Teen librarian creates ‘Black Voices’ book list

At Rincon Valley Regional Library, Teen Services Librarian Lara Mayelian shares my belief that “Everyone should be able to walk into a library and see books that mirror their own life experiences.” (That’s Ms. Mayelian writing for the Sonoma County Library blog.) She asked me to help promote a new teen book list she’s created, titled, “Black Voices, Black Lives” — and each of her selections include shelving information to help you locate these resources in the library.

Bellview Elementary School library ‘Top 10’

Bellview Elementary School library ‘Top 10,’ Jan. 10, 2017
from Cynthia M. Parkhill on Slideshare

Back at work this week after snow-day closures delayed my return from winter break: I decided to do things a little differently with the Bellview Elementary School library “Top 10” for January 2017. I filtered results in our Follett-Destiny online catalog for the most often checked-out picture books during the previous 90 days.

Bellview Elementary School library ‘Top 10’

Bellview Elementary School library ‘Top 10,’ Jan. 19, 2016
from Cynthia M. Parkhill

Featured titles in this year’s Oregon Battle of the Books continue to hold all 10 slots on the Bellview library “Top 10” list. About once per month, I create a flier showcasing the books most often checked out by students from Bellview library.

Bellview Elementary School library ‘Top 10’

Bellview Elementary School library ‘Top 10,’ Oct. 17, 2015
from Cynthia M. Parkhill

The Bellview Elementary School library “Top 10” represent the most often-checked-out books during the previous 30 days, as tracked by the Follett-Destiny online public access catalog. Roughly once per month, I like to create flyers that showcase these often-used resources.

Bellview Elementary School library ‘Top 10’

Bellview Elementary School library ‘Top 10,’ March 24, 2015
from Cynthia M. Parkhill

Oregon Battle of the Books is behind us, but in Bellview Elementary library, I’ve been promoting student participation in the Beverly Cleary Children’s Choice and Oregon Readers’ Choice awards. I’m gratified to see award nominees on this most recent “Top 10” list.

Bellview Elementary School library ‘Top 10’

Bellview Elementary School library ‘Top 10,’ Nov. 29, 2014
from Cynthia M. Parkhill

It came as no surprise to me that Oregon Battle of the Books featured titles occupy all 10 places this month on the Bellview library Top 10. Students have formed teams and are assigning responsibilities to read each title on the list. And in Bellview library, I am continually asked if I have this-or-that book.

‘Students Engage with Journalism’ on Slideshare

Book list: Students Engage with Journalism from Cynthia M. Parkhill

Originally written as a blog post on June 2, 2014, this book list has been formatted for insertion into a binder for easy use during reader’s advisory. It highlights four upper-elementary level books about students engaging with journalism.

Validated by the fact that ‘Food Chaining’ is a thing

“Validation” would be my choice if I had to name my feelings reading this statement by Loree Primeau, PhD: “Since feeding involves all sensory systems (sight, smell, sound, touch, and taste), eating is the most difficult sensory task that children face.”

Eating continues to be the most difficult sensory task for this woman on the autism spectrum.

To expand my palate, my husband and I take an approach very similar to the “food chaining” discussed by Primeau at Aspergers101.

It takes time for me to get used to an unfamiliar food, and it requires considerable fortitude to be willing to try new things. An experience that is already fraught with challenges on the basis of unfamiliar or unpleasant tastes or textures is further burdened by past experiences and prevalent social attitudes.

Personal development: Recommended books

The Personal Growth and Business Development Book Club that Jonathan and I are involved in, will meet in early July to decide what book the group ought to read next. With one exception, all of the selections on my recommendation list are available through our Jackson County libraries. I’ve listed them in the order they are shelved according to the Dewey classification system and have also noted their availability through Overdrive/Library2Go.

Read-alikes: Students engage with journalism

Student journalism is a rich subject to explore for themes that include the ethics of reporting and the responsibility of a news publisher to the community it serves. This booklist features several books written for upper-elementary reading audiences. While the youthful protagonists come from varying backgrounds, they all engage with the power and responsibility of news media.

Oregon Battle of the Books 2014-2015 reading list

In time for Bellview students to get a summer-reading head start, Oregon Battle of the Books has released its 2014-2015 reading list. In Bellview library today, I affixed spine labels to books to identify them as OBOB selections.

Bellview Elementary School library ‘Top 10’

Bellview Elementary School library ‘Top 10,’ April 26, 2014
from Cynthia M. Parkhill

Graphic storytelling dominated the Bellview Elementary School library “Top 10” for April, with four of 10 titles on the list.

Beverly Cleary Children’s Choice Award

My chief emphasis this week in the Bellview Elementary School library was to create poster and book displays for the Oregon Reader’s Choice Award, upper-elementary division, and Beverly Cleary Children’s Choice Award.

Oregon Battle of the Books

In the Bellview library media center this week I helped prepare for check-out, books selected by school librarians for Oregon Battle of the Books (OBOB).

Banned Books Week 2013: Sept. 22 to 28

Banned Books Week is being observed this week, Sept. 22 to 28. According to the American Library Association, “Banned Books Week stresses the importance of preventing censorship and ensuring everyone’s freedom to read any book, no matter how unorthodox or unpopular.”

Read a banned book this week

Banned Books Week began Saturday and is being observed through this coming Saturday. As a lifetime reader and more recently as a library volunteer, I welcome this occasion every year to think about the effects of censorship.

Censorship can take many forms

Following a link from the Banned Books Week page on Facebook to a parody news story in "The Onion," I learned that "U.S. teens are reacting with disappointment" to many banned books:

"'Desensitized to sex and violence from an early age, today's teens simply expect more out of their banned books than previous generations,' said Naomi Gould, director of the D.C.-based National Education Consortium  'For the teens of yesteryear, access to novels like Tropic Of Cancer, Portnoy's Complaint, and Lady Chatterley's Lover was an incredible, once-in-a-lifetime thrill. But for teens raised on Cinemax and Def Comedy Jam, it just doesn't cut it.'"

Censorship histories for many of the books that were challenged during previous decades have been compiled in "100 Banned Books -- Censorship Histories of World Literature" by Nicholas J, Karolides, Margaret Bald and Dawn B. Sova (Checkmark Books, 1999). Having read these censorship histories, as well as several banned books, I believe "The Onion's" satire is right-on. Much of the material that routinely airs on television is much more violent than these books. Many of the romance novels sold today are as -- or even more -- explicit.

Each year, Banned Books Week draws attention to threats against free speech -- specifically the threat that is posed by attempts to remove books from library shelves.

I recently encountered two books, however, that broadened my understanding of what "censorship" can consist of.

"Moving Over the Edge: Artists with Disabilities Take the Leap" by Pamela Kay Walker (MH Media, 2005) explores the parallel development of the disability rights movement within U.S. society and the pioneering efforts of artists with disabilities to practice and thrive at their craft by tearing down barriers to doing so that existed at the time.

I got a small taste of physical barriers during two theater-going experiences, one in and one out-of-county. The theater lighting hurt my eyes to such a degree that it severely debilitated my ability to enjoy the two performances. I would like to appreciatively say that I felt validated by the fact that people associated with these performances took my discomfort very seriously.

These experiences helped me to appreciate the very real barriers that stood in the way of the artists who are profiled in Walker's book. In the cases depicted by Walker, there was an institutional censorship through limitation in design combined with social prejudice that prevented many people from taking their places onstage.

Finance or economics can also form the basis for another type of censorship: one of several identified in "Censoring Culture: Contemporary Threats to Free Expression" (The New Press, 2006). The premise of this anthology of essays -- which is edited by Robert Atkins and Svetlana Mintcheva -- is that censorship is not just a bureaucratic challenge to art that's considered offensive. Censorship is just as likely to be the result of market forces, bandwidth monopoly and can even manifest as a decision by the artist to censor him- or herself.

One of the essays, by Ruby Lerner, asks how many privately-donated dollars actually benefit the artists themselves -- particularly up-and-coming artists who are not already well established?

Reading about economic barriers made me appreciate anew our local "Art in Public Places," which is administered through the Lake County Arts Council. For only a $1 hanging fee plus a percentage-of-sale commission -- 20 percent for members and 30 percent for non-members -- you can bring your art, ready-to-hang, for display at the Lake County Courthouse in Lakeport. The LCAC recently accepted work for its current show and will next accept entries on Jan. 15, 2009.

I've also seen an "Art in Public Places" down at Clearlake City Hall.

Both venues have been the setting for some incredible works of art -- and think of how affordable it is to be able to show your work through "Art in Public Places."

One time I entered some macrame necklaces in an earlier show at the courthouse. Long-time arts council supporter Floyd Surber was encouraging and supportive in helping me set up my work. He was a steadfast presence who will be dearly missed by the Lake County Arts Council.

For more information about "Art in Public Places," you can call the Lake County Arts Council at 263-6658.

Published Sept. 30, 2008 in the Lake County Record-Bee