Shelf Notes

How is library work like a plumbing project? In October's episode of Our Librarian Life, we discussed book clubs for moms, library projects, inventory, shelf reading, and the "library shuffle," or how one project leads to another. Listen now on your favorite podcast platform.

In August and September, Sara Masarik gave three talks on the importance of good and great living books. She was invited by a local classical school to aid in the faculty and staff inservice in August, and then came back to give a parent version of the talk in September. There was significant interest in the talk from lending librarians and others, and so Sara gave the talk a third time in her library. By popular request, the talk was recorded and is now available for purchase! Divided into two videos, the first part is the talk itself with the slides Sara used. The second part is the Q&A from her library event. Purchase of the talk includes both videos as well as a PDF of the handout she used. 100% of the proceeds will go to support The Card Catalog and all of the work that we are doing to support living books lending librarians.

A special thank you to Biblioguides for hosting the videos and handling the payment part of this. A very special thank you to Michelle Howard for her encouragement, support, and the use of the short form video that we made with her earlier this year.

You can find the talk here.

Have you discovered any exciting new (or newly republished) books from 2024 that you think fellow librarians will love? We are curating a 2024 list of must-read titles and would love to hear your recommendations! The list of favorites from 2024 will be published in our January edition of Shelf Notes. Share your submissions of titles published or reprinted in 2024 for consideration here.

As we watched the fury of Hurricane Helene rip through Western North Carolina, many of us sat feeling helpless, taking in the devastation. What can any one person do in the wake of so many pressing needs?

Kirsten Turner did something meaningful that is near and dear to all of our hearts; she began the hard work of organizing living book distribution. As librarians, we want to stand on our chairs and passionately cheer her on. We have watched her efforts in awe and want to make sure that you know how you can make a difference too.

The 21st Century Packhorse Librarians have a Facebook group that anyone can join: https://www.facebook.com/groups/518245321171056

They have an Amazon wish list here.

The 21st Century Packhorse Librarians are also accepting gently used living books, no torn pages or markings. Communicate with Kirsten through the Facebook page for more information about where and how to send used book donations.

In our Book Review Roundup, a joint project from Sherry Early at Semicolon and Diane Pendergraft and Sara Masarik of Plumfield and Paideia, you can find book reviews for all kinds of books from picture books to middle grade fiction to adult novels and nonfiction to help guide your book buying choices as you put together your own unique lending library.

Books with review links in Book Review Roundup, Issue 11 are:

Urchin of the Riding Stars by Margaret McAllister

Surprised by Oxford by Carolyn Weber

Anson’s Way by Gary D. Schmidt

Home on the Range: John A. Lomax and His Cowboy Songs by Deborah Hopkinson

Brooklyn Rose by Ann Rinaldi

Miss Moore Thought Otherwise by Jan Pinborough

Down Ryton Water by E.R. Gaggin

The Golden Dream of Carlo Chuchio by Lloyd Alexander

Blue Willow by Doris Gates

Growing Patterns: Fibonacci Numbers in Nature by Sarah Campbell

Lily’s Victory Garden by Helen L. Wilbur

All-of-a-Kind Family by Sydney Taylor

The Impossible Journey by Gloria Whelan

The Eagle of the Ninth by Rosemary Sutcliff

Sabre Jet Ace by Charles Coombs

In the Small Publishers corner of the newsletter each month, we hope to draw your attention to something lovely from one of our beloved small publishers. We are so grateful for the good work these publishers do to revive otherwise lost good, true, and beautiful books!

Bethlehem Books is having a Christmas Sale November 14-18. Get everything 25% off with free shipping! Use the promo code Christmas2024.

Click here or on the pic to listen to an interview with Lydia Reynolds and Melissa Sobotta of Bethlehem Books about the origins and mission of Bethlehem Books which focuses on providing quality children's literature rooted in a culture that values faith and education. They explore the community aspect of their work, the influence of Charlotte Mason's educational philosophy, and the journey from a bakery to a publishing house, culminating in the release of their first book.

At The Story Warren, everything is on Christmas Sale Pricing now with free shipping at $50. AND in the new Green Ember book, The Lost Key, Picket, Heather, Jo, and your favorite Green Ember heroes are back for another thrilling adventure. Pre-order now at the sale price, and The Lost Key will ship by December 6th, just in time for Christmas.

Gone are the days when living books were cast aside and sold off at bargain prices. Today’s librarians face the challenge of seeking out the best living books, as they become increasingly scarce. Fortunately, a growing number of small publishers are working tirelessly to revive these treasures by bringing them back into print. In October, November, and December, we will be sharing curated lists that feature some of the finest living books still accessible today—either due to the availability of used copies or recent reprints by dedicated publishers. This month’s list focuses on Living Books for Middle Grades (Ages 9-13).

It's here! The freshly updated and expanded Picture Book Preschool is now available at Biblioguides!

This month we took Picture Book Preschool plus a sign-up sheet for Book Review Roundup plus some FREE picture books to give away to the Fall Festival at Sherry Early's church. Lots of parents and children stopped by our table to choose a free picture book and to find out more about our book review newsletter and about Picture Book Preschool and about the library. If you're looking for new library patrons, you might want to try a book table at your local farmer's market or Christmas market or some other public venue

We still have a special giveaway for librarians and readers of this newsletter--an exclusive set of Picture Book Preschool stickers! These 1.5" circle stickers are perfect for marking the backs of all your PBP books, helping you find them easily when it’s time to read. Whether you're a school librarian, home librarian, homeschool librarian, or lending librarian, you'll love using these! Each unit includes ten identical stickers.

How to Get Your Librarian Book Labels:

1. Share a picture or video of your Picture Book Preschool experience on social media.

2. Set your post to public, tag Plumfield Moms, and send us a quick email letting us know you’ve shared.

3. We'll email you a link to download the PDF of the stickers!

We can't wait to see what you’re doing with Picture Book Preschool—thank you for helping us spread the love of stories!

Happy reading,

The Picture Book Preschool Team

www.thecardcataloglibrarians.com

thecardcataloglibrarians@gmail.com

In January we announced that the Plumfield Moms are creating custom book club guides perfect for librarians (and others) to use in their libraries. Each PDF guide comes with 25-35 pages of resources, questions, background information, invitations and book marks, participant journals, and more. Think of it as a book club in a box. All you have to do is print and host!

Because you are a subscriber to Shelf Notes, you can download The Princess and the Goblin for free! Just email Plumfield and let them know you would like to have The Princess and the Goblin Book Club Guide (plumfieldandpaideia@gmail.com). If you would like to see more of the guides, go to the guide page, here. You can hear the story behind these new book club guides on the Plumfield Moms State of the Podcast episode, here.

This story opens with what feels like an old German fairy tale. Three princesses are ensnared in a spell that binds them to a wood. A young boy loses his way in the forest and happens upon the three magical princesses. The sisters each play the harmonica for him, but instead of hearing their music one at a time, he hears the song swell with all three voices simultaneously. As one sister played the harmonica, the echo continued while the next sister played, and so on. Because this is an enchantment, that echo goes out into the world sending waves of magic with it. As this blessed harmonica transfers from Friedrich in 1933 Germany to Mike in 1935 Philadelphia and then to Ivy Maria in 1942 Southern California, the magic reverberates through many lives, possibly saving many souls. Until, at last, it works its final magic, and the enchantment is broken.

Ideal for readers 12 and older, this book deals with some challenging topics and may be hard for younger readers who are sensitive. For teens, however, this story is likely to generate excellent book club discussions about important and timeless topics. Check out our book review, here.

This guide has over 30 pages of everything you will need to host a memorable book club from invitations and reading journals to enrichment suggestions and no-fail book club conversation starters and questions in one digital download. Click here to purchase the guide. You can find all of our guides, here.

Redeemer Classical School Library, Fort Wayne, IN. Nicole Schulert, Librarian. From Nicole: When we moved to Indiana in 2019, "Redeemer Classical School was only about 2 years old and just starting its library (with only about 200 titles). I was able to jump in as a parent volunteer. God's timing is amazing because in the year prior to COVID, our local public library system started a massive weed. We were able to scoop up hundreds of beautiful books from the 20 cent shelf. We've now grown to nearly 8,000 volumes! In 2023, we received two grants to build shelving (built by a local Amish business) and install stained glass windows. The grant has also allowed me to become an 'official' librarian again for 8 hours a week. We opened our library up to the rest of the community (beyond church and school members) last year and little by little, the word has been getting out, and homeschooling families are coming to use the collection."

There are 97 libraries across the English-speaking world listed in the Private Lending Library Directory at Biblioguides. We're shooting for 100 by the end of the year! If you know of other living books lending libraries that are not listed, please ask them to share their information so families can find the books that will speak to their minds and hearts at a library near them. And please share this list of libraries on social media whenever someone asks where they can find the "Good Books."

And since this newsletter is called Shelf Notes, we thought we'd share a Shelf Notes Photo from one of the private lending libraries in our directory each month. Click on the photograph to see whose library this shelf belongs in. Can you guess without looking? Send us a picture of one of your shelves, and we'll feature your library in Shelf Notes!

Viola Lending Library, Viola, ID. Laura Baxter, Librarian. From Laura: "My library currently serves about 17-18 families. I am open on Thursday mornings or by appointment. I have maybe 150 books checked out right now (out of several thousand). Some families come weekly and some come every couple weeks or monthly. My library is currently in rolling carts and boxes that I pull out into the living room once a week. However, I am getting ready to move my children's collection into the second floor of our shop building, so that is exciting.

I am 100% analog and use physical cards, pockets, and date due slips. I organize the checked out cards by family so they are easy to return. I don't have a limit, so one family may check out a dozen or more books at a time. For me, this is a hobby and a ministry so I don't charge. I try to have open hands and trust God that the books will go to people who need them. I do have members sign an agreement about replacement of lost or damaged books. Most members are friends or neighbors so it has worked out so far."

Beautiful Books Library, Prattville, AL. Chuk Shirley, Librarian. From Chuk: "[W]e had some friends tell us that they knew there was good literature out there, and they knew their children should be reading it, but they just didn't know how to navigate the world of children's literature. They felt ill-equipped to pick out books for their kids. So we decided to begin shopping book sales and spent about 10 months building up an initial collection. We opened on August 1 of this year and are running a pilot program until the end of the year. Membership is free during the pilot program, but we've capped the number of patron families at 11. Our plan is to serve more families starting on January 1 and begin charging a modest fee." Chuk Shirley is interested in more information from anyone who has experience in lending book by mail or postal patrons. If you have experience in this model, please email us at thecardcataoglibrarians@gmail.com, and we will share that with Chuk and with others at The Card Catalog.

River City Library, Jacksonville, FL. Heather Johnson, Librarian. From the library website: "One of the joys of running River City Library is the opportunity to encourage and equip families in and around NE Florida. This January, RCL will host the third Delightful Living Retreat. The retreat will take place January 24th and January 25th at the Kernan Church Pavilion, Jacksonville, FL." For more information about the retreat or about Heather's library.

Little Library in the Big Woods, Erin Ensinger, Librarian. Erin has a great new article on Geography at the Little Library at her library website with lots of suggestions of living books for learning all about the world and its peoples.

Do you have a library story to share with Shelf Notes readers? We at The Card Catalog hope you are enjoying the resources we have provided there, and we also aspire to make our monthly newsletter, Shelf Notes, a valuable source for news and encouragement to the private lending library community. If your library story is not already published on our Librarian Notices page at The Card Catalog, we would love to talk to you about adding your story there. Please email us at thecardcataloglibarians@gmail.com to submit your library story to Librarian Notices.

Also, we really enjoy hearing about what’s going on in your library and sometimes publishing that information in brief in Shelf Notes. If you have news of events or new endeavors in your library, please share with us by email at thecardcataloglibrarians@gmail.com. Thank you for all you are doing to connect children and families with good, life-giving books. Keep on doing what you are doing, and we pray for God’s blessing on all our work.