Join Amy Biancolli for lunch at Friends of the APL Book & Author event, Sat., April 25

PLEASE join

The Friends of the Albany Public Library

for the

Spring Book & Author Event

Saturday, April 25, 2015

Community Room, Albany Public Library, 161 Washington Ave

Second floor (across from the new children’s room), 1:30 p.m.

Speaker:  Amy Biancolli

Topic: "Living and writing in Smalbany: A love story."

Amy Biancolli was born in Queens, grew up in Connecticut and holds degrees from Hamilton College and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

She has published three books so far: one musical biography, "Fritz Kreisler: Love’s Sorrow, Love’s Joy"; and two memoirs, "House of Holy Fools: A Family Portrait in Six Cracked Parts" about her childhood family; and “Figuring Sh!t Out: Love, Laughter, Suicide, and Survival,” about her husband, who died in 2011, and dealing with the blessings of life in the aftermath.

Luncheon Buffet

University Club

141 Washington Avenue (1 block from the APL)

12 NOON

Good food for $20.00

Checks payable to the Friends of the Albany Public Library may be sent to:

Friends of the APL, 161 Washington Ave, Albany, NY 12210

Reservations by Tuesday, April 21, 2015

For more information, please contact Roger Green, rogerogreen@gmail.com

Photo credit: Danny Richardson. Bio via timesunion.com and figuringshitout.net

BDSM and beheading videos: The evolving role of the librarian

No job is without its perils, and for a college librarian today, one of those just might be having an associate dean overhear you explaining to a student how to create a more accurate BDSM scene for a photo shoot inspired by “Fifty Shades of Gray...”

It was awkward, but part of my job as a librarian is to help patrons research a topic, whatever that topic might be. Google has many people convinced that librarians are no longer necessary — probably the same people who predicted our demise when the personal computer was first introduced. Yet we librarians are still here, providing free resources, information and computer access to our communities. The profession is evolving, of course: adapting to new technology and, more significantly, being reshaped by culture...

The thing I love about my profession is that I am always learning. A patron approaches me with a question, and in helping them I discover worlds I never knew existed.

More from the Washington Post.

Local librarian Lauren Cardinal devoted to the neighborhood

Since Lauren Cardinal was 4-years-old she made weekly visits from her South Allen Street home to return a tote filled with books to the Pine Hills library. Reading was a passion of Cardinal’s, but it wasn’t until her late 20s that she made books her career.

Lauren Cardinal working at the reference desk/Hanna Teal
Lauren Cardinal works at the reference desk in the Pine Hills Library/Hanna Teal
Cardinal is a full-time librarian at the Pine Hills branch of the Albany Public library where her responsibilities include ordering newly released books and coordinating programs for the library. The reference desk is her favorite task because she gets to meet the library’s patrons.

“You get a core group of people that come in just to see you. Whether it’s to ask for your opinion on a book, ask for your help, or just ask how you are doing,” said Cardinal. “It makes the job so much more meaningful.”

More from the Pine Hills blog.

Library Aid Received +$5M Increase in FY15-16 NYS Budget

The New York Library Association (NYLA) is pleased to report that thanks to the tireless efforts of NY’s library advocates (like YOU), we have had a very successful budget cycle. Our message that "Libraries Are Education", and that library funding should increase proportionately with increases in school aid has been heard loud and clear.

Included in the NYS FY2015-16 Budget:

Teaching about the Holocaust

Over 11 million people died during the Holocaust, and about 1 million of them were Jewish children. The tragic details of the events of the Holocaust are very painful, yet the persecutions and murders, and World War that followed make up an important part of our world's history.

Approaching a lesson plan on the Holocaust can be overwhelming. Many teachers begin with the story of Anne Frank, a young Jewish girl who documented her family’s stay in an attic, hiding from the Nazis. This story can be a starting point to help students connect and understand the events that took place nearly 80 years ago.

• Introduction to the Holocaust 
• Teaching about the Holocaust 
• Anne Frank Overview and Background 
• Lesson Plans for Elementary School Students
• Lesson Plans for Middle School and High School students