February is Black History Month, Women’s History Month, and of course, the month of valentines. We are debuting cryptic crosswords for all of you who love puzzles with our new column 793.73. This month, we are featuring eight clues that challenge readers to identify eight Black authors whose work is worth celebrating. And we are also featuring articles from women co-edit books, find more respectful ways to describe people and their work, want to live in good relationships on Turtle Island, and land the right job because they know how to make the most of the interview process.

What’s New in Open Shelf: February 1, 2017
What’s New in Open Shelf? is a Table of Contents of sorts. Open Shelf publishes when we have compelling new material. Every two weeks is our plan.
In this release we feature leadership, conferences, wordless books, learning commons, InsideOCULA, and farewells & welcomes & introductions.
What does the classic management text Good to Great (2001) by Jim Collins say to us about library leadership? John Pateman thinks quite a bit: Good to Great.
So, you go to a library conference in France. And what do you remember most? Food and drink of course! Amanda Etches continues her Incidentally column with That Feeling When.
“It may seem strange that a book with no words can help a child develop language …” So begins Leigh Turina’s Ten Wordless Picture Books to Promote Language Development.
In Equity & Social Justice in the Library Learning Commons, Jennifer Brown wonders “if the real value of the library learning commons, and those of us charged with its care, is the potential to empower learners to identify and deal with issues of equity and social justice.”
This release includes the February issue of InsideOCULA which features articles about open learning resources, the CAPAL census, research data management, lightning talk proposals, and theory to practice.
This is the last issue for Mike Ridley as Editor-in-Chief of Open Shelf. He has some parting remarks: Farewell … and Welcome.
And lastly, an introduction to the new Open Shelf Editorial Team: Begin as You Mean to Go On.
As always, let us know what you think of Open Shelf.
Martha Attridge Bufton
Editor-in-Chief, Open Shelf