Book Review: Witch Studies Reader

Soma Chaudhuri and Elizabeth Jane Ward, eds., The witch studies reader. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2025. ISBN: 9781478031352.

Genre: Witchcraft, witches

Subgenre: Women and Gender Studies, postcolonial studies

Format: Hardcover

Source: Hutchins Library, Berea College  

 

This is a collection of scholarly essays looking at witches and witchcraft as an academic field of study. The book's authors feature scholars, practitioners, and scholar-practitioners "who examine witchcraft from a critical decolonial feminist perspective that decenters Europe and departs from exoticizing and pathologizing writing on witchcraft in the Global South" (from back cover).

The book is divided in six parts with 32 chapters. Topics include: 

• History.
• Debate of open versus closed practices.
• Appalachian folk magic.
• Tarot.
• Feminist theory.
• Witch hunts.
• Pop culture.
• Academia and the craft. 

This is a book by academics for academics. It is also for practitioners who are also academics or have a strong academic interest connected to their craft. This book may be a bit "too scholarly" for most practitioners. Some essays are more accessible than others, so I'd suggest to most folks to the essays they find of interest. 

I'd recommend this book for academic programs in feminist studies, pop culture, religion, peace and social justice, and gender studies. Most public libraries may want to skip this as it is not really a book for lay readers. 

I liked it. Some essays were better and more interesting than others. 

3 out of 5 stars. 

 

Additional reading notes: 

On witch stories: 

"Stories about witches, found in nearly every corner of the world, are by their nature stories about the most basic and profound of human experiences-- healing, sex, violence, tragedies, aging, death, and encountering the mystery and magic of the unknown" (1). 

 

A spell for accessing knowledge: 

"May we shed our attachments to disciplined ways of knowing and listen with humility" (14). 

 

Elements of Appalachian folk magic: 

". . .lacking a formal system, making do with items at hand, believing in astrological influences, and engaging aspects of Christianity" (90). 

 

Books mentioned in the "Resurrecting Granny" essay that I have read. Links go to my reviews: 

• Ballard, Roots, Branches, and Spirits.
• Richards, Backwoods Witchcraft. 

 

 

 

This book qualifies for the following 2025 Reading Challenge: 

  

Book Review: Information Literacy and Social Media

Michele Santamaria and A. Nicole Pfannenstiel,  Information literacy and soci@l medi@ : empowered student engagement with the ACRL framework. Chicago, IL: ACRL, 2024.  ISBN: 9798892555456.

Genre: library science

Subgenre: Information literacy, social media, higher education

Format: trade paperback

Source: Hutchins Library, Berea College

 

I ordered this book for our library with high hopes, but in the end I was not really impressed. In addition, I do not think the $50.00 price was worth it for this very slim volume. 

As many of these LIS books, and articles as well, often do, this one starts with the common alarmist tone that most librarians are barely competent, mostly technology illiterate, and are clueless about the tech young ones today use. That could not be further from the truth, but I've read enough LIS books and articles to keep seeing that trope. Naturally, the authors are cool, hip, and knowledgeable and bring you their knowledge. The book shows a bit of the messianic tone some parts of librarianship embrace. 

Once you get past the opening we get a lot of LIS theory, reminders, and connections to the ACRL Framework, and arguments for bringing it and information literacy to social media. Some of the authors' points are valid, and others feel a little forced. In the end, the second chapter is a heavy literature review that is a bit of a slog to read. 

The one useful element of Chapter 2 are the reflection questions for teachers and/or library instructors. Taking the time to answer the questions, do some writing and journaling, can be a good preparation for teachers. It can also just be a good reflection exercise. I probably should take some time and do some of the writing. I have done some writing on my social media experiences, but I can always explore and reflect some more. 

The strength of the book is in Chapter 3 where you get the lesson plans and exercises. The plans are cross-disciplinary. The plans are detailed and well-structure. Activities are interactive and encourage students and their instructors to reflect on their experiences of social media and information literacy. Whether we like it or not, and there is a lot to dislike about social media, it is a big part of our students' lives and we should do better in educating them on how to navigate, use it, and evaluate better. This is where the lessons help. 

Every chapter includes a list of notes, and there is also a bibliography at end of the book for further reading or just to check the references. 

Overall, the good part is in the lesson plans. The rest of the theory could have been summarized better and/or kept brief. I do not think the contents justify the book's high cost. I'd say if you must read it to borrow it, scan the lesson plans, skip the rest. Still, I may try to implement a plan or two from the book down the road. Our students spend some time on social media, though from what I see it's not too connected to news and information. It is more for interpersonal connections, but that could be a topic to investigate down further. 

Overall, I liked the idea of the book. I did not like some of the tone of the book, its execution, nor the pricing. Still, it could've been worse. In the end as a whole it was just OK .

2 out of 5 stars. 

 

Additional reading notes: 

 

Students may push back on social media in the classroom: 

"Students bring with them the idea that social media should be reserved for non-academic purposes, an idea reinforced through schooling, teachers, and responsible use policies" (11).  

I somewhat agree with the students. Heck, I remember the days of early social media where librarians were given all kinds of warnings about not mixing work and personal online and where the wrong social media post could get you fired. Librarians on social media now are mostly normalized, but it is still wise at least to keep the professional and personal  somewhat separated. I say that based on experience, but I do admit it is easier said than done to keep the two aspects separate online. Note that while the authors acknowledge the negatives and dangers of social media, they downplay them somewhat to make their argument. I am not saying to completely disengage from social media, though complete disengagement should be an option if desired, especially in the current Hard Times. 

The list of reflection questions for teachers and librarians, starting in page 17 of the book: 

• What social media platforms do I currently use? What do I use them for?
• What do I believe to be true about the social media platforms I am familiar with (such as Facebook, Instagram, Tik Tok, X, and Pinterest?).
• What negative ideas about these spaces do I need to question and complicate/unravel so I can support learner engagement? 
• What positive ideas about these spaces do I need to question and complicate/unravel so I can support learner engagement? 
• What more would I like to know about these spaces to use them more effectively?

 

The list of classroom space reflection questions, to consider as you use the lesson plans here or for other social media activities, from page 48 of the book: 

• How collaborative is the instructional relationship? 
• How many sessions do you anticipate working on this threshold concept?
• Will the librarian be embedded in the course?
• Will the librarian provide ongoing social media and/or learning management system support to students?
• Does the library have library-specific content available within social media sites that can model social media use in support of learning?
• Does the library have social media accounts used to foster interaction between students and librarians?
• What will librarian instructor presence be like, on and offline?

 

 

 

 

Book Review: The College Student's Research Companion

Arlene Rodda Quaratiello, The College Student's Research Companion: Finding, Evaluating, and Citing the Resources You Need to Succeed. Chicago: ALA Neal-Schuman, 2024. ISBN: 9780838938386.

Genre: academic writing and research

Subgenre: reference, guides

Format: paperback

Source: Hutchins Library, Berea College 

 

This is basically a research guide to academic research for undergraduate students. In the preface, the author argues what many of us librarians argue: "to write better research papers, you must go beyond the basics of googling your topic and learn how to use the wealth of other resources available to you" (ix). That argument sounds great in theory, but in my many years as a librarian and teacher, I am concerned many students still do the superficial path of googling and hoping to find something just good enough. They also hope they can get it past their professors. The issue of students finding materials just "good enough" to pass and the faculty who may let them pass is a question I ponder here or there, but it is not something to consider now. I will just say I am not too optimistic. 

The book takes students through the research process from selecting a topic, finding and evaluating resources, and then how to use the sources ethically. Each chapter includes review questions to reinforce learning. The book also includes appendices with extra information like classification lists and citation style. 

The book is relatively an easy read, and the author keeps a light humor at times to keep things accessible. Comparisons and analogies to illustrate ideas are plentiful. Explanations are clear and straightforward. This can be a good resource for undergraduates to learn about research. It is not a substitute for library instruction, but it can supplement it. I can see some undergraduate writing class adding this to their textbook list. It's a pretty good guide with some good advice. 

However, the book suffers the issue of so many LIS texts: it falls out of currency as it is published. This edition has a 2024 publishing date, but the material was likely  written in 2023, maybe 2022. That is just the academic publishing cycle. The point here is the book has no mention of AI (artificial intelligence) and/or LLMs (Language Learning Models) that are becoming the latest issue in information literacy and academia at the time I am writing this. I have a 7th edition is already in the works. Still, the book covers the basics well, but you may want to consider whether to get this edition and add supplementary material as needed or wait for a later edition. At this moment I am good with this edition. 

This book is a good option for academic libraries to have a copy on hand, maybe on their ready reference shelf (if they still have a ready reference shelf). We bought a copy at my library, and it is a circulating copy. We'll see over time if it circulates or not. I'll make a small promotional post on the library blog later on. For now, I like this book overall. It has a good presentation of academic research skills for undergraduates. 

4 out of 5 stars. 

Book qualifies for the following 2024 Reading Challenge: 

Book Review: Verified

Mike Caulfield and Samuel S. Wineburg, Verified: How to think straight, get duped less, and make better decisions about what to believe online. Chicago, IL: The University of Chicago Press, 2023. ISBN: 9780226822068.

Genre: reference

Subgenre: information literacy, internet, research

Format: trade paperback

Source: Hutchins Library, Berea College

 

This book is an essential guide everyone using the internet needs to have handy. This book teaches how to be skeptical of what you see online and how to evaluate it. In these Hard Times where the internet and social media are full of scams, click bait, rage bait, and all sorts of assorted bullshit, this book gives you the tools to separate the crap from the few good things that remain. This guide can help you navigate the enshittified internet. 

The book is arranged as follows: 

• Introduction.
• Chapter 1: Get quick context.
• Chapter 2: Cheap signals. 
• Chapter 3: Google.
• Chapter 4: Lateral reading. 
• Chapter 5: Reading the room.
• Chapter 6: Show me the evidence. 
• Chapter 7: Wikipedia.
• Chapter 8: Video games. No, it is not about games. This is more about how videos are used to deceive. 
• Chapter 9: Stealth advertising. 
• Chapter 10: Once more with feeling. 
• Chapter 11: Conclusion. 
• Postscript, which briefly covers large language models, so-called AI, and verification.
• Notes and bibliography. 

Caulfield, one of the two coauthors, created the SIFT method (Stop, Investigate, Find other coverage, Trace the claim). Along with Wineburg, they basically give you a full course on how to evaluate what you see online so you can be empowered and act accordingly. The authors take you through the process step by step. These are skill you can learn with relative ease, and you develop the critical habits taught in the book you'll be able to better navigate the internet. A strength of their lessons is that often they do not take a lot of time. That is because you learn to assess quickly. If you decide to pursue a topic further, the authors show you how to do so. If you assess and decide something is not valid, relevant, or just not worth your energy, you can swiftly move on. Being efficient is a key element here. 

The book is relatively easy to read. Each chapter gives you practical examples and then they explain how to best handle each situation. You then learn the overall lesson so you can apply it when you go online. Chapters also include various tips and pieces of advice. Every chapter ends with a list of takeaways summarizing what you are learning. 

By now I am sure many academic librarians apply the lessons from the book in library instruction. We've done some some of it, but we will be working on adding more formal elements from the book in our instruction sessions. However, you do not have to be in an academic setting. This accessible book works for anyone wanting to learn how to find reliable information, evaluate it, and avoid the rest of the crap out there. In a time when Google largely has gone to shit, this book gives you steps and advice for making some good from Google. You learn how to do lateral reading like fact checkers do, and Wikipedia can be your ally, contrary to what some old time educators may claim. Learn that and more reading this book, then keep it handy for when you need a reminder now and again. 

This book is essential for all libraries. Librarians who have not ready it need to read it and then promote it to their patrons. The book can be beneficial for students in composition classes that require research. It may also be of interest to journalism students, journalists, and other writers who do or should be doing research. I recommend it fully, and I would buy a copy for my personal shelf. 

5 out of 5 stars. 

Additional reading notes: 

What this book can help you with: 

"Instead of being driven by emotion and outrage, you'll come to see your gut reactions as precious gifts that signal you to pause, take a breath, and ask a basic question: Is what I am looking at even what I think it is?" (3) 

 

Google is a search engine, not a truth engine:

"Google is not a dispassionate partner in information seeking who diligently corrects you when you've taken a wrong turn. Google is out to please, trying to determine what you want-- even if doing so means giving you a dubious answer but one you want to hear" (78). 

 And with its high commercialization, predominant advertising model, and now integrating LLM and AI features, it's gotten worse in terms of finding what you actually need. 

Need to beware expertise cynicism: 

"In authoritarian regimes, creating a broad cynicism about all sources of expertise-- the press, academics, professionals-- serves to make sure political power, not truth-seeking, is the ultimate arbiter of what is true" (109). 

This book qualifies for the following 2024 Reading Challenges: 

Signs the economy is bad: October 6, 2023 edition

Welcome to another edition of "Signs the Economy is Bad" here at The Itinerant Librarian. This is the semi-regular (as in when I have time and/or feel like doing it) feature where I scour the Internet in search of the oh so subtle hints that the economy is bad. Sure, pundits may say things are getting better, but what do they know? And to show not all is bad, once in a while we look at how good the uber rich have it.

 It has been a while since I've done one of these posts, but I managed to find enough signs the economy is bad for this week. So without further ado, let's get on with it.

 

Education News

• LinkedIn, the "Facebook of Careers," is betting AI (artificial intelligence, the buzzword every other employer wants to hitch their wagon on) can make college degrees obsolete. Story via Axios. They are betting things like soft skills and workshops to supposedly keep people current will be the new wave. A little detail they may not be considering, mentioned in the article: "As of 2021, there was a growing earnings gap between those with a four-year degree and those without and the unemployment rate for college graduates was still lower than that of Americans without degrees, per Pew Research." Maybe, for some folks at least, getting that degree is still a good idea.
   

 

Rural News

• Dollar General, the stores known to go to places that not even Walmart would go, is now trying its hand at offering urgent care clinic care with mobile clinics. Story via NPR. A visit is not necessarily affordable starting at $69 dollars for folks without insurance; they do take insurance if you have it, but why would you if you have insurance? That is but one of the questions. Naturally investment analysts and some rural care advocates are salivating at the idea, the former for the money they can likely make, the latter to fill the notorious gaps the United States has when it comes to rural health care. However, locals may be reluctant or skeptical about a clinic on wheels in a discount store's parking lot. At any rate, another example of the significant gaps in health care in the United States and letting the private sector patch it up because heaven forbid the U.S. does something like a national health care program.
  

Health and Medical News

• Nurses already have a hard time in the Bad Economy, and now they are exposed to further exploitation when they get hired as if they were Uber drivers or rather "Uber nurses" for hospitals and other facilities. Story via The 19th. Turns out a lot can go wrong when you hire nurses as gig workers.
  

The Bad Economy  Around the World

• There are still plenty of adults who live with their parents to save money and/or because they can't afford their own place. The CBC has a look at a few of them up in Canada. 
   

 

In Other News of the Bad Economy

• Not surprising it turns out credit unions, often lauded as the virtuous and wholesome alternative to big banks, can be just as much assholes and profiteers as those same big banks. Story via Politico. Unlike banks, credit unions have less disclosure requirements usually, but a new law in California meant they had to disclose things like how much they skinning their clients with overdraft fees. 
• Many people may be losing their child care as additional child care funds from the pandemic days dry up. Story via NPR. Situations like this affect a lot of people: the child care workers who may not stay due to low pay, the centers possibly closing if they lack workers, and the families who depend on said child care centers so the adults in the family can go work. It really is a domino effect. 
• Not really a new story, but U.S. insurers are leaving states with high climate risks, you know, places prone to things like hurricanes. Story via Scheerpost. Because a lot of Americans, especially in red states, may not believe climate change is a thing. But insurance companies sure do realize the effects of climate change on their wallets when they have to keep paying claims in the same disaster prone areas over and over. 
• Costco is getting ready to raise prices on their memberships. Story via The Hill. On a disclosure note, we do shop at Costco, which we also prefer vastly to Sam's Club, which we used to do before but dropped when we moved to Costco. Overall, works well for us, and I think as long as the increase is not outrageous, we'll probably stay.
  
• No one is safe from inflation, not even Girl Scout cookies. Yes, they are raising prices again. Story via Salon. It appears the price, at least in some places, is going up from $5 to $6 per box. 
• And if you wanted coffee with those cookies, well, coffee is getting expensive too, more so if you are one of those people who insists on getting fancy lattes from Starbucks. Vox explains why that latte now can be at $7 dollars.
   

 

 

Hustlin' in the Bad Economy

• In a bit of a follow up as well as an illustration that school teachers are not paid enough, that Missouri school teacher who got suspended because some snitch told the school district she had an adult OnlyFans site with her husband has decided to resign and devote herself full time to her porn business. Story via The New York Post. How good is the side hustle now full time venture? Well, prior to the "scandal," her "channel raked in between $8,000 and $10,000 per month, which has at least doubled after word of her suspension got out." You got to hustle in the Bad Economy, and this now former teacher certainly has it going.
  

Uber Rich

• Bob Menendez, U.S. Senator from New Jersey recently indicted for corruption, may not be doing as well these days. However, a business he tended to favor is doing fine, and may be reaping rewards from Menendez's love for gold. Yes, the precious metals industry has gotten a bump in business thanks to the corrupt honorable senator from New Jersey. Story via Politico.

 

Book Review: The Oxford Guide to Library Research, 4th edition

(Cross-posted from Notes from a Simple Librarian)

 

Thomas Mann, The Oxford Guide to Library Research, Fourth Edition. New York: Oxford University Press, 2015. ISBN: 978-0-19-993106-4.

 

Genre: nonfiction, guides

Subgenre: academic research, LIS

Format: trade paperback

Source: Hutchins Library, Berea College 

 

Our library recently acquired this for the reference collection as an update to the third edition that we had. I did notice this edition's publishing date is 2015, so it already may be falling behind in some details. When I investigated, I did not see a fifth edition forthcoming. Still this is a pretty good book overall.  

This book is a guide to help readers do research online and offline with an overview of various online and offline sources. Though it goes over online and offline sources, there is some bias or preference expressed in the book for print sources found in libraries, especially large research libraries. Naturally it also favors subscription based online resources, again found in libraries, especially large research libraries. The publisher describes this book as "the gold standard in the field," but it is so as long as you are using and accessing large research libraries. There is not much here about smaller academic libraries, like ours, and even less about public libraries. Though the strategies presented can apply for any researcher, the book is mainly for academic researchers at large research universities and institutions, for example, the Library of Congress, which is by the way where the author works. 

 

The book is arranged into 15 chapters. Some of the chapter topics include: specialized encyclopedias, use of subject headings in library catalogs and databases, citation searches, people sources, and hidden treasures (other not so visible at times sources like microforms and government documents). The book definitely strives to be as inclusive of various resources as possible. 

This is a guide mainly for academic researchers. The book is also commonly used as a textbook in library school programs (or "i-Schools" as they often call themselves now), and a lot of the material in the book is written more for librarians in training than actual non-librarian researchers. At times, some topics, such as cataloging and subject headings, may into more depth than most researchers may need, but that depth is necessary for librarians to understand how the systems work in order to better help their patrons. For other readers, some of the material may be way more technical than they want or need to know. 

For librarians in the field, like me, parts of this book may serve as a skills refresher. I did read it all to write this review, but for my brethren in the field I recommend you read what you need when you need. 

The book may not be too accessible for undergraduates. It does offer good research tips, but undergrads may need to dig through the more dense material first to find the good tips they can use. The book may be more geared to graduate students, research faculty, and especially librarians in training. Thus I would recommend the book for academic libraries, especially R-1 and similar institutions. For small academic libraries, I'd say this is optional. I am good with having it in our small collection, but having read it I can see it can be optional for us. 

In the end, I liked some parts better than others, and I think many academic readers can find some use in it. 

3 out of 5 stars. 

*****

Additional reading notes: 

The book is designed to answer three questions: 

 

"First, what is the extent of the significant research resources you will miss if you confine your research entirely, or even primarily, to sources available on the open Internet? Second, if you are trying to get a reasonably good overview of the literature on a particular topic, rather than just 'something quickly' on it, what are the methods of subject heading that are usually much more efficient for the purpose rather than typing keywords into a blank search box? And third-- a concern related to the first two-- how do you find the best search terms to use in the first place?" (xv).

A challenge is convincing researchers, especially students on tight schedules and deadlines who DO want it quickly and just good enough to do the assignment. Then again, a lot of what those students do is not "real" research. It's rather synthesis and compiling of sources on a decided topic, but that is a whole other conversation. 

This is a good point that many folks often miss or conveniently refuse to understand: 

"In the overall universe of information records, three considerations are inextricably tied together: (1) copyright protection; (2) free 'fair use' of the records by everyone; and (3) access limitations of what, who, and where. 

It is not possible to combine (1) and (2) without restricting at least one element of (3)" (xvii). 

Now things like copyright and access to research are debatable, but at the moment the above is the reality, unless you do as some faculty, researchers, and increasingly students do and find your sources in some shady parts of the Internet (and no further comment from me on that). 

A bad habit many librarians, especially the cool and hip ones like the "doers and stirrers," tend to have, which irks me a bit to be honest: 

"(The library field, unfortunately, has a habit of simply following Google rather than focusing on alternatives to it that work much better in the niche areas libraries must fill)" (115). 

That is also why so many libraries go to big default search boxes on their websites to "search everything" or do one "big search" without regard to trade offs of such decision in terms of focus, relevance, and useful results. It's a jump on the Google bandwagon of big search box and hoping the algorithm is on your side, except the algorithm is usually not on your side. Librarians jump on this for convenience, to make it "easier" for themselves and for impatient patrons instead of putting in the work and teaching students and/or patrons properly. Again, this can be a whole other conversation for another time. 

A growing problem in open Internet searching. I often mention this in library instruction, but few students seem to really appreciate it. Less savvy faculty often gloss over it: 

"(The growing proliferation of echo chambers and filter bubbles-- i.e. producing search results weighted and skewed by individuals' own idiosyncratic past search histories-- further diminishes the Web's capacity to provide inclusive overview perspectives)" (133). 

The author gives a nod to Reader's Advisory: 

"Bibliographies are also frequently more useful than databases when questions of 'reader's advisory' nature arise-- that is, when people just want recommendations of good books to read, in any subject area" (184). 

Reading About the Reading Life: June 10, 2022 edition

Welcome to another edition of "Reading about the reading life" here at The Itinerant Librarian. This is where I collect stories about reading and the reading life. Basically, these are items related to reading, maybe writing and literacy, that I find interesting and think my four readers might find interesting as well with a little commentary. As with other features I do on this blog, I do it when I have time or feel like it. Comments are always welcome (within reason).

It's been a bit of a while since I have done a post in this series, so I've been collecting stories and finally feel I have enough to make a post. I have kept busy with work (need to make a living),  reading and reviewing books, and a bit of cartomancy here and there. Let's see what we have this week.

• Ashlie D. Stevens writes for Salon about cookbooks in the used section of bookstores. She writes about getting lost in those bookstore sections and finding books that may be gems or busts or a look at past now gone. I thought right away of the Better Half who enjoys collecting some cookbooks, and she often checks that area of the used bookstore as well. 
• Nicola Sayers in 3 Quarks Daily writes about digital scrapbooking. Much like the writer, I "I am incessantly recording: things I have read, things I want to read, ideas I have come across or had, ways I want to be or to look, memorabilia from places I have been or want to go, inspiring or thought-provoking words, song lyrics, images, film clips, you name it." I just do it online in various places. Some of it I do on my blogs, but also on social media like Twitter and NewTumbl. And yes, I do keep a physical journal as well as an ideas and drafts notebook. The essay also refers to Walter Benjamin's book The Arcades Project (link to Wikipedia entry about the book). On small side note, I cannot help but wonder what will happen to some of those things I curated and scrapbooked when I pass on. A good question to reflect on some other time. 
• Book Riot had an article with a brief history of the Uncle John's Bathroom Reader series. I have read and enjoyed books in the series. They often make for nice easy reading, and you get to learn something new at times. In fact I have reviewed some books in the series here on the blog. Links to my reviews:
• Uncle John's Old Faithful 30th Anniversary Bathroom Reader. 
• Uncle John's Factastic Bathroom Reader. 
• Uncle John's Beer-Topia.
• The Fine Books and Collections blog looks at the question of what impact does the recent movie adaptation of Death on the Nile have on the book trade. For example, as it happens when a new movie based on a book comes out, publishers rush to reissue new editions of the book, usually with covers that match movie art or photography.The post mentions a bit also about any antiquarian book interest in light of the movie. On a personal note, I have not seen the new film, but I did see and enjoy Branagh's previous Christie adaptation Murder on the Orient Express, which I did enjoy. I watched and reviewed that film back in August 2020.
  
• Shine looks at the influence of Latin American literature in China. The focus is on Argentine literature like the works of Jorge Luis Borges. For example, according to the article, "among Latin American nations, Argentina has had 230 literary works translated, both classic writers and emerging authors. Jorge Luis Borges, Julio Cortázar, Manuel Puig and Ernesto Sabato remain on the spotlight. "
• The Walrus takes a look at where the horror genre is going recently. You get an overview of the genre, and you might also find a new book or two to read. 
• It is another week, or another month, and that means someone, somewhere in the books and reading world is writing something about book reviewing, usually about what may or not be a problem with book reviewing. 
• Dan Stone in his substack post looks at New York Review of Books reviewers and how they review each other's books. Using a little bit of bibliometrics, Stone found out that yes, they do review each other's books quite often. The post does include various graphs to illustrate the point. 
• L.A. Review of Books has a response to a previous essay (essay is linked in the article) about the state of book reviews. These kind of articles usually bemoan the state of the book review, that it may not be intellectual enough, or rigorous enough, or that it is a bourgeois endeavor, or, on and on. I will tell my four readers this much. I review books here on my blog, first to keep track of what I read and offer my honest assessment as reader, scholar, and librarian. Second, I also do it as a bit of a reader's advisory service to help others decide if they want to read a book or not, and maybe help a librarian here or there decide if they should buy a book for my collection. I do not aim for some rarefied level of reviewing, just an honest review with integrity. 
• We are getting to the summer again, and in academia we know what that means: it's time for colleges to do their summer virtue signaling ritual of forcing incoming freshmen to read a common book, usually with some political/social issues/activist focus. In other words, the kind of books I currently do not read under my self imposed moratorium on such topics. Makes me glad I went to college before this became a trend. 
• If you think I am being snarky about the topic choices colleges are making, Inside Higher Ed backs me up. They take a look at the kind of summer books colleges force (oops, strongly encourage) their students to read, and they point out that "many institutions are choosing books that touch on issues of social justice—particularly racial inequities." As often happens, colleges as much as possible try to bring in a speaker relevant to the book they chose, either the book's author or someone with expertise on the book's topic. My college has done this sort of thing (it paused during COVID), and they usually brought in the author to one of the early campus convocations. 
• Lit Hub also looks at what books colleges are asking their incoming students to read. 
• Publishers Weekly asks why are book sales slipping in big cities. Sales are rebounding a bit in bookstores in the post-pandemic (you know, the pandemic that everyone says is over despite it still going strong). Yet it seems stores in urban areas are having the most difficulty recovering in this bad economy. A big factor, according to the article, is that many people have migrated away from big cities to smaller cities and rural areas, in part due to cost of living, again, the bad economy. Not mentioned in the article, but a possibility I would propose is online shopping. The pandemic in the early days meant lockdowns, and a lot of people were stuck at home. They ended up doing a lot more online shopping, and that includes shopping for books. That may be a hard habit to break in favor of going to a bricks and mortar store. However, as I said, that is just my theory.
• Finally for this week, Nieman Lab looks at how self-publishing combined with social media and social media's algorithms is enabling the far right to get their messages out. No, self-publishing is not just for fan fiction, edgy erotica, and other weird niches. If you have an interest in information literacy, reading, literature, politics, and social issues, this may be of interest. A bit from the article:
  

  "We found a group of about 15 novels by self-identified neo-Nazis and other white supremacists that were known to counter-terrorism experts. Others were not. These books were disturbingly easy to get, because they were sold on sites including Amazon, Google Play, and Book Depository.

  Publishing houses once refused to print such books, but changes in technology have made traditional publishers less important. With self-publishing and ebooks, it is easy for extremists to produce and distribute their fiction."

As always, thank you for reading. If you like the writing, feel free to subscribe on your favorite feed reader or follow me on social media where I share links so you can come back.  If you wish to comment, feel free. Just keep it civil. Paz y amor.

Signs the economy is bad: May 27, 2022 edition

Welcome to another edition of "Signs the Economy is Bad" here at The Itinerant Librarian. This is the semi-regular (as in when I have time and/or feel like doing it) feature where I scour the Internet in search of the oh so subtle hints that the economy is bad. Sure, pundits may say things are getting better, but what do they know? And to show not all is bad, once in a while we look at how good the uber rich have it.

Welcome to a Memorial Day weekend holiday edition of "Signs the economy is bad." I took a look at the bad economy last week, but it turns out I found more than enough stories to have a look this week, so here we go again.

Big News This Week

For many, the big news this week is the school shooting at Uvalde (link to CNN, mainly for reference). That is not however bad economy news, so we are moving on. If you want to learn more about it or add to  your outrage, feel free to seek out those news. This week, there is a follow up to the big news from last week which was about the baby formula shortage. 

• The 19th has a story on how parents are forming and using social media groups to find baby formula in the midst of the continuing shortage.
  

 

Education News

We have quite a few news from education, especially from higher education. 

• It is a known fact by now that the academic job market is dismal. If you are hoping to find a tenure line job as a professor in some American university or college, your prospects are pretty dim. The Chronicle of Higher Education looks at the bad situation and suggests that hiring should be based on a lottery system. Before you say "what the fuck?" like I did before I read the article go ahead and read it. There are some interesting details here such as the fact a lottery as suggested has existed before. The article also looks at certain details of social capital, privilege, and I guess we could call it a sort of soft nepotism in faculty hiring. 
• A recent big story in the bad economy is the high price of gasoline. This can have repercussions on things like travel (hey, this is the Memorial Day weekend, but more on that below, so keep reading). It can also be an issue in commuting to work. Southwest Tennessee Community College is trying to help out their employees a bit by having "virtual Fridays."  Story via Inside Higher Ed. This means they are moving classes to online on Fridays and student services will be also online during the summer session. Would it not be nice if they did this during the regular school year as well? I keep saying if people can and are willing to work remotely, and the work is done productively, then let them and stop the anal retentive managing impulse of needing to have people in their offices. Personally, I am fine working on site and prefer that, but for those who can handle remote just let them already.
• In token gestures, The Chronicle reports that Cornell University is making efforts to help employees protect personal time. I find this laughable because to be honest a lot of this should be both common sense and basic courtesy. Not sending e-mails out of work hours? That should be a fucking mandate, and if you are one of those administrator workaholics (or more likely an asshole who schedules e-mails for the off hours after you left for your weekend), you deserve a smack over the head at least. Friday afternoons off? That would be nice. Again, no one is more detested than a supervisor who schedules a meeting on a Friday afternoon. Don't be that asshole.  Cornell is doing this as an experiment for six weeks in June and July. Why? As they put it, "...to thank the university’s work force for its efforts during 'a time of continued stress and strain...”. How about instead of this token temporary bullshit you pay your employees decent wages and you keep the measures in place? Measures that by the way should be a given anyhow in treating your workers like human beings instead of the exploited laborers you see them as. To be honest, this token attempt is a bit insulting. 
•  Inside Higher Ed reports that young Americans and those folks with student debt are less likely to find value in higher education. Gee, I can't imagine why, but they try to figure it out anyhow. 
• Meanwhile, student affairs staff are quitting their jobs in higher education due to low pay and burnout. Via Inside Higher Ed. Again, I cannot imagine why, even more so in these Hard Times with a pandemic going on and colleges often exploiting their employees' goodwill and using the "do it for the students" to keep them working until they burnout. Kind of like certain college I know that uses the "it is the [college's] way, and if you do not work yourself to the ground, you are not good enough to be here" line. Maybe they can go work at Cornell where at least they might get their Fridays off for a couple of months if lucky. 
• So, you are a fairly prominent university and you recently acquired a relatively well regarded journal of arts and culture. The bad economy hits you, we are in Hard Times, what do you do? Well, if you are the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV), and you own The Believer, you sell it to a website that peddles "no strings attached" sex hook ups and sex toys. That is exactly what they did. See story from The Chronicle. You may wonder why would they do that. Simple answer from the article" money." The company basically waved a $225,000 check at them, and UNLV was happy to take it and cash it. It is the bad economy after all.
  

 

Health and Medical News

• Are you one of those cool and hip people who enjoy vaping? Well, I hope you also enjoy higher medical costs overall. UPI reports on a new study that reveal that annual healthcare costs for those who use vaping products were a bit over $2,000 than for folks who do not use tobacco products. Enjoy your oh so sophisticated vape.
  

The Bad Economy  Around the World

• The United Nations warns that with food prices rising we can expect "crippling food shortages." Story via NPR.  We are not quite at the killing each other for food hellscape scenario, but to be honest, could be a matter of time. 
• Meanwhile, in Great Britain  the BBC reports that chicken is getting more expensive and they explain why. I am sure if it has not happened in the U.S. it is just a matter of time before your bucket of KFC gets more expensive.
  

 

In Other News of the Bad Economy

I got a few miscellaneous stories this week, so let's have a look at these signs the economy is bad.

• Did you know there is a monopoly in ice cream cones? Story via The Hustle. Turns out one baking company has been gradually setting itself up as the only major ice cream cone maker. They've gradually bought out their competitors. Now, this is not a crisis...just yet. But if they decide to jack up prices, ice cream stores may have an issue, which could lead to them rising prices on your ice cream served on a cone. As I said, not a problem. . . yet. 
• Did you also know there is a shortage of carpenters in the U.S.? The Hustle explains why.
  
• Uber and Lyft are raising prices, in part because they pretty much have nothing else in terms of ideas or solutions. Story via VICE. Part of the problem is the companies' exploitative model. But another part of the problem is "that most people are not willing to pay the fares it would cost to run a profitable taxi service with the overhead Uber and Lyft require, to say nothing of paying drivers a decent wage." People who use these services, especially in big cities, are people with money, but heaven forbid they help to pay decent wages to the workers serving them (despite whatever bullshit lip service they give). 
• More people are questioning the expense of weddings, specifically those who get invited to be part of the "wedding party," like groomsmen and bridesmaids. The Hustle has a story on how wedding expenses are just getting out of hand. We all know about asshole bridezillas and their outrageous behaviors and extreme demands; hell, there is even a TV show about them. So I am glad more people are finally saying fuck it, we are not spending thousands of dollars on an overpriced wedding affair. I certainly would turn down any invitation to be in a wedding party, or any wedding for that matter. One, I am not attending a potential COVID spreader event. Two, I am not willing nor able to go spending money I do not have for someone else's wedding. So good on these folks to make their stand. 
• The Wendy's burger chain may be putting itself up for sale as reported via UPI. I used to like Wendy's somewhat back in the day when they had their salad bar. That is about how long it has been since I have been in a Wendy's.
• More and folks are unionizing or working to unionize in these Hard Times and bad economy. The latest I have heard about are the employees of video game company Activision Blizzard. They are joining the Communication Workers of America. Story via NPR.
• We mentioned earlier the high gas prices in the bad economy. Well, despite the high prices many Americans are saying fuck it, and they are driving anyhow for the Memorial Day weekend. Story via Al Jazeera. If the prices keep rising, it may put a damper on demand and travel, but for now, it seems Americans are just either sucking it up, or doing what they always do in the bad economy when money gets tight: putting it on their credit cards.
  

Hold My Beer 

(Serious fuckery in the bad economy)

It is not very often I find stories of serious fuckery in the bad economy, but this one definitely qualifies: 

• Via Salon, a woman was charged $40 for crying in a doctor's office. Read the story for details. That is some serious fuckery right there.
  

 

Uber Rich

Finally for this week, I found a few stories to reassure us that the uber rich are doing just fine in the bad economy.

• Want to take your honey on a date and make sure it is NOT a cheap date? If you got some money to burn you can take your honey to this seafood boil restaurant where their most popular item is $200 and you could easily spend over $500 on a meal with your honey. Story via The Atlanta Black Star. Way I see it once the meal costs as much as a good car payment, that is definitely not the place for me. 
• Naturally the weapons traders and makers are making money supplying weapons to Ukraine in their war, and of course to conflicts around the world. Story via Scheerpost. This is more of an ongoing story. 
• Finally, of course, the pharma and food companies and investors are raking in the money during the pandemic. Story via UPI. Because investing in human misery and tragedy always yields dividends in capitalism. This is based on a new report from Oxfam (link to the PDF report). These Hard Times where so many of us are suffering has "been one of the best times in recorded history for the billionaire class."

 

Signs the Economy is Bad: July 9, 2021 edition

 Welcome to another edition of "Signs the Economy is Bad" here at The Itinerant Librarian. This is the semi-regular (as in when I have time and/or feel like doing it) feature where I scour the Internet in search of the oh so subtle hints that the economy is bad. Sure, pundits may say things are getting better, but what do they know? And to show not all is bad, once in a while we look at how good the uber rich have it.

 

 

Let's have a look at what we found this week. Among other things featuring wee woo wagons, payola, and snow leopard poo this week.  

Education News

•  In a moment of "I can't imagine why" it turns out that a lot more superintendents are quitting their jobs. Via The Rural Blog. I am willing to bet that pressures of keeping things in some degree of stability in the hellscape that has become the U.S. under the pandemic is driving this situation. As it often happens in the field of school education, one factor driving the superintendents to quit are the whiny often self entitled parents making their work more difficult. That is something superintendents share in common with classroom teachers: the often pain in the ass parents who love to whine but would never dream of stepping into a classroom to teach themselves. I know; I was a school teacher once. Another issue is that once those superintendents leave, it is extremely hard to find a replacement. 
• Ithaka S+R has a new report out on the "Big Deal." For folks outside academia and especially academic libraries, "big deal" often refers to the deals libraries have to make with the monopolistic publishing pillagers who own the journals needed for research where faculty (unpaid) also need to publish (that is another story). For folks who need a quick overview: Big deals "enabled academic libraries of all sizes to license bundled access to a publisher’s journal at a significant discount off the list prices. Over the years, as Big Deal spending has come to occupy a greater and greater share of materials budgets, libraries have come to question the value of their Big Deal subscriptions, with some opting to cancel or significantly alter their existing arrangements." 
• In a nutshell, costs of these subscriptions have grown obscenely to the point they are become unsustainable, and publishing companies could not care less as they keep basically pricing themselves out. In my small campus, for the most part, we are looking at anything and everything we can cut in order to save money, we are buying less books and media because we have to sustain the damn periodical subscriptions, and well, something has to give. This is not something I often talk about, and to be honest, talking about it would be better suited for my professional blog, but it is an important issue and concern. That is why it qualifies as one of the signs the economy is bad. Then again, higher education media mostly focuses on large R-1's (that is Research-1 institutions in the Carnegie scale for those of you not in academia, i.e. "the big boys") when one of them finally does a massive cancellation. A small place like mine is really under their radar. I am highlighting the Ithaka S+R report now, but it is one I need to read deeper, and I think others in academia, especially in academic libraries, need to read as well. 
• In what is a given that many took for granted, CNN noticed that yes, many people did turn to public libraries during the pandemic. They then ask if said libraries will get some credit. Let me save you a click on that: the answer is no. People either take public libraries for granted, thinking they will always be there, or they constantly bitch and moan about how they do not want their taxes to pay for public libraries that deadbeats and homeless bums inhabit. Those latter folks are the ones who usually brag they just buy their books from the Big A. At any rate, libraries often were declared essential services and remained open to the best of their ability despite the pandemic. Librarians and library staff often risked their lives while self entitled COVIDIOTS refused to wear masks or socially distance or show any consideration while using said libraries. When the library buildings did close in some places, those libraries still offered curbside services and online options. Overall, libraries went and continue to go above and beyond the call of duty serving both appreciative people as well as ungrateful assholes who brag they'd love to burn the library down on social media while using their local library's free wifi. 
• On a side note, I was declared essential at my library, so I worked through the pandemic. We did offer and continue to offer an array of virtual services for our students and academic community. I will say that yes, very often I did feel very much taken for granted (but again, that is another story). 
• On another side note, science fiction writer John Scalzi, who is very well off, wrote his personal history of libraries and towards the end of the essay he makes the point of why he, as a wealthy person, wants public libraries to still exist even as he himself might not need them anymore (or need them less than he used to). It is worth reading. By the way, one of these days I should write my own personal history of libraries, but that is another time. 
• In the Library With a Lead Pipe has a piece on "Service Ceiling: the High Cost of Professional Development for Academic Librarians." This is one I wanted to highlight, but I admit have not had time to reflect on it as much as I would like. I can tell you though as an academic librarian myself that said cost is often high and often obscenely prohibitive. I feel bad for academic librarians with service requirements that force them to go to expensive conferences and such with little or no institutional support, which means they often have to pay out of their meager pay to keep their jobs. That is just wrong. This is another of those things I could write a bit more about in the professional blog, but I just do not have the time now. But it is a sign of the bad economy, even if most people outside academia have no idea. Although this is not unlike public schools that force their teachers to also do professional development out of pocket and buy their own school supplies out of pocket, but that is another story. 
• Via the Chronicle of Higher Education, a concern about MIT and Harvard selling out edX, a course management platform, to private interests. The edX company was nonprofit, well, those days will be gone. This falls under one of those things that was possibly a public good being privatized, which means most likely the emphasis now shifts from serving students online to maximizing shareholder value, whatever that is.
  

 

 

 

Rural News

•  Via NPR, a report that "rural emergency medical services are at risk as volunteers age and expenses mount." They may be volunteers, but rest assured, if I need a wee woo wagon, they are certainly going to bill me an obscene price for that ride. Odds are that money goes anywhere in the insurance bureaucracy and nowhere near the ambulance service. Anyhow, the big issues is EMT retirements with no replacements in sight and for many rural small areas the service is too expensive to operate.
  

Government News

•  If you wonder what the U.S. Government does with your taxes, well, the Biden administration is proposing to spend 1.3 trillion (yes, that is trillion with a "t") on defense and nuclear weaponry. Story via Scheerpost. Because the president of the party that is, allegedly (LOL) supposed to care for things in the common good is basically proposing the largest historically speaking budget for defense. We have a pandemic, a literal bad economy, all sorts of social issues but the milquetoast Republican Lite centrist is laying it on thick for defense, military, and nuclear weapons spending. Well, at least it keeps the military industrial complex employed. 
• On a side note, I am reminded of this quote from Joe Haldeman's The Forever War:“The most important fact about the war to most people was that if it ended suddenly, Earth’s economy would collapse.”
•  Meanwhile, Medicare might not be able to do basic things like negotiate for decent drug prescription pricing for the people it covers, but it is spending quite a bit on drugs that do direct to consumer advertising. Report via the GAO (Government Accountability Office).
  

 

 

 Health and Medical News

•  Via Al Jazeera, reports that Walmart is launching a "low-priced" in house brand of analog insulin. "Low price" is used loosely given their proposal for "analog insulin vials that sell for $72.88 and a FlexPen priced at $85.88." It may be cheaper than corporate options now, but affordable for many not really no matter how they spin it. 
• In news that are not really surprising, device makers are engaged in some serious payola to orthopedic surgeons to get them to use their products when doing surgeries. Via Salon. This is the kind of thing seen before with pharmaceutical companies and their drug reps "visiting" doctors to promote their drugs and get them to prescribe them. In an extreme, that was one way the opioid epidemic got so bad: certain companies aggressively pushing for doctors to prescribe their products. So this new story is just another variant on that. How do some of the payments work? "These payments come in various forms, from royalties for helping to design implants to speakers' fees for promoting devices at medical meetings to stock holdings in exchange for consulting work, according to government data." So if you need a hip replacement, you may want to inquire deeper if your surgeon is using a reasonably priced product or just whatever he is paid to put in you.
• In other medical rip offs, 1 in 5 families report getting surprise bills after childbirth. Story via UPI. This can happen, for instance, if you go to you in insurance network hospital, but say your little lady needs (or really wants her epidural/anesthesia, and you are not about to tell her to go natural because you want to walk out of the hospital alive), and they bring in some doctor from outside the network to do it, and the mofo hospital does not put it in the bill, so the doctor bills you separately, and surprise. You had no fucking idea this was going to cost you more, and you thought your insurance picked it up in network. Surprise.
  

 

 

The Bad Economy Around the World

 

•  The United Nations reports that COVID-19's impact on tourism around the world could be upwards of $4 trillion in losses. 
• Speaking of hospital fuckery (oops, entrepreneurial initiatives), The Guardian reports on how U.S. private hospitals, dens of expensive medical for profit fuckery (yea, I am saying it now) are eyeing opening locations abroad, this time in Great Britain. Because that is just what a country with relatively decent national universal care needs: private hospitals trying to gauge people for medical services. 
• In some places, senior citizens bag groceries in order to make a few extra bucks. Well, not happening anymore in Mexico's Walmarts as they basically told their senior baggers, who by the way work on tips, i.e. Walmart does not employ nor pay them, to take a hike. Story via Al Jazeera. Walmart is spinning it as blaming the pandemic and "consumer's changing shopping habits." Uh huh. 
• Meanwhile in Venice the locals struggle with the tourist economy. Story via Hyperallergic. The big conflict is that the city is seriously dependent on tourism, but the problem is tourism related jobs pay little, to the point that locals are barely able to afford living there. 
• Out in Japan, here is another way to tell the economy is bad and the world is in trouble due to things like climate change: look at snow leopards' poo. Story via UPI. In Japan, researchers have found an easier way to measure snow leopard stress by analyzing their fecal matter with an new quicker analysis technology. Why is this important? "Environmental stressors, like rising temperatures, disappearing glaciers and poaching, can negatively impact snow leopard health."