Magazine collection changes with the times—January 11, 2013
As a Library Assistant, I help people find and check out books, assist them with current technology and answer a variety of interesting questions. There are also many behind the scenes duties that keep the library running. One of my responsibilities includes cataloging, labeling, and keeping track of the magazine collection.
A favorite magazine of mine is “Bottom Line Personal.” Quoting their tagline, Bottom Line offers “inside information from the world’s best experts.” It is printed in a newsletter format and presents a range of tips and advice in a simple clean style and with no advertising.
Two of the newer magazines we’ve added to the collection are “Bead Style” for jewelry makers and “Mental Floss” which targets knowledge junkies. “Mental Floss” will make you “feel smart again” after reading an issue filled with trivia and facts ranging from how Teddy Roosevelt saved football to an article that explains complicated concepts like string theory using kitchen items.
If your guilty pleasure is celebrity gossip then check out “People” magazine. (It’s embarrassing just how much I know about celebrities’ love lives without even cracking the cover.) Find out what’s new in movies and TV with “Entertainment Weekly.” For the music lovers we have “Rolling Stone” and “Stereo Review.”
For the foodies we subscribe to “Bon Appétit,” “Food Network Magazine” and three “Taste of Home” titles.
Maybe it’s your New Year’s resolution to be healthy and get into shape? Try “Men’s Health,” ”Men’s Fitness,” “Shape,” or “Self.”
Our magazine collection is diverse and constantly changing as to what we offer and how they are used. Gone are the days when a good share of after school hours was spent retrieving magazines from basement storage for students doing research. The internet and online databases have made that type of research a distant memory.
Not only has the way students do research changed but also how people access information. With so much available on the internet quite a few magazine publishers have discontinued titles, published fewer issues or offer titles online only.
I’m excited about a new service that we will soon be offering. It’s called Zinio and library patrons will be able to enjoy the world of digital magazines from a computer, smart phone, tablet, Ipad, or Kindle. There are lots of advantages to this service. Not only will we be able to supply titles like “Newsweek” that are only available online but also more than one person can have access to an issue that is in the library’s online collection. Be sure to call or ask us about Zinio the next time you visit the library.
