Juried Art Student Exhibition
Gannon Gallery/BSC Library
April 3 – May 13, 2011
Reception – Thursday, April 28, 2011, 4-7 p.m.
Meet the artists, meet guest juror Justin Rode, and enjoy some refreshments.
Awards
Honorable Mention
Good news! Coming later this year, BSC Library patrons who own Amazon’s Kindle will be able to download eContent from the Library’s Beyond Library Walls Digital Collection (powered by OverDrive) to their devices!
The launch date hasn’t been set, but is scheduled for “later this year.” We will keep you posted!
For more details, here’s the press release: Amazon to Launch Library Lending for Kindle Books.
“When it was introduced in 2008, the Google Book Settlement was hailed by its creators as historic. Now, it is history. On March 22, after more than two years of contentious debate, Judge Denny Chin rejected the controversial proposal on copyright and antitrust grounds. A status conference is set for April 25 in New York, and the parties are free (and some say likely) to appeal the decision, though at press time no appeal had been annnounced.” — Publishers Weekly, March 28, 2011, p. 3.
For more information, visit ALA’s Google Book Settlement Site.
Guest reader Mike McCormack and a couple of enthusiastic audience members – April 14, 2011
Create a Story @ BSC Library
WOW! Our celebrity guest reader (AKA Mike McCormack) brought the story created by our guest writers to life. It was terrific! Thanks so much, Mike. For those of you who missed the reading, here’s the story. Enjoy!
The Night of the Librarian
It was a dark and stormy night at the BSC Library when suddenly the Librarian heard a noise … It was coming from the basement. Johanna walked slowly down the staircase and opened the door as the sounds grew louder. The lights started flickering and then suddenly…. Darkness!
She slowly grew aware that she was not alone, and as her mind accepted the dangerous situation in which she found herself, within a blink of an eye, she had a second to decide whether to dash up the stairs or swallow her fear.
Swallowing hard, she crept through the basement when she felt something moving the air near her head and heard the light flapping of wings. A small bat brushed by her head and she turned and fled into a nearby room where she found herself face to face with … the old elevator.
Salvation was at hand! If only the rusted iron grates would slide open. They would not. So she closed her eyes and clicked her red high heels together three times and took a deep breath. Her mind swam with the possibilities. Swirling and rising within her was a feeling not easily identified or categorized. She took another deep breath and slowly opened her eyes and discovered she was face-to-face with the scary English teacher, Kitty Netzer. She was mortified to find out that every assignment, paper, and test had been given to the bat to eat in the elevator!!! She thought, “This has to be a dream!”
The Librarian asked Kitty, “What in the world are you doing down here!?!” Kitty said, “I always wanted to ride in that dumb waiter you have in the library, but now I am stuck here in the dark and can’t find the door.” “Help me,” she sobbed.
From above, a voice echoed, “Here I come to save the day!” It was Carolyn T. She knew about traveling up and down in the tiny elevator. “I’ll push the button, so hang on!” Slowly, the dumb waiter creaked its way upward. As the door opened, Kitty exclaimed, “I thought I was gonna die younger then Elvis!”
Just as they were erupting in laughter, Elvis appeared out of a puff of smoke and insisted that Carolyn and Kitty both join him in his expedition of space and time. Elvis was escorted by his earth tour guide, the very knowledgeable John McCormack.
As they greeted each other, they heard music, but not just one style of music. There was the sound of a bagpipe band, then a jazz combo, a choir singing madrigal pieces, and songs from My Fair Lady. They looked at each other, mystified by this cacophony of sounds. McCormack then spoke: “I believe we have more than just Elvis in the house. Where is Johanna? She could search the databases and find out the origin of this music.”
Finally, they heard her voice. “Help me. I’m still trapped in the basement with an assignment-eating bat and he is growing rapidly from all the fiber he is eating!” Then, all went silent … for only a moment or two. As they neared the end of their journey, they heard, “I gotcha where I wantcha, now I’m gonna eatcha.” The sound grew and grew. They heard it again. They got to the top. It was 2050 and Elvis was caught red-handed.
Meanwhile, down in the basement, Johanna wrestled with the 200-pound bat, and after spinning it so much it got dizzy, she was able to run away. She finally found the stairs again. She walked up them. “Creak, creak,” they sounded.
Something wasn’t right. She opened the door to find she had been transported back to 1947. Everything was in black and white like a bad Alfred Hitchcock film. She looked down at herself to find her clothes had changed, too. Looking within herself, she discovered something amazing! She had a gift. Something she had had all this time. All she needed was to believe in it.
The sonic screwdriver glimmered in her hand, begging to be used. After all, it was 1947. If Johanna could last ‘til 1948, May 26, she might be able to stop South Africa from electing a nationalist government with its apartheid policy. She ran down the darkened hallway toward door number 13. Throwing it open, she found a room full of books and people reading to one another. Johanna ran around the room looking for a newspaper to see what the date was. Just then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw a portal to an alternate, magical realm of Melordian.
She learned how to cast spells that would make the library a great place to be. She created a portal to Earth and used all her magic to make Bismarck State College the best school with the best library. Everyone got good grades and had pizza at the end of the semester. Johanna felt great about herself and lived a happy life.
The End
“Well …” the librarian thought when she finished reading the last page and closed the book. “How should I catalog this one? I can see BSC as the best school with the best library, but good grades AND pizza, too?! Definitely fiction.”
A short story is in progress as part of the BSC Library’s celebration of National Library Week. Stop by to add your sentence(s) to the story. We’ve got to get the librarian out of the basement!
Contributors to the story are also invited to enter our prize drawing. Among the items we are giving away is a certificate for 10 free coffees at the BSC Bookstore!
The writing closes tomorrow (Thursday, April 14) at 11 a.m. At 12:30 p.m., our celebrity guest reader will read the story out loud during our open house celebration.
Open House Celebration – BSC Library
First sponsored in 1958, National Library Week is a national observance sponsored by the American Library Association (ALA) and libraries across the country each April. Special events during the week include National Library Workers Day (Tuesday, April 12) and National Bookmobile Day (Wednesday, April 13).
We can’t wait to read your story!
April 10–16 is “National Library Week.” This year’s theme is “Create your own story @ your library.” It’s a perfect opportunity for you to let your legislators know how important libraries are to you, to tell your story about why your library matters to you, and the difference your library makes in your community.
Libraries continue to be busier than ever helping families survive during these tough economic times, yet public libraries, school libraries, and academic libraries are facing closures and elimination of librarians and library workers—the people who help those with a job application, teach 21st-century skills, and nurture the love of reading in kids that will serve them the rest of their lives.
State governments provide much needed funding for libraries to provide public access to the Internet to everyone, critical databases for individuals and small businesses, and homework help.
Contact your state and federal representatives today. Libraries need your voice!
Check out the inaugural issue of our newsletter, By the Book! We look forward to your comments, feedback, and suggestions.
By the Book was created using LibGuides … research assistance, subject guides, and useful resources compiled by your friendly librarians. Be sure to explore our other guides. Know what we know – find it in LibGuides!
BSC Library is celebrating National Library Week by writing a story and reading it at our open house on April 14:
The story will begin with this line:
“It was a dark and stormy night at the BSC Library when the librarian heard a noise …
Open House Celebration
First sponsored in 1958, National Library Week is a national observance sponsored by the American Library Association (ALA) and libraries across the country each April. Special events during the week include National Library Workers Day (Tuesday, April 12) and National Bookmobile Day (Wednesday, April 13).
Thanks to Pam Krueger for sharing this item, “The End of Books” by Octave Uzanne, from Scribner’s Magazine, 1894.
Seems as though the end of books has been a long time coming!
“Reading on the Unlimited”
This illustration depicts Uzanne’s vision of “the people” served through “fountains of literature in the streets,” wired for casual listening, along with communal listening in specially wired apartment buildings or train cars.
Read it! Read it! 