Little Free Library

Read Kelly Unsworth's column in the August 16, 2013 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin. Kelly is a children's librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library. 

This summer in the library, the Jr. Friends have been working on one of my favorite volunteer projects of the season, the Morrill Memorial Library’s version of “little free libraries”; those gnome-like creations that have been springing up for years across the country, and more recently in the Boston area.  As far as I know, and I would love to be proven wrong about this, there are none in Norwood.  Or shall I say, none “yet”.

Leaving Your Mark in the Children's Room

Read Kelly Unsworth's column in the January 14, 2013 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin. Kelly is a children's librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library.

A number of years ago, I designed a program in the library known as the Jr. Friends of the Library. The idea was to give students in grades 6 and older a chance to volunteer in the children’s department on a weekly basis, doing simple tasks that would match their interests and skills. At the time, I had no concept of how quickly the program would take off, or what a large impact it would have; on the children’s room, on the participants of the program, or on the library staff.

Art in the Library

Written by Kelly Unsworth, the Head of Children's Services at the Morrill Memorial Library. Read her column in the Norwood Transcript & Bulletin.

This time of year, with all of the graduations, I always remember my first career interest, art. With an undergraduate degree in Art History I was often asked, even in strong economic times, what I was going to do with my degree. With youthful optimism, I put skepticism aside and set off to pursue my dreams. Hard work paid off, and for a number of years I supported myself working in a portrait photography studio in Harvard Square, and later, as a studio assistant to the artists then known as the Starn Twins. This was an exciting time as the artists were young and just beginning to be recognized in the art world. Using unique methods to manipulate photographs, they were cutting edge, and selling art in a Newbury Street gallery as well as being included in larger institutions such as the Institute of Contemporary Art and the Museum of Fine Arts. So that’s what I would do with my degree.

Blogs, and Twitter, and Facebook, Oh My!

Written by Kelly Unsworth, the Head of Children's Services at the Morrill Memorial Library

I have never been the life of the party, but I have always been reasonably adept at socializing. A few good friends, hiking partners for sporadic weekend activities, and the occasional running partner kept me busy. When my daughter was born, my socializing shifted to her circle of friends and interests, and I found myself hanging out with horsewomen and barn mothers, and spending long weekends in tents at 4-H shows.

My daughter is older now, and prefers to get together with her friends without her mother’s interference. This shift in position has led me to take a look at my social life and upon quick inspection, I have realized that much has changed in 15 years.

To begin with, I am quite possibly the only person I know who doesn’t belong to a book group. I know of book groups that have been meeting for 15 years, book groups for young moms, empty nesters, widowers, and my personal favorite, a wine and chocolate book group. But I have never found the time, or allowed myself the time to join one. I am a book group wanna be, and as I took stock of my social status, it only got worse…much…much…worse.

According to anyone younger than I, social status is defined by the number of followers on ones’ choice of social networking sites. I decided to jump on board, and tried twitter first. My username had the word “book” in it, and my first post mentioned both the library and laundry in the scant 140 words. It was my first, and last, tweet.

Next up were blogs. I know of a woman who met her best friend on one of the first chat rooms 14 years ago. They were comparing their symptoms and stories of pregnancy, as both were expecting their first child around the same time. They had much in common, including the day that they went into labor and had their first child. Every year since, they have gotten together for a birthday celebration, not the kids, just the 2 of them, reminiscing about one of the most important days of their lives.

So I tried blogging, and encountered 2 substantial roadblocks. The first is; I don’t have much to say. Ever. I prefer to speak when I have something reasonably important to say, and felt the same about blogging. I wasn’t interested in sharing small details about a topic, and found that I really didn’t care what “Debbie in Scituate” felt about the topic, or what loveybear2 had to add. I know it sounds harsh, but I just...didn’t…care…

On to Facebook. Everyone who is anyone uses Facebook, right? Wrong. Although I have seen wonderful use of the technology, mostly keeping in touch with family members that are in far corners of the earth, or simply out of weekly visiting range. Seeing the immediate picture of the most recent grandchild, priceless. But to post the live birth online, tacky. My new motto: just because you can share it doesn’t mean you should.

My daughter has most recently begun to use Tumblr and had a quick suggestion for me: forget it, it’s too complicated. All of this is not to suggest that I am computer illiterate; I use computers all day at work, I download eBooks, cook from recipes off my iPhone, voraciously text and email, shop and bank online, plan my vacations, found my pets online, search for medical information, and have been saved by the maps app on my phone too many times to mention. I have even made it to the second level of Angry Birds! But socially, I am an online misfit; awkward and confused.

Driving home the other day, I heard an ad on the radio for an online dating site. The ad stated that 1 in 6 married couples met their spouse using an online dating service. As a recent divorcee, I was horrified. Let me try to explain it this way, when some dogs see a TV, they will bark at the image of another animal. But most dogs do not recognize the image as a real dog; there is no scent, no physical social cues, no meet and greet. If I were a dog, I would be in the second group, for me a photo of a person with text just isn’t the same as a real meeting, or a real date. Besides, we all know that the photo was taken 15 years ago when the person was in much better physical shape and still had hair. For now, I will stick with the supermarket on Friday nights, the bookstore on Saturdays, and museums on Sundays and I’ll see if the statistics are as good as online dating.

If you are interested in finding out more about social networking sites, I recommend the following books, all of which can be found at the library.

• I Love You, Let's Meet: Adventures in Online Dating by Virginia Vitzthum
• Against the Machine: Being Human in the Age of the Electronic Mob by Lee Siegel.
• Alone Together: Why We Expect More from Technology and Less From Each Other by Sherry Turkle.
• Everything Is Miscellaneous: The Power of the New Digital Disorder by David Weinberger.
• What Technology Wants by Kevin Kelly.
• You Are Not a Gadget by Jaron Lanier.
• Facebook for Dummies by Carolyn Abram and Leah Pearlman.
• Born Digital: Understanding the First Generation of Digital Natives by John Palfrey and Urs Gasser.
• The Digital Mom Handbook: How to Blog, Vlog, Tweet, and Facebook Your Way to a Dream Career at Home by Audrey McClelland and Colleen Padilla.
• How To Find a Job on Linkedin, Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and Other Social Networks by Brad and Debra Schepp.
• I'm on Facebook, Now What???: How to Get Personal, Business and Professional Value from Facebook by Jason Alba and Jesse Stay.
• Infinite Reality: Avatars, Eternal Life, Universal Consciousness and the Dawn of the Virtual Revolution by Jim Blascovich and Jeremy Bailenson.

Memories of Summer Reading

Kelly Unsworth is Head of Children's Services at the Morrill Memorial Library. Read her column in the Norwood Transcript & Bulletin on June 3 written in collaboration with librarians at the Norwood elementary schools: Mr. Reuland, Mrs. Roberts, Mrs. Lodge, Mrs. Miller and Mrs. McMullan.

Most of us can remember many things about our idyllic summer vacations while we were growing up. Swimming in a lake, riding bikes throughout the town, walking to the ice cream shop for cones or sundaes. But one thing that we have in common is that we all enjoyed reading over the summer.

For some of us, it was the only time we had to read the books we wanted to read instead of the books we were assigned.

“What I remember most is sitting on my front porch reading mystery stories. I did not live on a very busy street so there wasn’t much to distract me and I was often able to finish two or three books a week,” said Mrs. Miller, librarian at the Prescott and Willett schools. “There were always books in my house and the public library was a short bike ride away. I was fortunate that my mother loved to read just as much as I did, so trips to the library were frequent.”

“In the summer, my mother had to lock my brother and I outside so that we wouldn’t spend all day laying inside reading,” said Mr. Reuland, librarian at the Callahan and Willett schools. “Little did she know that all we did was hide under the branches of the pine tree on the side of the house and read under there. I loved spending all summer reading fantasy novels. I would read anything with a dragon on the cover.”

“The public library in my home town was about a half mile from my home and close to a small market,” said Mrs. Roberts, library teacher at the Balch and Willett schools. “My sisters and I would walk there several times a week and take as many books out as we could carry, after stopping for a treat at the market. I felt proud that I could walk there by myself when I wanted as well. I would often choose chapter books that my older sisters had read and recommended to me. Two of my favorites were ‘The Little Princess’ and ‘The Secret Garden’ by Francis Burnett.”

“We did not have a library in my elementary schools. Therefore, the public library was always of great importance to my family,” said Mrs. McMullen, library teacher at the Cleveland school. “We also moved several times when I was young - always during the summer. Registering for a library card was the first item on our family agenda after the big move! Luckily, the public library was always within walking distance of our homes. I would walk to the library, several times a week, to pick out the books I would devour at home. I can still remember the summer I read through every fairy tale book the library owned!”

“I was a serious bookworm when I was in elementary school (and I still am!)” says Mrs. Lodge, library teacher at the Oldham and Willett schools. “I always looked forward to the reading challenge we were given over summer vacation - to write down all the books you read over the summer. I would take out stacks of books from the public library and just devour them. It was rewarding to see my big, long list of books at the end of the summer!”

My summer days were long and hot, with little to do but eating Kool-Aid popsicles. Luckily, my father was a children’s librarian, so we always had plenty of books. We also had a small branch library that was in an old house. The children’s room was on the second floor, and you had to climb up a set of small narrow steps that were so steep they felt like a ladder. The librarian looked very stern, but there were lots of nooks to read in. We would always stop at the playground, which was next to the library, and then buy either a dill pickle or a pretzel stick for 5 cents at the deli for the walk home.

Take a trip to the library this summer and create your own memories. Sign up for the Summer Reading program at the Morrill Memorial library and start reading. The summer reading booklet, a list of suggested new titles, comes out the last week of school. It will also be posted online at the Elementary School Library website, and on the public library website at: www.norwoodlibrary.org. These are books that are not assigned, that there will be no tests on, and that you may actually like. There are fantasy, fairy tales, biographies, picture books, and possibly even a title with a dragon on the cover.

Sign up begins June 13th in the Children’s section of the library. For more information, call the library or talk to one of the elementary school library teachers.

National Library Week!

Kelly Unsworth is head of Children's Services at the Morrill Memorial Library. Read her column in the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin this week.

You might be a passionate library user if:
Every now and then, I meet a young person who seems destined to become a librarian. She might love technology, or he might enjoy reading and recommending books to patrons. These youngsters frequent the library, volunteer their services and utilize all that the library has to offer. But what truly sets them apart from the other library users is a passion for everything book related: new books, book clubs, movies from books, author visits, new technology, and the library in general.
Most often, I will suggest to these students that they might consider a career in Library Science, and I answer the slew of questions that are likely to follow. Although I realize that only a few of these children will enter the field of librarianship, many others will go on to become what I like to refer to as “passionate public library users.” Librarians know who these patrons are; they are in the library almost daily, they schedule their days around library visits, they bring their children to the library, they bring other people’s children to the library, they frequent library events, are aware of the technology available to them, they know how to place a reserve on a book that has not yet been published, and they are on a first name basis with the library staff. As librarians, it is our goal to create passionate library users and to satisfy the needs of these users. Many of you reading this article may recognize yourself in my description, but if you need more convincing, feel free to read the following list:
“You Might be a Passionate Library User if…
You come in to the library for a quick visit and you leave…4 hours later.
The first place you visit on vacation is the local library.
The number for Museum Passes is in your speed dial.
You would never, ever, consider joining Netflix: why pay money for movies when you can get them free at the library?
You peruse the shelves at Barnes & Noble, then head for the library to find the books.
You know the warmest/coldest/ loudest/quietest spots in the library.
You feel a jolt of excitement when the library e-news arrives.
You consider Movie Night at the library a “Date Night Out.”
You daydream about retiring and volunteering in the library.
You cancel your newspaper and magazine subscriptions because you can read them at the library.
You compulsively straighten bookshelves, at other people’s houses.
You approach your child’s research project as an exciting challenge.
You have your library card number and PIN committed to memory.
You don’t have to ask if Lucy the R.E.A.D. Dog is a real animal.
You are a stalker at the Speed Read shelf.
And lastly, you bring baked goods to the library staff during the holiday seasons!
So, in honor of National Library Week, the staff at your public library would like to extend a thank you to all of the “passionate public library users.” Keep coming in, and bring a few of your friends.

Norwood Folklore

Kelly Unsworth is head of Children's Services at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood. Read her entire article in this week's Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

Excerpt:

A couple of weeks ago, as I was looking through the Wicked Local web site for photos from a children’s program that had been offered at the library, I came across the following question posed in the blogs section: “So, ever since I came on board as the reporter for the Transcript I’ve been hearing that Norwood is in Guinness World Records for the most number of people who are born in a town dying here. Is this true? If this is true, can you tell me where to find it?” The quote is from Chloe Gotsis, a new reporter for the Transcript. First, I would like to welcome Chloe to Norwood. Secondly, I would like to address her question.
Chloe, I noticed in your blog that on your first day on the job, you walked to Guarino’s Bakery for a pastry, and then on to Perks for a coffee. I must say, you have excellent taste, but if you had turned onto Walpole Street you would have found the Morrill Memorial Library, which, to answer part of your question, is the place where you can find the answer to your question. The library has access to a wealth of information: books, electronic, historical, and cultural. The staff, however, is one of the richest resources, and this is where I began my search.

Searching For the Right Word

Kelly Unsworth is Head of Children's Services at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read her entire column in the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin this week.

"As a children’s librarian, I always encourage families to create their own stories, which will eventually become their own family folklore. I would also like to suggest that families create and take note of their own “family words.” Every family has them; in our house “Boomala” was the place to go when my parents didn’t want to tell us where we where headed. It might be because the location would generate such excitement that they wanted to keep it a surprise for as long as possible to save their sanity. But it could also be a place that they didn’t want to mention because it was so detestable to the young at heart that they would never get us in the car."

A Simple Request

Read Kelly Unsworth's entire column in the Norwood Bulletin and Transcript this week.

Excerpt:

A few weeks ago, an unsuspecting father came into the children’s room of the library to make a simple request: he wanted books that would help him teach his daughter to be kind to her younger brother. I’m sure he was looking for books with a story about sharing, being helpful and patient, and treating others as you would like to be treated.

He wanted books that would explain to his child why she shouldn’t hit her brother with a Lego block every time he cried, or pour raspberry Jell-O over his head when she didn’t want any more. A simple request.

What I Read On My Summer Vacation

Read Kelly Unsworth's entire library column in the Daily News Transcript.

Excerpt:

Some 30 years later, my daughter experienced her own version of the “Giant Peach” vacation when we happened upon a small, stone building that houses the Shelburne Free Public Library in Shelburne, Mass. We were fortunate to be passing by while the library was open, as it is only open for three hours every other day. The building had seen no renovations, and consequently had the smell and feel of a cozy one-room schoolhouse. What it lacked in modernity, however, it made up for with charm and a surprisingly good selection of books overflowing the wooden shelves. Kelly Unsworth, Children's Librarian