Books to read this week

The two books I'm meant to be reading for Book Club are The Tent, the Bucket & Me by Emma Kennedy and Money by Martin Amis. The Tent etc was a quick and easy read and was quite funny in parts but not fantastic. I enjoyed it but didn't love it. I'm avoiding reading Money because I don't really fancy it but that is the point of Book Club books, you have to give them a try and often they are really good.
I have bought a few books over the last week so have started to read A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan I'm enjoying it but I've no idea what it's about really or how the different people and events match up. Hopefully I'll find out.
Last week when I was in the Oxfam book shop I bought City Lights by Keith Waterhouse. I'm tempted to read that also before getting round to Money.






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Check In / Check Out rather than Issue / Return

One thing that I did notice when looking round the Robinson library was that the signs said Check In / Check Out for the self issue and return. Is this common practice?
The reason that it struck me was because I had already had a discussion with a senior manager at work about a brief report that I had produced for him which included the number of issues. He questioned the number of issues that I had stated that we had thinking that 'issues' meant problems rather than loans. I hadn't appreciated that it might be interpreted as such so will have to be more mindful in future. I had already changed visitors to users in order to be more generic.

Newcastle University Robinson Library

Last week I attended a JISC Collections workshop at the Robinson library at Newcastle University.
I made the most of the opportunity for a look round.

City of Sunderland College - Usworth Sixth Form

The RSC Northern e-Learning Group meeting was held at Usworth Sixth Form College which is part of City of Sunderland College. The library was really nice and bright.

Libraries in York

Last week I attended an event at York St John University - a Higher E-learning Event. While I was there I took the opportunity to have a brief look at their library. One of the computer rooms that we were in for a workshop looked over the library. It looked really good, I have seen pictures before of it, and they said that they are going to make some improvements and updates to it this summer.

After the event I walked back to the station and called in at York City library. It is in an older building as you would expect and very much a modern library experience with lounge areas and a cafe - lots of people, lots of information, lots going on.

Same old, same old.....

Some books are precious because you have read them many times, you know what happens, you like the story and they have a happy ending. To me this is important because on gloomy days they provide comfort and solace. This is not quite as wishy washy and feeble as it sounds but some days I want to read without being intellectually or emotionally challenged. Some days I want to escape from reality and enjoy a nice read. Luckily this doesn't happen very often as I'm usually fairly happy and optimistic, but when it does, these are my favourite cheery reads.
Modesty Blaise by Peter O'Donnell. Matricide at St Marthas by Ruth Dudley Edwards. The Eliza Stories by Barry Pain. Love lessons by Joan Wyndham. The Minack Chronicles by Derek Tangye. Escape from Colditz by Pat Reid. Any Agatha Christie book.


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