Stacked Shelves

Coincidentally, I just read two books in which the homes the protagonists inhabit are alive. Both stories were good, but both could have been better. Tuesdays at the Castle by Jessica Day George suffers from a cartoonish cover and wide variations in tone, while The Cavendish Home for Boys and Girls by Claire Legrand could have benefited from a much tighter edit and consistent characterizations. Castle Glower in Tuesdays at the Castle is quite magical. It can transform rooms, add passageways, and even select the heir to the kingdom. Youngest royal Princess Celie is the castle’s favorite and the feeling is mutual. But the royal family is in danger. While returning from a trip, the king, queen, and oldest son (but not the heir) are set upon by assassins and have disappeared. Evil counselors and foreign princes have declared them dead, but Princess Celie and her older brother (the heir) and sister know it cannot be true. Castle Glower helps them plot against the evildoers and save

Taking a little break from thinking about books, I want to share what I learned from the Active Shooter Session I attended earlier this week. Here's the summary I wrote: On Tuesday, February 19, I and many other library personnel attended a workshop hosted by the Department of Homeland Security and the Nassau County Police. There we learned tips on how to deal with an active shooter. An active shooter is someone in your building who is there to kill or otherwise hurt people. Our response must be immediate. And escaping is always an option. Just as important, though, is to have policies and plans in place that can help prevent such things from happening and/or to be prepared if they do. Librarians can be first preventers. We should be cognizant of the fact that shootings have happened in libraries and more often than not the shooter was someone who was already suspect. Libraries, the police say, are an attractive soft target. And most libraries have wide-open floor plans t