All units of the NYPL will be closed July 4.
“A new year is unfolding – like a blossom with petals curled tightly concealing the beauty within.”
- Anonymous
The Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) is presenting a series of free lectures and art-making workshops at the Andrew Heiskell Library this winter. All programs will take place in the first floor community room. At each program all participants will receive a pass for up to five people to visit the Museum for free!
The content of this program series is based on free monthly touch and verbal description tours conducted at MOMA for adults who are blind or partially sighted. MOMA also conducts programs such as these for families. These community Programs are supported by The Friends of Education of The Museum of Modern Art in honor of Michael Margitich, May and Samuel Rudin Family Foundation, Inc., and Ducommun and Gross Family Foundation.
Saturday, February 9, 2:00 p.m.
Yamaha Piano Artist Alexander A. Wu has created a program, from his newly released CD, Bach to the Future: Classical and Jazz Piano, that breaks down the boundaries between these two genres. Alexander masterfully juxtaposes the piano classics of old world Europe with music of the new world and America’s modern era. This exciting concert, recently performed at Lincoln Center and the Smithsonian American Art Museum, features music of J.S. Bach, Leonard Bernstein, Dave Brubeck, Frederic Chopin, Chick Corea, Claude Debussy, Duke Ellington, George Gershwin, W.A. Mozart, and Sergei Prokofiev.
Our book discussion group meets on the third Saturday of every other month at 10:00 a.m. Join us for lively discussions about thought-provoking books. Register by phone (212-206-5400), email (ahlbph@nypl.org), or in person.
This winter’s discussion:
Magic software you can increase the size of everything on a computer screen, have the text on the screen spoken aloud, and change the size and color of the cursor and mouse to make them easier to find. Come to an informal, drop-in workshop to learn about the features of the MAGic screen magnifying software.
The workshops will be held from 1:00 – 4:00 p.m. on January 17, February 6, and March 6.
Take listening to digital books to the next level by learning how to use the advanced features of both the Standard and Advanced model players. This ongoing workshop program includes a demonstration of downloading books from the BARD (Braille and Audio Reading Download) website and a discussion of commercial book players as well as the library-issued players. Registered patrons who do not yet have a player will be able to take one home after the workshop.
The workshops will be held in the library's second floor computer lab from 2:00 – 4:00 p.m. on January 30, February 13, and March 13. Attendance is limited, so please register in advance by phone (212-206-5400), email (ahlbph@nypl.org), or in person.
Wednesdays, January 9, February 6, and March 6 at 10:30 a.m. Children and their parents or caregivers can Enjoy stories, rhymes and songs at this story time that is suitable for all ages.
Saturday, April 6 at 11:00 a.m. All library patrons are welcome! Meet members of the staff, learn more about library services and programs, and provide ideas and insights on ways to improve the library's programs and services. The Council meetings are an opportunity for patrons to ask questions and give their feedback on library service.
The Andrew Heiskell Library is proud to announce the rollout of 4 new talking books. Special thanks go out to Susan Mosakowski, audiobook studio manager, and the many volunteers whose hard work made the production of these books possible!
Two Seeing Eye Dogs take Manhattan! by Lloyd Burlingame - RC 5657. Published in 2012, a funny and fast-paced account of the true adventures—and misadventures—of one blind New Yorker and his two amazing Seeing Eye dogs. Mr. Burlingame is a long-time patron of the Andrew Heiskell Library and recently gave an engaging and inspiring talk at the library about this book and his experiences with his guide dogs over the years. Burlingame was featured in a New York Times Article, “After Going Blind, Starting a New Career With Help From Two Guide Dogs,” published on November 26, 2012.
Sherlock Holmes and the King’s Evil by Donald Thomas - RC 5641. Thomas masterfully evokes the flavor of Arthur Conan Doyle’s original stories of the great detective and gives us an entertaining Sherlockian pastiche. 2009.
Distant Star by Roberto Bolaño - RC 5652. Bolaño’s novel follows Alberto Ruiz-Tagle during the Pinochet regime as he exploits the 1973 coup to launch a multi-media enterprise involving sky-writing, torture, photography, and murder. 1996.
In addition, the following titles, also recorded by the Andrew Heiskell Library’s recording studio, are now available on digital cartridge:
Baltasar and Blimunda by Jose Saramago - DBN 5399.
Alfred H. Barr Jr. and the Intellectual Origins of MOMA by Sybil Gordon Kantor - DBN 5459.
The Bay of Angels by Anita Brookner - DBN 5427.
Bloodshed and Three Novellas by Cynthia Ozick - DBN 5427.
Channeling Mark Twain by Carol Muske-Dukes - DBN 5468.
Anton Chekhov: The Complete Short Stories by Anton Chekhov - DBN 5448.
Clock Without Hands by Carson McCullers - DBN 5408.
The Colossus of New York by Colson Whitehead - DBN 5410.
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Apt. 3W by Gabriel Brownstein - DBN 5475.
Don't I Know You? By Karen Shepard - DBN 5453.
The Double by Jose Saramago - DBN 5477.
The Edible Woman by Margaret Atwood – DBN 5426.
Elizabeti's Doll by Stephanie Stuve-Bodeen - DBN 5471.
February House by Sherrill Tippins - DBN 5443.
The Fisher King by Paule Marshall - DBN 5442.
The Glass Virgin by Catherine Cookson - DBN 5439.
Hiatus by Evelyn Reilly - DBN 5441.
Hotel du Lac by Anita Brookner - DBN 5400.
How the Dead Dream by Lydia Millet - DBN 5630.
I Was Told There'd Be Cake by Sloane Crosley - DBN 5485.
Impresario: The Life and Times of Ed Sullivan by James Maguire - DBN 5464.
James Joyce by Edna O'Brien - DBN 5411.
Lower East Side Memories by Hasia R. Diner – DBN 5455.
Manhattan Noir by Lawrence Block, ed. - DBN 5467.
Miracle Fair: Selected Poems of Wislawa Szymborska by Wislawa Szymborska - DBN 5395.
The Mud Flat Mystery by James Stevenson - DBN 5418.
N Judah by Len Jenkin - DBN 5474.
The New Yorkers by Cathleen Schine - DBN 5470.
The Notebooks of Malte Laurids Brigge by Rainer Maria Rilke - DBN 5407.
The Rings of Saturn by W.G. Sebald - DBN 5413.
Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith - DBN 5406.
Three Lives & Tender Buttons by Gertrude Stein - DBN 5403.
The Violent Bear it Away by Flannery O'Connor - DBN 5432.
Kurt Weill on Stage: From Berlin to Broadway by Foster Hirsch - DBN 5409.
When the Spirts Dance Mambo by Marta Vega Moreno - DBN 5463.
Wise Blood by Flannery O'Connor - DBN 5446.
Recently, downloadable braille books and magazines were made available from the National Library Service’s BARD website (Braille and Audio Reading Download). These books and magazines were once only accessible from the NLS Web-Braille website. Web-Braille users should now use BARD to download braille items. The former Web-Braille site will only available to users for a limited time. No date has been announced for discontinuing Web-Braille, but no new user names and passwords are being distributed for Web-Braille. If you are interested in starting to download books in braille from the internet, in addition to talking books, please sign up for BARD to do so. There is more information about signing up for BARD on page 14 of the newsletter.
Once again, we would like to let you know that this winter, all NLS magazines currently distributed on cassette will be distributed on digital cartridge. If you subscribe to more than one magazine, all of your magazines will arrive on a single DB cartridge. Unlike the disposable cassette magazines, you will be expected to return digital magazine cartridges in order to receive future issues. Digital magazine cartridges will be light blue and arrive in a dark red container. When played, the digital cartridge will explain how to navigate to multiple magazines, and remind you that the cartridge must be returned.
If you subscribe to audio magazines and don’t have a digital talking book machine, make sure you request one from us soon. Once magazines are available on cartridge they will not be available on cassette.
Did you know you can download talking books and books in braille from the internet on BARD (Braille and Audio Reading Download)? BARD is a National Library Service website that has thousands of books in audio and braille available for download. Audio books can be downloaded onto a flash drive that can be played on your digital book player and NLS approved devices. Reading downloaded braille books requires a braille display, braille-aware notetaker, or braille embosser, or they can be listened to with a player that has text-to-speech capabilities such as a Victor Reader Stream. This is a great way to get books quickly and easily. There are unlimited copies of very popular books for downloading. And best of all, they do not need to be returned!
To download books from BARD you need:
To sign up for BARD:
Go to the BARD website: http://nlsbard.loc.gov. Use the “BARD application instructions” link to fill out and submit the application. The NLS will send a confirmation email when the application is received. After the application is approved, you will receive emails that will provide information on how to log in to BARD using your email address and new password. The BARD website has various reading lists to choose from. Or, you can look up books by keyword, author, title, or subject. You can also choose magazines to download.
To download a book, follow these general steps:
Thank you, to those who took part in our last survey! 100 persons responded. The majority of patrons who responded call the library to request books (35). The next most popular method was allowing the library to choose books for them (25). Coming in third was mailing requests to the library (16).
Question Responses: Which of the following ways do you order talking books from the library?
1. I call the library at 212-206-5400 to request books -35
2. I email my requests to ahlbph@nypl.org - 2
3. I call the 24-hour voicemail line at 212-206-5425 - 7
4. I mail my requests to the library - 16
5. I fax my requests to 212-206-5418 - 1
6. I download books from the internet on BARD (Braille and Audio Reading Download) - 9
7. In addition to making requests, I let the library pick books for me based on my interests - 25
8. I don’t make any requests; I let the library pick all of my books for me based on my interests - 5
We'd love to hear from you! And to help you provide us with feedback, we've included a tear-out sheet with just a few questions to help us see how we’re doing and what you might want or need. You can send in your answers by mail, fax, phone, or email. Do you follow us on Facebook or Twitter? You can send in your answers there, too. Please give us honest feedback that can help us focus our resources. We’ll share the results of each issue’s questionnaire in the following issue.
This season’s survey questionnaire is about BARD (Braille and Audio Reading Download). We’re interested in seeing how people may use BARD. We would also like to see why people may not use BARD.
Question 1: Which of the following ways do you use BARD (circle all that apply):
1. I download books and magazines by myself
2. I download books and magazines with assistance from another person
3. I do not use BARD to download books and magazines
4. I download books from BARD in addition to receiving books through the mail from the library
Question 2: If you do not use BARD, please tell us why (circle all that apply):
1. Until now, I didn’t know BARD existed
2. I do not know how to use the internet
3. I do not have a computer or internet access
4. I have tried using BARD to download books and magazines, but it was too difficult
5. I do not know someone who is able to assist me with downloading from BARD
If you have any questions about how to use BARD, please contact the library and we will be happy to assist you in any way we can.
Here’s a list of popular new books published or made available in 2012 that you may not have heard about!
What it Was by George P. Pelecanos – DB74192. Washington, D.C.; 1972. Maybelline Walker hires ex-cop Derek Strange to recover a ring she had loaned to drug addict Bobby Odum before he was murdered. 2012.
Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake by Anna Quindlen – DB74817. In a series of essays, Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist and bestselling novelist reminisces about her life and the process of aging. Contemplates the feminist revolution, mortality, family, and the importance of girlfriends in a woman's life. Bestseller. 2012.
The Grey Album: On the Blackness of Blackness by Kevin Young - DB74877. Poet explores the influence of storytelling on literature and music in African-American culture. Examines encoded spirituals in the time of slavery, works of the Harlem Renaissance, and rap and hip-hop of the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. 2012.
Quiet: The Power of the Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain - DB74307. Author explores introversion from a cultural point of view. Posits that as many as half of Americans are introverts, even as society promotes what she calls the "extrovert ideal." Bestseller. 2012.
Eisenhower in War and Peace by Jean Edward Smith - DB74849. Chronicles Eisenhower's family life, pre-World War II army career, and rise to Allied supreme commander and highlights the achievements of his presidency. 2012.
What We Have Done: An Oral History of the Disability Rights Movement by Susan Cain - DB74570. Twentieth-century disability activists describe their political struggles for basic human rights, which led to the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. 2012.
Home by Toni Morrison – BR19495. 1950s. African American Frank Money, a Korean War veteran suffering from stress and alcoholism, leaves a Seattle mental hospital after learning that his sister Cee is gravely ill. Bestseller. 2012.
Some Assembly Required: A Journal of My Son’s First Son by Anne Lamott – BR19493. The author recounts unexpectedly becoming a grandmother after her unwed, college student son and his girlfriend have a baby. Bestseller. 2012.
Did you know you can use the Andrew Heiskell Library’s PAWS Catalog to request books and manage your library account? Do you have access to a computer with internet access and want to search our catalog, request books, and see what’s been sent to you? You may not be aware that you can do all of this with our online PAWS Catalog athttp://lblpac.nypl.org/klasweb.
To set up your account, call the library at 212-206-5400 or 855-697-6975. We’ll give you a username and set you up with a password that you can use to log in via the “Patron Information” link on the left sidebar of the online catalog. From there search for books, see if we have copies available or the books are checked out, and place your requests by clicking “Add to Book Basket”. When you’ve finished selecting books, “Proceed to Checkout”. You can check your PAWS account in the next few days to verify which books have been sent. Don’t hesitate to call us with any questions about using the PAWS Catalog.
Volunteer tutors are available to assist new computer users and experienced users seeking to brush up on skills. You'll be able to get help with email, blogging, downloading audio books, learning accessible computer games, using the web for research, configuring and using accessibility software, and more. The tutors read with braille and print, use text-to-speech technology, and speak a variety of languages.
The clinic takes place in the second floor Computer Training Room on Saturdays from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m., except during holiday weekends and library closings. To ensure someone will be available to help with a specific question, please make an appointment by calling volunteer Chancey Fleet at 347-632-8383.
The library will be closed for the following holidays:
July. NYPL Art and Architecture Collection.
One of 700,000 pictures in the NYPL Digital Gallery
