This year the Library launched a circulating collection of zines, the seeds of which were donated to the Library through the generosity of Boxcar Books. This collection continues to grow through purchases and donations and is now comprised of almost 400 titles.

A zine (/ziːn/ ZEEN; short for magazine or fanzine) is a small-circulation, self-published work of original or appropriated texts and images that often give voice to small, local, underrepresented, or marginalized communities. Zines are created and reproduced on a small scale, including everything from comics and DIY self-help guides to personal stories, nonfiction, and more.

Zines house a long history, from their origins in 1930s sci-fi culture, through the punk culture of the 70s and a resurgence in the 90s under riot grrrl, to today, where there are more voices and more ideas published than ever before. Read more about Zines? In My Library?

LGBT Pride Month has been nationally recognized in June for almost two decades, taking a positive stance against discrimination toward lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people to promote equal rights, increase visibility, build community, and celebrate sexual diversity and gender variance (Wikipedia).

At the library, we develop our collection and services to meet the needs of every member of our diverse community. The Children’s Area has programs for children of all ages, and books featuring characters with all types of families, abilities, and interests. These LGBT-positive picture books are appropriate for young children, but their message of being true to oneself is meaningful for readers of all ages!

Worm Loves Worm J.J. Austrian Read more about Pride Month

Warning: this book contains Serious Issues. You've also been warned that there aren't any angels, zombies, vampires, demons, or changelings. No one has supernatural superhero powers. It isn't set in the future and there has not been an apocalypse. Still interested? Yes! I loved this. Shine by Lauren Myracle is a realistic, gritty and powerful coming of age story that is raw and emotional but also completely worthwhile.

After Cat's friend Patrick is brutally assaulted, marked with a gay slur, and left for dead at a gas station in their hometown of Black Creek, NC she decides to figure out who could have done something so horrible. The sheriff is investigating, but seems sure that it was outsiders - just someone passing through. At face value, this book is a mystery. Cat sets out to interview people who were with Patrick the night of the attack to establish a timeline and she tries to determine motive. Patrick was friends with many people in town who were also uncomfortable to some degree with his homosexuality.

But really the heart of this book isn't so much figuring out who did it, but how the characters come to terms with the resolution. Cat also has to face her own demons in this process.  I liked that she wasn't a superhero, but a girl who got kind of messed up and is really trying to do the right thing.  Read more about Shine by Lauren Myracle

June is generally recognized as LGBT Pride Month.  In honor of this, the Lambda Awards were announced last week for excellence in LGBT literature.  A long list of winners in a wide variety of categories can be found on their website.

The winner in the LGBT Children's/Young Adult category is Putting Makeup on the Fat Boy by Bil Wright.  This novel is about high school student Carlos Duarte who is juggling a job at the Macy's makeup counter, a jealous boss, his sister's abusive boyfriend, and a difficult crush.  Booklist's review of Wright's novel remarks that "there's a whole lot going on in Wright's novel, but it's handled deftly and, for the most part, believably. Best of all, Carlos is not completely defined by his homosexuality. It is an important part of him, yes, but so are his ambition, his concern for his sister, and his capacity for friendship."

The National Book Award finalists were announced last week and cover fiction, non-fiction, poetry and young adult literature written by an American author. In the original announcement, Lauren Myracle's Shine was mistakenly announced as a finalist for the young adult literature category instead of Chime by Franny Billingsley. The National Book Awards admitted to the mistake right away and made an announcement that Shine would remain on the list due to it's literary strength. But in a new shocking twist this week, The National Book Awards has asked Myracle to withdraw from the shortlist. Read more about National Book Awards Controversy