Where Have the Books Gone?

“Where have the books gone? I was in the library the other day and noticed some empty shelves.” Keeping available materials current and pertinent are part of the duties of the Newton Falls Public Library staff. The task is called weeding and, as in gardening, it means to remove what is not wanted to make room for what is needed. As in your garden, it also means that you are able to enjoy more items without digging through that which is no longer useful.



Some items may not have been weeded, but transplanted. Before the Internet, libraries kept large collections of reference materials, books which could only be used in the library. We have recently chosen to move many of these items to the circulating collection, where patrons may now borrow them to use at home.



“But how do you decide what to take away and what to leave?” We look at materials which no one has borrowed from the library for at least four to five years and make decisions on the disposition of these materials based on several things.


• Is the information current? This is very important when looking at items concerning medicine, law, science, and the Internet.


• Are there other books available on this subject that people are selecting instead of these?


• Does the library have multiple copies of a title that is no longer in high demand?



“What happens when you are done?” The books withdrawn from the collection are given new life. Some of them are sent to the public schools for use in their libraries and classrooms. Others are placed in the Friends of the Library’s book sales, where people in the community may purchase them. The Friends use the money raised to help support library programs throughout the year. This support allows the library to offer these programs at no cost to those attending. The next book sale will be held on Saturday, April 24 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.



As in a garden, the space created by weeding allows us to have space on the shelves for new materials. These new items are purchased to meet the current needs and interests of our community.

I Need a Broccoli Slaw Recipe

“I was visiting family out of state and they served this broccoli slaw from a local grocery store. It was really good, not much dressing on it, and it contained shredded broccoli and florets, raisins, red onion, bacon and sunflower seeds. Can you help me find the recipe?” While not having tasted the slaw, the staff of the Newton Falls Public Library would certainly try to give her some possibilities to try at home.



With the availability of the Internet, searching for recipes online is as simple as typing in the various ingredients, slaw and recipe. Cooks.com had two promising versions of this slaw: Broccoli and Bacon Salad with Equal, a lower calorie version [www.cooks.com/rec/doc/0,1662,139188-245199,00.html] and Little Tree Salad [www.cooks.com/rec/doc/0,1643,152163-235202,00.html]. Allrecipes.com’s Alyson’s Broccoli Salad [allrecipes.com/Recipe/Alysons-Broccoli-Salad-2/Detail.aspx] shows the nutritional information for those watching their fat and cholesterol intake. Broccoli Slaw [www.thekitchn.com/thekitchn/salad/recipe-broccoli-slaw-083866] at TheKitchn.com used the smallest amount of mayonnaise or salad dressing of the online recipes we viewed.



Our patron was wondering if the library had any books that might have similar recipes. We have an extensive collection of recipe books. Some, like The Madison County Cookbook by the members of St. Joseph’s Church, Winterset, Iowa includes ramen noodles, not for what she was looking. Taste and See That the Lord is Good by the Ways and Means Committee, Pricetown United Methodist Church, Newton Falls, Ohio includes mozzarella cheese. Interesting, but not exactly what was needed. In Cooking Light Annual Recipes 2007 Superspeedy Broccoli Slaw includes pineapple and uses a commercial dressing for easier preparation. The New Potluck: the best recipes for today's "bring-a-dish" meals Nutty Broccoli Slaw has a dressing which did not include mayonnaise or salad dressing. Another intriguing one was found in Taste of Home Annual Recipes 2008. Their Floret Salad has sour cream, and Worcestershire and hot sauces.

Tracks in the Snow

“These are the tracks we saw outside our house following the last snow,” said the Newton Falls Public Library patron as he showed us a photograph of the single file line of small animal tracks. “Can you help me figure out what kind of animal would make them?” Even though it is hard to think of snow and winter now that spring has arrived, the library staff finds the photograph intriguing. The tracks appear to be about 2 ½ inches long and spaced approximately 8 inches apart. The patron had not measured them, so we were estimating based upon their size in comparison to the solar lights.

Tracking & the Art of Seeing: how to read animal tracks & sign by Paul Rezendes includes both photographs and drawings of animal tracks. Browsing through the book, we read that there are different kinds of patterns. The “domestic dog is a double- or indirect-registering animal (p.178).” The red fox has a regular walking pattern, going in almost a straight line. It is a direct-registering animal. The walking gait of the red fox “is usually a straight, precise, narrow line of tracks (p.179),” and the accompanying drawing bears that out. This is because the fox walks with the hind foot directly on top of the track of the front one.

 Using the Key to Tracks in The Peterson Field Guide to Animal Tracks by Olaus J. Murie and Mark Elbroch, the shape resembles those of the weasel, the coyote, and the red fox. The weasel track is a bit small, measuring less than 2 inches. The coyote and red fox are both much closer matches. The coyote has a print of 2 ¼ to 3 ½ inches long. The red fox’s is between 1 7/8 and 2 7/8 inches. The coyote trail through snow (p. 163) shows the tracks in a straight line, but they are spaced 14 to 15 inches apart.


Both coyotes and red foxes have been seen in the area around our patron’s home. Going by the size, spacing, and straight line of the tracks, our patron feels satisfied that they were left by the red fox.

I'm Looking for a Job

“I need help. I’m looking for a job, my computer skills are poor, and I’m not sure how to go about writing a resume. Can you help me?” The Newton Falls Public Library has a new opportunity to assist this patron. Thanks to a grant from the First Place Bank Community Foundation, the library will be offering a program to assist adults who are job seeking. There will be three sessions of three classes offered throughout 2010. The first series of classes will be Fridays, April 9, 23, and 30 from 1 – 3 p.m. The classes will be offered again in July and October. Registration is required as space is limited. Participants are expected to attend all three classes. The R. J. Wean Foundation provided the grant monies allowing the library to purchase the necessary equipment for our wireless laptop computer lab.

 • April 9th - The first class is Networking and Job Seeking. In this class attendees will list people to network with and make a plan. The instructor will assist them in creating a 30 second “elevator speech” and go through some websites of interest.


• April 23rd - The second will cover Writing a Resume. It will focus on the content of the resume and will specifically have the participants writing accomplishment statements and summary statements for their resumes.


• April 30th - The final class is Creating a Resume in Microsoft Word. This will include basic instruction that teaches how to create a resume using Word.



While waiting for the classes to begin, patrons may want to examine some of the many materials available for borrowing. Some of the titles in the library’s collection are The Job Search Solution: the ultimate system for finding a great job now! by Tony Beshara, Gallery of Best Resumes: a collection of quality resumes by professional resume writers by David F. Noble , and Perfect Phrases for Cover Letters by Michael Betrus.



Online, library card holders may access the LearningExpressLibrary through the Ohio Web Library [http://www.ohioweblibrary.org/]. The LearningExpressLibrary offers unlimited 24/7 access to courses for computer skills; job search and workplace skills; resume writing; interactive targeted skill-building in math, reading, and writing; as well as hundreds of online interactive practice tests.

 The Ohio Career Information System [http://www.ocis.org/] assists people in making better career decisions including self-assessment, occupational information, employer locator, military employment, self-employment, job search files, and school and apprenticeship information. You must first come to the library to “Create My Portfolio.” Once an account has been established this site may be accessed away from the library.

What is a Playaway?

“I saw something called a Playaway on your New Books’ shelf. What is it?” The Newton Falls Public Library enjoys introducing patrons to new ways to enjoy books.

 The Playaway is a type of audio book; perfect for people who enjoy listening to books. This simple-to-use player is smaller than a deck of cards and contains an entire book. It is not necessary to change cassette tapes or disks while listening. Besides the player, all one needs for listening is an AAA battery, and a set of ear buds or headphones. It will also work through the speakers of your car if the vehicle has a place to plug in an MP3 player. Many of our patrons enjoy listening to Playaways while exercising or walking as the players come with lanyards and can be worn around the neck.


The Newton Falls Public Library owns over 130 Playaways. Our shared TiPL [Trumbull Independent Public Libraries] catalog permits patrons to select from over 380 players. The titles can be found by going online to http://www.newtonfalls.org/. Click on Search the Catalog. At the Keyword Search, select Keywords, then contain, and finally type in the word playaway. Selecting Newton Falls shows what is owned here; selecting All Branches will show what is owned by all the libraries in our shared catalog.

Where Can I Find Local Sources of Raw Honey, Maple Syrup, and Sorghum Molasses?

“I’m looking for local sources of raw honey, maple syrup, and sorghum molasses. Can you help me?” The Newton Falls Public Library staff found this to be a sweet question as many people are looking for alternatives for refined sugar.

The patron informed us that he had already contacted Healthy Treasures [http://www.healthytreasures.com/], the local health food store. The library staff was aware of the Trumbull County Beekeepers’ Association and investigated their website [http://www.trumbullcountybeekeepers.org/]. There we found a beekeeper in our community, Brian Neuman of Dew-Bee Honey Farm.


Searching for a source for purchasing maple syrup, we found the Northeast Ohio Maple Producers [http://www.ohiosweetmaple.com/]. To learn the names of area producers, our patron will need to contact them by email, info@ohiosweetmaple.com. We also informed him that their website had information about the 2010 March Maple Tour on Saturday, March 13, Sunday, March 14, Saturday, March 20, and Sunday March 21 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. A map with the tour stops is available on their website.


Sorghum molasses does not seem to be locally produced, but by searching online we were able to locate some sources in Kentucky from which he could order. Staff members also suggested he try some other stores which carry organic, natural, or bulk items such as Marc’s and the End of the Commons General Store in Mesopotamia.


If our patron had wanted to produce his own sweeteners, the library has materials to assist. For honey, Beekeeping: a practical guide by Richard E. Bonney, Beekeeping for Dummies by Howland Blackiston, and Natural Beekeeping: organic approaches to modern apiculture by Ross Conrad are useful choices. Storey’s Basic Country Skills: a practical guide to self-reliance by John and Martha Storey has guidelines for producing honey and maple syrup. The Encyclopedia of Country Living: an old fashioned recipe book by Carla Emery, besides having beekeeping and maple tree tapping, also includes instructions for growing and processing sorghum into syrup and molasses.

What can I do to help?

“What can I do to help the library?” During February's Love your Library Month this was a question the Newton Falls Public Library loves to hear.

• Volunteer. You can join our elite corps of dedicated volunteers! By sharing your time and talent with us, you can make a big difference in the quality of library service in your community. Library volunteers work side by side with staff in many activities. There is an ongoing need at our library for help sorting and shelving library materials, assisting with special projects, demonstrating new technologies to the public, answering phones, shelf-reading (Adopt-a-Shelf), and more. You will be able to acquire new skills and gain recognized work experience, expand your social horizons, serve in your own neighborhood, keep up with the latest books, help, and be appreciated for it. What is expected of you? Respect the public and be responsive to its needs, be willing to learn, and to meet the schedule and length of service that you have negotiated with the library.


Our volunteers range in age from 15 to ? Some do short-term projects, and some stay for many years! We welcome your gift of time, whatever it may be.


• Donate monetary gifts for the purchase materials. These items may be placed in memory of a loved one, or in honor of a person or special occasion.


• Donate gently used books and media. Some items will be placed in our collection for others to enjoy; the rest will be passed along to our Friends for their book sales.


• Join our Friends of the Library. Membership does not require attendance at meetings, only a willingness to assist once or twice a year during a special event or a book sale, or bake cookies for a program. Over the years our Friends have financially supported all of the free programs offered by the library, as well as donated additional money for purchase of materials and our building fund. Application for membership is available at the library.