20 years of Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Last week over on Twitter, there was a glorious celebration of all things Buffy the Vampire Slayer in honour of 20 years of Buffy. Yes, you read that right, 20 years of Buffy and the rest of the Scooby Gang kicking butt and taking names. If you are on Twitter and want to catch up on some of the fun that was had, check out the hashtag #Buffyslays20. It was wonderful to see lots of the cast members including Sarah Michelle Geller coming on board and sharing their memories and favourite moments of the series as well.

I've managed to maintain my love of Buffy over the years by closely following the comic book series which was launched after the end of Season 7. Joss Whedon, creator of Buffy (you may have heard of him, he's done a couple of decent things since *giggles*) already had a plan for Season 8. So when the series was brought to a close by the network, he helped to produce Buffy the vampire slayer: Season 8 as a comic series instead. MORE BUFFY, YAY! I have collected every issue ever since :)

We are currently up to Season 11 in comic land, so if you would like to know just what happened next to Buffy, Willow, Xander, Spike or your favourite BtVS character you can still get your fix too. Auckland Libraries has Buffy the vampire slayer Season 8 available to borrow as an e-book graphic novel series, beginning with Volume 1. The long way home. Or we have the print copies of Series 9 and onward starting with Volume 1: Freefall.

Or maybe you would like to head back to the beginning of the series for a rewatch, in which case we totally have your back there too. We have Buffy the vampire slayer. Season 1 available on DVD for your viewing pleasure (and of course Season 2, Season 3, Season 4, Season 5, Season 6 and Season 7, oh so much Buffy goodness to marathon right there!)

We've also got a number of other Buffytastic goodies that you might be keen to explore. Buffy, the vampire slayer edited by Jennifer K. Stuller is a celebration in itself, with a collection of interviews and essays 'addressing how Buffy inspires the creation of, among other enduring artifacts of fandom, fan fiction, crafting, performance, cosplay, and sing-alongs' Or there is this teenage fiction series based in the world of Buffy. Or perhaps you'd be interested in Buffy: the making of a slayer: the official guide by Nancy Holder, a great behind the scenes book which offers a 'commentary on the creation of the show and explores the characters, the mythology, and the evolution of all seven seasons - and beyond'

So, regardless of whether you are Team Angel or Team Spike, there should be something in there to tickle your fancy, and remind you of just why this fantastic series has endured for the last 20 years. I'd love to hear about your favourite #Buffyslays20 moment in our comments below!

Stalking the catalogue: Twitter wit

"Once again it occurs to me that you could kidnap anyone by standing confidently in an airport with a card with their name on it."
 - Neil Gaiman | @neilhimself

Sometimes, what happens on Twitter shouldn't stay on Twitter.

Warning: this title contains much hilarity!  Twitter is not for everyone.  I feel like that should go without saying...and yet I stated it anyway.  Just in case.  The good thing about this book is that you don't have to be a Twitter-user to understand the jokes.  If you like your humour in small doses (i.e. 140 characters or less) or have a goldfish attention span (much like me) then this is ideal.

Title: Twitter wit : brillance in 140 characters or less
Editor: Nick Douglas
Published: itbooks, c2009

Stalking the catalogue: Twitterature

Watchmen by Alan Moore - @Rorschizzle
"A comedian died tonight. He was all about the lulz. No one laughed."
- Twitterature: The world's greatest books in twenty tweets or less by Alexander Aciman

Imagine if you could capture books in 140 characters or less. Imagine Wuthering Heights and all of its angst in 140 characters. Some books, let's face it, may improve if done this way (yes, Twilight, I'm looking at YOU). It'd be almost like a crash course, if you will. Twitterature, in short, provides this in a really funny way.

This is not going to be everybody's cup of tea.  I have a habit lately of stating the obvious, but I feel I need to say that right at the outset.  I, however, enjoyed it. I'd like to point out, though, that if you're not familiar with a lot of the stories then some of the humour is going to fall flat on its face.

There were a couple of stories that I didn't know so I'm going to brush up on them because, hey, I hate feeling like I don't know something.  A warning: it does contain swear words. And I'd like to make it known that I disagree with the part of the blurb that reads "...as great as the classics are, who has the time to read those big, long books anymore?" Umm ME! I do! I heart them! And I can do both - read them in full, and then read them in 140 characters or less. 'Cause I'm awesome like that.

A lighthearted and irreverent look at some well known tales that will cause you to snort with laughter on the bus, and the train (I know this because I did it), and just in general. Really.

Title: Twitterature : the world's greatest books in twenty tweets or less
Author: Alexander Aciman and Emmett Rensin
Published: Penguin Books, 2009

Trying to figure out social media

Are you perplexed by social media?

Not quite sure what the (grand) kids are on about when they talk about Twitter, Tumblr, Facebook, YouTube?

Thinking you want to start a blog, but not sure how?

Thinking that social media might help out your family history search? 

Want a hand to figure it all out?

Check out the following to get you started :

• The rough guide to social media for beginners
• Social media for seniors
• Social networking for the over 50s in simple steps 
• Blogging for creatives : how designers, artists, crafters and writers can blog to make contacts, win business and build success
• Teach yourself visually Facebook
• #tweetsmart
• DNA and social networking : a guide to genealogy in the twenty-first century 

 Looking forward to seeing you online!

5 book-related tweets from book-related tweeps you might want to check out

"The people drawn to Twitter are people on the cutting edge, the real nerds who are resentful of the fact that the general population have found and taken over Facebook."
– Steve Dotto

Follow @joe_hill

Joe Hill
@joe_hill

.@warrenellis's IRON MAN: EXTREMIS is a master-class on the modern superhero story. Knotty ideas, face-shattering action, cultural insight.

 Reply  ·  Retweet  ·  Favorite
1 day ago via Twitter for iPad · powered by @socialditto

I like Twitter. I'm going to sound nutty (as usual), but the visual cacophany of it, and the range of both deliberate and random conversations, is endlessly fascinating to me. What I really appreciate about it, though, are all of the reading suggestions that come across our work tweetstream. Today's post is in that vein. Unfortunately, I couldn't put anything close to the number I really wanted to link to - something like 27 of them hah! And before you get all uppity and point out that I've made a mistake and added Joe Hill twice to this list, you can settle, petal. I know. And it was deliberate, because the man is truly awesome. Who doesn't appreciate authors who give you sneak peeks at their upcoming book covers AND a Warren Ellis recommendation? Total win. Today, all for you, 5 book-related tweets from book-related tweeps you might want to check out

Rebellion, revolution and a new world order

The title for this post is actually the subtitle of the book I want to share with you. I feel it really pinpoints what this book is all about. 

The Arab Spring : rebellion, revolution and a new world order, edited by Toby Manhire, is the printed version of a chronological collection of online reporting that happened as countries throughout North Africa and the Middle East experienced citizen uprisings that began in Tunisia in mid-December 2010.

I was only vaguely aware of a lot of these events happening across the world, as I was living in Christchurch during much of the time that these events took place, and my focus was much more on localised events that impacted on me personally. So it is only now that I have been able to look back at these other events that were kicking off globally.

One thing that fascinated me was the actual publication of the book in the first place. It is a finite collection of live online reporting and commentary. This book collates and shares a variety of voices, captured through tweets, blogs and online articles, and brings them all together in one place, something that might not be so easy to curate and collate in an infinite online space. Creating a book to share the chronological unfolding of the revolution online is an easier way to read about the revolution than trying to individually seek out the information across a variety of sources on the internet.

This book presents an interesting historical analysis of how the use of social technology (Facebook, Twitter, blogs) facilitated the sharing and dissemination of information about the events across the region. There is a great essay about how the technology didn't start the revolution, but it did play in important part in disseminating the information when it did kick off.

If you want to get a sense of how and why the Arab Spring started, when the first tweets and online reporting began, as well as read stories from across the region (Syria, Libya, Egypt, Yemen) and gain an insight about what it means now for the citizens across North Africa and the Middle East, I'd recommend setting aside some time and reading as much as you can in one sitting (I finished it over a weekend). It'll draw you into a world of political protest, and then you'll remember that this was only the beginning of the revolution.

2 CDs, 2 groups, 2 clips, and 2 reasons they belong in your life

List by Tosca

"There is nothing either good or bad but twittering makes it so."
- NOT a quote by William Shakespeare, and found here (along with a few others)

I enjoy playing on Twitter. The people, the conversations and the incredibly quick pace mean I'm endlessly entertained. There is always some gem of a link, website, book, film, video clip, political issue, celebrity faux pas being discussed at any time, by any number of interested parties. And I can pick and choose what catches my fancy. It's like...magic. Where other people see disorder and frivolous chatter, I find some kernel of beauty in the visual cacophany that is this medium. Sure, most of the time what I personally tweet adds no value whatsoever to anybody's life (let alone mine) so it's probably just as well that I do it for my entertainment alone. (I promise we don't run our work tweetstream like that). More often thank you'd think, though, there are seemingly out-of-the-ordinary links that lead to the most surprising conversations that, in turn, lead to some great recommendations. In this instance, 2 CDs for 2 groups that come complete with 2 video clips that serve as 2 reasons they belong in your life right now. Or something much like it.

I need to thank two people (one person/one organisation?) for this post: @IArtLibraries (Library as Incubator) for my last 2011 music recommendation, and a certain craftaholic I follow on my personal tweetstream for my first 2012 music recommendation. Mad respect!

5 tweets with interesting links you may have missed on our tweetstream

List by Tosca

"oh this is going to be addictive"
- Dom Sagolla, Twitter co-creator

Wow. How BOO is it that this post published before I was ready? Gremlins in the system, geez. A very quick post from me today (go ahead, you can heave a sigh of relief) in which I do very little but highlight some pretty interesting links that went out from/or came across our tweetstream: a pic of Mt. Roskill Library (who've just recently re-opened, and looks awesome, by the way), Google Doodles (yes, I really do mean Google Doodles), short recipes (truly, truly short), Santa Claus, digital media resources, 230 films in 5 mins (it's true!) and Google snow. YES, SNOW! You're welcome :P

Honourable mention:

@Auckland_Libs
Auckland LibrariesRT @mtroskillib: Check out our new library #mtroskilllib - stunningly awesome http://t.co/UukDwyLr 4 days ago via HootSuite · powered by @socialditto

@Auckland_Libs
Auckland LibrariesLike WHOA. Have just discovered Google keeps all of their Doodles. AND I can view/play with them http://t.co/4vTs5jwd 2 days ago via HootSuite · powered by @socialditto