"Education is the ability to listen to almost anything without losing your temper or your self-confidence." Robert Frost

I love audio books. They are great in the car or while cooking. Many times in the wee cooking hours of the big turkey day I will listen while I cook. We have tons of audio books at the library and I have listened to most of them. We also have access to e-zone. E-Zone is an online catalog of audio books that is free for our patrons. It works well and has lots of titles. Unfortunately most are for nonipod users this is changing however. The other day I wanted to listen to Redwall by Brian Jacques on my iPod and could not find a compatible version. I could have grabbed the CD version and copied it to my computer but that takes a lot of time. So instead I tried a nice offer by a company called Audible. They are also an audio book site that is mainly for listening through iPods or iTunes. Their Thanksgiving deal is one free book of a selection of titles till Thanksgiving. Even if you only grab one title and never use it again I would say it’s worth it. Also they do not require a credit card to try the freebie. My recommendation is simple look through our online selection and if we don’t have it try Audible as a possible second but don’t think too long because it ends November 26, 2009, at 11:59 PM.

“Shane. Shane. Come back!”, “Shane,” Brandon De Wilde as Joey Starrett

Welcome back,
The classes are done and the real research begins. To access the new worksheet for the Gaggle of Googles class click here. It went along with a one time lecture style class about all the extra parts of Google like Google Sites and Notebook. Most of the tools are underused and are quite excellent. From today I will be trying to deliver a lot more news and tech info. If anyone has any good suggestions please let me know with an email. The new calendar for January and February classes will be out very soon. I will write about it here. You can also sign up for an email alert here. If you are a library fanatic and really want to stay on top of what is going on at the library try our new Twitter feed. We also have quite a few blogs discussing all different parts of the library from Culture Matters, a blog discussing the fantastic programs that are available, to the Special Collections blog called Notes for Bibliophiles. The RIFLI Birthday Stories are amazing. They showcase ESL student writings and photographs. A blog / book discussion group exists in the form of Club de Lectura en Español de la Biblioteca Pública de Providence. It is a group discussing books in Spanish that meets the last Thursday of every month at South Providence. There are more blogs cropping up all the time so check the blog page when you get a chance. Thanks to everyone who has been checking in and reminding me to get on with more information.

Shane

P.S. Sorry about the qoute but I really could not help myself.

“Child! Do not throw this book about; refrain from the unholy pleasure of cutting all the pictures out.” Hilaire Belloc

A while back I traveled up to the Eric Carle museum to see an exhibit of art from children’s books and it was wonderful. Children’s art is one of those things that it always inspiring being sometimes realistic and surreal but mostly just awesome. Now Lookybook, a site devoted to showing off picture books will become a favorite of parents and librarians alike. First of all it is easy to use. You may need to download a plug-in but after that it is just a matter of finding the book you want to look through. Once a book is found just click on the pages and they turn back or forward. If you register you can save a lot of your searches by creating bookshelves. Also becoming a member allows you to comment on books and add your two cents. If you see a book you must have there is a buy button and it will refer you to an online store. They have the basic web 2.0 stuff like being able to show off your book picks but I like the if you like this then you will also like feature even better. I think they describe it best with a line from their site “Think of Lookybook as the test track for picture books.” Now this will not replace reading a book to a kid but it is nice to be able to preview the book first before buying it or just be able to look through some great illustrations. Give this a try.

“The pleasure of all reading is doubled when one lives with another who shares the same books.” Katherine Mansfield

I have heard that the Internet is stopping people from reading books. I think the people at Goodreads would disagree. Goodreads is social networking site for discussing books. Many of my friends are using this site and they are finding they read even more. The reason is simple, the members of this site love to read and discuss them. The problem is one of time. It is increasingly harder to find a time to meet and talk about books like at a traditional book club meeting. This site takes advantage of that weakness. You can discuss a certain book with friends or open it up to the whole book reading community and discuss it in depth. Yes, you are missing the person in the room with you but you are still having the same cerebral experience. They have other features as well like the ability to create a profile and show off what you have read, are going to read, and what you are reading at this moment. The only thing I would change is the email notification to once a day. When I first started using this site I felt like I was drowning in my friends choices of books. If you are reader and want to be part of a book discussion then give this a try.

“Always be aware of any helpful item that weighs less than it's operating manual.” Terry Pratchett

The other day I bought a TV from a yard sale and I needed a code for the remote control. The problem is that it did not come with a manual. So I did some searching and I found a fantastic site that has tons and tons of manuals. Essentially you just find the type of product you need to know about. Once there you choose the maker and the product code. It should display all the information. This site really allows you to feel comfortable about buying electronics at places like yard sales without having to worry about missing information. Give it a try.

Note: I use a lot of quotes but this one is special. He is one of my favorite authors.