Pets, Lincoln, Edison, and Chocolate!

This weekend is shaping up to be a busy one for big celebrations.

You may have already seen the Google doodle for today commemorating Thomas Edison's 164th birthday.

At Shake library you can explore lots of Edison's inventions from the light-bulb to the electric chair. Why not flip through his biography in our ebook collection?

• Dyer, Frank L. Edison, His Life and Inventions. Champaign, Ill: Project Gutenberg, 1990. Ebook.

Image: Worldcat

Tomorrow we celebrate Lincoln's birthday! There's no shortage of books on him in our library (over 100 so far). Newly published is Richard Campanella's treatment of Lincoln's Flatboat Voyages which took him through Vincennes!

Campanella, Richard. Lincoln in New Orleans: The 1828-1831 Flatboat Voyages and Their Place in History. Lafayette: University of Louisiana at Lafayette Press, 2010.

In 1876 the abolitionist Frederick Douglass observed, "No man can say anything that is new of Abraham Lincoln." but that hasn't stopped scholars from continuing to explore the legacy of this incredible president. Curious to know more? You might want to check out Our Lincoln: New Perspectives on Lincoln and His World (New York: W.W. Norton & Co, 2008.) by Eric Foner. Here you'll find essay's on Lincoln's views on race and citizenship, political acumen, his literary style, religious beliefs, and family life. 

Well, enough about these individuals, let's turn to this Monday's Valentine's day festivities. Whether you are eagerly anticipating the holiday or generally dreading the influx of red & pink, you'll find some great resources in the library. Such as: 

Critical Thinking About Sex, Love, and Romance in the Mass Media by  Mary-Lou Galician &  Debra L. Merskin. (Media Literacy Applications. Mahwah, N.J: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 2007.) This book explores how romantic coupleship is represented in books, magazines, popular music, movies, television, and the Internet within entertainment, advertising, and news/information. 

Image: Worldcat

not interested? Well how about....Mort Rosenblum's Chocolate: A Bittersweet Saga of Dark and Light. (New York: North Point Press, 2005.)

Science, over recent years, has confirmed what chocolate lovers have always known: the stuff is actually good for you. It's the Valentine's Day drug of choice, has more antioxidants than red wine, and triggers the same brain responses as falling in love. Nothing, in the end, can stand up to chocolate as a basic fundament to human life. In this scintillating narrative, acclaimed foodie Mort Rosenblum delves into the complex world of chocolate. From the mole poblano--chile-laced chicken with chocolate--of ancient Mexico to the contemporary French chocolatiers who produce the palets d'or--bite-sized, gold-flecked bricks of dark chocolate--to the vast empires of Hershey, Godiva, and Valrhona, Rosenblum follows the chocolate trail the world over. He visits cacao plantations, meets with growers, buyers, makers, and tasters, and investigates the dark side of the chocolate trade as well as the enduring appeal of its product. (Publisher's Description)

Whatever you celebrate over the next 3-4 days don't forget that this month is Responsible Pet Owner Month!

Do you know how to protect your pets in an emergency?  Click here for information from the CDC

Do you know how to give first aid to your pet? Click here for information from the American Veterinary Medical Association

Voting Resources: or Educate Yourself With Interactive Inforgraphic Fun

Election Day (November 2nd) is around the corner! Still trying to make up your mind? Here are some resources available online and in the library.

Vote Easy is an interactive website that helps you figure out which candidate best aligns with your values. It's a very useful tool with the election coming up next week. After you choose your location, the VoteEasy site looks up the candidates specific to your area.  By entering your opinions on 12 critical issues and how important each issue is to you, the site shows you which candidates most closely match your beliefs.  Some candidates have submitted their answers, and the rest are inferred from the public records. The site is designed by Project Vote Smart.

Can I Vote? - Run by the National Association of Secretaries of State, Can I Vote contains state-by-state voting and voter registration information including polling places, and absentee voting.

FactCheck.org - A nonpartisan, nonprofit "consumer advocate" for voters that aims to reduce the level of deception and confusion in U.S. politics. They monitor the factual accuracy of what is said by major U.S. political players in the form of TV ads, debates, speeches, interviews and news releases. FactCheck.org is a project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania.

Rock The Vote - Rock the Vote has combines efforts from those in the entertainment community with youth activities to encourage young people to be involved in the political process.

and just for fun:
The Living Room Candidate - This site is operated by the American Museum of the Moving Image and provides an archive of historical Presidential television ad campaigns.

Want to learn more? Check out VU Webcat for some books on voting and its trends and history!

• Connery, Michael. Youth to Power: How Today's Young Voters Are Building Tomorrow's Progressive Majority. Brooklyn, N.Y: Ig Pub, 2008. [Shake Library Call Number: 324.973 C752y 2008]
• McCaffrey, Paul. U.S. Election System. The reference shelf, v. 76, no. 4. New York: H.W. Wilson, 2004. [Shake Library Call Number: 324 U58e 2004]
• Percy, Herma. Will Your Vote Count?: Fixing America's Broken Electoral System. Westport, Conn: Praeger, 2009. [Shake Library Call Number: 324.6 P431w 2009]
• Thernstrom, Abigail M. Voting Rights-and Wrongs: The Elusive Quest for Racially Fair Elections. Washington, D.C: AEI Press, 2009. [Shake Library Call Number: 324.62 T411v 2009]