When I was ten my local public library held a drawing contest, judged by David Macaulay. My mom was a big fan, and she had shown me Underground and I was deeply inspired. Long story short, I won, my prize an autographed copy of Pyramid. I don't think I can overestimate the impact this sort of external validation had on my artistic self-esteem, and from then on I started thinking of myself as an artist, and never really stopped.

I continued to be a big Macaulay fan, and Gene and I were lucky enough to visit his show when we were in Washington, D.C. for ALA a couple of years ago. I was blown away by how much work he puts into his art, and how successful he is at conveying complex ideas simply .

This is by way of letting you know how happy I am that this week's sponsor is Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, publisher of his new book The Way We Work. David Macaulay will be hosting a live webcast on the morning of October 7th to talk about his new book, and you're all invited. I'll definitely be there, so register today!

As promised, submissions to Pimp My Bookcart 2008 have started trickling in! Check them out here. And it's not too late for you to put together your own bookcart improvement program at your school or library - the submissions deadline isn't until October 31.

Love the old-school librarian drag, but what makes part of this video for me? Music by Queen (who also provided the original Highlander soundtrack).

A reminder that, until September 15th, our library schooled shirts are $5 off, a celebration of the orderly return to scholarly activities that so many of you are undergoing. And if you’re already the proud recipient of an MLIS, a chance to show it loud, show it proud.