Replacing and updating book jackets with collage

Novels’ dust jackets go missing sometimes, which limits that book’s ability to attract potential readers. I’ve been using the art form of collage to replace and update books’ dust jackets.
https://youtu.be/67Fbw2XyJH8

Cover One book-repair machine

Using Scholastic Dollars from the Scholastic Book Fair, our parents’ group purchased the “Cover One,” a loose-page book repair machine, for our school library.
https://youtu.be/EtRK_Oy8v7M

New dust jackets for fiction books

Dust jackets are essential for promoting plain-covered books; how else can a reader determine at first glance, what a book is about — and from there, decide whether or not to open it and sample a few of its pages? So my project this week was to create new jackets for books that were currently without. From left to right, here are Wings of Fire — Legends: Darkstalker by Tui T. Sutherland, Paint the Wind by Pam Muñoz Ryan, and The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate. I used craft paper and added color-printouts of front-cover images from the publisher. The books’ titles and call numbers are recreated on each book’s spine, and plot summaries are pasted on the back.

Book-cleaning rags from old towel

“Greener” tools for book care in the library: this stack of book-cleaning rags were repurposed from an old towel. I cut the towel into smaller pieces, and bound the raw edges with my Serger. Now they’re ready to embark on their new life, used for cleaning books.

Measure Y supports book-repair class, makes me better librarian

In honor of National Library Week, which begins today, here’s appreciation to Sonoma County Library and supporters of Measure Y. That investment by voters helped to support a recent book-mending class, which will enhance my ability to provide great customer service at Santa Rosa Charter School for the Arts. Here’s a bag of book-mending supplies that I brought back from the class; I’ve already put them to use in SRCSA library.

Collage-art book cover repair

The challenge facing me: a large piece had been torn from the front cover of this paperback book, Rodrick Rules by Jeff Kinney. Aside from the torn cover, the book was in good condition, worth putting back on the shelf.

Hand-made books during ‘Teen Crafternoon’

Having been exposed to the rewarding task of library book repair, I’ve long wanted to try hand-bookbinding. I got the opportunity during “Teen Crafternoon” with the Ashland library teen department.