Authors and Ebooks

A movement is afoot with authors on the side of libraries in the current struggle to find a happy medium in the ebook world.

Give the site a look: Authors for Library Ebooks

We want to provide as many digitally accessible books as we can, but at current prices to libraries we have to be VERY selective. Plus the variety that are offered to libraries for "purchase" is severely limited compared to what can be obtained by consumers individually. I think the four bullet points in the link cited above pretty much cover what I and many other librarians know to be true. I think many patrons know them to be true as well.

2013 Summer Celebration Awesomeness!

I am still recovering from being one of the moles in the Whack-a-Mole game, but I can't believe how many people turned out for the big kick-off to our Summer Reading Program this past Friday (June 7)!

Congratulations to our fantastic Hutchinson Public Library staff for their dedication and effort in pulling this off! If you were there, you saw staff from all departments pitching in to help for the morning. And, of course, we had massive support from a small army of volunteers and could never have run all the games and programs without them. Thank you!

We easily surpassed last years' numbers as far as I could tell, there was a non-stop line at our booth. We will have pictures of the event posted on the library's Facebook page and I'll post some here soon.

In the meantime, "Dig in to Reading", pick up a "Groundbreaking Read", or join the "Quest for Readalot" at the Hutchinson Public Library this summer. These are the reading programs for children, adults, and young adults respectively. There's fun and rewards to go along with each and each one gives you the excitement of discovering new worlds through reading!

Book Review: Frederik Pohl's Gateway

The SF Book discussion group met again to discuss Pohl's 1976 novel Gateway. This is the first in a trilogy that includes Beyond the Blue Event Horizon and Heechee Rendezvous. In Gateway, we meet Robinet (Bob) Broadhead, a man made wealthy by prospecting the ancient space lanes blazed by a long-dead and forgotten species called the "Heechee".

Through a stroke of luck, bob wins enough money in a lottery to purchase a ticket to Gateway, an intergalactic hub of sorts where prospectors can "ship out" on pre-programmed (by the Heechee) routes and return to Gateway automatically. The catch is that no one knows where the ships go until someone tries them out. Some end up in ... let's just say that some trips are no longer "round trips". Basically, the prospectors take a gamble and may strike it rich finding a treasure trove of ancient alien artifacts at their destinations or they may find nothing or they may perish in the process.

The appeal of this book is the unfolding of Bob's tale. We learn early that he is clearly wealthy and gained his wealth through prospecting from Gateway. We also learn that he is wracked by neuroses of various sorts as he frequently visits his digital shrink that he has dubbed "Sigfrid".

Various mysteries unfold as the book progresses and we follow, in a back-and-forth manner, the developments that form the Bob Broadhead we meet at the beginning of the book.

The general consensus of our group was that the book was a good one, despite dating itself in a few minor ways. I have mentioned before that the HPL SF group is a pretty tough crowd and this book was not treated as roughly as some of our previous selections. Personally, I highly recommend the book. Despite having read it many years ago and knowing where Bob's tale would lead, I enjoyed Pohl's story-telling again this time through.

eBook changes

The publishing mood is changing in the ebook market. In the past few months I have seen signs of a gradual thawing in attitude toward us evil public libraries. An excellent example of this is Hatchette Book Group's announcement that they are reinstating front-list ebook sales to libraries.

Hatchette will "sell" licenses of new titles to public libraries immediately upon publication. The cost to libraries will be three times the RETAIL hardcover price. One year after publication, that cost will drop to one-and-a-half times the retail cover price. There will be no checkout limits (the titles will not "wear out"). This is an improvement, at least, in that public libraries will have access to new titles from Hatchette and Random House (who already had this sort of sales model).

I still maintain that public libraries are a powerful ally, not an enemy to be squeezed out. Hopefully we can show this to be the case and publisher attitudes will continue to thaw.

Comics in Smallville

An article in the Hutchinson News today about a "free comic" offer from our local Hasting's store has me thinking even more about the possibilities for the Library's planned Smallville conference. We are working on a combination of discussion / seminar presentations and hands-on workshops for September 21st, 2013.

What I've been thinking however, is that I wonder if there isn't enough interest in the genre, the collecting, etc. to warrant an actual comic convention in our little corner of the wheat fields. What do you think? Would Hutchinson/Smallville be a place where people might come to buy and sell, trade knowledge, attend programs and generally have fun doing it?

The Stars My Destination - SF Book Discussion

The HPL Science Fiction Book Discussion group met April 4th to discuss Alfred Bester's classic The Stars My Destination. This mid-1950's novel is frequently cited as an influence on the SF cyberpunk movement. The work is also known by its UK title, Tiger, Tiger! after the first line of William Blake's poem The Tiger.

Bester is perhaps better known for his novel, The Demolished Man, which received the first Hugo Award in 1953. The Stars My Destination is, in a nutshell, a story that starts out all about revenge and ends up with personal growth. Now our group is composed of individuals with strong opinions about SF and as I have learned, a fairly high bar to be impressed.

To our last two books, despite high acclaim for the titles, our group responded with a resounding "meh". Concerning Bester's book, the general consensus seemed to be summed up by one member's comment, "I at least wanted to see how it turned out". Damning with faint praise? I don't think so. I think we dare to want more from an author. This story explores fascinating themes; following the ramifications to society of a human evolutionary step, "jaunting", to its possible conclusions. It is worth a read. Despite its age, it is easy to see why this book is often considered a precursor or major influence on the cyberpunk movement of the late 20th century.

Our group will meet again on May 2nd to discuss another SF classic, A.E. van Vogt's SLAN. If you would like to join us, contact Gregg Wamsley at (620)663-5441 or gwamsley@hutchpl.org

Summer Reading 2013

Spring has sprung here in Hutchinson and though it seems far away at the moment, the end of school is just around the corner. One of the most important things parents can do for their children during the long summer break is to get them involved in reading. When it's too hot to play out side or some downtime is needed, reading will keep their vocabulary skills honed and their minds sharp heading into the next school year.

Here at the Hutchinson Public Library, we will be digging into reading all summer long! With story time programs for pre-k and elementary-aged children and reading programs for children, young adults AND adults, it shouldn't be hard to keep everyone reading. The articles I've linked above point out the problems and offer many solutions. The main idea though, is that as long as your child remains engaged with books and learning during the summer, losses to grade-level skills will be minimized or eliminated.

Our programs are free to the public, our library cards are free with proof of address, and our services, including a huge array of children's and young adult programming, are too many to list here.