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Supporting Independent Bookstores
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From: maggie_bo_at_comcast.net
Date: Wed, 05 Feb 2014 19:17:19 +0000 (UTC)
I very much appreciate Lisa's point about supporting indie bookstores, and especially the links to the specific sites. They are fantastic. And Lisa is exactly right that many people use indie bookstores as browsing sites and then purchase on Amazon. However (not that I'm too disturbed by this), they do the same at Barnes and Noble. Amazon beats everyone on price, almost all the time.
I do want to note, though, that choosing where to purchase books is a terrible dilemma for many librarians, especially right now, in a time where school libraries are often seen as "extras" or perhaps even inessential. Our budgets shrink every year ... if we have budgets at all.
I re-read what I wrote at the end, and I did make it sound like I am someone who only "browses" at indie stores whether online or in person, which is not true ... it's just that I'm constantly making lists, but only make purchases at certain times of the year. I struggle with where to make my purchases, and I buy from a lot of sources besides traditional library vendors. It's a balancing act between trying to support indies (which I do), and trying to get the most that I can for my kids. Because that's what it comes down to. Which books on my wish lists do I have to cross off and never get for my kids when I run out of money? There are SO MANY BOOKS. And I am someone with a fairly decent budget. I can only imagine what it is like for a librarian with a teeny tiny budget (say, $500, out of which you have to purchase supplies too ... yes, that happens) trying to make those kinds of choices.
Maggie Bokelman Librarian Eagle View Middle School Mechanicsburg, PA
----- Original Message ----- From: "Lisa Von Drasek" <lvondras_at_umn.edu> To: "maggie bo" <maggie_bo_at_comcast.net> Cc: "K.T. Horning" <horning_at_education.wisc.edu>, "CCBC Network" <ccbc-net_at_lists.wisc.edu> Sent: Wednesday, February 5, 2014 11:00:30 AM Subject: Re: [ccbc-net] Coretta Scott King Award
Independent Bookstores, Libraries, Barnes and Noble.
This is a hot-button topic for me.
Independent bookstores are struggling. People have been using them as showrooms, selecting the books and then buying them from Amazon. Yes, you, just stretched your book budget a bit but that action stripped the bookstore of their profit to continue to provide the books that you were looking for.
Did you know that Louise Erdrich has a bookstore? http://birchbarkbooks.com Independent bookstores come with a point-of-view. The collection is curated. If you want to support books that exhibit diversity. Support the independent bookseller. You will find small presses, "not-the-usual suspects" authors. Keep her in business- make a list of books that you want and put your order in there- she probably uses the same distributors everyone else does and you will have your books in about a week.
What about Greenlight Books in Brooklyn NY. http://greenlightbookstore.com . ? Their community "made" this bookstore exist http://greenlightbookstore.com/our-story
Go to author's websites. Often they have a stash of books for sale.
Look at those other awards (I do think "marginal" isn't a word I want to use) Amelia Bloomer ( http://ameliabloomer.wordpress.com ) , Jane Adams ( http://www.janeaddamspeace.org/jacba/2013ceremony.shtml ) , Bank Street College of Education's Best Books of the Year ( http://bankstreet.edu/center-childrens-literature/childrens-book-committee/ )
Be aware of small presses like Cinco Puentos, Lee and Low, Children's Book Press, Groundwood, Pajama Press.
Not to be harsh as I know in many communities the only way to hold a finished new book in your hand is to go to a Barnes and Noble but....and this is a big but....if you are selecting books from what is available at the Barnes and Noble, you are allowing one person, a person you do not know, who probably does not have a library or education background (but does have an idea of what sells, as well as has negotiated favorable terms in the form of coop from publishers) preselect the books that you buy.
off my soapbox now.
Lisa
On Wed, Feb 5, 2014 at 9:15 AM, < maggie_bo_at_comcast.net > wrote:
This has been a very educational discussion for me. I am a librarian in a mostly (but not as predominantly as it once was) white suburban middle school, but I personally have always held the CSK award in high esteem. Like many librarians, I have fun every year reading all of the "mock" blogs, and I play a "game" with myself, trying to see how many of the award winning books of the year I can read ahead of time--that is, before they're announced. Obviously, it's hit and miss, but I read a lot of great books that way. What I'm realizing now is why just about every year I manage to hit the CSK winners--because they're chosen from such a small pool compared to some of the others. On the other hand, I'm obviously missing a lot of books by authors of color that don't stand much of a chance for any of the "major" awards. I am going to make it a goal to rectify that omission in my reading now, so all of this preaching going on is not just "to the choir." :) I'm also currently doing a master's thesis. I looked at the list of books I was looking at .... and, yes, I am embarrassed to say that all are by white authors. I needed recent books with specific characteristics, and chose ones I was familiar with that worked. On further thought, I absolutely need to include books by authors of color as well, even if it means actively seeking out books I don't yet know. And this comes from someone who generally thinks of herself as "sensitive" (well, don't we all like to think that) .... I try to include books by authors of color in every display I do, no matter what it's about ... I have my CSK and Pura Belpre posters displayed MORE prominently than my Newbery and Caldecott posters, to draw attention to them .... and I keep running lists of the books I purchase by and about various ethnicities, so I'm aware that I'm keeping up with purchases in each area, and also so I have a place to go for recommendations (NOT so I recommend books to kids by ethnicity--I DON'T do that--but just so I DO remember to keep using and recommending these books). Yet, clearly, I have a lot to learn.
Re Barnes and Nobles: I've never given this a lot of thought in terms of books by people of color, but as a librarian I've always been frustrated browsing there because there's so little diversity of any sort. Love browsing indie stores, but have so little time for that .... :( Browsing online, one can find anything (and one can browse/shop many indie stores online) ... so there's really no excuse for NOT finding and purchasing the best of what's out there. At least IMO, that's one of the very top priorities of my job as a school librarian, even though collection development gets overshadowed by a lot of other responsibilites these days. Kids won't read what's not there.
Maggie Bokelman Librarian Eagle View Middle School Mechanicsburg, PA
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Date: Wed, 05 Feb 2014 19:17:19 +0000 (UTC)
I very much appreciate Lisa's point about supporting indie bookstores, and especially the links to the specific sites. They are fantastic. And Lisa is exactly right that many people use indie bookstores as browsing sites and then purchase on Amazon. However (not that I'm too disturbed by this), they do the same at Barnes and Noble. Amazon beats everyone on price, almost all the time.
I do want to note, though, that choosing where to purchase books is a terrible dilemma for many librarians, especially right now, in a time where school libraries are often seen as "extras" or perhaps even inessential. Our budgets shrink every year ... if we have budgets at all.
I re-read what I wrote at the end, and I did make it sound like I am someone who only "browses" at indie stores whether online or in person, which is not true ... it's just that I'm constantly making lists, but only make purchases at certain times of the year. I struggle with where to make my purchases, and I buy from a lot of sources besides traditional library vendors. It's a balancing act between trying to support indies (which I do), and trying to get the most that I can for my kids. Because that's what it comes down to. Which books on my wish lists do I have to cross off and never get for my kids when I run out of money? There are SO MANY BOOKS. And I am someone with a fairly decent budget. I can only imagine what it is like for a librarian with a teeny tiny budget (say, $500, out of which you have to purchase supplies too ... yes, that happens) trying to make those kinds of choices.
Maggie Bokelman Librarian Eagle View Middle School Mechanicsburg, PA
----- Original Message ----- From: "Lisa Von Drasek" <lvondras_at_umn.edu> To: "maggie bo" <maggie_bo_at_comcast.net> Cc: "K.T. Horning" <horning_at_education.wisc.edu>, "CCBC Network" <ccbc-net_at_lists.wisc.edu> Sent: Wednesday, February 5, 2014 11:00:30 AM Subject: Re: [ccbc-net] Coretta Scott King Award
Independent Bookstores, Libraries, Barnes and Noble.
This is a hot-button topic for me.
Independent bookstores are struggling. People have been using them as showrooms, selecting the books and then buying them from Amazon. Yes, you, just stretched your book budget a bit but that action stripped the bookstore of their profit to continue to provide the books that you were looking for.
Did you know that Louise Erdrich has a bookstore? http://birchbarkbooks.com Independent bookstores come with a point-of-view. The collection is curated. If you want to support books that exhibit diversity. Support the independent bookseller. You will find small presses, "not-the-usual suspects" authors. Keep her in business- make a list of books that you want and put your order in there- she probably uses the same distributors everyone else does and you will have your books in about a week.
What about Greenlight Books in Brooklyn NY. http://greenlightbookstore.com . ? Their community "made" this bookstore exist http://greenlightbookstore.com/our-story
Go to author's websites. Often they have a stash of books for sale.
Look at those other awards (I do think "marginal" isn't a word I want to use) Amelia Bloomer ( http://ameliabloomer.wordpress.com ) , Jane Adams ( http://www.janeaddamspeace.org/jacba/2013ceremony.shtml ) , Bank Street College of Education's Best Books of the Year ( http://bankstreet.edu/center-childrens-literature/childrens-book-committee/ )
Be aware of small presses like Cinco Puentos, Lee and Low, Children's Book Press, Groundwood, Pajama Press.
Not to be harsh as I know in many communities the only way to hold a finished new book in your hand is to go to a Barnes and Noble but....and this is a big but....if you are selecting books from what is available at the Barnes and Noble, you are allowing one person, a person you do not know, who probably does not have a library or education background (but does have an idea of what sells, as well as has negotiated favorable terms in the form of coop from publishers) preselect the books that you buy.
off my soapbox now.
Lisa
On Wed, Feb 5, 2014 at 9:15 AM, < maggie_bo_at_comcast.net > wrote:
This has been a very educational discussion for me. I am a librarian in a mostly (but not as predominantly as it once was) white suburban middle school, but I personally have always held the CSK award in high esteem. Like many librarians, I have fun every year reading all of the "mock" blogs, and I play a "game" with myself, trying to see how many of the award winning books of the year I can read ahead of time--that is, before they're announced. Obviously, it's hit and miss, but I read a lot of great books that way. What I'm realizing now is why just about every year I manage to hit the CSK winners--because they're chosen from such a small pool compared to some of the others. On the other hand, I'm obviously missing a lot of books by authors of color that don't stand much of a chance for any of the "major" awards. I am going to make it a goal to rectify that omission in my reading now, so all of this preaching going on is not just "to the choir." :) I'm also currently doing a master's thesis. I looked at the list of books I was looking at .... and, yes, I am embarrassed to say that all are by white authors. I needed recent books with specific characteristics, and chose ones I was familiar with that worked. On further thought, I absolutely need to include books by authors of color as well, even if it means actively seeking out books I don't yet know. And this comes from someone who generally thinks of herself as "sensitive" (well, don't we all like to think that) .... I try to include books by authors of color in every display I do, no matter what it's about ... I have my CSK and Pura Belpre posters displayed MORE prominently than my Newbery and Caldecott posters, to draw attention to them .... and I keep running lists of the books I purchase by and about various ethnicities, so I'm aware that I'm keeping up with purchases in each area, and also so I have a place to go for recommendations (NOT so I recommend books to kids by ethnicity--I DON'T do that--but just so I DO remember to keep using and recommending these books). Yet, clearly, I have a lot to learn.
Re Barnes and Nobles: I've never given this a lot of thought in terms of books by people of color, but as a librarian I've always been frustrated browsing there because there's so little diversity of any sort. Love browsing indie stores, but have so little time for that .... :( Browsing online, one can find anything (and one can browse/shop many indie stores online) ... so there's really no excuse for NOT finding and purchasing the best of what's out there. At least IMO, that's one of the very top priorities of my job as a school librarian, even though collection development gets overshadowed by a lot of other responsibilites these days. Kids won't read what's not there.
Maggie Bokelman Librarian Eagle View Middle School Mechanicsburg, PA
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Received on Wed 05 Feb 2014 01:17:41 PM CST
