RAMble, the University Libraries' blog

Living in this region of the U.S. means that sometimes we have cold snowy winters and sometimes we go out to cut our Christmas trees in t-shirts.  But flurries or sun, the weather’s always right for a movie.  The following selection of films has something for everyone, all in the IMC DVD collection.  Check the catalog for even more holiday viewing.

Christmas Classics

There are so many choices for this category; It’s a Wonderful Life, Miracle On 34th Street, Meet Me in St. Louis, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. But for me it’s not the holiday season without watching White Christmas.  Yes, it has that cringy minstrel show number, but the music is swell, and the sentiment is sweet.  I find it heartwarming.

White Christmas (1954). Starring Bing Crosby, 
Danny Kaye, and Rosemary Clooney. Directed
by Michael Curtiz.

Christmas Crackers

Looking for some Action or Horror with a dash of nutmeg?  Try Gremlins, Krampus, Batman Returns, Eyes Wide Shut, or Rare Exports.  Top of this list is Die Hard, “yippee ki yay!”

Die Hard (1988). Starring Bruce Willis, Alan
Rickman, and Bonnie Bedelia. Directed by
John McTiernan.

Holiday Movie?

These films may only have one holiday scene, or they may just happen to take place during the holidays: Edward Scissor Hands, Little Women, Desk Set, Friday After Next.  But please, if you haven’t seen it, or even if you have, watch Trading Places.  Not very P.C. but super funny and still relevant (sadly) almost 40 years on.

For the Young'uns

Or the young at heart.  Some family friendly picks include, Charlie Brown Christmas, A Christmas Story, Elf, Black Nativity, Nightmare Before Christmas, The Snowman, or one of the many Nutcracker performances.  But for me it’s not Christmas without Emmet Otter’s Jug Band Christmas. It’s a 1970’s Appalachian musical O. Henry, with Muppets; so much heart, it hits me in the feels every time.

Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas (1977).
Starring Jerry Nelsen, Frank Oz, and Marilyn
Sokol. Directed by Jim Hensen.

We Don’t Do Christmas

Not everyone celebrates Christmas, but you can still get into the winter spirit with Cool Runnings, Snow Day, March of the Penguins, Miracle, Snowpiercer, or, my choice, Wes Anderson’s star-studded fantastical The Grand Budapest Hotel.  I’m sure it’s not for everyone but it’s classic quirky Anderson, with dark humor, fab music, and excellent acting.

The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014). Starring
Ralph Fiennes, F. Murray Abraham, and
Mathieu Amalric. Directed by Wes Anderson.

What the Dickens?

You might have read the original A Christmas Carol, but I know you’ve seen at least one adaptation.  The first movie was released in 1901 and it’s been adapted, animated and spoofed hundreds of times since.  These are my favorites:  Scrooge (1951) Alistar Sims, A Christmas Carol (1984) George C. Scott, Scrooged (1988) Bill Murray, The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) Muppets. 

Blog post by Amanda Brooks. 

This winter, many of us will be spending most of our time at home. Fill your time with a warm drink and one of these cozy reads! 

The Bear and the Nightingale, Katherine Arden 

Set in the chilly Russian wilderness, this novel features fairy tales, a protagonist with a fantastical gift, and a lesson to learn. If you’re looking for heartwarming, look no further. 

Spinning Silver, Naomi Novik  

An icier take on similar themes from above, Spinning Silver is an engrossing fairy tale retelling of Rumpelstiltskin with a dash of Eastern European folklore. The novel features three young women seeking to improve their lot in life, whose lives intertwine irrevocably. Worldbuilding and storytelling thrive in this mid-length novel. 

The Golden Compass Graphic Novel Vol. 1, Stéphane Melchior-Durand, Phillip Pullman, Clément Oubrerie 

 A beautiful graphic adaptation of the His Dark Materials saga, this first installment follows Lyra Belacqua and her familiar as she discovers that things in her world are not as they seem. Follow Lyra on her journey to find the truth and keep herself and her loved ones safe. Filled with rich hues, this adaptation is fresh but familiar. 

The Terror, Dan Simmons  

Seeking something a little more visceral? The Terror is a gruesome twist on the wreck of the HMS Terror in 1813. This 769-page novel is filled with twists and the realization that as ruthless as man can be in his quest to survive, something much more sinister lurks in the Arctic.  

Murder on the Orient Express, Agatha Christie  

An Agatha Christie classic that features murder, mystery, and motive. Hercule Poirot takes on his latest case on a chilly train. Filled with twists and turns, this whodunnit is perfect to read in one go. 

Winter: a novel, By Ali Smith

Second in Smith’s Seasonal quartet, this masterpiece is chock full of symbolism, motifs, and literary references. The obvious storyline – a family meeting up for Christmas – takes a backseat to the, “talking heads,” that float above our characters, spitting out subplots and shameful secrets. Give this one a try if you’re looking for something a little more cerebral. 

Winter, By Karl Ove Knausgård  

A controversial literary figure, Knausgaard has a simplistic, honest writing style that comes to life as he reflects on the world before the birth of his daughter. Filled with letters and meditations on life, Winter is best read in small doses to allow you to appreciate the immensity of living. 

The Little Book of Hygge: The Danish Way to Live Well, Meik Wiking   

Hygge is a concept that has taken the Western world by storm. Wiking, the CEO of the Happiness Research Institute, explores this concept as it’s reflected in the Danish day-to-day and how you can apply it to your own life. Now more than ever, we need some hygge! 

Post by Sarah Corapi

Winter Session is officially here, and with the first snowstorm of the year just around the corner, this is the perfect time to discover our Winter Research Help Hours! Librarians are still one click away to help you, no matter where you are in the world. If you have a research help question, do not hesitate to connect with them online. They are also available for extended hours this semester, so you do not have to rearrange your schedule to get help.

Winter Session Hours:

Don’t rearrange your schedule, get research help when it is convenient for you! Librarians are available for extended hours on Mondays & Thursdays this semester, so you can get help when you need it most.

Monday & Thursday:
10:00am-8:00pm

Tuesday & Wednesday:
10:00am-6pm

Friday:
10:00am-4pm

Research Consultations:

Need more in-depth assistance? You can request to have a one on one appointment with a librarian to get individual assistance for your research needs.

The start of December always brings to my mind the upcoming holidays, and spending time with family and friends. It is also the time in the IMC when we begin to pull together our favorite holiday movies to share with our WCU community. While we’re unable to do this physically this year, I thought it would be a great time to reflect on our favorite holiday movies. We all have that special movie we watch each year around this time, so I decided to look and see which of the movies from our holiday display were the most popular—you might be surprised!

The most popular movie was Love, Actually, which may not (actually) be a surprise. We love to watch a happy ending and this movie, along with taking place during the holiday season, does a wonderful job portraying that.

Our next popular movie was Frozen because, of course. Winter Wonderland themed with catchy music to match, how could this not be a favorite movie? Another (non-surprise) movie on our list was Elf, again, very self-explanatory.

The next movie surprised me, but perhaps because I’ve never seen it—Four Christmases. It has a great cast (Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon) so that always helps. And finally, our 5^th most highly rated holiday movie was Happy Feet. This is an adorable movie, and I’m glad it got some love on our holiday list.

Was your favorite movie in our top 5? If not, what is it? Tweet us @fhglibrary or shoot us a message on Instagram so we can highlight your favorite holiday movie. I also noticed that we had some movies from our holiday display that had never been watched, so I’ll be planning to take home one of these movies and see how good (or bad) it is—stay tuned!

Neal Kenney leans against the counter in the Circulation Work Room in FHG Library as he warms up his arm like a relief pitcher. He is about to help scoop ice cream for 200 hungry students who are in the library for the Academic Success Program. Neal scoops ice cream for over two hours, greeting students with a smile, full bowls of ice cream, and kind words to help them celebrate their accomplishments this summer. Neal’s willingness to help is one of the traits that came to define his 32-year career at University Libraries.

In a lot of ways, Neal was a Golden Ram “lifer.” He graduated from WCU in 1980 with a BA in History. He followed that calling all the way to the Lincoln Home in Springfield, Illinois, where he served as an interpretive park ranger for the National Parks Service. Neal held a similar position at Valley Forge National Park before accepting a part time position in Circulation at Chester County Library.

Neal in the Interlibrary Loan Office in 2017.

Even as a student, Neal had his eye on one day working at University Libraries, hoping the right position would open. As fate would have it, a part-time job opened in Circulation at FHG Library, and Neal applied. He was hired in January of 1987. “As soon as I got the job, I knew I wanted to keep it for a long time,” Neal said. “I liked it and felt comfortable doing it.”

Neal served in many different roles at University Libraries, including as a part-time administrative assistant to former Library Director, Frank Helms, in 1987. He was hired for a full-time position in Circulation in 1988. A few years later, Neal was given an assignment in Special Collections and Interlibrary Loan, where he worked for the remainder of his career. In Interlibrary Loan, Neal helped process books when they arrived from other libraries, prepared them for checkout, and notified patrons their materials were available. Working in Special Collections, especially on the Daily Local News archive, fed his love for history.

“Working on the Daily Local News index is sort of like writing a little history book about the community and the university,” Neal said. “I started working on it when the Special Collections Librarian at the time, Jerry Scholcoff, needed help. I’ve been doing it ever since. I read the Daily Locals and use articles from there and put it in our database in Special Collections.”

Neal in FHG Library in 2018 with Fellow Interlibrary
Loan Technicians Jenn O'Leary (left) and Annette
Hamilton (right). 

Empathy was extremely important to Neal during his time at University Libraries. He led the Sunshine Committee for over two decades. When someone got sick, lost a family member, or celebrated a big life accomplishment, Neal did his best to make sure they knew they were seen and valued. He also organized peanut butter and jelly drives to benefit local food banks. 

“Neal cares so very much about his co-workers – past and present – and always wants to be sure that people know he and the library faculty and staff care about them,” Interlibrary Loan Technician Jenn O’Leary said. “He cheers people up and makes them feel like their workplace really cares about what they are going through. He’s an ambassador for the library as a whole when it comes to caring.”

Neal impacted so many people during his time at University Libraries. He strove to preserve the history of our libraries, as well as our university, through Special Collections projects. Neal joyfully gave his time and memories to identify staff and faculty members in photo archives and provide information about library history.

Neal Scanning Books in the Interlibrary Loan
Office this Spring. 

Thousands of students got the materials they needed for their assignments, including during the Covid-19 pandemic, because Neal rolled up his sleeves and got to work. As Special Collections Librarian Ron McColl said in a tweet when Neal’s retirement was announced, if there was a University Libraries Hall of Fame, Neal would be, “a first ballot hall of famer.”

The 3^rd Golden Bowtie Award was given to Cristin Ehrgott during the 4^th Annual Dapper Depte Day celebration on Wednesday, October 28. Cristin’s positive outlook and immensely helpful nature fit the values of the Golden Bowtie Award perfectly. This celebration and award is named in honor of Corinthian Depte, a retired staff member who lights up any room he enters with his warm personality. For those of us who worked with Corinthian, it is obvious why we celebrate him every year.

              Dana McDonnell, our Circulation Supervisor, is a friend of Corinthian and worked with him for nineteen years. I asked if he could share some stories and anecdotes from their time working together, to help paint a picture of Corinthian’s personality. “Corinthian is something of a raconteur, Dana said. “What I remember most about working with him is the way he uses tales from his youth to both amuse people and get them to relax their guard. His stories always made both staff and patrons laugh. They livened up the atmosphere and allowed Corinthian to make new friends, a resource of which he was never short. They also made him a great person to work with.” 

Dana & Corinthian Behind the Library Help Desk
in FHG Library in 2017.

              From my own experience, I can say that Corinthian made me feel welcome as both a student and staff member of West Chester University. As a student I knew him as the kind, well-dressed man behind the counter that said “hello” in several different languages to everyone that walked by. Once I started working at the library, I learned about his incredible ability to make his coworkers feel like family. When he found out that I got a full-time position at the Help Desk, and that I had forgotten to tell him, he said, “Man, don’t you tell your friends anything?” If I hadn’t known he was messing with me, I probably would have cried and profusely started apologizing. But that moment showed he was rooting for me, and I was so thankful for it.

               No matter whom he interacts with, Corinthian is helpful, friendly, and comforting; and that’s only listing a few of the qualities that we honor with Dapper Depte Day and that we see in the Golden Bowtie recipients. If you want to learn more about Corinthian, ask a few of your coworkers. I’m sure a lot of us have stories we’d love to tell.

Post Written by Wes Miriello