Libraries across America celebrate Freedom to Read Week each year in support of free expression and the dangers of censorship. In honor of this year’s celebration, which takes place nationally on September 27-October 3, 2020, Charlotte Mecklenburg Library is providing programming for ages 0-18 to celebrate intellectual freedom, First Amendment rights and raise awareness for youth and teens about censorship and book banning.

Please consider registering for one of the following virtual events and starting (or continuing) this discussion with any children and teens in your life. Help us celebrate the freedom to read.

ImaginOn Family Storytime: Freedom to Read Week

Monday, September 28, 2020 at 10:30 a.m.

You’re never too young to celebrate the First Amendment, we say! If you have a little one age 0-5, you are welcome to join our special Banned Books storytime, where we will be reading age-appropriate picture books such as And Tango Makes Three, This Day in June or Prince & Knight that have been banned or challenged in other communities for their representation of gay and trans characters. Eight of the Top Ten Most Challenged Books of 2019 were challenged because of LGBTQIA+ content. We invite you to join us virtually with an open heart and an open mind for a gentle storytime celebration of acceptance and free expression. This program will be provided by ImaginOn children’s staff. Register HERE.

ImaginOn Story Explorers: Banned Books Bingo

Wednesday, September 30th at 2 p.m.

What do the Harry Potter series, Captain Underpants, A Wrinkle in Time, and the Goosebumps series all have in common? They are on the top list of the most frequently banned books in America. If you are between ages 5-11 and would like to learn more about what books are banned and challenged in schools across the U.S. and why, please join us for this virtual Banned Books Bingo program. This program will be provided by ImaginOn children’s staff. Register HERE.

Banned Book Teen Trivia

Saturday, October 3rd at 2 p.m.

Calling all trivia fans! Test your knowledge on a variety of topics such as popular and fandom culture to win bragging rights. Come join us for an afternoon of trivia and test your knowledge for Banned Book Read. This program will be provided by South Boulevard Library staff and is recommended for teens ages 12-18. Register HERE.

All three events will take place on Zoom. You’ll receive an email with a link to the secure Zoom meeting 24 hours before the meeting. Hope to see you there!

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This blog was written by Becca Worthington of Charlotte Mecklenburg Library’s ImaginOn: The Joe and Joan Martin Center.

*update: the RBdigital migration has been delayed until October 21, 2020

Do you use RBdigital to check out and download digital audioboooks? OverDrive has acquired the RBdigital platform, and on October 15, 2020 audiobook content from RBdigital will move to the OverDrive platform. Read more about the acquisition here.

The RBdigital website and application will eventually be retired but for now this change will only affect RBdigital audiobook content. Digital magazines will still be available via RBdigital. 

If you are a current RBdigital user, please read the answers to our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) below to learn how this change will affect you.

Why are RBdigital audiobooks moving to OverDrive?

OverDrive has acquired RBmedia’s library business, RBdigital. This means that audiobooks from RBdigital will be transferred to the OverDrive platform. You will be able to access these titles through the OverDrive website, and the Libby app. When this transfer is complete, audiobooks will no longer be available through the RBdigital platform and app.

When will audiobooks be transferred from RBdigital to OverDrive?

RBdigital audiobooks will be transferred to OverDrive on Thursday, October 15, 2020. The process will take approximately 24 hours. During this time, RBdigital audiobooks will not be available.

What happens if I have a title(s) currently checked out on RBdigital?

Current checkouts will be available through the remainder of their lending period in the RBdigital app. Current checkouts will not be moved to OverDrive. This will allow you to finish your title without disruption or risk of losing your place in the book.

What happens to the holds I have through RBdigital?

Holds will not be moved to OverDrive. You can export your Transaction History from the RBdigital website by accessing My Account > Profiles.

Can I move my holds to OverDrive?

Yes! You can manually place yourself on a new holds list in OverDrive.

• To place holds on titles in OverDrive, search Charlotte Mecklenburg Library’s OverDrive collection to see if the audiobook you’d like to place on hold is already part of the collection. If the audiobook is already in the collection, place a hold on this title again in OverDrive or Libby to add yourself to the list. Don’t worry if you do not see the title in the collection. It will show up soon after the title is transferred from RBdigital to OverDrive.  In the event that the title does not transfer, you can suggest the Library purchase titles here.

What happens to my checkout history and wish lists from RBdigital?

Checkout history and wish lists will not be moved to OverDrive. You can export your Transaction History from the RBdigital website by accessing My Account > Profiles. To re-create your checkout history in Libby, mark titles you’ve already read using Tags. You can also re-create your wish list in Libby using Tags or on the OverDrive website and classic app using the Wish List feature.

If you’re new to OverDrive, visit our OverDrive resource page, check out this getting started guide, or watch these videos to learn more.

Don’t have a library card? Sign up for one here!

If you need more support, Charlotte Mecklenburg Library staff are available by email, chat, and phone.  

June is Great Outdoors Month!

Whether you’re biking or beachcombing, the Library has everything you need to prepare for your summer outside!

Great Outdoors Month began as a weeklong celebration in 1998 and grew into a monthlong celebration to highlight outdoor recreation benefits.  According to a recent study, spending two hours a week in nature really is good for your health.  It’s also free!  We’re sharing our favorite ways to explore the outdoors this summer:

• Johnny Molloy’s The Best in Tent Camping guide will help you find the perfect campsite.  Download the book before you go for detailed maps and ratings. 
• Do you love the sound of nature but not the bugs or harsh elements?  Stream or download your favorite sounds, like a peaceful mountain stream or the ocean with Freegal, a music service free with your library card.
• Prepare for any outdoor adventures by with the latest digital issues of Backpacker magazine.  Other nature magazines available on your mobile device or computer include Mother Earth News and Field and Stream. 
• Take a hike—literally—with recommendations from Backpacker Hidden Gems or North Carolina hiking guides in our catalog, also available to download.
• Bring your school-aged children to a Parks and Rec program this summer at many of our locations (registration required).   We’ve partnered with them to bring a little outside indoors with turtles, insects, and wildlife programs. 
• If you’re tired of roasting the same old s’mores, try something different around your campfire with recipes from The Campout Cookbook.
• Summer is a terrific time to plant beans, tomatoes, and Brussels sprouts; get tips for your garden from North Carolina Extension Gardener Handbook. 
• Pack a healthy snack for your next hike or bike trip with an energy bar recipe from Power Hungry. 
• Are you curious about whitewater rafting or mountain biking, but don't know where to begin?  Joe Miller’s  Adventure Carolinas is full of advice for adventure activity beginners.
• Create an environmentally friendly and sustainable home with Building a Sustainable Home.
• Dust off your bicycle and find new paths in Road Biking North Carolina. If your tires are flat, choose from our collection of bicycle repair manuals.
• Teach children the skills you learned from Boy Scouts with The Young Adventurer's Guide to (almost) Everything.
• Read Camp, a collection of camping and living outdoors stories, around a campfire in your backyard.
• Take a copy of Fishing Essentials for Dummies with you and rent a fishing pole from Mecklenburg County. 
• Let the forest heal you!  Learn about Shinrin-yoku, the Japanese practice of healing forest bathing, with these books.

Don’t forget to log your outside fun as part of your Summer Break activities.  The entire family can explore or play outside today with these suggested activities as we celebrate the Great Outdoors all summer long!

For many Americans, July 4 is synonymous with Independence Day. However, in one North Carolina county, Independence Day comes early, on May 20 to be exact.

Beginning in 1825, the residents of Mecklenburg County celebrated the writing and signing of the Mecklenburg Declaration which supposedly took place on May 20, 1775, a full year before the more famous Declaration of Independence. Over the next century, May 20 was the time when residents set off countless fireworks, dined at celebratory dinners at churches, civic organizations and fraternities, held picnics, conducted parades as well as patriotic pageants and hosted dignitaries, including four United States Presidents.

By the time July 4 came around, there was very little enthusiasm to organize and prepare for another massive celebration. Except for the occasional private affairs and individual public drunkenness, most Charlotteans celebrated the day either quietly in their homes or traveled to nearby towns where the activities were in great abundance. This continued for almost 125 years.

During World War II, local officials began to encourage citizens to organize events to celebrate the fourth of July. In 1949, under the leadership of the local chapter of Disabled American Veterans, Charlotte held its first American Independence Day parade. 5,000 people filled the street to watch the Plato Price High School Marching Band and cheered when they played “Stars and Stripes Forever.” Also, in attendance were members of the 504^th Airborne, veterans from the Spanish American War, members of a local cavalry club to honor World War I Veterans, and several trained goats. Twelve planes from the Air National Guard flew high over the city in special formation. Former WWI nurse and “DAV Sweetheart, Minnie Gwaltney was also honored for her continued care of veterans. Thus, began a new tradition in Charlotte.

For more information about Mecklenburg Independence Day celebrations, see: https://www.cmstory.org/exhibits/mecklenburg-declaration-independence/mecklenburg-declaration-independence

Picture of July  parade from the July 5, 1950 Charlotte Observer.

Yes, you read that right!  

The legal separation of the Thirteen Colonies from Great Britain in 1776 actually occurred on July 2, when the Second Continental Congress voted to approve a resolution of independence proposed by Richard Henry Lee of Virginia. Lee made three main points, to include a declaration of independence, a call to form foreign alliances and a “plan for confederation”: 

Lee’s Resolution, June 7, 1776 (National Archives and Records Administration: 301685 )

After approving Lee’s Resolution, Congress turned its attention to The Committee of Five’s drafted statement of independence. The Committee met and wrote what became the Declaration of Independence between June 11-28. Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Roger Sherman, Robert Livingston, and Benjamin Franklin all served on the Committee, with Thomas Jefferson leading as the principle author.  On July 2 the document was approved, and by July 4, 1776 Congress agreed on the final wording, thus leading to the official adoption of the Declaration of Independence. 

The Committee of Five (National Archives and Records Administration: 532924 )

So, should we celebrate July 2 as our actual day of independence? It seems that John Adams thought so. He wrote to his wife Abigail: 

“The second day of July 1776 will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more.” 

Portrait of John Adams (National Archives and Records Administration: 50780435)

Adams's prediction of how Americans would celebrate this occasion was accurate, despite being off by two days. From the outset, Americans celebrated independence on July 4, the date shown on the much-publicized Declaration of Independence, rather than on July 2, the date the resolution of independence was approved in a closed session of Congress.  

The signers of the Declaration of Independence were not all present on July 4, 1776, although Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Benjamin Franklin did write that they signed it the same day the document was approved and adopted. Other members of Congress, led by John Hancock, the President of the Congress, signed the Declaration nearly a month later on August 2. 

The King of England viewed the members of the Second Continental Congress as traitors, rebelling against the crown. None of the signers were sentenced to death in response to their rebellious actions, but most were punished indirectly through the burning of their homes, imprisonment, or physical harm. 

Oddly, both John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, the only signers of the Declaration of Independence later to serve as Presidents of the United States, died on the same day: July 4, 1826, which was the 50th anniversary of the Declaration. 

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Sources:  

Massachusetts Historical Society. Letter from John Adams to Abigail Adams, 3 July 1776. Accessed July 2019. https://www.masshist.org/digitaladams/archive/popup?id=L17760703jasecond&page=L17760703jasecond_2   

National Archives and Records Administration. Declaration of Independence. Docs Teach. Accessed July 2019. https://www.docsteach.org/documents/document/the-declaration-of-independence 

National Archives and Records Administration. Lee’s Resolution. Docs Teach. Accessed July 2019. https://www.docsteach.org/documents/document/lee-resolution-independence  

Charlotte Pride Festival and Parade 

Every third weekend in August, Charlotte Pride holds its annual Pride Festival and Parade. Since Charlotte’s first Pride Parade in 2013, it’s grown bigger, better and has attracted hundreds of thousands of people. In 2018, 165,000 people attended Pride. This year, over 200,000 attended with over 6,000 participants. 

Charlotte Mecklenburg Library  

Charlotte Mecklenburg Library prides itself on being a welcoming place for all—a place where we celebrate diversity and inclusion. As part of that mission, the Library started participating in the Pride Parade in 2018 by being one of the many groups to walk in the parade. Our group photo of that day gained the most likes on Instagram of all the library posts up to that point. During the parade, it was clear by the amount of people excitedly shouting, “It’s the library!” that our participation was important to our community.

This year the Library also held a Pride Summit at Beatties Ford Regional Library on August 13, organized by Viviette White. The Summit brought community members and organizers alike to the library. Participants met established and emerging leaders from organizations such as One Voice Charlotte, PFLAG Charlotte, Atrium Health and the Library for an afternoon of learning, networking and the kick-off of Pride week at the library. This event was the first of its kind and hopefully the first of many more LGBTQ+ events in the library system.  

This year, 25 staff members and their families from different library locations participated in the parade and represented the system by walking. One of the participants said, “I’m so glad I was able to participate. Seeing how supportive and appreciative the community was makes me glad the Library is involved. I can’t wait to participate next year!” Those who were not able to attend the parade aided in various way leading up to the event. Thank you to all who supported our efforts to bring Library resources to the Charlotte community and helping us build a stronger community!  

Happy Pride! You are welcome here. 

Beyond the Parade:  

Although Charlotte Pride is over for this year, the Library provides the community with many LGBTQ+ resources and materials throughout the year. Here are a few: 

Library Booklists 

During the parade we handed out bookmarks with book recommendations for children, teens and adults. You can view those books here.  

The American Library Association’s Rainbow Books List is a curated bibliography highlighting books with significant gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender or queer/questioning content, aimed at children and youth from birth to age 18.

The first and most enduring award for GLBT books is the Stonewall Book Awards, sponsored by the ALA’s Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Round Table.

Community Resources and Organizations 

Time Out Youth is a Library partner and an organization that provides a safe space for LGBTQ+ youth to be their authentic selves.

PFLAG Charlotte provides support for parents and caregivers of LGBTQ youth. They have some great resources available here.

For more information on Charlotte Pride, check out their website. They host a lot of other events throughout the year as well.

This blog was written by Abs Keller

Summer is the perfect time for fun, mystery reading but, admittedly, it can be tough to get your hands on the in-demand mystery books. For instance,  the psychological thriller The Chain by Adrian McKinty, with its strong buzz, has a long request list for Library customers. While that particular title may be a late summer—or fall---option, best-selling writer Kate Atkinson’s new title Big Sky, a continuation of the Jackson Brodie (detective) series is a great read while you wait!        

What other options do mystery lovers have for the remainder of the season?  We suggest revisiting some of selections released earlier this year that might have been overlooked. Here’s a list of nine novels offering a variety of stories from the grittyJ.D. Robb police procedural in Connections in Death with Lieutenant Eve Dallas to the witty English mystery The Golden Tresses of the Dead: a Flavia de Luce novel by C. Alan Bradley which spotlights a 12-year-old sleuth.

For the devoted, or even the occasional, mystery summer reader, there are always new characters to discover or series to revsit for the next case.

This blog was written by Lawrence Turner

How valuable is your library card? Library card holder Angela Glennon was surprised to find out just how much money she saves on one of her weekly trips to Charlotte Mecklenburg Library.

When Glennon’s children were babies and toddlers, she considered the Library to be their escape, a free place to go where they could have adventures in books, attend fun children’s programs and meet other young families.

As her three children grew into voracious readers, the library became even more essential to Glennon and her family. They all look forward to their weekly trips so they can stock up on new books. They appreciate the knowledgeable staff members who help them find books on whatever the children are obsessed with that week— it’s ranged from snakes to The Magic Tree House, from horror stories to American history and from butterflies to picture books with photo-realistic illustrations. Glennon says, “No request is too crazy for those dedicated librarians!”

With the American Library Association’s Library Value Calculator, Glennon found out she saved her family $660 in just one visit. That visit included attending adult and children’s programs, checking out more than 30 books and using a library computer, as well as asking the staff reference questions. Upon seeing her total value, she remarked, “That's a lot of money and value per visit! I'm sure the total amount varies each time and whether we attend a program that week, but, as a family that has maxed out our library card in the past, I'm sure there have been trips where we've saved even more money. Obviously, we could never afford to purchase all those books, so we're always happy to use the library!”

Even though Glennon’s focus is on her family, she’s also attended many Library-sponsored adult programs. Through them she’s met interesting, wonderful people, acknowledging she’s learned so much more in a group than she could on her own.

Just like Glennon, you can find out how much you can save with a Charlotte Mecklenburg Library card by clicking here.

Know someone who doesn’t have a Library card but should? Send them here today so they can start saving money and enjoy all the benefits: sign up for a library card.

This blog was written by Darcey Mesaris.

September is National Library Card Sign-Up Month. As a librarian and lifelong learner, I can think of a million reasons to sign-up for a library card but, in my opinion, the most important reason everyone should have a library card is this: access.

I still remember the awe I felt walking into my hometown library as a young kid to get my first library card. With that precious new card, I was able to wander the streets of Paris, learn how volcanoes erupt and get stranded on a desert island. I learned so much from materials I wasn’t able to find anywhere else. Later, as a struggling college and graduate student, I saved money on required reading and internet service, thanks to my library card. As a voracious reader, my library card also provided me opportunities to explore a multitude of resources to educate myself on whatever random topic I am currently obsessed with learning. Even before I became a librarian, one of the first things I did upon moving somewhere new was to sign-up for a library card, as I wanted to enjoy the benefit of access.

Throughout my career in libraries, I witnessed firsthand the power access to information and resources provides to the community. For instance, one of my regular customers found himself unhappy in his career and wanted a change. He came in daily after work to use the computers to job search and update his resume. He would also check out books in areas of professional development, such as leadership and self-confidence. We guided him to our online databases where he could take classes on time management and other business skills. After four months, he returned one evening to proudly announce he had secured a new job. Even after achieving his goal, he remained a frequent library user as he still needed access to business resources (like Reference USA that are free through the library) to help him continue to succeed.

Another customer who used her library card to access the public computers since she did not have one at home, came to the reference desk, in tears, asking how to sign out of the computer.  After offering her help, she explained she was trying to create the program for her wedding service on one of our computers and feared she’d lost all her work. She wanted to leave before she felt any worse.  

I told her I was not going to let her leave in tears and helped her make her program. She spent nearly three hours on that program and when she left, with a hardcopy of the program in her hands, she beamed with joy.

Throughout my years as a librarian, I’ve helped so many people feel the same joy I did when I first signed up for my library card. My customers have traveled the world, expanded their knowledge and entertained themselves, all with one little card.  So many people educated themselves at the Library -  all because of the access their library card gives them. This is more than just books, and goes beyond to resources, services, programs and people who truly care about the people in their communities. And all of this is FREE.  The access a library card provides is unparalleled.

Sign up here for your own Library card.

This blog was written by Darcey Mesaris