Grace Kelly was one of Hollywood’s most glamorous women, and her marriage to Prince Rainier III of Monaco in 1956 captivated the world. She was one of Alfred Hitchcock’s favourite actresses, won the admiration of women everywhere for appearing as close to her natural self in her films and rejecting the “studio look”, and she was a fashion icon. Combine all of this with a somewhat mysterious persona (she didn’t enjoy publicity or talking to the press), and her tragic untimely death, and it’s easy to see why people are still so enamoured with her decades later.

I love reading about Hollywood actors and actresses from Hollywood’s Golden Age. It was an era of true movie stars, glamour and style. I personally couldn’t carry off the iconic dresses that Grace Kelly wore, but I love looking at them, and like so many others, I find her life fascinating.

What I especially enjoy is reading  novels that portray real people such as Grace Kelly. I learn something about an interesting figure from history while still getting caught up in a story.  That’s why I was delighted to discover one recent and two forthcoming novels where Grace Kelly appears or features  as a character in the story.

The first is Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb’s 2019 novel Meet Me In Monaco, which received a rave review in The New York Times, and was listed as one of In Style’s and PopSugar’s recommended summer reads. The story is set in the 1950s in Cannes, using Grace Kelly’s romance and wedding to Prince Rainier as a backdrop for a romance between two fictional characters parfumeur Sophie Duvall and British tabloid photographer James Henderson.

Both characters are inadvertently connected to Grace Kelly. Sophie offered her sanctuary from the photographers while James meets Sophie when he follows Grace into her shop. The narrative shifts between James’ and Sophie’s points of view, and is interspersed with news reports about Grace Kelly and the upcoming wedding. Both fans of Grace Kelly and fans of improbable love stories will love this book, and it’s hard not to be drawn into the glamourous and exotic setting.

The other two novels were released in early 2020. From February, the title was The Girl in White Gloves: A Novel of Grace Kelly by Kerri Maher. Grace Kelly is the star of this biographical novel, and the author takes readers behind the scenes to look at the private life and struggles of Kelly to not lose herself in her Hollywood identity, and to manage the expectations of her family and her new royal obligations. The chapters alternate between a young Grace just starting out, and the older, more experienced Grace and is filled with rich historical detail. I’m looking forward to reading this and learning a little bit more about the woman beneath the crown.

From March came The Grace Kelly Dress by Brenda Janowitz. Similar to The Gown by Jennifer Robson, this novel focuses on her famous wedding dress and three generations of women tied to the dress, beginning a young seamstress who is tasked with sewing a copy of the gown. The book is about love, family, creating and keeping traditions, and how a dress can fulfill impossible dreams. 

I love generational stories, and they’re something I relate to.  My maternal grandmother eloped, and I’m several inches taller than my mom and my grandmother so there was never any opportunity for a dress to be handed down, but there have been other things that they've passed down. For as long as I can remember, both my grandmother and my mother have shared their family traditions with me and my brother, and have emphasized the importance of not letting them die. In the years I’ve been with my partner, we’ve created our own traditions as well, and they are ones which I hold dear.

The Grace Kelly Dress is the perfect book club book, and the author has a discussion guide, links relating to the book, information about writing the book, and an essay about her inspiration for the novel on her website if you or your reading group would like to learn more. This is definitely high up on the "to-be-read" pile.

To keep up to date with all of LSC’s latest offerings, please follow LSC on Facebook, on Instagram, and on Twitter, and to subscribe to our new YouTube Channel. We also encourage you to subscribe to the weekly Green Memo, and we hope you check back each and every week on this site for our latest musings on the publishing world.

Happy Reading!

We're taking Monday off for teh Civic Holiday, same as all our friends in Alberta, BC, Saskachewan, Ontario, New Brunswick, and Nunavut. Everyone else, we'll see you on Tuesday.

The first time I remember being proud of something I made myself was when I was 6 years old, trying to sew a doll purse with fringe. By accident, I figured out that if you sewed it together inside out, you’d get a nice clean seam on the outside. When I turned that purse right-side-out, it was like lightning struck! You can probably remember this feeling from when you were a kid, too - the deep pride and satisfaction of imagining something and making it happen, no distractions, reservations or worries, all within the space of a summer afternoon. 

Some say this creative drive, this “flow”, is instinctual until we extinguish it, and I believe that because it certainly becomes harder to access for most people as we age. Maybe we start to care so much about the final product being “good” that we never get started, and lose that natural language. Maybe we become so consumed with being productive and with our responsibilities that we can’t access that undistracted flow anymore.  Pablo Picasso said, “every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.”

Colouring is a great example. Most children enjoy long sessions of colouring or drawing, spending time exploring their minds. Most kids are proud of their drawings, ‘good’ or not, and plenty of adults now use colouring books as a way of meditation or therapy. You can find adult colouring books in any category to suit your interests. It’s a great way to do something we all struggle with these days: focusing on one task and being present. Now more than ever, it’s important we look for ways to destress, and making things with your hands is a fantastic way to do so.

Drawing exercise prompts like Lynda Barry’s Syllabus is another great way to get started. Lynda Barry teaches a grid method to break down a sketchbook page – include 3 drawings, 5 thoughts, 8 observations and 1 dream daily. When that becomes rote, it gets more complex. The idea is not to produce good drawings, but to be mindful and to see that practice begets inspiration. 

Comics: Easy as ABC by Ivan Brunetti is a guide for kids to make comics, but would work wonderfully for the adult who doesn’t know where to get started with drawing or journaling. Brunetti deconstructs more than comics – he breaks down even simple stick figures to become accessible for the reluctant drawer, and focuses on mindfulness, similar to Lynda Barry.

Colouring and drawing prompts may be enough to tap into that satisfied "I Made Something" feeling, or perhaps they open the door for more complex projects. If colouring books and sketchbooks don’t do it for you, take notes from Arts and Crafts founder William Morris who felt that handmade items were of utmost value, and that every practical item can also be beautiful. It is no wonder practical, meditative skills like tapestry, macramé, weaving , embroidery and calligraphy have become popular again – they all take time and focus. As Morris mused, “have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.”

We could all stand to slow down a little bit, to focus on one task at a time, and find a way to create like a kid again.

To keep up to date with all of LSC’s latest offerings, please follow LSC on Facebook, on Instagram, on Twitter, our YouTube Channel, and now on Issuu. We also encourage you to subscribe to the weekly Green Memo, and we hope you check back each and every week on this site for our latest musings on the publishing world.

Until next time!

I am not a huge TV watcher but there are a few shows on Netflix and Prime that I enjoy and will tune into when I get a moment to sit down. During the last few months though I took the opportunity to get caught up on some of my “must watch” list of shows, one of these being “Cheer” on Netflix. My middle daughter did Cheerleading for three years and I had heard amazing things about this docuseries so I figured I would try an episode to see what all the fuss was about.

Within the first 15 minutes I was hooked and ended up binge watching the entire season. It was fantastic and immediately after I finished it I started googling the show, watched the cast on Ellen, with Oprah and finally watched Jerry interview Brad Pitt at the Oscars.  Jerry is a favourite for sure!

Since it was on my mind, it also got me thinking about how important sports are to kids, especially those kids who are risk and/or might not regularly attend school. What “Cheer” highlights is that there are so many kids out there with limited opportunities and if given the chance at playing a sport either at a high school level, competitive level or college, being part of a team will keep them from getting into trouble and making horrible personal decisions. Kids, whether they are 2 or 22 need guidance, structure, and acceptance and being part of team with a strong caring coach (and Coach Monica nails it) is so crucial for kids and their mental and physical development.

Watching this show also got me wondering about all the sports fiction titles being published that should be highlighted and talked about more. I will confess this is not a genre that I am familiar with nor do I read much of so I reached out to some of the publishing sales reps for their favourites and this is what they suggested.

Gravity by Sarah Deming is a young adult novel about a female boxer from a broken home who finds a new start after joining a gym and finding she has the ability to go all the way to the Olympics if she can just keep focused on what is important.

Running Full Tilt by Michael Currinder is another young adult novel about a boy as he discovers a love of long distance running, all the while navigating life in a new school, starting a new relationship with a possible girlfriend and dealing with his complicated relationship with his autistic older brother.

The Crossover by Kwame Alexander is the graphic novel adaptation of the Newbery Medal winning book about two African-American twin brothers, basketball and family.

My Best Friend and Other Illusions by Suri Rosen. This middle grade story follows a young girl named Charlie who is a budding acrobat who is desperate to attend a gymnastics camp that will help her to qualify for a spot in the renowned travelling circus Circo Circo. The problem is that her family cannot afford it so she must find a way to earn the money on her own.

Ice Chips series by Roy MacGregor. This is a great early chapter book series for kids just starting to read on their own. Perfect for kids who love all things hockey.

Roller Girl by Victoria Jamieson. The Newbery Honor Award Winner and New York Times bestseller is a heartwarming graphic novel about friendship and surviving junior high through the power of roller derby. 

Orca, has some wonderful High Interest Sports action stories for middle grade readers. Great Canadian authors focusing on everything from snowboarding to dirt biking.

If you haven’t watched “Cheer” I highly recommend it and I also hope you might consider a new display in your library highlighting some of these great sports titles.

To keep up to date with all of LSC’s latest offerings, please follow LSC on Facebook, on Instagram, and on Twitter, and to subscribe to our new YouTube Channel. We also encourage you to subscribe to the weekly Green Memo, and we hope you check back each and every week on this site for our latest musings on the publishing world.

“Cheers” to you all!

I suspect that no historian would be surprised that, in the middle of a society up-ending pandemic, the other social issues that many either 1) refuse to acknowledge, or 2) live with on a daily basis, would step to the front of the stage. With a resurgence of the Black Lives Matter movement, increased tensions and violence, and a renewed call to action for social recalibration, it is no surprise that the most in-demand books over the past month would be ones focusing on BIPOC topics and authors.

Increasingly, libraries have been reaching out to us to reevaluate their ARPs, in light of budget changes due to COVID. A positive result of this is some libraries have asked for their ARPs to be reconfigured to include more diversity. This is great to see, and highly recommended by us. The below examples are just the tip of the iceberg. And, the more demand there is on titles like this, the more publishers will put out, giving more amplification to unheard voices.

LSC uses Book Manager, a database publishers, vendors, and book sellers use to keep the thousands and thousands of titles published straight. In turn, Book Manager provides some data, like title demand. In doing their regular checks and in building lists like our Pride 2020, Black Lives Matter, and Indigenous Fall 2020 lists, our selectors noticed that of the 30 most in-demand titles over the summer so far, the majority of them were by Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour creators, or on subjects related to racism and inequality. Those titles are listed below, and for your convienance in Slist 43685.

Born a Crime by Trevor Noah. The Daily Show host’s memoir of growing up in South Africa during the Apartheid. Noah describes his childhood as a living crime, due to the illegality of mixed raced couples (like his white Swiss father and Black mother) having children.

Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge. A study and critic of racism and Black history from a British perspective, and a primer on the connections between race, class, and oppression.

A Mind Spread Out on the Ground by Alicia Elliott. Part history, part memoir, Elliott uses her own experiences to draw out the issues of intergenerational trauma from colonization. Making connections between depression and mental illness, loss of language and culture, poverty, sexual assault, representation, and more in the context of how Native Americas have been treated since the arrival of Europeans to the modern day.

Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates. A finalist for the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction, this arresting history of the Black experience in America is told via a letter to the author’s infant son, laying out his thesis that white supremacy in America is indestructible. Only through knowing the complete history of Black Americans struggle, can the struggle continue in the modern day.

Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You: A Remix of the National Book Award-winning Stamped from the Beginning by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi. This edition of Stamped is a remix of the original “Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America”, which studied five historical figures and how their lives were affected by racist ideas. The new version is less history, and more origins of, and tools for combating, anti-Black and racist ideas for a younger audience.

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas. The story of a teenage Black girl who attends a predominantly white school, and witnesses a white police officer shoot and kill her childhood friend. As relevant today as the day it was published. Also available as a feature film.

Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo. Winner of the 2019 Booker Prize, following the lives of 12 mostly Black female characters, and explores how race, sexuality, gender, history and economic stratification define their experiences.

From the Ashes: My Story of Being Metis, Homeless, and Finding My Way by Jesse Thistle. A Canada Reads contender for 2020, this biography relates Thistle’s time in the foster care system, succumbing to the drug and alcohol addictions that plagued his father, and his decade of homelessness.

21 Things You May Not Know About the Indian Act: Helping Canadians Make Reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples a Reality by Bob Joseph. Canadian students learn woefully little about Indigenous First Nations peoples in school, and books like this seek to educate everyone on the ignored aspects of our colonial country. Beginning as a blog post in 2015 and later corporate training workshops, the book intends to fill in the gaps of knowledge most people have relating to Indigenous history and treatment in Canada.

Policing Black Lives: State Violence in Canada from Slavery to the Present by Robyn Maynard. When the BLM protests started again, there were cries that “there isn’t racism in Canada”, which the last few weeks have disproven in startling clarity. Maynard provides “the first comprehensive account of over four hundred years of state-sanctioned surveillance, criminalization and punishment of Black lives in Canada”. The book looks at the history of slavery and racism in Canada, and the modern effects and active examples of oppression, racial profiling, and violence.

Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer. This botanical guide blends Native American traditions with Western science, while also sharing the author’s own experiences of reuniting with her own people's traditions.

So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo. This book covers the difficulty of confronting the systemic racism that pervades North American culture. Meant as a guide for all races to model and provoke conversations about race and racism with one another.

Me and White Supremacy: Combat Racism, Change the World, and Become a Good Ancestor by Layla F Saad. In the vein of diet and self-help books, this book expands on an original workbook with historical contexts, and issues a month long challenge to readers to help understanding their white privilege and participation in white supremacy. Through recognition, they can take steps to stop being (intentionally or unintentionally) racist.

The Skin We're In: A Year of Black Resistance and Power by Desmond Cole. Based on a 2015 cover story for Toronto Life magazine, the book follows the author for one year, 2017, and chronicles both his lived experiences of racism that happen daily, and also larger events such as his firing and arrest for protesting race-based police discrimination and brutality in Toronto. The book is a monthly high definition image of the systemic racism in Canada’s largest city, and culture in general.

How to Be an Antiracist by Ibram X Kendi. A memoir of the author’s own “awakening to antiracism” while examining the systemic roots of racism in North American culture. A contextualization of the everyday beliefs and policies that are guided by oppression, and a guide on how the reader can elevate themselves out of simple awareness and into action.

White Fragility: Why It's So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism by Robin DiAngelo. This book stresses the cultural protections and securities that have been put in place for white people to feel comfortable and safe, while oppressing and dominating other races. White Fragility as a concept explores the moment that a white person feels the stresses of a racist society turned back upon them, and they react defensively.

Interestingly, none of these titles are "new" releases. Many are several years old. This types of material has been available for some time, and yet it is only after major events like the past months that the demand increases. This is a good opportunity to remember that the concept of a Bestseller is not set in stone. The only reason we call certain books “best sellers” is past performance. Really, the industry term “best seller” is just inertia.

Anything can be a best seller. How many times in this industry does author go from completely unknown to overnight sensation with a movie and three-book deal? It can happen to anyone at any time. It is within our power to make whomever we want a best seller. So why not do your part, help authors like these become best sellers, and to open up wider perspectives and new conversations within our communities. Representation and diversity isn’t going away.

To keep up to date with all of LSC’s latest offerings, please follow LSC on Facebook, on Instagram, on Twitter, our YouTube Channel, and now on Issuu. We also encourage you to subscribe to the weekly Green Memo, and we hope you check back each and every week on this site for our latest musings on the publishing world.

Yours, Fictionally

Back in January 2020, COVID-19 was just something on the news, happening in a far-away country.  We knew about it, we sympathized with Wuhan, but it seemed like just another flu-type illness.  By February, it was hitting closer to home: a coworker’s sister, who lives in Italy, was under lockdown and the WHO had declared the outbreak a global public health emergency.  Mass cancellations of public events and the closure of schools followed, and by mid-March COVID-19 was officially a global pandemic, sparking lockdowns all over the world.  Even as we head into summer now, restrictions remain in place for many people, including social distancing measures and the requirement of face coverings.

So what exactly is COVID-19?  In broadest terms, it’s a coronavirus, part of a large family of viruses named for their spiky appearance.  According to the CDC, there are four main sub-groupings of coronaviruses – alpha, beta, gamma, and delta – and seven types that affect humans.  229E and NL63, both alpha coronaviruses, and OC43 and HKU1, beta coronaviruses, are the most common and usually cause mild respiratory symptoms.  The three remaining coronaviruses, however, are the dangerous ones, evolving from infecting animals to infecting humans.  These three are MERS-CoV, SARS-CoV, and SARS-CoV-2, aka COVID-19.

Which is a lot of science to try to explain to kids who haven’t been in school, or seen friends and family, since the lockdown began. Add to this a number of new terms that have been introduced to our lexicon, including social distancing and flattening the curve, and it’s a glut of information to take in even for an adult.  To help kids understand these terms, and COVID-19 as a whole, ABDO Kids is releasing two series: The Coronavirus, aimed at grades 2 and under, and Core Library Guide to COVID-19, for kids in grades 4-8.  The Coronavirus series includes information on the virus itself as well as information on staying connected, maintaining healthy habits, and distance learning.

The Core Library Guide series goes more in-depth for older kids.  Understanding COVID-19 examines why the virus is so dangerous, and what steps scientists and medical professionals have been taking to combat it.  Flattening the Curve explains this and other measures people can take to help stop the spread of the disease, or at least slow it down to help keep hospitals from being overwhelmed.  Other books in the series include Front-Line Heroes and The Economic Impact of COVID-19.

Beyond avoiding social activities and large groups, some ways that everyone can help slow the spread include proper hygiene and face coverings.  COVID-19 is destroyed by the simple act of washing your hands with soap and water.  Teaching kids hygiene has always been important, but especially so now.  To aid in this, check out How Does Soap Clean Your Hands? by Madeline J. Hayes and Srimalie Bassani.  For more of an overview of germs and diseases, The Germ Lab by Richard Platt and John Kelly offers plenty of fun facts and great illustrations.

All these sudden changes and dire warnings can cause anxiety even in kids (and adults) not prone to worry.  This is understandable, but parents will likely want to help their kids feel more confident and reassured.  In October, Vancouver author-illustrator Scot Ritchie will release Follow Your Breath!: a First Look at Mindfulness.  An introduction to mindfulness, the book will help kids learn how best to manage stress and remain calm even when upset.  Other upcoming books to help kids manage their feelings include The Worry (Less) Book by Rachel Brian, Mindfulness For Children by Sarah Rudell Beach, and Puppy In My Head by Canadian author Elise Gravel.

To keep up to date with all of LSC’s latest offerings, please follow LSC on Facebook, on Instagram, on Twitter, our YouTube Channel,  and now on Issuu. We also encourage you to subscribe to the weekly Green Memo, and we hope you check back each and every week on this site for our latest musings on the publishing world.

Stay safe!

Canada Day falls on a Wednesday this year, and Wednesday we'll be closed. But here all the more enthusiastically the rest of the week. So have fun, eh?

LSC, as with the world, was thrown a curve ball back in March. For the first time in our history, we had to shut down completely, as did many of you. Since then, we've been working to get back to work. It is gratifying to say that, as of June 22nd, LSC is back to 100% operations. We know you have many questions, so today we thought we'd answer some of the ones we've been getting the most.

What happens to the FPP?

LSC sent out the second installment Fixed Price Processing Plan invoices on schedule on May 1st, largely just as part of our internal processes. However, we were then as we are now well aware of the detrimental effect COVID has had on library budgets, and that anyone on the FPP will have dramatically different unit numbers. We also know that many libraries won’t know the full extent of this difference until later in the year.

To help with this, we extended the period for volume adjustments to August 1st, as we understand that actual unit volumes for 2020 may have been impacted. So, when you determine what your adjusted budget will be, we can then estimate the number of units (based on the average cost of material) and then adjust the units purchased accordingly.

How long will materials take to arrive?

As of today, we do not anticipate delays in receiving materials from major publishers. Material that has been postponed has been updated with new dates in our catalogue, and publishers have not informed us of any major delays. If this changes, we will let you know. 

Our internal processes have been changed to ensure the health and safety of our employees and clients. Quarantine periods have been placed on material at various stages, which will cause it to slow down in our internal process. However, we have structured these processes so that, as much as is possible, where is it under our control, there will be no significant delays of shipping materials from LSC. For material ordered pre-pub, our intent is get it to you before or by street date, the same as always. 

The commercial courier industry is seeing increased demand at this time, and has had to create new guidelines for itself. Next day delivery is rare these days. As such, when your materials is sent by commercial shippers, there may be minor (and in rare cases, longer) delays in materials reaching you. We will try as much as possible to take these delays into account when we ship, but the best the couriers can give us is an estimate for delivery. They especially cannot guarantee delivery within specific time windows right now. However, libraries on LSC's private route should see no delays. 

That being said, we are all adapting to the new regulations and will undoubtedly encounter unexpected hiccups. We ask for your patience as you no doubt will require ours at some point, and together we will get back on track. 

What is the situation with Multilingual materials?

Back in February, multilingual was the collection type we most expected to be impacted by COVID. This is because the material is coming from country of origin, and with each country having been hit differently by the crisis, we knew there would be some struggle. Additionally, many of our vendors bring material from country of origin to Canada via the US, and... well, it's a different situation down there right now. As such, availability will vary depending on the language and where it is coming from.  

Broadly speaking, most of our vendors are reporting delays of some kind. However, many shipments were received by our vendors before the lock down happened, which means there may be some material available throughout the summer. It is likely that the biggest delays will be felt later in the year. The situation is changing constantly though, and we are keeping in touch with our vendors for updates. If you would like a more specific estimate on the languages that you collect, please reach out to Julie Kummu and she can help.

What steps is LSC taking for internal Health & Safety?

LSC is fortunate to have a large plant which has allowed us to implement social distancing measures and health & safety features that other businesses are struggling to adjust to. We acknowledge our privilege in this regard. All of our employees who can work from home will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. This includes many of our customer service, selection service, marketing, systems, and cataloguing departments. This has also enabled us to spread our processing team over the entire footprint of our building, giving everyone the space they need.

Items that are received by LSC are quarantined before they are unpacked. Internal processes have been streamlined to eliminate unnecessary touch points. Masks are mandatory inside LSC, and in some areas face shields. All shipped packages are labeled, identifying when the box was sealed. Should a library request it, we will quarantine the sealed box for 72 hours before shipping it to you (thanks to our processes, in many instances 72 hours will have passed between sealing and delivery anyway). 

What changes have been made to pub dates for summer and fall materials?

The publishing industry had to make adjustments during this crisis, the same as everyone else. While many spring titles were too close to publication to change, we did see many changes made to title release dates that were expected during the summer. Likewise, there were some titles expected in the fall that have been pushed back. Some, into the winter. Others, six months or a year. 

Any changes to release dates are provided via automatic updates from the publishers, and are therefore reflected in the database the next day. We recommend running and outstanding order report on materials ordered before and during the lock down, and seeing if anything has had a change of release date that would affect your budget. We are confident that anything listed in our Fall Notables catalogues, released last week, will not see further delays.  

What is the status of the DVD market, and other AV materials?

Obviously, movie theatres have been closed since March, and no major movies have been released since then. As such, expected bestseller titles, such as Mulan, Black Widow, and the new Fast and the Furious will not be available until after their theatrical release. We have no idea of when that will be; it is well beyond our control. However, direct-to-video films (which many films expected to have theatrical releases became over the last three months), documentaries, TV series, and children’s titles all appear to be releasing as per usual, with only the odd title being pushed back. 

In Music, plenty of smaller, independent titles are available in all genres, but most of the larger, well-known artists are delaying their releases until the fall. These would be most of the bestseller titles. 

Video games remain available, and have increased in demand while everyone was stuck at home. Some spring and summer titles were delayed to July/August/September, but many titles are still available. Because the best seller season for video games is November and December, right now we anticipate no delays more than is usual in the video game industry. 

Very excitingly, in the past two weeks Sony has announced that the PS5 is coming to market this winter, and will be using physical media (at first, at least). Not only that, but it will be backward compatible with PS4 games! This should come as a relief to libraries who were worried about their existing catalogue of titles, and many who were concerned about video games going entirely digital. It also means you can continue buying PS4 games for your collections without the fear of them being obsolete in a year. 

What about a second wave?

Everything mentioned above is contingent on a world which continues to improve. Existing release dates for fall and winter rely on no further delays or obstacles. Obviously, all of that is beyond LSC's control. We can merely react to what ever happens next. There is much concern over a second wave, and restrictions being put back in place. Should that happen, LSC will follow the guidelines of the Ministry of Health, the Ontario Government, and the Region of Waterloo Public Health, as we did the first time.

We will make every effort to communicate in a clear and timely fashion what our response will be, and our marketing staff would be reaching out to you individually. As we have seen throughout the spring, things can happen quickly, and changes need to be made on the drop of a dime. But the first time, it was unexpected and no one was prepared. That will not be the case again.

To keep up to date with all of LSC’s latest offerings, please follow LSC on Facebook, on Instagram, on Twitter, our YouTube Channel,  and now on Issuu. We also encourage you to subscribe to the weekly Green Memo, and we hope you check back each and every week on this site for our latest musings on the publishing world.

Welcome back! It's been a long road getting back to where we can be together again. We've all been changed by what's happened, and will continue to be so for some time. But not all change is bad, and in a more digital and remote world, this is the perfect time to make some adjustments to the way things used to be. The first change: our Notables catalogue.

Last year, we set ourselves down this road, not knowing what waited for us. Jamie Quinn, Manager of Customer and Selection Services, selectors Rachel Seigel and Sara Pooley (who oversee the committees), and I sat down and discussed what changes could be made to our catalogues. What elements had you our partners, been asking for, and what elements were missing? We started off with an aesthetic and branding change. The cover design got a face-lift, and the title changed to LSC’s Notables. Still containing the Bestsellers and Solid Sellers, but under a more inclusive umbrella.

Next was the addition of scannable barcodes in the catalogues themselves. We heard from many libraries who wanted to be able to quickly *blip* an item onto their screen as they are flipping through the pages, and we couldn’t have agreed more. Over the winter we worked on the next element: colour cover images, when available (and very few weren’t). This turned out to have some challenges, but our amazing programmers were able to overcome them and had things not taken an unexpected turn in the spring, you’d have the physical results in your hand right now.

But turn, things did. And we realized that the Fall catalogues would not be a physical item. No one wants to be touching things or having things sent to them unnecessarily right now. Luckily, one of the ideas what Jamie had posited in that early discussion was creating a truly digital version of the catalogue. Not just the Slist edition of the lists, which have always been available, but a digital version that captures the visual pop of the print edition. Especially now with all the cover images. Back then, the discussion had been around our continued push towards being more environmentally friendly and sustainable. In the time of COVID, having this alternative would make up for not getting a copy into each library’s hands.

And so it is with pride and excitement that we can introduce to you the 2020 Fall Notables, for Adult and Children’s collections, via Issuu. Issuu is a terrific digital platform that allows you to experience a digital version of our print edition. Flip through the pages one at a time as though you were flipping the page with your finger. Zoom, drag and scan, and search for words within the catalogue. And, most excitingly, you can download the document as a PDF, so that you can peruse at your leisure offline. While we will eventually return to a point where future catalogues can be mailed out, we will be including the Issuu digital edition as standard moving forward. We hope you like it.

Another general note regarding title availability. Obviously, all industries have been affected by COVID, and publishing is no different. This year, the publishers have changed many publication dates. Titles that were expected to be published over the summer and into the fall have been pushed back. However, barring any further service disruptions because of the pandemic, we anticipate that the publication dates noted in this catalogue will remain accurate, giving you more peace of mind when it comes to your budgets.

This is not the end of changes you’ll see, either in response to COVID or accelerated because of it. For all the anxiety it has caused, it has also inspired a shift in the way things were. We’re so happy to have you along as we discover the way things will be. 

Issuu editions:

Adult Notables 

Children’s Notables 

Slists for the sublists:

Best Sellers YA Fiction - Fall 2020 

Best Sellers YA Non-Fiction - Fall 2020 

Best Sellers Juv Non-Fic 000-499 - Fall 2020 

Best Sellers Juv Non-Fic 500-599 - Fall 2020 

Best Sellers Juv Non-Fic 600-699 - Fall 2020 

Best Sellers Juv Non-Fic 700-999 - Fall 2020 

Best Sellers Juvenile Fiction - Fall 2020 

Best Sellers Board Books - Fall 2020 

Best Sellers Easy Readers- Fall 2020

Best Sellers Indigenous Titles - Fall 2020

Best Sellers Hotlist- Fall 2020 

Best Seller Picture Books - Fall 2020

Best Seller Chapter Books - Fall 2020 

Best Sellers Juv & YA Audio -  Fall 2020

Adult Best Seller Fiction - Fall 2020 

Adult Best Seller Non-Fiction - Fall 2020 

Adult Solid Seller Fiction - Fall 2020 

Adult Solid Seller Non-Fiction - Fall 2020 

Adult Indigenous - Fall 2020 

Adult Continuing Series - Fall 2020 

To keep up to date with all of LSC’s latest offerings, please follow LSC on Facebook, on Instagram, on Twitter, our YouTube Channel, and now on Issuu. We also encourage you to subscribe to the weekly Green Memo, and we hope you check back each and every week on this site for our latest musings on the publishing world.

Yours, Fictionally

Please continue reading for important information regarding LSC's reopening.

Shipments will resume the week of June 22nd.
LSC’s management team are working hard to make the changes to the LSC workplace that will allow us to re-open with our employee’s and customer’s safety top of our priorities. Because LSC is more like a very large technical services department than simply a warehouse, the changes are somewhat complex.

In the week of June 22nd, shipments will be of material that was in house at LSC when we closed in March. However, we will quickly begin providing material published since then. Our processes prioritise bestsellers and other popular items. These will arrive – in quantity – starting the week of June 29th.

• We will ONLY send material when you have confirmed that your receiving is open.

Changes to shipments

All LSC shipments will be labelled to show the date that the box or bin was packed at LSC.

Selection Services
Our selection department is already back at work. Fall bestseller catalogues are in development and will be released ahead of schedule in June. Other fall selection resources are also in development and will be ready for ordering into the summer. Many new fall titles are already in the LSC database and can be ordered.

If your library has made changes to your budget or ARP profile, please let the LSC selection team know.

LSC selection staff are also available to assist with recommendations in any area that your staff might have fallen behind in.

Reducing touch points
The best way to get material to patrons safely AND quickly, is to reduce the touch points when it first arrives at the library. To this end, LSC is happy to do any finishing steps that the library would normally do before items are shelf ready. Just ask.

Stay safe
Michael Monahan, CEO