Reading Friends/Listening Cat Mugs and More at LIBRARY STORE

Shop for Mothers Day mugs and more at the California Campaign LIBRARY STORE.  There are more than 20 images to choose from, each with the message "READ. KNOW. GROW."

Images are on mugs, water bottles, keepsake boxes, and a full line of T-shirts for moms and children.  Look for your favorite childrens book illustrator or image.  Start your collection today.

Artists (as of April 2011):

American graphic novelist/illustrator Kazu Kibuishi donated a pink reading rabbit to promote reading and libraries.

2.     Library cat says Read.Know.Grow. Aliki writes and illustrates many well-loved books and has donated two wonderful library cat illustrations. 

3.     Marianne Wallace is a writer and illustrator of children's middle grade non-fiction nature books.  Marianne has donated images of books with sunflowers.  One is a book-as-flower in a pot. Another is a stack of books with sunflowers.

4.     Caroline Arnold's big, beautiful Panda offers words to ponder: Read.Know.Grow.

5.     Joe Cepeda has done illustrations for magazines as well as for children's books. Joe donated a night-time image of young children outside, searching for something… using books to light the way.

6.     Marla Frazee says "There isn't any guessing when it comes to how much, or if, children like a given book. If a book bores them, they will get up and find something else to do." See her wonderful magical reading tree.

7.     David Shannon is an award-winning author and illustrator of many highly praised books for children. "No, David" is a Caldecott Honor book.

8.     Brian Selznick has illustrated many books for children, including Frindle by Andrew Clements, The Doll People by Ann Martin and Laura Godwin, Amelia and Eleanor Go for a Ride by Pam Muñoz Ryan. See his image of a child carrying a banner “Strong School Libraries = Strong Students”.

 Moonlight cow and Farm cow illustrations have been donated by Steve Gray in support of libraries. Steve Gray’s cartoon characters have been seen in digital media, broadcast, and print publication.

Sophie Blackall, illustrator of the Ivy & Bean books, supports libraries. See her library storytime art.

Ben Boos has created a powerful key and book illustration with the message, “Read.Know.Grow.” 

Reading in a tree? How fun!  See book Art by Sarajo Frieden in support of libraries.

Spaceheadz illustration by Steven Weinberg in collaboration with Jon Scieszka. 

Sea Captain by Bob Logan carries the message, "Read.Know.Grow." in support of libraries. His newest book is called “ Sea of Bath”.
   
Blue Guys by Michael Slack carries the message: "Read. Know. Grow." See the boy’s imagination as he is surrounded by books and a computer. His recent book, Monkey Truck, is adorably hilarious. You can see his book trailer at vimeo.com/18605836.

Tom Lichtenheld has donated his fun "Duck Rabbit" illustration in support of California School Libraries. 

Make a commitment to check the site weekly to see what has been added.  Each time you promote the Campaign and its LIBRARY STORE, you make another person or persons aware of the importance of strong school libraries.  Proceeds support the public awareness campaign.  Learn more about the issues, the research, and the crisis at http://librarycampaign.csla.net

Starbooks -- Book Club Fund Raiser

Livingston (CA) High School Teacher Librarian Tony Doyle and his school library book club kids held a "Starbooks" fund raiser.  Here is Tony's report on the successful first-time event:

"Our Book Club held it's first Library Cafe ("Starbooks") fund raiser this week.  We have been on finals schedule the last two days so we sold coffee, hot chocolate, instant cappuccino, and muffins before school.  We had a 1/2 price sale after school today.  We set up near the back door and sold inside and outside to the skater crowd that hangs out behind the library.  We took in over $200 in less than 3 hours total.  Profits worked out to around $125.  A lot of kids were asking when we were going to do it again.  We didn't have a single spilled drink in the library and only one cup left on a table (the faculty made a much bigger mess during our Toys for Tots luncheon yesterday).  It was a lot of work but also lots of fun.  The Book Clubbers really enjoyed it."

Wonder if local Starbucks stores would want to promote the idea at other times throughout the year? Tony is also a book reviewer for School Library Journal, so maybe that publication will put a spotlight on the idea of book club fund raisers for libraries.

Edible Books - fundraisers

I asked California Librarians if they heard of "book cakes" and my e-mail box filled immediately with fun food events for friends of libraries. Here are a few:

• Cover City FRIENDS of the Library Edible Book Festival.
• Books2Eat annual International Edible Book Festival (around April 1 since 1999)
• Edible Book Festival at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Library/ Graduate School of Library Science
• Ultimate Library Cake Off (like "bake-off". Laramie, Wyoming Outrider, page 5.)
• Santa Barbara City College Library Edible Book Festival (2009)
• University of Wisconsin- Madison Campus Edible Book Festival (2010 plans)
  

I've been a librarian and library advocate for years, yet this is all news to me. How fun and fabulous! What a great way to fun/fund raise, build community, and build support for libraries.

Light Display for Advocacy and Fundraising

How could libraries or schools use the light display techniques used in "Pathways to Housing" to draw attention to the needs of your students or community? Three evenings last week, the group projected the image of a homeless man sleeping on the sidewalk and shivering in the cold in downtown Manhattan. Words also projected onto the side of a building asks passersby to send a text message to help get him off the streets. See this powerful and engaging video and think about what image you'd show to promote access to books and libraries or literacy: two children sitting on the floor with nothing, then an image of library doors with the "closed" sign being replaced by "OPEN"...?

Ventura High School Library - Marathon Fundraiser

Ventura High School Teacher Librarian Susan Adamich has announced that she is "taking steps (literally!) to raise support and awareness for our school libraries. I am working now to be proactive in raising funding for the school library so that any future reductions in the budget will not be a fatal blow to the school libraries or librarians in the Ventura Unified School District....On March 21, 2010, I will walk in my 8th Los Angeles Marathon. I am asking you to consider a donation of $26.20 to the Ventura High School library for the 26.2 miles I will be walking."

"Please share this with your network of friends and family who value school libraries and would be willing to give their support. We need people who believe in the worth of school libraries! Especially in Ventura, with the closure of our most popular branch of the public library, the school libraries are even more important to our students."

Susan goes on to say in her letter to parents, "This year I am beginning on a small scale and fundraising for my own school; but I am already thinking of next year and walking the marathon to raise support for ALL of our K-12 school libraries in the Ventura Unified School District. Maybe you would like to consider walking or running the LA Marathon and joining me in some school library fundraising?"

Training on March 22! Hope Susan will keep her supporters posted via a blog or "tweets". Best wishes!

The Uniform Project - Library Version?

Have you heard of The Uniform Project, where a fashion student decided to wear the same basic black dress for one full year (1 dress. 365 days), using different fashion accessories, with a goal of raising money to pay for student uniforms in India? Here is what Sheena Matheiken says:

"Starting May 2009, I have pledged to wear one dress for one year as an exercise in sustainable fashion. Here’s how it works: There are 7 identical dresses, one for each day of the week. Every day I will reinvent the dress with layers, accessories and all kinds of accouterments, the majority of which will be vintage, hand-made, or hand-me-down goodies. Think of it as wearing a daily uniform with enough creative license to make it look like I just crawled out of the Marquis de Sade's boudoir.

The Uniform Project is also a year-long fundraiser for the Akanksha Foundation, a grassroots movement that is revolutionizing education in India. At the end of the year, all contributions will go toward Akanksha’s School Project to fund uniforms and other educational expenses for children living in Indian slums."

Is there a library version of the Uniform Project? For example, what would a "1 book. 365 days" project look like? Here is a starter list. A librarian, team of librarians, FRIEND of the Library, or Library "Best Seller" could:

• Read Aloud the SAME book to a different person or group of people each day for 365 days (and post about it).
• Read Aloud a DIFFERENT book to a different person or group of people each day for 365 days (and post about it).
• Storytelling. Tell the same or a different story each day to a new person or audience.
• Book Talk a book-a-day for 365 days. Create an online "book talk"podcast/video for each day.
• OTHER? What project would fun and meaningful to support libraries and literacy?
  

In all cases, each day should include a new "post" to a blog; a "tweet" to followers; ongoing requests to support the library or a library program.

Gingerbread Library -- FRIENDS Fund Raiser

Ever see a Gingerbread Library? Conshohocken Public Library FRIEND Jen Borovicka baked and built a replica of the 152-year-old Victorian Gothic Revival building as a centerpiece for a Winter Solstice Celebration and a raffle prize.

Once upon a time, a long long time ago when I was getting my MLS degree from Drexel University, I lived around the corner from the Conshohocken, PA public library. So, when I was reading today's issue of American Libraries Direct, news of the fund raiser by the FRIENDS of the Conshohocken Library caught my eye.

What a yummy treat! How many libraries can say their library tastes and smells like Gingerbread? Hope the FRIENDS have digitally captured the little library in a way that can be used for holiday cards, cups, or calendars.

Three Cups of Tea -- Pennies for Peace

Each day on the treadmill or incline machine at the YMCA, I've been reading "Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace One School at a Tme" by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin. It is "must" reading. It is hard to put down, but I limit my "Y" books to exercise time as an incentive for working out each day.

Thanks to the book about Greg Mortenson's amazing commitment to building schools for girls in remote mountain communities, now schools and school librarians are raising money for rural schools in Afghanistan and Pakistan through penny campaigns. One example is in Massachusetts, where High School Librarians Joanne Freeley and Debbie Jordan at Walpole High School Library began a Pennies for Peace fundraiser after sponsoring the summer reading book, Three Cups of Tea. Kudos to Walpole H.S. Librarians and students! Their goal is to raise $1,200 for the Central Asia Institute, a non-profit that builds the schools. It is important to note that the Central Asia Institute Board Chair Julia Bergman is Library System Administrator for City College of San Francisco.

Hope lots more librarians pick up on raising funds for more schools, possibly connecting it to student book clubs in addition to summer reading programs. It would be a good way to shine a light on the importance of books and libraries here and abroad.

Valentine Candy Fundraiser

Liana, Library Media Technician at Fallon School in Dublin, CA suggests a Sees Candy fundraiser for Valentine's Day. Theme is "We (insert heart graphic) Books". Students know that this money is only for new releases and books that students have requested. Minimal time and effort. Bottom line: $900 to $1,500.

A quick web search on "Valentines Day Fundraiser" yielded additional ideas beyond candy: selling roses, red balloons, raffle, auction. ADVANCE PUBLICITY is key to successful fundraising. Get the word out in all sorts of ways including your website, print and eNewsletters, posters, gatherings (school sports events), e-mail and listservs, web 2.0 tools like Twitter and text messages. Be creative and have fun. Invite young people to promote the fun.

Be sure to visit Library Lovers Month by Stephanie Stokes Design. It seems like only yesterday that Stephanie came up with her fantastic brainstorm and followed up with a long-lasting gift to libraryland.

Recycle to Read - school library fundraiser

Schools and school libraries never seem to have enough funds for school libraries. In light of California's incredible budget shortfall, a question was asked on the California school library listserv about how to raise money for books.

Two teacher librarians responded that they recycled school cans and bottles to earn money for books. (Is this in your job description?) Here is how Mary at Lompoc High School Library raises money for young adult fiction: "About three years ago my colleague Bea recognized 'gold' in a litter display I had made. She said, "You know Mary, there are a lot of recyclable materials in your display." She teamed up with CSF, and now the Drama Club, library TA's, a few student volunteers, Bea and I pick up all the bottles and cans that students use here on the LHS campus. I go out during my lunch hour to pick up after the lunch crowd, and then throughout the week and on Friday's we have students who pick up the bottles from bins that are in classrooms.

This program is called, "Recycle to Read," and I project that we will clear close to $3,000 this year. It has taken three years, but all the classrooms have bins now, and I get most of the bottles after lunch. There is a Special Education class that picks up the cans and bottles from the cafeteria and they also get the ones that are just left around on the patio after lunch.

All this money goes for YA fiction. The first picks are the ones that kids recommend, but then we also are able to buy other good choices that we think they will like. It is a lot of work, but it does a lot of good."

Generating Revenue for Libraries and Library Associations

There has probably never been a better time to look into ways that web 2.0 tools can help bring in revenue to libraries, library associations, literary and literacy groups, to name a few of my favorite places and people. So, one of my New Year's Resolutions is to explore a number of tools including:

• BLURB.com for publishing and selling books. I've created a few books for family and friends, but why not figure out a "best seller" that the public might want to buy for their own collection?
• AdSense by Google. Not sure this will bring in much if anything, but it is worth testing. This is for publishers, so if your library, library foundation, or association has a blog that gets a lot of visits this might be a good tool to add at the top of your blog. The ads are "magically" matched to your type of organization and readers' interests.
• Online Gift Shop. T-Shirts and More items through Cafepress.com might yield some revenue, given people can purchase shirts, jackets, hats, and other items. Although I don't buy many T-shirts, I am partial to anything with pictures of books and messages like "READ" -- See earlier posts about T-Shirt Advocacy.

Wish me luck as I learn the ropes, pros/cons, and other options. Happy New Year 2009.

Library and Book Lovers' Gift Guide - What's New?

Happy holidays to my book-loving friends!

Each year over the Thanksgiving holidays, I update my "Gift Guide for Library and Book Lovers" hotlist. I created it YEARS ago as a lark, when I was demonstrating the power of Filamentality, a free online hotlist builder by AT&T's Education Advocate Team. Check out the categories and collections, then let me know if you know of any additional bookish (not books!) sites that would enhance this list. Categories include: Gifts Fashion Decorations Reading and Library Advocacy Library Foundations & Philanthropy International Reading & Library Programs

New items came from a mix of California art and wine street fairs and suggestions from librarians across North America. Here are a few of the new:

• Recycled Maps into Bound Blank Journals.
• "Bank" books and boxes disguised as books.
• M.L.S.: Melanie's Library Shop

If your library or library FRIENDS' group has a blog that uses AdSense or other fundraising tool, this might be a good hotlist to link to and promote in order to drive more people to your site. If you do that, let me know how it goes. That might be a productive fundraising model. Note: the hotlist is text-only, so it is easy to "select all", "copy" and "paste" into WORD so you can add your own graphics. Enjoy!

Book Spines - Wood and Ceramic

Friends of the Folsom Public Library (CA) offer library supporters a choice of wood or ceramic book spines. Donations to the Children's area yield a ceramic book spine with one line of text; Donations to the Adult area cost 3x more for a wood book spine with two lines of text.

Wouldn't a border or shelves of wooden book spines be a fun indoor entrance to a library? Each year, it could grow. This could be good way to make school libraries more visible -- they often have no fancy signage, even though all students and staff know where it is. My experience as a visitor to school campuses is that after registering at the office, I ask students to point the way to the library. Someday, I'd like to see a "book" trail to the library -- painted, wood, or ceramic book spines would really make a statement that schools are academic institutions.

StickK.com as a fundraiser for libraries?

Wonder if the "stickK.com" method could benefit library fundraising?

This morning, while driving into San Francisco, National Public Radio carried a news story about a way to facilitate personal commitment contracts for weight loss and other types of personal goals (like smoking.) If you don't live up to your end of the contract, StickK will give your money to charity or a person you designate.

How could this be used for library fundraising or awareness? Let's see. My city and many cities are focusing on fitness, reducing youth obesity, and such. A city could challenge its residents to sign up for stickK.com, set a personal goal, and dedicate an amount of money to the library (or specific library programs.) It sounds like a great summer challenge -- goal to read XBooks, loose XPounds, stop smoking, whatever! Check it out! This might be a good research project for all schools in a district to try over a school year. Apparently, people don't like to loose and that tendency can be used to drive behavior change.

I'd like to hear about some success stories (related to libraries and reading, of course!)

Exercise the Right to Read

Check out this new school library awareness-raising fundraiser, "Exercise the Right to Read." Two author-educators, Wendelin Van Draanen and Mark Parsons are coordinating the campaign. Their mission is to raise funds for school libraries and disadvantaged children, and to promote reading and fitness in schools across the country.

This is a one-time race. The husband/wife team will get sponsors for their run in the ING New York City Marathon, November 4, 2007. All donations will go to the non-profit "First Book." Individual schools can also participate in the fundraiser from October 1-November 4 in order to raise money for their school libraries.

Library Lovers' Month - February

Several years ago, library PR *super star* Stephanie Stokes came up with the concept of Library Lovers' Month. Creative book marks are only a start to the fun. Why not take librarians to lunch, make an official Library Lovers' Month proclamation, or plan a fundraiser around the theme.

One middle school used the occasion to invite students to fill out a 3"x5" card about a book they loved and recommended. The card became the "ticket" for a special Library Lovers Lunch in the school library -- students brought their brown bag lunches and were treated to Valentine Day cookies. This was an extra special treat because food was not permitted in the library. The stack of student book recommendation cards was given to a local book store for an upcoming school book fair -- with one of the best book selections ever!

Publishing Books from Blogs

There's a new web-based company that makes it easy to convert online photo collections or travel blogs (web-based logs) into hard-bound books. Blurb is a service that lets you create printed books and even sell them online. According to their website, you don't get spiral-bound throwaways, but hardcovers with four-color dust jackets. Blurb's free software lets you mix words and pictures to create cookbooks, baby journals, portfolios, or whatever.

One of these days, I'll experiment with converting my relatives' travel blogs into coffee table books. A travel blog, for example, is an online log of a person's journey, often with lots of photos of the sights seen along the way. I've traveled across Mexico and the USA, thanks to following blog posts (journal entries.) I'm an armchair adventurer as I read their blogs. How can these fun adventures be preserved in print format, other than simply printing on a computer printer and stapling the pages together? Turn them into fancy books -- what a fine gift idea!

This or a similar book publishing service might be a good way to memorialize the opening of a new library, complete with construction and fundraising event photos taken along the way to the Grand Opening. It might also be a good way to raise funds for a library. It is something to think about.