CODES

Barry Trott, Editor

CODES had a very successful ALA Midwinter. The annual RUSA Book and Media Awards highlighted the work of several CODES committees, including Notable Books, the Reading List, the Listening List, Outstanding Reference Sources, the Sophie Brody Medal, the Dartmouth Medal, the Zora Neale Hurston Award, and the Louis Shores Award. The event was well-attended, and offered CODES and RUSA members good food and drink, and the opportunity to recognize outstanding materials, reviewers, and promoters of library resources.

Following in the footsteps of other RUSA sections, the CODES Board is trialing two virtual Midwinter meetings, 2013 and 2014. The Board will assess the effectiveness of virtual Board meetings following Midwinter 2014.

In December, the CODES Readers Advisory (RA) Committee debuted an email forum, entitled CODES Conversations, modeled after the ALCTS email events. The first conversation, centered on issues of genre, gathered close to 250 participants for a free, three-day conversation. Discussions were lively, wide-ranging, and involved librarians from the United States and abroad. The event was very well received and the committee is now planning to offer CODES Conversations three times a year. The committee continues to present the RA Research and Trends Forum at annual. This year’s program will address issues of genre fiction and how the classification system of genre impacts the work of RA librarians.

This year, CODES welcomed University Press Books for School and Public Libraries as its newest committee. Nann Blaine Hilyard was appointed chair together with four RUSA CODES members; four returning members are providing continuity this year as the committee transitions to CODES. This committee is a long-time collaboration with the Association of American University Presses (AAUP), American Association of School Librarians (AASL), and a group of Public Library Reviewers (PLR). The work of the committee culminates in an annual publication and collection development tool titled University Press Books for Public and Secondary School Libraries. Members write reviews for the titles they think are outstanding and the Association compiles, prints, and distributes the publication, which is also available online. 2013 marks the 23rd edition of the publication. At Annual, the committee typically hosts a “Best of the Best” program.

CODES continues to welcome new members and volunteers for various CODES committees. Those interested in serving on a CODES committee should contact CODES vice chair/chair elect Asia Gross (asiagross@gmail.com) who will be making appointments.