When he’s done. He _really_ wants you to stop asking. Apparently. bit.ly/StopPesteringGRRM
When will GRRM finish Wind of Winter?
I just got a copy of Either/Or by Soren Kierkegaard on a whim.
Nah, philosophy is hard, no worries. A couple thoughts. 1) Sometimes a different translation helps. We have several. 2) Books like Kierkegaard: A Very Short Introduction, and the Cambridge Companion to Kierkegaard are designed to help you make sense of what you’re reading. Search for them at library.bc.edu.
Are there any kinds of books that should be banned?
The short answer is no, you’re not going to meet many librarians (or library walls) in favor of banning books under almost any circumstances. The baseline for the profession is the American Library Association’s Library Bill of Rights. Librarians try to build collections that serve all of a community, and you can’t do that without collecting material that will be controversial to some. The few shouldn’t get to dictate to the many what they can read.
Can The Wall Write a Story?!
Hi wall!! I’m almost done with the hunger games trilogy and it was probably my favorite trilogy I have ever read! Anyway, I was wondering since I am almost done, if you could write me a story that I could read. Also if you have any book recommendations please let me know! I am into fantasy and I like to get caught in a good book! 🙂
Not many stories fit on a post-it. Here’s one of the most famous shortest stories of all time, supposedly written by Hemingway: For sale: baby shoes, never worn. | For finding books similar to one you’ve just read, I highly recommend LibraryThing, a community of dedicated readers who share their book lists. Here’s the entry on The Hunger Games: https://www.librarything.com/work/4979986
Why is it important for Johnny Cade, Bob Sheldon and Ponyboy Curtis to belong to a group?
While I am a library wall, it would be unethical for me to answer your homework questions for you. The Outsiders is a classic and worth the read — give it another try and I’m sure you’ll figure it out!
“His Dark Materials” and “The KingKiller Chronicles” are my Favorite books! What should I read next?
Goodreads is a useful place to look for similar books; try some of these suggestions: bit.ly/Similar2Pullman and bit.ly/similar2kingkiller.
Book recommendations for someone who likes fantasy/scifi?
Here’s a recommendation in podcast form: The Incomparable network hosts podcasts with smart funny nerds talking about the movies, books, and TV they love, and one of their annual traditions is reading all the books nominated for the major sci-fi and fantasy awards and talking about them: bit.ly/bc-incomparable
Book recommendations?
I’m not sure what your genre preferences are, but one of my helpers says Slay by Brittany Morris in our POP! collection is a good one. It’s about a young black game developer who creates a hugely popular VR game. I recommend a visit to librarything.com, where you can type in a title or author you like and see related recommendations, based on thousands of participant’s personal collections.
Can I put my personal book collection in the empty 4th floor bookcases
Alas, not. Staff are busy shifting library collections so those empty shelves will not remain available for long. If you do need a place to store your books, check-in with staff at the 3rd Floor Circulation Desk and ask about registering for a locker. We still have a small number up for grabs.
Got any books on forestry or tree farming?
We do have some and are collecting more titles in ag due to the growth of the Environmental Studies Program. I recommend searching our catalog (library.bc.edu). You can also browse the stacks in the SD section (3rd floor O’Neill, way over to the right), but many of the more current items are online. Connect with the Environmental Studies Librarian, Enid Karr (karre@bc.edu) for more ideas, like getting items from other libraries.
Could the library order Permanent Record by Edward Snowden?
Yes! We will add it to the library collection. If you would like to recommend a book in the future, use our suggest a purchase form here: library.bc.edu/purchaserequest
Where is the oldest book on campus? The smallest?
Some of this depends on your definition of “book”. The oldest printed book is in Burns Library. It is Jean Gerson’s De Spiritualib[us] Nupciis (On Spiritual Marriage) from about 1470. Lots more info about it, and a link to the digital version, here: bit.ly/ReallyOldBook. We also have a manuscript (handwritten book) from ~1300: http://burnsantiphoner.bc.edu. That is essentially an old church song book. I’m not sure about smallest. Do you mean height/width or thickness? Or smallest total volume? Either way, I might not be able to find a good answer.
Can BC Libraries please acquire “Flights” by Olga Tokarczuk?
Thanks very much for the suggestion. Sounds like something we should acquire! I have forwarded it to our librarian for Slavic and Eastern Languages and Literatures, Nina Bogdanovsky, who immediately ordered it.
What are some good mystery novels that O’Neill has?
We’re a little better situated for classics like Raymond Chandler (The Big Sleep), Agatha Christie (Murder on the Orient Express), and Sherlock Holmes. If you’re looking for the latest stuff you can try our Pop collection in the lobby. Another approach would be to take a book like this Crime Fiction Handbook and see which of their recommendations sounds good to you–we pretty much have everything on the list. bit.ly/bc-cfh. I found it, and a lot of mystery titles, by doing this search on the library homepage: bit.ly/bc-detective. But you’re asking me, so I’ll say: read The Big Sleep.
What’s the oldest book not still returned in O’Neill or BC in general?
I’m not sure what you mean: the oldest book currently checked out?
If you mean oldest publication date, my library assistants attempted to glean this information by wrestling with the information system, and it turns out to be a much more complicated process than anticipated. IOW: we don’t know. If you mean longest checked out, theoretically, that would be 4 years because faculty and staff can check items out for a year and renew 3 times. If a book hasn’t been returned after its last possible due date, it’s marked “missing,” after a month and is no longer checked out, so the checked-out clock stops. IOW, again, we don’t know. My assistants might not always have all the answers, but at least they’re honest about it!
Update 4 years later (July 2023) : a patron recently returned a book they found in their attic, which they’d checked out over 20 years before while working on their master’s thesis.
What is the oldest book in the library? What is the date on it?
The oldest book in the BC Libraries is in Burns Library. It is Jean Gerson’s De Spiritualib[us] Nupciis (On Spiritual Marriage) from about 1470. Lots more info about it, and a link to the digital version, here: bit.ly/ReallyOldBook.
What good books should I read this summer? Give me your favorite
I’ve been branching out from walls to read about other upstanding beings: trees. My two favorites on the subject right now are The Overstory by Richard Powers (bit.ly/worldcat-overstory) and Barkskins by Annie Proulx (bit.ly/worldcat-barkskins).
Is there another area for popular books other than this floor and the first floor? I’m having a hard time finding books to read for fun.
You can recommend titles Pop.Reading@bc.edu or request books by Interlibrary Loan bit.ly/ILLatBC. We have books that might be considered enjoyable/recreational reading throughout the collection. Literature is on Level 4 in the P call numbers. Non fiction is everywhere – ask at the Reference Desk for suggestions in areas that interest you. And don’t forget we have popular eBooks and audiobooks through Overdrive (bc.overdrive.com). Happy reading!
Could/would the Library host a poetry “read-in” in memory of the late great Mary Oliver?
I’ll have my colleagues ask around and get back to you.
The library would certainly consider providing space for such an event were someone to organize it; perhaps you could reach out to faculty in the English Dept. affiliated with the Creating Writing Seminar (bit.ly/bc-cw-seminar) or Creative Writing Concentration (bit.ly/bc-cw-concentration), or perhaps students who publish a student literary magazine such as Stylus, Epicenters or Elements. If you would like to schedule an event in library space, contact the administrative office at 617-552-4470.
do you have any book recs?
Everything in the Pop Collection (just to the left of me) has been suggested by library staff as current best-bets. I highly recommend browsing there.