In Other News: Thanksgiving

A look at a current news item through the lens of different titles available on GVRL.

By Michelle Eickmeyer

In fourteen-hundred and ninety-two, Columbus sailed the ocean blue… and then the guy who realized that Columbus had not, in fact, found a new route to Asia. But thus began the discovery, colonization and evolution of the United States of America. This week, Americans gather. We’ll watch football. We’ll eat too much. We’ll give thanks for everything we have. We’ll shop til we drop and kick off the holiday shopping season.

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In Other News: Women in the News

A look at a current news item through the lens of different titles available on GVRL.

By Michelle Eickmeyer

Some amazing women did some amazing things this week. And sadly, some horrible things were said about and done to some amazing women this week as well.

This post is going to be a slightly different format than usual. Hopefully you’ll find the information just as useful.

Here are five titles that look at women from different perspectives:

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In Other News: Scotland

A look at a current news item through the lens of different titles available on GVRL.

By Michelle Eickmeyer

Long live the Queen! Or at least, long live the Kingdom. The Scottish people have spoken and they, and their country, will maintain their place as part of the United Kingdom. Why did they decide to join in the first place? What are some of the motivators for separation now? What does it mean to me, or you, or a student coming through your library door?

Here are five titles that look at Scotland from different perspectives:

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In Other News: Domestic Violence

A look at a current news item through the lens of different titles available on GVRL.

By Michelle Eickmeyer

Isolating. Shaming. Controlling. Blaming. Intimidating. Threatening. Pulling. Pushing. Slapping. Choking. Hitting. Kicking. Raping. Killing. It’s all bad.

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In Other News: the ice bucket challenge

A look at a current news item through the lens of different titles available on GVRL.

By Michelle Eickmeyer

A quick poll of my friends yields the following: zero people thought about ALS during the month of June. Better than 90% of them have laughed at someone they know dousing themselves with cold water.

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In Other News: MH17

A look at a current news item through the lens of different titles available on GVRL.

By Michelle Eickmeyer

This story is heart-breaking. Everything about the events in Ukraine since 17 July have not made logical or reasonable sense. A commercial airliner with 298 passengers flew, at an approved height, over a battle zone. Fighters in that area blew it out of the sky, believing only a military plane would fly there, with weapons provided by another nation. Then, for days, the same fighters laid a sordid claim to the wreckage, holding the victims and their family in some cruel, unthinkable, inhumane limbo — they held the bodies of victims; they rummaged through their belongings; they took photos. Finger pointing began immediately, and few solid answers have found their way to the surface. The black boxes have finally been turned over and international authorities have begun an increasingly difficult task of proving what happened. Based solely on facts and without pressure from any side.

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In Other News: Hyperthermia

A look at a current news item through the lens of different titles available on GVRL.

By Michelle Eickmeyer

That’s the technical term — hyperthermia. To most of us, it’s the gut-wrenching and heart-breaking situation of a child dying in a hot car. Each summer, the saddest of stories plays out in the news. For one reason or another, a child is alone in a car and he or she dies. There are variants to the story, and, sadly, sometimes lingering suspicions of guilt. In 2013, 44 children died from exposure inside a vehicle in the United States. There have been nearly 20 already this year. (Source)

Here are five titles that look at hyperthermia from different perspectives:

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In Other News: D-Day

A look at a current news item through the lens of different titles available on GVRL.

By Michelle Eickmeyer

True story: I saw “Saving Private Ryan” in the theater twice because the fist time I couldn’t bear to watch the 27 minute opening scene — reputedly known for being one of the most accurate (read: horrifying) recreations of nearly 10,000 men injured or killed on a beach. (I also passed out while holding my breath during the final scene of “Black Hawk Down”; my fear and knowing the truth behind the real-life version of what happened next getting the better of me. But that is neither here nor there.)

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In Other News: Maya Angelou

A look at a current news item through the lens of different titles available on GVRL.

By Michelle Eickmeyer

For many of us, our first introduction to Maya Angelou came in the form of a required reading list. “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” has graced innumerable backpacks and lockers. Her writing style, mission, and general awesomeness has not gone unnoticed. Ms Angelou has won Tony, Emmy and Grammy awards. She has received the Lincoln Medal (2008), the National Medal of Arts (2010), and the Presidential Medal of Freedom (2011). She has been nominated for the Pulitzer Prize.

She is also one of the most banned authors in American history.

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