Some fun book-related links from the web this week include…

Poets “reading” their works on youtube, slightly weird, slightly addictive:

Book sculptures and oddities [via librarian.net]:

And, the New York Times discusses books that exist only within other books.

UW Libraries added a digital subscription to the Value Line Investment Survey this summer. You may now check the weekly investment information from the comfort of home rather than making a trip in to check the binder.

You can find Value Line at www-lib.uwyo.edu (don’t forget to log in through Off-campus Access first!) under Articles & Databases.

The kind folks in Interlibrary Loan are moving their office to its permanent location on Wednesday July 15th. They will be on the 2nd floor of the old Coe Library, in Room 237 (formerly the electronic classroom). Stop by and say hello to the staff and ask them any Request It questions you might have. You’ll probably also want to take a peek at the renovations on level 2!

Wyoming mystery author Craig Johnson will read at the Albany County Public Library this week.

Craig Johnson, author of the Sheriff Walt Longmire novels, will be reading from his new book, “The Dark Horse” and signing copies at the Albany County Public Library in Laramie, WY, on July 8 from 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the browsing area. Chickering is donating a portion of the sales to the Albany County Public Library. Cash and checks only, please. “The Dark Horse” hardcover $26.45; other Craig Johnson paperback books, $8.47.

“The Dark Horse” deals with self-confessed murderer who might not be guilty. As usual, plot turns keep the reader guessing. Walt Longmire, sheriff of Absaraka County, his family, friends, and co-workers return in the fifth novel in the series that describes the challenges of law enforcement and life in north-central Wyoming.

Johnson lives in Ucross, Wyoming. Several of his books have had starred reviews in Kirkus, Publishers’ Weekly, and Booklist. The Independent Booksellers Association he Independent Mystery Booksellers Association have highlighted his novels. Johnson’s awards include the Wyoming Historical Society’s Fiction Book of the Year and the Tony Hillerman Mystery Short Story Award. He has been a finalist for DILYS Award and the Mountains & Plains Bookseller’s Association’s Book of the Year,

For more information on the book signing or to request accommodation, contact Marjorie Daley, ACPL Outreach Coordinator, at 307-721-2580 ext 5456 or mdaley@will.state.wy.us.

We all remember Ben Franklin for his acts as a patriot and Founding Father. But did you know that on July 1, 1731, he started the first circulating library?

It was on this day in 1731 that Ben Franklin founded the first circulating library, a forerunner to the now ubiquitous free public library. He started it as a way to help settle intellectual arguments among his group of Philadelphia friends, the Junto, a group of civic-minded individuals gathered together to discuss the important issues of their day.

Each of the 50 charter members bought an initial share into the company (40 shillings), which helped fund the buying of books, and then paid a smaller yearly fee (10 shillings) that went to buying more books and maintaining the library. In exchange, the members could borrow any of the books. Donations of books were gladly accepted.

They called their charter the Library Company of Philadelphia, and the next year, Franklin hired America’s first librarian, Louis Timothee. At first, the books were stored at the librarian’s house, but by the end of the decade, they were moved to the Pennsylvania State House, which is now known as Independence Hall.

Text from the Writer’s Almanac, improved with links from librarian.net.