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Watchmen, Castle Rock, and Looking for Alaska lead a lengthy list of adaptations this week. The candidates for the 2020 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award are announced, Ismail Kadare wins the 2020 Neustadt International Prize for Literature, and Ali Wong continues to get buzz.

Each week, the hardworking editors of LJ scour the web for library news and views. This week, we internet-travel to ten of the world’s most beautiful modern and old school libraries; learn to be a library tourist; gaze at a Maine library’s community-made mosaics; and learn about how the Enoch Pratt Library changed Rep. Elijah Cummings’s life. We step outside the library to pore over Vogue’s 11 picks for fall cookbooks and CrimeReads’ best nonfiction crime books of October.

Award-winning authors and the movers and shakers of the publishing world came together for this year's Frankfurt Book Fair. Here are a few highlights.

The 19th Christmas by James Patterson, Maxine Paetro leads 11 new titles onto the bestseller lists. The T.S. Eliot Prize shortlist is out, the finalists for The Cundill History Prize are announced, and the shortlist for the JCB Prize for Literature is revealed. Plus, more fallout over both the Nobel and the Booker. Catch and Kill by Ronan Farrow has been pulled from two big Australian bookstores, Booktopia and Amazon in Australia, after legal threats.

Following years of declining investment, the United Kingdom’s public libraries will receive a significant boost, with over £125 million ($160,466,000) in new funding for regional museums and libraries throughout the country.

Margaret Atwood and Bernardine Evaristo, Ben Lerner and Ocean Vuong, and Ann Patchett and Elizbeth Strout feature in conversations. Venom two is reportedly set for Oct. 2, 2020, and will introduce another Marvel character, Shriek. The November LibraryReads list is out. Tiger Woods plans a memoir.

This year’s National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Jefferson Lecture in the Humanities was delivered on October 7 by Father Columba Stewart, OSB—a Benedictine monk, scholar of early religions, and executive director of the Hill Museum and Manuscript Library (HMML) at St. John’s University in Collegeville, MN. Stewart has spent the past 15 years working to digitize documents at risk of theft, damage, and destruction due to war, regime change, or climate instability in the Middle East, Africa, Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, and South Asia.

The American Library Association and Public Library Association last month launched a public outreach campaign to mobilize opposition to Macmillan’s new eight-week embargo period for library ebook purchases. The campaign has gained traction online, with an eBooksForAll.org petition demanding the cancellation of the embargo garnering more than 103,000 signatures at press time.

Margaret Atwood and Bernardine Evaristo both win the Booker Prize. Catch and Kill: Lies, Spies, and a Conspiracy to Protect Predators by Ronan Farrow continues its buzzy reign across print and broadcast media, coverage is wide-spread and seemingly everywhere. Lists for “The 40 Best Novels of the 2010s" and “The 10 Best Poetry Collections of the Decade" come out. Zoë Kravitz is set to play Catwoman in the new Batman movie.

An award-winning portrait of the first African American female author to have a play performed on Broadway, a collection of must-read stories for black girls, and a look at some of the most influential women authors of the past top the list of best-selling literary criticism books, as compiled by GOBI Library Solutions from EBSCO.

Michael Grant’s alter-ego thrills readers in An Artful Assassin in Amsterdam.

Penguin Random House spoke with author Afia Atakora about her novel Conjure Women, a dazzling debut that sweeps across eras and generations to tell the story of a mother and daughter with a shared talent for healing—and the conjuring of curses.

The Guardians by John Grisham leads holds this week. People’s “Book of the Week” is Olive, Again by Elizabeth Strout. Ronan Farrow, Catch and Kill: Lies, Spies, and a Conspiracy to Protect Predators gets focused coverage. Dolittle, now renamed from the original title The Voyage of Doctor Dolittle and based on the books by Hugh Lofting, gets a trailer. Earthquake Bird, based on the book by Susanna Jones, does as well.

John Rothman, director of the New York Times’ corporate archives and creator of the New York Times Information Bank, an early electronic news repository, died on September 26 of a stroke at the age of 95.

The Addams Family hits screens today, and is followed by comics and Shakespeare. The committee picking the 2019 Nobel Prize in Literature did itself no favors yesterday. Ninth House is off to Amazon Studios. Author Zukiswa Wanner offers tourist advice for Nairobi, and a lost chapter of world's first novel has been found in a Japanese storeroom.

Each week, the hardworking editors of LJ scour the smorgasbord that is the internet to bring you the juiciest morsels of library news and views. This week, many feathers were ruffled and opinions shared about a story in The Atlantic on college students just wanting plain, old-fashioned shush factories. Elsewhere, scientists used fancy lasers to examine ancient Roman scrolls, more large urban library systems are going fine free, and Book Riot takes a look at the reading tastes of the 2020 Democratic presidential candidates.

LJ's 2019 Placements & Salaries survey looked at grads entering the LIS field for their second careers and the kind of education or experience they were bringing to their new roles.

The Nobel Prizes in Literature go to Polish author Olga Tokarczuk, who wins the postponed 2018 award and Austrian playwright and author Peter Handke, who wins the 2019 award. Bloody Genius by John Sandford leads ten new books onto the bestseller lists. The new graphic novel and mass market lists appear and there are new No. 1s in fiction and nonfiction audiobooks.

Julius C. Jefferson Jr., section head of the Library of Congress’s Congressional Research Service, is the American Library Association (ALA) president-elect for 2020–21.

The National Book Awards finalists are announced. More lists for Fall, October, and Halloween arrive. There is plenty of adaptation news. Leigh Bardugo, Susan Rice, Shea Serrano, and Ben Lerner continue to get buzz.

Toni Morrison, Michelle Obama, and Rihanna have new titles. The Harvey Awards are announced. James Comey's A Higher Loyalty casts up and heads to CBS. There are new book club picks, and Lit Hub selects the best 10 short stories of the decade.

When Clyde Scoles, longtime director of the Toledo Lucas County Public Library (TLCPL), OH, died unexpectedly in February, Deputy Director Jason Kucsma stepped up as acting director for the 21-branch system. Scoles had announced his retirement only a few weeks before, and Kucsma was already considering his next steps. On August 1, the TLCPL board of trustees voted to appoint Kucsma as executive director and chief financial officer. 

A thrilling tale of secretaries turned spies, of love and duty, and of sacrifice, this debut is inspired by the true story of the CIA plot to infiltrate the hearts and minds of Soviet Russia, not with propaganda, but with the greatest love story of the twentieth century: Doctor Zhivago.

Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes leads holds this week. Two Nobel prizes in literature, for 2018 and 2019, will be awarded this Thursday. The November Indie Next list is out. A bevy of trailers have arrived with lots of Walking Dead and Star Trek news. The Hunger Games prequel gets a title, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (Scholastic). It comes out May 19, 2020.

Each week, the LJ editors comb through the internet to find the best library-related news and tidbits. This week, a library in Sicily helps Italians understand African migration to Europe, three libraries in Edinburgh trial dog-friendly days, and the Library of Congress serves a punny "peach mint" dessert.

Comics dominate the many adaptations out today and through the week. Bill Gates is writing a book about climate change. Stephen King makes news three times today. The Governor General’s Literary Awards finalists are announced.

The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates leads 13 new titles onto the bestseller lists. The Goldsmiths Prize shortlist is announced.  Abrams is starting Surely Books, a graphic novel imprint “dedicated to expanding the presence in the medium of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex and asexual creators and stories.” There are many more October booklists and plenty of adaptation news.

There will always be a place in libraries for people to fill traditional roles in programming, collection development, and working with children or teens. But many recent graduates earning their MLS (or equivalent degree) have learned new competencies that are increasingly in demand.

Reese Witherspoon’s October book club pick is Fair Play: A Game-Changing Solution for When You Have Too Much to Do (and More Life to Live) by Eve Rodsky. The longlists for the Andrew Carnegie Medals are out. Lots of authors, including Jacqueline Woodson, Red at the Bone, will be on the late night talk shows this evening.

The dark web offers something that few online platforms can or will: a very high level of anonymity. Many people use the dark web for legitimate, anonymous information seeking purposes: those who live in high-censorship countries, who identify as transgender, and who are undocumented immigrants. These people have a right to access information and need privacy protections.

A concise history of the Global Positioning System, an examination of the catastrophic bleaching affecting many of the world's coral reefs, and a treatise on why geography matters now more than ever top the list of best-selling books on geography, as compiled by GOBI Library Solutions from EBSCO.

To pass an essential funding measure, Palatine Public Library District’s marketing team made the case with transparency, community feedback, and streamlined messaging—earning it LJ's 2019 Marketer of the Year Award.

When the St. Paul Public Library, MN, went fine-free, the marketing and communication team's successful campaign to get the word out helped earn it an Honorable Mention for LJ's 2019 Marketer of the Year Award.

More October booklists arrive, as do lists for fall and winter. The Giller Prize shortlist is announced. Rachel Maddow gets some buzz. Stylist is getting Hillary Rodham Clinton and Chelsea Clinton to guest edit their October issue. Quentin Tarantino is writing a novel.

Taylor & Francis Group devotes new energy to discoverability.

With the possibility of impeachment for President Trump making headlines, library patrons are bound to be seeking information and context. Whether for readers advisory or even a themed display, these titles will help explain the process, the current controversy, and the historical precedents.

In early September, the Institute of Museum and Library Services and the Chief Officers of State Library Agencies released a statement about the next phase of Measures that Matter. It will focus on the “potential relationships between public library activities and community outcomes.” In this next phase of the project, the initiative decided to explore job development in public libraries.

Bloody Genius by John Sandford leads holds this week. The October Read with Jenna title is The Dutch House by Ann Patchett. It is a busy morning for forthcoming book news, including Susanna Clarke's Piranesi and Yaa Gyasi's Transcendent Kingdom. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Chelsea Clinton are making a splash with The Book of Gutsy Women. Spider-Man stays in the MCU.

The publishing and book retailing ecosystem is changing rapidly, but public libraries continue to offer substantial opportunities to promote authors and books, and it is vital that publishers recognize libraries as important partners, a panel of library leaders said to an audience of publishing executives during Baker & Taylor’s Publisher Summit 2019, held September 24 in White Plains, NY.

To celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15th to October 15th), Penguin Random House is reaching new audiences by honoring Hispanic culture and giving back to the community, ensuring that their Hispanic audience feel heard, seen, and appreciated. Penguin Random House will be donating $1 to We Need Diverse Books (up to $15K), a non-profit organization that aims to help produce and promote literature that reflects and honors the lives of all young people.

How much coffee do library workers need to get their jobs done? The results of LJ’s informal poll are in, and as it turns out, only about 60 percent drink coffee at all, with tea the beverage of choice for abstainers.

The Center for Fiction announces the First Novel Prize short list. Changes come to the NYT bestseller lists; the paper will start to include graphic novels and mass market paperbacks again. Joe Hill and David Mitchell both make news. PBS has a book-ish Sunday and more adaptaitons hit screens.

Patricia “Patty” M. Wong, City Librarian at Santa Monica Public Library, CA, and Steven Yates, Assistant Director of the University of Alabama School of Library and Information Studies, Tuscaloosa, are the candidates for the American Library Association (ALA) 2020–21 presidency.

Each week, the LJ editors comb through the internet to find the best library-related news and tidbits. This week, a giant chicken skeleton graces the Denver Central Library, a new Kurt Vonnegut Museum and Library opens in Indianapolis, and LeVar Burton will be hosting the National Book Awards

Guts by Raina Telgemeier leads five new books onto the bestseller lists. Alison Bechdel and six more authors/artists will be inducted into the Comic Book Hall of Fame. NYPL’s Insta Novels experiment and Reese Witherspoon’s book club are both in the news.

When librarians move into an administrative leadership position, they may find they get fewer projects completed. That’s fine. It’s more important to contribute to subordinates’ personal growth and organizational progress.

Four librarians were among the eight tenured faculty members laid off from St. Cloud State University, MN, at the beginning of the 2019–20 academic year. Final notices to those impacted, who also included three philosophy professors and a theater professor, were delivered on September 16. Their contracts will be terminated effective May 13, 2020. Laying off four full-time librarians would cut the library’s faculty by one-quarter; currently 13 full-time library faculty serve a student body of over 13,000, as well as members of the St. Cloud community.

Margaret “Peggy” Barber, who helped change the way libraries promote their services, died on August 25 at age 75. Among other accomplishments, Barber established the American Library Association Public Information Office, Public Programs Office, and Graphics program, which produced the acclaimed "Celebrity Read" poster series and the universal library logo, used as street signage nationwide. She received the Lippincott Award for distinguished service to the profession in 1999.

October booklists, as well as more fall titles, arrive. Several authors win MacArthur "Genius" grants. Chris Ware writes about Peanuts. PEN America issues a report about prisons and banned books. Jurassic World 3 reaches back to the past.

The people of Queens can stop waiting and start using their brand new Hunters Point Community Library. And they should. The 22,000 square foot building, which opened September 24 after long delays and a cost of over $40 million, is a major investment that is likely to be intensely used and long enjoyed.

Oprah picks The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates as her newest book club title, the first book to feature in her new venture with Apple. The National Book Foundation names its 5 Under 35 authors. Know My Name: A Memoir by Chanel Miller continues to get impressive, and impressed, coverage, and Bobby at Home: Fearless Flavors from My Kitchen: A Cookbook by Bobby Flay gets buzz.

In times of tight budgets and fewer staff members, passive programming—temporary, self-directed activities or exhibits that users interact with in their own time—can answer a library’s need to engage patrons with less funding and fewer human resources. Many libraries have taken the idea a step further, creating initiatives that don’t require active staff interaction or dedicated program hours, but still interest and challenge patrons, address specific community needs, and even contribute to a library’s greater mission.

The Dutch House by Ann Patchett (Harper) leads holds this week. The National Book Award longlist for fiction is out, and now that all the lists have been announced, the full set of nominees, across all categories, is getting coverage. The Guardian picks “The 100 best books of the 21st century." Know My Name: A Memoir by Chanel Miller and The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates picked up a lot of buzz over the weekend.

During the week of September 16, the National Book Foundation rolled out the longlists for its National Book (NBA) in Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, Translated Literature, and Young People’s Literature. Fresh faces and newly nominated publishers help shape the list. 

This Banned Books Week (9/22 to 9/28), Penguin Random House is celebrating the freedom to read and drawing attention to the destructiveness of censorship.

The National Book Awards longlist for Nonfiction is out. Fiction will be announced later today. Downton Abbey and a Stephen King story hit screens today and through the week. Michael B. Jordan is adapting Kingdom of Souls by Rena Barron, and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid is set for TV.

An examination of New York's postwar art scene, a philosophical take on the meaning and impact of art, and a look at 20th century history through protest songs top the list of best-selling books on music and art, as compiled by GOBI Library Solutions from EBSCO.

Current students are likely to begin their postsecondary education at age 22 or far older. They may be the first members of their families to attend college. They may be recent immigrants or English-language learners. They may be career changers or veterans. They may be incarcerated. And, as many institutions are discovering, academic libraries are uniquely positioned to meet their needs.

There are 14 new bestsellers this week. The Testaments by Margaret Atwood and The Institute by Stephen King top the charts. The National Book Awards longlist in Poetry is out. The Hunters Point Community Library in Queens gets high praise for design.

The National Book Awards announces the longlist for Translated Literature. The longlist for Poetry will be announced later today. The Kirkus Prize list is up. EarlyWord posts its GalleyChat for September. Jacqueline Woodson, She Said, and The Education of Brett Kavanaugh: An Investigation get more buzz.

Multnomah County Library, OR, (MCL) launched a partnership with Portland State University’s Ooligan Press to publish and distribute print copies of ebooks written by local authors and selected during MCL’s annual Library Writers Project.

The longlists for the 2019 National Book Awards arrive this week. The list for Young People’s Literature was announced yesterday, Translated Literature goes up today.  Scholars think they have found Milton’s copy of Shakespeare’s first folio, with Milton’s notes, edits, and suggestions. Battle at Big Rock, a new Jurassic short film, is out; it takes place a year after Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom.

In July, the University of Texas at Arlington Libraries, University of Massachusetts­–Amherst Libraries, and University of Nevada–Reno were jointly awarded a three-year, $241,845 National Leadership Project Grant, “Maker Immersion: Developing Curriculum Design and Assessment Skills for Academic Makerspace Course Integration,” from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Red at the Bone by Jacqueline Woodson leads holds this week. The Education of Brett Kavanaugh: An Investigation by Robin Pogrebin and Kate Kelly is making news. Julián Is a Mermaid by Jessica Love wins the Klaus Flugge prize while the the National Book Foundation gives the 2019 Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters to Edmund White. Anne Rivers Siddons has died.

Margaret Atwood’s dystopian masterpiece, The Handmaid’s Tale, has become a modern classic—and now she brings the iconic story to a dramatic conclusion in this riveting sequel.

Permanent Record by Edward Snowden starts getting attention. So does Demi Moore, Inside Out: A Memoir. The Goldfinch opens today. John Green reads poetry. His Dark Materials adaptation debuts Monday, November 4 on HBO.

Each week, the LJ editors comb through the internet to find the best library-related news and tidbits. This week, a sleepover in a Wales library, hip-hop statuary in Queens, and protocol in a TV writers' room.

Vendetta in Death by J.D. Robb leads 13 new books onto the bestseller lists. Entertainment Weekly has an excerpt of The Heart Principle by Helen Hoang. Sally Rooney gives writing advice.

Civic unrest and natural disasters are not unique to the 21st century. But with the growth of rapid news cycles and citizen documentation through social media, careful documentation of these tragedies—in real time or close to it—is a responsibility that public and academic libraries, archives, and other cultural institutions are taking on more and more.

The Institute by Stephen King is getting adapted for TV. Dark Harvest by Norman Partridge is set for the movies. Starz is going to air Dublin Murders, based on the Tana French books. Apple TV gets into the adaptation business with Foundation, Dickinson, Lisey's Story, The Morning Show, Pachinko, and more.

Tami Charles explores transformation and forgiveness in Becoming Beatriz.

The NYT declares today Super Tuesday for books. Europa Editions tweets the opening paragraph of the next Elena Ferrante novel. Barbara Hoffert’s Prepub Alert hits March 2020. Changes to BookExpo are announced.

Academic libraries are expanding their roles in areas such as research and affordable learning. By doing so, they’re demonstrating more value to their institution

The Testaments: The Sequel to The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood leads holds this week and is still getting plenty of buzz. However, She Said: Breaking the Sexual Harassment Story That Helped Ignite a Movement by Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey sweeps in and gives Atwood a run for her money in terms of attention. Doctor Sleep gets a trailer. Joker wins the top prize at the Venice Film Festival.

An intimate account of the 2018 school shooting in Parkland from the author of Columbine, a call to action for better college education on consent, and a diagnosis and plan of treatment to help first-year college students become better writers top the list of best-selling books on education, as compiled by GOBI Library Solutions from EBSCO.

At this year’s ALA Annual conference, Library Journal’s Barbara Hoffert moderated Penguin Random House Library Marketing’s Author Luncheon, where librarians were the first to hear an all-star lineup of authors discuss their upcoming books.

Taking strategic advantage of an eclectic community mix to deliver innovative library service where it’s most needed helped the Copper Queen Library in Bisbee, AZ, win LJ’s 2019 Best Small Library in America, sponsored by Baker & Taylor.

Stephen King dominates adaptations with It: Chapter Two and Mr. Mercedes opening today and next week. Plus, news that Dr. Sleep is on its way to screens, too. Rita Dove wins the Wallace Stevens Award. Whoopi Goldberg's entertaining guide is getting buzz. Sarah Huckabee Sanders is writing a book.

Honey Grove Library & Learning Center, TX, is one of the two finalists for LJ's Best Small Library in America. The library has been named a finalist before, in 2014; a lot has changed since then.

Whitehall Public Library is one of the two finalists for LJ's Best Small Library in America. When social service agencies began to resettle refugees in Whitehall, in the Pittsburgh, PA, suburbs, the library started building bridges between refugees and long-term residents.

Many libraries have established formal or informal policies to ensure the accessibility of licensed and library-created digital content, but libraries also report uncertainty regarding the responsibilities for auditing and enforcing such policies, according to the “LYRASIS 2019 Accessibility Survey Report.”

The Virtual Library of Virginia (VIVA) and publisher John Wiley and Sons have agreed to a new model, similar to the agreement Wiley made with OhioLink earlier in June.

A Better Man by Louise Penny leads eight new books onto the bestseller lists. There are more reviews and some buzzy news about The Testaments by Margaret Atwood. Know My Name: A Memoir by Chanel Miller and What Is a Girl Worth?: My Story of Breaking the Silence and Exposing the Truth about Larry Nassar and USA Gymnastics by Rachael Denhollander garner focused attention.

The Testaments: The Sequel to The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood gets global coverage. Dorothea Benton Frank has died. Belletrist picks What Red Was by Rosie Price as its September book, while the Read with Jenna book for the month is The Dearly Beloved by Cara Wall. Ursula Le Guin’s "Earthsea" series is set for TV and The Perfect Couple by Elin Hilderbrand is headed to FOX. Watchmen will debut on Oct. 20, on HBO.

The 2020 United States Census officially launches on April 1 of next year. Because it will be the first conducted primarily online, and the number of regional and area census offices has halved since 2010, libraries stand to play a major role in helping assure an equitable and accurate count. But even before households receive their invitation to participate next spring, there are many opportunities for libraries to get involved—and a strong need for them to do so.

This Tender Land by William Kent Krueger leads holds this week. The Booker Prize shortlist is announced; Margaret Atwood, Salman Rushdie, Chigozie Obioma, and Elif Shafak make it through. The CWA Dagger Shortlists are out. LJ continues its Generational Reading Study, this time looking at the reading of Generation Z. "Harry Potter" is removed from a Nashville Catholic school.

A new understanding of evolutionary biology, a history of the definitions of and responses to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, and an investigation into the myriad causes of America's opioid crisis top the list of best-selling books on the history of science, as compiled by GOBI Library Solutions from EBSCO.

I join those from the library community urging a reconsideration of Macmillan’s recent decision to limit libraries to one copy of new ebooks for the first two months of publication. This one size fits all embargo is, at best, an insensitive blockade. Libraries are key engines of book culture, and willing collaborators in the process of finding a path to access.

Earlier this year, Penguin Random House Library Marketing hosted their annual BookExpo Librarian Breakfast, where librarians were the first to hear five incredible authors discuss their upcoming books. For those who could couldn’t be there or who want to watch again, here are the powerful speeches from the authors.

While it has long been clear to library practitioners that public programming positively impacts their communities, there has been little existing research on the effects of such programs, or on how best to equip library staff. In response to this need, ALA has released the “National Impact of Library Public Programs Assessment [NILPPA]: Phase 1: A White Paper on the Dimensions of Library Programs and the Skills and Training for Library Program Professionals,” the first stage of a multiyear, multiphasic foundational study.

More fall and September books lists arrive. The Secrets We Kept by Lara Prescott gets the buzz, as does The Volunteer by Jack Fairweather, Over the Top by Jonathan Van Ness, and Genius Foods by Max Lugavere, Paul Grewal, M.D. Outlander returns to TV in Feb. 2020.

Each week, the LJ editors comb through the internet to find the best library-related news and tidbits. This week, a librarian shares lessons learned from working at all 28 branches of her public library system, the Internet Archive is tangled in lawsuits with Russia, and LitHub's spilling the tea.

The next generation of adult (and almost there) readers shows some traditional—and surprising—reading traits.

Old Bones by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child leads eight new books onto the bestseller lists. Call Sign Chaos: Learning to Lead by Jim Mattis gets focused attention. New fall book lists arrive, plus back to school booklists, and starred reviews. The PBS NewsHour-NYT book club pick for September is Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney.

Nicole Cooke wins the Illinois Library Association's Intellectual Freedom Award, Jason Griffey is the NISO Director of Strategic Initiatives, Jane Sánchez is named the Library of Congress's new Deputy Librarian for Library Collections and Services, and more new hires, promotions, retirements, and obituaries from the August 2019 issue of Library Journal.

The Vagina Bible: The Vulva and the Vagina: Separating the Myth from the Medicine by Jennifer Gunter and Inconspicuous Consumption: The Environmental Impact You Don't Know You Have by Tatiana Schlossberg get buzz. Barbara Kingsolver writes about loving words. The John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer is getting renamed to The Astounding Award for Best New Writer.

Entertainment Weekly, The Washington Post, and Tor.com issue fall reading lists. There will be more. The Splatterpunk Awards are out. A new look at Star Wars The Rise of Skywalker is released, creating all kinds of buzz. Levar Burton Reads N.K. Jemisin.

A Better Man: A Chief Inspector Gamache Novel by Louise Penny leads holds this week. Time magazine’s “World’s Greatest Places 2019” includes libraries. The Black Panther sequel will arrive in Summer 2022. The Great British Bake-Off returns on Aug. 30. The Mandalorian gets a trailer. 

What can a marketing firm offer library boards, Friends, or foundations, and can your average library support organization—which may not have deep pockets or a large existing donor base—afford one?

On August 14, staff members of the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh (CLP) voted 173–106 to form a union for more than 300 full- and part-time workers. Library staff, who organized as the United Library Workers Committee (ULW) in summer 2018, will now become part of Allegheny County–based United Steelworkers, and will negotiate a collected bargaining agreement with CLP management.