MLC Reads: July 17, 2015

We really enjoy sharing the books that we, the staff at the Mississippi Library Commission have been reading with you, our faithful followers.

Delta Dogs

Photography by Maude Schuyler Clay

Introduction by Brad Watson

Essay by Beth Ann Fennelly

Afterword by Maude Schuyler Clay

five stars

Maude Schuyler Clay delivers a solid punch with Delta Dogs, a book of photographs of, what else... dogs in the Mississippi Delta. Calling them the "indigenous canine presence", she captures the souls of these dogs in fields and parking lots, under and beside houses, and every other imaginable place. Brad Watson provides a lovely introduction wherein he discusses his love of dogs and points out a Clay dog with a strong resemblance to Junot Diaz. Beth Ann Fennelly has also contributed a short essay that brings home the point that, though dogs are featured, it is the Delta in its glory that is reflected in this gorgeous volume.

The Cheese Belongs to You

written by Alexis Deacon

illustrated by Viviane Schwarz

four stars

To whom does the cheese really belong? Alexis Deacon takes picture book readers on fun-filled journey of all the rats who could own a single block of cheese. The artwork is deliciously creepy; the illustrations depict big, quick, strong, scary, hairy, dirt rats just as they should be. The tension builds as each successive rat comes forward to fight for his or her chance at the cheese and the book ends on a highly satisfactory note. Don't miss this Magnolia Award nominee for 2016!

The Red Tent

written by Anita Diamant

five stars

This book gives Dinah, the barely mentioned daughter of Joseph and Leah from the book of Genesis, her very own voice. It also shows how very rich, joyful, difficult, and tragic the lives of women in the third millennium B.C.E. could be. By using factual cultural details from the ancient Near East, Diamante has allowed readers to gain a true impression of how women lived 5,000 years ago.

The Divine

written by Boaz Lavie

illustrated by Asaf Hanuka and Tomer Hanuka

four stars

The Divine portrays a world of ancient magic in a modern warfare setting. It is based on the photo taken by Apichart Weerawong of two twelve-year-old twins, Johnny and Luther Htoo. The plot explores the legend surrounding the twins' having magical powers. We thought this was a great graphic novel with amazing illustrations. Recommended to anyone with an interest in historical fantasy.

Darkness Brutal

written by Rachel A. Marks

four stars

Darkness Brutal is an imaginative urban fantasy that follows the story of a teenage boy, Aiden, who is trying to save his sister, Ava. Throughout the novel, Aiden tries to protect Ava from his mother's past mistakes. As Ava's twelfth birthday approaches, Aiden must rely on help from his new friends to find his inner powers. Fans of the TV show Supernatural will love this YA book.

We'll have reviews next week of these books that we're reading now:

• Armada written by Ernest Cline
• How to Train a Train written by Jason Carter Eaton and illustrated by John Rocco
• ODY-C #1 written by Matt Fraction and illustrated by Christian Ward
• Life by Committee written by Corey Ann Haydu
• A Chosen Exile: A History of Racial Passing in American Life written by Allyson Hobbs

Until then, happy reading!

Eudora, Eudora!

Genealogy questions are among the many requests we receive here at the Mississippi Library Commission.  We help patrons look for family links, military records, or anything else we can help them to find using Ancestry Library Edition, Heritage Quest, or books and records in our Mississippi Reference Collection.  It was a delight when I happened across a book titled Eudora while searching through Mississippi documents.  Eudora, edited and selected by Patti Carr Black, is like a family album spanning back to Eudora Welty’s great grandparents on both her paternal (Welty) side and maternal (Andrews) side.  We often see pictures of notable, historical figures during their “prime” years of being famous, and we rarely get a peek of their family history.  Here are a few photos for you to enjoy!  Feel free to say, “Aww!”



"Mother's father, Edward Raboteau Andrews, was called Ned.  he was the first in his family to leave Virginia and move to West Virginia, where he practiced law and met his wife, Eudora Carden [her namesake]" (Eudora 3).

"First visit to Ohio, rocking with Grandpa Jefferson Welty" (Eudora 14).

Eudora Welty and her father, Christian Webb Welty (Eudora 19).

"I was crazy about watches; all children are, I guess" (Eudora 16).

We have many titles about Eudora Welty, and by Eudora Welty.  Do you have questions about her?  Let us know!  Or maybe this post stirs up old memories, inspiring you to fill in the gaps in your own family history!  We would love to help!

Eudora. Ed. Patti Carr Black. Jackson, MS: Mississippi Department of Archives and History, 1984. Print.

A Picture Can Lead to One Thousand Words

Lillie Mae Walkup 1904

A few days ago, one of our Twitter followers asked if we could track down people.  Why, of course we can! Well, we can sure try. The young lady in question is a Miss L. M. Walkup from Florida. After seeing her in a class graduation picture--the only female to graduate from the Atlanta College of Pharmacy in 1904--our patron's curiosity was peaked. Mine was, too. How much is it possible to learn about someone from 100 years ago? Someone, that is, to whom my patron and I have no connection and therefore no way to gain any useful family anecdotes? Peruse the following and watch a snapshot form, all from census, military, and death records.

Pre-1885

Miss L. M. Walkup's father was Henry C. Walkup. He was born in December of 1842. When he was 17, in May of 1861, he enlisted in Company B of the North Carolina 26th Infantry Regiment. Mr. Henry would've seen action in North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, and most horrifically, Pennsylvania. After seeing the atrocities of war at Gettysburg, Private Walkup was mustered out in December of 1863 due to an injury.

In the 1870 census, Henry is living in Sharon, Mecklenburg County, North Carolina with his wife Nannie, their five month old son, Robert, and their servant, Nancy Johnson. Henry has already become Dr. Walkup. (I suppose he was busy studying between 1863 and 1870.)

By 1880, Henry and Nannie have moved to Pineville in Mecklenburg County. Robert is no longer with the family (poor baby), but there are three other little boys and a girl all under the age of ten. Luckily, Henry's mother Dorcas and unmarried sister Julia are living with them. One hopes they helped Nannie with the children!

1885

Little Miss Lillie Mae Walkup first appears with her twin sister Rosa L. on the Florida State Census in 1885. They are three years old and the youngest in a still growing family then consisting of their father the physician, their mother, and their sister and four brothers. The family lived in the small community of McIntosh, located south of Gainesville on Orange Lake. The family moved to there from North Carolina between 1880 and 1882.

At some point between 1888 and 1893, Mrs. Nannie T. Walkup went to her great reward. Her husband, Dr. Henry C. Walkup, remarried in 1893 to a woman named Ida H. (With absolutely no reason other than the fact that I like the name, I have decided "H" stands for "Hortense." What do you think?)

1900

By the 1900 U.S. Census, sixteen-year-olds Lillie Mae and her twin Rosa were the oldest children in the household. Their younger siblings, Adam and Mary, went to school with them. Their father Henry worked as a druggist and physician and their step-mother Ida took care of the family. Miss Lillie Mae attended Atlanta College Pharmacy for two years and graduated in 1904. She was the class secretary and treasurer. After this, she returned to her family in McIntosh, Florida. Unfortunately, this was the last time I ran across her twin sister. (She has become my new obsession; I wonder what happened to her.)

1910

By 1910, Lillie Mae's father Henry is presumably deceased. Her step-mother is living off her "own income" but several of her step-children are living with her. Lillie is a practicing druggist and her brother Adam is a physician. (Chips off the old block!) John and Samuel are merchants at a general store. Mary lives with them, too, but is unemployed.

1920

By 1920, brother Samuel has left home, married, and started his own family. (They still live in McIntosh, though.) John is married and living in North Carolina; he runs a shoe store. Lillie and Adam are still practicing in their respective chosen fields and Mary is training to be a nurse. These three youngest "children" still live at home with Momma. According to draft registration cards, Samuel had blue eyes, black hair, and was of medium build and height. I wonder if they all had the same coloring.

1930

By 1930, John has moved back to McIntosh with his wife Lucy. They have four children. Samuel still lives there with his wife Elizabeth and their four children. Adam was married in 1921 to a woman from Kentucky named Edna. He works as a physician on the railroad and also does some private practice. The couple lives in St. Augustine, St. John's County, Florida and has no children. Adam is also listed as a WWI veteran. (Samuel and John did not serve. I suppose they were too old and/or had too many children.)

The two unmarried sisters, Mary and Lillie Mae have moved to (guess where) St. Augustine, Florida!  Mary is an RN on private duty and Lillie Mae is a pharmacist at a retail drug store. They share a home on the same street as their brother. Step-Momma Walkup passed away in 1922 in St. John's County. It seems as if she must have moved there to be with her step-children.

Beyond 1930

Lillie Mae and Mary live together until at least 1934, according to city directories. By 1945, Lillie Mae has moved to Daytona Beach in Volusia County and lives alone. She passed away in 1952, when she was about 69 years old.

I agree with our patron--Lillie Mae Walkup was a fascinating individual. In 1910, less than 25% of women were "gainfully employed." Females only made up about 5% of the professional work force in Florida then. More than 85% of those professional women in 1910 were musicians, music teachers, school teachers, and trained nurses. In that day and age, she decided to enter a profession that was nearly absent of women. She was obviously very close to her family. I wonder how much her father's experiences in the Civil War influenced his children's career goals. She must have enjoyed her profession, too. She was a pharmacist for at least thirty years. That's some serious dedication!

I hope you enjoyed learning what you can discover in easily accessible historical documents. Remember, the Mississippi Library Commission offers free access to Ancestry Library Edition in the building. Another great goodie? Once you have applied for and received your MLC library card, you are eligible to receive access to our subscription to Heritage Quest for free!


www.ancestry.com

Gobble! Gobble!

The Mississippi Library Commission will be closed Thursday, November 25 and Friday, November 26 for the Thanksgiving holiday. We will be busy doing more of this:

We will reopen Monday, November 29. Have a fantastic Thanksgiving!

Albania! Albania! You Border On The Adriatic...

Yesterday, my sister mentioned that it was a holiday in Albania. You might be wondering what that has to do with the price of beans, or anything else slightly relevant, but I really enjoy thinking about holidays, even those in which I don't get to participate!

{Side note} Yes, the sister has become quite the world traveler and has spent the last several months soaking up Albanian life and culture. She's been having a fabulous time over in the Balkans. Aside from occasional oddities, which I admit sound strange to my purely Western ears, Albania also has some remarkable offerings. Between the startling discoveries of sworn virgins and ongoing blood feuds, the country also boasts the town of Butrint. This ancient city is on UNESCO's World Heritage List and, for you literati, yes--Virgil mentioned it in the Aeneid (albaniantourism.com.) Mother Theresa was an Albanian and Ismail Kadare was the winner of the inaugural Man Booker International Prize. One last plug? Lonely Planet named Albania as their number one country to visit in 2011. I mean, you wouldn't want to miss this, would you?

 

Or this?

{End Side Note}

It turns out that Albanians, whose country is 70% Muslim, were celebrating Eid ul Adha (Festival of Sacrifice.) This is one of the most important holy days of the year for Muslims. "It is a serious occasion, symbolizing the submission of each individual Muslim, and the renewal of total commitment to Allah" (credoreference.) For those of you who remember your Bible, this holy festival commemorates when Ibrahim (Abraham) was willing to sacrifice his son. I was always completely flabbergasted that Abraham was willing to do that, and this celebration underscores the pure devotion he showed to following God's will. Thankfully, a ram appeared and with God's instructions, Abraham killed it instead. Now, Muslims sacrifice a sheep (or other appropriate animal) which is called a qurban in remembrance of this act (setimes.com.) Interestingly, the meat is then apportioned into thirds, with part going to the family, part going to friends, and part going to the poor (about.com.) It would sure help the homeless shelters out if we all gave them 1/3 of our turkeys next week!
I hope you had an Eid Saeed (Happy Eid!) and be sure not to get mixed up in any blood feuds.
http://www.albaniantourism.com/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/islam/holydays/eiduladha.shtml
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/al.html
http://www.credoreference.com/entry/collinsislam/what_muslims_do
http://islam.about.com/od/hajj/a/adha.htm
http://www.setimes.com/cocoon/setimes/xhtml/en_GB/features/setimes/features/2010/11/17/feature-02

The Importance Of Being A Dude

This blog post originally appeared 7/24/2008.

While perusing the pages of The New York Public Library Desk Reference, 3rd Edition, I looked at the bottom of the page containing common crossword puzzle words and saw the following fabulous fact:

The word dude was coined by Oscar Wilde and his friends. It is a combination of the words duds and attitude.

Oscar is the original dude. He had an immeasurable amount of style; this photo from 1882 captures him in his favorite coat. Talk about strutting his stuff! Tres chic!

Oscar was dude-a-rific not only for concocting new words, but also for his ready wit. Here are a few Wilde quotes to get you through the day:

The good ended happily and the bad unhappily. That is what fiction means.

A little sincerity is a dangerous thing, and a great deal of it is absolutely fatal.

I can resist everything except temptation.

A thing is not necessarily true because a man dies for it.

Appearance blinds, whereas words reveal.

Definitely not a dude who would ever misplace his car!

The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations. Ed. Elizabeth Knowles. Oxford University Press, 2004.
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Oscar_Wilde_3g07095u.jpg

Oh, Mother, Look--A Lady Angel.

Elisabeth found this awesome ad while looking through some microfilm last week. I wish the quality were better, but that’s just because I’ve become spoiled by the 21st century. But could the 21st century bring us this?



Only in a John Waters movie!

The text is smallish, so here are the highlights:


Return Sensational Match
You Must See Horror Face
Tonight at 8:30 PM
City Auditorium – Jackson, MS
Out of This World Comes the Only One Alive

LADY ANGEL
WORLD’S UGLIEST GIRL WRESTLER

The Lady Angel, Only One Alive
THE ONLY GIRL BALD-HEAD COMING FROM EUROPE
THE HORROR-FACE—SHE MAKES WOMEN FAINT,
CHILDREN CRY, OH MOTHER LOOK—A LADY ANGEL

I’m going to have to do some research and come back with a longer post about the Lady Angel, but a quick search revealed this photo is available on eBay:

A Room with a View.

We have been busy this week, folks, so very busy, but unfortunately we've lagged a little on the interesting nuggets of information front. Oh, we found some information, all right, but unless you are into statistics and county data and communication pla.......zzzzz---wha? Where am I?


Anyway, I took this picture this morning from the reference desk; thought you might want to see the awesome view the reference staff get to gaze at while we work!