Recently a library patron stopped by to tell me that the e-book choices in Freading are no more desirable than those in our NEIBORS Overdrive e-book program. I know. I’m so sorry. Authors and book publishers are still arguing about how they should be fairly compensated for their work. I understand, everyone wants to be paid well for what they do. Meanwhile, the whole industry has left libraries in the lurch. As soon as it is figured out and everyone is happy, we will have the newest and the best available in e-book format. Meanwhile, we have a great selection in regular, old, hard cover books. If you have been frustrated with what the library has to offer in e-books, don’t forget that whatever it is you want or need, we can almost always provide it one way or another in an old-fashioned book.
The discussion that I described led into another one with a couple of library patrons: How often we are disappointed in books. It’s one thing if we have checked a book out from the library shelves. It’s altogether different if we have paid for a book either in e-book or real-book format. One reader told us how she had been tricked by an Amazon ad. Amazon’s glowing report of a certain book led her to believe that it would be the perfect choice for her to use when she next reported to her book club. The book arrived into her Kindle. She read a few pages and realized that the premise of the book was not what she had been led to believe. Now she will report to her book club that she was disappointed and unhappy with her selection. Folks, Amazon and every other bookseller wants to SELL you something. Don’t believe their commercials that are masked as book reviews. If all those automobile insurance ads on tv were true, State Farm would be paying me for the privilege of providing my with car insurance. Save hundreds of dollars per year? Hah! The amount they say they will save me is more than I pay in the first place. As with anything else, book -buyer beware!
Those conversations led us to thinking that there should be a method for Humboldt readers to tell one another about what they are reading. Share what books you liked, and share what books what disappointed you. There are some rather formulaic systems designed just for this. Good Reads is one of them. But, we wanted a place just for us. I created a Humboldt Reads! Facebook page. You can find it at www.facebook.com. Just type in Humboldt Reads! in the search box. This page is about three hours old and has six “friends” already. Join us. We will have fun!


Photo is a collection of pie birds loaned to the library by Candis Drechsler and Sharon Strutzberg

This week, April 8-14, is National Library Week. Recently American Libraries magazine ran an article that listed twelve ways that libraries are good for the country. Being an unabashed fan of public libraries, I think that there are many more than twelve, but below I’ll paraphrase the ones mentioned:
1. Libraries sustain democracy. At a library you may find information and access to all points of view that will help you make knowledgeable decisions concerning public policy. Libraries guard against tyrannies of “ignorance and conformity.”
2. Libraries level the playing field. By providing information access and technology to all, regardless of income or background, libraries help to close the gap between the rich and the poor. There are more public libraries in the United States than there are McDonald’s restaurants.
3. Libraries break down boundaries. Libraries of all sorts, public, school, church, etc. help destroy the fences that separate people of all ages, abilities, English skill level. Persons with disabilities, homeless, imprisoned or homebound all have access to a library.
4. Libraries value the individual. The library door swings open for independent thinking. Library collections and services offer global, historical cultural and political perspective that will foster the spirit of exploration.
5. Libraries nourish creativity. Libraries provide a setting that stimulates curiosity. A library provides opportunity for unstructured learning and serendipitous discovery, as anyone who likes to browse library shelves can attest.
6. Libraries open young minds. Librarians for children and teens care about the unique developmental needs of each child. They make a difference because they care.
7. Libraries return high dividends. Strong public libraries make a town more desirable as a business location. Public libraries return to the community up to $10 for every $1 invested in libraries.
8. Libraries build communities. Libraries are gathering spots for all segments of society to share information and engage in community discussion.
9. Libraries support families. Libraries provide an alternate venue. Whether a place for parents and kids to engage one another in books, games and puzzles or a place to do ones homework, libraries are family-friendly.
10. Libraries build technology skills. Almost 100% of American libraries offer internet access for patrons to search for jobs online, polish resumes, keep in touch with others through email or brush up on computing skills.
11. Libraries offer sanctuary. Libraries offer an atmosphere conducive to reflection and quiet thought. (Except our library on early-out-from-school Wednesdays. Then, we are quite lively!)
12. Libraries preserve the past. Libraries are repositories of community history. Thanks to our active genealogical society, we have an excellent place to search Humboldt history and your local ancestors.
Stop by to see what you may have been missing at the Humboldt Public Library. While you are here, tell a librarian how much you appreciate her. We have the hardest working, most enthusiastic staff you could ever hope to meet!

I have probably exhausted your interest in e-books and ebook readers, so I’ll just add this one comment and move on to a different subject. After reading just one short book on the library’s Kindle, I was smitten. “Real” books are heavy. “Real” books don’t lie open flat when I’m trying to read at mealtime. I ordered my own Kindle. I have been wanting to read the young adult book Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins for several years. We have three copies at the library. Twice my name has come to the top of the reserve list, but twice I’ve surrendered it to a young person with a winsome smile. When my very own Kindle arrived the first purchase I made was Hunger Games. I’ll let you know what I think of it when I’ve finished. If you would like to give a Kindle a try, just ask. We have one already loaded and ready to check out.
New on the Library Shelves:
Remember when I was debating about ordering Through My Eyes by Tim Tebow the football player? I’m off the hook. Demi ordered for the Teen Library. If you’d like to read it, I’m sure the teens will share.
Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity by Katherine Boo. This one is receiving lots of good press. I went on-line to read some of Boo’s earlier work. No wonder she won a Pulitzer Prize for Public Service. She’s good.
Kill Shot by Vince Flynn. This author is a favorite of men readers. In Kill Shot CIA trained Mitch Rapp is working his way through a list of men responsible for the Pan Am Lockerbie attack. He’s crossing them off, bullet by bullet.
Left for Dead by J.A. Jance. Jance’s work is appreciated by all readers. This new one is part of the Ali Reynolds series.
Clover Adams: A Gilded and Heartbreaking Life by Natalie Dykstra. This is the biography of Clover Adams, the Bostonian wife of American historian Henry Adams. She was much admired and a very accomplished photographer. She ended her life by drinking a chemical developer used in her darkroom. One of the reviewers on the cover says that Clover broke Henry Adam’s heart and this book “will break yours.”
Barn Quilts and the American Quilt Trail Movement by Suzi Parron. If you appreciate quilts and barns, you’ll like this book. I’m told that in the Iowa chapter there is a photograph of a Humboldt county barn quilt.
Private Games by James Patterson. Patterson barely lets a month go by without producing a new book. This one was written with Mark Sullivan and tells the tale of a murder at the 2012 Olympics.
The House I Loved by Tatiana de Rosnay. Written by the author of Sarah’s Key, it’s a sure bet!
Restless in the Grave by Dana Stabenow. In my opinion, Stabenow is underappreciated. Her books involve Aleut private investigator Kate Shugak and/or Alaska state trooper Liam Campbell. The rugged Alaskan terrain acts almost as another character in her books. Give one a try. You won’t be sorry.
Defending Jacob by William Landay. I’m a sucker for a well told story about families. In Defending Jacob, a shocking crime shatters a suburban Massachusetts town. Jacob, son of assistant district attorney Andy Barber is charged with the crime. Read this one and you will walk a few miles in Andy’s shoes.
Whatever your mood this winter, there’s a book for that at the Humboldt Public Library.

There have been all sorts of studies in the library world concerning what makes a shelf-full of books appealing to the library user. Is it a jam packed shelf? Sparsely filled? Ancient looking old tomes that appear to have been around since the grand opening in 1908? Crisp new books? Most studies have shown that the shelves readers like best are just below shoulder height and about two thirds full of clean, newer looking books.
No one likes to stretch or stoop to reach a shelf. Last week at the grocery story I saw the bread guy having difficulty rising to his feet after filling the bottom shelves. Just about the time I was ready to call for help, he made it up to his feet. He was truly embarrassed. I know just how he feels. Library users and librarians alike have the same concerns. Perhaps we could buy one of those “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up” alarms to share with those of a certain age who wish to see the books that are housed at floor level. Think how much larger the library would need to be if all shelves were at easy reach. Twice as big, probably.
Since that isn’t possible, we weed our shelves regularly so that they don’t get so stuffed that no one will want to pull out a book for fear of starting a cartoon-like avalanche. We weed library shelves in the winter usually. On bad weather days there aren’t so many people in the library to see me stooping and stretching and having difficulty rising from the floor.
When we weed, we put the books we no longer need on the “free” shelves on the landing of the north stairs. They are yours for the taking. Check often, we add new stuff almost daily. Take the books home, give them away, we don’t care. If you insist, when you have finished with them, you can bring them back to the free shelf and let them live another life in a new home. One way or another, they are yours, paid for with your tax dollars. You might as well enjoy them. But, don’t be like me. With every book I weed I think about how hard the author must have worked to write it and get it published. I take too many of them home…..it’s a good thing I don’t work in an animal shelter.
We have ordered an additional Kindle. We plan to put all the upcoming books for Humboldt Reads! book club on it. Patrons will be able to check it out and give it a try. See what you think. Some readers just love them and some like the feel of a real, old fashioned book in their hands. I’ve stood firmly on the side of actual, real pages bound into a volume I can both see and feel. However, I just had a thought… Recently a new book arrived that I have waiting to read. It’s a mystery from an author with whom I am unfamiliar. This book has had all kinds of positive reviews and press. I grabbed it from Demi’s cart before she could catalog it or put on the protective cover. Thus, although I took it home, it isn’t actually checked out to me.
Whew! Otherwise I would be afraid to tell you this story. Recently I have become a devotee of Hardee’s Red Burrito nachos. A plateful makes a satisfying and inexpensive workday lunch. I carried this brand new, unnamed book into Hardee’s with me. On the first page or two I noticed a dribble or two of melted cheese had fallen from my lunch onto the book. Along about page fifteen, a blob of guacamole adorned the page I was reading. I wiped each page as well as I could and took the book home that night with me. Since I had eaten such a nutritious and filling lunch, I decided to skip dinner and snack on some popcorn. Can you guess? The popcorn variety that I had on hand at home is the extra delicious “theater style.” Extra buttery goodness. Extra greasy fingers. I was so wrapped up in the book and trying to keep the popcorn bag away from my dogs that I didn’t notice I was fingerprinting each page.
It’s a very engaging story. I’m sorry that I won’t be able to share the details with you. I’ve said too much already!