What's In A Name

creative commons search "name"

As someone who has a background in feminist studies, I know that the naming of things is important.  There is a power in a name, and politics exist within the realm of naming as well.

What does this have to do with libraries and librarianship? Quite a bit.

When I was in library school back in the mid 90s, my graduate school was going through reaccreditation.  One of the issues on the table was renaming the school.  On the table was changing the degree from a Masters in Library and Information Studies to a Masters in Information Studies.  Heated debates ensued, but at the end of it all, the students felt that it was really important to leave the word library in the title of the degree.

In the world of school libraries, after a stint of media centers, it seems that the term of favor now is Information Commons.  My response to this is that I think that the very idea of information commons is implicit in the idea of libraries.  I do understand that the term IC is probably much sexier when it comes to funding. Whenever I tell folks I am a school librarian I usually get a chuckle and nudge and told either I don't look like a librarian, or asked if I still teach Dewey.  I know if I told them I was worked in an information commons in an academic setting I might get a little more respect.  I find myself, however, sticking to the terms library and librarian.

Trust me, I have done plenty of reflection regarding whether or not I am simply becoming one of those "GET OFF MY LAWN" people.  I really don't think that is it.  I don't think that I am clinging to something that is outdated.  Rather, I think that folks really need to broaden their view of what it means to be a librarian and work in a library.

What do you think is in a name?

Sunday Musings - Gender and Reading - Gendered Reading

By Copyright by Fritz W. Guerin, St. Louis. [Public domain]

Gender seems to be perpetually in the air in the world of librarianship and children's literature.  I have been in this field for a while now and have worked in some different settings, but my setting of well over 10 years now has been in a school.

Over the past month or so I have been paying more attention than usual to our collection, gender and circulation.  I first started off simply with a post-it and two columns.  Each time a student would check out a book, I would mark off the column with the gender identification.  Every day the results would be similar.  The boys and girls in my school check out a similar amount of books.

I then decided to utilize the catalog software. (Anyone who knows me knows that I *love* running statistics!) I started off looking at the top ten patrons (those with the highest number of check outs) for the month, then I ran it back to the last 9 months of the school year.  The results?  Out of the top 10 patrons, 7 of them are boys.  Open the stats up to the top 50 patrons and the gender mix gets closer - 26 girls and 24 boys make up our top 50.

I have many thoughts about the why of this.  We have 4 librarians shepherding our students through their years at school.  Our early childhood librarian is a man, so one of the students first looks at what a reader looks like is Jesse.  We are very mindful about the books we share with our students, and we try incredibly hard to make sure there is a variety with characters who are diverse in all sorts of ways.  When we find stereotypes, we talk about them with the students.  We don't go in for the "Girl's Read" "Guys Read" variety of booklists or book talks.  In fact, two of my favorite anecdotes about assumptions helped make me more aware of my own gender bias after being steeped in this girls vs boys culture my whole life.  We have a boy who is a super reader, and he mostly (to my knowledge) was a reader of graphic novels.  He pretty much read everything we had for his age group by the time he was done with 4th grade.  At the end of the year, I ask the students to reflect and I ask them their favorite title.  His favorite title of all time?  The Penderwicks by Birdsall.  We also had a group of middle school boys who quietly came into the library and methodically checked out every single Clique book.  They didn't hide them, read them out in the open, and felt no shame along the way.

It's really up to the adults in the room to set the tone and fight against the pink and blue tide.  Create a reading culture, make sure you are not perpetuating the stereotype by handing boys sports books and girls friendship books.  Highlight books that get outside of the gender box.  Remember, there are no such thing as boy books and girl books, no matter what some marketing departments might say.

What book did *you* write?

I love sharing a desk with two other librarians.  It's wonderful to have folks that I respect to bounce ideas off of.  We get to discuss books and movies and kids.  Both of these librarians have written books and our students know this, so eventually almost every kid asks me, "Stacy...what book did *you* write?"
They are often shocked to find out that I have not written a book, and that I am not writing a book, and even more so that I have no desire to write a book. The thought of writing fiction terrifies me.  I am a happy consumer of story, and while I do produce story in my daily life, I have neither the chops nor the talent to dive into something as arduous and time consuming as writing for others.
I have dabbled in group creation like writing camp, and I am noticing all of the folks committing to writing during #nanomo and #nerdlution . What I have learned is that it is not for me.  I have also learned that figuring this out has set me free.
I have often thought about writing.  I do enjoy writing my own poetry, and if I ever were to do all the necessary work to create a book, it would likely be the wonky non-fiction that I love.
My hat is off to those who are passionate about writing and story. Know that there are equally passionate readers out there, and we salute you!

Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes....

Things have been quiet around here.  I have been thinking.

I started Tweendom at a time when parents were asking and asking for books for their middle graders.  That market has clearly exploded, and while I still adore reading for this age group, I feel a bit like I am in an echo chamber.  So many folks are reviewing so often, and by the time I get around to blurbing a book, I feel like all that I would have said has been said already.

But I'm not quite ready to give it all up yet.  So now, I am thinking of changing scope. (Curse naming my blog after a specific age-group!) I will be blogging some cool stuff I am doing in my role as a school librarian.  I will also be blogging some of the bigger issues going on in the education and library worlds.  There will still be recommendations as well, but they will definitely be interspersed with the other stuff.

Thanks for hanging in!

Saying Goodbye To My Newbery Year

Chances are, if you read this blog you know that the ALA announced the Youth Media Awards on Monday morning.  It was a bitter sweet time, as it signaled the end of my Newbery tenure.

This past year (and a half) has been filled with more books than you can possibly imagine.  I was reading with a critical eye, thinking and re-thinking, reading and re-reading.

I am particularly proud of our committee and our hard work.  It does seem a little strange to be reading for the sake of it, but I am pleased that this blog will be going back to its old format.  I will be keeping up with the tween interviews and the "on the clip-board" posts, but they will be interspersed with book recommendations!

Happy Belated Blogiversary to Me!

So 3 years ago on June 19th I started Welcome to my Tweendom as a companion to the now defunct Booktopia in order to highlight titles for the tweeners in your lives. I forgot my own blogiversary, but I am not being too hard on myself as June 19th was the last day of Kindergarten for my little one.

I have just packed an entire suitcase of books to read this summer, and will hopefully be adding to this blog as frequently as life without a school schedule will allow!

(Photo from pinkcakebox.com)

A Note on the Blog roll....

When I first started Welcome to my Tweendom, I had in mind a very specialized blog where tween or cross-over titles were highlighted. This specialization has extended to my blog roll. Herein lies the rub. There are very few specialized blogs targeting the age-range of the Tween. Sure, there are thousands of book blogs out there, but I always thought that placing a YA book blog, or a picture book blog on the roll may steer readers in a different direction than they want to go.

So. My blog roll remains very small.

I am wondering, however, if I should add some of the best blogs that I know are out there to the list by categorizing them as "Children's", "Tween", "Teen" and "Adult".

I would really appreciate any insight that you may have.

Cheers!

Off to Cali

Well, like so many of you, I am off to sunny California! I am very excited about this conference because not only am I attending, but I will also be presenting and blogging.

I will be representing my school at the Pre-conference on Diversity. I will be exploring the ways that the library can support school wide diversity efforts, and even spear head some of those efforts!

I will be blogging this for ALSC as well. So if you do not have a chance to come to the pre-conference, head on over to the ALSC blog to read all about it.

I am looking forward to going on some school tours while in Anaheim as well. I love seeing how other folks set things up!

Happy travels!

I have been reading .... honest!

I have been reading, but I haven't been posting! Cybils reading for the Middle Grade fiction category is keeping the pages turning! And after the judging is done and all, there will be a flurry of reviews posted over here!

But here's the rub!

I just returned from ALA midwinter with 4 bags of shiny, pretty, tween-y arcs! They are beckoning! Maybe I can squeeze one or two in between the official stuff!

I mean, how can I resist this!?!?

2007 Round Up!

This is the time of years for lists, lists, lists. Favourites and bests. Least favourites and not-bests! I re-read this blog, and I am pleasantly surprised how many good books I was able to read this year. But what of the bests and worsts? Well, this is not a place for the worsts...but there definitely were a few...one of which sits on my nightstand right now. I so wanted to like it.

Sigh.

But.

My favourites for the tween set are:




Hands down, my favourite book of the year. Folks are up in arms. "It's YA", "No! It's cross-over!", "No, it's solidly written children's lit!" I have put my arguing about the shelf placement for The Wednesday Wars aside (aren'tcha happy, Jen?!). I am simply all about loving this book from characters to setting. Simply the best.

Ahhh...Enola Holmes (granted this title isn't 2007, but The Case of the Left-Handed Lady is!) My feminist self is SO pleased with Enola, and with Springer's crafty use of detail that has our students exclaiming when we tell them said details are true. Fast, fun, feminist...woot!

The Secret History of Tom Trueheart did not get the buzz that I thought it would. The same thing happened in the past to the superb Capt. Hook. Simply a delightful read, equally appealing to boys and girls. A great adventure! And a fab cover too!



And last, but not least, Amelia Rules! Superheroes. (Again a 2006, but there is a new 2007 volume out called "When the Past is a Present" and I have faith it'll be just as good!). In my opinion, Jimmy Gownley can do no wrong. Such smart books, with great characters and hilarious details. I champion Amelia Rules whenever and wherever possible. What a great series.


So there you have it. Not easy to whittle things down, let me tell you! For some other favourite lists around the kidlitosphere check out:

2007 Top 10 over at Reading Rants

Fuse #8's Golden Fuse Awards

A Wrung Sponge's 2007 in Review

Planet Esme - Bliss!

As you know from my last post, I was recently in Chicago attending the kidlit blogger's con. Swing on over to Booktopia to get my first impressions. That Saturday was great, but lots of meetings were involved! On Sunday, Esme invited us over to her Planet for brunch and a look around.

O. M. G.





This is what we saw when we entered.












And this.

And this.

And this.









Wow.

Esme was so generous with her space. (This is an apartment for her books, you know). We were all in awe. And we enjoyed a delicious brunch, and each other's company. It was time to leave too soon. I shared a cab with fellow Canadians Andrea and Mark, and was back in stinky NYC before I knew it.

But I think that Planet Esme will be somewhere I go in my head when crowded on a train, or herding onto the ferry.