April is...30 Days of Poetry

April is National Poetry Month.

2014 National Poetry Month Poster

Started in 1996 by the Academy of American Poets (poets.org), National Poetry Month is a way to celebrate poetry and its place in American culture. Ever think about how much a part of our culture poetry really is? Think for a minute about some of the idioms we use:

• When someone gets a payback for something bad he has done, we call it "poetic justice."
• When someone ignores rules or plays loose with facts we sometimes call it "poetic license."
• When someone speaks eloquently or in a rhythmic manner we often say that person "waxes poetic."
• When an athlete performs her sport flawlessly, we say that she is "poetry in motion."

"Poetry is the journal of the sea animal living on land, wanting to fly in the air.  Poetry is a search for syllables to shoot at the barriers of the unknown and the unknowable.  Poetry is a phantom script telling how rainbows are made and why they go away."–Carl Sandburg

During the month of April, the Library and Learning Resource Center will celebrate National Poetry Month by posting on this blog and other social media sites a book spine poem every weekday. A book spine poem is simply arranging books in a stack in which the titles become the lines of a poem. Here is a sample of one of last year's book spine poems about a cow's life:

Join us throughout April as we celebrate National Poetry Month.

Watch Out for the Heels

Stiletto Network: Inside the Women's Power Circles that Are Changing the Face of Business by Pamela Ryckman

Ryckman discusses a variety of networks, from salons to dinner groups, that business women have formed to be successful in their careers.

Pair this with Sheryl Sandberg's book Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead. 

Skirt Steak

Skirt Steak: Women Chefs on Standing the Heat and Staying in the Kitchen by Charlotte Druckman;

The author speaks with over 70 chefs, including Lidia Bastianich, Alice Waters, and Judy Rodgers, to learn their tips on surviving in the culinary world.

This book is now available in the Sullivan Lexington Library with the call #: 641.5082 D794s.

AT&T's Wake-Up Call

The Bellwomen: The Story of the Landmark AT&T Sex Discrimination by Marjorie Stockford

With qualified women being denied jobs and others being treated poorly while working at AT&T, it is no wonder why the women employees and their attorney were angry at AT&T. Ms. Stockford explains the case that affected over 13,000 AT&T employees, and she highlights three of the employees who received benefits from a $38 million settlement. 

This book is available in the Sullivan Lexington Library with the call #: 344.7301 S864b

Let the Poems Tell the Story

Poems from the Women’s Movement edited by Honor Moore

Honor Moore edits this collection of poems by poets Sylvia Plath, Muriel Rukeyser, Anne Sexton, and Alice Walker, just to name a few. These poems reflect the themes of the women’s movement from the 1960s through the 1980s. Read some and be inspired.

This book is available in the Sullivan Lexington Library with the call #: 811.5408 P744

Tough Choices

Tough Choices: A Memoir by Carly Fiorina

She worked at AT&T, Lucent Technologies, and Hewlett-Packard. Find out what tough choices the former HP CEO had to make by checking out her memoir.

This book is available in the Sullivan Lexington Library with the call #: 338.761 F521t

Women's History without Borders

Paradise beneath Her Feet: How Islamic Women Are Transforming the Middle East by Isobel Coleman

Though we often think of women’s history in the context of the United States, author Isobel Coleman reveals how women in countries like Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia have made strides in securing rights for women. Ms. Coleman traveled through these countries documenting what she saw and learned there to write her book.

This book is available in the Sullivan Lexington Library with the call #: 305.48 C692p

A Thousand Years Over a Hot Stove

A Thousand Years Over a Hot Stove: A History of American Women ToldThrough Food, Recipes, and Remembrances by Laura Schenone

As the title suggests, author Laura Schenone presents a history of American women and the food culture surrounding them in this book that is packed with recipes and stories.

This book is available in the Sullivan Lexington Library with the call #: 641.5 S324t

Women Shaping American Law

Equal: Women Reshape American Law by Fred Strebeigh

As one might expect, this book features women like Sandra Day O’Connor and Anita Hill. It also includes the story of a widowed father who fought for and won the right to have Social Security benefits for himself and his son. His lawyer was Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

This book is available in the Sullivan Lexington Library with the call #: 342.7308 S914e

A Noble Lady

Mama Miti: Wangari Maathai and the Trees of Kenya by Donna Jo Napoli

As a proponent of education, empowering women, and conservation, Dr. Maathai worked to plant trees in her native Kenya to give people sustainable jobs there and to preserve the landscape. Her efforts were noticed when she received the Nobel Peace Prize.

This book and a companion to it, Planting the Trees of Kenya: The Story of Wangari Maathai by Claire Nivola, are now available in the Sullivan Lexington Library. They both have the call #: JF N. 

Barbie's World

Barbie and Ruth: The Story of the World’s Most Famous Doll and the Woman Who Created Her by Robin Gerber

                Who knew that Ruth Handler, the creator of the Barbie doll which she named after her daughter, had such a fascinating and at times troubled life? Check out Ms. Gerber’s book to learn more about Ruth Handler and the Barbie doll.

This book is now available in the Sullivan Lexington Library with the call #: 338.7 G362b

Anonymous, Goodyear tires, and the Supreme Court: What Do They Have in Common?

Grace and Grit: My Fight for Equal Pay and Fairness at Goodyear and Beyond by Lilly Ledbetter and Lanier Isom

What do an anonymous note, the Supreme Court, a tire manufacturer, and President Obama have in common? Read Lilly Ledbetter’s book to find out about the anonymous note she got and how it changed her life.

This book is available in the Sullivan Lexington Library with the call #: 305.42 L472g.

Her Pursuit of Excellence

In Pursuit of Flavor by Edna Lewis and Mary Goodbody

Perhaps no other cook has played such a central role in the renaissance of traditional southern cooking as Edna Lewis. When asked who has influenced them most, chefs from New York to Little Washington to Charleston cite Ms. Lewis and her classic collection of recipes, In Pursuit of Flavor, first published in 1988. Summary provided by the University Press of Virginia. This book is now available in the Sullivan Lexington Library with the call #: 641.5975 L631i.

There is a picture book biography of Chef Lewis too. The book is Bring Me Some Apples and I’ll Make You a Pie: A Story about Edna Lewis by Robbin Gourley, and it is now available in the Sullivan Lexington Library with the call #: JF G.

Mountaintops and Valleys: A Personal History of the Civil Rights Movement

To the Mountaintop: My Journey through the Civil Rights Movement by Charlayne Hunter-Gault

                Ms. Hunter-Gault, a journalist who has worked for PBS and CNN, was one of two black students to integrate the University of Georgia in 1961, and she was the first black woman writer for The New Yorker magazine. She tells about her experiences as a black woman during the Civil Rights era in this book.

This book is now available in the Sullivan Lexington Library with the call #: 070.92 H945t

They Aimed for the Stars

The Mercury 13: The True Story of Thirteen Women and the Dream of SpaceFlight by Martha Ackmann

Ms. Ackmann tells the true story of thirteen women, pilots and dreamers, who tested and trained to be astronauts. These women weren’t allowed to go into space though, despite passing the rigorous physical and mental tests. Read this book to find out more about these remarkable women and why they didn’t become astronauts.

This book is now available in the Sullivan Lexington Library with the call #: 629.45 A182m

Let's Get Creative

Creative Girl: The Ultimate Guide for Turning Talent and Creativity into a Real Career by Katharine Sise

                

If you have an insatiable drive and an eye for good design, you may want to take some cues from entrepreneur and author Katherine Sise. She designs her own jewelry, some of which has been featured on the show The View and worn by Hollywood actresses, and she gives readers advice on how to successfully operate their own business.

This book is available in the Sullivan Lexington Library with the call #: 650.1082 S622c

A Food Revolution

Alice Waters & Chez Panisse: The Romantic, Impractical, OftenEccentric, Ultimately Brilliant Making of a Food Revolution by Thomas McNamee

                Alice Waters opened her restaurant Chez Panisse in the early 1970s, and she incorporated local and organic foods into her menu. Using these products was a bit unheard of at the time, which is why the subtitle of the book references Ms. Waters starting a food revolution.

This book is now available in the Sullivan Lexington Library with the call #: 641.5092 M113a

An Author and Her Famous Cats

Millions of Cats by Wanda Gag and Wanda Gág: The Girl Who Lived to Draw by Deborah Ray

The catchy refrain of, “hundreds of cats, thousands of cats, millions and billions and trillions of cats,” found in the book Millions of Cats can mesmerize young children. This book was written and illustrated by a children’s author and illustrator named Wanda Gág. Ms. Gág won multiple awards from the American Library Association, including a Newbery honor award for Millions of Cats. 

Come and borrow this book today and share it with a child you love.  It is now available in the Sullivan Lexington Library in the juvenile fiction section with the call #: JF G. If you want to know more about her, a biography of the hardworking and talented Ms. Gág, Wanda Gág: The Girl Who Lived to Draw, is also available at the Sullivan Lexington Library with the call #: JF R. 

Women's History-Lean In and Learn

March is Women's History Month, and this month the library will promote women's history on our Facebook, Pinterest, Tumblr, and Twitter pages. Each day on the blog we will feature a different library resource that relates to women's history. Today's highlighted book is Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead by Sheryl Sandberg.

Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead by Sheryl Sandberg

The Chief Operating Officer for Facebook talks frankly with women about how to be successful in the corporate world. Lean in and lend her your eyes and ears.

This best-selling book is available in the Sullivan Lexington Library with the call #: 658.4092 S213l