NEW YORK — Book bans and attempted bans remain at record highs, according to the American Library Association. And efforts to have titles removed have never been more coordinated or politicized. The ALA on Monday issued its annual list of the books most challenged at the country’s libraries, part of the association’s State of America’s Libraries Report. … Read more
Satiating the XXX-rated cravings of complete strangers is not in Abby Hargreaves’ job description. Still, the librarian routinely finds herself being propositioned by lecherous vermin disguised as innocent bookworms. “Every day is something new,” Hargreaves, based near Washington, DC, exclusively groaned to The Post, detailing the many obscene phone calls she receives from creeps who get … Read more
An Oklahoma city is in the holiday spirit. Through its Food for Fines program, the city of Chickasha’s municipal court and library allows for food donations in exchange for lowering or eliminating fines for offenses like traffic violations and overdue books. Those in Chickasha, Okla., with violations or fines at Chickasha’s municipal court and public … Read more
My daughter just finished “Charlotte’s Web.” She didn’t like it. Something about realising the fate of farm pigs. “They were going to turn Wilbur into bacon, mummy!” she cried… as I was cooking her weekend breakfast. Awkward. It’s not the first time I’ve heard of kids not enjoying the children’s classic by EB White, but there’s a reason it’s … Read more
A mom is going viral on social media after sharing how she was “chastised” for the outfit she wore to the baby story time at her local library. Hilary Filipowicz says she was excited when she chose her outfit for the story hour, where she often takes her three-year-old and one-year-old daughters. In her TikTok video recounting the event, she … Read more
Lost a library book? It doesn’t have to be a cat-tastrophe. At least not during the month of March in Worcester, Massachusetts. A library there will scratch certain fees off a book borrower’s record in exchange for a picture of the person’s cat — or any cat, for that matter. The goal is to encourage … Read more
The kids … er, young adults are all right. Over the past decade, Gen Z has earned a reputation for marching to the beat of their own drum, tossing asunder hallowed American traditions like email, the 9-to-5 workweek, happy hours and sloppy one-night stands. Unenamored with the hallmarks of capitalism, puritanically progressive Zoomers — now … Read more
They’re paging New Yorkers. House of SpeakEasy, a Manhattan-based nonprofit, is delivering reading materials to needy New Yorkers with its bookmobile. The organization’s modified box truck, which has 54 feet of shelf space, made a stop Saturday in the Bronx. Devoted bibliophiles gave away nearly 600 new books — including volumes donated by The Post … Read more
Talk about checking out. A woman in England recently returned a library book 45 years after she checked it out. The patron brought the book — “Tolkien’s World” by Randel Helms — back to the Blackpool Libraries‘ branch, after borrowing it in 1976. “Could this be our longest overdue book to be returned to the library,” the … Read more
They can close the book on this. An overdue book was recently returned to a suburban New York library nearly 90 years to the day it was checked out — and only incurred a surprisingly low $5 late fee. A copy of Joseph Conrad’s 1925 book “Youth and Two Other Stories” was returned to the … Read more
A vintage vinyl album has made its way back to its home library more than 40 years past its due date. The Toronto Public Library shared a tweet on April 6 showing the album cover and the original library card, with a due date of Oct. 5, 1982. The album made its way back to the Spadina … Read more
God’s bestseller is next up on the chopping block. A Utah parent is calling for the Bible to be banned in school districts, claiming it violates the state’s 2022 law regarding “sensitive material.” “Get this PORN out of our schools!” pleas the anonymous parent in their scathing request to Davis High School, calling the Bible … Read more
This owl wanted to get even wiser. A college library in Decatur, Georgia, had to close for a week after an owl made its home there, WSB-TV reported. The brazen creature flew in through the chimney of Agnes Scott College’s McCain Library and settled in its rafters. To safeguard both the students and the animals, … Read more
Danke! A British woman finally returned a German language textbook to a library in England — nearly 57 years after checking it out as a teenager. Lesley Harrison, 70, could have faced a $2,400 fine for holding on to “Ich Lerne Deutsch” for longer than three weeks, but the North Tyneside Council abolished late return … Read more
They finally closed the book on this case. A British library waived a $52,400 fee for a book that had been overdue — for 58 years. In 1964, then-17-year-old David Hickman checked out “The Law for Motorists” from the Dudley Library before a court visit over a minor traffic violation, the Express & Star reported. … Read more
Paging a statistician! Actor Kirk Cameron claims a record crowd showed up Thursday to hear him read his new Christian-themed children’s book at the Indianapolis Public Library. “This is a message to every library in the United States,” Cameron’s publisher, Brave Books, tweeted at the time. “In 137 years of the Indianapolis Public Library’s history, NEVER ONCE … Read more
CNN — Ever the pioneer, Lizzo crossed off another first during the Washington, DC stop of her tour – playing an approximately 200-year-old crystal flute that belonged to a former US president. The “About Damn Time” singer and accomplished flutist carefully played the delicate woodwind, which was sent as a gift to James Madison in … Read more