An occupational hazard of working in a library is the constant temptation to pick up every interesting-looking book from displays or carts. The alarm clock on my nightstand is buried behind stacks of novels and memoirs, the majority of which I’ll have to return before I have a chance to get lost in their pages. Then there are the new how-to guides, cookbooks and histories that I read about in professional journals or hear about on the radio, which I add to the “to read” list in my head (or – if I’m near a computer – my actual “for later” shelf in the catalog). With so many good things to read, a lot of worthwhile titles slip through my mental cracks.
So I’ve invented this little exercise. (Or maybe my coworker Kirk invented it. Seems like many of my good ideas turn out to be borrowed! But I digress . . . ) Every once in a while I walk through the nonfiction stacks and limit myself to picking a few books that live on the bottom shelf. Poor things! Being so far from eye-level, I might never notice them. But there’s some good stuff down there! You should take a look for yourself!
This month I visited the 300s. For you non-Dewey people, the 300s are where any book classified as part of the “social sciences” gets placed. This subject area includes everything from political science and education to etiquette and mythology. Here are the books I discovered this week.
- “Me, MySpace, and I: Parenting the Next Generation” by Larry D. Rosen, Ph.D. As the mom of a seven-year-old, I’m not far away from having a tween online. Frankly, this scares the pants off of me, and Dr. Rosen’s tips for teaching kids how to deal with cyberbulling (and to avoid being bullies themselves) and how to surf safely are tools I’m glad to have in my parenting toolbox!
- “The Girls From Ames” by Jeffrey Zaslow. I have a gang of best gal pals I’ve known and loved since my teens, so this story of 11 women and their 40-year friendship has great appeal.
- “In Praise of Slowness: How a Worldwide Movement is Challenging the Cult of Speed” by Carl Honoré. This exploration of our relationship with time is the perfect antidote to the pressures that have me emailing, talking on my cell phone and trying to cook dinner all at the same time.
What treasures have you found browsing the bottom shelf?
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