LibraryThing: State of the Thing - November

LibraryThing: State of the Thing Dear {NAME}, Welcome to the November State of the Thing! In this issue we invite you to join our annual SantaThing holiday book exchange, announce the LT2 update of our Home Pages, highlight TinyCat’s most recent Library of the Month, dish out lots of book world news, present all of our regular columns, and offer 3,554 free Early Reviewer books! You can like LibraryThing on [Facebook]( and follow [@LibraryThing]( on Twitter and [librarythingofficial]( on Instagram for news and updates. SantaThing Returns! LibraryThing’s sixteenth annual [SantaThing](, our bookish "Secret Santa," is now live. The idea is simple: You sign up for a gift worth $15–$50, and you’ll receive a selection of books, picked out for you by another LibraryThing member. You also pick books—secretly!—for someone else. This year we're continuing with our emphasis on indie booksellers. In addition to our US-based stores, we are partnering once again with local retailers in Australia, New Zealand and Ireland. You can still order Kindle ebooks, regardless of your location, and we have Book Depository for members worldwide. - [Longfellow Books]( in Portland, ME - [BookPeople]( in Austin, TX - [Powell’s Books]( in Portland, OR - [Readings]( in Victoria, Australia - [Time Out Bookstore]( in Auckland, New Zealand - [Kennys]( in Galway, Ireland - [Book Depository]( - Worldwide - [Kindle]( - Ebooks Read more about how SantaThing works on our [blog post](, and join the conversation in [Talk](. Sign-ups close Monday, November 28th at 12pm EST. » [Sign up for SantaThing]( Home Pages Updated LibraryThing's [Home Pages]( are the most recent to get the "LT2 treatment," as our site redesign project continues! Our goal was to update the pages stylistically, matching our overall LT2 design, while maintaining the same data density as the original. Changes include: - Better accessibility—for screen readers, increased contrast ratios, minimum font sizes, etc. - A more mobile-friendly page, like all LT2 pages. - Updated modules that are now designed to fit together more smoothly, regardless of the screen size of the device being used. Come take a look, and join the conversation over in [Talk](. The Talk of LibraryThing What conversations are going on in our groups? - Members are visiting [Wallace’s Malay Archipelago]( for their November reads, over in the [75 Books Challenge for 2022]( group. - Nominations and voting for the authors to be read from [January through March 2023](, is underway in the [Monthly Author Reads]( group. - The issue of cover art and [Judging a Book by Its Cover]( is under discussion by the members of [Book Talk](. - [Spooky Music]( suitable for scary movies is being suggested by the members of the [Classical Music]( group. Speaking of Groups, if you’re new to LibraryThing, there’s a group for that: [Welcome to LibraryThing](21)! List of the Month November List of the Month. Cynical characters, bleak settings and unhappy endings... Our List of the Month this November is devoted to the Best Noir. Head on over to our [Noirvember: The Best Noir]( list, and add your top ten picks. Check out other recent Lists of the Month: - October. [Mythical Monsters of the World]( - September. [Best Spy Fiction]( - August. [Pleasant Surprises: Books That Exceeded Our Expectations]( - July. [Favorite Animal Fiction]( - June. [Pre-1969 LGBTQ Literature]( See our [wiki page]( for a complete List of the Month list, and join us over in our [Talk group]( for further discussion of the project. Hot on LibraryThing Here are some titles that have been particularly hot on LibraryThing in the last month: - [No Plan B]( by [Lee Child]( - [It Starts with Us]( by [Colleen Hoover]( - [The Passenger]( by [Cormac McCarthy]( - [Demon Copperhead]( by [Barbara Kingsolver]( - [The Boys from Biloxi]( by [John Grisham]( - [Going Rogue: Rise and Shine Twenty-Nine]( by [Janet Evanovich]( - [Triple Cross]( by [James Patterson]( - [Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing: A Memoir]( by [Matthew Perry]( - [Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Diper Överlöde]( by [Jeff Kinney]( - [Long Shadows]( by [David Baldacci]( - [Livid]( by [Patricia Cornwell]( - [Mad Honey]( by [Jodi Picoult]( - [The Cloisters]( by [Katy Hays]( - [Our Missing Hearts]( by [Celeste Ng]( - [The Atlas Paradox]( by [Olivie Blake]( - [Desert Star]( by [Michael Connelly]( - [And There Was Light]( by [Jon Meacham]( - [The World We Make]( by [N. K. Jemisin]( - [We Are the Light]( by [Matthew Quick]( - [Go-To Dinners: A Barefoot Contessa Cookbook]( by [Ina Garten]( Hot in Libraries Here's what's hot across [thousands of public libraries]( in the United States: - [Verity]( by [Colleen Hoover]( - [The Boys from Biloxi]( by [John Grisham]( - [Mad Honey]( by [Jodi Picoult]( - [Long Shadows]( by [David Baldacci]( - [Dreamland]( by [Nicholas Sparks]( - [Fairy Tale]( by [Stephen King]( - [It Starts with Us]( by [Colleen Hoover]( - [Our Missing Hearts]( by [Celeste Ng]( - [It Ends with Us]( by [Colleen Hoover]( - [Righteous Prey]( by [John Sandford]( - [I'm Glad My Mom Died]( by [Jennette McCurdy]( - [The Winners]( by [Fredrik Backman]( - [Demon Copperhead]( by [Barbara Kingsolver]( - [Treasure State]( by [C. J. Box]( - [Lessons in Chemistry]( by [Bonnie Garmus]( - [The Maze]( by [Nelson DeMille]( - [Lucy by the Sea]( by [Elizabeth Strout]( - [Where the Crawdads Sing]( by [Delia Owens]( - [Blowback]( by [James Patterson]( - [Confidence Man: The Making of Donald Trump and the Breaking of America]( by [Maggie Haberman]( This data was collected by Syndetics Unbound, a LibraryThing/ProQuest project to enrich the library catalog. The search data is fully anonymized the day it is collected. For more information about Syndetics Unbound, please visit [Syndetics.com](?utm_source=LT&utm_medium=sott&utm_id=main). Free Books from Early Reviewers! Our Early Reviewers program pairs publishers and authors looking for reviews and book buzz with readers looking for their next great read. This month we’re pleased to feature [Robin and Her Misfits](, a queer female biker retelling of the Robin Hood story from [Kelly Ann Jacobson](, offered by [Three Rooms Press](; our very first titles from [The University of Utah Press](; and a new English-language translation of the Swedish mystery writer [Frank Heller’s]( [The Grand Duke’s Last Chance]( from [Kabaty Press](. Explore the full list and [sign up to request books](. [Robin and Her Misfits]( [Critical Threat]( [My Last Innocent Year]( [The End of Drum-Time]( [Forager: Field Notes for Surviving a Family Cult: A Memoir]( [Mad about Meatloaf]( [Bears Ears: Landscape of Refuge and Resistance]( [The Grand Duke's Last Chance]( [The Seaside Corpse]( [I Spoke to You with Silence: Essays from Queer Mormons of Marginalized Genders]( [Night Letter]( [Please Report Your Bug Here]( [Pretty Little Pieces]( [Romek's Lost Youth: The Story of a Boy Survivor]( [Life Dust]( [Home Is the Road: Wandering the Land, Shaping the Spirit]( [Secret Rules to Being a Rockstar]( [Everything Is Just Beginning]( [Against the Written Word: Toward a Universal Illiteracy]( [The Dug-Up Gun Museum]( Our November batch of Early Reviewers has 3,554 copies of 164 books. The deadline to request a book is November 28th, 6pm Eastern time. Did you win a book recently? When you receive your book, make sure you head over to your [Books You've Won]( page to mark it received. After you've read your book, add your review to LibraryThing. First, add the book to your LibraryThing catalog. Then click the pencil-shaped "edit" icon next to the book, or click "edit book" from the work page. Type your review into the Review box, and click "submit" to save it. Reviewing your books gives you a greater chance of winning books in the future, while neglecting to review lowers your odds. For more information, visit the [Early Reviewers Help Page](. Book World News: In Memoriam Popular American historian [Thomas Cahill](, perhaps best known for his 1995 [How the Irish Saved Civilization](, [has died at 82](. A polyglot, Cahill was known for his mastery of both primary sources and secondary scholarship, and won praise for making scholarly subjects accessible to non-academic readers. Rather than focusing on history as a long record of catastrophe, his work highlighted what he called “narratives of grace”—something to be seen in his [Hinges of History]( series, which examined critical moments in the development of Western civilization. English comic book artist [Kevin O’Neill](, particularly celebrated for his work with author [Alan Moore]( on [The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen]( series, [has died at 69](. In a statement to the New York Times, Moore, who worked with O’Neill for twenty years, said the artist was uniquely qualified to illustrate [The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen](, given the dizzying array of characters and artistic styles required by the narrative. O’Neill was also known for his work on the [Marshall Law]( series. American food writer, blogger and memoirist [Julie Powell](, whose “Julie/Julia” project—an attempt to cook every recipe in [Julia Child’s]( [Mastering the Art of French Cooking](—led to her own book contract, [has died at 49](. Published in 2005, [Julie and Julia: My Year of Cooking Dangerously]( became a bestseller, and was adapted in the [2009 film]( of the same name, starring [Meryl Streep]( and [Amy Adams](. Other losses in the book world this past month: - [George Booth](, American cartoonist, [has died at 96](. - [Harold Clarke](, Irish conservationist and former Easons chairman, [has died at 89](. - [Mike Davis](, American writer, activist and historian, [has died at 76](. - [Katherine Duncan-Jones](, English Shakespeare scholar, [has died at 81](. - [Rebecca Godfrey](, Canadian novelist and nonfiction writer, [has died at 54](. - [Doris Grumbach](, American novelist, biographer and critic, [has died at 104](. - [John P. Meier](, American biblical scholar and Catholic priest, [has died at 80](. - [John Jay Osborn, Jr.](, American author, lawyer and academic, [has died at 77](. - [Gerald Stern](, American poet and professor, [has died at 97](. - [Roger Welsch](, American journalist, folklorist and author, [has died at 85](. Book World News: Freedom of Expression In the United States, the controversy and conflict surrounding school and public library curation continues to heat up, and nowhere is this more apparent than in the events surrounding the public [Patmos Library]( in Jamestown Township, Michigan. As we reported in the [August issue]( of State of the Thing, township residents voted to [defund their public library]( this past summer, in protest at the inclusion of [Maia Kobabe’s]( graphic novel memoir, [Gender Queer](, as well as other LGBTQ-themed books in the library’s collection. Since then, in the absence of public funding the library has been kept afloat [by private donations](, including [a $50,000 gift]( from author [Nora Roberts](. The vote to defund the library has been [repeated in the recent election](, leading to fear that library will now be forced to close permanently. Elsewhere, Utah parents have been using a new state law [to challenge “pornographic books” in schools](, while a new “Protection of Minors” rule for the libraries of Missouri [has been proposed](, and books are [being removed]( from a Wisconsin school district’s libraries as part of a wider statewide effort. A North Texas school district, which previously removed the Bible, a graphic novel about Anne Frank and Kobabe’s [Gender Queer]( from classrooms and libraries, has now voted to [remove all books featuring gender fluid characters](, while another North Texas school district has removed or restricted an [extensive list of titles](. In one notable example, Tolkien’s fantasy classic, [The Hobbit](, will be restricted to readers in the sixth grade and above. Also in the United States, news of a forthcoming memoir from recently appointed Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett, to be published by Penguin Random House’s conservative imprint, [Sentinel](, has led to some [furore in the publishing industry](. An [open letter](, signed by over 700 publishing professionals and authors, condemned the book deal, and called on Penguin Random House to reconsider publishing the justice’s book, in the name of protecting human rights. The publisher has [rejected this argument](, confirming that they are committed to publishing Barrett’s book, while the letter itself was condemned by [PEN America]( and by the [National Coalition Against Censorship](. In our [September issue]( of State of the Thing we touched upon [the recent controversy]( at the UK’s [Society of Authors](, after that organization’s chair, [Joanne Harris](, was accused by some members of responding flippantly to [public death threats]( made against [J.K. Rowling](, following her statement of support for the recently-attacked [Salman Rushdie](. Open letters both [condemning]( and [supporting]( Harris appeared at the time, while the society itself responded by [reiterating its support for authors](E2%80%94-on-hate-and-harassment) and for freedom of speech. Since then, the former chair of the society, [Philip Pullman](, who stepped down earlier in the year, stating that he would [not be free to express his opinions]( if he remained in the position, has [called for an external review]( of the organization. The [Annual General Meeting](, scheduled for November 17th, is expected to be a “[free speech showdown](” between Harris and Pullman supporters, with [renewed calls]( for the former’s resignation. In related news, the [Scottish Book Trust’s]( newly updated [code of conduct]( has also stirred a [free speech controversy](, with some accusing the Trust of attempting to force authors into agreeing with the organization’s stance on gender issues, or risk giving up eligibility for the paid events they can obtain only through them. In a recent opinion piece, [Joan Smith](, former chair of the [English PEN Writers in Prison Committee](, maintains that the Scottish Book Trust has “[given up on freedom of speech](.” [Salman Rushdie](, in the meantime, whose attack on stage at an event in upstate New York this past August was also covered in our [September issue]( of State of the Thing, is reported to have [lost sight in one of his eyes](, as well as the use of one of his hands, after being stabbed in the neck and torso. Book World News: Awards Awards and Prizes. The 2022 [Prix Goncourt](Goncourt), given annually in France to the author of "the best and most imaginative prose work of the year,” [has been awarded]( to [Brigitte Giraud]( for her [Vivre vite]( (Live Fast), a short autobiographical novel about the death of her husband. The thirteenth woman to be awarded the Goncourt since its inception in 1903, Giraud was a surprise winner, chosen after the jury voted fourteen times without a definitive result. Addressing the memoiristic nature of her story, Giraud wrote in the preface to her book that “when no disaster occurs, we move forward without looking back, we stare straight ahead at the horizon. When a tragedy occurs, we turn back, we come back to haunt the place, we proceed to the reconstruction.” Calgary-based novelist [Suzette Mayr]( has [recently won]( the 2022 [Giller Prize](20Giller%20Prize%20Winner), awarded annually to a Canadian author of a short story or novel in English, for her [The Sleeping Car Porter](. The story of a gay Black Canadian train porter on a cross-Canadian railway journey, the book was praised by the jury as bringing to life “believably, achingly, thrillingly – a whole world contained in a passenger train moving across the Canadian vastness, nearly 100 years ago.” [Natasha Soobramanien]( and [Luke Williams]( have [been announced as the winners]( of the 2022 [Goldsmiths Prize](20Prize) for their [Diego Garcia](. The prize is awarded annually by [Goldsmiths, University of London]( and [The New Statesman]( to a work of fiction that "opens up new possibilities for the novel form." The authors—the first collaborative pair to win the award—wrote the novel over ten years, while living in different countries. It was described by judge chair Tim Parnell as “by turns, funny, moving, and angry,” and as “a marvellous book which extends the scope of the novel form.” The [Colin Roderick Award](20Roderick%20Award), presented annually to the "best book published in Australia which deals with any aspect of Australian life," [has gone this year]( to [Emily Bitto]( for her novel [Wild Abandon](, described by the panel chair as “a coming-of-age and into self-knowledge story set against a richly symbolic and allusive account of the decline of civilisations.” The winners of the [Writers’ Trust of Canada’s]( seven literary awards [were recently revealed]( at their November 2nd award ceremony in Toronto. The [Atwood Gibson Writers' Trust Fiction Prize](20Gibson%20Writers'%20Trust%20Fiction%20Prize) has gone to [Nicholas Herring]( for his [Some Hellish](, while the [Hilary Weston Writers' Trust Prize for Nonfiction](20Weston%20Writers'%20Trust%20Prize%20for%20Nonfiction) has gone to [Dan Werb]( for his [The Invisible Siege: The Rise of Coronaviruses and the Search for a Cure](. The winner of the [Dayne Ogilvie Prize for LGBTQ2S+ Emerging Writers](20Ogilvie%20Prize) was [Francesca Ekwuyasi]( for her [Butter Honey Pig Bread](, while the winner of the [Writers' Trust Engel Findley Award](, which recognizes the body of work of a writer in mid-career, was [Shani Mootoo](. [Joseph Dandurand]( has won the [Latner Writers' Trust Poetry Prize](, which is “given to a mid-career poet in anticipation of his future contributions to Canadian poetry,” while [Candace Savage]( has won the [Matt Cohen Award](, which honors a writer’s lifelong work. Finally, [Elise Gravel]( has won the [Vicky Metcalf Award for Literature for Young People](, in recognition of her lifetime achievement. Australian author [Thomas Keneally]( has [been announced as the winner]( of the 2022 [ARA Historical Novel Prize](20Historical%20Novel%20Prize), for his [Corporal Hitler’s Pistol](, while [Katrina Nannestad]( has won in the CYA (Children and Young Adult) category for the second year in a row for her [Rabbit, Soldier, Angel, Thief](. Keneally has announced his intention to [share his prize money]( with his fellow nominees. The 2022 [British Academy Book Prize for Global Cultural Understanding](20Academy%20Book%20Prize%20for%20Global%20Cultural%20Understanding) has [been awarded]( to Chilean writer [Alia Trabucco Zerán]( for her [When Women Kill: Four Crimes Retold](, which examines four homicide cases involving women killers, presenting an original feminist perspective on the issue. Poet and author [Seán Hewitt]( has been [named as the winner]( of the 2022 [Rooney Prize for Irish Literature](. The prize is administered by the [Trinity Oscar Wilde Centre](, and recognizes “an outstanding body of work by an emerging Irish writer under 40 years of age.” Jury member [Rita Sakr]( praised Hewitt’s work for its “visionary and gemlike” qualities, and his language for its “graceful and dazzling” nature. The winners of the 2022 [World Fantasy Awards](20Fantasy%20Award), given annually to the best in fantasy fiction by the [World Fantasy Convention](, have [been announced](. [Tasha Suri]( has won in the Best Novel category for her [The Jasmine Throne](, [Premee Mohamed]( has won in the Best Novella category for her [And What Can We Offer You Tonight](, and [Lauren Ring]( has won in the Best Short Story category for her [(emet)](, published in [The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction](, July/August 2021. The award for Best Anthology has gone to editor [Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki]( for his [The Year’s Best African Speculative Fiction (2021): Volume One](, while [Usman T. Malik]( has won the award for Best Collection for his [Midnight Doorways: Fables from Pakistan](. The 2022 [Arthur C. Clarke Award](C.+Clarke+Award), presented annually to the best science fiction novel of the year, [has been given]( to Scottish author [Harry Josephine Giles]( for their verse novel, [Deep Wheel Orcadia](. Judges chair [Andrew M. Butler]( described Giles’ novel as “the sort of book that makes you rethink what science fiction can do and makes the reading experience feel strange in a new and thrilling way.” The winner of the inaugural [Ursula K. Le Guin Prize for Fiction](20K.%20Le%20Guin%20Prize), intended to recognize authors who embody [Ursula K. Le Guin’s]( ideal of those “realists of a larger reality, who can imagine real grounds for hope and see alternatives to how we live now,” [has been announced](. [Khadija Abdalla Bajaber]( has taken the honor for her debut novel, [The House of Rust](, with [Sequoia Nagamatsu]( ([How High We Go in the Dark]() and [Catherynne M. Valente]( ([The Past Is Red]() were named as finalists. [Dawnie Walton]( has [been announced as the winner]( of the 2022 [Mark Twain American Voice in Literature Award](20Twain%20American%20Voice%20in%20Literature%20Award) for her novel, [The Final Revival of Opal & Nev](. The MTAVL award is given annually by [The Mark Twain House & Museum](, with the help of benefactor [David Baldacci](, and recognizes the work “that best exemplifies or expresses a uniquely American voice, much in the way that Twain’s [The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn]( does.” The winners of the 2022 Kirkus Prizes, given out annually by the American [Kirkus Reviews]( magazine in three categories, [have been announced](. [Hernan Diaz]( has won in the [Fiction](20Prize%20for%20Fiction) category for his novel, [Trust](; [Tanaïs]( has won in the [Nonfiction](20Prize%20for%20Nonfiction) category for her [In Sensorium: Notes for My People](; and [Harmony Becker]( has won in the [Young People’s Literature](20Prize%20for%20Young%20People's%20Literature) category for her [Himawari House](. Additional Award News This Month: Winners. [The Amazon Best Books of the Year]( | [The Australian Political Book of the Year Award]( | [The Barnes & Noble Book of the Year]( | [The Books Are My Bag Readers Awards]( | [The Bragg Prize for Science Writing]( | [The Diverse Book Awards]( | [The Dr. Tony Ryan Book Award]( | [The Hungerford Award]( | [The Kindle Storyteller Award]( | [The Maria Pallotta-Chiarolli Fellowship]( | [The Nakata Brophy Short Fiction and Poetry Prize]( | [The New York Times Best Illustrated Children’s Books]( | [The NSK Neustadt Prize for Children’s and Young Adult Literature]( | [The Ottawa Book Awards]( | [The QuietManDave Prize]( | [The Readings Prizes]( | [The Richell Prize for Emerging Writers]( | [The Sarah Maguire Prize for Poetry in Translation](20Winner) | [The Victorian Premier’s History Award]( | [The Whiting Creative Nonfiction Grant]( | [The World of Books Impact Award]( Shortlists. [An Post Irish Book Awards]( | [The Cundall History Prize]( | [The Pacific Northwest Book Awards]( | [The Petrona Award]( | [The Prime Minister’s Literary Awards]( | [Scotland’s National Book Awards]( | [The Tasmanian Literary Awards]( | [The Voss Literary Prize]( Other Book World News Bookselling and Publishing In recent issues of State of the Thing—see the [August]( and [September]( editions—we reported on the U.S. Department of Justice's antitrust lawsuit to block Penguin Random House’s proposed acquisition of Simon & Schuster. [Closing arguments]( were heard in late August, and on November 7th judge Florence Y. Pan issued her ruling, [blocking the merger](. In her [80-page decision](, the judge found that [the proposed merger would lessen competition]( in the book rights market, and would be in violation of Section 7 of the Clayton Act. Penguin Random House CEO Markus Dohle [has described the ruling as “utterly wrong,”]( and suggested that it was “political” in nature. The labor unrest at the New York headquarters of HarperCollins, which we have been following in State of the Thing over the last few months—see our coverage of the brief, one-day worker strike in the [July edition]( and the news of [recent layoffs]( and the union vote to[authorize a second strike]( in the [October edition]( continued. The second strike, [begun on Thursday, November 10th](, is indefinite, with employees saying they will not return to work until they have reached an agreement with HarperCollins, or have a new contract. It has been revealed, in the meantime, that [the publisher’s revenue declined by 11%]( in the financial quarter ending this past September. The [33rd International Publishers Association Congress]( was [held this past week]( in Jakarta, with attendees from 63 countries. This marks the first time since the 2018 IPA Congress in New Delhi that the congress was able to go forward, as the 2020 congress was canceled due to the COVID pandemic. The [China Shanghai International Children’s Book Fair](, in the meantime, which was originally scheduled to open on November 19th, 2021, has now been [postponed for the fourth time](, due to continued Covid constraints in that city, and has also announced that they will be changing venues. We reported on the initial postponement in our [November 2021 issue]( of State of the Thing, at which time the fair had been rescheduled for March. In our [March 2022 issue]( we reported on the fair’s second postponement, and in the [June 2022 issue]( we reported on the third. The fair is now scheduled to occur from December 2nd-4th of this year, and has moved from the Shanghai World Expo Exhibition and Convention Center to the West Bund Art Center. Library and Literary News In the UK, actress [Helena Bonham Carter]( has been [named as the first female president]( of the[London Library](, an independent lending library in operation for 181 years. Founded through the efforts of Scottish essayist, historian and philosopher [Thomas Carlyle](, the library’s past presidents have included such luminaries as poets [Alfred Lord Tennyson]( and [T.S. Eliot](. Bonham Carter has been a member of the library for 36 years, and will take over from former president, lyricist [Tim Rice](. The issue of library funding has become more prominent in the political arena of late in both the United States and the UK. In late October, 54 US Representatives [submitted a letter]( urging that $25 million in funding for library structures—the first such funding in 26 years—be included in the FY 2023 Appropriations Bill. The ALA (American Library Association) has highlighted the importance of this funding, [in their response](. The recent November election in the United States saw [55 library-related initiatives on the ballot]( across 16 states, with advocacy group [EveryLibrary]( concluding in the aftermath that [the results were positive overall](, despite some ongoing concerns. In the UK, meanwhile, a new parliamentary report has [argued for increased government support of libraries](, with particular attention to be paid to the modernization of these and other important cultural spaces. TinyCat [TinyCat]( is the online catalog for small libraries, created by LibraryThing. It turns your existing LibraryThing account into a simple, professional, web-based catalog. Follow [@TinyCat_Lib]( on Twitter for the latest TinyCat news, and be sure to check out [LibraryThing’s Youtube channel]( for a range of TinyCat tutorials. of the Month. TinyCat’s featured library this past month was the [Women’s Museum of California]( (WMC), based out of San Diego and offering a [Free Feminist Library]( to the public every first Saturday of the month. WMC’s Marketing Director Melissa Jones sat down with Kristi this past month to answer her questions about the organization and [their library](. Q. Who are you, and what is your mission—your “raison d’être”?: The mission of the Women's Museum of California is to educate and inspire present and future generations about the experiences and contributions of diverse women by collecting, preserving, and interpreting their stories. You can find the [full interview on our blog](. TinyCat Webinars. To learn more about TinyCat, join Kristi for a live demo Wednesdays at 1pm Eastern. Webinars are now on Zoom, so make sure to use our new [link to attend](. Please Note: The last two live webinars of 2022 will be held on November 30th and December 7th. You can also check out our playlists of Tiny Tutorials on [LibraryThing's YouTube channel](, where Kristi walks you through various features of TinyCat in 30 seconds or less. If you'd like to schedule a webinar at another time or if you have other questions about TinyCat, you can reach Kristi at tinycat@librarything.com. Wait, That's It? That's all I have for the Thing this month! If you have any suggestions, or ideas for improving State of the Thing, please reach out to me at abigailadams@librarything.com. Happy reading, Abigail PS: If you'd rather receive a plain-text version, [edit your email preferences](. You can also read it [online](. This message was sent to {NAME}. Click to [edit your email preferences or unsubscribe from future emails](.