New e-journal : CHOICE Reviews Online

Would you like to know what is being published right now in your field?  Would you like to see timely reviews of those new books?  How about receiving notices about new materials that fit your own stated research interests?

If this sounds good, you'll be happy to hear about our new e-journal subscription.  CHOICE is the monthly periodical published by the American Library Association to assist in collection building across many disciplines.  It provides brief, focused reviews on current publications intended for academic libraries.

We're happy to announce that we now have access for all current students, faculty and staff of UPSem and BTSR to the online version of CHOICE, which offers a lot of special features we hope you will enjoy, including some great options for personalizing your use of the resource.  You can create lists of chosen content, save your often-used searches, and set up alerts to be notified of new content that matches your interests.

For a quick one-page introduction to this resource with instructions for using its special features, click HERE.  

Pope Francis 2015

In honor of the visit of Pope Francis to the United States, libraries everywhere are participating in a joint study of certain passages in The Saint John's Bible.  We'll be turning to a different page each day, and a brief meditation will be offered that ties to that passage.

Please look in the flat glass display case in front of the Circulation Desk for our lovely copy of The Saint John's Bible, opened to the page for the day.  The meditation will be printed each day and placed in the display case beside it.  It's a nice way to share in the joy of our Catholic neighbors at the visit of their pontiff.

Just offering this to you as a blessing.

A link for further information : http://www.saintjohnsbible.org/promotions/lp/itm/

Too warm today

Parts of our building feel uncomfortably warm today ... this is a result of the power failure on campus last week.  The HVAC system is confused and not functioning properly.  Physical Plant is working on the problem and they hope to have it repaired later today.

For now, dress lightly!

Another moving project

Our hard-working (and long-suffering!) Circulation staff are engaged in another move of books on the lower level, in preparation for installing new carpeting down there next week.

They are temporarily removing the books on the bottom shelf of every tier, and placing them above on empty shelves (marked with blue tape) or into a storeroom.  After the rug is installed, the books will go back on the bottom shelves again.

If you need something that doesn't seem to be where it belongs, please ask for help at the Circ Desk.  They will be able to retrieve it for you.

We are sorry for this inconvenience.  The project should be completed within a week or so, long before the start of the Fall term.

No campus email on Tuesday, July 14

Our campus IT manager has informed us that our Union Presbyterian Seminary campus email (@upsem.edu) will be offline for a major upgrade on Tuesday, 14 July.

Please be aware that we won't get any messages sent to us on that day. The work will begin at 8:30 am and probably last the entire day.

Holiday weekend coming

The Morton Library will be closed Friday through Sunday, July 3-5.  Please come in TODAY to get whatever you might need for the weekend!

We will close a bit early, at 5:00 pm.

New exhibit in the Morton Library

Aldus Manutius and the Renaissance
Printers of Venice

Aldus Manutius, foremost among the many talented printer/publishers of Renaissance Venice, died 500 years ago in 1515.  The William Smith Morton Library is fortunate to own several lovely volumes printed by the Aldine Press, and by Aldus' contemporaries in Venice. 

A new exhibit is now installed in the glass display cases in the entryway of the Library, displaying 14 of these fascinating works.  The Aldine Press was the official publisher of the reports and documents of the Council of Trent, two of which are on display.  They also invented the "libelli portatiles" or tiny portable books, ancestor of the modern paperback.  

Other unusual volumes from Venetian presses are included, such as the sermons of Savonarola, Homer's Odyssey in Greek, works by Boethius, Cicero, Erasmus and Peter Lombard, and two beautiful Latin Bibles.  Please come and see these precious objects, which have never been exhibited before, and read the information about Venetian publishing and the significance of these rare volumes.