Library Advocacy Day is March 31

Graphic courtesy of the Massachusetts
Board of Library Commissioners

A couple of weeks ago we wrote about the digital lockout in libraries across the state and how funding can help crack the code. 

Did you know: Funding to support library technology has decreased by 56%, lower today than it was in 1998? And State Aid to support local libraries is down 31%, the lowest it’s been since 1994. As a result, libraries across the state are threading the needle to keep up and maintain technology resources, circulation, events, and community services with fewer resources.

Libraries serve as vibrant information hubs and community-gathering centers. In Cambridge, where we’re fortunate to have an incredible main library facility and city-wide system, we know this all too well. Watch this video demonstrating just how Massachusetts libraries stack up...against the state championship sports teams no less!

Each of us should be speaking up about how much we value our local library. Monday, March 31 is Library Advocacy Day at the Massachusetts State House—tell your lawmakers why your library is important to you.

To find out more, the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners has an easy-to-share online resource to help you learn more about library funding, the digital lockout, and other legislative issues here.

The Growing Digital Demand...and the Library Lockout

Now that almost everyone has some kind of mobile screen in their pocket or satchel, it is no wonder that eBook demand in Massachusetts libraries is up by over 5,000% since 2005!

There are two major challenges for libraries attempting to meet this demand:

1. Cost: Many publishers charge libraries up to 6 times more than consumers are charged for the same eBook. 
2. Access: Lack of library funding has left technology for eBook distribution networks behind and playing catch-up; plus lending restrictions placed on eBooks by vendors limit access even further.

Libraries play a vital role in providing equal, free and open access to information for every person. But the lockout faced by libraries and patrons is hindering access to new and growing digital resources.

The Massachusetts Board of Library Commissions and the Massachusetts Library System are piloting a new eBook and eContent system with 50 libraries across the state. With increased State Aid to Libraries, the program will be expanded to 1,700 libraries, including school, academic and special collection libraries as well as public libraries in Massachusetts.

We can all help advocate for better funding to increase eBook content and improve technology and resource sharing for new digital collections in our libraries. Learn more with this easy-to-share overview online, add your name to the map of support for eBooks and technology in libraries, or even talk to your lawmakers in person about why your library is important to you and your community during Library Legislative Day at the State House on March 31.

Save the Date: June 1, 2014

The Longfellow House and gardens in Cambridge

It may not look that way this blustery February week, but there is spring burgeoning underneath all that snow out there…we’re sure of it!

Save the Date:
The Friends of the Cambridge 
Public Library
Secret Gardens of Cambridge tour on Sunday, June 1, 2014

Tickets will be available at area retailers and library branches in coming months. Watch for details here and on the Friends’ Facebook page.

February is Love Your Library Month

Here in Cambridge, we have a lot to love in our libraries, from the beautiful and expansive main library to each one of our uniquely neighborhood local branches. Join the Friends of the Cambridge Public Library to help support library collections and programs. Love your library this month and every month!

MY LIBRARY

by Varda One

It's only a room with shelves and books,

but it's far more magical than it looks

It's a jet on which I soar

to lands that exist no more.

Or a key with which I find

answers to questions crowding my mind.

Building my habit of learning and growing,

asking and researching till I reach knowing.

Here, I've been a mermaid and an elf

I've even learned to be more myself.

I think that I shall never see

a place that's been more useful to me.

With encouraging kind friends with wit

Who tell me to dream big and never quit.

It's only a room with shelves and books,

but it's far more magical than it looks.

A lovely verse kindly shared by the author and Friends and Foundations of California Libraries; Copyright © 1999 by VARDA ONE.

Library Browsing Online

Winter cold has set in. And Punxsutawney Phil predicts six more weeks of it.

But if you’re planning an escape to somewhere warmer and want to pack light, check out Overdrive on the Cambridge Public Library’s website for a few vacation reads. Overdrive is a digital media catalog of eBooks and audiobooks. Library card holders can browse and check out any title online and read or listen on a Kindle, Droid, iPhone, or Nook.

You don't even have to have your own eBook reader...you can check out a Nook from the library too. In fact, with support from the Friends of the Cambridge Public Library, Nooks are now available at all Cambridge Public Library branches and the main library.

Don’t worry…if you’re weathering the cold from home, the eLibrary page on the Cambridge Public Library’s website offers some exceptional options for library browsing from the sofa! Check product reviews before you buy that new coffee maker, get recommendations for what you should read next, or learn a new language so next winter you have an excuse to head to warmer climates.

There are always great things happening at the library! For more information on how you can get involved with the Friends and help support our Cambridge libraries, click here.

Ask the Librarian - Liz Danner

We feature a regular series of interviews with members of the Cambridge Public Library staff. This month, meet Liz...Children's Librarian at the Valente branch and another one of the people who make our Cambridge libraries fun and extraordinary places.

What made you want to become a librarian and what do you love most about your job? For two years after I graduated from college, I was a member of an AmeriCorps program in Manchester, New Hampshire whose mission was to promote early literacy to children and families who came from low-income backgrounds. As part of the program, I worked on several outreach projects with one of the children’s librarians at the city library and saw just how much of an impact public libraries can have on a young child’s life. I decided this was the kind of work I would love to do.

I love so many things about my job, but one of my favorites is giving children their first library cards. Several times, I have had children who I know from their preschools or library story times come in to the library with their parents on the day that they turn five in order to tell me that they are there to finally get their own card. It’s a pretty amazing to be able to be a part of that experience.

What’s unique about being a librarian at the Valente branch? One thing that I really love about working at the Valente Branch is getting to be a part of the neighborhood. I've met people from all over the country and world, people who have lived in Cambridge their entire lives, and people who have just moved to the area. I especially love being able to hear stories about what the neighborhood was like 10, 20, or even 50 years ago.

What is the funniest thing that has ever happened to you in your role as a librarian? One day, I had been helping out at another branch and as I was walking back to my branch, I passed by a group of preschoolers that I read stories to one morning a week. When they saw me, they were excited and all said hi, but one of the group was very concerned to see me outside of the library and expressed their worry that no one was watching the books. I assured them that my colleagues were taking good care of the books back at the branch and they seemed relieved.

How has technology changed your job? What is your opinion on e-books like the Kindle? One of the greatest benefits of technology in the library is the online catalog; people are now able to renew and request materials from home and then pick them up at the branch closest to them.

I have a Kindle and I love it. I tend to read a mix of both print and e-books. I still prefer print for graphic novels and picture books but for novels, I’ll read either version. I am constantly checking Overdrive, the library’s digital media catalog, for more titles. The Kindle is especially nice on days when I use public transportation to get to work, nothing beats having a lighter backpack!

What is something that people may find surprising about your role as a librarian? I don’t end up reading nearly as many books as I would like. I've found that since becoming a librarian, my “want to read” list is growing at a much quicker pace than I am actually reading.

Tell us about a situation you were part of or witnessed at the library that has stuck with you over time. There is a young patron who comes to the library several times a week. When I first met her, she was pretty quiet but over time we've built a rapport. Now whenever she comes in, she asks me for suggestions. The (very good) problem is that she’s read more than me at this point and I’m just trying to keep up!

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year from the Friends of the Cambridge Public Library!

In 2014, members of the Friends of the Cambridge Public Library can enjoy new discounts at local businesses. If you already renewed your annual membership or join this year, you’ll not only be supporting our amazing Cambridge libraries, but you’ll also get a discount at some of these library-loving local retailers. Show your 2014 Friends of the Cambridge Public Library sticker at the time of purchase to receive your discount (some restrictions may apply):

Clothware, 1773 Mass. Ave.
Follow the Honey, 1132 Mass. Ave.
Nomad Clothing and Accessories, 1741 Mass. Ave.
Royal Cleaners, 1105 Mass. Ave.
Cannondale Sports Store, 1001 Mass. Ave.
Professional Geeks, 1105 Mass. Ave.

Thank you to these local retailers for helping the Friends keep the library thriving through 2014. There are always great things happening at the library! For more information on how you can get involved with the Friends and help support our Cambridge libraries, click here.