Tar Heel Talk #168 Summer Reading 2022 Summer Reading is in full swing. This year's theme is An Ocean of Adventures! The program will run through June 1st to August 31st. Registration for Summer Reading will be between May 15th and July 31st; all books read during the length of the program will be counted towards your total books read despite when you registered. Like every year, the program will be divided into an adults' division and a youths' division for patrons 20 years old and younger. Furthermore, patrons who obtain their books from BARD will be counted separately from patrons who are receiving materials from the library by mail. Any participant who reads at least five books will win a prize. Those who were the top three readers in each category will win an Amazon gift card. If you would like to sign up for Summer Reading today, you may contact our Outreach department at abls-outreach@ncdcr.gov and you will be added to the program. Rate and Review Your Summer Reading Picks Here is a new way to earn more points and more chances for prizes! If you're participating in our Summer Reading program this year, you can give us your ratings and reviews for the books you read this summer and get extra points towards prizes. Starting June 15th - Use the form to Rate and Review Your Summer Reading Picks. Rating a book will earn you 1 extra point for each review. If you choose to write a review for the same book, you will earn 2 additional points each. Each review must be at least one hundred words and must be original. Each book you read could be worth up to four points! You can only enter each book you read once. To access the Rate and Review page visit tinyurl.com/4wr38h5k Friends Corner Dear Friends, Summer is a time of renewal. Not just renewal of your membership with the Friends (HaHa... hint hint), but of our energy and our interests and the growing things around us. We encourage you to absorb this energy in the environment and use it to try something new and/or reconnect with something you enjoy. As the Pandemic stresses of the past couple years wane down a bit, take your energy and put it to good use. This could be as simple as trying new books from the library, and the library's reader advisors will be glad to help with that. Or, be more ambitious and join a group that advocates for the causes that are important to you. In our vision community there are local and national groups that would be glad to have your interest and energy. The National Federation of the Blind and the American Council for the Blind are both nationally established and active groups with local chapters. You can connect on their websites at NFB.org or ACB.org . You can also check with your regional Division of Services for the Blind (DSB) office for referrals to local social groups serving our vision community. Contact information for the DSB regional offices may be found here: https://www.ncdhhs.gov/divisions/services-blind/services-blind-district-offices We, the Friends, are going to take our summer energy and funnel it into our mission and support for the library and Braille Literacy. We are also pushing new energy into outreach for the NC vision community. I heard that folks liked my last recipe, so to keep your energy up go to the farmers market and get some fresh seasonal fruits and vegetables, then try a new recipe. Perhaps this one from my mom: "A Rewarding Recipe" 2 heaping cups of honest communication 2 heaping cups of love 2 heaping cups of kindness 2 heaping cups of cooperation 1 dash of hard work 1 pinch of humor Mix together with understanding and bake in warmth for 365 days a year. With warm regards, Susan King Friends Board PRESIDENT Susan King C (828) 238-6195 VICE PRESIDENT Sharon Benton H (919) 833-2259 SECRETARY Debbie Meadows C (919) 219-2677 TREASURER Mary Flanagan C (919) 602-1334 PAST PRESIDENT Eddie Weaver H (910) 619-4084 MEMBERS AT LARGE Latiesha Adams C (919) 576-3825 Verdina Gillette-Simms C (919) 414-5316 Jennifer Gray C (919) 451-1724 Patricia Tessnear C (252) 291-3405 Jim Turner C (919) 812-3538 Dawson Hart H (828) 212-0881 Donna Permar H (919) 452-6920 Kellie Hightower-Spruill C (336) 253-6566 Melaney Stein H (919) 656-1157 Yvonne Kea H (910) 283-3981 NON-VOTING Catherine Rubin Acting Regional Librarian - ABLS W (984) 236-1100 Staff Interview: Emily Tracey Q: What lead you to apply for NCABLS? I come from a public library background, so when I saw this opportunity, I thought it would be a great way to explore a new way of serving the community. Q: What aspect of the job do you find most intriguing? I find learning about the patrons and what they enjoy reading the most interesting. I like taking phone calls and talking to people about their interests and reading preferences. I've also enjoyed exploring the NLS catalog and learning about their national programs as well. Q: Have there been any highlights working here so far? Getting to know my coworkers has definitely been a highlight. Another highlight is getting positive feedback from patrons and really understanding how much our services help them. It's a refreshing and positive change from my experiences in retail. Q: Where did you work before NCABLS? I worked as a Library Assistant for Wake County Public Libraries and a Bookseller for Barnes and Noble. Q: Who are some of your favorite authors? When it comes to the classics, I like Edith Wharton and LM Montgomery. I love romance novels. My favorite historical authors are Tessa Dare and Beverly Jenkins, and my favorite contemporary author is Tessa Bailey. Q: What are some of your hobbies? Currently, it's listening to audiobooks and re-watching comedies on TV. Q: If you were famous, what would it be for? I'm not sure. I'm definitely someone who would rather stay out of the spotlight. When I was younger, I wanted to be an Olympic figure skater, so maybe I would try that. "Tar Heel Talk" is a quarterly publication of the State Library of North Carolina Accessible Books & Library Services section (SLNC-ABLS) and the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources. Address ... 1841 Capital Blvd Raleigh, NC 27635 Voice ........ (984) 236-1100 Fax ........... (919) 733-6910 Toll Free .. 1-888-388-2460 Email ........ ncabls@ncdcr.gov Governor ..................Roy Cooper Secretary.................Reid Wilson Regional Librarian Catherine Rubin Editor .........................Gina Powell Editorial Staff .........Clint Exum Web Page: statelibrary.ncdcr.gov/blind-print-disabled Internet Catalog, Ordering Site: ncabls.klas.com The Collections Communique A Quarterly Collections Update * The library has begun efforts into diversifying the large print collection. Earlier this year, we began adding two titles per month specifically written by African American authors. We hope to continue diversifying the collection as large-print vendors continue to add monthly order plans focusing on highlighting diverse voices. * The National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS) has decided to incorporate retail book descriptions for new titles being added to the collection. These retail book descriptions will replace the Library of Congress annotations for all new titles added to the collection going forward. NLS has stated that patrons should have the same access to the retail book descriptions available commercially. These descriptions are generally longer and provide more detail than the Library of Congress annotations have done in the past. * NLS has permanently ceased production of the large-print format Talking Book Topics (TBT) due to ongoing paper and supply shortages. TBT remains available online and in audio format, distributed via cartridge. We are working on a way to make TBT available via our online public access catalog, which will allow users to find lists of the latest books in TBT and then order books directly from these online lists. Stay tuned for further updates on this project. * If you are interested in receiving a 20-cell Braille e-reader device as part of your Braille reading service with us, please contact a reader advisor here at the library to add your name to our waiting list. * An update on the newly implemented Marrakesh Treaty. This treaty allows participating countries to circulate accessible books across borders. We now have over two-thousand of these titles in our collection in both audio and e-braille format. The audio book numbers begin with the prefix DBG, and the e-braille books begin with the prefix BRG. The audiobooks are available on BARD and via Books on Demand. The e-braille books are available via BARD only. New languages are being added every month to this collection. We now have books in Urdu, Cantonese, and Ukrainian! 2022 Writing Contest We were so pleased with the number of patrons who participated in our previous writing contest. We are planning to host it again this year. We will begin accepting entries on September 15th, 2022 until December 15th, 2022. Contestants' entries can be the following: short stories, novel excerpts, poems, songs, fiction/nonfiction, auto/biographies, or something entirely different; be creative! All submissions will be judged by the following criteria: Clarity, Spelling, Grammar, and Creativity. Each contestants' entry has the potential to be added to our collection. If we select your entry to be added to the collection, we will notify you before it is published. Before a contestant's submission is added to the library's collection, it will be subject to proofreading. The contest will be divided into four separate age groups: ages 8 and younger, ages 9 to 12, ages 13 to 17, and 18 and older. Your submission will automatically be entered to your age group. 2022 Writing Contest Rules * Contestants must be a patron of Accessible Books and Library Services * Your entry must be an original work. * Please do not use previously published materials. * Only one entry per contestant will be allowed. * There is a 5,000-word count limit for all submissions. * All mail-in entries must be typewritten, at least 14-point font, double- spaced with numbered pages, and include a cover page with a title and the author's name. * If your entry is in Braille, an additional translated word file will be required. * If your entry is in an audio format, please include a transcript as a word file. * If your entry contains images, please include alt text. * If your submission is in a different language, an English translation will be required. Acceptable Submission Formats All writing contest submissions should be in one of the following formats: Word File, Audio File, Braille File, Mail-In Type-written. Prizes The following prizes will be available to each age group: 1st Place - Submission will be added to the library's collection and made available for download. In addition, the contestant will receive a certificate, and the first- place prize. 2nd Place - Submission will be added to the library's collection and made available for download. In addition, the contestant will receive a certificate, and the second-place prize. 3rd Place - Submission will be added to the library's collection and made available for download. In addition, the contestant will receive a certificate, and the third- place prize. Honorable Mentions - Submission will be added to the library's collection and made available for download. In addition, the contestant will receive a certificate. All other contestants will receive a certificate for their entry. From Craig's Desk to you...some content intended for people who are blind or print impaired by Craig Hayward, Systems and Digital Services Librarian (aka The Tech Librarian) Hi there readers! It's your friendly local technology librarian, Craig Hayward, here to highlight a recent episode of the Craig's Desk podcast that I host monthly. Tune in regularly to the podcast and I'll to my best to answer your reading and library technology questions. You ask the questions and I'll look for the answers. Think of it as a frequently asked questions program for you to listen to. On a recent episode we revealed a good tip that could be something you may not realize about the multibook, books on demand, cartridges that you get from the library. Did you know that you can keep the books and magazines forever that are on a cartridge? They do not expire. You just need to copy them off of the cartridge. Best of all the library has everything you need to do it. I hope you'll listen to the show to find out how to do this along with more answers and insight about the library. On that topic, I'd love to hear from you. Without your questions, comments and feedback, I don't have much of a show. Please send me your questions big or small to craigsdesknc@gmail.com In addition to answering your questions, I use this show as a way to let you know about some of the great reader resources on the library's website and an inside look at some things that you have asked about coming in NLS's future, like the braille e-reader, the future of BARD and finding Marrakesh books. If you are a regular podcast listener, Craig's Desk is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google and our podcast platform called PodBean. To find the show use your favorite podcatching app and search for Craig's Desk, with an apostrophe S. If you don't regularly listen to podcasts it just so happens on our first episode of Craig's Desk we introduced you to how to listen to Podcasts. After you listen to that one, I recommend going back for more episodes from our podcast website, provided for us generously by the State Library of North Carolina, at https://nccraigsdesk.podbean.com/. New Tips for Better Service * You may return material now. We are checking in and checking out material. * If you receive cartridges, please return the cartridges one at a time. * If you leave a phone message, please spell your last name, state the city you live in, and leave us a phone number to respond to your call if necessary. Also, due to possible phone connection problems it always helps to repeat the phone number if possible. * If you are calling for someone else, please leave their name and city, so we can pull up their record in our computers and would have another contact number if we can't reach you. * In order to avoid a delay in your service, notify us immediately of any change of address. * If you email the library, please include your name, phone number, and mailing address in the email. Download Something NOBLE One of the many services we offer our patrons is access to our version of BARD we call NOBLE (North Carolina BARD Local). NOBLE features digital braille books and digital talking books and magazines which are published in North Carolina and produced by our library. While there is no patron application necessary to use NOBLE, all media downloaded from NOBLE can only be played on a digital book player approved by the National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled. You may visit NOBLE to see if there is anything you would like to download by going to bit.ly/LBPH-NOBLE. Download newly recorded magazines and books today! Library Closing Dates: Monday, Independence Day July 4, 2022 Monday, Memorial Day, September 5, 2022