A Game of Thrones - by George R. R. Martin

There certainly is an awful lot of hype around this series so much, in fact, that I felt a bit out of the loop. Based on the fact that so many people I knew, with various interests, were reading this and talking about it I was sure I would enjoy this so much that I downloaded the first four books in the series onto my iPad at once. It took me about 3 weeks to read the first one, and I plan to read the rest, but only because I already bought and paid for them. I am really not in a big hurry to get to the others. I doubt I will watch the series at all. I didn't dislike the book, I just wasn't taken in by it the way I expected I would.

The good news of course is that there are libraries in the book for me to report on, and generally books, stories, and libraries are seen as a positive thing. "Warm and snug" is the description used the first time a library is mentioned in the book. Being assigned to work in the library is clearly seen as a salvation for young Samwell who "grew ill at the sight of blood" but whose passions "were books and kittens and dancing". He had, in fact, "read every book in his father's library." He knows, as Taystee does in "Orange is the New Black", that the library is the "best job". On a sadder note, a deliberate fire is set in the library at Winterfell as a distraction in the hope that a murder can be carried out while the flames are extinguished.

Stay tuned for more posts from the "Song of Ice and Fire" Series. Just don't hold your breath.

A Conspiracy of Dunces

This map demonstrates how little Americans read compared to those in other countries. Less than one hour a day on average, and that averages in avid readers like my husband and I who tend to read several hours a day - and almost none of that is reading text messages. We read books, newspapers, and magazines. I would read even more if I could, but it appears that there is a conspiracy to keep me watching television. Too often I find myself with a block of time in which I might be able to read, and would actually like to read, but find it difficult to find a spot away from a television (generally tuned to either a so-called "news" show, or daytime talk show) in which I can read in peace. Television sets seem to have proliferated especially in doctor's offices; airport waiting lounges; jury waiting rooms; and regrettably, almost every flat surface at the University where I work. Fortunately the Library is still a tv-free zone, although I recognize that anyone can turn any of our computers into a television if they want. They would have to borrow head phones though, allowing those who still wish to pursue scholarship through reading to do so. I was pleased to discover that my daughter's pediatrician's waiting room eschewed the television set when they moved the office. I always found it ironic that some inane show that we wouldn't ever watch at home was playing every time we went to the doctor's office, and then the doctor would be sure to ask us how much television she watched! I did point this irony out to the pediatrician.

Rollerball - the movie

I saw this on at least two different lists of librarians on film. The library scene is brief, and the library worker readily admits that she is not a librarian, but rather a clerk. In this dystopian future the job of the actual librarians, who are off somewhere else, is to "edit" knowledge. The main character Jonathan E. (James Caan) comes to the library looking to do some research on how corporate decisions are made. He gets an unsatisfactory answer from the pretty, and polite, library clerk. He later asks the same question to a really big computer who provides the answer that corporations make corporate decisions. 

Stay Cool - the movie

I won't write a lot about this one for several reasons:

1. James and I blogged about it on our Noni blog
2. There is no actual librarian in the film, just a couple of scenes in the school library
3. What is said about the library is disparaging and stereotypical

"The library is still a sanctuary for the socially challenged."

The Adults - by Alison Espach

This satire follows the story of  Emily, who within the course of a year watches a neighbor commit suicide; experiences the divorce of her parents; becomes a sister to her father's love child; and embarks on an affair with one of her high school teachers. The on-again-off-again relationship with "Mr. Basketball" (a.k.a. Johannes, Jonathan, and Jack) continues over about a dozen years.

Emily's only two mentions of libraries are in stark contrast to each other. The first time demonstrates a certain naivety; the second shows an especially daring sexual side. In describing her grandmother's death, when Emily was 10, she (Emily) recounts her mother suggesting that the family get out of the hospital room for a little while to get some coffee. Emily reminds her mother

I am only ten, my legs are barely covered in peach fuzz, I just found out there are two r's in "library," this whole time it had never been "ly-bary" and how embarrassing, I'm so so embarrassed, Mom, can I have a ginger ale instead?

Much later in the book Emily, while having sex in a public restroom during one of her reunions with Jonathan thinks about going "somewhere else"

off to the basement stacks of the public library, where sex was a dark art and we were just students. Where I had to keep on my wool dress for decorum's sake and he just unzipped his pleated khaki's and out he tumbled like a waterfall.

This is a good summer read - pure escape.

Everything You Wanted to Know about Indians but were Afraid to Ask - by Anton Treuer

I recently attended a teaching circle about Indigenous Studies at my university. This book was provided to all who attended. Like David Reuben's book (Everything You Wanted to Know about Sex, but were Afraid to Ask), Treuer's book is written in Q&A format. Unlike Reuben, however, Treuer actually seems to have some authority on the the topic he writes about. He also does not pretend to speak for all Indigenous people, and often points out issues on which different tribes, or individuals have differing opinions.  He begins with the question "What terms are most appropriate for talking about North America's first people?" which indeed answered my first question about the use of the word "Indians" in the title of the work and why and he uses the terms Indian and Indians throughout.

Truer also met my low-bar criterion for inclusion on this blog, which is simply: at least one mention of a library or a librarian. The first part of the book treats questions of "Terminology" and includes the question "How can I find out the meaning of place names around me that come from indigenous languages?" Following a little lesson about word roots, along with a bit of geography, he explains that

To find the deeper meaning of the Indian names for the places in which you live, it is often necessary to do a little research. Fortunately, some great books, like Virgil Vogel's Indian Names in Michigan and Warren Upham's Minnesota Place Names, have done a lot of groundwork to help you understand places in the Great Lakes region....There are similar books for other parts of the country-ask your local librarian for advice. 

Reading this prompted me to see what my own library had on the subject. A catalog search on place names in New England brought me to the record for a book called The Real Founders of New England written by Charles Knowles Bolton and originally published in 1929. Mr. Bolton explains in the preface that "History began, as far as New England is concerned, either in 1620 at Plymouth or in 1630 at Boston".

The book does list some Indian names for some New England cities and towns in an Appendix but does not appear to break down any names. The text appears to be useful for researchers who are interested in European view of Native Americans, both at the time of the initial encounter, and how the story was being told in 1929.

The local public library does appear to have a book that might be better for this kind of research Indian names of places in Plymouth, Middleborough, Lakeville and Carver, Plymouth County, Massachusetts : with interpretations of some of them.

Goodbye, Columbus - the movie

In this 1969 "mood piece" Richard Benjamin plays Neil Klugman, a New York City Public Librarian. Ali McGraw (who played the librarian role in Love Story) is his love interest, Brenda Patimkin. Neil and Brenda spend a week together at her parents house, sneaking around at night having sex. When Neil discovers that Brenda isn't on the pill he goes ballistic. When she explains that she tried the pill and didn't like the side effects he insists she go back on it anyway. She finally relents and agrees to get a diaphragm. Of course everyone knows it is the woman's responsibility (and hers alone) to take care of birth control. Condoms were never mentioned. Apparently the two did not even discuss birth control until there was a very real possibility that a pregnancy may have happened. The romance is a bust once Brenda's parents find out about the tryst. But it was probably best this way, who wants to wind up with a librarian, anyway?

It was not until I started this post that I noticed the tag line for this film is "Every father's daughter is a virgin." If you want to see a really creepy film along these lines watch Virgin Tales - a documentary about the family that started  "Purity Balls".