Author Archives

I am Regina Libris.

I'm...a Bibliothecaria Rebellatrix ("librarian...because Book Wizard isn't an official job title," at Sharon Elementary School in Alleghany County, VA) wending a way through the seven ages whilst geeking out over Shakespeare & sundry other stuff. I am rather like Hermione Granger and have "conjured" floating candles in our school library. I’m an admirer of Eowyn and would place myself somewhere in the middle of the shieldmaiden-healer spectrum. I am inimitable, I am an original, and yet I am totally #TeamHamilton (see what I did there?). I'm a graduate of the Longwood University School Librarianship program and an avid reader and lifelong learner (and, apparently, Mistress of the Obvious as well). Any rumors regarding me having a crush on either Stephen Colbert or Chris Martin (or Benedict Cumberbatch or Andrew Scott) are completely...irrefutable. That being acknowledged, I am the loyal consort of an unsung prince of Poland and very proud mother of a tornadic, talented, and talkative wunderkind girl and a happyhopper jollyjumper bouncyboy who has a memory like an elephant.

• The Kids Are Alright: Highlighting Children’s Books with Characters Who Stand Up to Censorship

  By Lia Fisher Janosz on 03/22/2023 • ( 1 )

  

  It has been a rather long while since I’ve been in this space, since I’ve put pen to paper or fingertips to keyboard. You may be wondering: “Well, where have you been?” Since truly and completely answering such a query… Read More ›

• Keep Calm and Carry On: Creating Quiet, Cozy Spaces in Active Libraries

  By Lia Fisher Janosz on 01/06/2022 • ( 1 )

  

  “The world is quiet here.” ― Lemony Snicket Thankfully, school libraries in which librarians are constantly shushing their students are more or less a thing of the past. In fact, your humble author is definitely a “no shh” school librarian. School… Read More ›

• Looking Behind and Looking Ahead: A School Librarian’s Hurdles, Highlights, and Hopes

  By Lia Fisher Janosz on 12/08/2021 • ( 0 )

  

  “Where did you go to, if I may ask?” said Thorin to Gandalf as they rode along. “To look ahead,’ said he. “And what brought you back in the nick of time?” “Looking behind,” said he. –from The Hobbit, by… Read More ›

• Librarians, Let’s Confer about Who We Are

  By Lia Fisher Janosz on 11/02/2021 • ( 0 )

  

  This short volume of a post stands between bookends:  #AASL21, which just occurred last week, and the upcoming #VAASL conference, which takes place next week. The word “confer” has been around for over five hundred years; its first known use… Read More ›

• Stepping onto a Soapbox, Part Two: Challenges

  By Lia Fisher Janosz on 10/05/2021 • ( 3 )

  

  In my last post, an acknowledged two-parter, I promised that I’d be back up on my soapbox again in the near future. Well, the future is now. I have a confession to make: I fangirl Jacqueline Woodson. If you haven’t… Read More ›

• Stepping onto a Soapbox, Part One: Aesthetics

  By Lia Fisher Janosz on 08/31/2021 • ( 2 )

  

  When we mention anyone getting up on a soapbox, we generally mean that they are speaking or writing about something that evokes strong feelings within them. The term, which was first noted in print in 1907, was once a literal… Read More ›

• Listening to the Little Voices: Making Students Heard with Your Collection Choices

  By Lia Fisher Janosz on 06/30/2021 • ( 0 )

  

  …It’s just a little voice and if you’re listening Sometimes a little voice Can say the biggest thing… –Sara Bareilles One of the first things that I realized when I became a school librarian and commenced my school librarianship studies… Read More ›

• Consulting the Library’s Crystal Ball: Planning Ahead for the Coming Fall

  By Lia Fisher Janosz on 06/03/2021 • ( 0 )

  

  If we’ve learned anything from the past year, it’s that the poet Robert Burns was right: the best-laid plans often DO go awry.  We’ve all had to pivot quite a bit, think on our feet, and be extraordinarily flexible. Although… Read More ›

• News, Be My Muse, and What Do You Have to Lose? A Librarian’s Potpourri Post

  By Lia Fisher Janosz on 05/13/2021 • ( 1 )

  

  Friends, colleagues, librarians, lend me your ears! My writing usually takes a rather reflective bent. However, this go ‘round, my intents and purposes are of a different nature, and are threefold. First of all, I have an update and some… Read More ›

• You Have Always Been My Safe Home: The School Library

  By Lia Fisher Janosz on 04/07/2021 • ( 2 )

  

  “The library is my safe harbor since I dare not go into the cafeteria alone, a whale surrounded by starving sharks.” — Lisa Fipps, Starfish This month being April, I had a veritable menagerie of subjects swirling about in my… Read More ›