New E-Books at LearningExpressLibrary

In addition to test preparation materials, our LearningExpress database now provides searchable E-books–online study guides and test-preparation books to help you prepare for high-stakes tests. Explore this collection by going to LearningExpressLibrary (LearnATest) ( Home Access In Library Access ). You will need to create a username and password to log in. After logging in, choose “E-books” from the subject categories.

Home access for this database is available only to Newton residents. Note: Because of the way LearningExpress configures access to their database, Newton residents whose library card barcode begins with a prefix other than 21323 will not have access to the LearningExpress database. As a Newton resident, if you would like to use this database, exchange your library card for a card with the 21323 Newton prefix at the Circulation desk. Please tell the Circulation staff you need a Newton card because you’d like access to LearningExpress.

Celebrating Martin Luther King and Black History Month

NewsBank’s Special Report focusing on Martin Luther King and Black History Month is now available, including articles, images, links to websites, and suggested search terms. Access the report here, or from our link to online NewsBank Newspapers ( Home Access In Library Access ), including the Boston Globe, Boston Herald, and New York Times.

Celebrate Benjamin Franklin’s 300th Birthday

Benjamin Franklin was born in Boston on January 17, 1706. Use clusty.com’s new Benjamin Franklin web portal to find out more: a comprehensive, one-stop site that includes carefully curated educational resources, Franklin’s own writings and proverbs, and tens of thousands of websites scattered throughout cyberspace.

Evaluate health, wellness, and nutrition products

Does your multivitamin or nutrition bar really contain what it says it does? What’s echinacea and which products are best? The ConsumerLab database can help! ConsumerLab.com provides comprehensive information about vitamin, herbal and other supplements, and nutritional products. The site includes ConsumerLab.com’s independent product evaluations, lists of quality-approved brands, product recalls, and safety warnings. A science-based encyclopedia of natural products is also provided, including a drug-interaction database. ConsumerLab.com is not affiliated with manufacturers of health and nutrition products, and test samples used in product reviews are purchased independently.

This resource is available only in the library.

Maps, Pamphlets & Pictures

Planning a trip? The library has files full of state, country and regional maps you can borrow, as well as bicycle maps. Next to these are our pamphlet files, with booklets and other information on over 1000 topics. Need an illustration? Our picture files contain photos and illustrations of people, places, art, and a wide variety of other subjects. See the black notebooks on top of the file cabinets for lists of pamphlet and picture categories.

You can find these items in the large black file cabinets on the first floor, in the area near the rear stairs and rear elevator.

All the maps, pamphlets, and pictures may be checked out for 3 weeks. Circulation staff will put them in an envelope for you to take home.

The Year in Review, 2005

What were the big stories of 2005? See NewsBank’s new Special Report, “The Year in Review – 2005,” a collection comprised of 2005’s top stories on culture, politics, science, business, sports, etc. Includes Hurricane Katrina, the White Sox, Pope Benedict XVI, the Bird Flu and other headlines. Also included are background articles, pictures of major events and people, and suggested search terms to research stories from 2005.

Go to ” NewsBank Newspapers” (Home Access In Library Access), and choose Special Reports/The Year in Review – 2005.

Book displays galore!

Need something new to read? The Library creates many book displays which change regularly. Fiction and Non-Fiction themes (as well as a rack of booklists) are displayed near the Fiction section on the second floor, with a Young Adult display nearby. Aisles near the 940s and 360s display more non-fiction, while foreign languages are showcased at the rear of the second floor near the foreign language section. Magazine suggestions can be found on the display rack in the first floor Periodicals reading area. Still more displays are located in the cases in the first floor lobby, and in the third floor audiovisual area. All of these books, periodicals and audiovisual materials may be removed from display and checked out.

And if you’re visiting the second floor, don’t forget our Readers’ Advisory table behind the Young Adult Reference desk. On this table are binders full of booklists on various topics, and a large array of “what-to-read-next” books covering various genres. Browse these, and you’ll find plenty of ideas on everything from a good mystery to a read-alike for a book you’ve just read.

Historical weather data

Do you want to know what the weather was like on a particular day, in a specific city? Use our new online resource for weather data, from NOAA Satellites and Information. This source has local climatalogical data–temperature, precipitation, wind, and more–for Boston and locations across the country. Daily information is available dating back to 1949, with annual summaries for earlier years.
This resource is available only in the library. Please see a Reference librarian to log in.

Looking for that perfect gift book?

For gift ideas, see our annotated list of Books Librarians Give. Our annual list includes non-fiction, fiction, children’s books, and a large selection for the middle schoolers on your list. Prices are included, as well as call numbers so you can browse our library copies as well.

PowerSearch™ Your Databases

Not sure which database to use? Now you can search multiple Thomson Gale databases simultaneously, using their PowerSearch function. The following databases can be included:

General Reference Center Gold
Expanded Academic ASAP
Health Reference Center Academic
General Business File ASAP
Business and Company ASAP
Student Edition
Professional Collection
Gale Virtual Reference Library

Choose any of these databases from our alphabetical list, and click on “Change Databases” at the upper right, or “Gale Group Databases” at the lower left. Select the sources you wish to search (click in the “Select” boxes, then click “Submit”), and then enter your search terms.