Ich bin ein Bibliotecario

Language is fascinating to me. I'm particularly interested in the idea that our brains are shaped by the language we use to interpret our environments and communicate - and therefore, people of different cultures do perceive the world differently.

So, apropos of absolutely nothing, here are the translations for a few library-related words, according to the Babel Fish translator.

Something else neat is that other language can be clever sources of product names - who among us wouldn't buy into a chat reference product called "Referencia?" But my favorite is the word for librarian - "bibliotecario" - I think I might change my business cards.

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Upcoming Book Conferences

For those in New England, the coming weeks have a few book-related conferences worth attending. I'll definitely be at the first two, but not sure about the third:

Boston Book Festival - Saturday, October 16th
The Boston Book Festival is a day-long event, filled with talks from authors and illustrators and others in the book field. All the events are around Copley Square in Boston, and everything is free. I'm going to try to see Chipp Kidd, Bill Bryson, Joyce Carol Oates, Jeff Kinney, and anyone else I can find - not to mention renew my library card at the BPL.

New England Library Association 2010 Annual Conference - Oct 17 - 19th
This year's NELA conference is in Boxborough, MA, and should be a good time (as always). Highlights (for me) are the talk on censorship by Joe Raiola (senior Editor of MAD magazine), seeing Ethan Zuckerman again, a talk on Open Source ILS' by Stephanie Chase and Pamela Soren Smith - and I'll be doing a poster session on library website mashups.

Why Books? - Oct 28 -29th
Hosted by Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, "'Why Books?' probes the form and function of the book in a rapidly changing media ecology. Speakers from a variety of disciplines—literature and history to sociology and computer science—will discuss the public-policy implications of new media forms and will explore some of the major functions that we identify with books today: production and diffusion; storage and retrieval; and reception and use."

Busy busy busy. And if you're ever looking for a book-related event, remember to check out LibraryThing.com/local for events in your area - and also add your library's events there for more exposure.

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Judging Book Covers

With the demise of Bloglines, I've been going through all the posts I had bookmarked and pulling out the ones I wanted to mention in a post - this is one of those posts.

Something I really like about feed aggregators is that, by reading feeds from a wide variety of sources, it is possible to spot coincidental trends (which I like doing). For instance, a couple weeks ago I noticed a few of posts all about book covers:

• Boing Boing featured an interesting infographic showing the trends in cover art of fantasy novels (a trend within a trend)
• The Huffington Post is always good for a meme - this time they reviewed both great covers designs of books about design and 11 bad memoir book covers
• A Fuse #8 Production, a School Library Journal blog, reviews some of the best childrens book covers of 2010 by some of the best cover illustrators
• Fail Blog always has humorous book covers (see the Amazon listing for the book pictured above)

Of course, this isn't a new trend - Awful Library Books has been around awhile, and I've talked about book covers, too.

And speaking of book covers, remember to play with LibraryThing's CoverGuess, to help build a database that can answer questions like, "well, I don't remember the title, but it was a red book, and had like this guy on a street with maybe like a purple penguin?"

Update: I forgot to include my two biggest book cover pet peeves:

• Covers where the author's name is bigger than the title
• Cook books where the chef (usually a celebrity) is more prominently-featured than the food

Those to things always make me suspicious.

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Kate Spade Book Bags

I am not what someone might call fashionable, so thanks to Liz for pointing out the next fashion accessory - Kate Spade "Book of the Month" clutches.

Kate Spade? A clutch? These parts of the phrase were mysteries, but the book element interested me. Once a month, they'll release little purse things designed to look like books. So, for just $325, people can look like they're carrying a book with them, but actually are not (as opposed to making your own book safe for free out of an actual book).

But this does puzzle me: if the point is to look fashionable, wouldn't it make more sense to make a clutch that looks like an iPad or Kindle? Or maybe retrointellectuaistas just have far better fashion taste than I. Well, yes, of course they do. It is creative and well-done, but I still need to cue Flight of the Conchords:

I might sound critical, but you know if they designed a man-purse based on Alice's Adventures in Wonderland or The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, I would want it.

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Bookcrossing Unconvention 2010

I have been using the website Bookcrossing for awhile, and really like the idea (their slogan "make the world a library" is pretty rad, too). So I was sad to find out they're having an unconvention in Boston on a weekend that I work.

In case you're interested, here are the details:

Bookcrossing North America Unconvention, Boston, August 13-15, 2010

Every year, the official anniversary convention attracts Bookcrossers from all over the world. In 2010, this official anniversary convention took place in Amsterdam.

But for bookcrossers who want to stay closer to home, and for some especially enthusiastic bookcrossers who may want to attend more than just one convention, the Unconvention was invented.

The Unconvention is a more casual gathering, with an emphasis on socializing with fellow bookcrossers. So come to Boston from the 13th to the 15th of August 2010 for some great bookish fun.

We have a great place lined up for our Boston UnConvention. We've arranged with Hostelling International Boston to stay at their Commonwealth Avenue location in Kenmore Square, which will serve as the centre for all Unconvention activities.

We'd be glad to see you there. Come share your enthusiasm for traveling books, promoting literacy, and the fun of random finds with other Bookcrossers, and enjoy activities that are planned for the Unconvention.

Optional Preconvention Activities
Friday, August 13, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Preconvention: Salem Tour
Preconvention: Independent Bookstores Tour

Icebreaker Activities
Friday, August 13, 4 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Book-themed icebreaker game
Yankee-themed yankee swap

Friday Evening
Friday, August 13, 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Informal dinner and mingling

UnConvention Program
Saturday, August 14, 9:30 a.m. to 12 p.m
Welcome from Boston Bookcrossers
Brunonia Barry - Author of “The Lace Reader”
News from Support – What’s happening at Bookcrossing?
Bookcrosser Badgerjim - A few words from BC in DC re: 2011 10 Year Anniversary Convention
Wrap-up by Boston Bookcrossers

Saturday Lunch
Saturday, August 14, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m.

Saturday, August 14, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.
Freedom Trail Release Walk
Visit the Boston Public Library

Saturday, August 14, 4 p.m. to 10 p.m.
UnConvention Dinner at Fajitas 'N' Ritas
Commonwealth Shakespeare Company Presents: Othello

Sunday, August 15, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Farewell Brunch, reverse scavenger hunt prizes. Raffle

For more about the Unconvention, and for Registration Information: http://www.uncon2010boston.com/home/

Registration Fee: $55
includes Friday evening food, Saturday morning catered breakfast, Saturday lunch, and Saturday snacks.

Friday pre-convention activities and the cocktail party: $30
Friday cocktail party: $20
Saturday events: $32

Find out more about the Boston Bookcrossing's Meetup group: http://www.meetup.com/bookcrossing-195/ Feel free to drop in at any scheduled Meeting of the group, and enjoy the company of bookcrossers!

And in somewhat related news, be sure to also check out this year's PodCamp Boston, September 25-26, 2010.

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Book Term Poll: Hardback, Hardcover or Hardbound?

We got into a discussion at work about whether the proper term for a book with stiff covers is referred to as a hardback book, a hardcover book, or a hardbound book. I was out-voted, but I like to think that I wasn't wrong so much as our sample size was too small.

I grew up in Ohio, so I wonder if the term I use is different from my New England coworkers because it's a regional thing. I'm not a linguist, but regional variations in vocabulary have fascinated me ever since I went off to college and met people from different parts of the country. Bubbler? Slippy? Creamies? These words* are great.

Anyway, my coworkers and I all agreed that pretty much everyone uses paperback to refer to soft-cover books (except for spiral-bound books). So please, answer the poll below to help determine which term is more popular.

Thank you for helping satisfy my curiosity.

And speaking of surveys, here's another interesting question on Unshelved Answers: What is the best way to turn the pages of a book?.

*Here are what those words mean:
Bubbler: a "drinking fountain" in New England (like this, not this)
Slippy: how people in some parts of Pennsylvania say "slippery" (among others)
Creamies: "soft-serve ice cream cones" in Vermont (like this)

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