Category Archives: Special Days/Times

Accessible StoryWalks for National StoryWalk® Week

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November 12-18, 2023 is National StoryWalk® Week, sponsored by Let’s Move in Libraries and the Association of Bookmobile and Outreach Services! This is the third annual week-long event that, as noted in the Let’s Move in Libraries blog, celebrates “the inspiring work of libraries who spearhead StoryWalk® programs—promoting literacy, reading, health, exercise, and movement in communities and neighborhoods across the United States and the world.”

What even is a StoryWalk®? A StoryWalk® is a permanent installation incorporating a children’s story that has been deconstructed, with each page displayed separately along a path for participants to read and enjoy. It is a wonderful way to promote literacy and movement. Libraries are increasingly working to make these StoryWalks® more accessible to individuals of all abilities. Let’s Move in Libraries includes some tips for making StoryWalks® more accessible in their blog post about National StoryWalk® Week. Here are some things to consider when creating a StoryWalk®:

  • Use braille overlays on top of the book displays.
  • Incorporate an audio reading of the story into the StoryWalk®.
  • Provide audio or braille descriptions of the story’s pictures. Depending on the style of your StoryWalk®, you could even outline the pictures with puffy paint for a tactile design that can be felt!
  • Consider the location of your StoryWalk®. Places that are wheelchair accessible with a wide, paved walkway are preferable to uneven, narrow ground.

If you are in Austin, you can visit a braille enhanced StoryWalk® presented through a partnership between the Texas Talking Book Program and Austin Public Library (APL), located at APL’s Windsor Park Branch (833 Westminster Drive). Currently the APL Windsor Park StoryWalk® tells The Three Billy Goats Buenos story by Susan Middleton Elya. You can read more about this braille enhanced accessible StoryWalk® at the Talking Book Program’s June 6, 2023, press release about the launch of this partnership.

Learn more about accessible design and allyship with these books available through the Talking Book Program, and don’t forget to celebrate National StoryWalk® Week!

ACCESSIBLE AMERICA: A HISTORY OF DISABILITY AND DESIGN by Bess Williamson (DB 94027; BR 22552)

WHAT CAN A BODY DO?: HOW WE MEET THE BUILT WORLD by Sara Hendren (DB 100228; BR 23245)

DEMYSTIFYING DISABILITY: WHAT TO KNOW, WHAT TO SAY, AND HOW TO BE AN ALLY by Emily Ladau (DB 105481; BR 23987)

National Book Award Nominees 2023

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The National Book Awards were established in 1950 to celebrate the best writing in America. Since 1989, they have been overseen by the National Book Foundation, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to celebrate the best literature in America, expand its audience, and ensure that books have a prominent place in American culture. Although other categories have been recognized in the past, the Awards currently honor the best Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, Translated Literature, and Young People’s Literature published each year.

For more information on the National Book Awards: https://www.nationalbook.org/

The longlist of nominees were announced on September 13-15, the finalists were chosen on October 3, and the winners will be selected on November 15, 2023.

The nominees for this year’s National Book Awards in the TBP Collection:

Fiction

THIS OTHER EDEN by Paul Harding (DB 113243, BR 24845 IN PROCESS)
LOOT by Tania James (DB 115153 IN PROCESS)
CHAIN-GANG ALL STARS by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah (DB 114336)

Nonfiction

REDISCOVERY OF AMERICA: NATIVE PEOPLES AND THE UNMAKING OF U.S. HISTORY by Ned Blackhawk (DB 115217 IN PROCESS)
KING: A LIFE by Jonathan Eig (DB 115189)
LILIANA’S INVINCIBLE SUMMER: A SISTER’S SEARCH FOR JUSTICE by Cristina Rivera Garza (DB 115091)
ORDINARY NOTES by Christina Elizabeth Sharpe (DB 114934 IN PROCESS)
FIRE WEATHER: A TRUE STORY FROM A HOTTER WORLD by John Valliant (IN PROCESS)
I SAW DEATH COMING: A HISTORY OF TERROR AND SURVIVAL IN THE WAR AGAINST RECONSTRUCTION by Kidada E. Williams (DB 114200 IN PROCESS)

Translated Literature

THIS IS NOT MIAMI by Fernanda Melchor
Translated from the Spanish by Sophie Hughes (IN PROCESS)
ABYSS by Pilar Quintana
Translated from the Spanish by Lisa Dillman (DB 115593 IN PROCESS)

Poetry

HOW TO COMMUNICATE: POEMS by John Lee Clark (DB 113879 IN PROCESS, BR 24891 IN PROCESS)
PROMISES OF GOLD / PROMESAS DE ORO by José Olivarez (DB 114551 IN PROCESS)

Young People’s Literature

SIMON SORT OF SAYS by Erin Bow (DB 113782)
FORGET ME NOT by Alyson Derrick (DB 115486 IN PROCESS)

October 19, 2023: “TEXAS GREAT READ” BONUS BOOK CLUB DISCUSSION

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Please join us on Thursday, October 19 at 7:00 p.m. (Central) for our Great Texas Read book club discussion of WEST WITH GIRAFFES by Lynda Rutledge DB 102687, BR 24571.

Every year, the Library of Congress asks each state Center for the Book to select a title that represents the state’s literary landscape to highlight at the National Book Festival. The event showcases the importance of books and reading. The festival is sponsored by the Library of Congress and takes place during Labor Day weekend in Washington, D.C.

In honor of this event, the Texas Talking Book Program will host a bonus book club meeting so that our patrons can participate in the Great Texas Read initiative. The Great Texas Read is an event sponsored by Texas Center for the Book.

Our Book Club meetings via Zoom, however all you need to participate is a telephone! If you have a land line, we will provide a telephone number for you to dial. If you have a smart phone we will email you an easy “one click” number you can use to join the discussion. We will also email a Zoom invitation to those who prefer to use a computer. This information will be sent to all patrons who RSVP a week prior to the book club meeting.

To RSVP, please call the Talking Book Program at 1-800-252-9605. 

Please indicate if you would like us to mail you the digital cartridge or if you prefer to download it from BARD. Also, please let us know if you would like a reminder via email or phone-call (or both).

NLS Annotation: As the Great Depression lingers, Americans long for wonder. They find it in two giraffes who miraculously survive a hurricane while crossing the Atlantic. In a 12-day road trip, Woodrow Wilson Nickel drives a custom truck to deliver the giraffes to the San Diego Zoo. Some violence and some strong language. 2021.

We request that everyone remember the following:

  • Keep external distractions to a minimum.
  • Be courteous and be respectful of differing opinions.
  • Keep discussion points concise and relevant to the book.

We look forward to having you join us on Thursday, October 19!

TBP Book Club Title Announced for July 2023!

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Please join us on Tuesday, July 18 at 7 pm (Central Time) for our Book Club discussion of DIAL A FOR AUNTIES by Jessie Q. Sutanto (DB 103081).

We host our Book Club meetings via Zoom, however all you need to participate is a telephone! If you have a land line, we will provide a telephone number for you to dial. If you have a smart phone we will email you an easy “one click” number you can use to join the discussion. We will also email a Zoom invitation to those who prefer to use a computer. This information will be sent to all patrons who RSVP a week prior to the book club meeting.

To register, please call the Talking Book Program at 1-800-252-9605; or email us at tbp.ral@tsl.texas.gov.

DIAL A FOR AUNTIES is available by mail as a digital cartridge. It is also available to download on BARD.

We ask that everyone remember the following:

  • Be courteous and respectful of differing opinions.
  • Keep discussion points concise and relevant to the book.
  • Keep external distractions to a minimum.

DIAL A FOR AUNTIES by Jessie Q. Sutanto: When Meddelin Chan ends up accidentally killing her blind date, her mother calls for her meddlesome aunties to help get rid of the body. Unfortunately, the dead body is inadvertently shipped in a cake cooler to a wedding being planned by Meddy and her family. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2021.

We look forward to having you join us on July 18!

Summer Reading Program and Read Across Texas Book Club Title Announced for June 2023!

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Please join us on Thursday June 22 at 7:00 p.m. (Central) for our Book Club discussion of REMARKABLY BRIGHT CREATURES by Shelby Van Pelt (DB 107924; BR 24204). This book is both a selection for Read Across Texas as well as our Summer Reading Program Adult Book Club pick!

For more information concerning the Read Across Texas Initiative: https://www.tsl.texas.gov/readacrosstexas.

We host our Book Club discussions via Zoom. However, all you need to participate is a telephone!

If you have a land line, we will provide a telephone number for accessing the Book Club.

If you have a smart phone, we will email an easy “one click” number you can use to join the discussion.

We can also send an email Zoom invitation to those who prefer to use a computer.

Patrons who register for the discussion will receive this information a week before the Book Club meeting.

Please contact a Reader’s Advisory Librarian at 1-800-252-9605 or tbp.ral@tsl.texas.gov with any questions, or to RSVP.

REMARKABLY BRIGHT CREATURES is available by mail as a digital cartridge, available to download via BARD, and available in braille.

We’re looking forward to having you join us on June 22!

REMARKABLY BRIGHT CREATURES by Shelby Van Pelt (DB 107924; BR 24204)

After Tova Sullivan’s husband died, she began working the night shift cleaning at the Sowell Bay Aquarium. Tova becomes acquainted with curmudgeonly Marcellus, a giant Pacific octopus living at the aquarium. Marcellus knows more than anyone can imagine but wouldn’t dream of lifting one of his eight arms for his human captors, until he forms a remarkable friendship with Tova. Some strong language. Commercial audiobook. 2022.

TBP Book Club Title Announced for January 2023!

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Image of books, audio book on cell phone, and headphones, with text "Talking Book Program Phone-In Book Club," 1-800-252-9605

Please join us on Thursday January 26 at 7 pm (Central Time) for our book club discussion of GOODBYE TO A RIVER by John Graves.

We host our Book Club meetings via Zoom, however all you need to participate is a telephone! If you have a land line, we will provide a telephone number for you to dial. If you have a smart phone we will email you an easy “one click” number you can use to join the discussion. We will also email a Zoom invitation to those who prefer to use a computer. This information will be sent to all patrons who RSVP a week prior to the book club meeting.

To register, please call the Talking Book Program at 1-800-252-9605; or email us at tbp.ral@tsl.texas.gov.

GOODBYE TO A RIVER is available by mail as a digital cartridge. It is also available to download on BARD.

We ask that everyone remember the following:

  • Be courteous and respectful of differing opinions.
  • Keep discussion points concise and relevant to the book.
  • Keep external distractions to a minimum.

Goodbye to a River by John Graves: John Graves leads us through an exciting three-week trip down the Brazos River in this classic narrative. An excellent history of the early inhabitants along the river is well woven into this engrossing book, with memories of events in Texas history that took place along that river. Unrated. 1960.

We look forward to having you join us on January 26!

TBP Book Club Title Announced for November 2022!

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Image of books, audio book on cell phone, and headphones, with text "Talking Book Program Phone-In Book Club," 1-800-252-9605

Please join us on Tuesday November 15 at 7 pm (Central Time) for our book club discussion of WORLD OF WONDERS by Aimee Nezhukumatathil.

We host our Book Club meetings via toll free conference call. All you need to participate is a telephone!

To register, please call the Talking Book Program at 1-800-252-9605; or email us at tbp.ral@tsl.texas.gov.

WORLD OF WONDERS is available by mail as a digital cartridge. It is also available to download on BARD.

Please indicate if you would like us to mail you a digital cartridge or if you will download it from BARD.

We ask that everyone remember the following:

  • Be courteous and respectful of differing opinions.
  • Keep discussion points concise and relevant to the book.
  • Keep external distractions to a minimum.

World of Wonders by Aimee Nezhukumtathil: Poet shares twenty-eight essays exploring the impact of plants and animals on her perceptions of the world. In “Catalpa Tree,” she reflects on growing up brown in a predominantly white town and the racism her mother experienced. Other species include the narwhal, axolotl, corpse flower, dragon fruit, and southern cassowary. Bestseller. 2020.

We look forward to having you join us on November 15!

September 6: National Read a Book Day

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The Talking Book Program (TBP) always advocates reading. Our motto is: That All May Read. National Read a Book Day, celebrated on September 6 of every year, is a day that invites everyone to read. So TBP and National Read a Book Day just naturally go together. There are so many ways to celebrate:

  1. Read a book!
  2. Share your passion for books and reading with someone.
  3.  Read a book from a new or different genre.
  4. Read a favorite book from childhood or a book that is a friend or family member’s favorite.
  5. Share the stories you are reading using #ReadABookDay to post on social media.

ProTip: Don’t have time to read entire book? Try reading a magazine issue, a book of poetry, or a story from an essay or short story collection.

Facts from the Texas Talking Book Program

  • Texas has over 17,000 TBP patrons.
  • In 2021, TBP circulated 688,186 braille, large print, and audio cartridges via mail to our patrons.
  • Texas patrons downloaded 302,789 books via the Braille and Audio Reading Download (BARD) in 2021.
  • We added 345 large print and 125 braille titles to our physical collection in 2021.
  • In 2021, 292 books were recorded and uploaded to BARD from our Texas recording studio.

There are many more books to choose from for National Reading Day!

Books about Books, Librarians, and Bookstores

  • Do you like cozy mysteries? Try the Booktown Mystery Series by Lorna Barrett or the Mystery Bookshop Mystery Series by V. M. Burns
  • Is romance more your style? Try the Librarians in Love Series by Sarah Title or BOOKISH LIFE OF NINA HILL (DB 95745, LB 12621)
  • Does Science Fiction make you want to snuggle up with a good book? Try the Borrowed Man Series by Gene Wolfe
  • Or do you want the facts, and nothing but the facts? Here are some nonfiction books about books you may enjoy. Try SHELF LIFE: ROMANCE, MYSTERY, DRAMA, AND OTHER PAGE-TURNING ADVENTURES FROM A YEAR IN A BOOKSTORE (DB 60048) by Suzanne Strempek Shea or if you prefer more of a true crime twist, try LIBRARY BOOK (DB 92869, LB 11432) BY Susan Orleans.

Not sure what you want to read? Contact the Talking Book Program at 1-800-252-9605 (if in Austin, call our local number at 512-463-5458) and one of our readers consultants or readers’ advisory librarians can help you choose your next favorite book.

 

August 27: Lyndon Baines Johnson Day

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On August 27, 1908, Lyndon Baines Johnson (LBJ) was born in a small stone farmhouse in Stonewall, Texas. He went on to become a Texas State Senator and then later, President of the United States. After his death in 1973, August 27 was designated as a Texas state holiday in his honor.

This year, August 27 falls on a Saturday, so you can spend the entire day celebrating LBJ’s life and accomplishments. The LBJ Presidential Library in Austin offers free admission on the day. But even if you do not live nearby, you can still celebrate by reading one of the books about Lyndon Johnson in our Talking Book Program collection.

For More information

Books about LBJ in our collection:

For the most in-depth look at LBJ’s life, try the four- book series YEARS OF LYNDON JOHNSON, written by Robert Caro:

PATH TO POWER: THE YEARS OF LYNDON JOHNSON VOLUME 1
DB 18676,
MEANS OF ASCENT: THE YEARS OF LYNDON JOHNSON, VOLUME 2
DB 30837
MASTER OF THE SENATE: THE YEARS OF LYNDON
DB 54174
PASSAGE OF POWER: THE YEARS OF LYNDON JOHNSON
DB 74635

If you are looking for a slightly less detailed biography you might like to read the two-volume series by Robert Dallek:

LONE STAR RISING: LYNDON JOHNSON AND HIS TIMES, 1908-1960
DB 34378
FLAWED GIANT: LYNDON JOHNSON AND HIS TIMES, 1961-1973
DB 47275

Perhaps you would like to read a memoir written by someone who knew LBJ personally. Doris Kearns Goodwin was a White House Fellow in 1967, and her book is based on interviews conducted during the last five years of President Johnson’s life.

LYNDON JOHNSON AND THE AMERICAN DREAM
DB 09793

Or you could look at his time in the White House through the eyes of his wife, Lady Bird Johnson.

WHITE HOUSE DIARY
DBC 18116

Or if you are looking for a way for younger readers to learn about LBJ, here’s one you could try:

LYNDON B. JOHNSON: THIRTY-SIXTH PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES
Grades 5-8
DB 30136, BR 08027

Dog Days of Summer

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The dog days of summer, coinciding with the alignment of the constellation Sirius with the sun from July 3-August 11, are upon us. The dog days of summer are typically the hottest days of the season, so lean into the heat with these summer reads for adults and youth:

ADULT FICTION

SAG HARBOR by Colson Whitehead (DB 69066; BR 18616)
Long Island, 1985. Upper-middle-class African American teenager Benji spends another summer at the beach with his brother and his parents, a Manhattan doctor, and a lawyer. Benji finds relief from prep school and a part-time job and learns a few lessons on growing up. Strong language. 2009.

DANDELION WINE: A NOVEL by Ray Bradbury (DB 12385)
Evocative novel of childhood set in a small Illinois town during the summer of 1938. A boy marvels at his discovery that he is alive and acutely aware of the life about him.

PEOPLE WE MEET ON VACATION by Emily Henry (DB 103191)
Travel writer Poppy and her friend Alex could not be more different, but they bonded on a road trip home from college and afterwards took annual vacations together. Unfortunately, their last vacation ruined everything between them. Two years later Poppy talks Alex into one more trip together. Strong language and some explicit descriptions of sex. Commercial audiobook. Bestseller. 2021.

SUMMER ON THE BLUFFS: A NOVEL by Sunny Hostin (DB 103563)
Thirty years ago, Amelia Vaux Tanner and her husband built a house in Oak Bluffs, an exclusive African American enclave of Martha’s Vineyard. She invites her three goddaughters to spend the summer, as she decides which woman will inherit the house. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2021.

MALIBU RISING by Taylor Jenkins Reid (DB 103564)
In the summer of 1983, Nina Riva was hosting her annual celebrity-filled party, despite the impending end of her marriage. Nina and her three siblings, all connected to the world of surfing, might have survived their unconventional upbringing, but each is hiding secrets. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. Bestseller. 2021.

CALL ME BY YOUR NAME by Andre Aciman (DB 65344; BR 22904)
Each summer Elio’s parents host a scholar in their home on the Italian Riviera. Oliver, a young academic from America arrives, igniting in seventeen-year-old Elio a passionate longing and desire. Years later Elio recollects his search for intimacy during that transformative season. Some descriptions of sex. 2007.

LIFEGUARDS by Amanda Eyre Ward (DB 107638)
Whitney, Annette, and Liza have raised their children together for fifteen years. Their friendship is as safe as the Austin neighborhood where they’ve raised their sweet little boys. Or so they think. One night, the boys share a secret that will shatter the perfect world their mothers have so painstakingly created. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2022.

YOUNG ADULT FICTION

LOVE IS A REVOLUTION by Renee Watson (DB 102792)
Harlem teenager Nala is looking forward to a summer of movies and ice cream until she falls in love with the very woke Tye and pretends to be a social activist. For senior high and older readers. 2021.

BLACKOUT (DB 104186)
Six interconnected short stories of warmth and electricity of Black teen love in New York City during a summer blackout. Acclaimed, award-winning authors include Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk, and Nicola Yoon. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. For senior high and older readers. 2021.

SISTERHOOD OF THE TRAVELING PANTS by Ann Brashares (DB 53252; LB 04827; BR 13765)
Four fifteen-year-olds, “Bridget the athlete, Lena the beauty, Tibby the rebel, and Carmen, the one with the bad temper”, have been friends since childhood. During this first summer apart, they share a pair of used jeans that magically fits each of them perfectly and helps them through tough times. For senior high readers. 2001.

WHAT IF IT’S US by Becky Albertalli (DB 92949)
When Arthur, a summer intern from Georgia, and Ben, a native New Yorker, meet, it feels like fate. But after three failed attempts at dating, they wonder if the universe is pushing them together or apart. Strong language and some descriptions of sex. Commercial audiobook. For senior high and older readers. 2018.

HARLEM SUMMER by Walter Dean Myers (DB 65655; BR 17320)
Harlem, 1925. Sixteen-year-old saxophone-playing Mark Purvis is hired by an African American magazine one summer. But when he does a shady delivery job for his idol, musical genius Fats Waller, something goes wrong, and gangster Dutch Schultz comes after Mark for money. For senior high readers. 2007.

WE WERE LIARS by E. Lockhart (DB 79109; BR 20594)
Spending the summers on her family’s private island off the coast of Massachusetts with her cousins and a special boy named Gat, teenaged Cadence struggles to remember what happened during her fifteenth summer. Strong language and some descriptions of sex. Commercial audiobook. For senior high and older readers. 2014.

JUVENILE FICTION

HOLES by Louis Sachar (DB 47444; LB 04941; BT 03955)
Stanley Yelnats IV finds himself in a detention center for possessing stolen property that he didn’t take. While digging holes under the summer Texas sun, he sees a fellow inmate running away—and follows him. Legends, loyalty, and buried treasure are revealed as Stanley learns to survive. Newbery Medal Winner.

THREE WILLOWS: THE SISTERHOOD GROWS by Ann Brashares (DB 68648)
In the summer before ninth grade, three longtime friends explore separate paths. Jo deals with her parents’ divorce, her interest in an older boy, and an awkward visit from Polly. Meanwhile academic-minded Ama feels out of place on a wilderness trip learning to rock climb. For grades 6-9. 2009.

GIRLS OF JULY by Alex Flinn (DB 95793)
Four girls—Britta, Meredith, Kate, and Spider, only two of whom had met before—spend an unforgettable July with Spider’s aunt in the Adirondacks. Told in separate voices. Commercial audiobook. For grades 6-9 and older readers. 2019.

MARE’S WAR by Tanita S. Davis (DB 70850; BR 18763)
Teens Octavia and Tali reluctantly take a cross-country road trip with their eighty-year-old grandmother. But Mare’s stories about growing up black in 1940s Alabama and running away from home to join the army during World War II make the journey worthwhile. For grades 6-9. Coretta Scott King Honor Book. 2009.

Stay cool, and happy reading!