Lauren Tarshis books, donated to library

Appreciation to author Lauren Tarshis, who recently donated several of her books to the library at Santa Rosa Charter School for the Arts.

‘The Boy at the Back of the Class’

This book offers young readers an introduction, through fiction, to the serious and heartbreaking reality of refugees who have to flee their homeland, who must brave untold hardships and separation from loved ones in hopes of finding a new home. The story’s protagonist, an unnamed first-person narrator, befriends Ahmet, a child newly arrived at school who is a Syrian refugee. The protagonist later organizes an effort to enlist help from the Queen to locate Ahmet’s missing family. The author, Onjali Q. Rauf, provides further information about the status of “refugees” and an age-appropriate explanation of how they differ from “migrants” or “immigrants” (who generally move to a new country by choice). Rauf also provides a list of organizations for readers who would like to help.

(I found this ARC among books that were donated by a library vendor.)

‘Mascot’ by Antony John

First-person narration by main character Noah Savino kept this reader engaged. The story centers around an attempt to unmask “Fredbird,” official mascot for the St. Louis Cardinals, while addressing the challenges that Noah has to face while undergoing physical therapy from an auto collision that paralyzed him and also killed his father. The story is full of memorable and very detailed characters that populate Noah’s world; I think a lot of readers will relate to Noah’s concern about a new man in his mother’s life while Noah struggles to hold onto memories of his father and resolve feelings concerning the collision.

(I found an ARC of this title among books that were donated by a library vendor.)

‘Brief’ catalog records, rehabilitated

This item’s catalog record includes a summary and identifies grade-level interest

One of the ways I utilize my training in library technical services is to augment “brief” catalog records. A “brief” catalog record contains only the bare minimum of information about an item in a library. Maybe it includes the item’s name, the name of the author, the ISBN, and the assigned call number, maybe the name of the publisher and the date of publication.

SRCSA library’s ‘Scholar Dollar Store’

Check out the new and improved “Scholar Dollar Store,” which I operate out of the library at Santa Rosa Charter School for the Arts. Appreciation to School for the Arts Community Organization, which provided available wares. In so many ways, this organization supports and enhances our school, and providing merchandise for the Scholar Dollar store is one of those myriad ways. Posters cost five “Rock Stars” or “Scholar Dollars” apiece, and pencils and bookmarks each cost one. Among store highlights, school-logo “Narwhal” pencils are especially popular.