Holly, Author at Awful Library Books

Cutting the B-Roll

January 11, 2021 Holly Bleeding Edge 5 comments

Educator’s Survival Guide to TV Production Equipment and Setup
Curchy and Kyker
1998

Submitter: I took TV Production in high school during my freshman year (1999-2000), so this book brought up a lot of nostalgia for me. Of course, that was over twenty years ago (which was about how long ago this book last checked out), so this really doesn’t have any application for my students. Somehow this never got weeded, even when the school went 1:1 iPad. I have no idea how long it’s been since there were last VHS tapes and VCRs on our campus, but it’s been a long time. While this might be fun for someone who’s really interested in the history of TV production, this book is completely out of date for any practical application. (The school is a 6-12 independent school.)

Friday Fiction – Kissing Doorknobs

January 8, 2021 Holly Friday Fiction 5 comments

Kissing Doorknobs
Hesser
1998

Submitter: “Weaknesses: Keesha is Black and her dialog is in a quasi-Ebonic style, which doesn’t go over well now. Donna is a “bad girl” and goes to a home for expectant mothers. The parents, even though they have seen Tara’s behavior for years, refuse to believe anything is wrong with her. This is dated in so many ways.

What I really think: Treatment and perception of OCD has changed so much in the last 20 years that I will weed this book. It hasn’t been checked out in a while, doesn’t smell great, and is a bit more YA than most of my titles now. My readers have been skewing younger for some time now. No idea why.”

Dragnet Training Manual

January 6, 2021 Holly Health and Safety 2 comments

Daily Training Bulletin of the Los Angeles Police Department
Consisting of Bulletins 1-173
Parker
1963, 3rd ed.

Submitter: Though this looks very serious and important on the title page, turns out the LAPD had quite the sense of humor back in the day, based on the cartoon illustrations! Obviously, policing has changed a LOT since the 1950s, and perhaps LA is no longer a “gay, mad whirl of cocktail parties, lilting music”… etc. And police probably don’t do much to assist tourists these days, either. My college no longer has a Criminal Justice or similar program, so lots of ancient policing books had to be weeded.

Fiesta!

January 4, 2021 Holly Entertainment, Spanning the Globe 2 comments

Mort’s Guide to Festivals, Feasts, Fairs, & Fiestas
Barish and Mole
1974

Submitter: Another very dated book we weeded. Dated and wrong. Is ANY festival from 1974 still being held in 2020? I looked up my own state, and while the basic information is mostly correct for the time, there are some glaring errors. Mainly, misspelling the Merrie Monarch Festival as “Merry.” This is sacrilege here. However, “mouthwatering Polynesian and Oriental foods” are still part of the state fair, and any fair, really! And the teeny, tiny type!

Holly’s Favorites of 2020

December 29, 2020 Holly Best of the Worst 3 comments

It’s been a weird year. However, we are obligated to look back on 2020 and pick our best of the worst. Let’s hope for a better year in 2021.

Here are Holly’s picks for the Best of the Worst of 2020! Happy Holidays, everyone, and thanks for all your great submissions this year.

Friday Fiction: Dinky Hocker Shoots Smack

December 18, 2020 Holly Friday Fiction 12 comments

Dinky Hocker Shoots Smack!
Kerr
1972

Submitter: This was . . . probably an OK book in 1972? And probably great in our context (small rural town in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula – about as far as it gets from Brooklyn.) I might take it home and read it. There’s a cat named Nader! The boy wants to be a librarian! It was adapted into an After-School Special! But it’s 2020. Our current YA patrons’ mothers are too young for this book. Also, it’s a mass market paperback in a library binding – the pages are brittle and falling out. It’s time to go.

Grassroots Fundraising

December 17, 2020 Holly Bleeding Edge, Condition/Processing Fail 5 comments

The Grass Roots Fundraising Book: How to Raise Money in Your Community
Flanagan for The Youth Project
1977

Submitter: Submitting this 1977 book on fundraising. Most of the data, addresses, and dollar values are out of date and the entire book is dry and brittle – not to mention it lacks contemporary fundraising resources like GoFundMe and others help make this an easy weed.

Holly: Oh good, a double-whammy of outdated and falling apart. Perfect for our current COVID-19 times, where every non-profit in town is desperately fundraising.

Why Am I Afraid to Tell You Who I Am?

December 14, 2020 Holly Condition/Processing Fail, Department of God, Feelings and Self Help 11 comments

Why Am I Afraid to Tell You Who I Am
Powell
1969

Submitter: This well loved 1969 copy of John Powell of the Society of Jesus – Why Am I Afraid To Tell You Who I Am is filled with underlining and other notations from some past perplexed borrower. Still in print today and time for this copy to move on. Included the creepy clown picture for Mary…