National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled

07/23/2024

Join us online this coming Thursday, July 25, at 7 p.m. eastern time for the final live event in the NLS Summer Reading Program: a conversation with Angeline Boulley, author of the New York Times bestsellers “Firekeeper’s Daughter (BR24040, DB102762)” and “Warrior Girl Unearthed (BR25116 in process, DB114761).” The conversation will be moderated by award-winning author Andrea L. Rogers. It’s free, but you need to register in advance at the NLS Summer Reading Program web page: www.loc.gov/nls/summerreading2024?loclr-fbnls. And while you’re there, check out the family-friendly Whispering Library Escape Room and the audio tour of the Library of Congress’s historic Thomas Jefferson Building!
[Image: Collage with photo of Angeline Boulley and the two books.]

07/21/2024

It's no joke: Don Knotts was born 100 years ago in Morgantown, West Virginia! Best known for his role as Deputy Barney Fife on "The Andy Griffith Show," Knotts also starred in later seasons of "Three's Company" and Disney's "The Apple Dumpling Gang" movies. His comic timing and exaggerated mannerisms endeared him to several generations of fans, earning him several Emmy and Lifetime Achievement awards as well as a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. And did you know that Knotts also played Felix Ungar on Broadway in Neil Simon's "The Odd Couple (DB25174)"—and was spot-on as the neurotic roommate of sportswriter and compulsive slob Oscar Madison? You also might not know that Knotts was a ventriloquist while serving in WWII.
To learn more about Knotts, check out "Andy and Don: The Making of a Friendship and a Classic American TV Show (DB874420)" by Daniel De Visé, a dual biography of actors Andy Griffith and Knotts, sharing stories of the making of "The Andy Griffith Show" and their personal lives and careers. Knotts' pal Tim Conway offers anecdotes about Knotts in "What's So Funny? My Hilarious Life (DB77694),” detailing six decades in the entertainment industry. And if you know a young person interested in throwing their voice, there's "Song, Speech, and Ventriloquism (DB10340)" by Larry Kettelkamp, which explores the mechanics of voice production and applies the basic principles of speech to singing and the ancient art of ventriloquism, for grades 5-8.
[Image: Don Knotts’ grave in Westwood Cemetery, Los Angeles, showing the actor in some of his best-known roles. Photo by Carol Highsmith, Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.]

07/18/2024

Congratulations to the Maryland State Library for the Blind & Print Disabled in Baltimore, recipient of the 2024 NLS Regional Library of the Year Award, and the Larry Gorton Talking Book Library at the Traverse Area District Library in Traverse City, Michigan, recipient of the NLS Subregional Library/Advisory and Outreach Center of the Year Award! The two libraries were honored today at a luncheon in the historic Thomas Jefferson Building of the Library of Congress in Washington, DC. They are “outstanding examples of the service that NLS and its network of libraries provide to hundreds of thousands of people all across the country,” Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden said. Read what makes them so at https://newsroom.loc.gov/news/library-of-congress-honors-libraries-in-maryland-and-michigan-for-outstanding-service-to-readers-wit/s/49ea3863-64a9-4025-8809-bdb9d83e4981?loclr=fbnls.
[Image: (L to R) Maryland State Library for the Blind and Print Disabled Director John W. Owen and Assistant Director Mary Ramos, and Larry Gorton Talking Book Library Manager Anita Chouinard and Traverse Area District Library Director Michele Howard before today’s luncheon.]

07/17/2024

Erle Stanley Gardner, born in 1889, was himself an accomplished trial lawyer until the success of his first Perry Mason stories—"The Case of the Velvet Claws (BRX00495, DB27231)” and “The Case of the Sulky Girl (BR18417, DBC11251)”—allowed him to write full time. A story in the Atlantic in 1967, three years before he died, credits Gardner with more than 130 books that had sold some 165 million copies. The first of several “Perry Mason” TV adaptations, which ran for nine seasons on CBS and starred the inimitable Raymond Burr (and a fine supporting cast too), only added to Gardner’s wealth and fame. You can find dozens of Gardner’s Perry Mason mysteries in the NLS catalog (https://nlscatalog.loc.gov?loclr=fbnls), as well as short- story collections such as “Whispering Sands: Stories of Gold Fever and the Western Desert (BR05154)” and “’Danger Zone’ and Other Stories (BR15852, DB59754).” We also have a 1978 biography, “Erle Stanley Gardner: The Case of the Real Perry Mason (DB12918)” by Dorothy B. Hughes, that recounts his legal and writing careers and his peripatetic adventures.
[Image: Photo of Erle Stanley Gardner by John Atherton, 1966. Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.]

07/16/2024

A hundred years ago this month, the (Portland) Oregonian newspaper recounted a group of gold prospectors’ claim that 7-foot-tall ape-like animals had attacked them with boulders. Tales of an elusive, supersized humanoid—some call him Bigfoot, others Yeti or Sasquatch—have captured imaginations across cultures for centuries, but that newspaper story marked a new era in the Bigfoot legend. Yet, after all these years, such a creature has only been caught in movies and books (and on all kinds of kitschy merchandise).
Beat a trail to follow "The Secret History of Bigfoot: Field Notes on a North American Monster (DB119683)" by John O'Connor, who embarks on a quest in search of Bigfoot, its myth and meaning. From the other side of the world, "The Tomb of the Mili Mongga: Fossils, Folklore, and Adventures at the Edge of Reality (DB120022)" by Samuel Turvey shares exciting scientific discoveries on an Indonesian island where a Yeti-like wildman supposedly lives in remote forests. And those two books are NONfiction! There also are works of fiction, like "King of the Cloud Forests (BR09128, DB35733)" by Michael Morpurgo, which weaves a tale of a 14-year-old son of American missionaries who is rescued by a yeti, for grades 6-9 and older readers. "The Abominables (BR20323, DB77549)" by Eva Ibbotson spins a yarn of a male yeti capturing a young woman to raise his motherless children, for grades 4-7.
Also check out the recent American Folklife Center blog post “On the Trail of Bigfoot in the Library of Congress” (https://blogs.loc.gov/folklife/2024/05/on-the-trail-of-bigfoot-in-the-library-of-congress?loclr=fbnls), which includes an audio recording from a teenager who claims to have seen a creature in the Tennessee woods.
[Image: Representations of Bigfoot footprints outside the Bigfoot Crossroads of America Museum, formerly a wedding chapel, in Hastings, Nebraska. Photo by Carol M. Highsmith. Library of Congress Prints and Photography Division.]

07/13/2024

Congratulations to James McBride, recipient of this year’s Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction! McBride “knows the American soul deeply, reflecting our struggles and triumphs in his fiction, which so many readers have intimately connected with,” Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden said in announcing the prize. “I, also, am one of his enthusiastic readers.” You’ll find several of McBride’s novels in the NLS collection, including 2013’s National Book Award-winning “The Good Lord Bird (DB77431)” and his 2002 debut, “The Miracle at St. Anna (DB54657).” McBride turned to nonfiction in 2016 with “Kill 'em and Leave: Searching for James Brown and the American Soul (DB84357).” Learn more about these titles and others by McBride in the NLS catalog (https://nlscatalog.loc.gov). And it’s not too early to start making plans for this year’s Library of Congress National Book Festival on August 24, where McBride will accept the prize (www.loc.gov/events/2024-national-book-festival).
[Image: Portrait of James McBride by Chia Messina. Penguin Random House.]

07/12/2024

Do you read braille? Have you taken advantage of NLS’ Braille-on-Demand program? Patrons can request that ANY braille book available on BARD be printed and mailed to their home at no cost. Popular Braille-on-Demand titles include cookbooks, religious texts and reference guides—books that lend themselves to frequent study. Plus, readers can keep these volumes as long as they'd like. NLS has created nearly 10,000 hard-copy braille books for patrons since the program launched in October 2022. To request your own brailled title, visit www.surveymonkey.com/r/NLSbrailleondemand.

[Image: A woman reads a braille book outside on a spring day. NLS photo.]

07/10/2024

Do you live in or near Washington, DC, or plan to visit over the summer? There’s plenty to do for free in the nation’s capital between now and Labor Day!
The Library of Congress National Book Festival will bring dozens of writers—including James Patterson, Doris Kearns Goodwin and Sandra Cisneros—to the Walter E. Washington Convention Center on Saturday, August 24. Find out more at www.loc.gov/events/2024-national-book-festival.
Marvel at the Beaux Arts beauty of the Library’s Thomas Jefferson Building and see the new exhibition of some of the Library’s treasures, including the contents of Abraham Lincoln’s pockets on the night he was assassinated (timed-entry tickets required; details at www.loc.gov/exhibitions/treasures-from-the-library-of-congress/about-this-exhibition). Or enjoy classic movies on the southeast lawn of the Jefferson Building each Thursday evening through August 8, starting with “The Wizard of Oz” this week (www.loc.gov/events).
And if you or any of the people you’re traveling with are blind or visually impaired, check out our guide to the accessible experiences offered by DC’s free cultural institutions, including the museums of the Smithsonian Institution, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts and more: www.loc.gov/nls/services-and-resources/informational-publications/accessible-cultural-heritage-institutions-for-the-blind-and-visually-impaired-in-washington-dc.

[Image: Photograph from a past year’s Summer Movies on the Lawn. Library of Congress photo.]

07/07/2024

Curious about BARD (NLS’ Braille and Audio Reading Download online service), almost ready to sign up or have a question on how to make your experience with the BARD Mobile app even better? The next online session of our Many Faces of BARD program will be an open forum with the NLS Download technical support team. The team will take questions related to any BARD product starting at 7 p.m. (EDT) on Thursday, July 11, on Zoom. Find details on how to join the program on our website, at www.loc.gov/nls/news-and-updates/many-faces-of-bard?loclr=fbnls.
[Image: A phone and a tablet running the BARD Mobile app.]

07/04/2024

Happy ! Looking to celebrate the day with a little musical fun? Long before there was “Hamilton,” there was “1776,” a 1969 musical conceived by Sherman Edwards that followed Founding Father John Adams as he slowly persuaded his colleagues to sign the Declaration of Independence. Adapted into a 1972 film, it’s been widely used in classrooms ever since—despite the fact that Edwards’ career as a teacher was cut short. You can learn more about Sherman Edwards and the musical he wrote (with librettist Peter Stone) to celebrate our country’s independence in “American History Was Never Like This (DBM00519),” an interview with Edwards available on NLS BARD thanks to the NLS Music Section.
[Image: Fourth of July fireworks light up the sky over Denver. Carol M. Highsmith, 2016. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.]

07/03/2024

"Proofread carefully," advises humorist Dave Barry, "to see if you any words out.” Well today, Barry's 77th birthday, just cannot be left out of NLS's Facebook feed! Born in New York State, but adopting Florida as his home, Barry squeezes all self-sardonicism out of his 2015 treatise "Best. State. Ever: A Florida Man Defends His Homeland (BR21974, DB87795).” After two decades of writing humorous newspaper syndicated columns, he hit fictional gold with his first novel, “Big Trouble (DB48817).” Its "two-hitmen-cannot-stopped-being-pranked-by-teenagers" hijinks were adapted into a motion picture starring Tim Allen and Rene Russo. For a rib tickling from his earlier work, try "Dave Barry Slept Here: A Sort of History of the United States (DB31751)" or "Dave Barry Turns 40 (DB31953)," which includes a "scientific" quiz to measure whether one has reached adulthood and a list of tips on planning for male midlife crisis. Barry was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for commentary in 1988 and the Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Journalism in 2005.
[Image: Portrait of Dave Barry, taken after the Washington Post Hunt, June 5, 2011, Photo by Amazur. Creative Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 license.]

07/01/2024

A lot of folks are surprised to learn that people who are blind or visually impaired can play baseball. Or a variation of it anyway, called beepball, with—you guessed it—balls (and bases) that beep. There’s even a beepball World Series, which begins July 21 in St. Charles, MO. Beepballs used all over the country are made by volunteers—many of them retired telecom employees—at the Colorado Talking Book Library in Denver. Find out more in the latest issue of the NLS newsletter, at www.loc.gov/nls/news-and-updates/quarterly-newsletter-news/news-april-june-2024/ ?loclr=fbnls.
[Image: Volunteers at the Colorado Talking Book Library in Denver, each specializing in a specific task, build 1,600 beepballs in an average year. Photo by Sharon Winters.]

06/28/2024

It’s NATIONAL CAPS LOCK DAY. Caps are often used to convey through text that something is being shouted. Well, WE are excited that NLS partners with another government agency that you can (appropriately) hit CAPS LOCK for, BEP (the Bureau of Engraving and Printing) to distribute free US currency readers. The iBill currency reader is a compact device that announces paper money’s value in one of three ways: voice, pattern of tones or pattern of vibrations. Just insert a bill into it and press the button on the side to have the cash denomination identified. Learn how to sign up for a free currency reader by visiting www.loc.gov/nls/services-and-resources/us-currency-reader-program?loclr=fbnls.

The National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS) partners with the Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) in support of its US Currency Reader Program, to provide currency reader devices, free of charge, to eligible individuals who are blind or visually impaired. The program is pa...

06/27/2024

The National Statuary Hall Collection in the US Capitol Visitor Center honors a historic figure from each state. This includes the statue for Alabama of a seven-year-old Helen Keller with a water pump, depicting a scene made famous in the stage play and film “The Miracle Worker” about Keller’s life. Born in Tuscumbia, Alabama, in 1880, Keller became the world’s most famous ambassador for people with disabilities and for deaf-blind culture. You may view the statue in person at the US Capitol Visitor Center or learn more about it and the National Statuary Hall Collection online at https://www.aoc.gov/explore-capitol-campus/art/helen-keller-statue. You can also learn more about Keller with the titles in this NLS minibibliography at www.loc.gov/nls/new-materials/book-lists/helen-keller/?loclr=fbnls.

This statue of Helen Keller was given to the National Statuary Hall Collection by Alabama in 2009. Keller's statue replaced a statue of Jabez Lamar Monroe Curry, which Alabama had donated in 1908.

06/26/2024

The New York Yankees have had 16 on-field captains over the years—Hall of Famers such as Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig among them. But current captain Aaron Judge told the New York Post this week, “Looking back at all the former Yankee captains, man, [Derek Jeter] is probably the top of that list. He wore the pinstripes better than anybody.” In a 20-year career, Jeter—who turns 50 —won five Gold Gloves at shortstop, played in 14 All Star Games, had a lifetime batting average of .310 and helped the Yankees win five World Series. “The Captain: The Journey of Derek Jeter (DB74217)” by Ian O'Connor chronicles Jeter’s childhood in Kalamazoo, Michigan; his 1995 major-league debut; and his career highlights. Jeter reminisces about his career in “Jeter Unfiltered (DB80644),” published in 2014, the year he retired. In “The Life You Imagine: Life Lessons for Achieving Your Dreams (DB54209),” for senior high and older readers, Jeter shares ten steps that helped him achieve success. And for readers in grades 4–7, there’s “The ‘Contract Series, Books 1–4 (DB88267)” featuring a young Derek Jeter and his baseball dreams—written by Jeter himself.
[Image: Derek Jeter salutes the Yankee Stadium crowd after recording his 2,722nd hit, breaking Lou Gehrig's franchise hit record, September 11, 2009. Photo by Chris Ptacek, Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.]

06/22/2024

Join us online this coming Monday, June 24, at 4 p.m. eastern time for the kickoff event of the NLS Summer Reading Program! Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden will read “The Adventures of Marshmallow and Peter (BR25025, DBC30393)” by Peter Heath, an eight-year-old NLS patron who uses a white cane he’s named Marshmallow. Other Summer Reading Program highlights include a live online talk with Angeline Boulley, author of “Firekeeper’s Daughter (BR24040, DB102762)” and “Warrior Girl Unearthed (BR25116 in process, DB114761),” on July 25; an online escape room; and an audio-described virtual tour of the Library of Congress’ historic Thomas Jefferson Building. Find details—including a link to register for Monday’s kickoff and other live events—at the NLS Summer Reading Program web page, www.loc.gov/nls/summerreading2024?loclr-fbnls.
[Image: The cover of "The Adventures of Marshmallow and Peter" and a portrait of Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden by Carol M. Highsmith.]

06/21/2024

Thriller and suspense writer James Patterson, historian and biographer Doris Kearns Goodwin, Grammy-winning opera star Renée Fleming and novelist, short-story writer and poet Sandra Cisneros are among more than 90 authors appearing live at this year’s Library of Congress National Book Festival. The festival—which is free and open to all—takes place Saturday, August 24, at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in downtown Washington, D.C. For those who can’t be there in person, events on the main stage will be livestreamed, and videos of all presentations will be posted online shortly after the festival. Get details and explore the complete lineup at loc.gov/bookfest?loclr=fbnls.
[Image: National Book Festival poster with stylized art of an asterisk, quotation marks and an exclamation point.]

06/20/2024

“Years from now, after I'm gone, someone will listen to what I've done and know I was here,” music legend Chet Atkins—born 100 years ago —once said. "Country Gentleman (DB08851)," one of Atkins’ two autobiographies in the NLS collection, is his 1974 revelation of a shy man's search for expression and acceptance as well as his innovation of both the contemporary and finger-picking styles of guitar playing. "Me and My Guitars (BR15715, DB59270)," published in 2001 with longtime friends the Cochran brothers, recalls his career, beginning with his early days in Tennessee and Georgia, by focusing on his guitars, describing the evolution of their construction and sharing anecdotes about favorite instruments.
To get a better lay of the country land, try "In the Country of Country: People and Places in American Music (DB44961)" by Nicholas Dawidoff, who spotlights Atkins as well as other country greats like Earl Scruggs, Patsy Cline and Johnny Cash. The NLS Music Section offers its patrons “The Ninety and Nine (DBM02215),” in which Bill Brown teaches how to play the song on guitar in the style of Doc Watson and Chet Atkins without the use of music or tabs. To learn more about the Music Section, call 800-424-8567 ext. 2 or email [email protected].
[Image: Chet Atkins at Cokesbury, photographed by JD Sloan, 1974. CC BY-NC-ND license. Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Division.]

06/18/2024

Happy birthday to Chris Van Allsburg, born 75 years ago! Originally trained as a sculptor, he switched his focus to children’s books in 1979 and has since worked on 21 books as writer, illustrator or both. “Jumanji (BR05317, DB50700),” in which a children’s board game comes to life, and “The Polar Express (BR12001, DB23625),” a classic Christmas story, both won the Caldecott Medal—and were turned into major motion pictures. NLS patrons can download them from BARD at https://nlsbard.loc.gov?loclr=fbnls, or reach out to their NLS cooperating network library to borrow PRINT/BRAILLE picture book editions of those and other Van Allsburg titles.
[Image: Covers for “The Garden of Abdul Gasazi (DB34174),” “Jumanji” and “The Polar Express.”]

06/16/2024

“Language is courage," Salman Rushdie once wrote: "the ability to conceive a thought, to speak it, and by doing so to make it true.” Rushdie—who has won the Booker and PEN prizes for his works of “magical realism” and will celebrate his 77th birthday on Wednesday—has a new memoir, "Knife: Meditations after an Attempted Murder (DB120670)." In it, he addresses for the first time the 2022 attempt on his life and offers his thoughts on violence, art, loss, love and finding the strength to stand up again. In the literary and political spotlight for nearly half a century, this India-born British-American author began his career with the acclaimed "Midnight's Children (BR18687, DB16993)," a satire focused on Saleem Sinai, who was born at the very second the new nation of India came into being and is magically entwined with its fate. You can find most of Rushdie’s works of fiction and nonfiction in the NLS collection. The Library of Congress also has recordings of Rushdie’s appearances at three National Book Festivals: 2008, http://www.loc.gov/item/2021691763?loclr=fbnls; 2016, http://www.loc.gov/item/2021691083?loclr=fbnls; and 2020, http://www.loc.gov/item/webcast-9455?loclr=fbnls, all before he lost an eye in the 2022 attack.
[Image: A video still of Salman Rushdie at his home attending virtually the 2020 Library of Congress National Book Festival.]

06/15/2024

Did you miss NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration's short documentary, “Listen to the Universe,” when we mentioned it in March? NASA has re-released it—now with a full audio description track. “Listen to the Universe” explores sonification, the process of converting radio telescope data into sound so that blind and low-vision astronomers and enthusiasts have equal access to sighted star-gazers. You can watch the 27-minute audio-described documentary at www.youtube.com/watch?v=GxWwlwvcQDg&t=0s.
[Image: A visualization of a galaxy with the words “Listen to the Universe” across it. Screenshot from “Listen to the Universe.”]

06/13/2024

Jerry West, who died Wednesday at age 86, was a 14-time NBA all-star, MVP of the 1969 NBA Finals—even as his team, the Los Angeles Lakers, lost to the Boston Celtics—and co-captain of the gold medal-winning 1960 men’s Olympic basketball team. Then he became a coach, scout and general manager, playing a key role in building the Lakers’ “Showtime” teams of the 1980s. “Jerry West: The Life and Legend of a Basketball Icon (DB71254)” by Roland Lazenby traces West’s rise from poverty in West Virginia to professional stardom, fueled by a perfectionism that made him one of the best in his sport. West told his own story in a 2011 bestseller, “West by West: My Charmed, Tormented Life (DB74058),” and while still a player cowrote “Mr. Clutch: The Jerry West Story (BR01330).” After West left the team in 2000, the Lakers’ success continued with players he had brought aboard, including Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant. Read about those years in “Three-Ring Circus: Kobe, Shaq, Phil, and the Crazy Years of the Lakers Dynasty (DB100975)” by Jeff Pearlman.
[Image: (Left) Jerry West at the White House before receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom, 2019. White House photo. (Right) West in 1972 as a member of the NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers. Photo by Malcolm W. Emmons.]

06/12/2024

President George H.W. Bush, the 41st US president, was born 100 years ago . To learn more about Bush’s life and career, begin with his “All the Best, George Bush: My Life in Letters and Other Writings (DB49101),” a collection of letters, speeches and diary entries from his service in World War II through his presidency. Other NLS books about George H.W. Bush include "41: A Portrait of My Father (DB80060)" by George W. Bush, 43rd US president, with details of the elder Bush's early life in Massachusetts, military service and career in the oil industry, the CIA and politics. For younger readers in grades 5-8, there's "George H.W. Bush: 41st President of the United States (BR08032, DB30141)" by Rebecca Stefoff, which tells of Bush becoming the youngest pilot in the US Navy, marrying Barbara Pierce and being elected president.
And let's also remember today that it was Bush who, on July 26, 1990, signed the Americans with Disabilities Act. “Every man, woman and child with a disability can now pass through once-closed doors into a bright new era of equality, independence and freedom," he said that day. Learn more about the effects of President Bush’s signature legislation in “Enabling Acts: The Hidden Story of How the Americans with Disabilities Act Gave the Largest US Minority Its Rights (BR21143, DB82272).”
NLS patrons can download these titles instantly from BARD: www.loc.gov/nls/how-to-enroll/sign-up-for-bard-and-bard-mobile?loclr=fbnls.

[Photo: President George H.W. Bush signs the Americans with Disabilities Act during a ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House. Official White House photo.]

06/10/2024

The NLS Summer Reading Program starts in two weeks! The kickoff event on June 24 at 4 p.m. eastern time features the Librarian of Congress, Dr. Carla Hayden, reading “The Adventures of Marshmallow and Peter (BR25025, DBC30393),” a picture book written by an 8-year-old NLS patron. On July 25, Chippewa author Angeline Boulley will discuss her highly praised YA novel “Firekeeper’s Daughter (BR24040, DB102762)” and its follow-up, “Warrior Girl Unearthed (BR25116 in process, DB114761),” with award-winning author Andrea L. Rogers. All Summer Reading Program events will be held online, so anyone, anywhere, can join the fun – but you need to register in advance. Get a complete schedule and find out how to register on our Summer Reading Program web page: www.loc.gov/nls/summerreading2024?loclr=fbnls.
[Image: A girl enjoys an audiobook on the NLS BARD Mobile app.]

06/07/2024

You’re invited to join NLS for two free online events next week.
On Monday, June 10, at 7 p.m. eastern time, a national panel of experts on literacy in the blind and low-vision community will be the guests for our quarterly Patron Corner. The panelists will discuss the state of literacy among low-vision children and adults and describe approaches for improving literacy outcomes. Get details at www.loc.gov/nls/news-and-updates/patron-corner?loclr=fbnls.
Then on Thursday, June 13, at 7 p.m. eastern time, the monthly Many Faces of BARD program will feature updates on the NLS Braille eReader. After a brief presentation, NLS staff will spend the remainder of the hour answering questions about the eReader or using BARD. Get details at www.loc.gov/nls/news-and-updates/many-faces-of-bard?loclr-fbnls.
[Image: An NLS braille eReader.]

06/06/2024

80 years ago, more than 150,000 Allied troops landed in France and began the task of pushing Axis forces back toward Germany—the beginning of the end of World War II in Europe. Looking to learn more about the invasion known as D-Day? The Library of Congress Veterans History Project (VHP) has assembled information and personal stories—including recordings in the veterans’ own words—at www.loc.gov/collections/veterans-history-project-collection/serving-our-voices/world-war-ii/d-day-june-6-1944?loclr=fbnls. And if you are or know a WWII veteran who hasn’t yet shared their story, VHP is ready to hear from you.
[Image: General Dwight D. Eisenhower, Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force in Europe, talks with American paratroopers on the evening of June 5, 1944, as they prepare for D-Day. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.]

06/05/2024

Bestselling author Ken Follett—born 75 years ago in Cardiff, Wales—once said, “I like to create imaginary characters and events around a real historical situation. I want readers to feel: OK, this probably didn't happen, but it might have.” Follett worked as a reporter and publisher before “The Eye of the Needle (DB12323)”—in which a N**i spy discovers fake plans for D-Day—launched his career in 1978. The international bestseller became a blockbuster movie with Donald Sutherland and Bill Nighy in 1981. Other Follett titles include “The Key to Rebecca (DB63542, and in French, DBG15611),” in which a German spy steals British secrets, and “The Pillars of the Earth (DB30999),” set in twelfth century England and filled with intrigue around the building of a new cathedral. (The 800-page novel was made into a popular TV series.) NLS patrons can work with their network library reader advisor to find more of Follett's books, such as the Century Trilogy, which covers much of the world’s history from families who lived it from 1911 to 2008. Also check out Follett’s presentation at the 2010 National Book Festival at www.loc.gov/item/2021691658?loclr=fbnls.
[Image: Follett speaking at the Library of Congress in 2010, photographic still from the Library’s video recording.]

06/04/2024

NLS is honored to be one of the inaugural winners of the Braille Institute's Community Hero Award! The award spotlights organizations that demonstrate support of braille literacy, which is crucial to the educational and long-term success of blind and visually impaired children.
NLS was recognized for its “invaluable contributions to braille literacy,” the Braille Institute says. “Their support of Braille Institute's library services and their endorsement of braille as fundamental to literacy are commendable and life-changing for many individuals.”
Other 2024 Community Hero Award winners were Mattel, for its portrayal of individuals with disabilities, and Partners for Pediatric Vision, which supports children with visual impairments in Southern California.
Braille Institute is a non-profit organization founded in 1919 in Los Angeles. Its library serves blind and print disabled residents of Southern California as part of NLS’ national network of cooperating libraries.
Read more about the award at www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/braille-institute-announces-2024-community-hero-awards-recipients-302161072.html.