Advertise on podcast: Meet Me In The Stacks

Come along for a strange ride with Nathan as he takes you down an archive.org rabbit hole.  Yes, this episode is as random as the day in the life of a librarian.  Also as random as the hobbies, both past and present, of a librarian. 

Anthony reads the entirety of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens to you, dear listener!  The staves will be released one per day until the entirety of the novella is revealed. 

Anthony reads the entirety of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens to you, dear listener!  The staves will be released one per day until the entirety of the novella is revealed. 

Anthony reads the entirety of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens to you, dear listener!  The staves will be released one per day until the entirety of the novella is revealed. 

Anthony reads the entirety of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens to you, dear listener!  The staves will be released one per day until the entirety of the novella is revealed. 

Anthony reads the entirety of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens to you, dear listener!  The staves will be released one per day until the entirety of the novella is revealed. 

A thoughtful and thought provoking conversation between writers Marilyn Bowering, Kate Braid, and Carol Matthews about Marilyn's new work More Richly in Earth: A Poet's Search for Mary MacLeod (2024).  Mary MacLeod is an intriguing figure who is important in the Gaelic world in Canada, as in Scotland  She was widely honoured, especially by singers and poets; yet she was also marginalised, exiled, and even denigrated as a witch.  Listen in to find out more.  

Spooky stories and terrifying old poetry read to you by Anthony, who is very boo-kish indeed.  First up is The Haunted Dock by Clara Le Grand, which was a Spooky Scribbles Writing Contest winner last season.  Spooky Scribbles is a writing contest sponsored by the Library and the Comox Valley Lifelong Learning Center for young writers. Second is Til Death Do Us Part by Tim Maleeny, because long term relationships can be horrifying.  And third is The Raven  by Homer Simpson, ummm.... I mean Edgar Allan Poe. 

This episode is a good egg for sure.  Darby talks with Gabriola Island blogger and educator Claire from Bitchin' Chickens about all sorts of chicken topics.  Then Nathan rules the roost at chicken trivia.  There's definitely nobody here but us chickens today! Episode links: Bitchin' Chickens blog and Facebook page Guinness World Record holding chicken training blog post and Dr. Emily Carrington's The Thinking Chicken YouTube channel Rooster Alllies Facebook group and Roovolution YouTube channel And books you'll be interested in if you liked the episode: Let's All Keep Chickens! by Dalia Monterroso Under the Henfluence: inside the world of backyard chickens and the people who love them by Tove Danovich The Woefield Poultry Collective by Susan Juby Remember to tell your peeps about the show!

Nathan talks with Vancouver Island-based Amanda Swinimer all about seaweed.  She has a BSc. that involved taking an algae physiology couse and harvests seaweed to eat.  She also has written The Science and Sprit of Seaweed for adults and The Science and Superpowers of Seaweed for kids.  You can find them here in the library. Pro tip from Darby: don't brandish bull kelp as a whip unless you are prepared to whip yourself in the butt (or face!) accidentally. 

It's a Sea & Cedar Storytime episode!  Nathan gets piratey to set some beach vibes.  Enjoy work from the Winter, 2024 edition of Sea & Cedar with local writers. Featured writers:  Camilla Arnold, Cate Sandilands, Jonathan Moskaluk, Marlene Dean, Mary Alissa, Erica Keen, Petra Chambers, Richard Youds, Shelley Stein-Wotten, T.J. Radcliffe You can READ this issue of Sea & Cedar online or in print.  You can also SUBMIT your own work here.

Was it Really Murder?  Big crime comes to a town too small to merit even that title in Murder Rides a Gale Force Wind. Beloved West Coast author and artist Yvonne Maximchuck is best known for her slices of BC marine life written with friend Billy Proctor, but has turned her hand to writing a murder mystery!  Yvonne reads from the book to whet your appetite and then chats with Darby. Check out more about her writing and art, including purchasing her books at her website: https://www.yvonnemaximchuk.com/ You can borrow some of her books from the library here.

Have you always wondered what SOGI stands for but didn't want to ask the angry people with the signs by the side of the road?  Nathan thinks maybe you have.  He conducts an investigation with the help of Scout from SOGI 1, 2, 3. Find some SOGI-inclusive books for children and teens here.

Join us in our first sponsored episode! Buster and Barnfather's Children's Cigarettes are the perfect pairing for this educational look at Vancouver Island University's Canadian Letters & Images Project with Dr. Stephen Davies.  See the project here at https://www.canadianletters.ca including some famous Canadian guest readers! You can help the project financially by donating through the VIU Foundation, which is a tax-deductible donation.  If you have wartime letters, postcards, etc. you can lend them to the project as per the directions here.

Nathan gets a bit down/realistic about climate change with some special guests.  First he talks to Teegan Walshe from Fridays for the Future in Qualicum, which is an ongoing school strike for climate justice.  (Back in Nathan and Darby's day, people skipped school to smoke pot or buy candy.) Second, he talks with Lucy Grainger of FireSmart BC.  You can learn more, including the free fire assessment mentioned, at FireSmartBC.ca.   Books on the topic of Climate Optimism selected by our Librarians can be found here. Books mentioned by Teegan: The New Climate War by Michael E. Mann The Future We Choose by Christiana Figueres Saving Us by Katherine Hayhoe