I’ll let you in on a little secret, if you guys promise to keep your mouths shut:
The Education division really doesn’t expect us to limit our purchase to only the five previously-mentioned categories. We’ve been told unofficially that, as long as those kinds of books comprise 25% of the total purchase, no one’s going to give us any grief about it.
So, knowing that I usually come away with about 245 titles for my $1,500–and knowing that I’ve already placed 39 self-help titles in my cart–I’m well on my way to satisfying that requirement.
I still need Spanish-language material. Since the Shire’s Spanish-language holdings consists primarily of two shelves of teach-yourself textbooks, I have to look pretty carefully. Ultimately I toss in the cart the following:
- La Mirada: No Ve La
- El Ultimo Magnate
- Dias De Poder
- En Un Acto
- Condicion Fisica Para Vivar Mejar
- Roberto Clemente
- Catecismo de la Inglesia catolica
- La Isla Mejor el Mar
For Large-print, I find only six titles, and they’re nothing that anyone at Norfolk will want to read, so I pass. Our current large-print holdings stands at 81, which is a fairly respectable number.
For Community Re-entry/Re-integration, I usually look for guides and directories, something current that can help a prisoner plan for his successful re-entry into society by finding shelter, employment, and/or halfway house/treatment facilities before the date of his release. I must say that, since the Department gave its Librarians filtered internet access two years ago, we’ve been able to wean ourselves away from print and rely more on current information posted by both government and community agencies. Knowing this, I pass also on this category.
For Job and Career Guides, I find:
- Fiske’s Guide To Four-Year Colleges, 2006. Knowing that our recent college guide is 2005, in the cart it goes. (A little later in the year, when we’re given some Education Division money to spend, I’ll be able to visit a retail store and update this title).
- How Not to Destroy Your Career in Music
- What They’ll Never Tell You about the Music Business
- The Resume Catalog: 200 Damn Good Examples
- Careers in Crime: An Applicant’s Guide (this is a career guide spoof written by a career guides editor. I can’t resist)
That’s it for mandated titles. Now, it’s time to play….