This Week's Staff Favorites: Volume 48

The De-Textbook: The Stuff You Didn’t Know About the Stuff You Thought You Knew by Cracked.com
Here are a few things I learned from The De-Textbook:

• Velociraptor looked more like “knee-high, flamboyant little monkey birds” than the terrifying man-sized predators depicted in Jurassic Park.

• Thomas Edison was kind of like the Shia LaBeouf of his day in that he shamelessly pawned off other people’s inventions as his own.

• Science is not totally sure how many planets are in our solar system as new objects are continually being discovered within our asteroid belt.

• Abraham Lincoln was like a giant with superhuman strength who not only carried massive “stone-filled crates, weighing between 1,000 and 1,200 pounds,” when he was a mere stripling but also, at his first campaign speech, literally lifted a disorderly audience member off the ground and threw him.

• And while we are on the topic of U.S. presidents, John Quincy Adams believed the earth was hollow and wanted to use taxpayer dollars to dig into the North Pole, hoping to find a subterranean colony of mole people.

According to popular humor website Cracked.com, much of what you know is just flat-out wrong. Do you remember your favorite teacher from grade school? You know, the kindly one who always smiled and handed out gold stars and watermelon-flavored Jolly Ranchers whenever you answered a question correctly? Yeah, well, she was a stone-cold liar. Don’t worry though, Cracked.com’s The De-Textbook will you straight and undo all the misinformation that the educational system fed you throughout the years. Now a word of warning: If you are not familiar with Cracked.com, there is a strong possibility that its irreverent and vulgar brand of satirical humor will offend you. If you dislike that kind of humor, are easily offended, and object to profanity, I highly suggest you to stay far, far away.

Now, having said all that, I would be remiss in my duty as a librarian if I did not tell you that The De-Textbook is not an authoritative resource for factual information. In fact, I would highly advise you to be a little skeptical of anything you read in The De-Textbook. That’s not to say that many (if not all) of its factual claims are true, but I would highly advise fact checking anything you learn from it before citing it in a scholarly research paper. After all, the book’s purpose is to entertain and make you laugh; learning anything in the process is just an added benefit.

-Zach, Reference


The World’s Strongest Librarian: A Memoir of Tourette’s, Faith, Strength, and the Power of Family by Josh Hanagarne
I’m sure none of you will be surprised to hear that this is a book about a librarian who enjoys strength conditioning, but that is a description that only scratches the surface of this work. Josh Hanagarne is a man who suffers from Tourette’s, and he hasn’t always enjoyed employment at a public library. Before settling into that position, he spent many years bouncing from job to job because of the daily stresses of his disorder. He recounts some of these stresses--both during his childhood and his adult years--and we learn his life story in the process. He talks of his Mormon faith, his dedication to training with weights and kettlebells, and his bond with his parents and siblings as well as his wife and child and how all of these people and things have both helped and agitated his Tourette's. And, of course, he talks about his job as a librarian. He describes unique events that occur while he is working and incorporates a lot of humor that we as members of a library staff can understand. However, perhaps my favorite part of this book is how Josh continually uses references to both popular and not so popular literature to make his story relatable. It is in these moments that I find myself wanting to rush to the library to see if the books he mentions are on the shelf. His story is sad, happy, entertaining, intelligent, witty, and sarcastic all at the same time. A great read and it is available at Acorn and through SWAN.

-Donna D., Reference


Bloom: Finding Beauty in the Unexpected by Kelle Hampton (available through SWAN)
This is one of those books that makes you feel like you are sitting right next to the author listening to her story.  I laughed; I cried.  She describes the journey of pain and growth when she gave birth to a daughter who has Down Syndrome.  I recommend this book so you can get a glimpse of the emotional roller coaster for any parent who has to come to terms with a child's disability.  The hopes and dreams change, but the love does not.  As a special part of the book, the pictures of the author's two daughters are so precious and beautiful.  May all of us cherish our relationships!  Happy Valentine's Day!

Janice, Youth Services