So You Want to be a Prison Librarian? : An Interview with a Corrections Librarian | INALJ

So You Want to be a Prison Librarian? : An Interview with a Corrections Librarian

by Josh Rimmer, Senior Editor


* special note the author had permission from the interviewee to publish this as long as she remained anonymous


While
I was writing my last article about librarianship and service, one of
my inspirations came from research I was conducting on prison
librarianship. How many times do you see a posting for a corrections
librarian position on INDEED, or other big job boards? I’ll be honest,
I’ve notice quite a few; however, it seems that discussions about the
line of work and its issues are not given enough of a spotlight.




I was able to locate materials for immediate consumption, e.g., an old ALA column from a prison librarian and a neat NPR piece, but I didn’t feel as if I had an “understanding” of the work. Mintern, a corrections librarian who runs the blog, So You Want to be a Prison Librarian
was kind enough to grant me an interview. We’ll call the interviewee
Mintern, and here she talks about her background, why she chose prison
librarianship and provides INALJ readers insight and perspective on the
profession. Read more...

Banned Books in Prison — Annoyed Librarian

March 6, 2014 By Annoyed Librarian Leave a Comment

There’s a news article about prison libraries that makes me wonder what stance the ALA would take on the matter.

In almost all ways it’s an exemplary tale of how New York
city libraries are trying to provide library service to the local prison
populations. This is a great thing to do unless the goal of prison is
merely to provide prisoners with unrelieved misery.

And given the amount of time prisoners have on their hands,
reading is a popular activity. The main problem is a lack of books and
service.

For example, at the prison the Brooklyn Public Library is
working with, the “library” consists of a cart that can hold 2-300
books, which is wheeled around like the meal and medicine carts.

That at least implies that reading material is as essential
to life as food and medicine, which I suspect many librarians would
agree with. However, a wheeled cart is hardly like a decently stocked
library that prisoners can browse. It’s even worse than a bookmobile. Read more...

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• Bookmobile driver calling it quits after 3 decades on the road (ksl.com)
• Throwback Thursday - When the library came to you on four wheels (allansw.wordpress.com)
• The Boxcar Library: A Bookmobile for a Logging Camp (neatorama.com)
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• Still Relevant? A Talk With a Librarian | Mark Rubinstein (nylibraryclub.org)

ASCLA Online Learning Course: Going to Jail How Juvenile Books Portray the Prison Experience

Register now for ASCLA’s online course

“Going to Jail: How Juvenile Books Portray the Prison Experience”

with Kate Todd! 

 Four week course

Live sessions

Thursdays, Feb. 24-Mar. 23, 2014

1-2pm CST

Books
for children and young adults can portray how jail sentences impact
individuals, their children, their parents and their community.



Course Description: In this new 4-week course, you'll
read several juvenile books, from picture books to teen novels, which
explore the prison experience. You'll analyze the books in an online
discussion, discuss age appropriate information that should be provided
for youth, look at statistics about who goes to jail and consider the
role that libraries can play in assisting patrons dealing with these
issues. The discussion/chat can also be a model for librarians who want
to lead book discussions for their patrons.



Learning Outcomes:

Participants who complete this course should be able to:

• assist children, young adults, parents and teachers in finding age appropriate books that portray the impact of incarceration;
• become familiar with resources that provide facts and research about the population in the United States that is behind bars;
• Develop appropriate services for their communities that address
  literacy and other needs of families impacted by correctional
  facilities.

Students who complete the required coursework for “Going to Jail: How
Juvenile Books Portray the Prison Experience” will receive 1.5 CEUs
(Continuing Education Units). Read more...

'Running The Books' In A Prison Library : NPR

Debbi Cooper

Avi Steinberg wrote obituaries for the Boston Globe before taking a job as a prison librarian.

'Running The Books' In A Prison Library : NPR: Running The Books: The Adventures Of An Accidental Prison Librarian
By Avi Steinberg
Hardcover, 416 pages
Nan A. Talese
List price: $26
Read An Excerpt

October 19, 2010
When Avi Steinberg graduated from Harvard, he didn't know what to do next — so he took a job as a prison librarian.
In Running the Books: The Adventures of an Accidental Librarian, Steinberg shares stories of his time working at the Suffolk County House of Correction — from the prisoner who dreamed of hosting a cooking show, Thug Sizzle, to the fragile prostitute who connected with Sylvia Plath. Read more...

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• What ARE Prison Libraries? - A Review of "Running the Books" by Avi Steinberg (popbooks.wordpress.com)
• Let's all go to the lobby (reel-librarians.com)
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• An Oldie But Goodie: In Defense of Librarianship (epricepatel.wordpress.com)