News

President’s Budget Freezes Federal Library Funding
As expected, Obama’s FY2011 Budget Proposal to Congress would level-fund federal library support under the Library Services and Technology Act at $214 million, much to the dismay of ALA, which criticized the move. Requested funding for National Leadership Grants, however, is rising. » » »

Phoenix PL Faces Massive Cuts
The Phoenix Public Library is facing 21.4 percent budget cuts that would shutter six of 15 branches and see 73 staff laid off. Cutbacks are citywide, but the local police force is attempting to save its own skin at the expense of librarians, saying that every librarian should be cut before a single officer is lost. » » »

Princeton PL Piloting $1 DVD Rental Kiosk
The DVD-rental company Redbox has placed a $1-a-night video rental kiosk outside the Princeton Public Library, NJ, as part of a pilot program at library locations around the country. "We are pleased with the results so far," PPL director Leslie Burger told LJ. » » »

Gale Buys Humanities/Social Sciences Outfit Questia Media
Gale is making a move to better reach end users through the acquisition of Questia Media, a subscription platform for humanities and social sciences content from 76,000 books representing 300+ publishers, as well as millions of articles from journals, magazines, and newspapers. » » »

Editorial: Third Place or Thinking Space
Small town libraries traditionally have not been able to offer as many services as their big city brethren, but technology is the great equalizer. Nevertheless, says Francine Fialkoff, "Big-city libraries can take a page from their small-town cousins,” in terms of both virtual and in-person service. » » »

Blogs

Wyatt's World

Reading to Remember—Salinger and Zinn

• The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger (Back Bay)
• Franny and Zooey by J.D. Salinger (Back Bay)
• Nine Stories by J.D. Salinger (Back Bay)
• A People's History of the United States: 1492 to Present by Howard Zinn (Harper Perennial Modern Classics)
• You Can't Be Neutral on a Moving Train: A Personal History of Our Times, by Howard Zinn (Beacon Press)

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Review

Wild Penance.
Ault, Sandi.

Berkley Prime Crime. Feb. 2010. c.320p. ISBN 978-0-425-23232-3. $24.95. M

In her fourth Southwestern adventure (after Wild Sorrow, Wild Inferno, and Wild Indigo), Bureau of Land Management agent Jamaica Wild sets out to piece together a fascinating puzzle that revolves around a secret religious sect society known as the Los Penitentes, but her research turns into a hunt for a killer when she sees a body on a cross tossed off a bridge over the Rio Grande Gorge. Neither medicine woman Momma Anna, her spiritual teacher, nor Father Medina can shed light on the crucified victim. Verdict Ault’s love of the outdoors and her respect for American Indian culture are evident in her vivid descriptions of the culture, people, and northern New Mexico landscape. Nevada Barr fans and mystery aficionados still mourning the late Tony Hillerman will snap this one up as well as other titles in the Mary Higgins Clark Award-winning series. Enthusiastically recommended. —Melody Ballard, Pima Cty. P.L., AZ

Xpress Reviews

Xpress Reviews—First Look at New Books
Jackson Taylor's The Blue Orchard, Francesca Bierens's A Spectrum of Light, Hiromu Arakawa's Full Metal Alchemist Vols. 20–22, and more reviews just in! » » »

Highlights

Delivering on "Yes": Best Small Library in America 2010
The Glen Carbon Centennial Library, IL, joins LJ’s elite cadre of facilities serving populations of 25,000 or less that provide outstanding patron service for a library of any size. » » »

Spring Into Art
In this preview of the 87 forthcoming art titles, Editor Mirela Roncevic finds that "the quality of the reproductions and scholarship continues to impress, but so does the growing diversity of subjects, as more and more titles continue to defy traditional art book categorization and cover new and emerging forms of expression." » » »

Book Your Baseball Season!
With the football season climaxing this Superbowl Sunday, fans already are thinking about their favorite baseball team’s opening day. This roundup of forthcoming titles includes histories, biographies, memoirs, and rules. » » »

Music for the Masses: Unknown Pleasure—Gothic Rock
Gothic rock has been a maligned and abused genre, but Matthew Moyer says there’s lots of good quality music out there and offers a list of best recordings as well as print and online resources. » » »

How Do You Manage: Rodzilla
How to deal with an overzealous, micromanaging, and demoralizing director who thinks he knows how to do everyone’s jobs better than they do. » » »

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