A Women's Perspective on Local History

Link to October 16 Wausau Daily Herald article, "Daughter's Book explores Wausau VIPs from unique angle".

Excerpt:
A book designed to raise money for the Marathon County Historical Society gives a different
perspective to the area's past.

"The Daughter's Book" is a series of essays and photographs from daughters of families who have been instrumental in the development of central Wisconsin.

Most histories that look at the late 19th century and early 20th century focus on businessmen and movers and shakers. It's no coincidence that often those histories were written by men.

"The Daughter's Book" took a different route. Nancy Frawley, 81, of Wausau, a longtime member of the Marathon Historical Society's Board of Directors, developed the book's premise as a way to raise money for the restoration of the Yawkey House.

Please note: The only copy of the book is available for perusal at the Marathon Counth Historical Society.

Delay in Waukesha library expansion likely

Link to October 13 JSOnline post.

Excerpt:
A $22 million expansion of Waukesha County's main library likely will be put on hold to take pressure off the city's growing debt, Jane Ameel, director of the Waukesha Public Library, said Monday.

Plans had called for expanding the downtown library to 94,000 square feet over two phases by 2014. The expansion proposal is on the long-range borrowing plan for capital improvements.

Link to Frye Gillan Molinaro webpage describing Waukesha's recent 5,000 square foot expansion.

To Charge or Not to Charge

Link to October 14 Techdirt post, "Dear Newspapers: Locking Up Archives Shrinks Your Business".

Excerpt:
For many years, the NY Times tried locking up its archives and charging to read stories, but eventually did the math and realized it made a lot more sense to put all its archives online for free, and make money off the ads. Since removing the barriers, the NY Times has seen its traffic spike significantly, and its archives have become a significant portion of the overall site's traffic.

Mary Shacklett on Medical Self-Help Websites

Link to October 14 Internet Evolution post, "Do Medical Self-Help Websites Really Help?"

Summary: So although there are cyberchondriacs and individuals using non-credible medical Websites, the consensus is that the majority of us are getting beneficial results from our medical self-help searches that we can use to manage our own health and to take to our doctor appointments.

Paging Merriam-Webster! Another citation for "cyberchondria-"

But Will It Circ?

Link to October 14 boingboing post, "US Constitution in graphic novel form".

"Beacon Street Girls" Series for 'Tweens

Link to October 13 New York Times article, "Healthful Messages, Wrapped in Fiction".

Excerpt:
Some of the most popular books for teenage girls are littered with troubling messages. Novels like “Clique,” “Gossip Girl” and “A-List” feature high school girls who obsess about fashion, status and casual sex.

[Tidbit about the author of the "A-list" series: Zoey Dean's A-List is a national bestselling series. She divides her time between Beverly Hills and several small islands in the Caribbean. She is currently working on her next juicy A-List novel, at an undisclosed location. Oy vey!! I love it when people really plug themselves into reality.]

But a new series of books intended for 9- to 13-year-old girls goes beyond those spoiled stereotypes. The series, Beacon Street Girls, written under the pseudonym Annie Bryant, focuses on real-life issues like popularity, weight problems, alcohol and divorce.

The stories, which revolve around five middle-school girls in Brookline, Mass., are shaped by leading experts in adolescent development, with the goal of helping girls build self-esteem and coping skills. But can expert health advice wrapped up as fiction really make a difference for the books’ young readers? A surprising new study suggests that for some girls, it can.