It seems like we use technology in some way to help us with almost any task or chore we may have. Technology makes things easier, more convenient, and more efficient… when it works. We all know that feeling of dread when our computers freeze, our smart phones are not so smart, or the car engine light comes on. It is not fun, and, unfortunately, the library is not immune to technology hiccups.
Just this week, Shreve Memorial Library updated the authentication method for one of our most popular digital services – Overdrive and Libby. While this update provides a more secure connection to the service and does a better job of protecting user data, it was not without a technological hiccup or two. Most notably, the update requires all users to verify their library PIN numbers to gain access to both Overdrive and Libby, and that is where the fun began. Many users could not remember their PIN numbers, their PIN numbers could not be validated, or they found that their library privileges had expired. While a minor, yet frustrating, inconvenience, the update affected a large number of patrons’ ability to access the online collections through Libby and Overdrive. Luckily, Shreve Memorial Library staff members worked diligently to respond to help requests, retrieve and validate library PIN numbers, and get the patrons back online as quickly as possible.
This is just one example of how Shreve Memorial Library and its staff help with technological woes. Library staff members also assist patrons with accessing the internet, understanding their smart devices, sending a fax, making copies, and navigating the library’s many digital resources daily. Not sure how to use that new Kindle you got last Christmas? Bring it to the library, and our staff will help you learn to work the device. Got a new smart phone and cannot seem to get the library’s SML To Go app to work? Call our Manager of Social Media and Digital Services, and he will be happy to walk you through how to use the app. Did you recently enroll in classes, but need a refresher on how to use Microsoft Word, PowerPoint or Excel? Join a computer class free of charge at the library. Have a quick research question and you cannot seem to find the answer online? Click the green “Ask a Question” tab on the Shreve Memorial Library homepage to text a librarian!
Whatever your technological woe may be, Shreve Memorial Library is here to help and make it a little easier for you to dream, discover, do.
What’s New at the Library
Zero Option by Peter N. Kirsanow (fiction)
November 1943. Stalin is pressing the Allies to open a second front in Europe in order to ease the pressure on the bloody grinding war in the East. Roosevelt and Churchill agree to meet the Soviet premier in Tehran. Wild Bill Donovan, the charismatic leader of the OSS, has intelligence that someone is planning to assassinate either or both of the Western leaders at the conference. He sends his best agent, Dick Canidy, to thwart the plan, but how can he do that when he doesn’t even know if the killer is a Nazi or an Ally?
The Fetishist: A Novel by Katherine Min (fiction)
In this hilariously savage, poignant novel by acclaimed author Katherine Min, a grieving daughter’s revenge on the man who caused her mother’s death sets off a series of unexpected reckonings. On a cold, gloomy night, twenty-three-year-old Kyoko stands in the rain with a knife in her hoodie’s pocket. Her target is Daniel, who seduced Kyoko’s mother then callously dropped her, leading to her death. But tonight, there will be repercussions. Following the unsuspecting Daniel home, Kyoko manages to get a rash kidnapping plot of the ground… and then nothing goes as planned. The Fetishist is the story of three people – Kyoko, a Japanese American punk-rock singer full of rage and grief; Daniel, a philandering violinist forced to confront the wreckage of his past; and Alma, the love of Daniel’s life, a Korean American cello prodigy long adored for her beauty, passion, and talent, but who spends her final days examining if she was ever, truly, loved. An exuberant, provocative story that confronts race, complicity, visibility, and ideals of femininity, The Fetishist was written before the celebrated author’s untimely death in 2019. Startlingly prescient, as wise and powerful as it is utterly delightful, this novel cements Katherine Min’s legacy as a writer with a singular voice for our times.
Cajun By Blood: A Thibodaux Family Story by Celeste LeBlanc Norris (non-fiction)
A secret marriage. A prisoner of war. A missing finger. Children lost at sea. Such could be the plot of a mystery thriller, but it’s a glance inside the illustrious Thibodaux family memoir. In 1654, young Pierre Thibodeau waved goodbye to his family as he sailed away from war-torn France toward the promise of another country. In exchange for the Transatlantic crossing, he would commit to years of grueling labor. This story begins as he stepped onto the Canadian shore of Acadie, and brings to life his descendants who, though separated in Le Grand Dérangement, were united joyfully on Louisiana bayous. Observe the daily life of contemporaries Wallace and Mathilde Bourgeois Thibodaux who raised their large Catholic family on a country farm on Bayou Blue with Cajun Joie de Vivre and the collective DNA of generations past.
About Shreve Memorial Library
Shreve Memorial Library transforms Caddo Parish lives with resources, services and support to create a better world by focusing on developing young readers, sparking imaginations, encouraging curiosity, fostering connection, and providing comfortable places. Shreve Memorial Library’s 21-branch system is maintained by a parish-wide property tax millage to support the informational, educational and recreational needs of its constituents. For more information, visit www.shreve-lib.org, and like, follow and subscribe on social media channels including Facebook, Instagram, X, TikTok, Pinterest and YouTube. Dream, discover, do – Shreve Memorial Library and you!