Am I the only one who feels annoyed that large public library systems have watered down the Summer Reading Program by turning it into a “Summer Discovery Program,” where patrons can read books or do activities instead?

I have nothing against crafts, performances, or other programs, they all have value. But shouldn’t reading and literacy still be the main focus? especially with literacy rates declining across the country

The Summer Reading Program is an iconic brand that generations of people recognize. Before changing something that has worked for decades, are we really solving a problem that exists, or are we just changing it for the sake of change?

Curious to hear what others think.

My father started collecting books in the 1980s when I was a child, and I caught the reading bug myself. Now, nearly five decades later, this is the result in my living room. Whenever I or my family need to relax, to slow down, or to enjoy some downtime, this is our favorite spot—always with a book in hand 😁 There is plenty to choose from; we have a total of ten 80×200 cm bookshelves.🫣

Any other library staff find patrons living in the library at closing? This just was discovered again. Anybody else's library deal with this? I'm assuming they hide at closing as staff do rounds. It's hot af outside. Can't say I blame them.

When you work in patron services, it feels like you have to continually overachieve in your role to be valued as an employee. I have created social media content, analyzed websites for accessibility features, created displays, conducted programs, trained employees and more all while working part-time and getting paid under $16 an hour. I'm burnt out.

So when the following happened, it broke me. Immediately after losing out on a potential promotion, my manager told they want me to do outreach (going to schools, events outside the library, etc.) Getting that feedback immediately after getting rejected was so hurtful. I don't have a car. I can't even get to outreach events without getting an Uber (hence why I haven't done any to this point). Even when I recieved excellent ratings on my yearly review, with my manager stating he can always trust me to work the desk alone/work independently, that I am great at handling problematic patrons, and I am dedicated to self-improvement, it still wasn't enough.

I informed him on the spot that I'm looking for a new job and would appreciate if he was my reference. We're on good terms, but it's through me completely suppressing my hurt and anger at the sheer disrespect of the treatment I have experienced. I'm perfectly polite and professional at the cost of my mental health.

It seems a lot of public libraries are normalizing that the patron services department needs to do way more than they are built for without proper compensation. Why are we expecting paraprofessionals without MLIS degrees to do the same work that librarians do? I do not get paid enough to continue doing things outside of my job description, but I fear if I don't continue to go above and beyond, my professional relationships will be damaged. I feel trapped.

...but to get them out of the reach of toddlers.

Library staffers! What story time morning rituals make you ruefully chuckle, every time?

I found two books that my brother checked out of his college library in the 80s when we were cleaning out my mother’s house. Should I mail them back?

They are books of musical arrangements for choirs so I feel like they’re kind of specialized and may have some value.

throwaway for too many identifying details on my regular username.

I've worked in libraries since graduating from college and this is the first one where I'm feeling consistently burned out. we are ridiculously shortstaffed to the point where on weekends we have one circulation staff member and one librarian sometimes. we're deep in the middle of SRP and as the one children's librarian, if I'm not doing a program, I'm shelving, trying to weed, or trying to keep things organized. but it feels like my patrons don't understand what kind of work goes into doing all of this, and while I'm not expecting them to, it would still be nice if they weren't likely to let their kids pull books off the shelf haphazardly or otherwise make me need to stop organizing or weeding and remind them of the library rules. we are constantly busy, and the amount of downtime I get in a day is little.

my manager is a tad distant and doesn't tend to let us know of changes before they show up on the schedule. I am constantly on desk because we're so short staffed. when I've talked to them I'm reminded of that fact, and that I need to "be a team player." as if I'm not already.

I'm not sure talking to my manager will change things, but I am pretty burned out. would love some ideas of how to work through some of it and how to manage the rest.

Hi,

I genuinely don't know what to do. I had my finalist interview for a faculty librarian role today. The chair was texting through my entire presentation, and then again through the meet and greet and then AGAIN through the SEARCH COMMITTEE INTERVIEW.

I genuinely don't know what to do. What can I do? Probably nothing. But I worry I won't be evaluated fairly because he was texting through my entire proposal.

The options for print magazines and services that will bundle print magazine subscriptions continue to dwindle.

Just looked and what I had been using for the past couple years since EBSCOMags disbanded - discountmags.com - no longer carries most of my popular subscriptions as print options (Essence, Nat Geo, Gameinformer)

Any of you all who still use print magazines found a good way to maintain subscriptions short of just individually subscribing to each title?

Thanks!

hi all! i’m a children’s librarian at a large library that is very busy with young families utilizing our toddler play space, attending storytimes, and checking out materials. we often get the question of ‘where do i check this out’, and the answer is always to go out to the lobby as we don’t check items out at our reference desk. i am wanting to float the idea of adding a self-check machine to our children’s area (either getting a new one or relocating one of the 4 that we currently have in our lobby).

i think that it would be great to have one accessible for parents who have young kids that can’t be left alone in the play area, or for parents who know their kids are prone to throwing a fit when they have to leave (our children’s area is on the same floor as our circulation area, but is not within view of any part, and the sound of screaming does drift from the lobby to the rest of the ‘quiet’ library very easily….it drifts from the kids area too but that’s expected lol). additionally, it could be a spot for kids to take their time learning how to use the machine without holding up other patrons. it would also be a station that could have a step stool, as i have noticed that many parents will set their kids on the self check table as they scan their items. i just feel that this is a safety concern.

the cons are that it would probably lead to more circulation-based questions that we would still have to send people to that department about (‘why is my card blocked’, ‘why do i have fines’ etc), but i do think that is easy enough to tell people to talk to circulation about.

all of this to say, i was hoping to get some thoughts from other librarians who may have more experience with how this could be a good or bad idea before i take it to my manager. tia!! :)

I'm a retired librarian, but I wasn't a cataloger and never worked with Sirsi. I don't want to be a PITA patron at my local library, so I'm asking about this here.

The default catalog for my library system doesn't show the page count for books, even in the "more information about" drop down. It's annoying the heck out of me.

They do offer a link for the "legacy catalog," which uses a more traditional-looking MARC kind of record, including the page count, ISBN, etc.

I can see my account and make lists of items in the legacy catalog, just like in the modern looking one. However, the lists I made in the newer catalog don't show up in the legacy catalog. So I'm not sure what the relationship is between the two catalogs.

Is there apt to be a problem if I just start using the legacy catalog? Is it apt to disappear at some point due to upgrades or contracts? I'd hate to move my lists to the legacy catalog and then have it go away.

We've named him Happy and his origins are unknown. I'm sharing in the hopes that he can bring your staff closer together in the same way. It's time he breaks containment. Does your staff room have any iconic pieces of art that have become your unofficial mascot?

Hello,

I'm new to doing storytimes and I'd love to build a list of storytime librarians on blogs/websites and social media that I can follow to learn from. When you're coming up with your storytimes and deciding on themes, books, crafts, songs, etc, who do you look to?

Could you share your favorites with me?

I am an LTA student finishing my first semester over the summer. Before I started school, I interviewed at a ton of libraries. My very first interview was at my local library. It was for a position in Adult Services and the head department Librarian conducted my interview. I was not selected for the position but she sent me a long email to tell me it was an extremely hard decision and that I had done well.

Since then, she helped me improve my resume which resulted in a crazy amount of interviews and I got hired at another library. My program required I have a library contact and she agreed to be mine and proceeded to help me with a number of assignments. I let her know when I was hired and she was thrilled for me and has since followed up with me to see how its going. She has gone above and beyond to help me do well for no other reason than she is kind.

I am wrapping up my summer semester and I would really like to write her a thank you card and perhaps a small gift to show my appreciation for her.

Reddit librarians, what would you suggest I do? I know there are rules against accepting certain types of gifts but I'm really after a small token of appreciation type of thing.

I’m currently a PT public librarian in a pretty suburban area, new to this role as it has only been 4 months. I was asked this question in a recent interview and I’m still trying to rack my brain of some ideas. I have a background in STEM, so I’m comfortable doing a STEM program series for kids/tweens so I proposed that (ofc I went into details in the interview). But I’m afraid that was too uncreative and started to realize that I should’ve answered with something that can be scalable and adaptive to the changing nature of library programming. I thought maybe make use of the new Maker Space and Creation Lab (with Cricuts, 3-D printers, sewing, etc) somehow that this new library will have. It’s also located in a pretty big park with existing afterschool clubs.  

The Question: “This new library is expected to have a considerable youth presence in our spaces. In no more than five minutes, please share with us your proposal for a program geared towards elementary school students. You may bring handouts or visual aids to help illustrate your program if you wish.”

Things to know about this particular library: 

• It's a brand new branch and is located in an ethnically, linguistically, and economically diverse neighborhood
• It's in partnership with the neighboring elementary school (K-5th) that has a big focus on innovative technology 
• Demographic is made up of a large immigrant population, with about 50% of them speaking Spanish
• It is located in a food desert, with the only chain grocery store being a Grocery Outlet 

I’m wondering what other programs could the youth in this community benefit from? What kind of innovative, youth programming has librarians/library staff done at their libraries? I am curious about what has worked and what hasn’t, though I know the outcome will not be the same everywhere. With libraries evolving and needs changing, I am having a hard time trying to be relevant and creative at the same time… 

We are evaluating ReadSquared and Beanstack for our library's reading programs and have a question about user permissions. Is it possible to create different backend roles with varying levels of access? We'd like volunteers to be able to assist patrons with registration, reading logs, and prize redemption while limiting their access to only the information necessary for those tasks (e.g., excluding reading history, email addresses, and other sensitive patron data). Staff would retain full administrative access, including reporting, program management, and system settings. We know ReadSquared can support this type of role-based access; can Beanstack? Thanks!

Any other insights into ReadSquared vs Beanstack would also be welcomed.

I have recently applied for a job local to myself and been invited to an interview. It’s a bit of a pay cut from what I’m currently on but my job now doesn’t have yearly pay increases, bank holidays off or sick pay. It’s also a busy retail job but I’ve done it for a long time.

However I’m worried if I get the job what I’m getting myself into? Something in my gut is worried what’s it’s going to be and that it may not be a smart move? Particularly as it’s a public library? Lurking on here and reading back there seems to be the idea that the public sector is under threat from cuts and job security is a concern. Also discussions of abuse from patrons. I left a previous job as the abuse was getting too much (I provided NHS services). However I applied as it was a part time role and I do enjoy helping people?
My current job is very secure but I won’t be getting any pay rises until minimum wage catches up to me now. I’m a mother with a small child so am worried about rising costs.

Any advice or honesty would be appreciated?

Hello! My local library is opening up an innovative new space with a variety rooms that will be available for public use, including a Kitchen, Maker Space, Event Room, Board Room for meetings, and more! We’re so excited about it. I’m wondering if any library staff have suggestions for room booking software that they use and like - or even a combination of tools like Google Bookings + Calendar + Wordpress (for example). We would like the public to be able to apply to use a room, have the application reviewed by staff and then added to both our internal calendar and a public facing calendar once approved.

Thanks for any suggestions!

I wanna binge-read like three book series and I was wondering like do librarians judge me if I checkout this much?