NATIONAL LIBRARY WEEK

PANEL DISCUSSION

Michael Gorman, James G. Neal & Maggie Jackson
The Book Is Dead! Long Live The Book!
Tuesday, April 15, 2008 at 6:30 PM
Members' Room

How have computers and the Internet altered the use of books? What do changes in the publishing world mean for libraries and readers? Will new work, research, and reading habits make libraries or even books themselves unrecognizable? National Library Week is a particularly appropriate time to consider such issues, reevaluating commitments to books and libraries while valuing the contributions developing technology can make.

These questions and others will be discussed by a distinguished panel including two of the country's leading authorities on books and libraries, moderated by author Maggie Jackson. Questions and contributions from the audience will be welcome.

Michael Gorman recently retired as Dean of Library Services at California State University, Fresno and has taught at library schools in Britain and the United States. He has been a major participant in the creation and updating of the Anglo-American Cataloging Rules, the primary reference work for book catalogers throughout the English-speaking world. The author of hundreds of articles in professional and scholarly journals, he is also the recipient of numerous awards from library organizations and served as President of the American Library Association in 2006-2007.

James G. Neal is Vice-President for Information Services and University Librarian at Columbia University, providing leadership for a system of 25 libraries. Among his many accomplishments is service on the Council and Executive Board of the American Librarian Association, speeches and publications at national and international conferences, and representation of the American library community on copyright matters before Congressional committees.

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Maggie Jackson is an award-winning writer and Boston Globe columnist who writes often about the social impact of technology on our lives. She is the author of What's Happening to Home? Balancing Work, Life and Refuge in the Information Age, and the forthcoming Distracted: The Erosion of Attention and the Coming Dark Age, (Prometheus, June).

LECTURE & RECEPTION

NATIONAL LIBRARY WEEK LECTURE AND RECEPTION
Brian Jay Jones
Washington Irving: An American Original
Saturday, April 19, 2008 at 2:00 PM
Members' Room

April 2008 marks the 225th birthday of Washington Irving, one of America's first authors and a longtime New York Society Library trustee. In observance of this anniversary and National Library Week, the Library will offer a celebration of libraries featuring wine, refreshments, and a keynote lecture about Irving's life and work.

The first American writer to live by his pen and the first to gain an international reputation, Washington Irving gave his fledgling nation her own distinct literature with works such as A History of New York and "Rip van Winkle." Jones' new biography reveals a very human portrait of the sparkling public and challenging private life of this true American original.

Brian Jay Jones served as a speechwriter, ghostwriter, and policy analyst for two U.S. senators and now works as a writer and policy analyst. This is his first biography.

FAMILY EVENT & PARTY

Jules & Kate Feiffer
Henry, The Dog With No Tail
Thursday, April 17, 2008 at 4:00 PM
Members' Room; $5 per person

In this event, the Feiffers will share their story and talk about how they worked together to create a tale of a "satisfying journey of self-discovery" that "becomes funnier with each reading," according to School Library Journal. The audience will also have a chance to help create a new story which Mr. Feiffer will illustrate. Refreshments with the Feiffers will follow this event as part of our National Library Week celebration. For kindergarten and older.

One of America's most important editorial cartoonists and writers, Jules Feiffer is also the author and illustrator of acclaimed children's books such as Bark, George and The House Across the Street. Now he has collaborated as illustrator with his daughter Kate Feiffer, also the author of Double Pink, and Henry, the Dog With No Tail.

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