American actor known for his iconic voice acting roles and for his work in theater, James Earl Jones, died at his home on September 9, 2024, at the age of 93. He overcame a severe stutter to become one of the greatest actors of his era. Over his career, he received three Tony Awards, two Emmy Awards, and a Grammy Award. Below we have his autobiography. We hope this gives you a chance to learn about his experiences in his own words.
JAMES EARL JONES: VOICES AND SILENCES by James Earl Jones (DB 38707)
2025 is right around the corner, and we have the perfect item to help you start the year off right. The National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled provides braille and print/braille calendars to its patrons free of charge. Calendars are available in two sizes: a larger wall calendar in print/braille and a smaller, pocket-sized calendar in braille only. Best of all, you can order multiple copies of each calendar.
Once you are subscribed, you will receive a calendar each year unless you choose to stop your subscription. If you received calendars in 2024, you do not need to order again, unless you want to change the type or number of calendars that you receive. Calendars for 2025 will be shipped this fall.
To get your calendar, e-mail tbp.services@tsl.texas.gov or call 1-800-252-9605 and let us know which calendar you would like to order.
Join the Talking Book Program for an author talk on Thursday, October 17 at 7:00 p.m. (Central) with Texas author Donna Marie Miller.
Reader’s Advisory Librarian, Laura Jean will talk with her about her career as an author as well as her book, BROKEN SPOKE: AUSTIN’S LEGENDARY HONKY-TONK. A Q&A chat will follow.
Our Author Talks meet via Zoom, however all you need to participate is a telephone! If you have a land line, you will use the telephone number. If you have a smart phone, you will use the “one-tap” number 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 author talk.
We would also like to offer you the opportunity to ask Donna Marie Miller questions about her book. Please submit questions by October 10. We will choose questions based on the responses to this form and they may be asked during the event!
To RSVP, please email us at tbpRAL@tsl.texas.gov, or call the Talking Book Program at 1-800-252-9605
Please indicate if you would like us to mail you a digital cartridge or if you prefer to download her book from BARD. Also, please let us know if you would like a reminder via email or phone-call (or both).
BROKEN SPOKE: AUSTIN’S LEGENDARY HONKY-TONK by Donna Marie Miller DBC 18774
James and Annetta White opened the Broken Spoke in 1964, then a mile south of the Austin city limits, under a massive live oak, and beside what would eventually become South Lamar Boulevard. White built the place himself, beginning construction on the day he received his honorable discharge from the US Army. And for more than fifty years, the Broken Spoke has served up, in the words of White’s well-worn opening speech, “cold beer, good whiskey, the best chicken fried steak in town … and good country music.” White paid thirty-two dollars to his first opening act, D. G. Burrow and the Western Melodies, back in 1964. Since then, the stage at the Spoke has hosted the likes of Bob Wills, Dolly Parton, Ernest Tubb, Ray Price, Marcia Ball, Pauline Reese, Roy Acuff, Kris Kristofferson, George Strait, Willie Nelson, Jerry Jeff Walker, Asleep at the Wheel, and the late, great Kitty Wells. But it hasn’t always been easy; through the years, the Whites and the Spoke have withstood their share of hardship–a breast cancer diagnosis, heart trouble, the building’s leaky roof, and a tour bus driven through its back wall. Today the original rustic, barn-style building, surrounded by sleek, high-rise apartment buildings, still sits on South Lamar, a tribute and remembrance to an Austin that has almost vanished. Housing fifty years of country music memorabilia and about a thousand lifetimes of memories at the Broken Spoke, the Whites still honor a promise made to Ernest Tubb years ago: they’re ‘keepin’ it country’.– Provided by publisher. Some strong language. 2017.
We look forward to having you join us on Thursday, October 17!
One of the most popular requests we get at the Talking Book Program are from patrons who want to learn a language. We have several different self-instruction programs in our collection to help you dive right in.
Behind the Wheel: Behind the Wheel provides a flexible, solid, and universal foundation in speaking, understanding, and creatively expressing yourself in your chosen language. The program features an English-speaking instructor to guide you through the lessons and native speakers to aid with your pronunciation. Includes supplementary materials in Braille to reinforce and enhance the audio experience.
Languages in the TBP collection: Arabic, French, German, Italian, Mandarin Chinese, and Spanish.
Berlitz Self Teacher: Braille language study guides designed for the student working alone. Stressing oral practice, the guides present each lesson as a conversational dialogue incorporating vocabulary and grammatical points. Each sentence is followed by a pronunciation guide and English translation. Questions follow each lesson, and, where appropriate, tips on customs are given.
Languages in the TBP collection: English, French, German, Italian, and Spanish.
Drive Time: is a simplified program to learn the basics of vocabulary, grammar, conversation, and culture for a given language. The experts at Living Language have created a course that includes four hours of language lessons that you can use anywhere and anytime. It includes conversational lessons so you can practice listening and speaking a language naturally. The courses also have plenty of pronunciation exercises, simple explanations, examples, and real conversational practice.
Languages in the TBP collection: French, German, Italian, Japanese, and Spanish. We also have intermediate English.
eTicket Audio Phrasebooks: Produced by Living Language, these audio phrasebooks contain simple and practical phrases, containing all the essentials for a trip.
Languages in TBP collection: Spanish and English for Spanish speakers.
Pimsleur®: is a way to learn a language through a program of short lessons using methods derived from research on memory and learning. The emphasis is on pronunciation and comprehension, and on learning to speak the language. Features native speakers.
Languages in the TBP collection: Albanian, Armenian (Eastern and Western), Czech, Dutch, French, Greek (modern), Haitian Creole, Hebrew (modern), Indonesian, Irish, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Lithuanian, Norwegian, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Spanish, Spanish (Latin American), Swedish, and Thai.
English for Arabic, Cantonese Chinese, German, Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Mandarin Chinese, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish Speakers
Further Study
Once you learn the basics, you may want to find materials to read in your language of choice. BARD is here to help!
BARD: Change your preferred language
Filter search results by selecting your preferred language.
BARD website
1. BARD Main Page – Account Settings – 4th item down “Select this link to change your language preferences.”
2. Check the checkbox next to the language you are learning.
3. Hit the “update” button.
BARD Express
1. Go to Search BARD
2. Select the “Filter” button.
3. Select the checkbox next to one of the following languages: Arabic China French Language Books, Fiction German Language Books Italian Language Portuguese Language Titles Spanish Language
4. Select the “Ok” button at bottom of the screen. Now all your search results will be in your chosen language.
BARD app for iOS and Android
1. Go to Settings Tab
2. Go to User Account Settings
3. Select “Language Preferences”
4. Tap the language you are learning. It will add books written in that language to your search results.
So, take this opportunity to learn a new language and let BARD help ease the way!
The Hugo Awards, science fiction’s most prestigious awards, were established by the World Science Fiction Society in 1953. The Awards are voted on by members of the World Science Fiction Convention (Worldcon), which is also responsible for administering them. The awards were presented in Glasgow, Scotland earlier this month.
Although sports for athletes with physical impairments has existed in several forms over the past century, the first Paralympic Games took place in Rome, Italy, in 1960 featuring 400 athletes from 23 countries. Since the Summer Games of Seoul, Korea, in 1988 and the Winter Games in Albertville, France, in 1992, the Games have also taken part in the same cities and venues as the Olympics.
The Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, which will take place between 28 August and 8 September, will bring together as many as 4,400 athletes from around the world. The athletes will compete in 549 medal events across 22 sports.
Below we have collected stories about and memoirs from famous Paralympians for both adult and youth readers.
Urban fiction is a genre of literature that features life on the streets, typical in American inner cities. These stories are often centered around African American characters and highlight the hardships of living in an urban environment. As a heads up, they often include violence, profanity, gang activity, and poverty.
Below is a list of some of the urban fiction series and stand-alone novels in the TBP collection. This list is not exhaustive, so if you don’t see one of your favorite books or authors on this list, give us a call at 1-800-252-9605.
Series
Banks Sisters Series BANKS SISTERS by Nikki Turner (DB 92967)
Best Frenemies Forever Series BFF’S by Brenda Hampton (DBC 27135)
Butterfly Series BUTTERFLY by Ashley Antoinette (DB 98149)
Cartel Series CARTEL by Ashley (DB 90898)
Deeply Rooted Series DEEPLY ROOTED by Ice Mike (DB 81350)
Dirty Red Series DIRTY RED by Vickie M. Stringer (DB 116218)
Divas Series DIVAS SERIES. BOOKS 1-3 by De’nesha Diamond (DB 84582)
Dopeman Series DOPEMAN’S WIFE by JaQuavis (DBC 27085)
Dutch Series DUTCH by Teri Woods (DB 101130)
Family Business Series FAMILY BUSINESS by Carl Weber (DB 93583)
Full Figured Series FULL FIGURED by Brenda Hampton (DB 117839)
Game Series GAMES WOMEN PLAY by Zaire Crown (DB 118149)
Girls from da Hood Series GIRLS FROM DA HOOD by Nikki Turner (DB 118143)
Hoodlum Series HOODLUM by K’wan (DB 117526)
Kenyatta Series CRIME PARTNERS by Donald Goines (DB 118030)
Madam Series MADAM, MAY I by Niobia Bryant (DB 117855)
Material Girl Series MATERIAL GIRL by Keisha Ervin (DB 107456)
Misadventures of Mink LaRue Series NATURAL BORN LIAR by Noire (DB 117531)
Payback Series PAYBACK IS A MUTHA by Wahida Clark (DB 81661)
Prada Plan Series PRADA PLAN by Ashley Antoinette (DBC 27068)
Purple City Series PURPLE CITY. VOLUMES 1-3 by K’wan (DBC 27118)
Rescued by the Love of a Real One Series RESCUED BY THE LOVE OF A REAL ONE by Toy (DB 106392)
Seven Deadly Sins Series LUST by Victoria Christopher Murray (DB 89154)
Too Hood for You Series TOO HOOD FOR YOU, BOOKS 1 & 2 by K. C. Mills (DB 114418)
True to the Game Series TRUE TO THE GAME by Teri Woods (DB 97167)
Stand-Alone Novels
B-MORE CAREFUL by Shannon Holmes (DB 107004)
BLACK BUCK by Mateo Askaripour (DB 102521)
BLACK GIRL LOST by Donald Goines (DB 104184)
DAUGHTER OF A QUEEN PIN by Treasure Hernandez (DB 113797)
EVERYWHERE YOU DON’T BELONG by Gabriel Bump (DB 98891)
FROM HARLEM WITH LOVE by K’wan (DBC 27119)
LAST STREET NOVEL by Omar Tyree (DB 99445)
PUBLIC ENEMY #1 by Kiki Swinson (DB 108659)
REPLACEMENT HUSBAND by Tiffany L. Warren (DB 117745)
Perhaps you’ve heard all the drama surrounding the new movie It Ends with Us, starring Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni, and released in US theaters on August 9. Did you know it was based on a bestselling book by author Colleen Hoover under the same title? Well, it was AND there’s a sequel too. So, if you want to compare the movie to the book, we have your back.
Do you just love the creepy, atmospheric novels set in the south? Where clinging wisteria vines smother moldering plantation houses and hide the rotting wood beneath. Where the characters are trying to keep up appearances but beneath the surface, secrets and corruption lurk.
What if you’ve already read all of the classics by Faulkner, McCullers, O’Connor, and their ilk, and you’d like to read some books with a new spin on an old, classic subgenre? Well, you’re in luck. Below are some of the contemporary southern gothic novels in the NLS collection.
BASTARD OUT OF CAROLINA by Dorothy Allison (DB 39353)
CHILD OF GOD by Cormac McCarthy (DB 61930, BR 10633)
DEMON COPPERHEAD by Barbara Kingsolver (DB 110786, LB 14284)
DEVIL ALL THE TIME by Donald Ray Pollock (DB 74278)
FAY by Larry Brown (DB 51786)
HACIENDA by Isabel Cañas (DB 107997)
HEAVEN OF MERCURY by Brad Watson (DB 57135)
IF THE CREEK DON’T RISE by Leah Weiss (DB 91901)
LAND MORE KIND THAN HOME by Wiley Cash (DB 102621)
LITTLE FRIEND by Donna Tartt (DB 55856)
LOST COUNTRY by William Gay (DB 97646)
MEXICAN GOTHIC by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (DB 99404, BR 23483)
MIDNIGHT IN THE GARDEN OF GOOD AND EVIL: A SAVANNAH STORY by John Berendt (DB 38077, BR 11463, LB 04494)
RUBY by Cynthia Bond (DB 81110, BRG 03613)
SERENA by Ron Rash (DB 68405, BRG 03689)
SING, UNBURIED, SING: A NOVEL by Jesmyn Ward (DB 89552, BR 22096)
SWAMPLANDIA by Karen Russell (DB 72823, LB 06768)
THOUSAND FALLING CROWS by Larry D. Sweazy (DBC 26472)
VINE THAT ATE THE SOUTH: A NOVEL by J. D. Wilkes (DB 94173)
WEIGHT OF BLOOD by Laura McHugh (DB 79247)
WHEN WE WERE ANIMALS by Joshua A. Gaylord (DB 81361)
Popular television talk-show host Phil Donahue died last Sunday, August 18, 2024, at the age of 88. Known for being the first host to interact with a studio audience, he rose to fame in the late 1960s. The Talking Book Program has his autobiography in our collection. We hope this gives you a chance to learn about his experiences in his own words.
Contact us if you’d like to borrow his book. 1-800-252-9605.
DONAHUE: MY OWN STORY (DB 14910, BR 04366, LB 02800)
