Reading Hour

Monday 27th April, 2020

How did you spend Reading Hour on World Book Night?
So, Thursday 23rd April was St George’s Day in many countries across the world, it was the Bard of Stratford’s birthday (Happy Birthday, Will) and it was also World Book Night. Oh, how we would have celebrated in the LRC. We probably wouldn’t have offered cake (remember our “No Eating Please” rule?) but we would have been giving away free copies of a book to many lucky students. Alas, it wasn’t to be. During these strange times, World Book Night has been celebrated slightly differently.

One key event planned for the evening of the 23rd was a Reading Hour. Between 7-8pm, we were all invited to join the Reading Agency. During that hour, we could read on our own, read aloud to others, or take the time to chat (virtually) to someone else. We followed the @Reading Agency on Twitter to see how people spent their #ReadingHour. 

Once the hour was up, we joined the rest of the nation to clap for our carers. Thank you to all key workers who are allowing the rest of us to stay safe at home.

It would seem that lockdown has had a very positive effect on the reading habits of the population, not only are the LRC catching up on some reading, nationally it seems that many 18-24 year olds are too. Apparently, almost 1 in 2 young adults are reading more. Click here to read more about it. (No pun intended).

Ramadan
Thursday 23rd April also sees the start of Ramadan, something we would also be highlighting in the LRC. The lack of a physical library hasn’t stopped us, however, putting together a ‘display’ for our staff and students. One of our trusty library assistants has been hard at work. Take a look here.

Shakespeare’s Birthday
Not many people mention that Shakespeare also died on 23rd April, at the grand old age of 52. This week, the National Theatre has been showing online a performance of his play, Twelfth Night. The theatre is set to show more performances of plays from brilliant playwrights in the weeks to come. Find out more here.

If that’s not enough Shakespeare for you, then try checking out the Stratford Festival website This renowned Canadian theatre company has launched a film festival during this lockdown period, offering free streaming of 12 Shakespeare productions, launching one at a time on Thursday evenings and starting with King Lear. This is the first time the full-length versions of these productions have been available for free. 

World Day for Health and Safety at Work 28th April
Another library assistant would’ve been hard at work organising a display to highlight the Health and Safety at Work Day on Tuesday 28th April. There’s a certain irony to this at this time.  Workers are currently either keeping healthy and safe in the confines of their own homes or are having to take the issue of health and safety to its extremes.  Remote working from home didn’t stop our trusty library assistant from doing a little research and coming across this article from the UN.

Book review: A salt path by Raynor Winn

A book about a real life situation facing an older couple who are suddenly faced with the loss of their home and all their savings along with discovering the husband had a terminal illness. Facing homelessness they decide to walk the South West Coast Path, some 630 miles, with the help of a guidebook. It tells how they cope with all the adversities as well as the people they meet along the way and importantly how much they enjoy it and grow closer together. A very honest, positive and engaging book and difficult to put down.

This book is one of those selected for this year’s World Book Night.

– Sarah G

We love…
Last week, we highlighted museums around the world, including some in London, that are offering virtual tours of their collections. However, much to the dismay of our Italian colleague, museums in Italy were not mentioned. She’s much happier now that we’ve included this link: 10 Museums to Visit from Home

And regular viewers of Have I Got News for You may have seen two quarantined youngsters using their talents to create a gallery for their…pet gerbils. Check it out here.

Students

Spring into Reading
Given that a new survey is suggesting that 1 in 2 of our young adult students are reading more, there must be a few people wanting to share what book they’ve picked up. So don’t forget our Spring into Reading challenge. Read a book, write a review and return this form. Then maybe read another…

Access our virtual library online
You can search for e-books on the library catalogue or directly through our e-book providers Dawson and Proquest. Click on the Shibboleth login if requested and select Brooklands College.
Heritage Online | Proquest | Dawson

Further Reading:
The Geospatial Data collections provide students with an accurate tool to manipulate and add layers to maps and spatial data to support their work – The Geospatial Data Guide

LRC Subject Guides
The LRC have created subject guides for all courses – they are all located in your Tutorial Hub on Google Classroom. Here you will find links to access e-books, online databases and useful websites.

Book Loans
Worried about fines? No problem. All loans have been renewed and fines waived while the LRC is closed

Don’t forget to follow us on @BCLibraryWA. We will be posting useful information and, of course, we’d still love to know about your #tbr book pile. 

Wishing our students all the best for this Easter break. Here’s what will be keeping our library assistant Glenn busy – hope you too have some good reads lined up #ReadingAtHome #TBR #StayAtHomeSaveLives #StayHome pic.twitter.com/bC4XLMcZjK

— BC Library (@BCLibraryWA) April 8, 2020

Please contact us at library@brooklands.ac.uk if you need support with e-books, e-resources or anything else.  

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