In Praise of Bookmobiles

By Kathie Felix

National Library Week continues today, April 13, with National Bookmobile Day.

Nearly all of us have an earliest bookmobile memory. Mine replays a long-ago sunny day in the southwest U.S., as I stood on a neighborhood street corner with my mother and younger sisters. I can still picture my first look at the inside of that bookmobile – a most amazing place.

It seemed too good to be true when I heard that the library had a truck full of books that would be coming regularly to our neighborhood so that we could get something to read. To my great surprise and amazement, the bookmobile showed up exactly as scheduled. And, as I had hoped, it turned out to be the most fantastic – and convenient – place I’d ever seen.

To this day, I doubt I’ve seen a better idea for a delivery system. Although I’m a big fan of technology, e-readers just don’t seem to strike the same chord of wonder, possibly because I can’t actually see the books inside of them.

I think I will always remember walking away from that van on that summer day, as my five-year-old self imagined which books I’d stock on the shelves if that bookmobile was my very own.

In celebration of National Bookmobile Day, the American Library Association has posted an array of bookmobile-related information online at http://www.atyourlibrary.org/celebrate-national-bookmobile-day. The content includes information on the history of the bookmobile, a bookmobile slide show featuring vintage images and a video of the Parade of Bookmobiles at the 2009 American Library Association convention.

Do you have a bookmobile story that you'd like to share?

Celebrating National Library Workers Day -- and Equal Pay Day

By Kathie Felix

The National Library Week (April 10 – 16) celebration continues on Tuesday, April 12, with the observance of National Library Workers Day (NLWD).

The day was created to help library staff, users, administrators and Friends groups recognize the valuable contributions made by all library workers.

The January 25, 2003 resolution establishing National Library Workers Day said:

“That in order to recognize the hard work, dedication, and expertise of library support staff and librarians that the Tuesday of National Library Week be designated National Library Workers Day; and, that on that day, interested library workers, library groups, and libraries should advocate for better compensation for all library workers and, if the day coincides with National Pay Equity Day, these individuals, groups, and libraries should recognize both days together.”

This year, both National Library Workers Day and Equal Pay Day will be observed on April 12.

The date for Equal Pay Day was chosen by the National Committee on Pay Equity (NCPE) to symbolize how long into 2011 it takes on average for women to earn the same pay as men did in 2010. The NCPE reports that the U.S. Census showed the gender gap relatively unchanged, with women earning 77 cents for every dollar a man earned in 2009.

According to the American Library Association (ALA), library workers’ salaries on average are improving. The 2010 edition of the American Library Association – Allied Professional Association (ALA-APA) Salary Survey reports average increases across all six library position types, ranging from two percent for managers of support staff to 13 percent for directors of public and academic libraries.

Even so, a recent ALA statement pointed out that, “However in these tough times there is a need for special emphasis on the pay equity for library workers.”

For ideas on ways to advocate for pay equity, go to the NCPE website and see the ALA-APA Better Salaries and Pay Equity Toolkit.

Keep in mind that many individuals will be wearing red today to symbolize that women and minorities are "in the red" with their pay.

A variety of National Library Workers Day celebrations are taking place across the country today. The ALA-APA is hosting a contest designed to showcase the states that are celebrating their library workers publicly on National Library Workers Day. To find a complete list of these NLWD stars, check out the Library Star map on the ALA-APA website. Make sure your state is represented. Last week, 13 states had no nominations submitted for the Library Star project.

ALA-APA will accept Library Star nominations through the end of the day on Tuesday, April 12. The nominations will be posted online by Friday, April 15.

The National Library Workers Day website offers ideas about ways to celebrate the holiday. In addition, the NLWD Facebook page provides the opportunity to share information about National Library Workers Day celebrations.

Here at Sisters in Crime, we love library workers – and the libraries that employ them.

What are you doing on National Library Workers Day?