Social realism in Majorna, Gothenburg. Photo taken by me. December of 2020.
I hope that you all are doing well. We still do not know if distance learning will continue after January the 24th. So, I just wanted to let you know the rules when it comes to borrowing physical books from the IHGR library at the moment. If you really need a book for class, E-mail me or send a PIM to book an appointment/time. I might not be at IHGR every day and it´s best if we do these things according to a plan. Only very rarely will I send books through the mail and never heavy and/or expensive books.
Do not worry about returning any books at this point. Just return them when you are back in school. No bills will be sent out now. Only return books if you are changing schools or something like that. Books are to be returned in the module just outside the IHGR library, thank you.
For leisure reading, check out this earlier blog post about Christmas reading tips and reading/entertainment in general.
Do you need a Legimus-account? If so, please PIM me or send me an E-mail, see E-mail address below, and I will try to help you. Since we are in the middle of a pandemic there´s more possibilities when it comes to creating Legimus-accounts without meeting in person. Read more about Legimus here.
A perler bead-version of Tyko Jonsson, from Sagan om Karl-Bertil Jonssons julafton, wishes you a Merry Christmas! Photo taken by me in the Haga district of Gothenburg. December 2020.
The IHGR library, Ms. Winterbottom, Mr. Murgatroyd and myself wishes you all a Merry Christmas and a happy new year! See you all in January next year. Remember the Christmas reading tips.
Ms. Winterbottom and Mr. Murgatroyd invites you to take part in a mascot contest in January 2021. Photo taken by me in December 2020.
Next year, in January, Ms. Winterbottom and Mr. Murgatroyd will host a mascot contest for IHGR. Ms. Winterbottom and Mr. Murgatroyd feels that we should have a common school mascot. In the contest you will be asked to come up with and submit a suggestion for a school mascot. Then we will hold some sort of a vote and then pick the new school mascot. More info on this in January on Instagram/IHGR library blog/Advisory notes!
Mr. Murgatroyd and Ms. Winterbottom are anxious to see you all back at IHGR in January. Until then you can enjoy their Christmas reading tips. Photo taken by me in the IHGR library. December 2020.
Hi! As IHGR students more or less unexpectedly had to go over to distance learning this week, I, and Mr. Murgatroyd & Ms. Winterbottom, wanted to gather a few digital resources for you. Most of the things listed below can be accessed from home. We also want to take this opportunity to wish you a merry Christmas and a happy new year!
Start your own book club. In this older blogpost you can get some pointers on how to start your own book club. This can of course be done online as well.
E-books. A lot of books, especially classics, are available for free download online. If you are interested you can have a look at the sites below. You can download E-books in different formats to suit your needs/reading platform.
Litteraturbanken. This site provides you with Swedish classics. Some are for download and some can be read online only. Some audio files are available now as well.
ManyBooks. Nice site with good navigation (50000 + books). Some books in other languages besides English. When you download from this site you can choose between a lot of different formats. Well worth a visit!
Open library. Another site with a lot to choose from.
If you have a library card for the public libraries in the city of Gothenburg you can download E-books from there. The books provided by the public libraries in Gothenburg might be a bit more current than the books provided by the above mentioned sites. But, there´s a lot of great material that you can access for free on the above mentioned sites.
Christmas present/s. Consider buying a book for Christmas, for yourself or as a gift. Read more here about the situation that a lot of book sellers are in at the moment.
Databases. Remember that you as a student, or staff member, at IHGR have access to several databases through Hjärntorget. These databases are a great help in your studies but they can be good for leisure reading as well. Learn more here.
YouTube. On YouTube most museums, universities and the like have their own channels. These channels are a real goldmine of information and entertainment, to help you in your studies and to provide some relaxation. One of my favourites is the channel belonging to The British Museum. Below you can watch professor Irving Finkel from the British Museum talk about Ancient demons.
IHGR´s magic Christmas runestone. Photo taken by me in the IHGR library. December of 2020.
We now have a winner in the IHGR Library Staff Quiz 2020! The winner is Mr. T. B.! Teachers S. A. and J. B. come in second and third and they got a smaller prize each. You will find the answers to the quiz questions at the bottom of this blogpost. Being the winner Mr. T was given a envelope with instructions on how to claim his prize. He had to decipher the above pictured runestone. The text on the runestone led him to a locker with a combination lock and inside he found the prize. Can you decipher the text? Have a go using the rune-key below.
The ”elder Futhark” with 24 characters/runes. Picture from the English language version of Wikipedia.Here you can see Mr. T opening the locker.
Ms. Winterbottom and Mr. Murgatroyd in the IHGR library.
Hi! Join Mr. Murgatroyd and Ms. Winterbottom´s December Treasure Hunt! The hunt starts on Friday December 4th. The treasure hunt was supposed to start next week. But due to the new rules for high schools/distance learning I wanted to launch to whole thing before you leave school.
Follow the leads on the 3rd floor and win the prize! The 1st clue is as follows;
Have a look behind something that looks like this!
Give me the answers! Photo taken by me in shop window. Gothenburg, November 2020.
Here are the questions for the December 2020 IHGR Staff Quiz! The quiz starts today, December the 3rd. The quiz was supposed to start on Monday. But due to the new rules for high schools/distance learning, I thought it best to do it now!
The first participant to answer all questions correctly will receive an assignment that will, when solved correctly, lead him or her to the prize. E-mail me your answers! There will also be an honorable mention and a smaller prize handed out. Please, avoid using the Internet when answering the questions, if you can.
In order for you to be able to answer some of the following questions you just might have to visit the IHGR library.
Mister Murgatroyd, the new IHGR library mascot/live-in librarian, smokes a particular brand of cigarettes. Which brand?
Most books and magazines in the IHGR library are in either English or Swedish. But the library has two highlighted sections of books in other languages. Which are those two languages?
Before the arrival of Christianity in Sweden the Winter Solstice was celebrated here during the month of December. At the Winter Solstice a certain Norse pagan god was in focus. Which god? He, it´s a he, was known under many names, one of these names being Greybeard. Give me the name under which he is most commonly known.
During Christmas time it still happens that people in Sweden put out a bowl of something for hustomten/nissen (hustomten = a local spirit/gnome/familiar). What´s usually in the bowl?
There´s several magazines available in the IHGR library. What´s the name of the magazine that deals with “the world of strange phenomena”?
Saint Nicolaus, the saint that we today know as Santa Claus, was born in the town of Patara. This town lies in what modern country?
Jag mottog idag ännu ett nyhetsbrev från Litteraturbanken. Bland annat står följande att läsa;
För Märta Helena Reenstierna, och framförallt för hennes drängar och pigor, var december en lång och arbetsam tid. I Årstadagboken, som nu fogas till Litteraturbankens digitala samlingar, kan man följa julförberedelserna på Årsta. Åren som gick (och de var många: dagboken löper från 1793 till 1839) såg förstås olika ut. Vissa år var glädjefyllda. Andra präglades av sorg. Men genom alla år löpte arbetets och julstökets röda tråd: tvätten, storstädningen, ölbryggningen, julklappsinköpen.
Photo taken by me in the IHGR library. November of 2020. Ms. Winterbottom on the left and Mr. Murgatroyd on the right.
On Tuesday the 8th of December it´s time for Mr. Murgatroyd and Ms. Winterbottom´s treasure hunt for IHGR students. At 12.00 on Tuesday the first clue will be posted here on the library blog. There will also be posters in the hallway on the 3rd floor with the clue. Good luck!
