Honestly, we should be keeping track of this to ensure BS's fidelity to its stated intentions. It's not something we should let slide any more than we should let the Newbery books go without special attention. This goes especially for current events. If my library had either book and if I were a particularly adept and efficient scanner and profer, I'd do these as soon as my library could get them to me. But, my library is small and I'd have to get them on library loan. The Coulter is the one I'm likliest to do, but it's a collections, if I remember correctly, and I just don't like this kind of book, no matter the author or subject. Still, if it shows up on my doorstep, I'll do it. ----- Original Message ----- From: solsticesinger To: bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Sent: Saturday, November 10, 2007 8:57 AM Subject: [bksvol-discuss] Re: Best sellers that aren't making it into the collection Honestly, if you are that concerned about it, and want to read these books so badly, you really should scan them yourself, or find somebody to do so on your behalf. No one stops books from becoming part of the collection because of their subject matter. Whether or not a particular person chooses to scan and process a given book is a matter of personal choice, but, no one is saying that certain books are not allowed in the collection. I'm a lesbian and a Pagan. Now, there are books on both LBGT topics, and on the Pagan religion in the collection. Both subjects are considered controversial. Yet, I have found that bookshare is one of the only places I can obtain such material. Yes. Some of it I have scanned myself. Some of it has been scanned by others, but, the point is, no one stopped the books from being part of the collection, because of their subject matter. Shannon We are wise, not because we are women, but because we seek wisdom. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Chris Feist" <ccfeist@xxxxxxxxxx> To: <bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> Sent: Friday, November 09, 2007 11:59 PM Subject: [bksvol-discuss] Best sellers that aren't making it into the collection Hi all. After some investigating, I see that I'm still confused, and I believe with good reason. I'm posting this on both lists. To begin with, I'll quote directly from the Bookshare Web site. "Bookshare.org is proud to be able to bring to its subscribers all the books that have appeared in the top 10 on the New York TimesR Best Sellers lists in fiction and nonfiction, hardcover and paperback alike, from September, 2005 through September, 2007 . . . We're working on our October/November 2007 best sellers; as new titles appear on these lists, we purchase these books, process them in-house, and add them to our collection." Based on the information above, all books that appear on the NYT top 10 shall be routinely added to the collection. It goes on to say, "Our volunteers make sure that the Bookshare.org library includes current books on The New York Times Best Seller list." And yet, for some reason unclear to me, it has been brought to light that Power to the People by Laura Ingraham was never added to the collection. First, Ann Coulter's new book is passed over, and now I learn of another top 10 book that shared the same fate. It's significant to point out that Power to the People reached #1 on the New York Times Best Sellers list. Let me repeat that. It went all the way, in fact it debuted, at #1. How could a #1 book possibly get overlooked? To the best of my knowledge, there has been only one explanation given for its exclusion, (and thanks to Jamie for bringing it to our attention). Surely there is a more adequate explanation. If there is, I'd really appreciate some clarification. It's unfortunate that the book was not included at the very least, and it raises some disturbing, but valid, questions-especially considering the similarity of both authors. Also on the Web site, I've discovered that Bookshare takes donations to assist in broadening the collection: "We obtain a new book either by purchasing it or having it donated. Decisions on which books to purchase are made based on user requests and surveys, best-seller lists, book award winners and recommendations from teachers and school administrators." Again, this is baffling because Power to the People has been both 1. requested and, 2. was a #1 on both New York Times and Amazon. I don't know if the consideration of "user requests" is taken by a show of hands, but just in case, I'd like to add my request for Power to the People as well. As far as it's status as a best seller, I believe Power to the People's success speaks for itself. It has been suggested that if I want a best seller added to the collection that has been skipped over, I could always purchase the book myself and send it to the Bookshare office or find someone to scan it for me. In view of Bookshare's policy on providing members with best sellers, plainly that endeavor lies with Bookshare itself. I do understand that volunteers submit the books they wish to, and that is what makes up a significant portion of the collection. However, clearly that process is not supposed to include best sellers. Let me close by saying I've merely raised some concerns I have. I'm not pointing fingers at anyone. In fact, I'm reading what people have to say on list, and then reading the information on the Bookshare Web site, and for whatever reason, 2 + 2 is not equaling 4. Thank you for your time, Chris Feist - The one and only! To unsubscribe from this list send a blank Email to bksvol-discuss-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx put the word 'unsubscribe' by itself in the subject line. To get a list of available commands, put the word 'help' by itself in the subject line. To unsubscribe from this list send a blank Email to bksvol-discuss-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx put the word 'unsubscribe' by itself in the subject line. To get a list of available commands, put the word 'help' by itself in the subject line. -- No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.503 / Virus Database: 269.15.28/1122 - Release Date: 11/10/2007 10:41 AM