Recently in Library displays Category
Respect
Remembering Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
and the Memphis sanitation workers' strike
after 40 years
(April 1968-April 2008)
Please take a moment to look at our display in the library foyer of books and photographs about the Memphis sanitation workers' strike and the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The sanitation workers' message, illustrated by their "I am a man" signs, speaks eloquently of the human need for dignity and respect.
You might also be interested in reading Hampton Sides' (MUS class of 1980) memories & perspective of these events in the latest issue of Memphis magazine. Here's a link to the article, titled "The Strike Zone": http://www.memphismagazine.com/gyrobase/Magazine/Content?oid=oid%3A41290
Other items on display include:
Going down Jericho Road by Michael K. Honey, At the River I Stand by Joan Beifuss, I May Not Get There With You by Michael Eric Dyson, and Pictures Tell the Story by Ernest C. Withers.
“Never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never—in nothing, great or small, large or petty—never give in except to convictions of honour and good sense.” -- Prime Minister WINSTON CHURCHILL, speech at Harrow School, Harrow, England, October 29, 1941.—Winston S. Churchill: His Complete Speeches, 1897–1963, ed. Robert Rhodes James, vol. 6, p. 6499 (1974).
Here are some materials you’ll find on display in the library reflecting this month’s theme of perseverance:
“To Harry James Potter, … I leave the Snitch he caught in his first Quidditch match at Hogwarts, as a reminder of the rewards of perseverance and skill.” (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, p. 126) Harry not only perseveres in Quidditch, but in overpowering evil forces in the world. Many heroes in fantasy literature rely on perseverance to succeed in their noble quests. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings series is another great example of this literary theme.
What is the What: the autobiography of Valentino Achak Deng by Dave Eggers.
This novel is based on the life of one of the “Lost Boys” of
The Dream: Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Speech that Inspired a Nation by Drew Hanson. Dr. King is a shining example of the perseverance necessary to achieve social change.
Not as well known to us as Dr. King was William Wilberforce. His passion and perseverance led to the passing of the law to end the British slave trade in the late 18th Century. His story is dramatized in the movie Amazing Grace.
The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway is a classic study of perseverance in the character of the old man.
Unstoppable: 45 Powerful Stories of Perseverance and Triumph from People Just Like You by Cynthia Kersey.
We've added lots of books related to sports this fall and many are currently on display near the magazines. You'll find fiction and non-fiction on sports ranging from football, basketball, and soccer to wrestling, lacrosse, and Nascar.
Now that basketball season is in full swing, take a look at the great photos and stories by some of SI's best writers in The Basketball Book, just published by Sports Illustrated in October.
Altruism: Sources from the Hyde Library
Starting Points for Discussion:
Children’s Book: The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein (can a person give too much?)
Movie: Pay It Forward (could this idea ever really work?)
Book: Ordinary Grace: Lessons from Those Who Help Others in
Articles for Further Reflection:
“The $91 Billion Conversation” (interview with Bill Gates and Warren Buffett) in Fortune:
http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=18637389&site=ehost-live. Gates and Buffett on economics and their decisions to give their fortunes to charity.
“Rats & Ratatouille: Eating and Altruism” can be found in our Today’s Science database at http://www.2facts.com/TSOF/temp/45563temps1500114.asp. Rats who have been helped are more likely to help another rat.
“If It Feels Good to Be Good, It Might Be Only Natural,”
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/27/AR2007052701056.html. This article by Shankar Vedantam investigates “whether the brain has a built-in moral compass.”
From a Literary Perspective:
Two short stories by Eudora Welty, both published in the same collection, A Curtain of Green, show a sharp contrast in the way some people look at helping others. In “A Visit of Charity,” a 14-year-old girl visits a nursing home. In “A Worn Path,” an aging grandmother walks for miles to get medicine for her chronically ill grandson. But each story features a completely different set of motives. Read the stories, available in the Hyde Library, and see what you think.
Books on display this month in the Hyde Library:
Bennet, William J. The Book of Virtues: A Treasury of Great Moral Stories.
Canfield, Jack. Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul: 101 Stories of Life, Love and Learning.
Clinton, Bill. Giving: How Each of Us Can Change the World
Jarvis, F. Washington. With Love and Prayers: A Headmaster Speaks to the Next Generation.
McCain, John. Character is Destiny: Inspiring Stories Every Young Person Should Know and Every Adult Should Remember.
Wood, John. Leaving Microsoft to Change the World: An Entrepreneur’s Odyssey to Educate the World’s Children.
You might also be interested in this website with all kinds of information about Altuism:
Why do we highlight banned books in the library every year and why should you care?
Because this is a basic intellectual freedom issue! The American Library Association states that it is your right to "seek and receive information from all points of view without restriction." Stop by our display in the library foyer and see if you can figure out which books are wrapped in brown paper.
Books have been banned for political, religious, sexual, or social grounds. Did you know that The Bible is at the top of the list of banned books? Many of the books that you read for your English classes have been banned at some time in history, such as The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, The Canterbury Tales, The Scarlet Letter, The Catcher in the Rye, To Kill A Mockingbird, Fahrenheit 451, and The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.
Check out this link to see a list of the top 112 banned books owned by libraries: http://www.oclc.org/research/top1000/banned.htm
Do you know the difference between a banned book and a challenged book?
According to the American Library Association, "A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. A banning is the removal of those materials. Challenges do not simply involve a person expressing a point of view; rather, they are an attempt to remove material from the curriculum or library, thereby restricting the access of others."
Here is a link to the American Library Association's list of the books most challenged in 2006:
No list of challenged books is complete without mentioning Harry Potter! Last year, the Harry Potter books were at the top of ALA's list of most challenged books of the 21st century. Also on this list was the Captain Underpants series, a perennial favorite of small boys! Here's a link to this interesting list:
http://www.ala.org/ala/pressreleases2006/september2006/HarryPottermostchallenge.htm
Here's more information about challenged and banned books from the ALA:
http://www.ala.org/ala/oif/bannedbooksweek/challengedbanned/challengedbanned.htm
