Dear Librarian

Who won the Panda Award for 2011?

Dear Librarian — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 05:22:57 +0000

For the Younger Readers: We Are in a Book! by Mo Willems
For the Middle Readers: The Candymakers by Wendy Mass
For the Older Readers: The Enemy by Charlie Higson
For the Mature Readers: Bossypants by Tina Fey

What’s an app?

Dear Librarian — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 03:15:00 +0000

The word “app” is essentially an abbreviated word for “application.” Since the rise of the iTouch, iPhone, and iPad, the word “app” has come to mean the application one can download from the iTunes store. There are more apps out there though. For example, there are both web and computer applications. Basically the app, or application, is a an interactive game, book, information source, or creation tool. Go2Web20 is an excellent source for finding the app one needs. What’s definite is the word “app” has become a known definition for many around the world. For example, when “app” is searched for on Merriam Webster’s Online Dictionary, a definition is found–even for “killer app!”

Who is Korky Paul

Dear Librarian — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 04:06:44 +0000

Korky Paul is the most famous and well renowned dinosaur portrait artist! During the week of October 31-November 4, the students at the International School of Beijing were able to witness this first hand. During each of his workshops, he would call up a child and illustrate them uncannily well–as a dinosaur! On a daily basis however, when Korky isn’t visiting schools and teaching children, he’s illustrating picture books. Most famously, he is the illustrator of Winnie the Witch. Korky Paul is an amazing individual who reminds his readers to use their imaginations. That is the key to success!

Korky met Winnie at ISB!

Who is Winnie the Witch?

Dear Librarian — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 05:21:34 +0000

Winnie the Witch is a character created by 3 talented people: Valerie Thomas, Korky Paul, and Laura Owen. Valerie Thomas is the original author. Winnie even has a cat named Wilbur that is similar to a black cat Ms. Thomas used to have. Korky Paul is the illustrator of Winnie the Witch. He’s created the image we all think of when Winnie the Witch is mentioned–along with the fantastic castle and Wilbur. And Laura Owen continues to write the stories about Winnie the Witch–there are so many! Look at this list (and it’s not all of them!):

Winnie The Witch
Winnie in Winter
Winnie Flies Again
Winnie’s Magic Wand
Winnie’s New Computer
Winnie at the Seaside
Winnie’s Midnight Dragon
Happy Birthday, Winnie
Winnie’s Flying Carpet
Winnie’s Amazing Pumpkin
Winnie in Space

Winnie the Witch has a super fun website too. Link on the picture below to find out.

How does water damage a book?

Dear Librarian — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 07:53:58 +0000

Water is one of the worst ways to damage a book. Once the book dries from the water damage, it’s left with completely wrinkled pages.

Photograph by Daniel Oines

The next thing that happens is mold sets it. Mold is highly infectious–it spreads widely and can destroy an entire library collection.

Water damaged book from Hurricane Katrina, photography by Karl Niederer

The best protection for books from water damage is to never mix the two. Keep a glass of water away or below from the reading material. When carrying books in a bag or backpack, don’t add a water bottle to the bag. Hold the water bottle separately or in a separate bag altogether. Never bring a book into a body of water, a swimming pool, or bathtub. Basically it’s best not to mix the two.

Unfortunately, spilling water while reading e-books on an e-reader will also result in water damage for the device!

Water Damage, Repair Zoom. Digital image. RepairZoom.
RepairZoom. Web. 13 Oct. 2011. .