What to do when the Russians come
A survivor’s guide
Conquest
1985
Completing our trifecta of red scare material, here is a great book describing how you too can survive the occupation of the Soviets. This particular book needs to be in an archive since it really does capture the hysteria of the cold war. (Did you notice one of the author’s name?) I wonder if these guys thought about a second edition after 1989?
Jewish Chess Masters on Stamps
Berkovich and Divinsky
2000
If your library or your community has a very (VERY) active stamp collecting society, this might be an acceptable choice for your library. Even then, it is very obscure! There’s nothing wrong with it and I’m not suggesting weeding it. It’s just an odd choice for a library unless they buy every possible stamp-related item they can get a hold of. The really interesting thing is that “Jews on postage stamps” is an actual subject heading, and there are all kinds of books about it on WorldCat.org. There are also books about “Catholics on postage stamps” and
…wait for it…
“Beavers on postage stamps.”
What to do About your Brain-Injured Child
Doman
1974
What you should do is get a newer book. This was submitted to ALB from 3 different people and I found a copy locally. This is such a serious subject and I cannot believe that it is still on the shelves in quite a few public libraries. Brain injuries and other areas of neuroscience have had quite a bit of progress since this book was published. Is it me or is the ultra “cheerful” colors and graphics a bit odd? This one is a slam dunk, folks. Weed it please!
Wax in our World
Russell
1966
Wax as a topic for a medium public library juvenile nonfiction section has got to be one of the oddest ideas ever. Just so you all know, I have no bias against the subject of wax. Hey, wax as a part of a craft or in candle making, I would be all over that. Waxing as hair removal, I might be interested in that for my collection. (Okay, I might have to be sold on that idea. Can you imagine the illustrations when they get to discussing the bikini line?) What makes me laugh is the idea that somewhere a publisher was in a meeting saying “I think the kids are looking for a good book on wax”.
Get the Message
Skurzynski
1993
Thanks to the anonymous submitter for this catchy title from her juvenile nonfiction section. I wonder what the message is? How about “this library is SO irrelevant!”
My Cat’s in Love or, How to Survive Your Feline’s Sex life, Pregnancy and Kittening
Manolson
1970
Isn’t the cover of this book a hoot? I also love the title. There’s some useful information in this book, although I’m sure I could find it in a more current book than 1970. It’s entirely possible that some of the spaying/neutering techniques have changed since then. Either way, I learned something here. I didn’t know that the female equivalent to a “tom” cat is a “queen.” Public libraries need to do better than this antique.
Teacher Spanks Johnny
Rovetta
1968
Submitter: The book is called Teacher Spanks Johnny: A Handbook for Teachersby Catherine Humbargar Rovetta and Leon Rovetta (I’d love to meet their children now). Being a teacher myself, I just HAD to have this book. Empty threats are no more in my classroom! Not after a quick reference to page 18 in the chapter titled Force Used on Pupil By Teacher where it states that “five blows with a ping-pong paddle is not unreasonable force“. (Actually, I’ve never even dared to bring this book into my school for fear of it falling out of my bag or being discovered by the wrong person). Though the book is not loudly “condoning” corporal punishment in school, it does offer some sort of a shortcut for anyone in the mood to offer a few, quick lashes to a deserving student or two. It is meant to help the teacher understand the possible consequences of their aggressive (yet nurturing?) actions by referencing some similar court cases.
What’s Wrong with My Snake?
Rossi
1996
Come on, admit it. The cover made you laugh. Is your snake feeling a bit under the weather? Just glove up and tell it to say “ahhh.”
This is a very useful book, and if it were re-published today I would buy a copy for my public library. That doesn’t make the cover any less funny.
Chapters on constipation and diarrhea, for example, would come in handy if you had a snake with those problems. Believe me, you want the proper technique when administering an enema to your pet python.
