I N T E R C H A N G E
Newsletter of the Nebraska Library Commission
Talking Book and Braille Service
January 2005                            Vol. 29 No. 1
 
Nominees Sought for Advisory Committee

The Advisory Committee to the Talking Book and Braille Service was formed to represent the needs of users and to make recommendations concerning library policies, services, and programs. As a standing committee of the State Advisory Council on Libraries, its membership consists primarily of library borrowers but may include librarians, educators, health care providers and other individuals who understand the needs of users. The committee normally meets twice a year.

Most recently the committee has focused on ways to make the service better known, so that more qualifying Nebraskans would use it. Ideas have included working more closely with Nebraska libraries and with medical and other professionals who can refer qualifying individuals to our service.

Currently there are two vacancies on the committee. Interested persons should contact Dave Oertli, Talking Book and Braille Service, 1200 N Street, Suite 120, Lincoln, NE 68508-2023 by March 1, 2005. Phone: 402-471-4038 or 800-742-7691, fax: 402-471-6244, email.
Movie Theaters Offer Access
Nebraskans who are blind, visually impaired, or hearing impaired can enjoy a night at the movies. Two theaters in Nebraska, the AMC Oak View Plaza 24 in Omaha and The Grand in downtown Lincoln, are equipped with the MOPIX system. MOPIX, which stands for Motion Picture Access System, provides descriptive narration and closed captioning. Customers who are blind or visually impaired have access to headphones that provide the movie's sound track along with a description of each scene. Customers who are hearing impaired have access to an in-seat screen that displays both the movie and captioning.

 

NLS Music Section

Did you know that in addition to providing books, catalogs, and playback equipment that we loan to you, the National Library Service administers a music program through the NLS Music Section? The program of music services includes a circulating collection of more than 30,000 Braille and large-print music scores, text, as well as instructional recordings about music and musicians on cassette.

The NLS Music Section offers several magazines on music, such as The Musical Mainstream, published quarterly in large print, braille, Web-braille, and on cassette, that features selected articles from national magazines about classical music, music criticism, and music teaching.

Contemporary Soundtrack: A Review of Pop, Jazz, Rock and Country is a bimonthly NLS-compiled sampler on cassette containing articles from national magazines.

Popular Music Lead Sheets, published four times a year in braille and Web-braille, is an NLS-compiled collection of melodies, lyrics, and chords to popular songs.

Sound and Vision, published monthly on cassette, contains reviews of audio recordings and equipment.

Quarterly Music Magazine, on cassette, offers, with each edition, a different, complete music magazine chosen from known commercial publications.

Finally, Braille Music Magazine, a monthly British publication, contains articles and criticism from British classical music magazines.

Musical recordings intended solely for listening are not part of the music collection.

To sign up for any of the magazines mentioned above, contact your Readers Advisor. Otherwise, the NLS Music Section provides its services to talking book and braille borrowers directly from Washington, D.C., and may be contacted at 1-800-424-8567.
 

Oprah's "New" Book Club

In 2003, Oprah Winfrey revamped her book club, choosing classical titles that have withstood the test of time. Here are the titles from her "new" book club. To request any of these titles, please use the order form below or contact your Readers Advisor.

2003 Titles:

RC 49676 East of Eden, by John Steinbeck. (Also BR 12565)

This saga of two California families spans from the post-Civil War era to the end of World War I.

RC 57559 Cry, the Beloved Country, by Alan Paton. (Also BR 15354)

A Zulu pastor searches for his delinquent son in 1940s Johannesburg, South Africa.

2004 Titles:

RC 25181 One Hundred Years of Solitude, by Gabriel Garcia Marquez.

The rise and fall of the mythical town of Macondo, somewhere in Latin America, through characterizations of the Buendia family. Some strong language and descriptions of sex.

RC 58532 The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter, by Carson McCullers. (Also BR 11395)

John Singer, who is deaf and unable to speak, becomes the confidante of several town residents. Some strong language.

RC 49499 Anna Karenina, by Leo Tolstoy. (Also BR 12695)

Set in Russia during the 1870s, Anna flaunts convention by having an adulterous affair with Count Vronsky.

RC 37294 The Good Earth, by Pearl S. Buck. (Also BR 9400)

With the help of his wife, O-lan, a poor Chinese peasant named Wang Lung becomes a rich landowner.
 
Encyclopedia Articles Free in Braille

For young braille readers grade 1 through 12, Seedlings' "Rose Project" provides free World Book Encyclopedia articles in braille. Funded by the Garth Brooks' Teammates for Kids Foundation, articles can be ordered by contacting Seedlings at 1-800-777-8552. You may also order
online at www.seedlings.org. Click on Special Projects and then on Rose Project.
 
New Nebraska Cassette Books

Fiction

A Cafecito Story RC 939
by Julia Alvarez

read by Norman Simon
1 cassette
Fictionalized account of a Nebraska school teacher and farmer who starts an organic coffee farm in Dominican Republic. He helps to establish a cooperative for other small coffee growers.

The Weight of Dreams RC 950
by Jonis Agee
read by Tami Works
4 cassettes

Raised on a ranch in the Nebraska Sandhills, Ty Bronte, abused by his father and virtually abandoned by his mother, joins forces with a rich drug dealer and trouble-maker, Harney Rivers. After a drunken fight leads to the near-death of a young Native American, Ty flees Nebraska for the peaceful life of a horse trainer and trader in Kansas. A brutal act from Harney compels Ty to return to Nebraska in order to confront his past and his family. Some violence and some strong language.

Non-Fiction

Raising a Stink: The Struggle Over Factory Hog Farms in Nebraska RC 958
by Carolyn Johnsen
read by Dennis Lorance
2 cassettes

An award-winning reporter tells how factory hog farms have altered Nebraska's physical, economic, and cultural landscape. Interviewing supporters as well as opponents of mega-hog farms, the author puts a human face on the complicated issues surrounding hog confinement technology.

 Calling the Midwest Home: A Lively Look at Origins, Attitudes, Quirks, and Curiosities of America's Heartlanders RC 946
by Carolyn Lieberg
read by Dick Shasteen
2 cassettes

A tribute to Midwesterners everywhere, this book uses wit, facts, and unforgettable stories to explore the Midwestern character. Light-hearted short stories and brief entries are used to describe the Midwestern history, traditions, and culture. Some strong language.

The Last Posse: A Jailbreak, a Manhunt, and the End of Hang-"Em-High Justice RC 952
by Gale E. Christianson
read by Judy Hanefeldt
1 cassette

In the early spring of 1912, a prisoner within the Nebraska State Penitentiary fatally stabbed a deputy warden. Several days later, during the ensuing confusion, three other prisoners shot their way out and disappeared into a snowstorm. Pursued by 300 lawmen across the Nebraska plains, the fugitives broke into homes, stole horses and supplies, and even kidnapped and killed a young farmer. The subsequent capture and punishment set the stage for modern prison reform. Contains some violence.

 Lessons from a Dog Guide: Sermons on the Second Readings for Sundays in Lent and Easter Cycle C RC 959
by Dallas A. Brauninger
read by Wendy Hirsch
1 cassette

An ordained Nebraska minister who is blind offers devotional insights into spiritual lessons she has learned through her dog guides.

Awkward Christian Soldiers RC 962
by Ken Alley
read by Marjory Gloe
1 cassette

Anecdotes from all over the country describe funny events that happened in church.

Life's a Gas: Foibles, Faux Pas and Social Blunders RC 967
compiled by Ken Alley
read by Janet Remmenga
1 cassette

A collection of over one thousand true, funny happenings related to church, love and marriage, parenthood, and medicine.

 

Cassette Magazines for History Lovers

If you enjoy reading about how past events impact our lives today, you might be interested in the following free cassette magazines from the Talking Book and Braille Service:

American History covers personalities, as well as social, political, military, and artistic themes that played a role in the development of our country. This bimonthly publication is produced by Recorded Recreational Reading for the Blind.

Smithsonian, a monthly publication, offers a wide variety of articles about science, history, art, archaeology, and ecology. It also covers events at America's foremost museum, the Smithsonian Institution. It is produced by the Florida Regional Library.

If you would like to learn about your own state, you would enjoy Nebraska History, a quarterly publication of the Nebraska State Historical Society. This publication is recorded in the studios of the Nebraska Library Commission Talking Book and Braille Service.

If you would enjoy a fond flashback to the good ol' days, you would enjoy Reminisce and its companion magazine, Reminisce Extra. Published in alternating months, these two magazines are both recorded in our own studios.

To sign up for these free cassette magazines, please use the order form below or call your Readers Advisor.
 
Helpful Hint...

Question: My books are sent automatically, and sometimes I receive book two or three in a series before book one. How can I receive books in series in the correct order?

Answer: Our computer system select books for you according to your interest codes, along with book availability. The system does not know if a book is part of a series. To be sure you receive books in proper sequence, please contact your Readers Advisor. We will make it a point to send a certain book to you right away, or to reserve the book for you, so you will receive it as soon as a copy is available.
 

Still More "Golden Oldies'

Here are some more books recorded in past years that are still great to read. To order, please check the box next to the RC number and mail this page to the Talking Book and Braille Service; or contact your Readers Advisor. 

Order Form and Ordering Instructions

You may place your order by mailing or e-mailing it to the Talking Book and Braille Service, or by calling your Readers Advisor.

For mailing, please mark the magazines and books you wish to order and enclose this page in an envelope. Instead of using a stamp, you may put "Free Matter for the Blind or Handicapped" on the corner of your envelope. Send your request to the Nebraska Library Commission Talking Book and Braille Service, 1200 N Street, Suite 120, Lincoln NE 68508-2023. Be sure to include your name, address, city, state, zip code, and telephone number.

For e-mailing, send your order information to the Talking Book and Braille Service. Please include your name, address, city, state, zip code, and telephone number.

You may reach a Readers Advisor toll free by calling 1-800-742-7691. Be prepared to give your name, address, city, state, zip code, and telephone number.

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