Curation Nation How To Win In A World Where Consumers Are Creators by Steven Rosenbaum

Curation Nation Why The Future of Content Is Context How To Win In A World Where Consumers Are Creators by Steven Rosenbaum

Steven Rosenabum is describing a major shift in how media is being delivered.  Consumers of media are increasingly becoming prosumers and creators of their own content.  People create a variety of sites based on their interests from cooking to baseball.  Steven Rosenbaum runs Magnify.net which aggregates video content on the web so many of his ideas come from his direct business experience.

A prosumer is a consumer who proactively chooses what and how they will consume.  A good example of a prosumer might be someone who buys green products, or only buys from the Better Business Bureau.  Increasingly prosumers are becoming creators of their own content based on what they are interested in. 

The tools of content creation are becoming cheaper and easier to get access to.  Social tools like Twitter, Youtube, blogs, podcasts, and other social media tools are easy to get access to.  It is not just the software and web which is becoming cheaper, people now can easily afford smart phones, laptops, and inexpensive video recorders.  People can use these tools to spread their ideas and opinions.

The difference between this book and other books is that Steven Rosenbaum takes it one step further.  He describes how to curate content, picking out and organizing materials for blogs and websites.  He even describes content strategy citing Kristina Halvorson's book Content Strategy.

Then Steven Rosenabaum talks about how curation scales with aggregation mixed with selective content on websites like The Huffington Post, Blog Her, and Linked In. This creates a larger picture of curation both on the small individual level and on the larger scale of big commercial websites.

None of the material is particularly new.  However, how it is presented is new. This is a solid overview of how to organize social media tools.  It pulls many disparate threads together to create a picture of a strategy to manage and organize social content. The book can be a bit diffuse at times.  This book would be useful for people interested in new media.

The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh

The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh

This is a literary novel.  The writing is very well crafted.  The story focuses on Victoria Jones, a foster child who has just turned eighteen and been emancipated.  Part of the authors goal in writing this novel is to expose the abusive nature of the foster care systems in the United States.  At times, the novel can be quite difficult to read.  There is a lot of tension in the story.

A major theme in the novel is the Victorian language of flowers, which is a language of emotion expressed through flowers. The author includes an addendum at the end of the book called Victoria's Dictionary of Flowers.  Different flowers express different emotions in the book.  The flowers add color, tone, and feeling to the writing.  The writing uses all five senses.

The action and scenes also take place in very green spaces; a vineyard, a flower market, a flower shop, a floral greenhouse, and a park are some of the settings.  This makes the book very alive.  There is also some sex and quite a bit of writing about the meaning of love.

The characters have an edge to them.  They wound each other emotionally and have a creative edge.  Victoria Jones as she progresses through the novel creates a photographic dictionary of flowers, she selects flowers for weddings, dates, and lovers.  She relates to people in her life with plants.  It is a life at points which is on the edge of homelessness and madness.

The writing is both strong and beautiful.  It is the authors first novel. There is an interview in the back of the book.  The novel is coming out on August 23, 2011.  This was an advanced reading copy sent to me by Library Journal.

How The Hippies Saved Physics, Science, Counterculture, and the Quantum Revival by David Kaiser

How The Hippies Saved Physics, Science, Counterculture, and the Quantum Revival by David Kaiser

David Kaiser is a professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.  This book is a history of science book.  It is also a popular science book. The book describes how quantum physics which many considered to be fringe science became accepted science.  It is a very strange, eccentric, and interesting story.


The book focuses on a group called the Fundamental Fysiks Group which held sessions at the University of California Berkeley.  Berkeley California is known for its eccentricity and counterculture.  The Fundamental Fysiks Group was instrumental in making quantum mechanics acceptable science.

The cast of characters in this book is very different; Jack Sarfatti, Paul Sirag, and Nick Herbert are the central people covered.  There is also quite a bit in the early chapters on Werner Heisenberg, Albert Einstein, and Erwin Schrodinger.  There are also numerous scientists spread throughout the book including Richard Feynman and Fritjof Capra who wrote The Dancing Wu Li Masters.

The story is very eccentric and outright strange to the point where it is funny.  There are very surprising sources of funding for the experiments which helped establish quantum physics.  There is the Esalen institute a New Age retreat in California, Werner Erhard and Est who were part of the human potential movement,  Henry Dakin the philanthropist and supporter of paranormal research, and the CIA with its remote viewing experiments.

The experiments themselves are very interesting to read about. They prove things like quantum encryption, nonlocality, and entanglement.  Some experiments do not succeed like faster than light communication.

This is a fascinating history about a very unusual topic which most people have a difficult time understanding.  It shows a process where fringe science is made into accepted science.

The book is very easy to read.  It mostly focuses on the people behind the story, not the physics.  The writing is very clear. There is an index, extensive notes, and bibliography.  There are numerous black and white photographs and easy to understand diagrams.  I found it to be a delightful book to read.

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

This is a dystopian novel set in the year 2044.  You could also call it a quest novel, a coming of age novel, or near future science fiction.  It melds many different themes into a unique, funny, and exciting story.  The one common theme that seems to unite all of it is geek culture, video games, and the 1980s.

Wade Watts the main character, is a geeky kid who spends most of his time in the virtual world of OASIS.  Virtual reality in this setting is extremely realistic.  Wade Watts even goes to school in the virtual world.  The virtual world he escapes into is infinitely better than his horrific, crowded, dangerous trailer park existence in the real world. The theme of bits versus atoms pervades this book.  In the real world, even virtual money is worth more than most national currencies.

The story is centered around a contest to gain control of the world wide virtual world called OASIS.  To do this, the entrants must solves riddles that were part of the creator of the virtual world's childhood.  The childhood is a kind of super fanboy and geek festival filled with 1980s references; everything from Duran Duran to Star Trek to the video game Joust.  It is very funny.  It reminds me a bit of my own childhood.

The book adds in many tropes: a love interest, an evil corporation, and plenty of action.  It moves very quickly from scene to scene and makes you want to find out what happens next.  The book made me laugh and smile while I was reading it.  It is lot of fun especially if you are nostalgic about the 1980s, liked roleplaying games, video games, comics, and listened to rock music.

Ernest Cline has a website http://www.ernestcline.com/  .  The book Ready Player One is coming out in August of 2011.  I was reading an advanced reading copy sent to me by Library Journal   I think this book will cross reading genres and be appealing to a wide audience.

Idea Man A Memoir by the Cofounder of Microsoft by Paul Allen

Idea Man A Memoir by the Cofounder of Microsoft by Paul Allen

Paul Allen founded Microsoft with Bill Gates.  They went to the same high school together and were close friends.  They also were part of the early history of personal computers.  Microsoft was founded on the program BASIC.  One of the reasons it grew to prominence was also because it designed the disk operating system for IBM. 

Paul Allen does an excellent job describing the relentless drive behind people like Bill Gates and Steve Jobs.  I liked his descriptions of how Bill Gates pulled all nighters programming fueled by caffeine and coffee.  It describes the extremely competitive, constantly demanding, will to succeed of many people in the computer industry.  However, this book is more than just a book about success in business.

Paul Allen originally wanted to be an astronaut but could not be because he wore glasses as a teenager.  He read lots of science fiction and constantly was thinking up new things.  In this book, Paul Allen innovates; he creates new computer products, starts new businesses, and does not stop trying new things.

The second part of the book is about what happens when he leaves Microsoft after getting cancer.  He starts living his ideals: founding a Jimi Hendrix museum, buying two sports teams, the Seattle Seahawks and the Portland Trail Blazers, helps fund Spaceship One the X-Prize winner, starts a brain research institute, and becomes a serial entrepreneur.  I found this quite inspirational.

I especially liked his descriptions of being a serial entrepreneur.  He describes his failures as well as his successes in starting various businesses.  This is a story of failing a lot, but succeeding a lot as well.  I also liked his descriptions of traveling all over the world.  It would be some peoples dream to live this life.

This book is about business, ideas, innovating, and living your dreams.  It talks about how to take risks and succeed.  It is also about overcoming the adversity of cancer and trying new things.  The book says a lot about not giving up and paying attention to opportunities.

Bottled Lightning Superbatteries, Electric Cars, and the New Lithium Economy by Seth Fletcher

Bottled Lightning Superbatteries, Electric Cars, and the New Lithium Economy by Seth Fletcher

This is a history of batteries which make the electric car possible.  Seth Fletcher describes the invention of the battery from its beginnings to modern lithium-ion batteries.  It is about more than cars, because lithium batteries were first used in computers and cell phones before they were used in cars.

The book is very much a pro electric car book focused on the benefits of electric cars.  He enthusiastically describes the Chevrolet Volt, the Nissan Leaf, and the Tesla Roadster as the hope for our future.  His focus is not on hybrid electric cars, but on cars that are purely run by batteries.

I very much enjoyed reading about the lithium mines in Chile and Bolivia.  The largest lithium reserves are in Bolivia.  Seth Fletcher describes his visits to the mines.

There is an excellent reminder that ultimately lithium ion batteries are about more than cars.  Large power plants are starting to use giant lithium ion batteries as back up power storage.  This will grow with the increased use of wind and solar power.

This book is worth reading if you are interested in alternative energy or automobiles.  It is more of a story about batteries than just cars. 

Creators of the Superheroes by Thomas Andrae

Creators of the Superheroes Interviews and Commentary about Jerry Siegel, Joe Shuster, Bob Kane, Bill Finger, Jerry Robinson, Jack Kirby, and Will Eisner by Thomas Andrae

This book gives a very close look at the personal stories behind the creation of the first superheroes; Batman, Superman, Captain America, the Fantastic Four, and others.  It is more than just about the art of the comics, it is about how the comic business was created.  The book fits in with other books printed by Hermes Press which has many reprints and biographical works on early comics.

The life stories in this book are often tragic.  Bill Finger one of the first writers of Batman got very little credit and died destitute.  The artists often got very little money from doing comics, most of it went to the publishers.   Most of the artists worked on a commission per page.  Unless you were Jack Kirby and had a solid business sense and a huge readership, or Will Eisner who ran his own company, there was very little money as a comic books artist.

There are many interesting details in the book.  I like the photographs and drawings of the women who inspired the creation of Lois Lane.  The book has over 400 illustrations in it.  It is also a coffee table size book.  Many of the images are photographs of the artists life, original comic book panels, and pictures from movies or films.  Jack Kirby, Jerry Siegel, and Joe Shuster were movie buffs.  Also Batman and Superman were made into films.

The majority of the text in this book is interviews. A lot of this is about the creative process in making comics.  It also has quite a bit about the artists personal lives.  Thrown in are interesting tidbits like the name Clark Kent is a combination of the movie actors, Clark Gable and Kent Taylor, and Batman's cape was designed after Leonardo's DaVinci's flying machine.

I especially liked the section on Will Eisner.  Will Eisner is considered the creator of the first graphic novel, A Contract With God.  He is also credited with making strong efforts to turn comics into an art form for adults.  He wrote comics as instruction manuals for the army.  This makes his approach different.

This is a fantastic book with beautiful illustrations, excellent interviews, and unique content.  If you are interested in the history of comics you should read this.

Daily Thoughts 3/23/2011 (Books)

Young and old visit the library on the parkway Poster promoting libraries, showing a family going to the library.  Date Created/Published: Pennsylvania : WPA Federal Art Project, [1936 or 1937]


Daily Thoughts 3/23/2011


This morning, I checked the Twitter feed and tabulated some more surveys.  The surveys are interesting to read.  We also opened the computer lab in the rotunda so people could search for jobs.  It went quite well.  There are two handouts we created for internet job search.


I also spent some time looking at identified pictures from the libraries history.  We have many pictures from 1938 as well as some pictures from the childrens' room in 1909.  I especially like a picture of the old bookmobile from 1940.

Esmeralda Santiago has a novel coming out in July called Conquistadora which is about plantation life in Puerto Rico.  I very much enjoyed her autobiography, When I was a Puerto Rican.  Also John Scalzi is coming out with an authorized version of a book called Fuzzy Nation which is based on H. Beam Piper's Fuzzy books.  Another novel which looks interesting is Embassytown by China Mieville which is about alien contact and language.

Sometimes you see things which are a little funny.  There is a new children's picture book which features surfing called Dude: Fun With Dude and Betty by Lisa Pliscou, illustrated by Tom Dunne.  The title caught my attention along with the review in the March 21, 2011 Publishers Weekly.  It is supposed to be a spoof of the Dick and Jane books.  Another title which caught my attention is Pink Boots and a Machete:  My Journey from NFL Cheerleader to National Geographic Explorer by Mireya Mayor in the March 15, 2011 Booklist.  These are both wonderful examples of how a title can catch a readers attention.  There is a third title which caught my attention as well, this is something I might read; Johnny Appleseed: The Man, the Myth, and the American Story by Howard Means.

The March 15, 2011 Booklist is a graphic novels issue.  I put the the graphic book, Richard Stark's Parker: The Outfit by Darwyn Cooke on hold.  It looks to be a noire graphic novel.

Web Bits

Masterpiece Theater Book and Film Guide
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/bookclub/guides.html

Daily Thoughts 3/17/2011 (Advocacy, The Information, Books)

Einen Brief lesender alter Mann mit seiner Katze. Öl auf Leinwand. 59 x 42,5 cm., Man With Cat,
Christoph Paudiss, 17th Century

Daily Thoughts 3/17/2011

Today is relatively quiet.  I put together a brief list of groups that I think are often associated with advocacy for libraries around New York.

Advocacy Links:



ALTAFF - "Citizens for Libraries"
http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/altaff/index.cfm

Empire Friends of New York State Roundtable (Friends Groups)
http://www.nyla.org/index.php?page_id=57


Funding History For Libraries
http://midhudson.org/funding/advocacy/funding_history.htm


Geek The Library
http://www.geekthelibrary.org/


I Love Libraries
http://ilovelibraries.org/

Library Advocates Handbook
http://www.ala.org/ala/aboutala/offices/ola/libraryadvocateshandbook.cfm

Library Grants
http://www.librarygrants.blogspot.com/


Library Renewal
http://libraryrenewal.org/


Library Trustees Association of New York State
http://www.librarytrustees.org/


Marketing The Library (Training Module)
http://www.olc.org/marketing/


New York Library Association Advocacy
http://www.nyla.org/index.php?page_id=514


New Poll Shows Continued Public Support For Increase in State Aid for Libraries
http://www.nyla.org/index.php?page_id=1499


New York State Library Library Development
http://www.nysl.nysed.gov/libdev/

New Yorkers For Better Libraries
http://www.newyorkersforbetterlibraries.org/drupal/

PLA Advocacy Section
http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/pla/plaadvocacy/index.cfm


Save Libraries
http://savelibraries.org/

Save NYC Libraries
http://savenyclibraries.org/

Telling The Library Story Toolkit
http://www.statelibraryofiowa.org/ld/t-z/tell-library-story/

10 Faq's About New York Libraries
http://www.nyla.org/content/user_1/nyla_10qs.doc


Turning The Page Online 2.0 Advocacy (Training Module)
http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/pla/plaevents/turningthepage/index.cfm


Small Groups

New York Librarians Meetup
http://www.meetup.com/NYLibrarians/


Urban Librarians Unite
http://urbanlibrariansunite.org/

I also put in some more surveys, checked the displays, and updated the Twitter account.

I had some time to read Kirkus Reviews and the New York Times Book Review.  We are not ordering anything right now.  I did put several more books on hold;  The Quantum Thief by Rajaniemi Hannu which is a science fiction novel, Powering The Dream The History of Green Technology by Alexis Madrigal, and The Forgotten Founding Father Noah Webster's Obsession and the Creation of an American Culture by Joshua Kendall.  Noah Webster created The American Dictionary in 1828.

I am also considering getting a Vook which is an ebooks with video.  The title is Unleashing The Super Idea Virus by Seth Godin.  The price is $6.99 which is very affordable.

On the way home, I read some more of The Information by James Gleick.  James Gleick is writing about genes as information.  One of the people he writes about is Richard Dawkins who wrote the famous book, The Selfish Gene.  Richard Dawkins is also responsible for the concept of the meme.  I find the idea of a meme somewhat questionable.  A meme is an idea that spreads socially.  I also started reading The Phsyics of the Future by Michio Kaku.  I like Michio Kaku's message because he tells about a positive future through scientific invention and technology.  He likes to say his hero was Professor Zarkov from Flash Gordon.

Web Bits

Converting an Old Card Catalog Case into an eReader Cabinet
http://www.district87.org/bjhs/ereader_cabinet.htm

The World In 2050 Four Forces Shaping Civilizations Northern Future by Laurence C. Smith

The World In 2050 Four Forces Shaping Civilizations Northern Future by Laurence C. Smith





Laurence C. Smith is a geographer and a professor of earth and space science at UCLA. This book is about much more than climate change. It is about how the arctic is changing. This change is fueling a race for new resources in oil, natural gas, fisheries, mining, shipping, and open land.



In the beginning of the book, he focuses on four forces that bring change to the world; demographics, climate change, natural resource demand, and globalization. All of these are increasingly important. Global temperatures are rising, there are more people, more people are moving to cities, there is less water and other resources, and trade is more interdependent worldwide.



I think he may be wrong about some things. He does not factor in new technologies like urban farming, wave power, or digital fabrication. He is basing his predictions on there being no major breakthrough technologies.



The book is fascinating. It is easy to follow the changes he is describing. Brazil, Russia, India, and China are becoming manufacturing powers. India's cities are going to be the largest in the world.



We get to read about the consequences both negative and positive of the four forces. One thing I found especially interesting was his description of how wildlife and plant life are starting to move northward towards the heating arctic. I especially liked his description of a hybrid grizzly/polar bear.



In the second part of the book, he describes how the NORC countries; Canada, Finland, Denmark, Sweden, Russia, and the United States are going to benefit in some ways from the opening of the arctic. Part of this description is how the United Nations arctic treaties are cementing the NORC countries peaceful control over the area.



Russia and Canada will be the futures largest suppliers of oil and natural gas. Also, there will be more water in the north as the arctic warms, and the southern countries water supplies dry up. The predictions show a pattern of rising importance for the northern countires.



We also learn how native populations in the Arctic will become more important, just like in Alaska where land and oil rights were given to many native Americans; in Canada, a whole new territory called New Nunavut has been carved out of the Arctic for the Canadian native peoples. It is being developed along a similar pattern to Alaska.



This is a fascinating story. I think the changes he is describing will be much faster than Laurence C. Smith anticipates. He is using very mainstream measurements.. There is a lot in this book worth thinking about.

Daily Thoughts 2/17/2011 (Events, Books, poetry, WEDC)

This little boy would persist in handling books above his capacity And this was the disastrous result.  Two panel cartoon showing Thaddeus Stevens standing on the top step of a step-ladder and lifting a large, heavy book from a high bookshelf; he falls off the ladder and is crushed by the book, the "Constitution of U.S." Date Created/Published: 1868 March 21.

Daily Thought 2/17/2011

There are two events of interest tonight.  We have the computer training for business in the computer lab from 5:30-7:30 p.m. and we have an Open Microphone Poetry Event featuring a local poet from 7:00-8:15 p.m featuring Mary Ann McCarra-Fitzpatrick.  She is one of the poets in an anthology called Blood Beats In Four Square Miles edited by James Fair who writes the poetry column for the Mount Vernon Inquirer.

I checked the displays this morning as well as looked over some of the items which we are inventorying in the mezzanine or storage area.  Three new books came in for me to read last night, Bite-Sized Marketing Realistic Solutions for the Overworked Librarian by Nancy Dowd, Mary Evangeliste, and Jonathan Silberman, Data Driven by Thomas C. Redman, and Redemption In Indigo by Karen Lord.

I had a chance to read through Library Journal, The New York Times Book Review, and Publishers Weekly Today.  I rather like the forthcoming title, The Most Human Human What Talking to Computers Teaches Us About Being Alive by Brian Christian.

The event for poetry went extremely well. We had the Mount Inquirer come in and take pictures of the event which was very nice.  It should provide some excellent publicity.  James "Jafa" Fair introduced the opening poet.  He is with the ACBAW Association of Community Based Artists of Westchester http://www.acbaw.org/main2.html  .  He video taped and took photographs of the event.

The lead poet was Maryann Mccarra-Fitzpatrick who read several poems from the anthology Blood Beats in Four Square Miles edited by James Fair.  http://mccarra--poetry.blogspot.com/2011/02/poetry-reading-mount-vernon-public.html  Five other published poets also read. Sister Sassy read a chapter from her memoir called "Guerrilla Girl".  It was an excellent reading.

We also filled the computer lab for the computer basics for business class from the Womens Enterprise Development Center. http://www.wedc-westchester.org/

I had a chance to read a bit more of The World In 2050.  The author is describing the relationship between water and energy.  Nuclear power plants, biodiesel, hydroelectric, and coal plants tend to use lots of water.
Solar and wind energy don't use as much.  I am surprised that the author does not touch on tidal power or tidal turbines.

Web Bits

TOC 2011: Keynoter Margaret Atwood Highlights Author Role
http://www.libraryjournal.com/lj/home/889316-264/toc_2011_keynoter_margaret_atwood.html.csp

Daily Thoughts 1/14/2011 (Art)

This picture was taken from the Dictionnaire encyclopédique Trousset, also known as the Trousset encyclopedia, Paris, 1886 - 1891.


Daily Thoughts 1/14/2011

Today was an interesting day.  We had a meeting about scheduling this morning which went fairly well.  The displays are in good order.  I also spent some time talking about ordering with the head childrens librarian.


We have display cabinets in the rotunda which we use as an art gallery. The rotunda has a fresco from the Works Project Administration which is a copy of the Unicorn Tapestry in the Cluny Museum in Paris.  I put in a variety of regular size and oversize books on African American and African artists to complement the show they are doing today.  It complements the Diaspora A Cultural Expression of Art exhibit opening which is this afternoon between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. http://www.mountvernonpubliclibrary.org/node/221


Web Bits

I am planning on going to Book Camp 2 on February 13, 2011 from 12:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. http://www.eventbrite.com/event/1202042341/estw

Neil Gaiman on Ebooks http://www.locusmag.com/Perspectives/2011/01/neil-gaiman-on-ebooks/

Letting Go of the Words Writing Web Content That Works by Janice Ginny Radish.

Letting Go of the Words Writing Web Content That Works by Janice Ginny Radish.

This book focuses on how to write content for the web.  It is more than just writing content. Janice Radish describes how to write links, describe pathways between different parts of websites, include images with text, and write specific types of informational pages.

Writing for the web is different than writing on paper.  Communication occurs in shorter paragraphs with more concise language.  Because it is more visually oriented, headings are more important, and paragraphs are often broken down into bulleted or numbered lists.

The examples in this book are mainly commercial pages.  There are many full color diagrams, photographs, and web page captures with explanations . This makes the book very easy to follow.  There is also a bibliography and index.

I found some of the things she describes quite useful.  For example, she tells us how to create an ideal user profile, and break apart large blocks of written text into shorter paragraphs with bolded headings and links. 

If you are writing a commercial or informational site this book should be quite helpful.  There are discussons on how to write a frequently asked questions page, add text to images, and create easy to follow directions between home, pathway, and information pages.

I found this book because I was reading about content strategy. Content strategy is about planning for all the different content that will go into a website including words, images, sound, and other media.  It is an emerging field of practice in web development.  It is often aligned with information architecture.

Echo An Alex Benedict Novel by Jack McDevitt

Echo An Alex Benedict Novel by Jack McDevitt




Echo is part of a series of novels featuring Alex Benedict, a recoverer of antiquities in the far future. In this novel, Alex Benedict is following the trail of an inscription written in stone which is part of no known human language. The inscription makes for an excellent gimmick.



The characterization is better than his earlier novels. I especially liked Sunset Tuttle, an explorer seeking alien civilizations for philosophical reasons. He creates an excellent back story for the book.



Alex Benedict's adversaries are more tragic than evil. The novel is more about how mistakes can lead to horrific consequences. The one exception is the sociopathic assassin bent on killing Chase Kolpath and Alex Benedict. However, the assassin is more subtle and devious than a brutish adversary.



This novel successfully combines mystery, exploration, archaeology, and suspense into a superb science fiction novel. It is the fifth in the Alex Benedict series. The third novel in the series, Seeker, won the Nebula Award.

Behemoth by Scott Westerfield Illustrated by Keith Thompson

Behemoth by Scott Westerfield Illustrated by Keith Thompson

Behemoth is a mixture of alternate history and steampunk written for young adults.  It is the second book in the Leviathan trilogy.  The title Leviathan in the first book refers to a giant living airship.  Leviathan won the 2010 Locus Award for Best Young Adult Novel. I think it is quite readable for adults as well.

The setting in this part of the series is an alternate history Ottoman Empire.  There are ornate clockwork mechanical walkers and intricate steam powered machines.  The year is 1914.  In this world, the English and Russians are Darwinists masters of genetically engineered beasts and the Germans and Ottomans are Clankers makers of complex clockwork machinery.  I like that in this world, the Americans do both.

This makes for wonderfully ornate illustrations by Keith Thompson.  His website has some of the art from Behemoth http://www.keiththompsonart.com/ The illustrations are wonderfully ornate in black in white with touches of Victoriana, Art Deco, and even Middle Eastern motifs.

The reader encounters living airships, articulated steam elephants, a steampunk library, and an alternate Orient Express.  This transports you to a very different world.  The descriptions are inventive and eloquent.  We get to imagine Iron Golems in the Jewish quarters of Istanbul, fallen nobility in grand hotels, and an air of revolutionary change.

There is constant action, intrigue, hair raising escapes, and suspense.  Tension is created between the main characters; a young woman posing as a boy to serve in the English air corps, and an aristocratic German who is trying to pass himself off as a commoner.

The design of the book is superb; it is set in Hoefler text.  The line spacing and layout are very easy on the eyes.  The jacket design and photo illustration are by Sammy Yuen, Jr.

This is highly recommended, especially for people who read steampunk or atlernate history.

Developing The Future of Books 12:30-1:30 P.M. New Work City http://www.nwcny.com/

Developing The Future of Books 12:30-1:30 P.M. New Work City http://www.nwcny.com/





It was very easy getting to New Work City. The office space is very close to the N and Q subway lines.
There was enough seating for the presentation. New Work City  served pizza, water, and soft drinks. The pizza was quite good.  The staff was helpful and pleasant.

As always, I include what catches my interest and seems relevant. I also like to throw in my own comments and thoughts.

This was a Roundtable discussion by Pearson Education in combination with Penguin Books. The presenters were sponsors of the New Work City space. Pearson is a massive publishing company. The talk focused on the development and entrepreneurial side of the ebook business.

The presentation was quite fascinating. Many of the people in the crowd owned Kindles or Ipads and some owned both. There were still people like myself who took notes in the old fashioned way; in a notebook with a pen.

Most of the audience used Amazon to purchase their books on Kindle or Ipad. This is kind of interesting to me because in the library space, Nooks and Sony are the two main platforms which are used to download books from Overdrive which is the largest provider of ebooks to libraries. If you want to read books from Overdrive or Epub books;  Bluefire is an application which allows people to read Epub on Ipad, or Iphone http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/bluefire-reader/id394275498?mt=8

I learned we are at the beginning of the real takeoff of ebooks. in 2010, 10% of books are now purchased as ebooks.

The presenters showed us a variety of new applications, many of which are experimental.  They were from very popular authors.  There were two children s book applications: Topsy and Tim which included puzzles and games for the Iphone and Ipad http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/topsy-and-tim-start-school/id379900572?mt=8 , and Spot the Dog by Eric Hill for Ipad http://www.funwithspot.com/uk/parents_teachers/news.html



The application that caught my attention was a book application of The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett. This included three hours of video, music, art, and images. I found it surprising that the publisher would add in a television series to a book. http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/the-pillars-earth-for-ipad/id382298124?mt=8   This reminds me of Vook which combines videos with books http://www.vook.com/

There was also some discussion about an app which was also a book called Paul Kelly How to Make Gravy which combined music with autobiography  Paul Kelly is from Australia. http://www.penguin.com.au/products/9781926428222/how-make-gravy-z-mongrel-memoir  Paul Kelly was compared to Bob Dylan. I have seen that some of the books which we get in about musicians are including cds of music with their biographies.

The app for the Paris Travel Guide by Dorling Kindersley. http://traveldk.com/apps/ew-cities  reminded me of Frommer's Travel Unlimited http://www.frommers.biz/content/travel-guides/  which is being sold as a database of travel books.

The presenters told us that paper is still the best technology for coffee table books and photography books. A few people suggested that it is still not possible to get a signed book via a computer. Many people still like reading books in paper. I learned that that paper is only 10% of the cost of a book  I think paper books will still be around for a long time, especially with print on demand.

There were some statistics about readership which were interesting. Ipads and Kindles are driving up the amount of material people read. People who have an Ipad or Kindle are likely to read 3x as many books. It is like digital music where people are listening all the time.The statistics reminded me of the NEA study which shows that reading is on the rise especially in electronic formats.  http://www.nea.gov/research/ReadingonRise.pdf


Another idea that caught my attention was that there are essentially three types of ebooks; apps, ebooks, and enhanced ebooks. There are other things which I have seen which are quite experimental. There is also something called the "Visual Novel" which combines games with novels. It is basically a mix of simple games, choose your own adventure, and manga style graphics. Hanako Games makes visual novels in the United States.

An audience member commented that there may be a new kind of agent coming into being with digital books.


The question about being able to make notes inside books was asked. I learned that there is a competitor to The Copia http://www.thecopia.com/  called Bookglutton http://www.bookglutton.com/  which allows social annotation of books. People share notes inside books.


The talk was very technology oriented. It touched on topics like virtual book clubs, cookbook apps, Amazon's policy that the ebooks they sell are leased, and the experimental nature of ebook apps.


Many audience members were interested in being able to purchase the physical book bundled with an ebook online. This is already happening with some technical books. Although it was not discussed, many authors make their books available online as creative commons to help drive their print sales.



Subscription models for ebooks was touched on. O'Reilly books has a subscription model for its technical books which is affordable called Safari Books.

I was surprised to hear that there was very little piracy of ebooks. Less than 1% of piracy comes from epub.

There was not a lot of talk about blogs. There was a little bit about bloggers becoming authors, but nothing on blogging communities like Bookblogs on Ning. http://bookblogs.ning.com/


The talk was very well presented and enjoyable to hear. It was a very different crowd than librarians, writers, editors, or publishers. There was a very wide variety of people there. There were thirty people at the talk.


At the end of the talk, we did a little bit of networking. I met Travis Alber, President of Bookglutton there. I also got a chance to get a better sense of how New Work City worked. It is shaping up to be quite congenial.

Daily Thoughts 12/1/2010 (Books, Review Periodicals)

Boy studying, from the album: Miscellaneous. Photograph by Lewis Wickes Hine, ca. 1924. From the National Child Labor Committee Collection at the Library of Congress

Daily Thoughts 12/1/2010

Today has been quiet.  It is raining outside.  With less people working, I spend much more time working on the reference desk answering peoples questions.   My background is focused on reference work as well as collection development.  Reference is slowly changing in the public library to more advisory work about what people need than finding people what they need.


I spent some time checking the displays for a little bit.  I also went through some files that were left on my desk.  I have a stack of magazines which were unread by other people, Kirkus Reviews, Library Journal, Booklist, and the New York Times Book Review.  I may not be ordering for a little while because of tight budgets.  We have to think about ways to raise money.

I have a stack of books to read when I am done, Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden, Paper Cuts An Anthology of Urban Fantasy Edited by Ekaterina Sedia, Jack McDevitt Echo, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson, Rethinking Information Work A Career Guide for Librarians and Other Information Professionals by G. Kim Dority, The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, Dust of Deams A Tale of the Malazan Book of the Fallen, and Creating A Life Worth Living by Carol Lloyd.  Some of these books are popular titles.  I like to read things which are popular to gauge what people like occassionally.  It keeps me current.

I had an interesting conversation with one of the library board members.  We are definitely are in a very tight money situation.  It could get even tighter if the city comptroller is correct during the coming year.  When I am downstairs I can see a lot of empty desks.  Most of them are cleared off.  I also have my end of year schedule in front of me.  I have one holiday and one vacation day along with one personal day left during the coming month.  I also have 20 1/2 sick days.  I have to think carefully about how I will use my time.

One of my colleagues who retired came by and reminded me to be peaceful and pay attention; watch how I use my time, keep everything going smoothly.

Web Bits

Spending Cuts Gut Libraries In Britain

http://www.libraryjournal.com/lj/home/888280-264/spending_cuts_gut_library_budgets.html.csp

Hard Case Crime Returns with New Lawrence Block Novel and New Publisher

By Craig Morgan Teicher-- I really like the hard boiled old fashioned noir in this series.
http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/publisher-news/article/45358-hard-case-crime-returns-with-new-lawrence-block-novel-and-new-publisher.html

Writing That Works How To Communicate Effectively in Business, 3rd Edition by Kenneth Roman and Joel Raphaelson

Writing That Works How To Communicate Effectively in Business, 3rd Edition by Kenneth Roman and Joel Raphaelson





Writing That Works is an updated book on business writing that includes sections on email, presentation decks (bullet pointed lists often in powerpoint), and a reminder that computers are only as good as what you put into them.



The writers describe when it is appropriate to use paper memos and letters to add a personal touch or appear official. They also talk about how to give presentations to sell your product or idea in person.

The book covers written documents, presentations, and the internet. The chapters are short, clear, and present clear business objectives; getting a job with a resume, getting money for your ideas, saving time by managing email properly, and selling yourself in writing.



Kenneth Roman and Joel Raphaelson open the book with a statement that the point of business writing is to get things done, not just to be clear.



There is a reminder to edit your work, be understandable, and write for a specific objective. Kenneth Roman and Joel Raphaelson do this with ease. They make excellent use of bullet pointed lists, indented italicized text, and bold headings which catch your attention.



Kenneth Roman retired from being CEO of Ogilvy and Mather Worldwide and Joel Raphaelson retired from being Creative Executive Director of Ogilvy and Mather Worldwide. This makes them very qualified to write about business. This book is well worth reading.

Daily Thoughts 11/23/2010 (electronic devices, books)

The Bookman A Literary Journal

Daily Thoughts 11/23/2010

I put the book, The Little Prince Graphic Novel by Antoine Saint-Exupery, and Illustrated by Joann Sfar on hold.  I really like Joann Sfar's illustrations.

I spent some time today looking at MP3 players for audiobooks.  The one most used in libraries is the Sansa Sandisk player.  I have seen a number of libraries which lend MP3 players out.  They generally contain a set of preloaded audiobooks on them.  An MP3 player is a little less expensive than a video game.  We lend out video games for the Xbox, PS2, and Wii.  We also lend out Transparent Language http://www.transparent.com  flash drives. 

I also spent some time looking at shelving for oversize books and creating next months schedule.  There were a few other minor things which I did like email reference and some weeding of the oversize books.

One of the books which I put on hold came in, Writing Tools 50 Essential Strategies For Every Writer by Roy Peter Clark.  I also checked out An Essential Guide to Public Speaking Serving Your Audience With Faith, Skill, and Virtue by Quentin Schultze.

On the train home, I read some more of Writing That Works.   The authors were writing about email and presentation decks.  They reminded the reader to keep your emails short and to the point.  A "Deck" is a term for bulleted presentation slides like you would make in Powerpoint or Slideshare. 

Web Bits

Going Green On Paper http://shar.es/XmysY

Read Library EBooks On Your Ipad with the Bluefire Reader App
http://t.co/zPlhEhJ


How Publishers Are Tackling The Apps Question http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/digital/content-and-e-books/article/45173-how-publishers-are-tackling-the-app-question.html

Al Jaffee's Mad Life A Biography by Mary-Lou Weisman Illustrated by Al Jaffee

Al Jaffee's Mad Life A Biography by Mary-Lou Weisman Illustrated by Al Jaffee

Al Jaffee is a cartoonist for Mad magazine.  He also has over sixty cartoon books he has written.  He is best known for the fold-ins at the back of Mad Magazine.  He illustrated this biography with a mix of slice of life comics about his own life and light humor comics.  I like the slightly exaggerated style of the cartoons.  They remind me a bit of a kind of slightly guilty pleasure.  This book covers his whole life.

The story starts with his childhood which is quite poignant and hard.  It starts with him moving from Savannah Georgia to live with his mother in a Lithuanian shtetl (small jewish town).  Then it covers his return to live in New York city.  The story is one of hardship and suffering.  He ends up leaving his mother behind as the Jewish holocaust starts.

This biography has quite a bit of mature themes in it; his brother going mad, another brother having extreme disabilities, and being separated from his mother.  He often describes himself as a cut up and a bit out of control.  This is illustrated by a variety of escapades throughout his life which can be both ridiculous and shocking

The thing which ultimately saves him is humor.  He describes reading comics his father sends him as a child and deciding that there is a career for him in comics when he sees advertisements by Dr. Seuss.  There are quite a few cartoons from Al Jaffee's early career in this book including many from Mad magazine.  The juxtaposition between everyday life and silly humor fits well with the writing.

In what I consider the second half of the book, he gets his break when he is accepted for the New York High School for Music and Art as it is first opening.  There he meets Harvey Kurtzman and some of the early figures in comics.  This biography describes his work for many important people in the comics industry.

The second half of the book touches on the history of comic books.  It is quite entertaining.  I rather liked a few of the wordless comics on page 180.  I also like the inventiveness in this book. Al Jaffe attributes this to having very little when he was a child.  He had to make his own toys.  There are interesting cartoons of home made fishing poles, rafts, a toy truck and other toys.

This book is not in the least bit academic in style.  It is full of anecdotes, humor, and sad stories. There is no index and no lists of recommended titles.  There are some photographs from the authors life, many cartoons in full color from both the auhor's life and Mad magazine.  The book is printed on heavy stock paper.  It is published by Harper Collins under the itbooks imprint.  This is a story that makes you think.