Maurice Sendak, 1928-2012

Just heard that "Where the Wild Things Are" author Maurice Sendak died early this morning.  If you would like to know more about this iconic writer and illustrator, the library has several nonfiction titles that may interest you.

* Angels and Wild Things: The Archetypal Poetics of Maurice Sendak
* The Art of Maurice Sendak: 1980 to the Present
* Tell Them Anything You Want: A Portrait of Maurice Sendak (DVD)

April can be a taxing month

Tax day has finally come and gone, and I'll bet a lot of us could use a good laugh.  A new book just arrived at the library, and I'm pretty sure it has the potential to tickle a funny bone here and there.  If you're in the market for a giggle or guffaw, check out The 50 Funniest American Writers: An Anthology of Humor from Mark Twain to the Onion edited by Andy Borowitz.  Mr. Borowitz is a comedian and satirist which means he probably knows a thing or two about humor.

It's National Library Week

If you've ever had an interest in the mysterious world of librarianship, this week would be a good time to delve into books about, well, books, and how and why they're organized the way they are in most public libraries.  This information is not classified!  You can read freely about it in Irrepressible Reformer: A Biography of Melvil Dewey.  The DDC, or Dewey Decimal Classification system, was created by good ol' Melvil, who happened to be quite a character.

Perhaps reading about a classification system is not your idea of a good time, but being creative with the books you own really "knocks your shelves down."  Well, fear not, there is a perfect book for you: Decorating with Books by Marie Proeller Hueston.  Let's face it: a home really isn't a home without books.  Instead of leaving them in piles by your bedside, or covering every inch of flat surface with cherished titles, learn how to treat them like family by giving them their own space.  Unlike cats and dogs, you don't have to feed them, but an occasional dusting will tickle their spines, and cracking them open once in a while positively makes their pages curl.