Middletown Thrall Library's Blog for Booklovers
Literary news, forthcoming titles, new authors, and more!
eBook Issues to Consider
Posted: February 19, 2010
The recent surge of interest in eBooks
provoked much curiosity as well as
technical questions among readers.
To help you answer some of these questions,
we prepared some free flyers at the library
as well as
at our website.
The world of eBooks can be exciting
and useful, especially for readers who travel,
yet, just as is true of digital music,
technical questions and deeper considerations
can linger.
For example, purchasing a regular book (in print)
is often not the same as buying an eBook:
the eBook is a computer file you have
purchased the rights to access and transfer
to your computer (or your portable media
player, if that is permitted).
"Permission" is a key concept in digital music
and book files: depending on where you acquire
a file, that file can be subject to certain
terms, such as whether or not you can transfer
an audio eBook to an MP3 player.
The technical name for these permissions is
Digital Rights Management (DRM). DRM is
typically defined by both legal terms
and technological limitations.
Since even the same publisher can publish
a variety of files with different DRM terms,
you can begin to see how difficult (and
possibly frustrating) it can be for users
to deal with, particularly if they are avid
readers!
The
Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF)
has prepared a document outlining potential
issues and questions eBook users might want
to consider before investing in an eBook
reader or eBook titles:
EFF also maintains a
Digital Books Issues page,
where you will find coverage of current
eBook issues in the news (as provided
from EFF's consumer-rights-oriented
perspective).
For additional information on the topic of digital books,
here are some library catalog subject links you might
want to explore:
You might also want to visit the
eBooks and eReaders section
of our
Booklovers guide as well as
our earlier blog post on eBooks.
March 2010 Titles
Posted: February 17, 2010
The following new books due out in March are bound to be popular. Use the links below to place your requests now.
Nonfiction
Fiction
February 2010 Titles
Posted: January 26, 2010
The following books by popular authors are due out in February. Please use the links below to check reviews and place your requests now.
Nonfiction
Fiction
January 2010 Titles
Posted: December 23, 2009
The following books have been recently published or are due out by the end of January 2010.
They are sure to be popular so use the links below to place your requests now.
Nonfiction
Fiction
On Display: Fireside Fiction
Posted: December 22, 2009
The theme for our latest rotating book display
(located near the adult library catalog computers) is
Fireside Fiction: Stories for Long Winter Nights
The next time you come to the library, please feel free
to visit our display and check out as many titles
as you find interesting!
eBooks & eReaders
Posted: December 3, 2009
For several years now, our library system has
offered free access to eBooks.
Middletown Thrall Library offers a steadily
increasing number of electronic books and
Virtual Reference materials
online for its patrons.
As more of our readers begin to weigh
the possibilities and pitfalls of reading
electronically, we continue to develop
all our collections (print, electronic,
audio, etc.) to meet your needs
and reading preferences, be they digital
or bookbound.
Our
Booklovers Web Guide
contains a wealth of reading resources, news,
and other information for readers
in any medium.
The
newest section in our Booklovers
guide features eBooks and eReaders.
If you're already
an e-booklover, then you might appreciate
browsing some of the many free sources of
eBooks or learning more about eBook formats
and related news.
If you are new to eBooks, you can browse
some of the websites there to learn more
about eBook readers, read reviews and
comparisons of eReaders, and also get an
idea of what is freely available to you
(as a member of Thrall or any RCLS library)
right through our own library system.
If you'd like to get into electronic books
but aren't ready yet to buy an eReader,
an MP3 player for eAudiobooks, or a computer,
you might want to look into our growing
selection of Playaway titles.
Playaways are very small, simple-to-use
digital audio books. You check them out
and return them just like regular books,
and they are very easy to use:
you literally just press Play!
If interested, please stop by our Reference
Department, and we'll show you where you
can find them. You can also
click here to
browse some (but not all) Playaway titles
available throughout the library system.
December 2009 Titles
Posted: November 21, 2009
The following books have been recently published or are due out by the end of December. They are sure to be popular so use the links below to place your requests now.
Nonfiction
Fiction
November 2009 Titles
Posted: October 22, 2009
The following books by popular authors are due out in November.
You can use the links below to browse the catalog or place your requests.
Nonfiction
Fiction
2009 Nobel Prize in Literature
Posted: October 8, 2008
The 2009 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to Herta Muller.
The Nobel Foundation
posted the official announcement and a video at their website.
For more informaton:
Read.gov
Posted: September 28, 2009
The
Library of Congress' Center for the Book
has created a new website in support of the
National Book Festival
and to promote reading:
There are some really unique offerings here for all ages, such as:
- The Exquisite Corpse Adventure - an unpredictable story in the making
- Classic books you can read online, such as The Baby's Own Aesop or The Secret Garden.
- Booklists with reading suggestions on topics such as U.S. Presidents, American Inventors, Sports, National Parks, Civil War, the Great Depression, African-American History, Hispanic-American History, Asian-American History, Native Americans, Mysteries, and more
For more details, please
read the Read.gov press release
or
click here to visit Read.gov.
Also check out our previous blog post:
National Book Festival: Author Podcasts.
October 2009 Titles
Posted: September 23, 2009
The following books by popular authors are due out in October.
You can use the links below to browse the catalog or place your requests.
Nonfiction
Fiction
Armchair Adventures
Posted: September 18, 2009
Thrill-seekers, adventurers, escapists, explorers,
lovers of travel stories, daring dreamers:
come one and all to see our latest rotating book display:
Armchair Adventures!
(Everyone else is invited, too!)
On this display (located near the adult library catalog computers)
you will find adventurous works of fiction and nonfiction,
tales of other worlds, swashbucklers, real life heroes,
trailblazers and globetrotters, navigators of unknown lands,
and more.
If you can't get to the library, or if you can't
wait to start your own adventures, here are
some library catalog subject links to get you started:
You should also check out the latest addition to our Book Lists for Booklovers:
Regional Reads and Travels.
Happy reading!
National Book Festival: Author Podcasts
Posted: September 11, 2009
In support of the
2009 National Book Festival,
the
Library of Congress has posted a series of
informative and entertaining podcasts (audio/video broadcasts online) featuring
popular and best-selling authors commenting on their careers as writers and readers.
Click here to hear or download (MP3 format) interviews with authors including
David Wroblewski, George Pelecanos, James Patterson, Jon Scieszka, Junot Diaz, Lois Lowry, Nicholas Sparks, and Rickey Minor.
Interviews from previous years are also online:
- 2008 - Authors: Arthur and Pauline Frommer, Bob Schieffer, Brad Meltzer, Cokie Roberts, Dionne Warwick, Geraldine Brooks, Jan Brett, Jon Scieszka, Kay Ryan, Kimberly Dozier, Louis Bayard, Marisa de los Santos, Michelle Singletary, Peter Robinson, Philippa Gregory, R.L. Stine, Walter Isaacson, Warren Brown, Joseph Bruchac, Sharon M. Draper.
- 2007 - Authors: Carmen Agra Deedy, Charles Simic, David Baldacci, David Wiesner, Holly Black, Ken Burns, Maria Celeste Arrarás, Megan McDonald, Patricia MacLachlan, Rosemary Wells, Sanjay Gupta, Shelia P. Moses, Terry Pratchett, Victoria Rowell.
- 2006 - Authors: John Hope Franklin, Donald Hall, Khaled Hosseini, Marcus Samuelsson, Lisa Scottoline, Judith Viorst.
For more on this national celebration of books, authors, and readers, please click here
to access the
National Book Festival website,
which includes
a young reader's toolkit.
September 2009 Titles
Posted: August 26, 2009
The following books by popular authors are due out in September. Use the links below to place your requests now:
Nonfiction
Fiction
August 2009 Titles
Posted: July 27, 2009
The following books by popular authors are due out in August. Use the links below to place your requests now:
Nonfiction
Fiction
On Display: "Great Book!"
Posted: July 10, 2009
Our latest display features some of the "best of the best" titles
and authors from celebrity and critic's recommended readings lists.
There you will find an interesting variety of critically-acclaimed
and personally treasured works of fiction, nonfiction,
from classics to contemporary writing.
Online, in
our Booklovers web guide,
we recently created a
Book Lists section,
where you will see suggested reading for topics including:
- African-American History
- "Best" and "Greatest" Books
- Celebrity Selections
- Controversial and Censored
- Literature
- School District Summer Reading Lists
- Summer Reading and "Beach Reads"
- Women's History and Literature
We also invite you to check out Reader's Advisory Center
at Reference, where we have dedicated guides (offering
advice according to reader's age, themes, or genres).
On top of those shelves you will also see a number
of free bookmarks you can take. Many of these
bookmarks also contain reading suggestions!
If you're in the mood to make some suggestions of your
own to other readers, you can use our free (and anonymous)
RAVES! service
to share your love of reading with other readers
looking for the next "great book."
July 2009 Titles
Posted: June 26, 2009
The following books by popular authors are due out in July. Click below to request them now:
Nonfiction
Fiction
eBooks for iPods, Sony Readers!
Posted: June 18, 2009
OverDrive, the media transfer tool used
for the library system's eBooks and eAudio books,
reports the following good news for iPod and iPhone users:
"With OverDrive Media Console v3.2, the vast majority of OverDrive WMA Audiobooks can be transferred to the iPod and the iPhone!"
Follow this link
to learn more about the latest software and downloads for Mac and Windows users.
At the
RCLS eFiles website, there is also news about
Sony Reader-compatible eBooks:
"Introducing eBooks in the EPUB format! We are delighted to announce the addition of
Sony Reader-compatible eBooks in the EPUB format to this catalog! Offering small file
sizes and the ability to resize text so that it neatly and instantaneously reflows on
the screen, the EPUB eBooks available at this site can also be enjoyed on Windows and
Mac computers using Adobe Digital Editions."
For more on EPUB eBooks, please click here.
This link leads to a list of EPUB eBooks.
Follow this link
to learn more about the latest software and downloads for Mac and Windows users.
You can learn more about our free eBook service by following this link.
June 2009 Titles
Posted: May 22, 2009
The following books by popular authors are due out in June. Click below to request them now:
Nonfiction
Fiction
On Display: Family Portraits
Posted: May 1, 2009
Our rotating book display (near the adult catalog computers) has a new theme:
Family Portraits: Stores of Families Large and Small
Here you will find fiction, from literary classics to contemporary works,
focusing on families and family life.
We invite you to check out as many items from this display
as you like the next time you visit the library.
You can also
click here to browse our RAVES! Readers Advisory
service for reader-recommended books involving the theme of "family"
in some way.
If a title in
RAVES! interests you, you can check the catalog to see
if it is available and even reserve it, if you like.
If you know of a good fiction (or nonfiction) book about families
(or any other theme, for that matter!),
please feel free to submit your recommendation to RAVES! right now so other readers might consider reading it.
If you would like to see what else is available within the library
system catalog,
click here to search for "family - fiction" in the catalog.
World Digital Library Online
Posted: April 30, 2009
Back in April 2007,
we blogged about the Library of Congress'
intention to create a new online archive of writings
and other cultural treasures from around the world.
The
World Digital Library
is now a reality!
Library of Congress announced the achievement in its blog:
"The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
and 32 partner institutions today launched the World Digital Library,
a website that features unique cultural materials from libraries and
archives from around the world. The site - located at
www.wdl.org - includes manuscripts, maps,
rare books, films, sound recordings, prints and photographs."
Click here to read the Library of Congress blog post in its entirety.
You can click here to access the World Digital Library.
May 2009 Titles
Posted: April 29, 2009
The following books by popular authors are due out in May. Click below to request them now:
Nonfiction
Fiction
Da Vinci Code Fans Rejoice
Posted: April 21, 2009
Dan Brown has completed his
Da Vinci Code Trilogy.
The Lost Symbol
is due out on September 15th and will feature
Robert Langdon
from the Da Vinci Code
and its prequel
Angels and Demons.
Look for a record
in the catalog in the near future.
The
movie version of Angels and Demons,
directed by
Ron Howard,
will be
released in theaters on May 15th.
For more information on Dan Brown, his books, and the movies, you can visit
the author's website:
DanBrown.com
April 2009 Titles
Posted: March 27, 2009
The following books by popular authors are due out in April. Click below to request them now.
Nonfiction
Fiction
New Display: Yes You Can!
Posted: March 13, 2009
Our rotating book display (near the adult catalog computers) has a new theme:
Yes You Can! Adventures in Optimism, Hope, and New Beginnings
Here you will find decidedly positive fiction and non-fiction
works that promise to uplift, inform, and inspire you
in all areas of life, from personal considerations
to professional aspirations.
We invite you to check out as many items from this display
as you like the next time you visit the library.
You can also click any of the subject links below to browse (and reserve, if you wish)
even more thematically-related topics and titles available throughout the library system:
March 2009 Titles
Posted: February 23, 2009
The following books of interest are due out in March 2009.
Please use the links below to put your requests in now.
Nonfiction
Fiction
The following titles are first novels that are receiving a lot of attention.
February 2009 Titles
Posted: January 27, 2009
The following books of interest are due out in February 2009.
Please use the links below to put your requests in now.
Nonfiction
Fiction
Two More Displays:
Our Favorite Children's Stories, Edgar Allan Poe
Posted: January 27, 2009
In addition to our "Best of 2008" display we have two other displays:
In the library's lobby you will see a wonderful display celebrating favorite children's stories.
Inside the library, near the Reading Room entrance (near Reference) you will see another
display highlighting the literature of Edgar Allan Poe.
On Display: "The Best of 2008"
Posted: January 16, 2009
The new theme for our rotating book display (located near the adult library catalog computers) is "The Best of 2008,"
a collection of notable fiction, nonfiction, and biography titles published in 2008.
Titles on display were selected from a variety of "best of 2008" lists,
such as those published by
Library Journal,
The New York Times,
Booklist,
National Public Radio,
and
Publisher's Weekly.
Some "Best of 2008" lists can be browsed in a binder located by the display. A librarian can help you locate
any items in these lists which might interest you.
You are encouraged to check out (or reserve) as many titles as you like!
Here is a brief and random selection of titles, any of which you can click to locate (and reserve, if you wish) in the library catalog:
January 2009 Titles
Posted: December 25, 2008
The following books of interest are due out in January 2009.
Please use the links below to put your requests in now.
Nonfiction
Fiction
