What Happened When A Library Spoofed Michael Jackson's 'Beat It' With 'Read It'

There's quite an interesting Library Journal story about the adventures of Pennsylvania's Landsdowne Public Library after a group of teens made a video called "Read It" based on the Michael Jackson hit, "Beat It." Even though the kids came up with their own words and it was clearly intended to send a public service message, not steal commercial traffic from Jackson or the record company, the video was removed from YouTube for copyright infringement. But the library appealed. And you can watch the results for yourself!

Taos Library Carpeting Update - We'll Reopen Monday!

There's light at the end of our re-carpeting project.  Although the workmen will still be finishing up in the staff areas next week, we'll re-open Monday morning (January 18th) as usual. I'm happy to report we've used "green" glue and although I'm pretty sensitive, the fumes have not been a problem. I hope you can see in the photos how much newer, cleaner and smoother the new carpeting is. Better yet, come see in person!

Here I am holding a panel of the new carpeting as one of the workmen holds up a patch of dirty, old carpeting just removed from our work area.

Re-Carpeting Project

Wondering why the library is closed for a whole week? We are in the midst of re-carpeting the entire library. We are all hard at work moving books, furniture, and packing up desks. You may imagine how challenging it is for librarians to have books be in total disarray. By the end of the week, order will prevail! The new carpet looks great. It will all be a worthwhile endeavor. We look forward to reopening the doors to serve you.

Timbuktu Residents Save Ancient Manuscripts From Islamic Radicals

Residents of Timbuktu, Mali have reportedly saved most ancient manuscripts in its famed library from being burned by Islamic radicals in control of the city, NPR reports.

The latest estimates... suggest that about 2,000 manuscripts were torched, while the remainder of the estimated 30,000 at the institute survived. Apparently residents removed and hid many of the manuscripts, anticipating that the Islamists would try to destroy them.

The manuscripts include ornately decorated Qurans and other religious texts, as well as poetry and mathematics. Many of the works date from the 14th to the 16th centuries, when Timbuktu was a major regional crossroads.