It's been decades since I first discovered my love of science fiction on a school trip to the "Spaced Out Library," the public science fiction reference collection founded by Judith Merril — that day, I met both Merril (who went on to be a mentor to me) and Lorna Toolis, who has just stepped down as head of the library, which grew in stature and changed names, becoming the Merril Collection of Science Fiction.

More scenes from a book-tour: last night I wrapped up this leg of the tour (I'll be back in the US at the end of June for American Library Association and Copynight in DC, as well as an appearance at Red Emma's, co-sponsored by Baltimore Node). — Read the rest

Karl Schroeder writes:

Starting on February 1, 2010, and running through until May 30, I will
be Toronto Public Library's Writer in Residence, working out of the
Merril Collection of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Speculation at the
Lillian H. Smith branch at College and Spadina.

Lorna Toolis, head librarian at Toronto's magnificent Merril Collection of Science Fiction, Speculation and Fantasy sez,

I'm really pleased about having the staff from the Chandra X-Ray Observatory do a day long presentation on the Chandra Mission. The programming is meant for teenagers as well as adults.

The Merril Collection of Science Fiction, Speculation and Fantasy has an opening for a science fiction writer in residence, paying $16,000 for four months' work at 14h/week. The work consists of "public readings, workshops, evaluation of submitted manuscripts, and one-on-one meetings with writers from the general public," with leftover time for your own projects. — Read the rest

Toronto's Metro Reference Library is hosting a Retro Futures exhibition until July 28, filled with exhibits from the collection of the Merril Collection (previously), the largest science fiction reference collection in any public library in the world.

I was a teenaged page at the North York Central Library in suburban Toronto, working in the Business and Urban Affairs section, shelving books, taping together newspapers while we waited for their microfilm versions to arrive, and fiddling around with the newly installed (and poorly documented) computerised catalogue/lending system — I worked there with many other would-be writers, like Nalo Hopkinson, who was a public service clerk a few floors down.

My middle-school used to take us on field trips to the Spaced Out Library, the Toronto Public Library's science fiction reference collection founded by legendary author, critic, editor and activist Judith Merril, who emigrated to Canada after witnessing the police brutality at the 1968 Chicago Democratic National Convention.

A guide to the charities we support in our own annual giving.

The Toronto Library Board appointed by the disgraced former mayor Rob Ford has continued its programme of cutting library budgets, cutting way past the bone and threatening the Toronto public library system altogether.

Here's a guide to the charities the Boingers support in our own annual giving. As always, please add the causes and charities you give to in the forums!

Here's a guide to the charities the Boingers support in our own annual giving. As always, please add the causes and charities you give to in the comments below!

Electronic Frontier Foundation
Could there be a year that's more relevant to the EFF? — Read the rest

Hey, Toronto! This is the last night of my 23-city, 29-day book-tour for Homeland, and I'm finishing the odyssey at the Merril Collection at 7PM. Come on out and send me home, because I am touring complete.

Hey, Lawrence, KS! I'm giving the Richard W. Gunn Memorial Lecture tonight at Alderson Auditorium, University of Kansas Student Union at 730PM. Tomorrow, I finish the Homeland tour in Toronto, with a 7PM appearance at the Merril Collection. Come on out and say hi before I go home to London!

Correction: The Borderlands event is on Feb 7, not Feb 8.

As this post goes live, I am on a plane from London to Seattle to kick off the tour for Homeland, the sequel to Little Brother. My first stop is tomorrow (Feb 5) night, at the Seattle Public Library, and then I head to Portland for Feb 6, where I'll be at Powell's in Beaverton. — Read the rest

Here's a guide to the charities the Boingers support in our own annual giving. As always, please add the causes and charities you give to in the comments below!

Electronic Frontier Foundation
There's never been a time when EFF's mission was more important: everything we do today involves the Internet; everything we do tomorrow will require it. — Read the rest

Libraries aren't just the mark of a civilized society — assembling, curating and disseminating knowledge to all comers! — they're also a cheapskate's best friend. Anyone who's interested in saving money probably already knows about the free Internet access, daily newspapers, DVD and audiobook borrowing, and book lending (duh). — Read the rest

It's time again for Boing Boing's guide the charities we support in our annual giving. As always, please add the causes and charities you give to in the comments below!

Electronic Frontier Foundation
The EFF's mission has never been more important: as laws like SOPA are rammed through Congress, as bloggers around the world are arrested and tortured with the collusion of American network-surveillance companies, and as the FBI's unconstitutional, warrantless use of surveillance technology like GPS bugs comes to light, EFF is poised to be center-stage in the fight for a free and open world with a free and open Internet. — Read the rest