Detail of the Central Branch of Greater Victoria Public Library, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

From: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Detail_of_the_Central_Branch_of_Greater_Victoria_Public_Library,_Victoria,_British_Columbia,_Canada_01.jpg

Designers & Dragons: a History of the Roleplaying Game Industry

I had mentioned this title over a year ago, but never devoted any time to covering it. I only have the first book in this four volume set and, admittedly, have limited interest in the later volumes. Still, this is the definitive academic work on the subject and if you have any interest in carrying books on the history of RPGs in your library -- these are the ones to get.

Instead of a straight chronology, the companies are covered chronologically, by when they were founded. So TSR, which started it all with Dungeons & Dragons, gets to go first and takes up a significant portion of this first volume. Each company history may mention other companies, or trends in the industry at certain times, but then each history ends with a list of see also references for where to go in the four volumes to read more.

These are well-researched entries, with the Judges Guild entry standing out by having been proofed by company founder Bob Bledsaw himself before he died. Although sources are not cited, it seems likely that Shannon has gained all or most of this information from personal interviews. Shannon Appelcline may be better known outside of gaming circles for writing about cryptocurrencies, but he has a long history with RPGs as well, having written many product reviews at rpg.net, as well as introductions for many of Wizards of the Coast's e-book reprints of classic TSR products.

Closing Session with Samantha Bee

I can't remember the last time I was at a Public Library Association conference, but I sure am tempted by this next one now!

Closing Session with Samantha Bee

Saturday, February 29
12:00 PM–1:00 PM*

Wrap up the PLA 2020 Conference with one of the most unique and sharp comedic voices on television, Samantha Bee, star of the late-night show Full Frontal with Samantha Bee.

From:  https://www.placonference.org/closing_session.cfm

Recalls, Market Withdrawals, & Safety Alerts

USA.gov today highlighted a site that you've probably never visited, but are very glad exists. The FDA has a searchable database for food recalls within the past 3 years. There are 1,155 entries. This is why people start to worry about their food when the government shuts down and there are no food inspections...

If you do get any questions about this, refer your patrons to: https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts

Is My Library Liable for Fake News?

Lawyer-librarian fields legal questions

By Tomas A. Lipinski | December 13, 2019

"With 2020 elections looming, politically skewed misinformation is sure to keep flooding our media channels. Is there any way to regulate or ban false or misleading content on library premises?"

https://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/2019/12/13/is-my-library-liable-for-fake-news/

Librarians have been talking about how to combat fake news for some time now, but this is a good primer on the subject.

Schaumburg Township District Library: Games Addendum

Revisiting an old hangout, I was happy to see a new board game area. Good signage!

Forbidden Island and Mysterium are both terrific games. Show up and play them today!

(And rubber band your boxes shut to keep the contents safe.)

The Trump-Ukraine Impeachment Inquiry Report

C'mon. You knew I was going to post about this.

The most important government document out there right now is the House's Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence's report. "The impeachment inquiry into Donald J. Trump, the 45th President of the United States, uncovered a months-long effort by President Trump to use the powers of his office to solicit foreign interference on his behalf in the 2020 election.  As described in this executive summary and the report that follows, President Trump’s scheme subverted U.S. foreign policy toward Ukraine and undermined our national security in favor of two politically motivated investigations that would help his presidential reelection campaign..."
 
This one is going to be trickier than most to disseminate. It's 300 pages long, so you're probably not going to want to print out a copy. The executive summary consists of a set of hot links, so that's going to be difficult to print too. The best solution might be a dedicated terminal, if you can spare one.

https://intelligence.house.gov/report/