Showing posts with label Reading. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Reading. Show all posts

Tuesday, May 7, 2019

Asian Pacific American Heritage Month

May is Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. You can celebrate by checking out these titles from our library.

Becoming American, Being Indian: An Immigrant Community in New York City by Madulika S. Khandelwal.
"In her fascinating account of Indian immigrants. . .[the author] explores the ways in which their world has evolved over four decades" from publisher

Beyond the Shadow of Camptown: Korean Military Brides in America by Ji-Yeon Yuh. 
"Since. . .1950, nearly 100,000 Korean women have immigrated to the US as the wives of American soldiers. Based on extensive oral interview and archival research [this book] tells the stories of these women" - from publisher

Colors of Confinement: Rare Kodachrome Photographs of Japanese American Incarceration in World War II ed. by Eric L. Muller. 
". . .showcases 65 stunning images from this extremely rare collection of color photographs, presented along with three interpretive essays by leading scholars..." - from publisher.


Driven Out: The Forgotten War Against Chinese Americans by Jean Pfaelzer. 
". . .exposes a shocking story of ethnic cleansing in California and the Pacific Northwest when the first Chinese Americans were rounded up and purged from more than 300 communities by lawless citizens and duplicitous politicians" - from publisher

From Canton Restaurant to Panda Express: A History of Chinese Food in the United States by Haiming Liu. 
". . .takes readers on a compelling journey from the California Gold Rush to the present, letting readers witness. . .the evolution of many distinct American-Chinese iconic dishes from chop suey to General Tso's chicken" - from publisher

Japanese Americans: The History and Culture of a People ed. by Jonathan H.X. Lee.
"This book provides a comprehensive description of the complicated and rich story of the Japanese American experience. . ." - from publisher.


Little Saigons: Staying Vietnamese in America by Karin Aguilar-San Juan. 
"Explores how Vietnamese refugees and immigrants retain their identities in the United States" - from publisher

A New History of Asian America by Shelley Sang-Hee Lee.
". . .a fresh up-to-date history of Asians in the United States from the late eighteen century to the present" - from publisher.

Soundtracks of Asian America: Navigating Race Through Musical Performance by Grace Wang.
"Explores how Asian Americans use music to construct narratives of self, race, class, and belonging. . ." - from publisher

Typical American: A Novel by Gish Jen.
". . .a darkly humorous account of Chinese immigrants encountering America" - from Publishers Weekly.

Thursday, May 28, 2015

Free public domain books

If you can't find a public domain book in the library or would just prefer something downloadable, there are lots of good sites out there. A couple I like are Project Gutenberg and LibriVox.

Project Gutenberg has over 49,000 free e-books - you can download them as Kindle e-books, EPUB files, or read them online in your browser. If you don't have a particular book or author in mind, it can be fun to browse the categories and subcategories on their Bookshelf page.

LibriVox is great if you prefer audiobooks. Everything on the site is read by volunteers, so the performance quality varies, but some works have multiple versions available, so you can choose which readers you prefer. You can download a whole book as a zip file, stream individual tracks, or subscribe in iTunes.

Some of my favorites from these sites include Jill the Reckless by P.G. Wodehouse (LibriVox) and The Extraordinary Adventures of Arsene Lupin, Gentleman-Burglar by Maurice Leblanc (Project Gutenberg). Feel free to recommend your favorites in the comments!

Friday, May 1, 2015

Who is your favorite author?

The library is investigating adding some pleasure reading materials into our collection.   We need your help to identify which genres you like to read and which authors to collect.   Have a favorite?  Please share!

Here is just a FEW of the categories we need your opinion on:
  • Fiction  
  • Nonfiction
  • Biography & Autobiography
  • History
  • Mysteries
  • Mythology
  • Romance
  • Science Fiction and Fantasy
  • Self-Improvement
  • Suspense
  • Young Adult


Thursday, June 27, 2013

It's the Summer of Zombies

If you're not taking classes this summer or if you're looking for something to give you a break from your summer school work, why not read a book and/or watch a movie based on a book?

Here are a couple of fun summer reading ideas (or their movie versions for movie-watchers) to fight off summer zombie-mode:

*You can get access to all these books through the Dick Smith Library.

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies
Prequel Audio BookPS3608 .O29 P75 2010B (located on lower level)
Deluxe heirloom ed.(1st ed): PS3607 .R348 P75 2009 (located in the stacks)
Movie version: "In development" according to IMBD

The Blood King
Book: PS3613 .A77865 B56 2009 (located in the stacks)
No movie version available

World War Z
Book: Request through InterLibrary Loan
Movie: In theaters now; check here for Cinemark 6 movie times.

Warm Bodies
Book: Request through InterLibrary Loan
Movie: In stores now; check here for Amazon listing.

If you need assistance, please call (254)968-9249 or email reference@tarleton.edu for more information.

Tuesday, April 9, 2013

2013 READ Poster Reveal

Staff members at Dick Smith Library are excited about our upcoming National Library Week (April 14-20) celebration and our 2013 READ poster unveiling

Can you guess who will be featured this year?

You don't have to wait long for the answer. On Monday, April 15  at 1:30 p.m. we will unveil our 2013 READ posters in the library's lobby.

Join us.  You'll be among the first to see the new posters. Plus, after the unveiling, you can enjoy refreshments, visit with friends, collect souvenir READ postcards, AND have your picture made for your own READ poster, which the library will post on its Flickr pages.

National Library Week (NLW) and READ posters are a natural fit. NLW was begun to celebrate the contributions that libraries and library staff make to their communities; READ posters celebrate the importance of reading and literacy. See?  They're a great pair. 

We hope to see you at 1:30 p.m. Monday, April 15 in the library's lobby.
 
Do you have favorite library memories or stories about reading you'd like to share? Post them here; we'd love to hear from you!

Dr. Dottavio and the Purple Poo (2010), ROTC cadets and the Tarleton Players (2011),
and the Texan Rider and the Plowboys (2012)

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

What Should I Read Next?

Even though I already know of more books I want to read than I have any chance of ever finishing, I'm always looking for more books to add to the list. What Should I Read Next? is another site helping me do that, and I thought I'd share.

How it works: You type in a title or author you like, click something from the results that best matches what you're looking for, and it spits out a list of recommendations based on registered users' favorites lists (a more detailed explanation can be found here). I haven't registered yet, but I tried searching a few authors and books I like, and the results usually seemed decent. I only wish the recommendations included annotations.

Play around with it, and remember that if we don't have whatever books it recommends, you can always request them via Interlibrary loan.

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

National Library Week


Did you know that this week, April 8-14th, is National Library Week? We are celebrating this week by revealing who will be on the next library READ posters. Want to join in on the fun? Come to the Library’s main lobby from 3:00-4:00PM today, April 11th, to witness the unveiling of the posters. While you’re here, be sure to check out the great displays that our staff has put up for your enjoyment. There's never a dull moment in the Dick Smith Library!



Friday, March 2, 2012

Catching the E-Book Wave -- Lessons@Lunch


Been thinking about purchasing an e-book reader?
Have a reader and want to find more sources for e-books?
Want to see what else your device can do?
If so, next week's Lessons@Lunch (March 5, 7 & 9) should help you get the answers you need. The sessions will be held in the Library Instruction Classroom (#139) from 12:10-12:50 p.m. The presenter will be Beverly Tackitt, psychology major and e-book enthusiast.
Each session will cover different topics:

  • Mon., March 5: Picking the Right Device for You-- How do LCD & E-ink differ?
    -- Popular devices.
    -- Which devices use what file formats?
    -- Languages supported.
    -- How to pick the right device for you.


  • Wed., March 7: Where & How to Get Books for Your Reader-- Where to get books (free books, low cost books, library books, and more).
    -- How to get books onto your device (downloading or sideloading).
    -- Exploring your options (conversion programs or services).


  • Fri., March 9: What Else Can My E-Device Do?-- Listen to music, watch movies, play games.
    -- Enjoy audiobooks.
    -- Use text to speech features.
    -- Download apps.
    -- Search the Internet
This Lessons@Lunch series is sponsored by the Dick Smith Library. If you need more information, please email Cathy Wilterding at wilterding@tarleton.edu
See you in Library #139 on March 5, 7 & 9!

Sunday, October 2, 2011

Stories and Tales of Halloween



It's almost that time of year, to read tales and stories of Halloween, to name a few:




Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Today is.... "Read a book day!"

I personally have never heard of this holiday, and there is not much information out there about it. But, what a great way to spend a day! Maybe it should be read "anything" today! Or, read "something" today?

Why not take some time out and read today? It's going to be a great day outside; take a book out and read on your break. Inhale that pre-fall air, get into the spirit of school and read something today.

Check out the following article about "Read a book day."

http://www.examiner.com/holidays-in-national/it-s-read-a-book-day-celebrate-with-a-good-read

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Reading/Grade Levels and Children's Books

Since I oversee the library's collection of children's books (here primarily to support our future teachers in the College of Education), I sometimes get asked for recommendations for books at certain reading or grade levels.  Sometimes this is because the child's school participates in Accelerated Reader; sometimes it's just because someone is looking for a book appropriate for a particular grade.

I won't go into the pros and cons of Accelerated Reader and other leveling systems here, except to say that if the child WANTS to read a book above grade or reading level, I certainly would not discourage the child from trying!  These systems are just guidelines.  Keep in mind too that even if the reading level of a book measures out as low, the content of the book may be more appropriate for an older child; and vice-versa.

If you want to look up Accelerated Reader information yourself, you can do so at this site:  http://www.renlearn.com/store/quiz_home.asp.  Keep in mind that not all books have an AR quiz (and thus won't be assigned a grade level), and that even if the book HAS a quiz, the child's school may not own that quiz.  This page will also give you the interest level for books (UG = grades 9-12, MG = grades 4-8, LG = grades K-3), which can be very different from the reading level!

Another system for measuring the reading levels of books is the Lexile Framework. Lexiles are reported with the state's Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) test scores.You can look up the Lexile measure of books here:  http://lexile.com/fab/, while this page explains how those scores roughly correspond with grade levels:  http://www.lexile.com/about-lexile/grade-equivalent/grade-equivalent-chart/.

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Dick Smith Library Reader’s Choice Book Display

“What are a friend’s books for, if not to be borrowed?” – Lady Croom in Arcadia: A Play in Two Acts by Tom Stoppard

You can now recommend books to the Tarleton community with the Dick Smith Library Reader’s Choice book display!

It’s easy:
• Browse the New Books display & our collections.
• Find a book you'd like to recommend.
• Put it on the spotlighted Reader's Choice shelf.
• Drop the previous display book off at the Circulation desk.


Others will see your recommended book and check it out.

Can’t make it to the library?
• Post a suggestion below for a book in our collections.
• Library staff will make the book swap for you.

Keep checking the display. You never know. Someone might recommend a book that's just what you'd like to read next!

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Top Ten Tuesday - 10 reasons why we read

It is Tuesday - that means a list. I saw this article from Library Journal, The Future of Reading, 11/1/2009, and that got me asking why do I read? Are my reasons the same as your reasons? Take a look at the article and check out this list of 10 reasons, then post a comment and share your thoughts on reading and reasons why you read!
  • To be informed - kept up to date
  • To escape from everyday lives
  • To do research
  • For entertainment
  • To hear other people's views and opinions
  • To learn - how to
  • To join the conversation - know what people are talking about
  • To understand others
  • To connect with other people like you
  • To be inspired and stimulate the imagination
What is the future of reading? Why do you read? Does format of reading materials matter to you?