Virginia Literary Festival Will Be Launched in October 2010

The Library of Virginia Foundation is pleased to announce the launch of the Virginia Literary Festival.

Taking place from Wednesday, October 6 through Saturday, October 16 and anchored by the popular James River Writers Conference and the elegant Virginia Literary Awards, the Virginia Literary Festival celebrates Virginia’s rich literary resources with a ten-day series of events taking place at venues throughout the metropolitan Richmond area.

The festival’s events are broad and geared to both readers and writers, with book talks, writers’ workshops, and much more.

“The success of the Virginia Literary Awards and the JRW Conference has proven that there is a wide and diverse audience in Virginia for all things literary,” said Mary Beth McIntire, executive director of the Library of Virginia Foundation. “The Foundation is happy to help launch the festival, and we look forward to seeing it grow, in both the number of community partners who participate and in audience size, in years to come.”

McIntire and author Dean King serve as co-chairs of the festival’s steering committee. “Dean has had an amazing vision for this event from the beginning, and has provided hours of wisdom and professional expertise toward making it a reality,” said McIntire.

The events, many free of charge, include book talks, readings and signings, a children’s book reading, a workshop for nonfiction writers, and more.

For more information, including ticket information, visit www.literaryva.com.

Jacqueline Jules Wins the Fourth Annual Cardozo Award for Children's Literature

Jacqueline Jules’s Unite or Die: How Thirteen States Became a Nation has been selected as the winner of the fourth annual Whitney and Scott Cardozo Award for Children’s Literature.

This engaging picture book features children dressed in state-shaped costumes acting out a play called “Unite or Die.” The book traces the challenges, conflicts, and compromises that shaped the United States Constitution and brought unity to the states. Jules conveys basic tenets simply and Jef Czekaj’s exuberant illustrations add to the book’s appeal. The book even includes a bibliography for those who want to know more, making it a good choice for primary school children with an interest in history.

Jacqueline Jules, who lives in northern Virginia, is an author, teacher, librarian, and poet, as well as a strong advocate for literacy and education.

A juried panel reviewed all nominated titles from authors whose works had a publication date of 2009 and focused on literature for children ages four through eight. Nominated titles were accepted from the greater mid-Atlantic region.

Unite or Die: How Thirteen States Became a Nation was chosen by children and parents voting at the Library of Virginia and in public libraries across the state, and online at the Library of Virginia’s Web site. On Saturday, October 16 at 2:00 pm Jules will read and discuss Unite or Die at the main branch of the Richmond Public Library, 101 E. Franklin St. For more details about this special program call 804-646-4550.

The winning book and author will be officially recognized at the 13th Annual Library of Virginia Literary Awards Celebration that takes place at the Library of Virginia on the evening of Saturday, October 16, 2010.

"Live From the Heart" Features Trigiani, Walls, and Weil

Join us for a live literary discussion and seated luncheon with best-selling authors Adriana Trigiani, Jeannette Walls, and Josh Weil on Friday, October 15 at the Jepson Center at the University of Richmond. The program starts at 11:30 AM. Tickets are $50 and must be purchased in advance.

Three of Virginia’s most beloved and highly acclaimed fiction writers will discuss their works. Author of the Big Stone Gap trilogy, Trigiani wows audiences with her humor. Walls, author of The Glass Castle and Half Broke Horses, does it with her poignant stories. Weil, whose dark Appalachian takes have brought him critical kudos, is the new voice on the block. His book, The New Valley, won the 2010 Sue Kaufman Prize for First Fiction from the American Academy of Arts & Letters. Journalist Lisa LaFata Powell will moderate the discussion, which promises to be not only lively but heartfelt.

This event is part of the Virginia Literary Festival. Bookended by the popular James Rivers Writers Conference and the elegant Library of Virginia Literary Awards, the Virginia Literary Festival celebrates Virginia’s rich literary resources with a weeklong series of events. To learn more about the Virginia Literary Festival, visit www.literaryva.com.

Carpenter Receives VLA Presidential Citation

Paranita Carpenter came to the Library of Virginia in 1994 to work as a temporary secretary. Her talents soon caught the eye of staff members and in 1995 she became a full-time employee. She quickly earned a reputation as hard worker and a go-to person on issues involving computers and databases.

Carpenter serves as an administrative support person in the Library Development and Networking Division. In this capacity she is in contact with a wide range of public library staff across the state. She is known for her tactful reminders to public library personnel about deadlines for reports, grant information, summer reading program orders, continuing education classes, Library Services and Technology Act grants, and state aid data.

Virginia Library Association president John Moorman presented the Presidential Citation to Carpenter at the September 10 meeting of the VLA Board. The citation reads:
"In recognition of her fifteen years of dedicated service to the Library Development and Networking Division of the Library Virginia, to librarians and library staff throughout the Commonwealth and her willingness to go beyond the call of duty to assist anyone at any time"

Carpenter is a 1992 graduate of the University of Richmond and is an active member of the First Flight Lions Club. She has received several awards for her photography and has been recognized by staff members at the Library of Virginia and external groups for her customer service and helpfulness.

Central Rap Has Talent

Take a moment to check out these YouTube videos produced by the Central Rappahannock Regional Library for staff day. They are great morale boosters.

Inspired by the 1978 disco hit "I Will Survive," the video features lyrics rewritten to proclaim support for libraries, particularly under the stress of tight budgets. It begins with a send-up of a typically hectic day in the life of a professional librarian.

Longer version (More than 61,551 views and worth watching):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7AhSxoVmZQs

Just the song (More than 61,655 views!):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8QjjKrEK7Y

The Central Rappahannock Regional Library system consists of seven different branches in the city of Fredericksburg and in Spotsylvania, Stafford, and Westmoreland counties, serving an area spread over 914 square miles in Virginia. Donna Cote has served as director of the system since 1981. The Central Rappahannock Regional Library is consistently ranked among the nation’s best libraries for its innovative and cost-efficient service.

Find It Virginia Site Has a new look

Check out the new Find It Virginia Web site from the Library of Virginia. Find it Virginia is a collection of databases that provide free, 24/7 access to newspapers, magazine and journal articles, and reference books for all age ranges and interests.

The new site is less cluttered and more user friendly. You no longer have to enter the bar code of your local public library. Instead, the access and authentication is provided by geolocation, which is the identification of the real-world geographic location of an object, such as an Internet-connected computer terminal. The system will point you to the nearest public library.

Highlights of the new site include custom collections for high school students and adults.

Hardwick to Deliver Annual Governor Henry Lecture

Dr. Kevin R. Hardwick, associate professor of history at James Madison University, will deliver the tenth Annual Governor Henry Lecture at the Library of Virginia at 5:30 pm on Tuesday, November 16, and at Hampden-Sydney College at 4:30 pm on Wednesday, November 17. His lecture is entitled "Partners in Patriotism: Patrick Henry, George Mason, and the Virginia Ratification Debate of 1788." His lecture explores the relationship of Patrick Henry and George Mason over a quarter of a century, from the struggle for independence through the drafting of the Virginia Declaration of Rights and the ratification of the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights. Hardwick earned his Ph.D. at the University of Maryland and is currently writing a book about the Virginia Convention of 1788. His published works include Virginia Reconsidered: New Histories of the Old Dominion, Classics of American Political and Constitutional Thought, and Patrick Henry: Economic, Domestic, and Political Life in Eighteenth-Century Virginia. The Annual Governor Henry Lectures are jointly sponsored by the Patrick Henry Memorial Foundation, the Library of Virginia, and Hampden-Sydney College. The lectures are open to the public at no charge. Free parking is available, and a reception follows each event.

The Patrick Henry Memorial Foundation (www.PatrickHenry.com) owns and operates Red Hill, the patriot's last home and burial place overlooking the Staunton River in Charlotte County, Virginia. The Library of Virginia (www.lva.virginia.gov) holds the world's most extensive collection of material about the Old Dominion and has been a steward of the commonwealth's documentary and printed heritage since 1823. Founded in 1775 as a private liberal arts college for men, Hampden-Sydney College (www.hsc.edu) is the tenth oldest in the United States.

Library of Virginia Offers Trustee Workshops

In Virginia the governance of most public libraries is placed with citizens of the community, organized as a library board of trustees. Board members are public officials and the powers delegated to them are a public trust. Library boards have both legal and practical responsibilities. They are responsible for carrying out their legal duties correctly and, consequently, are accountable under law for the actions they take.

If you are a new or even a longtime library trustee and want a better understanding of the laws and rules that affect your duties, the Library Development and Networking Division at the Library of Virginia can help. This fall the division will conduct a series of half-day workshops for trustees. October sessions will be held at the Victoria branch of the Southside Regional Library on October 12, the Radford Public Library on October 13, and the Lonesome Pine Regional Library in Wise on October 14. The workshops will run from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM.

The workshops will include discussions of current challenges facing public libraries and feature guest speaker Maria Everett, executive director of the Virginia Freedom of Information Advisory Council, on specific FOIA issues as they relate to public library boards.

Contact Kim Armentrout at 804-692-3601 or e-mail: kim.armentrout@lva.virginia.gov for additional information. There is no cost for the workshops. Advance registration is required.

To learn more about being a public library trustee, see the Virginia Public Library Trustee Handbook at http://www.lva.virginia.gov/lib-edu/LDND/trustee/.

October Is Archives Month in Virginia

The theme of 2010 Archives Month is "Making Connections: Archives and Imagination." October is a great time to explore Virginia history by visiting an archives collection near you. Virginia is home to more than 75 archives and special collections repositories that preserve and make available Virginia’s history.

The Library of Virginia is celebrating Archives Month with a special free lecture and book signing at noon on Wednesday, October 6. Elizabeth Brown Pryor, author of Reading the Man: A Portrait of Robert E. Lee through his Private Letters (winner of the 2008 Lincoln Prize) and Clara Barton, Professional Angel, will speak about her research adventures, past and present, in archives and special collections libraries. Pryor used Lee's newly discovered family letters as departure points to tell his life story through a combination of analysis, historiography, and period detail.

On Thursday, October 28, 2010, the History Museum of Western Virginia, located at One Market Square, 3rd Floor, in Roanoke, will offer a special Archives Month presentation featuring regional archaeologist Tom Klatka of the Virginia Department of Historic Resources. Audiences will learn about a regional survey of cemeteries, as well as tips for documenting and protecting cemeteries. The presentation will also explore the value of cemetery records for tracing family histories and Dead on the Web, an online research tool available to anyone. This is a free event with light refreshments. This program is part of a joint Archives/Archaeology month event, sponsored by the History Museum of Western Virginia, Roanoke Public Libraries, Wyndham Robertson Library, Roanoke College Library, and the Salem Historical Society. For more information contact Alicia Sell at 540-853-5868.

Archives Month is a collaborative effort to celebrate the commonwealth’s archival and special collections repositories and the rich cultural record they protect. It is a project of the Library of Virginia in conjunction with the Virginia State Historical Records Advisory Board, the Mid-Atlantic Regional Archives Conference, and the National Historical and Public Record Commission.

Restored Portrait to Hang in the Executive Mansion

A new lady is gracing the walls of Virginia’s Executive Mansion—a recently restored portrait of Mary Randolph Harrison. The painting was purchased at auction for the Executive Mansion on September 19, 2009, from the Harlowe-Powell Auction Gallery in Charlottesville, Virginia, where the portrait was listed as “Unknown artist, late 18th/early 19th century, portrait of Mary Harrison, nee Randolph, with family history indicating that the portrait is by Thomas Sully.” After full conservation, the portrait was installed on September 7, 2010, in the Executive Mansion by Tom Camden, director of Special Collections for the Library of Virginia.

“Like many of Virginia's Randolph women, Mary was known for her striking beauty," said Camden. "However, she also proved herself to be as ambitious, competent, and hard working as her husband, Randolph Harrison, whom she married at the age of 17, and to whom she bore 14 children over a period of 25 years. Her portrait, which was purchased with private funds from the Citizens Advisory Council of the Executive Mansion, is a wonderful addition to the state art collection.”

Mary Randolph was born to Thomas Isham and Jane Cary Randolph of “Dungeness,” Albemarle, Virginia, on February 1, 1773. She married her first cousin Randolph Harrison on March 20, 1790, in Surry, Virginia. The couple resided at “Clifton,” Cumberland County, Virginia. She died on February 21, 1835.

Staunton Public Library's Computer System Earns Award

The City of Staunton received a Governor's Technology Award for Innovation in Local Government for implementation of virtualized public access workstations at the Staunton Public Library during a September 7 ceremony at the Commonwealth of Virginia Innovative Technology Symposium conference in Richmond.

Public access terminals in public libraries have become a necessary service for local governments. With an aging stable of traditional PCs being used for public access terminals, the City of Staunton’s Information Technology department investigated options for replacing the systems. The traditional PCs were replaced with virtualized desktops and devices from Pano Logic. The Pano Logic devices have no firmware (fixed, small programs or data structures) or moving parts and essentially act as a hub for the monitor, keyboard, and mouse to connect to a virtual desktop running on a server. Using VMware's virtualization software on the server, desktops were quickly created, cloned, and implemented. By restricting changes to the desktop hard drive through VMware, every patron login presents a new desktop, free of viruses, malware (software designed to interfere with a computer's normal functioning), or information from previous sessions. This also eliminates most of the calls for service to IT or library staff, which results in happier patrons. For the cost of replacing the nine PCs, Staunton was able to implement 15 virtual desktop workstations, increasing the number of workstations available to patrons. Much of the infrastructure purchased can support even more virtual desktops in the future.

The project was funded with a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation as well as a contribution from the Friends of the Library.

—submitted Ruth Arnold, Staunton Public Library

Tumblebooks Are Coming to a Public Library Near You!

The Library of Virginia has purchased the TumbleBook Library for use by Virginia’s public libraries. The TumbleBook Library is a collection of animated, talking picture books suited for elementary school children. TumbleBooks are created from existing picture books by adding sound, animation, music, and narration to create an electronic picture book.

“These electronic books are a literacy resource that keeps children interested and involved in reading,” said Librarian of Virginia Sandra G. Treadway. “TumbleBooks are great for children learning to read. The interactive Web site keeps children engaged in reading, contributes to success in school, and helps to instill a love of reading.”

The TumbleBook Library collection can be accessed online from any computer in your local public library with an Internet connection, or from home through a direct link on your library Web site. The TumbleBook Library includes a wide selection of stories that come to life for children through engaging animation. The Web site is easy for children to navigate and allows them to hear stories read fluently. There are even options to hear the stories in French or Spanish. Each story comes with puzzles and games geared to ensure reading comprehension.

The TumbleBook Library program is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provision of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by the Library of Virginia.