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Patricia Briggs visits Coyote Ridge Corrections Center Library

Patricia Briggs visits Coyote Ridge Corrections Center Library

On April 9th, 2013, at the invitation of Library Associate Gayle Shonkwiler, Patricia  Briggs, author of the Mercy Thompson shapeshifter series, visited the Coyote Ridge Corrections Center. The presentation was very well received and liked by the 30 inmates in attendance. Patricia read from her newest best seller “Frost Burned” which was just released in March.  After the reading she answered questions about everything from her books, how to write, how to get published and character development. Patricia thoroughly enjoyed her…

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Donation from Mr. Jamie Ford to Coyote Ridge Corrections Center Library

Donation from Mr. Jamie Ford to Coyote Ridge Corrections Center Library

Coyote Ridge received a generous, and special, donation of new books from author Jamie Ford today. Mr. Ford visited the prison last March as part of a Community Read program hosted by Washington State Library. Shortly after his reading, Mr. Ford decided to donate the remainder of his speaking fee, after travel fees were paid, back to the library in the form of a book donation. He asked the library staff at Coyote Ridge to submit a wish list, which was (of course) completed almost immediately. Everything…

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CRCC Community Read 2012

CRCC Community Read 2012

The “community read movement” started in 1998 in Seattle and has gained popularity across the United States. I’ve been intrigued by them for many years. And while I hear about them all the time, I’ve never heard of one taking place inside a prison. So, last summer, I decided to organize one for Coyote Ridge. And it wasn’t easy, but I did it. The book I decided to use was Jamie Ford’s Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet….

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When You Need a Friend: Gayle Shonkwiler

When You Need a Friend: Gayle Shonkwiler

In times like these, folks need all the friends they can get.  That goes double for librarians who work in the state’s correctional and psychiatric institutions.  Since the 1960s when the U.S. government provided start-up funding to establish libraries in state institutions (ILS) ,  support for these critically needed libraries has plummeted.  As of October 2011, funding for the state’s ILS collections was terminated. This crisis is not new to Gayle Shonkwiler, library associate at the Coyote Ridge Corrections Center. …

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Author of Sisters Brothers visits Coyote Ridge Corrections Center

Author of Sisters Brothers visits Coyote Ridge Corrections Center

Sisters Brothers is a book about two brothers from gold-rush era Oregon and California who are employed as henchmen. They ride horses, camp out on the trail, try to gather clues about their target, and eventually uncover a lot more than they probably wanted to know about him. What starts out as a simple job becomes something more fantastic, and the two become entangled in the life of a man they set out to eliminate. As I was reading this book last…

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Virtual Reference in Prison

Virtual Reference in Prison

Librarians at Coyote Ridge Corrections Center, Washington Corrections Center Shelton, and Washington State Penitentiary, have started using kiosks at their local institutions to send overdue notices and hold pickup notices to offenders. We are also answering questions submitted by offenders.  The result has been even better than expected!  At Coyote Ridge, we have drastically reduced our paper usage by sending the notices over the kiosk.  The new system is a win-win for staff and offenders alike; correctional officers don’t have…

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Rural Landscapes

Rural Landscapes

At first glance, this post may seem to have nothing to do with prison librarianship. The rural, conservative, and isolated location of most prisons is something people outside the profession may not always think about.  Most jails, and a few of the smaller or minimum security prisons are located in or near bigger cities, but most of the bigger, higher security facilities are logically placed away from large communities. For anyone who imagines living close to public transit, giving up…

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