Recently, someone asked me for good books for her nonfiction book club. As an academic librarian, I don’t usually get asked for broad recommendations—instead, it’s specific research requests like where do I find site reports on shell mound archaeology or I need academic articles on ancestral genetic testing among…
I’m a big pusher for libraries. “Did you know they have free stuff?” I say. You roll your eyes. Yes, you know. “I mean, they have books, but did you know they have other free stuff?” *** It’s easy to take the free thing for granted, but many early…
I’ve been interested in genealogy ever since a childhood 4-H project, where I carefully wrote each person’s names with colored rhinestones on a poster. Even now, I enjoy exploring historic records and helping others find out more about their families. But genealogy can appear expensive — so this piece…
Once we understand that search engines can’t do everything, we can look at what search engines can do. Since most of us use Google, I’ll start with a few ways to zoom in on useful information and ignore the rest. Searching on Google Find a specific phrase with “…
Recently, I’ve had folks ask for my expertise in things like how to do research, how to find things online, and how to be an expert Googler. I have a few tips for web searching that I’ll share in the next post. But really, your most important skill isn’t to…
As a child, I drank in folktales in all colors, from the olive book of fairy tales to the crimson and lilac books. And then, I tried rustling through the coats in our large wooden wardrobe to find Narnia, or sweeping under the rug to find a virtuous girl’s golden…
I’ve been asked to present about my research process, so I thought I’d share here what I’ll be presenting to other librarians soon. Below are some of the steps I take when doing academic or nonfiction research; I’d love to hear if you have a different process. For printed…
Are you thinking about applying to library school? Wondering how to get into the field? I’m summarizing some of the advice I’ve passed along to mentees and prospective students here, with tips on places to look for more on libraryland. Start reading blogs in the field. Get a sense…
One you’ve looked at possible careers and asked questions of the programs and funding… step back. Take a break and consider your life and situation. Get yourself a drink, a meditative space, and time to reflect. I’d suggest you let yourself percolate on the ideas below… and even after you’ve…
Oooh, I have strong opinions on this one. If I could give one piece of advice, it would be to not go to any undergraduate or graduate program that doesn’t offer you at least partial funding. I know. It’s not available in all fields. (But check with a trusted…