Stephanie Convery and Petra Stock, The Guardian; ‘Living library’: inside the marine biobanks racing to protect ocean species from extinction
"These fridges are part of what the university calls its “living library”: a biobank, or long-term storage for at-risk marine life forms. Biobanks act as insurance policies against species extinction, and as research hubs for scientists studying species genetics, growth and resilience in the age of environmental crisis."
JACK ZALESKI, North Dakota Monitor; Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library is not ‘progress’ for everyone in Medora
[Kip Currier: This is a thought-provoking article about the Theodore Rosevelt Presidential Library that will open its doors in Medora, North Dakota on America's July 4th 250th anniversary. In the 1990's, on a driving trip from Pennsylvania to California by way of the Interstate 94 northerly route I had never traveled, I visited this area set amid the ruggedly beautiful Theodore Roosevelt National Park. After a day of sightseeing in the park, I also attended the charming outdoors-staged Medora Musical show, mentioned in the piece. I vividly recall seeing a pronghorn antelope calmly walking among the sagebrush not far from the open amphitheater at sunset's twilight as the actors sang and danced on the stage. Medora was a sleepy high plains town then that now appears both excited and nervous about the changes a presidential library are likely to bring for the community and surrounding area.
The author of this article makes an important point about the inherent tensions between "progress" and historical preservation, the ways of life that are changed when communities grow and adapt in ways that benefit some and harm or upset others. I recall visiting Moab, Utah, the doorway to Arches and Canyonlands National Parks in 1988 when it was a faded mining town, whose uranium employing-mine had closed in 1984, displacing 25% of the population. Locals in 1988 told me the town had been talking with some firms about how to raise the profile of the town and make it a premiere tourism destination. Some years later, I again visited Moab and was stunned to see how it had changed into a "mountain bike red rock-riding" community with a vibe and look like Aspen or Vail. Yes, progress had occurred. But what had also been lost when the off-the-beaten-path Moab of the 1980's that I had experienced became the well-trodded now-chic Moab of the 1990's? Who had been displaced? What history and voices had been paved over or silenced?
I can't help but think, too, that the debate about "progress" and "ways of life that are being lost or changed" in Medora, North Dakota has resonance for the debates and changes going on right now about AI's "promise and peril" impacts on our communities and world. Yes, there's a sense of excitement about AI by some. But there's also a palpable atmosphere of concern, uncertainty, and even anger among others about these new technologies. And the data captures this polarized AI mood in the U.S., as borne out by Pew Research Center findings.
[Excerpt]
"The cheerleading for the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library at Medora, N.D., has overwhelmed the muted, but passionate concerns and objections among long-time Badlands residents. Few want to be seen as being against the library and the progress it promises for North Dakota’s premier tourist destination, but their definition of “progress” is not the same as the project’s well-funded advocates. A recent column in a local weekly newspaper reveals the depth of their sense of loss...
That being said, an April 9 column in the Golden Valley News of Beach, N.D., revealed a sense of sadness and loss that has not been sufficiently acknowledged in the hoopla since the library was proposed. Carol Tescher Obrigewitch is no stranger to Medora. She is a member of a ranching and rodeo clan with deep roots in the Badlands.
The name Tescher is synonymous with the ranching heritage of Little Missouri River country. Her weekly “Merrily Along” is a delightful mix of family, history, and astute and informed observations. So when her column headlined “Progress?” was published, she was writing from the heart about the changes wrought by the library. She’s not happy, and her unhappiness is shared by a lot of long-time Medora citizens who choose not to speak out.
Also, it has not gone unnoticed that of the 18 listed members of the Library Foundation Board of Trustees, only four have roots or residences in North Dakota and only one of the four lives in western North Dakota.
Here are representative excerpts from Tescher Obrigewitch’s column:
“Medora is definitely not historic anymore. The powers that be have totally removed or rebuilt anything that was historic…
…“In this little town, they have installed roundabouts and made major changes to streets and walkways. They have built hotels, torn down historic places that were there before TR ever thought about coming west…
“…I had to go by the old Custer Trail Ranch, which they tore down. I just closed my eyes. It hurt my heart.
“I believe in preserving history so future generations understand how people once lived.
“…but this ‘progress’ thing has gotten out of hand.”
The columnist’s candor and hurt won’t stop or alter the character of the mega-change under way in Medora. That horse is out of the barn, and (as she says) the “powers that be,” local and otherwise, are too deeply invested to rein it in."
CLAIRE WANG , The Orange County Register; Huntington Beach ordered to pay $1 million in lawyer fees in library censorship lawsuit
"Huntington Beach must foot roughly $1 million in legal bills for restricting minors’ access to certain books at the city’s library, an Orange County judge ordered this week.
In a tentative ruling Monday, April 27, Orange County Judge Lindsey Martinez said the city needs to pay $960,000 to attorneys from four legal organizations, who billed more than 1,300 hours of work on the high-profile lawsuit against the city’s book restriction policy."
Rory Carroll , The Guardian; Lost copy of seventh-century poem in Old English discovered at Rome library
"“This discovery is a testament to the power of libraries to facilitate new research by digitising their collections and making them freely available online,” she said.
Andrea Cappa, head of manuscripts and rare books at the Rome library, said the institution was digitising holdings from Italy’s National Centre for the Study of the Manuscript, which will give researchers access to more than 40m images.
Riccardo Fangarezzi, head of archives at the abbey in Nonantola, said he looked forward to further discoveries. “The present times may be rather dark, yet such intellectual contributions are genuine rays of sunlight: the continent is less isolated,” he said.
The poet Paul Muldoon translated Caedmon’s Hymn into contemporary English in a 2016 anthology of British poetry. The opening lines read:
“Now we must praise to the skies, the Keeper of the heavenly kingdom,
The might of the Measurer, all he has in mind,
The work of the Father of Glory, of all manner of marvel.”"
Neely Tucker, Library of Congress Blogs; (Some of) The newest stuff at the Library!
"Walk into the Library’s annual showcase of new acquisitions and the question always hits you right in the face: Where to start?
What about with this slim copy of Silver Surfer No. 1, the origin story of Marvel Comics’ “Sentinel of the Spaceways,” from the groovy year of 1968? How about this massive law book that’s more than 500 years old? The “Tombstone Edition” of a Philadelphia newspaper from 1765, which documented and amplified the American Colonies loathing of the Stamp Act and presaged the American Revolution?
There’s never really a wrong place to start. This year’s two-hour show-and-tell, held last week, brought hundreds of staffers and guests to look over intriguing displays of the Library’s recently acquired treasures, items spanning the nation, the globe and centuries of time. Many added to already impressive collections of historic figures...
It was a crowded, noisy, upbeat afternoon of discovery and explanation. Conversations buzzed and overlapped; staff experts and curious viewers leaned over display tables from opposite sides, heads together, talking loudly to be heard, gazing down at maps, manuscripts, records, artifacts and things you couldn’t have known existed."
Nadra Nittle , The 19th; Book bans and culture wars came for libraries. They’re still standing strong.
During National Library Week, librarians throughout the country fight for books, jobs and truth.
"When students ask why books with LGBTQ+ themes need to be included in the collection, DeMaria tells them to consider the limited number of movies, books and other media that portray queer people.
LGBTQ+ students “deserve that representation,” she said. “If it sits on the shelf because at that moment I don’t have a student who needs that mirror, that’s where it stays until I do.”"
American Library Association (ALA); American Library Association releases 2025 Most Challenged Books List as National Library Week Begins
"Today the American Library Association (ALA) releases its highly anticipated Top 11 Most Challenged Books List of 2025 as part of the 2026 State of America’s Libraries Report, offering a window into the ongoing challenges libraries continue to face head-on.
As the nation’s libraries unite to celebrate the start of National Library Week and communities everywhere recognize the valuable contribution of America’s libraries and the people who power them, library workers around the country continue to grapple with censorship challenges and threats to their livelihood.
ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) tracked 4,235 unique titles challenged in 2025, the second highest ever documented by ALA. The highest ever documented was 4,240 in 2023.
Of the unique titles challenged in 2025, 1,671 (40%) represent the lived experiences of LGBTQIA+ people and people of color.
“Libraries exist to make space for every story and every lived experience,” said ALA President Sam Helmick. “As we celebrate National Library Week, we reaffirm that libraries are places for knowledge, for access, and for all.”
ALA documented 713 attempts to censor library materials and services, 487 of which targeted books. The Top 11 Most Targeted Titles in 2025 were:
1. Sold by Patricia McCormick
2. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
3. Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe
4. Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas
5. (tie) Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo
5. (tie) Tricks by Ellen Hopkins
7. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
8. (tie) A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
8. (tie) Identical by Ellen Hopkins
8. (tie) Looking for Alaska by John Green
8. (tie) Storm and Fury by Jennifer L. Armentrout
In 2025, 92 percent of all book challenges were initiated by pressure groups, government officials and decision makers, up from 72 percent in 2024. Less than 3 percent of challenges originated from individual parents.
“In 2025, book bans were not sparked by concerned parents, and they were not the result of local grassroots efforts,” said Sarah Lamdan, Executive Director of ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom. “They were part of a well-funded, politically-driven campaign to suppress the stories and lived experiences of LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC individuals and communities.”
ALA defines a “ban” as the removal of materials from a library based on the objections of a person or group. A “challenge” is an attempt to have a library resource removed, or access to it restricted, based on the objections of a person or group. In 2025, OIF documented 5,668 books banned from libraries (66% of the total challenged). An additional 920 books were censored through access restrictions such as relocation or requiring parental permission. This is both the highest number of titles censored in one year and the highest rate of challenges resulting in censorship from 1990–2025.
To help inform library workers and the public about censorship issues, OIF recently launched several new and updated resources, including the Censorship Search Portal, which allows people to search OIF’s expansive database to learn about efforts to ban books; the Censorship Cases Bot on Bluesky, which provides real-time updates on the latest book censorship litigation in partnership with the Free Law Project; and the eleventh edition of the Intellectual Freedom Manual, which offers up-to-date insights on protecting intellectual freedom, fighting censorship, safeguarding privacy, and more.
Amid the censorship challenges facing the nation’s libraries, National Library Week’s theme of “Finding Your Joy” is an invitation for everyone to explore and discover what sparks joy in them at the library. Throughout the week, Honorary Chair Mychal Threets will elevate the important role libraries and library workers play in schools and communities.
NLW 2026 Celebration Days:
Monday, April 20: Right to Read Day, a day for readers, advocates, and library lovers to take action to protect, defend, and celebrate the right to read.
Tuesday, April 21: National Library Workers Day, a day for library staff, users, administrators, and Friends groups to recognize the valuable contributions made by all library workers.
Wednesday, April 22: National Library Outreach Day (formerly National Bookmobile Day), a day to celebrate library outreach and the dedicated library professionals who are meeting their patrons where they are.
Thursday, April 23: Take Action for Libraries Day, ALA is calling on library supporters to contact their congressmembers and voice opposition to the federal book banning bill, H.R. 7661."
ALA is also pleased to share the theme of Banned Books Week 2026 (October 4–10, 2026), “Let Books Be. Protect the Freedom to Read.” This year’s campaign features three illustrations that elevate the ways in which libraries and access to information enrich our lives. The artwork will be unveiled next week, and posters, apparel, and more will be available in the ALA Store and Library Gift Shop on April 30.
To learn more about censorship in libraries and find resources for preventing and responding to book bans, visit ALA.org/BBooks,"
Jennifer Schuessler , The New York Times; Threats to Library Funding End With Settlement by Trump Administration
"The Trump administration has reached a settlement with the American Library Association and a union of cultural workers, bringing to an end its yearlong effort to dismantle the Institute of Museum and Library Services, a federal agency.
The settlement, reached by the Justice Department last week, affirms that the agency will continue issuing grants and operating its programs, which provide support to institutions in every state and territory. The Trump administration reaffirmed that it had reinstated all previously canceled grants, in keeping with a separate legal ruling last year, and reversed all staff reductions. It also promised not to take any further steps to reduce the agency.
Sam Helmick, the president of the American Library Association, said the threats had set off “a chain reaction” of cuts in services and called the settlement a victory for “every American’s freedom to read and learn.”
“This settlement protects life-changing library services for communities across the country,” Helmick said."
"The State Library of Ohio is moving in a positive direction, as court battles over funding for U.S. libraries end, and the state gets recognized as the top state in library circulation.
The State Library of Ohio is a state agency that houses and preserves state founding documents and historical artifacts, and also distributes federal funding for things like statewide digital materials and other resources.
“When our children fall in love with a great book, federal funds helped a library do that; when historians explain our shared state history, a federally-funded library project helped with that, too,” State Librarian Mandy Knapp told the Capital Journal.
The funding the library receives comes through the Library Services and Technology Act, distributed by the Institute of Museum and Library Services. According to institute statistics released this week by data analysis organization USA Facts, Ohio had the highest library circulation per person in both physical and electronic materials in 2023. It was also the third highest state in library visits per person, and most library cards per person, according to the data.
The institute is a federal entity that was up for elimination since the beginning of President Donald Trump’s second term, as part of an early effort by the non-governmental Department of Government Efficiency to slash federal spending."
Associated Press via The Guardian; Iowa can restrict LGBTQ+ books and topics at schools, appellate court rules
Ruling, vacating lower court’s temporary block, applies to classrooms and libraries up to sixth grade
"Iowa can enforce a law that restricts teachers from talking about LGBTQ+ topics with students in kindergarten through the sixth grade and bans some books in libraries and classrooms, an appellate court said on Monday.
The decision for now vacates a lower court judge’s temporary blocks on the law.
The measure was first approved by Republican majorities in the Iowa house and senate and the Republican governor, Kim Reynolds, in 2023, which they said reinforced age-appropriate education in kindergarten through 12th grades. It has been a back-and-forth battle in the courts in the three years since lawsuits were filed by the Iowa State Education Association, major publishing houses and bestselling authors, as well as Iowa Safe Schools, an LGBTQ+ advocacy organization."
American Libraries; Barnes Wins 2027–2028 ALA Presidency
"Tamika Barnes, associate dean of Perimeter College Library Services at Georgia State University in Atlanta, has been elected 2026–2027 president-elect of the American Library Association (ALA). The Association made the announcement April 6.
Barnes received 3,827 votes, while her opponent, Becky Calzada, district library coordinator at Leander (Tex.) Independent School District, received 2,742 votes...
In her candidate statement published in American Libraries in March, Barnes pledged that her presidency would focus on four pillars: unified advocacy; inclusive leadership and professional growth; equity, access, and intellectual freedom; and transparency and stewardship.
“I have seen firsthand how ALA’s values of equity, diversity, inclusion, intellectual freedom, and social responsibility are lived out every day by library workers across the country,” Barnes wrote. “These values have shaped my own leadership, which is collaborative, grounded in integrity, and centered on community impact.”
She will assume presidency of ALA at the conclusion of the 2027 ALA Annual Conference and Exhibition in New Orleans."
Gretchen Hjelmstad, KFGO; Tickets on sale for grand opening of Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library
"You could be among the first to visit the new Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library.
Tickets are now available for the library’s grand opening on July 4, which is also America’s 250th birthday.
The Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library is located in Medora in the Badlands of western North Dakota, where the 26th president hunted and ranched as a young man in the 1880s.
Capacity is limited. You can reserve tickets here."
Philip Kennicott, The Washington Post; The Trump presidential library would be a giant tower of grift
"But the unknown funding and revenue questions raised by this structure are deeply serious. By the time of the Obama administration, about 95 percent of the presidential records were digital, meaning they didn’t require huge amounts of storage space. So, what will fill those 50 floors of space?
Will they be monetized, as apartments or offices? And if so, who will profit from them?
Despite numerous efforts by Congress to establish ethics guidelines and bring transparency to the fundraising for presidential centers, these institutions are still allowed to seek unlimited private donations without disclosing their donors.
Will the Trump library be some kind of hybrid nonprofit foundation, built with gifts solicited from private donors including, perhaps, foreign governments — yet also a for-profit real estate development that enriches Trump personally?
The great modernist architect Le Corbusier once said that a house is a machine for living. Libraries and museums might be thought of as machines for learning. The Trump presidential center appears intended to be a machine for emoluments, with one of the biggest emoluments in the history of America sitting in a giant hall at its base."
Rachel Treisman, NPR; What to know about Trump's future presidential library, which he says may be a hotel
"President Trump has plans to splash his name across a sky-high presidential library in Florida. And he shared the first look at that vision on social media Monday...
At least from the outside, the property resembles one of his signature hotels — and Trump said Tuesday that it might well be one.
"I don't believe in building libraries or museums," Trump, who made a career out of self-branded luxury hotels, told reporters in the Oval Office. "Could be [an] office, but it's most likely going to be a hotel with a beautiful building underneath and a 747 Air Force One in the lobby."
Elyse H. Fox, American Libraries; The Rules of Law: How librarians can help patrons with legal questions
"Librarians are used to being generalists, able to research all kinds of questions. But when someone seeks help filling out a form or understanding their rights, those same staffers may be wary of crossing the line from legal reference to unauthorized practice of law. Moreover, public library collections often have few legal resources for patrons.
Within these limitations, though, library workers can develop their legal reference skills and provide appropriate referrals. The American Association of Law Libraries’ (AALL) 2014 report Law Libraries and Access to Justice offers tips for how to do this. In the decade since this report was released, demand for services has remained high, with many low-income Americans unable to get adequate help for their civil legal problems. Here are some takeaways from the report—and my 40 years in law librarianship—that are still relevant in bridging the justice gap."
Kayla Randall - , Smithsonian Magazine; Nine Black College Students Were Arrested in 1961 for Reading at a Segregated Public Library. Their Contributions to the Civil Rights Movement Have Long Been Overlooked
"When nine Black college students walked into a segregated public library in Mississippi on March 27, 1961, they knew what to expect next: Staff would call the police, and they would probably be arrested if they refused to leave. According to local laws, being Black in a space designated only for the white public constituted a breach of peace. By stepping through the doors of the Jackson Municipal Library, they would be risking physical harm and verbal abuse. They might even face an angry crowd.Pasadena Now; SHELLEY’S ‘FRANKENSTEIN’ GETS AN AI REBOOT AT PASADENA’S HASTINGS BRANCH LIBRARY
A discussion today ties the 1818 novel's warnings about creator responsibility to contemporary debates over artificial intelligence, part of the city's One City, One Story program
"Two centuries before algorithms began analyzing people’s dreams and predicting their crimes, Mary Shelley wrote a novel about a scientist who built something he could not control. That novel, “Frankenstein,” is the subject of a free discussion today at Hastings Branch Library, where presenter Rosemary Choate will connect its 207-year-old themes to the same questions about artificial intelligence that Pasadena’s citywide reading program is exploring all month.
The event, titled “Frankenstein: Myths and the Real Story?” is part of the Pasadena Public Library’s 24th annual One City, One Story program, which this year selected Laila Lalami’s “The Dream Hotel” — a dystopian novel about a woman detained because an algorithm, fed by data from her dreams, deemed her a future criminal. The library has organized a month of lectures, films and book discussions around the novel’s themes of surveillance, technology and freedom, and the Frankenstein session draws a direct line between Shelley’s 1818 tale and the anxieties at the center of Lalami’s story.
Choate, a comparative literature and humanities instructor and founder of the Pomona College Alumni Book Club, will lead the discussion at 3 p.m. She will examine themes including creator responsibility, the consequences of unchecked technological ambition and society’s rejection of the “creation” — questions the library’s event description calls “highly relevant to contemporary debates surrounding the development and governance of AI,” according to the Pasadena Public Library’s event listing.
Shelley published “Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus” anonymously in 1818, when she was 20 years old. The novel tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist who assembles a creature from dead body parts and recoils from what he has made. The creature, abandoned by its creator, becomes violent as it fails to find acceptance. The novel is widely considered one of the first works of science fiction.
The One City, One Story program, now in its 24th year, selects a single book each year for citywide reading and discussion. A 19-member committee of community volunteers, led by Senior Librarian Christine Reeder, chose “The Dream Hotel” for its exploration of surveillance, freedom and the reach of technology into private life. The program is sponsored by The Friends of the Pasadena Public Library and the Pasadena Literary Alliance.
The month of events culminates in a conversation with Lalami and Pasadena Public Library Director Tim McDonald on Saturday, March 21, at 2 p.m. at Pasadena Presbyterian Church, 585 E. Colorado Blvd. That event is also free and open to the public."
ABC, Meta, Paramount and X reportedly agreed to pay at least $63 million in settlements with the president. The original fund was dissolved last year.
"Congressional Democrats are opening a probe into millions of dollars private companies pledged to President Donald Trump’s planned presidential library, asking what happened to the money after the original fund was dissolved last year.
Sens. Elizabeth Warren (Massachusetts) and Richard Blumenthal (Connecticut) and Rep. Melanie Stansbury (New Mexico) wrote Monday to the leaders of ABC, Meta, Paramount and X, requesting information about the terms of their agreements and the status of the funds they pledged to hand over to the president’s representatives. The letters were shared with The Washington Post."
Neely Tucker, Library of Congress Blogs; Lost 19th century film by Méliès discovered at the Library
"The librarians peeled them apart and gently looked them over, frame by frame.
And there, on one film, was a black star painted onto a pedestal in the center of the screen. The action was of a magician and a robot battling it out in slapstick fashion. It took a bit, but then the gasp of realization: They were looking at “Gugusse and the Automaton,” a long-lost film by the iconic French filmmaker George Méliès at his Star Film company.
The 45-second film, made around 1897, was the first appearance on film of what might be called a robot, which had endeared it to generations of science fiction fans, even if they knew it only by reputation. It had not been seen by anyone in likely more than a century. The find, made last September but now being announced publicly, is a small but important addition to the legacy of world cinema and one of its founders."
