps you to be able to create a web site that is exactly what your patrons are looking for, quick and easy to use. But, Mr. King would like you to go even further to create a whole digital experience. Creating a site that your patrons will be able to enjoy using, find more than they expected, interact with others and want to use again and again.

Mr. King guides you through the process of developing strategies for your web site. You will find a model that takes you through the entire planning process. The author offers many illustrations of excellent websites and explains why they work so well. Also, included are ways for your patrons to communicate with you and each other. This is what King calls creating a community. King explains how this can be accomplished through social software such as blogs, wikis, Flickr, videocasting and twitter with explanations of what these are and how they can be used. The examples also illustrate ways to entice your patrons to linger longer and find a reason for returning again. You will be able to develop a truly memorable web site.

Start from scratch to build your web site. Or, learn ways to improve your web site that you never thought of before. You will find a lot of valuable information in this very readable book.

Crisis in Employment:
A Librarian’s Guide to helping Job Seekers
By Jane Jerrard
American Library Association 2009

Helping job seekers has become a new role for libraries. Job seekers are looking for computers with internet access. They need education on basic computer skills and to learn how to search job resources. Many need help filing unemployment forms and job applications. There are even some that need guidance because of limited literacy and English skills. “Crisis in Employment: A Librarian’s Guide to Helping Job Seekers” is a great resource for helping you provide service to the new influx of customers who are searching for jobs.

This little book will be your guide. It helps you realize what is needed to help job seekers. It explains ways to get the help needed through partnering with other agencies or finding skilled volunteers to teach in the library. There are guidelines for setting up classes and suggestions of how to make the best use of you and your staff’s skills. Budgets are limited and staff time is short, but in this book you will be able to explore some no cost and low cost alternatives to serve your job seekers. You will find some great insights by reading what other libraries around the country have done for their community’s needs. Using this guide you will be able to plan ahead and have your library and programs ready when they are needed the most.

The Thinking Person’s Guide to Stress Management
Pat Wagner
Cassette Tape --- Pattern Research c. 1996

SWILSA’s professional collection includes a set of cassette tapes by Pat Wagner, nationally known speaker on improving workplace productivity. On this tape, The Thinking Person’s Guide to Stress Management, Pat takes you through a four part model for relieving personal stress in the workplace as well as in your life.

Learn as Pat discusses her model for stress management. She will guide you through her four topics step by step.
Prepare: Be ready to face the stresses as they come. Find a full hour to devote to your personal health.
Respite: Every hour get up and move. Movement creates energy. Nibble on healthy snacks to keep blood sugars even.
Healing: Talk through the big issues in your life with someone. It will help you better cope with work pressures.
Prevention: Only promise what you have control over. Sometimes you’ll just have to say, “No.”

Pat offers her own personal examples and insights as she explains how to achieve each of the four parts of the model. This tape is a good way to begin to develop a more stress free environment.

Mystery-Fold: Stories to Tell, Draw, and Fold
By: Valerie Marsh
Alleyside Press c. 1993

Combine storytelling and drawing for a unique story time presentation. In this book, Mystery-Fold: Stories to Tell, Draw and Fold you will be able to captivate the children’s attention with these simple drawings that turn cleverly into a wonderful surprise picture.

The book includes 22 original stories. Each is less than a page in length and has its own draw and fold pattern. As you read the stories you are given the instructions for each line to draw step by step. At the end of the story fold the drawing and a new surprise picture appears. In the story, What Jessica and Rachel Had, your group must guess where the girls in the story live. By drawing lines and circles your group will discover that the characters in the story live on a ship. But, now the story asks “what didn’t the characters have”. When the ship drawing is folded and inverted a swing set appears.

The children will find these stories memorable. Being able to repeat a story and being able to tell the sequence are skills children will need to develop when preparing to learn to read and in school as they increase their reading skills. Here is a simple way for your library program to help.

The Readers’ Advisory Guide to Nonfiction
Neal Wyatt
American Library Association c. 2007

Reading Nonfiction for entertainment as well as learning is what the author of this book calls “Crossing the Dewey Divide”. This describes the subject of the book very well. Discover that reading nonfiction can be as compelling and enjoyable as fiction. Readers have begun to want more of these nonfiction books that read like a story. Using, The Readers’ Advisory Guide to Nonfiction you will be able to easily direct your patrons to many enjoyable titles.

This book is laid out in an easy to use format. It is divided into several major subjects of interest such as true crime, true adventure, travel, even cooking and sports. Others are historical biographies and memoirs. Each chapter points out what there is about its subject that the fiction reader would look for in these nonfiction subjects. Possibilities are: high tension, suspense, heart break, drama and humor. Each chapter continues by including a full description of four or five of the author’s choice picks for each subject. The format allows you to easily skip around to find the information you need.

There is so much more you will find of interest in this book. For instance: A Reader’s Advisory Matrix form for evaluating a book’s qualities as entertainment reading, a bibliographical list of more title suggestions and read-alikes, and a form that will help you prepare annotations for books as a help aid for your patrons. So, cross over the Dewey Divide and point your readers in a new direction for their reading pleasure.

Working Together
James Swan
Neal-Schuman c. 1992

Working Together is a great guide book especially created for Librarians and Trustees. This book clearly and easily explains the roles of both trustees and librarians. As each new trustee comes on board this book would be very useful as part of their orientations. It covers such topics as: recruiting, policies, getting and managing money, taking care of the facilities, public relations, how to resolve differences and most of all teamwork. (Just to name a few.) Everything that Librarians and Trustees must deal with as they work together.

You will find that this book is user friendly. You can easily look up your topic of interest: hiring, orientations, evaluations, budget and planning. You will also find some topics that may be of new interest to you: reducing expenditures, advice on building projects, and keeping the library visible to the community. The chapters include help aids such as: worksheets, checklists, applications, evaluations and surveys. You will also enjoy reading the experiences of other libraries; both their successes and their failures.

This book illustrates that when Librarians and Trustees understand their jobs and their own roles they will be able to work together more effectively for their community.

Read For The Fun Of It
By: Caroline Feller Bauer
H. W. Wilson Co. c. 1992

We want our children to read. Not just for their schoolwork. We want them to enjoy reading and read often. In this book, Read For the Fun Of It, you will find many wonderful ways to inspire children to read and appreciate books. This book doesn’t just make suggestions It has the actual stories, booktalks, Readers’ Theater, games and much more all ready for you.

You will seldom find a book with so much variety. The book begins with instructions about how to involve others to inspire reading: community leaders, administrators, and parents. It moves on to tell you of different ways to capture children’s attention through such methods as booktalks, posters, games and storytime programs. Learn more about storytelling and teaching children to be storytellers. And, don’t miss the section on encouraging children to enjoy poetry. The “Playing With Books section” has lots of quick and fun writing exercises to help enjoy books in a different way. This book includes graphics for flannelboards, poster, and exhibits. You will be amazed how much is included in the book.

Get ready to inspire reading in the library, school or daycare with the material included in this book. You will be pleasantly surprised at how many stories are included in this book along with booktalks, funny poetry, and games. There are even a couple of magic tricks. Best of all, this book will show you many new methods to get children excited about reading.

Everyday Leadership
Pat Wagner
Cassette Tape --- Pattern Research c. 1999

SWILSA’s professional collection includes a set of cassette tapes by Pat Wagner, nationally known speaker on personnel management.

On this tape, Everyday Leadership, Pat explains that Leadership should be found at every level of a workplace not just at the top. A leader is the person that inspires others to do and be their best. A leader is a person that sees what the future can be and compels others to help them make it a reality. A leader aspires to do their best so those around them will want to do the same.

In this tape Pat Wagner will help you look for leadership qualities and build them in yourself. She helps you understand how to guide others to be leaders, too. Pat offers plenty of practical advice on how to grow into a leadership role no matter what your position is in an organization.

Stop the Whining
Pat Wagner
Cassette: 1hour 10 minutes – Pattern Research c. 1999

SWILSA’s professional collection includes a set of cassette tapes by Pat Wagner, nationally known speaker on personnel management. On this tape, Stop the Whining, Pat offers her advice about how to stop giving into ineffective complaining and what to do to ask for what you want and get it.

Everyone could benefit from the information Pat Wagner has to offer. In this tape she takes you through many illustrations of how to begin to turn your attitudes around. She shows us how to make suggestions that will be seriously considered. Instead of muttering that nobody listens to your ideas Pat explains ways to open a dialog to present ideas or even just find out why an idea wasn’t considered. Pat demonstrates techniques for how to handle criticism, both giving and receiving. Using her techniques for criticism can help avoid hurt feeling on both sides. These are just a couple of the points she touches on. By improving your positive influence you make it easier for others to respond to you in a positive way.

By putting into practice some of the advice on this cassette you may find you can build better relationships with the people around you.

Jan. O9

Designs for Living and Learning:
Transforming Early Childhood Environments
By Deb Curtis and Margie Carter
Redleaf Press c. 2003

In this book, Designs for Living and Learning: Transforming Early Childhood Environment, you will find dozens of colorful photographs of learning centers. These creative spaces may easily be set up in almost any setting: libraries, daycares, and homes. Children learn so much from their environment. When it is rich with things to touch, sense, and experience their minds can grow and expand. Setting up learning centers will greatly help with this growth.

There are so many illustrations of learning centers in this book. There are simple ones that only take a minute to set up. A silky scarf hung up for a touch and feel or sea shells in a basket. But why not have some fun. Set up a shadow center, a cozy reading nook, or a dress-up corner. Want to get a little messy. See how to set up a center for making new colors with paint. For something more elaborate set up a tent or actually build a framework for a play house. This book has many wonderful ideas for you.

Don’t stop with just one special space. This book encourages the use of several different learning centers around a room. Let the children move from a building center with knobs and tools to a writing and drawing center onto Centers for discovery with bells or mirrors. There are even centers for developing large motor skills such as tubes or boxes to crawls through. According to this book more is better.

Setting up learning centers can be as simple or elaborate as you like but they are so very important to a child’s development.

The Complete Learning Spaces Book for Infants and Toddlers
By: Rebecca Isbell and Christy Isbell
Gryphon House, Inc. c. 2003

The Complete Learning Spaces Book for Infants and Toddler is filled to the brim with ideas and examples of how to surround young children with an effective learning environment. From the time children are born they learn by examining and manipulating objects. This book provides many examples of learning spaces that can be created around a room for this purpose.

There are so many wonderfully creative ideas in this book. For very young children you can place a row of pictures along the lowest part of the wall for viewing. Add a blanket of different textures that will help them begin to develop their touch. For children beginning to move around a hanging ball to reach for is fun. For mobile children create a push – pull center, a construction space with blocks and building items, hat and shoe store spaces, even a shadow center. All of these stimulate learning skills. There are more than 50 great ideas complete with illustrations and plans for construction when needed. The canopy over a book area complete with cushions is very charming. You will soon discover the impact of learning spaces on children’s development.

This book shows you so many creative learning spaces that can be easily set up in libraries, daycares and homes. It explains why these spaces are important and how they work. It, also, includes a letter that can be sent home with parents so they can understand that you are trying to build learning skills in their children and that they can, too.

Nov. 08

Talking Hands series
Colors and Shapes, Feelings and Emotions, Home, Food, Seasons
By: Kathleen Petlinsek and E. Russell Primm
The Child's World c. 2005

The Talking Hands series consists 5 colorful little books. They introduce you to beginning words in sign language and Spanish. The five titles are Colors and Shapes, Feelings and Emotions, Home, Food, and Seasons.

The format of these books is very simple. On Each page there is a large color photograph of an item such as a football, bed, or leaf. Bedside each photograph is an illustration of how to say the word using American Sign Language. After the sign language illustration you will find both the Spanish and English word for the item on the page. This format is easy for both adults and children.

The books are a great way for you to start adding a few words of either sign language or Spanish to your storytime programs.

Storytime: Not Just For Kids Anymore
Multnomah County Library c. 2007
DVD 25 minutes + Discussion Guide

Children that are introduced to the 6 Early Childhood Literacy Skills are prepared for school and learn to read much more quickly. This DVD, Storytime: Not Just For Kids Anymore, is a wonderful way to learn how librarians can use these skills in their storytime programs and more importantly demonstrate the skills for parents.

If you are still wondering about what each of the 6 skills are and how to use them in your program you will find this DVD very helpful as well as entertaining. Each of the skills are described in a short easy to understand way. You will get to watch how different age groups of children respond during a storytime program. You will, also, see librarians working with the children during their programs and hear their comments.

It may be difficult at first to include the parents in your story time program. But, parents want to know how to carry on these skills at home. All that is needed are two or three brief explanations to the parents about one of the skills at each program. You will be introducing parents to what they can be doing to reinforce the skills every day at home.

This DVD is a fun way to learn about the 6 Early Childhood Literacy Skills and help build your confidence to begin introducing the skills to parents and caregivers. So, spend just 25 minutes with this DVD and it’s support manual and you will be ready for your next storytime program that includes material not just for children but their parents, too.

Born To Succeed:
An Early Literacy Message From Young Parents
Multnomah County Library Early Childhood Resources
DVD - 10 minutes

Born To Succeed is a DVD that is only about 10 minutes long. It is a selection of parents offering their views about why reading to small children is so very important.

On the DVD the parents bring out the following points: Children will respond from the earliest age. You will find that reading time is calming and soothing, a great bonding experience. Reading early begins to develop the child’s learning skills. Reading early creates awareness and recognition of the world around them. All of these parents believed that exposing their children to books early would lead to more successful reading and learning skills in the future.

This would be an excellent DVD to show to new parents. They would be encouraged by the parents in the DVD to make reading to their babies the highest priority.

Note: Southwest Library Services also has a copy of this DVD in Spanish, La Llave Del Exito.

Pick Me Up! Fun Songs for Learning Signs
Publisher: Sign2Me c. 2003

Librarians have often used fingerplays in their children’s programs. Now try using Baby signs. You will be able to help even the littlest children increase their communication process. Physical movement as communication actually helps build vocabulary with less frustration. Add music and its fun, too.

Pick Me UP! Fun Songs For Learning Signs is a music CD and American Sign language activity guide. This book shows you how to incorporate Baby Signs, in the form of American Sign Language (ASL), and music into your storytime programs. The CD begins by showing you how to prepare and use the songs and sign language with your group along with the help of a full demonstration of one of the songs. The CD includes 20 lively songs. And, you will find all of the lyrics in the book. There are illustrations of how to do each of the signs that will be needed for a song. The format of the book is laid out so you will know just when to use the signs during the songs. Use them all or just a few. This book offers a great start for anyone interested in adding Baby Signs to their Children’s programs.

One Hello At A Time
Pat Wagner
Cassette: 30 minutes – Pattern Research c. 1996

SWILSA’s professional collection includes a set of cassette tapes by Pat Wagner, Nationally know speaker on personnel management. On this tape, “One Hello At A Time”, Pat Wagner offers an abundance of information for her helpful version of networking. She offers ways to gain help and advice from others and build long term productive relationships in the workplace. Just by saying that first Hello and following some of Pat’s advice you may just find that the next person you meet has the potential to be the most help to you.

Pat presents 5 simple points for building relationships. She expands on them through her use of examples of interactions with others so you can clearly understand how beneficial these points can be. One of her points is: Listen carefully even to your enemies. Pat expresses the idea that sometimes the people you get along with the least are more willing to be honest with you than your friends that would rather protect you. Also, you may glean a lot of information from those people that have a different point of view. Never cut the flow of information.

By putting into practice some of the advice on this 30 minute cassette you may find you can build better relationships with the people around you.

Leading Kids to Books
With Caroline Feller Bauer
By: Caroline Feller Bauer
ALA/ Library Video Network 39Minutes

Caroline Feller Bauer, a long time storyteller and author of such books as: Read for the Fun of It and Handbook for Storytellers, offers her best tips and tricks to get children interested in books. In this video, filled with her charming antics, she demonstrates what she does to capture and hold the interest of her audience.

Ms Bauer’s ideas are quick, easy and successful. Learn how to make and use the simplest puppets. A mitt with eyes can be anything you want it to be from a pig to a bear. Have you ever thought of using a dog biscuit box as a strolling puppet theater? Learn a little juggling and a little magic. Even answering a telephone is a quick trick to get a group quiet as they try to listen in. Whether she is doing a children’s story hour with puppets or strolling through the library wearing a book in her clear plastic apron pocket the focus is always on introducing books to children.

Read Aloud Now!
ALA Video / Library Video Network c. 1991

Read Aloud Now is a little 13 minute video that quickly explains the reasons and ways for reading to a child early. The video would work very well as a demonstration for new parents as well as library staff to help them understand the benefits of young children having an early connection with books.

The video offers many helpful tips. There is advice for selecting books such as board books for babies so they can handle them, selecting books with songs and rhymes to make the material more memorable, and pop-up books to hold their attention. There are tips for reading techniques, as well. The video suggests using a lot of expression and emotion while you read and involving the child by asking, "What comes next." With all of the tips and suggestions on this video parents and staff will get off to a good start.

Videos are a fast and fun way to learn. This video will help put Early Childhood Literacy techniques to work right away.

Library 2.0: A Guide To Participatory Library Service
By: Michael E. Casey and Laura C. Savastinuk
Information Today, Inc. c. 2007

Web 2.0 technologies such as Web pages, Blogs, Instant Messaging, Wikkis, flickr and more are the tools that work towards developing the “Library 2.0” model for change offered in this book, Library 2.0: A Guide to Participatory Library Service. Library users are able to communicate exactly what they want from their library. Non-users have an opportunity to express what they are looking for in services. Input can be gathered from the entire staff. Their participation in turn helps develop change.

This book offers a plan for a constant cycle of change. Using the ideas and comments gathered from the staff and the public the library is able to implement the 3 step model to create a constant environment of change and growth within the library. Step 1. Investigate: determines feasibility of an idea that has been presented, Step 2. Planning: implements the service idea and creates a review plan, Step 3. Review: analyzes and evaluates the service to determine if it should be continued, modified or stopped. The book thoroughly explains how to put this plan into practice.

There is one example of a library that has 10 blogs accessible from its home page. One blog is for the director. Others reach out to multiple interest groups in the community. Also, there are blogs for discussion of books, music and technology. With the participation that this technology generates the library will always be able to determine the needs of their public and new directions for the library.

Lapsit Services for the Very Young: A How-To-Do-It Manual
By: Linda L. Ernst
Neal-Schuman c. 1995

Which is more important teaching the child or teaching the parent to teach the child? According to Lapsit Services for the Very Young: A How-to-do-it Manual the answer should be both. Tiny children are ready to learn at a tremendous rate. Offering a program to infants and pre-toddlers helps them learn to focus their attention, increases language development, and encourages motor skill development. Including parental instruction shows the parent or caregiver how to continue this development at home. It is, also, an encouragement to the parent with poor literacy skills of their own or for the ones that English is not their fist language.

This book is a comprehensive guide for setting up a lapsit program for parents and their little ones. It covers everything from the evaluation to decide if such a program is needed to seeking other agencies that could partner with your program. The book covers why the programs are important to both the child and the parent. It explains fully what is needed for such a program: such things as space needs and a book display for parental guidance material in the area. It discusses what types of music, books, crafts, rhymes and finger plays are appropriate for this age group. Best of all there are several full length programs to get you started.

You will be encouraging these families and young children to become lifelong library users as they discover all the library has to offer.

Blogging and RSS: A Librarian’s Guide
Michael P. Sauers
Information Today c. 2006

Blogging and RSS: A Librarian’s Guide is a great resource if you are looking for further information about Blogs, Podcasting, RSS feeds, and Aggregators.

This book fully explains what blogs are and why blogging is useful to libraries. There are explanations of how RSS feeds and aggregators are used. The book offers great step by step instructions to get you up and going.

But, there’s more. You can see what others are doing. The book includes listings for many library blogs. Each listing has full information describing the blog, its location and information about the blogger.

If you would like to start a blog for your library you will find a lot of the help you need in this book.

Sizzling Summer Reading Programs for Young Adults
By: Katharine L. Kan
ALA c. 1998

Sizzling Summer Reading Programs for Young Adults is a book filled with programs that have been successfully used by libraries from across the country. For each program there is a brief description of the program: There is information about how teens were encouraged to participate, incentives used and prizes given. Many of the descriptions explain how the program received funding or where donations such as gift certificates came from. You’ll enjoy seeing the examples of the creative posters and tracking sheets.

The librarians were very honest in their descriptions. They explain things that didn’t go as well as planned and things that they would do differently next time. Of the 50 plus programs there are more than just Summer Reading Programs. The book includes such programs as ones for Teen Volunteers, Teen Advisory Boards, and Special Needs Teens.

This book will inspire a lot of bright new ideas as you plan all of your programs for young adults this year.

Here are 2 more titles that may be helpful:
Summer Reading Program Fun: 10 Thrilling, Inspiring Wacky Board Games for Kids
By: Wayne L. Johnson and Yvette C. Johnson

Running Summer Library Reading Programs: A How To-Do-It Manual
By: Carole D. Fiore

The Library Manager’s Deskbook:
102 Expert Solutions To 101 Common Dilemmas
By: Paula Phillips Carson, Kerry David Carson, Joyce Schouest Phillips
American Library Association c. 1995

The Library Manager’s Deskbook is a book that any librarian would find helpful. It offers concise authoritative advice on handling problems that occur in every workplace. You will find brief (no more than a page) but thorough discussions of such subjects as marketing, hiring, evaluations, termination and scheduling. Also, the tougher subjects are discussed: worker’s compensation claims, natural disasters, safety in the workplace, homeless patrons and violence. There are 101 problems presented each followed by advice that will help prevent problems from escalating in the library or legally.

This book is actually in 2 parts. The first part is the question and answer section that helps you resolves problems that may have occurred. Part II of the book offers advice on how to avoid these problems ever occurring. The quick read question and answer format of this book helps you find the solutions you need fast and easily.

Defusing The Angry Patron:
A How-To-Do-It Manual For Librarians and Paraprofessionals
By: Rhea Joyce Rubin
Neal-Schuman c. 2000

Defusing the Angry Patron is an excellent guidebook for dealing with the public. This book offers basic strategies for both avoiding angry situations from occurring and for keeping a situation from escalating. You will also find exercises to help you evaluate yourself. Are you a good a listener? Are you aware of your own anger tendencies? You will find all of these tips and techniques to be a great help for both you and your staff.

A visibly upset patron enters the library. By greeting this patron in a friendly manner and being the first to speak you are the one to set the tone of the conversation to follow, friendlier and calmer. It’s simple strategies like this one that can make a big difference in how the public views you and the library.

Preparing Staff to Serve Patrons With Disabilities

Courtney Deines-Jones and Connie Van Fleet
Neal-Schuman Publishers, Inc c. 1995

Our libraries are meant to serve everyone. Yet, are you and your staff prepared to deal with patrons that have disabilities and may need more than the usual amount of service? Preparing Staff to Serve Patrons With Disabilities is a book that will help teach librarians to serve their non-traditional patrons with confidence.

The book has a lot to offer. It gives examples of how to approach patrons with disabilities without embarrassing them or yourself. It explains how to offer an orientation that will present your special services to those that need them. It explains how to use signage and maps for the hearing impaired. In general, this book provides tips, resources and procedures that staff can use to help provide service to all of their patrons.

According to this book one in every five people in the U.S. have problems performing daily activities without help. This book will help you discover what is needed to provide the best service for this portion of your population.

Against Borders
By: Hazel Rochman
ALA c. 1993

Hazel Rochman grew up in South Africa under apartheid where "public" libraries were for whites only. She and her husband once buried banned books in their Johannesburg yard for fear of discovery by police. An assistant editor for ALA’s Booklist for many years, Rochman has lived as an immigrant in the United States since 1972 and a naturalized citizen since 1982. Her background lends a certain passion to her discussion of multiculturalism.

She begins her discussion with a caution: "‘Multiculturalism’ is a trendy word, trumpeted by the politically correct with a stridency that has provoked a sneering backlash. There are P.C. watchdogs eager to strip from the library shelves anything that presents a group as less than perfect." She jokes about changing her name to Hazel Rochperson and points out that the backlash she speaks of is a tendency to ignore the real issues of prejudice. So she doesn’t shy away from stories of cross-cultural romance, the hurtful side of friendship, the real tensions in family life, and heroes from many cultures versus the ‘monster’ inside us all of us.

Young people enjoy reading about those like themselves, but they also want to read about how other people live and think. The simplest goal of multiculturalism is to get to know other peoples. As Rochman says about her life in South Africa, "I didn’t know anything about most of the people around me. And because of that I didn’t know what I could be." And knowing what one can be is a major young adult interest.

The bulk of Against Borders is devoted to reviews of multicultural books that deal with themes that young adults will appreciate: "The Perilous Journey" reviews books about a kind of quest -- about getting out and getting away, about freedom; "Outsiders" suggests books that deal with the sometimes conflicting needs for identity and community; and "Finding the Way Home" reviews autobiographies and memoirs that tell of crucial choices, big discoveries, and transformed lives.

The second half of the book lists resources useful in understanding promoting multiculturalism. Rochman lists favorite fiction, nonfiction and video selections on racism, ethnic identity in the U.S., and life in foreign countries.

This book is inspiring as well as useful. It would be a great place to begin planning any multicultural program for young adults.
Review by: Susan Gruber

What Happened to Marion’s Book?
By: Brook Berg
Upstart c. 2003

Marion drips jelly on the very first book she ever checked out of the library. When she tries to find one of her own books to replace it she discovers she has not been taking very good care of any of her books. In, What Happened to Marion’s Book, Marion the hedgehog learns important lessons about the care and use of library books. With this book you will be able to help the children in your story group learn these same lessons right along with Marion.

A lesson plan booklet is included with the storybook. Use the material in the booklet to extend your book care story into a full program. The booklet also includes reproducible masters such as a coloring page. This book is a fun way to introduce young children to the care and use of library material.

Shelf Elf
With Library Lessons
By: Jackie Mims Hopkins Illustrated by: Rebecca Thornburgh
Upstart c.2004

Shelf Elf With Library Lessons is a colorful and whimsical storybook that teaches library behavior and book care. Skoob the Shelf Elf would like to tell the children that visit the library all about his job in the library. He tells the children about the library and then offers lessons in a rhyming text. His first lesson is how to use shelf markers so the books are put back where they belong.

Along with the Shelf Elf storybook there is a lesson plan booklet. Use the material in the booklet to extend your book care and library behavior story into a full program. The booklet also includes reproducible masters such as a coloring page. This book is a fun way to introduce young children to the care and use of the library and it’s materials.

Readers’ Advisory Service In The Public Library, 2^nd Edition
By: Joyce G. Saricks and Nancy Brown
American Library Association c. 1997

Readers’ advisory is the service of helping your patrons find the books they are most interested in reading. It goes beyond basic genre such as mystery, romance and adventure. It is determining what your patron truly enjoyed about the book and then being knowledgeable enough about the books available to help your patron make a selection. Several patrons may read the same book but each may be finding something different that they enjoyed about the book. Some may enjoy a book for its accurate historical background while another enjoys it for its witty dialog and cares little for its historical interest. One person may enjoy a book because of its exotic location another may enjoy it because it is set specifically in Egypt and no other exotic locations are of interest to them. Reader’s Advisory Service In the Public Library is a book that will help you learn how to determine what your patron is really looking for in a book.

This book is a great tool for reader’s advisory. It explains thoroughly the areas to look for in a book that will appeal to patrons. It then describes how to conduct an effective interview with the patron so that you can determine which of these areas of appeal the patron really wants to find in their next book. Next, the book offers resources where you will find descriptions of the books now in publication. You will also learn about writing annotations for the books and about giving booktalks. When these are done well your patrons will want to pull the book off the shelf and read it immediately.

There is a wealth of information in this little book. Readers’ advisory is something librarians attempt to do for their patrons every day. With the help of this book you will find ways to be much more effective in helping your patrons find the books they are truly pleased to be reading.

The Copyright Primer:
For Librarians and Educators, Second Edition
Janis H. Bruweilheide
American Library Association and National Education Association
c 1995

The Copyright Primer is an overview of copyright law as it pertains to libraries, school libraries, media specialists and classroom educators. You can be held responsible for copyright violations therefore, it is in your best interest to have a good understanding of the law.

This little book clearly explains the points of copyright law that are most important to libraries. Such things as Interlibrary loan of books and magazines, photocopying by staff or patrons, making copies from computers, use of sheet music, graphics and showing of videos. It explains what rights libraries have concerning "fair use" and "public performance" according to the law.

The format of the book is very nice. An explanation of the law is followed by a question and answer section for clarification of the law. A section of actual court cases reveal how easy it is to break copyright law and how costly it can be. There is a helpful section that offers wording that may be used for writing copyright policies for your own library. There is also an example of a letter asking permission to make copies to go to the owner of material. This book makes it easy for you to understand your rights and determine if your library is complying completely with the copyright laws.

Blueprint for your Library Marketing Plan:
A Guide to help you Survive and Thrive
By Patricia H. Fisher and Marseille M. Pride
ALA c. 2006

Today’s library is in fierce competition for both customers and funding. Blueprint for your Library Marketing Plan offers a step by step technique to help Librarians put together and present their best case to those that are able to offer funding and attract customers.

Now that you’ve gathered data about your community it’s time to put it to work. With the help of this book you will be able to decide what is most needed for your library, how to create a workable plan and put it into effect. You will find help aids such as forms worksheets and quick start tips. There are several examples from actual libraries so that you can see what others have achieved.

The authors feel that if you are able to select a single project, present how it will be carried out from start to finish and show the impact on the community that you will find that those controlling the funding will be much more receptive to your needs. The same is true of presenting new services to the public. As you plan for your library this book will guide you through every step to better help you in your battle for funding or creating awareness of library services.

Early Literacy Storytimes @ Your Library:
Partnering With Caregivers For Success
By: Saroj Nadkarni Ghoting and Pamela Martin-Diaz
American Library Association c. 2006

Turn your story times into early literacy learning tools for children and their parent/caregivers. Early Literacy Storytimes @ Your Library: Partnering With Caregivers For Success is a storytime source book and so much more. This book presents many wonderful storytime programs. Each program includes songs, rhymes, activities, crafts and story titles. What is unique about these programs are that they include two other elements: Teaching aids for you to pass along to parent/caregivers and teaching instructions to help children develop reading skills.

You will find much information about how small children develop and how their future reading and learning skills depend greatly on what they learn in their first 5 years. One study tells that knowing the alphabet at the beginning of kindergarten is a good indicator of a better reading ability in the tenth grade. Make the most of your story times by including one or more of the 6 skills referred to in this book. This can be as easy as teaching the children the sound for "M" (phonics skill) and showing them what the letter looks like (letter knowledge skill) during a program such as the one called Messy Mouse.

Within each program you are offered the opportunity to present helpful tips to parents/caregivers that will educate them in ways to help their children to continue learning reading skills at home. The tips are included in the program. The actual wording to use is included as well as when to present the information.

Storytimes have always encouraged children towards a desire to read. Now, with the guidelines in this book storytime will help build the skills they need to learn to read.

Flannelboard Stories for Infants and Toddlers:
Bilingual Edition *
By: Ann Carlson and Mary Carlson
American Library Association c. 2005

As the Hispanic population grows you may begin to find storytimes include a blended group of both English and Spanish speaking children. There has become a greater need for language appropriate materials for young children. Flannelboard Stories for Infants and Toddlers: Bilingual Edition has 33 phrases, words, chants, and rhymes in both Spanish and English for children between 12 and 30 months.

Using the detailed instructions, which are also bilingual, you will be able to make your own flannelboard and a set of flannelboard characters from the full size reproducible drawings. Also included are tips for storing pieces for future programs. The index includes theme headings for convenience in putting together special programs such as colors, cleaning or monkeys

Gato, perro, pato – cat, dog, duck. Whether you say it in English or Spanish you’ll enjoy using this beginner book to introduce a love of reading for all of the children at your library.

Amazingly Easy Puppet Plays:
42 New Scripts for One-Person Puppetry
By: Dee Anderson
American Library Association c. 1997

Amazingly Easy Puppet Plays is a wonderful selection of puppet plays to use for Library story hours. There are 42 plays that will have your group giggling out loud. The book has a wide variety of stories. There are some old favorites like Brer Rabbit tales, a group of fractured fairy tales, holiday stories and many more that will be new to you. Best of all are the 10 plays about books, reading and libraries. You’ll want to try "Space Creatures Meet Mother Goose". What a great way to introduce children to the library.

The book offers everything you will need to do a puppet play. The skits are short and one person can easily do them by them self. If props are needed they are simple to find or create. There are instructions for making simple puppets as well as a complete diagram for creating a simple puppet theater. With the presentation instructions included even a novice can put on a smile winning performance.

See the puppets available for loan from SWILSA
http://www.swilsa.lib.ia.us/collections/Storytelling.htm#puppets

Using the Internet as a Reference Tool:
A How-To-Do-It Manual for Librarians
By: Michael P. Sauers
Neal-Schuman c. 2001

The Internet can be a valuable reference aid if used wisely. Using the Internet as a Reference Tool will help teach you the skills you need to discern which sites have legitimate value.

Each aspect of reference searching is explained in a clear concise manner. There are helpful exercises at the end of each section to help you practice what you’ve learned. Most helpful of all is the brief discussion of the results of each exercise.This book and the exercises will help you develop the following skills:

*Increase your skill using the Internet.
*Evaluate electronic resources.
*Exam specific elements of a web site.
*Create a Web-based reference page for your library.
*Discover differences between search engines and directories.
*Create a ready reference for complex search strategies.

Fold and Cut Stories
By; Jerry J. Mallett and Timothy S. Ervin
Alleyside Press c. 1993

Fold and Cut Stories is a great resource for your library story time. There are 16 one-page stories. Each of the stories includes a simple cutting diagram. Just fold a sheet of paper, snip out different shapes that correspond with the story, unfold the paper and surprise the ending to your story is revealed. The children will be able to remember the sequence of the story and you will easily hold their attention throughout these interesting stories.

Creating Ever-Cool:
A Marketer’s Guide to a Kid’s Heart
By: Gene Del Vecchio
Pelican Publishing c. 2002

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if children wanted to visit the library as much as they wanted to visit the toy store? Creating Ever-Cool: A Marketer’s Guide to a Kid’s Heart may be exactly the source needed for understanding what captures and holds the attention of most kids.

The author, Gene Del Vecchio, is a nationally recognized expert on youth marketing. He has worked with companies such as Mattel and Disney and knows what appeals to kids most. In this book he shares his expertise showing how successful marketers continue to be successful year after year. He has gleaned much information for studies about children and the results are quite surprising.

Del Vecchio explains that once you have found something that appeals to children you must continue to seek ways to keep it fresh and innovative. This is what he calls "Ever-Cool. Creating Ever-Cool in libraries could be just the thing to make libraries as popular as toy stores.

The Reading Connection:
Bringing Parents, Teachers and Librarians Together
By: Elizabeth Knowles and Martha Smith
Libraries Unlimited, Inc. c. 1997

The Reading Connection: Bringing Parents, Teachers and Librarians Together describes how to set up a book club to discuss children’s literature. The book takes you through a simple planning process covering everything from selecting the moderator and book selections to publicity and evaluation.

The bulk of the book is taken up with a wonderful guide to the genre that interest most children. Each section includes a brief discussion of the genre, questions to help evaluate the material, an article or two from national magazines that discuss the subject and a bibliography. Librarians will find this section very helpful for all of their patrons as well as for the book club

Parents are very concerned about the material available to their children and they wish to guide their children to good choices. A book club is a fun and interesting way to help parents become knowledgeable guides to literature for their children.

Working With Library Boards:
A How-To-Do-It Manual for Librarian
By: Gordon S. Wade
Neal-Schuman c. 1991

Working With Library Boards is a guide for developing more effective relationships between library directors and their boards. This book is a good resource for defining the duties of a board and understanding the extent of their powers. The tips and techniques in this book help you through every aspect of your board meetings from presentations to taking minutes. In this book the author, Gordan Wade, uses some of his own personal experiences to illustrate problems that may occur and effective ways of handling them.

This book will help directors develop more successful relationships with their boards. Together, director and board, will be able to present a united leadership to city officials and the community.

Paper Cutting Stories From A to Z
By: Valerie Marsh
Alleyside Press c. 1992

A-B-C and snip, snip, snip. Paper Cutting Stories From A to Z is full of unique stories for your library story time. Each story highlights a letter, one for each letter of the alphabet. As you tell the story you will be cutting out an object that is the solution to the story. In story "A" you will cut out an apple shape while you tell the story about how Audrey goes to Aunt Alice’s auction and buys an iron apple that turns out to be a treasure.

Cutting the simple patterns will hold the children’s attention as you tell the story. Each story is about 1 page long and there is a full-size cutting pattern for each story. The children will be fascinated with this simple storytelling technique.

Teaching the Internet in Libraries
By: Rachel Singer Gordon
American Library Association c. 2001

There are many people in your community that have little or no experience using computers. They are unable to gain access to the "Internet" and its resources or to the subscription databases that are available in your library. Setting up classes to teach these skills will be a service that your community will appreciate. Teaching the Internet in Libraries offers a heads-up on what you need to consider to have a successful Internet training program.

This book will help you set up your entire program. It discusses outlining your program. How to select and train your trainers. It instructs you how to set up sessions for a variety of groups. It discusses how to create the training aids you will need such as handouts and "cheat sheets. There are handouts and forms already prepared for your convenience. You will even find a number of arguments to help convince your administration of the importance of an Internet training program.

When beginning any new project it is easy to overlook some important aspects. The author has included examples of programs in other libraries. Their success and innovations will help you to prepare a successful program for your own library.

Let’s Build!
A Program Manual Celebrating Construction in the Library
Written by Tami Chumbley and Illustrated by Crystal Kehoe
Provided by the State Library of Iowa
in cooperation with North Central Library Service Area

Let’s Build! is a unique 2 in 1 manual. It is a building project promotional manual and a children’s program manual.

As a children’s program manual: Let’s Build! uses the theme of building for a children’s program. It is designed very much like a summer reading program. There are games, crafts, songs, fingerplays, and snacks. Imagine serving snacks form a toy dump truck. There are reproducible bookmarks, craft masters, lettering, clip art and book suggestions all using the building theme. Indoor and outdoor activities that will interest all of your age groups. What fun they will have with hammers, saws and trucks.

As a building project promotional manual: Every building project needs to be advertised. Let’s Build! has wonderful eye-catching graphics to use for decorations, signs and brochures. There are lots of bulletin board and display ideas. Wouldn’t it be fun to put your brochures in a carpenter’s toolbox that the children had made?

This book is just right for libraries that are planning to build, remodel or just replace the carpeting. It will help you promote your project and will also get children involved in the changes that are going on at their library.

You may acquire your own copy from the State Library of Iowa. Go to the following website for an order form: http://www.silo.lib.ia.us/for-ia-libraries/youth-services/construction.html

Books Babies and Libraries:
Serving Infants, Toddlers, Their Parents & Their Caregivers
By: Ellin Greene
American Library Association c. 1991

Books Babies and Libraries by Ellin Greene offers a wealth of information about bringing young children and books together in the library. The author explores some major studies that agree that early exposure to books and reading are the boost that children need to do well in school and enjoy a lifelong love of reading.

This book explains how to set up early literacy programs. Programs are for each age group from the tiniest on their parents lap to the preschooler. There is an emphasis on programs for parents and caregivers, too. The author believes that when you affect the parent you affect the child. The storytime program and parent program material include outlines, presentation suggestions, and lists of books to use. There are samples of take home sheets for parents and evaluations for the staff. You’ll find much of the help needed to begin or expand an early literacy program.

Although this book has much to offer as a program planner it goes way beyond this task. It explains the psychology and reasoning for early learning. It includes a section about networking with other agencies to reach more children. There are several models for early childhood centers. The wide range of information in this book creates an awareness of the importance of library programs that serve the library’s youngest users.
Videos available: Libraries Are For Babies Too, Born to Read, Born To Succeed, Read Aloud Now.

One-Person Puppet Plays
By: Denise Anton Wright
Teacher Ideas Press c. 1990

Use puppets for your next story time and you will have the undivided attention of your young audience. One-Person Puppet Plays makes it easy to get started. There are scripts, patterns and presentation suggestions that will help you delight the children.

The scripts in this book are very diverse, 30 in all. There are traditional folk tales such as The Lion and the Mouse. There are holiday stories that include Santa Cures a Cold. Giggle over the "just for fun stories" like The Elephant’s Sneeze. Our favorite scripts are the ones especially for libraries. The Case of the Disappearing Books would be a great one to try.

Patterns for the puppets and puppet stages are included. The patterns for the puppets are simple and will be easy for both adults and children to put together. A stage is not necessary but if you would like to use one there are instructions for creating different types.

Give puppets a try. The children will love meeting your puppet buddies and hearing their stories.

The Board Evaluation Kit
and
The Executive Evaluation Kit
Published by: Cain Consulting Group c. 1998

The Board Evaluation Kit provides you with all the material your board will need to conduct a self-evaluation. It’s quick, easy and will have long lasting results.

This little manual has step-by-step instructions for preparation, the actual questionnaire, sheets for compiling the results and an explanation of how to use the information from the evaluation.

I especially liked the format of the questionnaire. There is a brief question followed by a choice of three answers: Very Good, Adequate, or Needs Improvement. Most of the questions include an explanation of what standards would be expected of any board. Finally a space is provided for comments.

Now that you’ve finished your Board Evaluation consider using The Executive Evaluation Kit for the Library Director’s evaluation. It’s in the same easy to use format as The Board Evaluation Kit.

Writing and Updating Technology Plans:
A Guidebook with Sample Policies on CD-ROM
John M. Cohn, Ann L. Kelsey, and Keith Michael Fiels
Neal-Schuman c. 1999

What makes a good and not so good technology plan? That’s what you’ll find out in

chapter 7 of Writing and Updating Technology Plans. This book will be your guide to putting together a really good plan that will help you successfully implement your technology improvements, secure funding and make a real difference to your users.

Technology Plans are a helpful tool for making long range plans for your library. They are also mandatory for securing funding from sources such as E-rate. This book shows you how to write all of the basic components of the technology plan. It explains where to gather the data, how to identify your needs now and for the future, and then put it into a format that will show why these items are important to future progress in the library.

Once you have developed your plan you will also learn how to continually evaluate it and keep it current.

There is an added bonus with this book. It includes a CD of sample Technology Plans to help you by seeing what others have written. There are plans from both large and small libraries.

Whether you are writing your first Technology Plan or evaluating an existing one this book will help you make it a good one.

The Librarian’s Facility Management Handbook
By: Carmine J. Trotta and Marcia Trotta
Neal-Schuman Publishers c. 2001

Maintenance and daily operations of the library building are as important as maintaining your collections. The Librarian’s Facility Management Handbook has made a daunting task easier, even fun, by providing checklists, forms and guidelines to help you take care of your facility. This book brings up many areas of maintenance you may not have considered before. Whether it concerns controlling energy cost, safety of your patrons, insurance or who is responsible for replacing the paper towels you can be prepared.

The idea of the book is to help prevent major problems before they occur. But, when problems do occur you will be ready. You will already have your plans made and be able to handle all problems quickly and efficiently.

Top of Page

The Librarian’s Guide To Partnerships
Edited by Sherry Lynch
Highsmith c. 1999

The Librarian’s Guide To Partnerships introduces you to the idea of joining together with other organizations and agencies to enable the library to offer a greater range of services. Meet the Broward County Library System staff and see how they have used Partnerships to expand their resources and help them meet the needs of their community.

In this book Broward County Library System, Florida shares their experiences with partnerships. Each partnership is thoroughly described. Of the selected cases you will see how each partnership came about and how it was developed to each group’s satisfaction. You will see how problems were resolved as they came up. Get a chance to learn from others’ mistakes as the Broward County Library System staff explains what they would have done differently.

The book provides practical information for libraries just beginning the process of developing community partnerships and new ideas for libraries that are already experienced collaborators.

--Also in the SWILSA collection: Serving Families and Children Through Partnerships--

Communicating Professionally
(A How-To-Do-It Manual For Librarians)
By: Catherine Sheldrick Ross and Patricia Dewdney
Neal-Schuman Publishers c. 1989

Is it time to present new information to your City Council or Board? Do you feel you are able to get your points across in a clear and persuasive manner? Communicating Professionally: A How-To-Do-It Manual For Librarians is the perfect tool for building your confidence in any speaking or writing situation.

You will be surprised how easy it is to refine your speaking, writing, and listening skills by using this book. The book is written in an easy to use manner. Each concept is clearly and quickly explained. There are excellent examples of proper application for each concept. Also included are fun exercises for perfecting the techniques you learn along the way.

The book covers a great variety of situations from one on one conversations to speaking before a large assembly. It covers booktalks, reference interviews, handling problem patrons, introducing speakers and so much more.

This book offers quick practical advice to help you prepare for the ever increasing need of the library professional to be an effective communicator.

Story Puzzles:
Tales in the Tangram Tradition
By: Valerie Marsh
Allyside Press c. 1996

Story Puzzles: Tales In The Tangram Tradition uses geometric puzzle pieces to create pictures to illustrate their stories. It’s a fun way to capture and hold the attention of any age group as you present your story.

This author goes beyond the ancient Chinese tangram of 7 geometric shapes and adds a few with curves for variety. Now, just by moving the shapes around you’ll be able to create pictures to go along with the stories. Even add a little action with the movable pieces.

The book has a variety of stories. 22 tales of folklore, legends, science and history. Each story is accompanied by a layout showing exactly where to place each puzzle piece and when it is to be moved. The pattern for all the pieces is ready to copy and cut out. No guess work, just lots of fun. Make lots of extra copies the children will want to make up their own stories with the puzzle pieces.

Top of Page

Celebrations
By: Caroline Feller Bauer
H. W. Wilson c. 1984

You will have so much fun with this book. Celebrations by Caroline Feller Bauer is filled with the most unique ideas for observing holidays. OH MY, is National Nothing Day a real holiday? No, but the kids will enjoy celebrating it anyway.

All of the 16 traditional and non-traditional celebrations are complete ready-to-go programs and will work well for several age groups. Each program offers one or two full-length stories, funny poetry, treats, activities, crafts and jokes. To help expand the program there are writing exercises. A few extras are thrown in, too. There are bulletin board ideas and photocopy ready bookmarks for each theme. Finally there is an extensive booklist at the end of each chapter that will round out your program.

Try celebrating Pigmainia, the Art of Art or Tantalizing Television. Oh, what fun you’ll have using these fresh new children’s programs.

How to Do "The Three Bears" with Two Hands:
Performing with Puppets
By: Walter Minkel
American Library Association c. 2000

Now that you have a puppet what do you do next? How to Do "The Three Bears" with Two Hands: Performing with Puppets explains many techniques for using puppets to tell a story and capture children’s imaginations. It’s filled with wonderful how-to information from voices and actions, scenery and props to script writing and stage building.

This book not only teaches you how to perform but also includes five complete scripts. It has The Three Little Pigs, Who’ the Squonk?, Coyote and the Galloping Rock, The Magic Knapsack, and The Three Billy Goats Gruff. Sorry, The Three Bears isn’t really included. As a special bonus the author has included the plans and directions for building 2 styles of portable stages.

Add a new dimension to your storytelling by using puppets with pizzazz!
Note: See the list of puppets available for loan from the SWILSA office under "Storytelling Resources"

Physical Fun For Little Ones
Iowa Department of Education c. 2001

Put some motion into your storytime. Physical Fun For Little Ones enables children to be active participants during a story not just listeners.

This book has physical activities for songs, rhymes, and literature. The kids will love playing Box Leapfrog with the book Jump Frog Jump by Robert Kalan or just sitting on their lily pads. How about under the table and between the chairs obstacle course to go along with Rosie’s Walk by Pat Hutchins. My favorite is bear exercises for Brown Bear Brown Bear What Do You See by Eric Carle. Each theme has multiple activities to choose from. Some are very energetic for large spaces like leaping and scooting. Other activities are meant only for small spaces such as stretching up high while sitting or quiet fingerplays.

There are many many other activities and suggestions besides the ones for themes. There are even no-cost and low cost manipulatives that you can make using materials on hand and the photocopy masters included in the book.

You’ll love browsing this book with its wealth of ideas. Give it a try for Summer Library Programs. Skip, scoot, spin, rock, jump, stretch, twirl, twiddle, leap, …

Top of Page

Literate Beginnings: Programs For Babies & Toddlers
By: Debby Ann Jeffery
American Library Association c. 1995

Boing boing squeak and thump crunch flap! It’s storytime for babies and toddlers. Get lots of help preparing programs using Literate Beginnings: Programs for Babies & Toddlers.

This book is filled with 52 full programs that are adorable and fun. Each program has songs, actions, fingerplays, and storybook lists. The themes are widely varied from Teddybears and Trains to singing Old MacDonald had a Dragon for a Chinese New Year Theme.

Learning begins at birth. So if you’re considering programming for babies and toddlers this book will help you with a wealth of programs and programming ideas.

Something Funny Happened at the Library
How to Create Humorous Programs for Children and Young Adults
by Rob Reid
American Library Association c. 2003

Something Funny Happened at the Library offers just what is needed to capture children’s attention and tickle their funny bone.

Author Rob Reid has provided his favorite strategies for humor. He gives samples that can be used to set the mood for your program. His face exercises are sure to get everyone giggling. He has provided several complete humorous programs, for different age groups, that he has used successfully. And finally he has included a bibliography of his favorite humor stories and authors to help you develop your own core collection.

Make kids laugh and you’ll be creating a positive connection for them with the library. As Mr. Reid says in one of his raps from the section on Raps and Closings: I say-say slide on down to the library.

Top of Page

What a Novel Idea!
Projects and Activities for Young Adult Literature
By: Katherine Wiesolek Kuta
Teacher Ideas Press c. 1997

What a Novel Idea has some wonderful ideas for expanding any Young Adult (ages 11-18) reading program. These fun exercises should catch the interest of the teen and help them develop a deeper appreciation for the material they read. The book has 60 different activities directed at helping young adults become more literate as readers writers and speakers.

These activities were originally designed for the classroom but are easily adapted for the library. Have fun making a mobile of a book’s characters, designing their own book jacket, or describe the book in the form of a letter to a friend. There are more in-depth projects also such as dramatizing, writing a new ending to the story and exploring the personalities of the characters. Each project is adaptable for any novel. There are instructions, reproducible activity sheets and even tips on evaluation. You will enjoy helping the teens explore books in new and creative ways.

Library Volunteers – Worth the Effort
A Program Manager’s Guide
By: Sally Gardner Reed
McFarland and Co. Inc. c. 1994

Volunteers can be your biggest help or your biggest headache. The author of Library Volunteers – Worth the Effort feels a library without volunteers is missing out on a great asset. By following this helpful guide for recruiting and organizing a volunteer group you can eliminate much of the headache. Your library will benefit not only from extra help but also from community support that comes only from people that truly believe in the importance of the library.

This book can help you take a new look at your approach to volunteers. It covers issues such as recruitment, training, and evaluation. There are samples of applications, advertisements, press releases, job descriptions as well as skills and aptitude tests. It even discusses the "Problem" volunteer. Everything you need to create a volunteer group that will greatly enhance the quality of your library.

Attracting, Educating, and Serving Remote Users Through the Web:
A How-to-do-it Manual for Librarians
By Donnelyn Curtis
Neal-Schuman c. 2002

Libraries have been serving remote users for years but the library’s main focus has always been on the onsite user. As more and more people want to access their information from home, work and school it is time to start making these remote users welcome.

Attracting, Educating and Serving Remote Users Through the Web guides you through several areas that will help you create the best sources for your remote users. A few of these are developing a user friendly web site, providing instruction to remote users, providing electronic reference service, and authorizing use of licensed resources. There is also a section on fundraising and public relations to help provide the services.

This book is a wonderful resource to help you understand what your library needs to do to serve a clientele that is never seen.

Fifty Fabulous Fables:
Beginning Readers Theatre
By Suzanne I. Barchers
Teacher Ideas Press c. 1997

Choose a script and let the children help tell the story. That’s what Fifty Fabulous Fables has to offer. Each of the fifty stories are in script format ready to be copied and handed out to your actors. The stories have been separated into reading levels for 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd, and 4^th grades. You will find this book may also be used for a flannelboard or puppet presentation. It makes an interesting change for storytime.

You will find many familiar stories such as The Lion and the Mouse and The Goose That Laid the Golden Eggs. But, there are many of the fables that will be new to you like The Bat The Birds and the Beasts, The Kid and the Flute Playing Wolf, and The Belly and the Members of the Body.

Enjoy using this book to add some new story material to your Storytime programs this year.

Top of Page

Storybook Birthday Parties
by Cindy Dingwall
Alleyside Press c. 1998

Happy Birthday to you! Storybook Birthday Parties has 30 complete programs that will help you host a party for your favorite storybook characters. The children will love this unique storytime idea.

The book includes songs, games, projects, activities and a list of titles to go along with each theme. There are full size masters included for the craft projects. There are also lots of helpful suggestions for presenting the programs.

Have fun presenting programs that center around such memorable characters as Nate the Great, Amber Brown, Laura Ingalls, Corduroy Bear, Stega Nona, and Mother Goose just to name a few. All of the planning is done for you. Happy Birthday to yoooou!

Excellence In Library Services to Young Adults
Mary K. Chelton
American Library Association c. 2000 3^rd edition

Excellence In Library Services to Young Adults offers 30 outstanding programs for Young Adults. These programs were developed by libraries and are currently and successfully being used. The programs are intended to encourage young adults (ages 12-20) to use and enjoy their library now and long into the future.

This book describes each program in 2 or 3 pages. It tells how and why the programs were developed. There is a description of what the community is like and also, includes information about costs and funding. Finally there is a complete description of the program. The program description outlines how the program was put together and presented. Comments evaluating both the strengths and weaknesses of the program have been included.

The programs fall into many categories. Some of them are education support, library awareness, community service, intergenerational, and reading promotion and appreciation

The programs are very imaginative and diverse. Some of the actual programs presented are: a radio program of teens giving booktalks to interest other teens, special hours for work on senior projects, presenting stories to younger children, teens and senior citizens writing poetry together, a teen book discussion group called Lunch n’ Lit, and a club that teaches students how to find reference information online instead of just chat rooms. There are also many programs to interest teens in reading for pleasure.

These libraries have welcomed teens into their libraries with great enthusiasm. By seeing what others have accomplished you may be inspired to begin a program of your own that will encourage the young people of your community.

Top of Page

Len Cabral’s Storytelling Book
By: Len Cabral and Mia Manduca
Neal-Schuman c. 1997

This book is filled with delightful full-length stories to use for your programs. Len Cabral, a master storyteller, shares his own special techniques to guide you in presenting these stories or ones of your own.

The book is divided into groups by level of expertise. Each of the first nine stories includes a "Telling Guide" and a "Teaching Guide" to help you prepare for your presentation. Beginners are given helpful hints to help them build their confidence. Advanced storytellers receive advice for using body language and interaction with the audience.

The Telling Guide: The Telling Guide is the most interesting feature of this book. In a side bar with the story are the authors suggestions. As you read a section of the story the notes in the side bar instruct you in tone of voice to use, body movements and interaction with the audience. It may read something like "Look up and motion to the East", "speak in a pleading voice" or something as detailed as "Raise clawed hands over your head and say Hunk-ka. Bring them down as you say Cha. The rhythm should be heavy and ominous". As part of the telling guide there is also a section at the beginning of the story that offers ideas about how to introduce your story. These features will help you capture your audience’s attention and hold it throughout the presentation.

The Teaching guide: To make a more complete learning program the book has included a teaching guide. This section is divided into five sections. 1. Story themes, 2.Setting the scene, 3. After story discussion topics and ideas, 4. Suggested Projects and activities, 5. Suggested Journal entries.

The final chapter of the book is a trouble shooting section. The author discusses frequently asked questions. Such questions as: how do I deal with interruptions and how do I keep things moving if I want to tell 2 stories. The advice in this chapter will help you alleviate some of the anxiety that comes with speaking before a group.

Len Cabral’s fun stories, advice and help aids will help the beginner as well as the experienced storyteller on their way to a very entertaining program.

o completion.

This book may help you acquire some of the items you once thought were beyond your budget’s reach and help you find the inexpensive alternatives that are available.

Top of Page

A Treasury of Trickster Tales
By: Valerie Marsh
Allyside Press c.1997

A Treasury of Trickster Tales is a wonderful book to use for your story hour programs. The stories have a unique way a being presented and will hold the interest of any age group for the youngest to the oldest.

The stories in this book are all full of clever characters that are trying to get away with something. It doesn’t always work. Sometimes the trickster gets tricked. The stories are fun and entertaining.

There are a good variety of stories. They include some old folktales about Anansi the spider, Coyote and Rabbit. There are also some funloving stories about the author’s father who enjoyed a good prank.

The stories are all enhanced by using one of five storytelling methods. The instructions, diagrams and patterns are very complete and easy to follow.

Paper cutting: This method is cutting bits from a folded piece of paper. At the end of the story the paper is unfolded to reveal a surprise.

Mystery fold: The mystery fold method involves drawing a picture during the story. But, when the picture is folded a certain way it shows a new picture.

Sign language: By using the repetitive signs in sign language the children are able to participate and learn some sign at the same time.

Story Puzzles: Story puzzles are tangram puzzle pieces that are used to make picture shapes to tell the stories. Seeing these geometric shapes turn into pictures fascinates children.

Storyknifing: Storyknifing is the method of drawing a picture while telling a story.

You will enjoy using these lighthearted stories and capturing your audience’s attention in these creative ways.

Simply Super Bulletin Boards
By: Amy Vangsgard
Alleyside Press c. 1997

Simply Super Bulletin Boards has wonderful ideas and directions for creating bulletin boards to brighten up your library and call attention to special book themes. It also includes some special extra features you will enjoy.

The book features 20 different display themes. The first 10 themes are festivals and holidays from around the world such as Hawaii’s Lei Day, China’s Kite Festival and the African American holiday Kwanzaa. The second section has 10 whimsical animal themes including horses, bats, hogs and even dragons.

Each of the 20 themes includes background information for each subject explaining why and how it is celebrated or interesting information about the animals. There are detailed instruction and patterns for creating the bulletin board and a supply list to help you along.

There is a book list of titles to go along with your theme. It includes directions for a tabletop display to match the bulletin board. There is also a master for a coordinating bookmark.

Here is what makes this book special. It has a special "Kids Can Do" section. This is a craft that follows the theme and can be either added to the display by the children or can be taken home.

There is a section that gives advice on how to use the displays and how to store the material for future use.

The bulletin boards are charming and eye catching. You’ll enjoy using these innovative ideas.

Top of Page

Serving Families and Children Through Partnerships
By: Sandra Feinberg and Sari Feldman
Neal-Schuman c.1996

No one program or service alone can build a strong environment in which children can thrive. It takes every community member and organization working together with parents to set the foundation. Schools, neighborhoods, service providers, churches, libraries and businesses have a responsibility to provide support and assistance.

In the library’s effort to provide early childhood services and parent-family support it becomes important to draw upon the help of others and tap into their knowledge and expertise. Working with agencies that provide similar services is beneficial to everyone concerned.

This how-to-do-it manual provides a very thorough guide to partnerships, coalitions and collaboration. It takes you step by step through the process of developing a relationship with other agencies that works well for all. It explains what a partnership is and how it works. It teaches you how to decide which agencies and organizations will help you meet your goals and theirs. There is also a chapter about how to recruit other agencies to join into partnership with your library.

The book follows up with examples of material that has been used by other libraries. Such items as recruitment letters, publicity materials, evaluations, surveys, and grant requests.

There is a section of online resources that has been compiled for your use. There are sites to help you plan your programs on parent-family support such as "Fathernet" and "Kidspeace". There are others sites listed that offer information about the partnerships and coalition building such as "National Network for Collaboration"

Libraries may be able to provide good programs for children and family support. But, by working with groups and agencies of similar interests a great program may be developed that can truly make a difference in the community.

Top of Page

Spiders In The Hairdo
Modern Urban Legends
Collected and retold by David Holt and Bill Mooney

Are you looking for stories to excite the older children and young adult groups this summer? Spiders In The Hairdo is filled with bizarre tales guaranteed to gross them out.

The stories compiled in this book are modern day folktales. Some you may have heard at a slumber party as a kid or around a campfire. But, many of them are new to our area. They are often told as if it were a local event so you are left with your spine tingling or a case of the giggles.

There are more than 50 stories in the book. Some only a paragraph long others two or three pages. There are all types funny, gross, spooky and odd. Did I mention gross?

This book is the second book of urban legends compiled by the authors. The story Spiders in the Hairdo actually appears only in the first book. But there is plenty of material in this edition to entertain your audience. Did I remember to mention gross?

More Ready-To-Tell Tales:
From Around the World
Edited by David Hold and Bill Mooney
August House Publishers c. 2000

More Ready-To-Tell Tales is a collection of stories that have been performed by some of the world’s best known storytellers. The stories are genuinely ready to tell. Each of the 48 stories may be told exactly as printed.

The stories have been collected by the tellers from around the world. There are many folktales like Why Armadillos Are Funny. This one also includes a song about an armadillo that tried to cross a road and the unhappy result. (It tickled my disrespectful funny bone.) There’s a fractured fairytale titled The Dashing Princess. And, some just for fun stories like The Belly Button Monster.

What makes this book unique is that each story includes the storyteller’s own personal tips and techniques for presenting the story. Their tips include how to catch the attention of the audience right away. Where to use pauses, sounds and gestures to their best effect. Hints about what worked best for the storyteller. Even, songs and pronunciations have been included. By using the helpful information of these professional storytellers your job is made easier.

Each of the stories include an explanation about where the story came from or how it was developed. Following the story explanation there are some points of interest about each of the storytellers.

The table of contents and indexes both have been arranged as help aids for choosing stories. They divide the stories by subjects, country of origin and by recommended audience. You will be able to quickly decide which stories are most appropriate for your setting.

You will enjoy presenting these interesting stories and enhancing them with the tips and techniques suggested by the storytellers.

Problem Behavior Manual
Produced by Fairfax County Public Library, Virginia
c. 1997

When a troublesome or frightening situation occurs will you know how to respond? The Problem Behavior Manual helps you to be prepared and ready to act appropriately.

This manual is the actual policy of the Fairfax County Virginia Public Library. They have tried to anticipate as many situations as possible, from noisy and rowdy behavior to sexual misconduct. It was not only designed so their staff would know how to act in any given situation but also so they would not over react. Having policies and procedures in place will assist staff members in feeling less threatened.

The manual is quick and easy to use. The headings at the top of each page are alphabetized for quick access such as Assault, Bomb Threat, and Children-unattended.

The policy of the library or a definition of the situation follows the heading. This part details the situation along with the rights and responsibilities of both the library and patron.

Following the policy are the "Actions" to be taken. A step by step list explains how the staff member is expected to handle the situation. It includes the names and numbers of the authorities to be contacted. For example: If a child is not picked up within 30 minutes after closing, call the police at this number ___. In some instances there is a sample script to illustrate some phrases that may calm the situation.

The final section of the book has sample flyers and letters that explain the library’s policies. There are also incident reporting forms to have on hand.

This manual will be an excellent guide for preparing your own policy and procedures manual.

Top of Page

Bare Bones Young Adult Services:
Tips for Public Library Gerneralists
By: Renee J. Vaillancourt
American Library Association c.2000

According to a National survey taken in 1994 23% of all library patrons are Young Adults (ages 12 to 18). It only makes good sense to give the Young Adult section of the library as much consideration as the Adult and Children’s sections of your library. Bare Bones Young Adult Services guides you through the steps needed to create a department that will attract teens and hold their interest.

This book is directed toward libraries that do not have a YA specialists but want a teen section that is appealing and well used. It answers common questions about working with teens and gives advice about what is most important. This little book packs a lot of information into chapters that can be studied individually or all together. Throughout the book other helpful resources are suggested.

You will be guided through the planning process of setting goals, objectives and a plan of service. How to use teens to find out what they want and need by setting up Teen Advisory Boards, Teen Focus Groups, Junior Friends Groups, and surveys for this age group. There is also instruction on how to deal with teens in a professional way that encourages them to use the library services.

The book offers very practical advice about how to create a space just for teens by understanding how teens function and observing their likes and dislikes. Such things as attracting students to the Young Adult section by putting the AV department nearby and providing group sitting areas since teens like to travels in groups and consult each other constantly.

The section on developing the YA collection goes through each type of material one by one and explains what appeals to teens the most. For example, teens prefer paperbacks because they are easy to carry and less conspicuous to their judgmental peers. Along with the information about books and magazines there is instruction on how to evaluate Web sites.

The second half of the book includes examples, suggestions and lists as a quick source of information. There are examples of both By-laws and a Plan of Service. There are tips for programming and booktalks. And, there are strategies for dealing with troublesome behavior.

This book will quickly introduce you to the most important issues you will need to know when setting up your Young Adult Services.

Travel The Globe:
Multicultural Story Times
By: Desiree Webber, Dee Ann Corn, Elaine Harrod, Donn Norvell, Sandy Shropshire
Libraries Unlimited c. 1998

Travel The Globe is a book of 14 complete story hour presentations. Each features a different country. The programs may be used individually or combined for a series of story hours. The programs are age adjustable and can be used for pre-school up to 3^rd grade.

Each story hour program provides a story (a traditional folktale from the featured country) and full size picture masters to make flannel board characters or mount on sticks as puppets to go along with the story.

There are crafts included for each program. Directions are clear and simple with full size masters provided whenever needed. Just a few of the crafts included are: Mexico – donkey piñata, Italy – marionette puppet, China – New Year’s dragon, and Russia – Matroshka dolls and decorated paper eggs.

To provide a well-rounded program each program includes finger plays, songs, activities, or games. Also, you will find a few simple words or phrases from each country’s native language. The words may be included in the story, finger plays or songs. There are interesting bits of information throughout each program that you may pass along to your group.

A wonderful feature of this book is that each program includes the means to be expanded. There are bibliographies of related stories. Most of these are available on SILO. There are suggestions for videos that can be used and their sources. Resources for finger plays, songs, games and activities are all included.

Travel The Globe will be helpful in taking some of the work out of your program preparation. Following are the 14 countries include in the book. Australia, Brazil, Caribbean Islands, China, Commonwealth of Independent States (formerly Russia), Egypt, Ghana, Greece, India, Ireland, Italy, Mexico, Vietnam, and United States (Native Americans).

Top of Page

Developing Reference Collections And Services
In An Electronic Age
by: Kay Ann Cassell
c. 1999 Neal-Schuman

Electronic resources come in many formats. There are CD-ROM sources, Internet sources, e-mail, and commercial databases. Determining which ones you will choose to replace or supplement your printed reference material can be a difficult process. This book guides you through the process and helps you plan for your library’s future needs. Instead of just responding to electronic resources create a plan. Be ready to continuously adapt to new formats and meet your users’ expectations.

The four chapters take you through the process of evaluating your needs and developing a policy that will meet the continuous changes of the electronic age.

Chapter 1: What format will you choose print, CD-ROM, commercial database, or Web based? Chapter 1 discusses the pros and cons of each format. It gives a range of material available in digital formats by both type and subject. Also, included are lists of publishers of material in electronic format such as Encyclopedias, Atlases, directories and indexes.

Chapter 2: Service patterns (how your service is delivered) includes in-person reference service, telephone services, fax services, and electronic services such as e-mail. This chapter describes the changes to be considered in the way reference services are structured. It offers sample forms and illustrates new service patterns other libraries are using.

Chapter 3: Chapter 3 covers user education. Weather the users come into the library or use your web site and e-mail they will need instruction. This chapter offers practical ways of instructing your users and preparing staff. Different methods are explained such as one-on-one, group instruction, ways of reaching distance learners. Some of the methods explained are self-help guides and tutorials.

Chapter 4: By having an Electronic Collection Development policy already in place you will be ready to respond to changes as they occur. This chapter helps you prepare for writing the policy for your electronic collection development. It explains how to use surveys and focus groups to find out what your users need and expect. Examples of policies, surveys and focus group questions will aid you in finalizing the project.

Managing For Results: Effective Resource Allocation For Public Libraries
by Sandra Nelson, Ellen Altman, Diane Mayo
American Library Association c. 2000

Managing For Results works hand in hand with its predecessor Planning for Results. Planning For Results led you through the steps needed to develop a plan of service for your library by setting service goals and objectives. Managing For Results leads you through the process of putting your plans into action.

Every library has resources. This book helps you determine what your resources are and guides you in using them to achieve your goals. Knowing what resources you have available isn’t as clear cut as it might seem. We’re all aware of some resources such as the library building, amount of floor space, shelves, books, tables, and chairs. Also, the number of staff and hours they work qualify as resources. But, there are other resources to be considered. Such things as wiring and the number of outlets for a Computer Center, lighting and air conditioning ducts. Even the number of trash cans available to accommodate a full day of story hours with crafts. Knowing how to divide your resources to fulfill your plan of service is the goal of this book.

This book walks you through a process that will help you fulfill your goals and objectives. Each chapter deals with a certain service area of your library’s plan. It discusses what data you will need to gather from your community such as: In how many families do both parents work? How many daycare centers in the area? Both of these would be crucial to know if your goal were to have an early learning program to reach young children.

Each chapter offers lists of issues you will need to consider that may not have occurred to you. Will the light from the computer screen bother someone in the study area near by? Will cables and electrical cords cause a hazard to traffic areas? Will air conditioning and lighting reach an area with study cubicles?

There are workforms throughout the book to help compile the information you will need to make your decisions. The forms aid you in narrowing down your projects so they don’t seem so overwhelming. They guide you in gathering just the data needed for your particular use. They will also guide you in allocating the resources available and help determine what is still needed to complete your goal.

Finally each chapter includes a "case study". A fictional account of how these steps might be put to use in a real library. Seeing an example of how all the elements of this book work together is a tremendous help aid.

The authors have developed a very easy and complete format to help you put your Plan of Service into action.

Top of Page

The Storyteller’s Guide:
Storytellers Share advice for the classroom, boardroom,
showroom, podium, pulpit and center stage

By Bill Mooney and David Holt -- August House c. 1996

The authors of The Storyteller’s Guide have interviewed more than 50 American storytellers about their art and compiled their comments into a very interesting and instructional book. It’s like learning from someone else’s experiences. As you read through each comment you may catch yourself thinking, "Oh, that’s a good idea" or "I wouldn’t have thought of that."

Each chapter is a self-contained unit. It begins with an overview of the subject, followed by the specific advice from the storytellers and ends in a summery of the chapter for quick reference. Move through the book from start to finish or pick and choose the chapters that interest you the most.

There is a wide range of topics covered. For the beginning storyteller there is how to get started, how to pick the right stories and how to make the program flow. The chapters about frequently made mistakes and worst experiences will be helpful to all storytellers. The storytellers also discuss things you should be aware of such as censorship, copyright laws and ethics. And finally, don’t miss the chapter dedicated just to storytelling in the library.

As one of the authors said "Ask a storyteller a question and in response you get a story." It makes for some very entertaining reading as well as being informative.

Selecting and Managing Electronic Resources
By Vicki L. Gregory
Neal-Schuman c.2000

Libraries are no longer simply a collection of print materials. Electronic Resources are rapidly becoming an important part of today’s library collections. Electronic Resources need to be included as a significant part of the collection not just an added-on frill. This book helps you build the new skills needed in acquiring and managing Electronic Resources for your library.

The book takes you through the various steps needed to manage the resources you already have and how to best seek out new ones.

Collection Development Polices: Electronic resources selection and management issues should be added to the library’s current collection development policy. That is so the emphasis is on the subject content instead of the form the content comes from, whether it is from a printed or electronic source. In this section you will be able to use a list of web sites to find sample policies as well as instructional information.

Selection Criteria: This section discusses how to best carry out the selection process. Cost is important but also setting standards in determining if the resource is trustworthy. How to begin using new selection methods such as trial offers, demonstrations and visits to libraries already owning electronic resources.

Budgeting & Acquisitions: A growing percentage of the budgets of libraries are now being used for electronic resources. This chapter offers several budgeting options. It also, helps you become aware of the new methods of acquisition being used such as subscription and consortium purchases.

Organization & Maintenance: The prime goals are making users aware of the resources and how to access them while not causing undue burden to the library staff. Access for the user needs to be on a practical level while still keeping illegal use from occurring.

The book includes two special features, worksheets and web sites. The worksheets help you move through the process step by step. They include worksheets for Checklist & Budget, Selection Criteria, Licensing & Negotiation, and an Evaluation Project.

There are two lists of web sites. One of the lists is a source for examples of policies and policy writing information. The other is a list of sites to help with acquisitions. Some of the acquisition sites are about specific electronic resources. The other helps you find sources of electronic resources.

There are other issues to be considered. This book should be able to guide you through any areas where you have concerns including Evaluation & Assessement, Copyright & Licensing, and Prevention Issues. It offers guidelines, examples, worksheets and web sites to give you as much help as possible.

Storytelling Activities Kit:
Ready-to-use Techniques, Lessons & Listening Cassettes for Early Childhood

By: Jerilynn Changar and Annette Harrison
The Center for Applied Reasearch in Education c. 1992

Here is a wonderful book full of ready to use storytelling programs. The programs include the story in two formats, both written and/or on cassettes. There are activities, crafts and discussion questions as well as suggestions for expanding the program.

Each program is complete and may be used by itself. They are also set up so two stories create a theme. One such theme is "Friendship" the two stories are The Lion and the Mouse and Wombat Stew. Some of the other themes are Feelings, Seasons, Monsters, and Places To Live.

The programs have several aids that will help you develop your storyhour. Each program has two activities. These may be physical activities, crafts, or reproduceable worksheets. There are suggestions for story centers, follow up questions, ways to help with language development skills, and a bibliography of other books that will go along with your theme.

This book is, also, a teaching tool to help you improve your storytelling skills. There are illustrations of expressions and gestures, suggestion of how to use voice changes and body language, storytelling tips and preparation ideas. Even the most accomplished storyteller will find many useful tips.

Twelve of the stories are included on cassettes. These may be used to help you improve your own storytelling skills by hearing someone else’s techniques. They may also be used in place of reading the story to the children for the non-storyteller.

You will find some of the stories familiar to you such as The Three Little Pigs and The Brementown Musicians. But there are some more unique titles as well The Snow Parlor, Worry Bundles and Grandmother Spider Sews the World Together. Twenty-four stories in all.

Top of Page

Founding and Funding Family Literacy Programs
by: Carole Talon Neal-Schuman 1999

The reading level of the parent often dictates the reading level of the child. Children are encouraged when their parents show they are also interested in learning. These are just two of the ideas behind Family Literacy. Just as libraries found providing special programming for children was a role they filled well, parent education provides literacy improvement for adults and a foundation of learning for children.

Who better than the libraries to aid their community in forming a Family Literacy Program? A needs assessment is the first step before beginning such a project. Get advice on how to find out if there is a need for such a program in the community. Find out if other groups are offering similar services that the library could work with in partnership. You’ll also find sources for locating statistics that will help you determine the need for a Family Literacy Program.

How to set up and develop your own program is clearly outlined. Guidelines and step by step instructions guide you through the planning process. The book includes examples from libraries that already have programs set up. They offer their ideas about what works best, aspects that they found most rewarding, where they found help and support and such practical suggestions as feed your guests first so they’ll arrive on time.

Where to find funding is always a crucial issue for any program a library undertakes. The author states that sometimes there is no need for additional funding and offers suggestions on how the program can be developed without new funds. But, the book also shows where and how to find other sources of income and aid. The author suggests other literacy programs such as America Reads, Even Start and LSTA (Library Services and Technology Act) as a source for grant funds.

Some interesting fundraising ideas are suggested such as asking a business or corporation to Adopt a Family or matching funds with their employees. Clubs and service organizations will often be interested in supporting such a worthwhile program. The fundraising guide also gives several examples used successfully in other libraries.

The back of the book is filled with such materials as sample surveys and handouts, a bibliography, program ideas, discussion advice and an agenda for tutor training.

This book is a very practical and complete guide for setting up a program. Step by step instructions, examples, samples, and forms all help to simplify your task.

Just a reminder. Family Literacy Day is November 1, 2000.

Weeding Library Collections: Library Weeding Methods 4^th edition
By: Stanley J. Slote Libraries Unlimited, Inc. 1997

Weeding Library Collections deals in detail with the processes used to weed a library collection without fear of depriving the patrons or harming the collection. This book explains how the removal of the unused materials will actually increase circulation.

The key element for weeding is identifying for withdrawal those titles which have outlived their usefulness. In this book several different methods are offered and fully explained. Each library may determine which method best suites their own needs.

Each part of the library collection is discussed. It guides you through the evaluation process for non-circulating material, non-book items as well as fiction and non-fiction.

This book is a practical guide to weeding. Its procedures are easy to understand and to be put into practice. Beyond the practical applications the book also tells how and why this method is successful. It shows and discusses the studies that were conducted to determine the best method of weeding collections today.

The CREW Method: Expanded guidelines for collection evaluation and weeding for small and medium-sized public libraries.
Texas State Library and Archives Commission, 1995.

This revision of the CREW manual addresses changes in the library field but retains the format. The manual reviews where CREW (Continuous Revision, Evaluation, and Weeding) fits into the cycle of library service. It discusses the benefits of weeding, preparing to weed, criteria for weeding, and the CREW method in 10 steps.

The revision also contains sections on CREWing: children's materials, the reference section, nonprint media, and CREWING with computers.

Guidelines for weeding the Dewy classes are outlined, with formulas for many Dewey sections (often by "tens;" i.e., 310, 320, etc.) The formula is the familiar one of past versions: there are 3 figures The first figure refers to years since book's latest copyright date, the second to the years since its last recorded circulation, and the third to the presence of negative factors summarized by MUSTIE. (Misleading, Ugly, Superseded, Trivial, Irrelevant, material can be found Elsewhere or borrowed on ILL.

A final section discusses "What to do with Weeded Books: Types of Disposal."

In the introduction the author/revisor says, " As in the first edition, this manual is designed for use primarily by community and branch librarians, the members of the profession who are shortest on time, space, and budget, but who are nonetheless as anxious as the directors of the largest city libraries to provide their patrons with efficient, effective service in a pleasant, attractive library environemnt."

The CREW manual will assist librarians in evaluating, weeding, and updating their collections.

Teaching the Internet to Library Staff and Users:
10 Ready-To-Go Workshops that Work
by William D. Hollands

As the title indicates, this book offers 10 complete workshops with agendas, sample scripts, handouts, useful related internet sites (tutorials, etc.) and suggested further resources. Each session is about 90 minutes long. Some are hands-on workshops --designed for a computer lab equipped with several PCs -- and some are lecture/demonstration format -- designed for a single computer with projector.

The book begins with a 3-part series of workshops designed to "train the trainers." This series is intended for library staff who will be conducting training sessions for patrons and others. These three workshops deal with teaching techniques and presentation skills rather than with internet content.

The next workshop is entitled "Getting Started on the World Wide Web" -- a presentation for adults who have very little experience with the internet. This is a demonstration or lecture format workshop, but can be adapted to a lab setting.

As a follow-up to "Getting Started," there is a presentation on "Using Search Engines and Finding Information on the Web."

The book offers two specialized presentations for those who have some internet experience or who have attended the "Getting Started" workshop. "Books and Literature on the Web" is a hands-on workshop designed for adult literature enthusiasts and offers a format which can be adapted to other special topics. "College Information on the Web" is a lecture-style presentation for High School students and parents (can accommodate larger groups) and serves as a model for library staff to do similar single-subject presentations.

Finally, the book includes a 3-part series on basic HTML for library staff or patrons who are familiar with the Web and Windows.

The workshops in this book really are "ready-to-go" -- a great resource for anyone planning to do internet training. Plus, simply reading through the workshop material serves as a great tutorial/review on internet topics.

Top of Page
Hit Counter

Southwest Iowa Library Services
3501 Harry Langdon Blvd., Suite 190
Council Bluffs, IA 51503

Jan. O9

Nov. 08

Books Babies and Libraries: Serving Infants, Toddlers, Their Parents & Their Caregivers By: Ellin Greene American Library Association c. 1991

Something Funny Happened at the Library How to Create Humorous Programs for Children and Young Adults by Rob Reid American Library Association c. 2003

Books Babies and Libraries:
Serving Infants, Toddlers, Their Parents & Their Caregivers
By: Ellin Greene
American Library Association c. 1991

Something Funny Happened at the Library
How to Create Humorous Programs for Children and Young Adults
by Rob Reid
American Library Association c. 2003