News

Microsoft Nixes Live Search Books/Academic
Microsoft is ditching its book and scholarly article scan endeavors and dismantling their respective sites. VP Satya Nadella stated that the company believes “the next generation of search is about the development of an underlying, sustainable business model for the search engine, consumer, and content partner.” » » »

Deep Indexing Webcast Draws 200
The LJ/ProQuest-sponsored webcast, Deep Indexing: A New Approach to Searching Scholarly Literature, drew 200 takers who were treated to the expertise of Online Databases columnist Carol Tenopir as well as academic librarians, a professor, and vendor perspectives. » » »

Savage Snags NYPL Journalism Prize
Charlie Savage bested four others to take the 2008 New York Public Library Helen Bernstein Award for Excellence in Journalism for his volume Takeover: The Return of the Imperial Presidency and the Subversion of American Democracy. » » »

Blatant Berry: The Experience Trap
Experience is overrated, declares Berry, asserting that it’s not ideas that work or don’t, but the execution that makes for failure or success—so give the new hires a chance to try it their way! » » »

Blogs

Wyatt's World

Sophomore Smashes—Five Second Novels

• The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen (Bantam)
• Vicious Circle by Mike Carey (Grand Central)
• Stand the Storm by Breena Clarke (Little, Brown)
• Belong to Me by Marisa De Los Santos (Morrow)
• So Brave, Young and Handsome by Leif Enger (Atlantic Monthly)

For more on Collection Development, click here

Review

Swinson, Kiki. A Sticky Situation.

Swinson, Kiki. A Sticky Situation. Melodrama Pub. Jun. 2008. 248p. ISBN 978-1-9341-5709-1. pap. $15. F

Verdict: Set in Virginia Beach, VA, Swinson's inventive, saucy romp about a love triangle among a parole officer, her parolee, and the parolee’s ride-or-die chick is sure to please die-hard street lit fans, especially those who love the author’s best-selling "Wifey" series. Multiple copies would be a good idea.
Background: Maxine is a hard-nosed parole officer who breaks her own rigid rules and falls for one of her parolees, Seth. Unbeknownst to her, Seth hooks back up with his partner in crime, Samantha, who is just out of jail. Up to their old tricks, Seth and Samantha embark on another drug-dealing scheme. But the situation gets sticky once the ladies figure out Seth’s cheating ways. Samantha confronts Maxine old school style; Seth double-deals his drug connection to get a big payday, and Samantha’s focus is revenge. In this story, if folks don’t get what they want, they definitely get what they deserve. (For this month’s full Street Lit column, click here.)

Xpress Reviews

Xpress Reviews—First Look at New Books
Karen Essex's Stealing Athena, Tim Clutton-Brock's Meerkat Manor, and other reviews just in!
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Highlights

Audio Fixation
With DRM looking more and more DOA, the fuse is lit for downloadable audio to explode among consumers, many getting their earful at local libraries. » » »

Database Marketplace 2008: Information with a Twist
L ’J’s annual analysis finds that the user experience is now paramount instead of an afterthought in the burgeoning world of Web 2.0, and vendors are offering a plethora of products putting patrons in charge. » » »

Notable Government Documents 2007: Blogs, Battles, and Bees
The Iraq war and environmental concerns dominate last year’s top government documents, while blogs and NGOs are becoming important and helpful resources. » » »

NextGen: Finding Your Inner Moxie
Librarians Lia Friedman and Char Booth say that “by encouraging a culture more tolerant of on-the-fly innovation,” the library profession “will be better equipped to collaborate with colleagues and/or faculty to implement more user-centered library content and instruction.” » » »

Encore: L.A. Confidential—LJ ’s BEA Breakdown
If you’re headed BEA way this week and haven’t planned your attack, use LJ ’s preview as a guide to the good stuff. » » »

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