Category Archives: Talking Books & Braille

Talking Books Wins Network Library of the Year Award

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The Indiana Talking Book and Braille Library was recently honored by the National Library Service as the 2015 Network Library of the Year for providing outstanding service to its patrons. Innovative services provided by the library in 2015 include the introduction of duplication on demand for books only available on BARD, Vision Expo, the summer reading program for children and young adults, the technology grant that was introduced in 2015, as well as a number of things happening behind the scenes to help improve service to patrons.

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Representatives from the library attended an awards luncheon at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. to accept the honor.

You can read the full press release about the award here.

 

Never judge a book by its cover

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But in honor of Valentine’s Day, at least let them entertain you.

Here is just a sampling of cover art that keeps the Talking Book staff entertained on a daily basis. There are hundreds more where these came from, all of which are available to borrow from the Indiana State Library!

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This blog post was written by Talking Books & Braille Supervisor Maggie Ansty. For more information about large print and talking books, please visit the TBBL website.

 

Explore the Large Print Collection of the Indiana State Library

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The Indiana State Library has over 16,000 large print titles as a part of the Talking Book and Braille Library collection; these books can be borrowed both by individual residents of Indiana and libraries in Indiana. Our collection consists of classic titles, current bestsellers, young adult novels, books that are being made into movies, as well as books in many more genres.

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New Grant Opportunity from the Indiana State Library Foundation

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The Indiana State Library Foundation in collaboration with the Indiana State Library’s Talking Book & Braille Library is seeking applicants for a new grant supporting talking book patrons with the purchase of assistive technology devices. The grants will provide monetary reimbursements in amounts ranging from $50 to $1,000 towards the purchase of an assistive technology device of the grant recipient’s choosing. These devices remove many barriers to education and employment for visually impaired individuals and may include: video magnifiers, optical character recognition systems, speech systems, etc.Assistive_Tech_Picture_web Continue reading →

Best Books of the Year – Borrow them at the Indiana State Library

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Come explore the Talking Book and Braille Library’s large print browsing collection at the Indiana State Library. Located on the second floor between the manuscript reading room and the Indiana Young Readers Center, books from the browsing collection can be checked out from anyone with an Indiana State Library card.

Some of the best and most popular books of the year can be found in this collection, including:

Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania
Erik Larsondead wake
On May 1‚ 1915‚ a luxury ocean liner as richly appointed as an English country house sailed out of New York‚ bound for Liverpool‚ carrying a record number of children and infants. The Lusitania was one of the era’s great transatlantic “Greyhounds” and her captain‚ William Thomas Turner‚ placed tremendous faith in the gentlemanly strictures of warfare that for a century had kept civilian ships safe from attack. He knew‚ moreover‚ that his ship — the fastest then in service — could outrun any threat. But as the Lusitania made its way toward Liverpool‚ an array of forces both grand and achingly small — hubris‚ a chance fog‚ a closely guarded secret‚ and more — all converged to produce one of the great disasters of history. Continue reading →

Talking Books Patrons and their Families Say “Thank You!”

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The Indiana Talking Book and Braille Library is a busy place to work. Each week we get hundreds of phone calls from patrons eagerly awaiting their next book while thousands of items move through the basement of the library on their way to or coming back from patrons. However, talking books is also an extremely rewarding place to work. Amongpatron comments image those hundreds of patron phone calls each week come many thanks for the service we provide; hidden in the occasional returned book is a note telling us just how much people love their talking books. Here is a collection of notes from patrons and their families telling us how much they appreciate what we do. Continue reading →

Teacher of the Year Kathy Nimmer Keynote Speaker at 2015 Indiana Vision Expo

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We are eagerly anticipating the presentation of Kathy Nimmer, the 2015 Indiana Vision Expo keynote speaker. Kathy is the 2015 Indiana Teacher of the Year and a National Teacher of the Year finalist.  In second grade, Kathy was diagnosed with a rare eye disease that caused her vision to slowly deteriorate over time. In spite of this, she wentNimmer_2015 INTOY_Tippecanoe School Corporation on to earn her BA, followed by a Masters degree in English from Purdue University in 1992. Shortly thereafter she embarked on her career as an English teacher. Kathy currently teaches at Harrision High School in West Lafayette.  She has published a book of poetry, Minutes in the Dark, Eternity in the Light, and an anthology featuring stories and poems by and about people with disabilities and their working dogs, entitled Two Plus Four Equals One. In 2014 Kathy received the Sagamore of the Wabash, the highest civilian honor in Indiana.

For more information on the 2015 Indiana Vision Expo, go to http://indianavisionexpo.library.in.gov/.

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This blog post was written by Laura Williams, Talking Book & Braille Library Librarian, Indiana State Library. For more information, contact the Indiana State Library at (317)232-3684 or “Ask-A-Librarian” at http://www.in.gov/library/ask.htm.

 

 

Basement of Braille

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The basement of the Indiana State Library is home to a very impressive collection of Braille books, which are loaned to patrons throughout the state of Indiana as part of the Talking Books program.
Basement Pic_webThe Indiana State Library has a long history of providing reading materials to the blind population of Indiana. Starting in 1905, the State Library began mailing embossed books to blind residents throughout the state. At the time, the library’s collection consisted of 300 volumes, 200 of which had been donated by blind people eager to establish a library for themselves in Indiana. At the time, the circulation staff of the library sent these embossed books to patrons just one day a month. Continue reading →

10 Years of the Indiana Vision Expo

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2015 marks the 10th year of the Indiana Vision Expo, sponsored by the Indiana State Library Foundation and organized by the Indiana Talking Book and Braille Library. Founded in 2006 by former Talking Book librarian Carole Rose, Vision Expo was designed to connect interested consumers with the resources available to support and promote independent living for individuals experiencing vision loss. The Expo has expanded from 15 vendors in its first year to over 30 in 2014. These vendors exhibit and sell a variety of products from screen-reading software and magnifiers to games and kitchen gadgets. Also participating are advocacy groups including the American Council for the Blind, the National Federation of the Blind, and the Blinded Veterans Association. Civic organizations including the Indianapolis Public Library and the Marion County Election Board provide information about services they offer to the blind and visually impaired community. Locally based Bosma Enterprises, which provides employment training and rehabilitation for the blind and visually impaired, has always had a strong presence at the Expo.

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Carl W. Henn, Jr. – Volunteer of the Year

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Recently, the Indiana State Library named Carl W. Henn, Jr. volunteer of the year for his work as a narrator for the Talking Book and Braille Library’s Indiana Voices program, a program which records audio books for blind and visually disabled citizens of the state.  Mr. Henn, who is 93, has been volunteering as a reader for both the Indiana State Library and the Indiana Historical Society for over 35 years.

During WWII, Mr. Henn served as member of General George S. Patton’s headquarters band. He worked for many years afterward in a variety of capacities at the Indianapolis Times newspapers, as well as for Eli Lilly & Company, the Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce, and Philharmonic Orchestra of Indianapolis.

While working as a volunteer for the Indiana Voices program, Mr. Henn has narrated approximately 20 audio books.  He enjoys reading both fiction titles as well as books that are highly informative in nature.  He also shared that his reason for being a part of the Indiana Voices program is to fulfill an obvious need by making use of his capabilities.
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To learn more about the Indiana Voices program, including volunteer opportunities, please visit http://www.in.gov/library/2399.htm.

This blog post was written by Margaret Ansty, Talking Book & Braille Library Supervisor, Indiana State Library. For more information, contact the Indiana State Library at (317)232-3684 or “Ask-A-Librarian” at http://www.in.gov/library/ask.htm.