>> From the Library of
Congress in Washington D.C.
[ Silence ]
>> Good afternoon everyone.
>> Good afternoon.
>> And welcome to the
Library of Congress.
I'm John Cole, I'm the Director
of the Center for the Book
in the Library of Congress so I have
a great job, I get to promote books
and reading and helping programs
where we give recognition
to young readers in particular and
we have a wonderful day ahead of us.
As you know, this project which
is a National Book Festival Summer
Reading Program is called a Book
that Shaped Me and today we're going
to hear from finalists and other
winners who are going to read to us.
We're going to learn what
books they read and we're going
to have a chance to hear
from the winners a little bit
and some of the finalists.
So you know a little bit about
the contest not only does it come
out of our big National Book
Festival which is held every year;
it's going to be held from
now in the Convention Center
in Washington D.C., but it
also is a cooperative program
with libraries in our whole area.
It's administered through public
local library systems here
in the district, Maryland,
Virginia, Delaware, Pennsylvania,
and West Virginia and you are
all here representing your states
and that's a wonderful thing
for the Library of Congress.
Lots of people don't realize
that we are not only a
huge national library,
but we're also a public library.
We are open to the public
and we also have a new,
relatively new office aimed
at you it's called the Young
Reader's Center and it opened
in 2009 and there's a real heavy
requirement, 16 or under accompanied
by an adult and it is in
the Jefferson Building
and I encourage parents and
kids to learn more about it
and to take advantage of this
wonderful public library function
and you will learn
what goes on there.
One final word about how our
finalists were all selected,
this was done again
in a complicated way.
There's something called the
American Library Association
that has a committee that really
took the first look at the letters
and the essays that were
submitted and they are the ones
who passed them on to yet another
committee which is how we work
in this world to, and that
committee included educators,
children's authors, and some members
of our Library of Congress staff
and so all of that is resulting
in having today the people
who are being honored
and will get certificates
and we will then hear letters
from the grand prize winners
at the end of our program.
First of all though, I'm very
interested in the history
of the Library of Congress and
just for my information I'd
like to know how many people are
here for the very first time;
if you've never been to
the Library of Congress,
not that is quite a high percentage
and so I guess I can double
my welcome and you'll remember
that it's a public place that
we want to visit again and again
and that would include
the Young Reader's Center.
Okay, historical lecture is over.
I now would like to introduce,
I'll say one more thing,
the library we are in we're
in the Library of Congress,
but I've already told we're open
to the public and the Librarian
of Congress is appointed by
the President and confirmed
by the Senate which does give
us kind of a special status
and our Librarian of Congress
name is Dr. James Billington
and he couldn't be here today,
but I'm sort of standing in
and so I want to make
sure I mention his name
so I don't get into
any trouble, okay?
We got it.
Now, I'm honored to introduce the
person that you will hear the most
from today and see the most
of his name is Fred Bowen
and Fred is a Kid's Post sports
writer for the Washington Post
and if you look at the back page
of the Post you surely are
learning Fred's opinions on many,
many different subjects sometimes
related to sports, sometimes related
to things that Fred thinks all
of us should be learning about,
but I highly recommend Fred's
writing and his column in the Post.
Fred is going to read
the names of the winners
and then he will be
the one at the very end
who interviews the
grand prize winner.
Two more people to introduce,
Lola Pine from the Office
of Communication is the
manager of this year's contest,
Lola will you stand up
and her assistant this
year has been Corey Freeman
from the Library Services Office,
so let's give them a round
of applause as we begin.
[ Applause ]
And now I'd like to
welcome Fred Bowen.
Fred.
[ Applause ]
I forgot to mention that Fred has
written a lot of books himself,
so I slipped that in so
I don't want him to feel
that I missed that point either.
I'm just trying to stay out
of trouble today you see that?
That's what a master of
ceremonies does, so far so good.
>> Alright, good afternoon.
My name's Fred Bowen and that's
right I've actually written 20 kid's
sports books that combine
sports fictions, sports history,
and there's always a chapter
of sports history in the back
and they're for kids
8 to 12 years old,
so you should all go
out and get them.
And I also write a sports
column for the Washington Post,
but today I am just delighted
to be among so many kids
who love to read and write.
I currently make my living as a
writer, but I used to be a lawyer.
Don't leave.
But I was a lawyer for 30 years
and I know that from being a writer
and a lawyer that if you can write
it helps you in almost anything
that you do and that's really
the idea behind this contest;
A Book That Shaped Me and that
is that you get shaped by a book
and you write about it and then
good things start to happen.
And I'll say a few more words
about the contest before we start,
as John mentioned, we asked
students to write a one page essay
about a book they felt
shaped their lives.
They had to write the essay them
self, take it to the public library,
turn it in, and enter the contest
and as John said these were judged
by members of the American
Association of School Librarians
and later there was a
panel, a smaller panel
of which I was a member
that judged the essays.
Now are there are any other members
of the panel here who
could be recognized?
I don't see particularly Maria,
but there were about 4 or 5 of us
and we judged the essays.
We received more than 200 entries
and today we will bring you the
30 finalist and state winners
and our 3 grand prize winners, and
the 3 grand prize winners will win,
will read their winning
essays from the stage.
Now I'm going to read the
names of the finalists by state
and Lola will hand
them their certificates
as they come up on the stage.
Now before I read the names,
I want to apologize if I mess
up anybody's name, because as
someone who has been introduced
as Fred Bower, Fred
Bowen, Fred Brown,
and Frank Bowen I can tell you you
can be a very successful writer
if somebody messes up your name,
so but I'll give it my best.
The first group is going to be
from Washington D.C. Helaina Bellow
from Tacoma Park Library.
[ Applause ]
Christian G. Herald,
Tacoma Park Library.
[ Applause ]
Pasha Ishaq, Georgetown Library.
[ Applause ]
Cassie Zhang, Tenley-Friendship
Library.
[ Applause ]
And the district winner, Kalina
Sloat, Cleveland Park Library.
[ Applause ]
>> Remember to look
right here for me.
You want to look right here for me?
Thank you.
>> There may be a couple
of pictures taken today.
Alright, hey I'm just warning you.
[ Pause ]
Alright, the next group
is from Maryland.
Here we go everybody line up.
Cora Jackson, Prince
George's County Library.
[ Applause ]
Ashlie Price, Dorchester
County Library.
[ Applause ]
Nathalie Trouba, I don't
believe she is here,
but we wanted to announce her name.
She is from Prince
George's County Library.
[ Applause ]
Brynn Yates, Dorchester
County Library.
[ Applause ]
And the Maryland winner,
Isaac, Isis Marks-Hamilton,
Enoch Pratt Free Library.
[ Applause ]
>> Look at the camera for me.
Thanks a lot.
[ Applause ]
Alright, very good.
[ Applause ]
The next group is from Virginia.
[ Pause ]
Caroline Antonipallai,
Arlington Public Library.
[ Applause ]
Gavin Dent, Roanoke County Library.
[ Applause ]
Raquel Mondojana, Arlington
Public Library.
[ Applause ]
Udbhav Muthakana, Prince
William Public Library.
[ Applause ]
And the Virginia winner, Ananda
Kalukin, Arlington Public Library.
[ Applause ]
>> Alright, everybody hold up
their signs, their rewards please.
Good. Big smiles everybody.
Thank you.
[ Applause ]
>> The next group is from Delaware.
[ Pause ]
Madelyne Degnars, New Castle County.
[ Applause ]
Huda Kose from Newark Free Library.
[ Applause ]
Brendan Lewis, Dover Public Library.
[ Applause ]
Lucy Verlaque, Newark Free Library.
[ Applause ]
And the Delaware winner,
Sudha Anikumar.
[ Applause ]
>> Alright, everybody turn
towards me, big smiles.
Thank you.
[ Applause ]
>> Now here are the
finalists from Pennsylvania.
[ Pause ]
Amelia Cook, York County Library.
[ Applause ]
Carissa George, Free
Library of Springfield.
[ Applause ]
Bryce Greco, Hazelton Area Library.
[ Applause ]
Colton Steltzer is not here,
but he's from Westmoreland
County Library.
[ Applause ]
And the Pennsylvania winner is
Audrey Gehm, Butler County Library.
[ Applause ]
>> Okay, big smiles.
Thank you.
[ Applause ]
>> And finally, the group from
the great state of West Virginia.
[ Applause ]
[ Laughter ]
[ Pause ]
Addie Hughes, Martinsburg
Berkley County Library.
[ Applause ]
Beth Nichols who is not here,
she's from Rowan County Library.
[ Applause ]
Emma Samples from Southern
Area Library.
[ Applause ]
Zula Stenger is not here, but she's
also from Southern Area Library.
[ Applause ]
And the West Virginia
winner is Finnian Mungoven
from Martinsburg Berkley Library.
[ Applause ]
>> Alright, everybody come
in together a little bit.
Big smiles everybody.
Thank you.
[ Applause ]
>> Alright, let's have
one more big round
of applause for all the winners.
[ Applause ]
And I hope all of them
will keep reading
and keep writing cause
I read all the essays
and you all did a great job.
Now we will present the awards
for the grand prize winners.
John Cole will introduce them and
then I'll ask them a few questions
after they read their essays.
[ Pause ]
>> Thank you, thank you Fred.
Fred was you name right?
>> Yeah.
>> Yes, good.
Now we will present the awards as
Fred said to the grand prize winners
and I would like to
invite first to the stage
from Arlington Public Central
Library Caroline and Tony Paley
who wrote about "Matilda"
by Roald Dahl.
Caroline would you please come up.
Caroline is the third
place grand prize winner
and the Virginia state finalist.
Let's give her a hand.
[ Applause ]
Go right ahead.
>> It is bad enough when
parents treat ordinary children
as though they were
scabs and bunions,
but it becomes somehow a
lot worse when the child
in question is extraordinary.
The child in question is Matilda and
not only does she have a big part
in her story, she has
had a big part in mine.
How you wonder?
Reading "Matilda" gave
me a new perspective
about how different families work.
Secondly, Matilda showed
me a stronger reader
which inspired me to
start reading more.
One last way Matilda shaped me
is that she is self-motivated
and seeing that helped
me to do the same.
Your life is yours, no one life
is the same as another as I see
in the world around
me and in Matilda.
Matilda's parents are
self-centered resulting
in them having no time for Matilda.
At the end of the book, Matilda's
mom shows this by saying,
"Why don't we let her go
if that what she wants,
it'll be one less to look after."
Reading "Matilda" showed me
that sometimes the situation
isn't so great at home.
I figured that everyone had
parents at home to support them
so it gave me the respective
to better understand how kids
without parents to
support them live and feel.
Matilda is very fond
of Charles Dickens.
He makes her laugh a lot,
especially Mr. Pickwick.
It was funny to see a
5-year-old reading Charles Dickens
without having been in school yet.
When I read the book, I thought
it was cool that she was so good
at reading and all the other kids
were amazed at what she could do.
I originally didn't want to
read books above my grade level
because my teacher didn't want us
bringing other books into school,
but when I read "Matilda",
I felt like it would be okay
to read more challenging books.
Once I read "Matilda" I
started trying higher books,
it became really fun for
me and has shown me a lot
of really interesting books.
It is easy to follow a lead, but
it is challenging to be different
and create your own motivations.
Matilda always found it
easy to be motivated.
In the book, she solves
all her own problems.
For example, when her dad says
she can't get a book telling her,
"We've got a lovely telly
with a 12-inch screen
and now you come asking for a book!"
She finds the library
herself and goes to it.
She also solves a problem when
she figures out how to get rid
of the Trunchbull, the
prince of darkness.
I had no idea that reading "Matilda"
would later help me understand the
importance of being self-motivated.
Books can shape people
in many different ways
from altering your thinking
to changing the way you act.
Matilda has encouraged me to
read more, think differently
about families, and be
more self-motivated.
I read a lot of books, but
there are very few characters
that I actually connect with.
Matilda is one of them.
I feel like she is growing up
with me talking about new books
and still having a big influence.
[ Applause ]
>> Well first of all
that's a wonderful reading.
Are you going to be an actress?
I think you could do it.
Let's see, why do you
think you identified
so strongly with the "Matilda?"
>> Well, Matilda was one
of the first books I read,
so I probably just found that when I
was little I had strong connections
with her because we about the same
age when I first read the book.
>> Oh, okay.
Alright. And you said the book
made you see families differently,
now without giving away
any family secrets,
maybe how did it make you
see your family differently?
>> Well, I feel very lucky to
have parents that really love me
and brothers and sisters.
>> Wasn't that a softball
question for you?
And I was so.
I've done you a big favor.
Alright. Now you say you're a big
reader, what are reading these days?
>> Well, I love "The Land
of Stories" and I like
"The Sister Grimm series and I
really like fantasy and fiction.
>> Alright.
Terrific that was wonderful.
Thank you very much.
[ Applause ]
[ Background Sounds ]
>> Oh, metal, metal right?
>> Your award.
[ Applause ]
>> You get in the middle.
>> Excellent.
>> You were great.
>> Okay now?
Would Gavin Dent, Roanoke Public
County Public Library who wrote
about "Omaha Beach and
Beyond; The Long March
of Sergeant Bob Slaughter" by John
Robert Slaughter please come up.
Kevin is the second
place grand prize winner
and also a Virginia state finalist.
Let's give him a hand.
[ Applause ]
>> I often wonder what my classmates
think about when the Pledge
of Allegiance is said in school.
When people go to the grocery store
and see the American flag flying
in the parking lot, what
does it mean to them?
Do people notice the older man
at the restaurant wearing a hat
that says World War II vet on it?
After reading the book "Omaha
Beach and Beyond; The Long March
of Sergeant Bob Slaughter"
by John Robert Slaughter,
I think of the brave veterans of
World War II almost every day.
This book made me realize
how his generation
of men have affected my life.
This book is about Mr. Slaughter's
personal account as a soldier
in the D-Day invasion on Omaha
Beach, France during World War II.
Mr. Slaughter wrote, "Time
changed for me at that moment
and my life would never
be the same."
I feel none of our lives would
be what we know it if it were not
for what Mr. Slaughter
and the other soldiers did
and I am thankful for
these men every day.
Mr. Slaughter also wrote in his book
that he and many of the men did not
like to talk about
their experiences.
They felt like they did what
they were expected to do
and were not heroes, but
they are heroes in this world
and we might see them every
day without realizing it.
This book has intrigued
me to learn more
about history and the
world around me.
I am aware of more than school,
friends, and video games.
I have become active in my community
and in the 29th Infantry
Division Association.
I am grateful for other members
of my community and I am proud
of my community and country.
I strive to have the character
of these humble and brave men.
Reading this book is
why I stand proud to say
that Pledge of Allegiance.
If I had not read this
book, I might not think
of the battles our
flag been through.
This is why when I see a veteran
in the store or park or anywhere,
I hold out my hand to shake
theirs and say thank you.
[ Applause ]
>> Gavin that was wonderful.
Now I was curious when
I read the essay,
did anyone in your family
serve in World War II?
>> No.
>> Alright, did you know anyone who?
>> Yes.
>> Yes, who was that?
>> I know.
>> Alright.
Now what about, you mentioned the
29th Infantry Division Association,
could you explain a little bit
more about what that's about?
>> The 29th Infantry Division
Association is an association
that helps current
and former members
of the 89 Infantry
Division and their families.
>> Oh. Alright, and is, and you said
you've become involved with them.
>> Yes.
>> Alright, that's wonderful.
Now, have you had a chance to
visit the World War II Memorial?
>> Yes.
>> And what did you think of it?
>> I liked it.
>> You liked it.
Okay. I would think
somebody as interested
in World War II might
like it quite a bit.
Alright, well thank you very
much that was wonderful.
[ Applause ]
More pictures.
>> Big smiles everybody.
Very nice.
Thank you.
[ Applause ]
>> Our next winner, the first
place grand prize winner
and Virginia state winner, I would
like Ananda Kalukin there we go,
please to come back to the stage.
She wrote "Bird Songs Bible"
by Les Beletsky, and again,
we have another grand
prize winner from Virginia,
so congratulations Virginia.
[ Applause ]
I should point out also
that as here in the Library
of Congress we actually have the
letters that are printed up, it's a,
once you are able to find the
letter you can follow along
and so you recall that at the
beginning Fred greeted you
as young readers and
writers and guess what?
You're already writers
because we have your permission
and we are pleased to be able to
have the letters in this booklet,
so will you please go ahead.
>> Okay. Have you ever played
hide and seek with someone
who has a beak, two wings,
and a tiny red crown?
I did last September
at a nearby park.
That experience in the "Bird Songs
Bible" changed the way I feel
about nature and inspired
my love of birds.
One day last September,
despite my protest,
my parents turned off the
computer, dragged me down the stairs
and out the front door to
a small park for a walk.
As always, when I was in nature,
I felt bored with the
bland surroundings.
I stated kicking around the dirt
and stones scattered here and there,
suddenly there was a
rustling in the brush
and a tiny yellowish bird peeked
out; if vanished in a flash.
I tried to chase the bird as it
darted around the park to figure
out what it was eventually
it disappeared into a shrub.
I didn't see it again that visit.
When I returned home, I decided
to quickly satisfy my curiosity.
A friend had given me
the "Bird Songs Bible"
and enormous book I
never intended to read,
but just this once I carefully
took the book down from the shelf
and blew the dust off of it.
I flipped through the
pages to find a drawing
of the elusive creature I had
seen and I played bird calls
from the attached audio player.
I was shocked to discover how
many species he resembled.
Just as surprising,
where the hundreds
of birds he did not resemble.
I couldn't help appreciating
the many colorful, vibrant,
and lifelike illustrations
of all these birds.
Of course I couldn't figure out what
he was that easily, I would return
to the park many times with
my camera and binoculars
to play this game; one second
he was posing on a branch,
the next he would disappear
and then he teasing me as if
to say, "can you find me?"
or so it seemed.
Each time I consulted the
book with my blurry pictures,
I noticed there were so
much interesting information
on different species that was
astonishing, funny, and even sad.
For instance, the Artic Tern
migrates over 12,000 miles
from the North to South Pole
and back again every year.
Did you know that the Green Heron
fishes using bread or worms as bait?
Hawaii at one time a tropical
paradise has lost most
of its native bird species.
I enjoy telling other people
about facts like these.
One day I pointed my
camera into the trees
as my frenemy flitted effortlessly
through them then he
stopped and winked at me.
I held my breath and took a picture.
He let me get a clear,
prize winning photograph
of him among the yellow leaves
sweetly peering down at me
from the highest branches.
In case you're wondering, using the
"Bird Songs Bible" identified
him as a Ruby-crown Kinglet.
I checked him off the checklist
in the back of the book
and for fun I decided to check off
all the other birds I had seen.
I realized how few North
American birds I had seen
and I knew I wanted to see more.
I urged my parents
to take me to parks,
gardens, and wildlife refuges.
I took my camera and binoculars too.
I returned from outings excitedly
poring over my bird guides
to identify the birds I had seen,
update the checklist, and learn more
about the fascinating lives
of these beautiful creatures.
So far, I have seen and
photographed over 90 bird species.
My ambition is to explore the
hottest desert to the coldest tundra
in North America to see all the
birds of the "Bird Songs Bible."
Maybe someday, I can save some
bird species from extinction.
Nature isn't boring after
all, it's filled with color
and song my bird book and
a little bird told me.
[ Applause ]
>> Well, thank you.
That's just a wonderful
essay and a perfect example
of how books change people.
So, I'm curious about
a couple of things,
where do you usually go birding?
>> Well, I've been to many places.
I mean we go to parks near our
house like, there's a place
like a mile maybe half a
mile away from our house.
>> What's the furthest you've
gone to go bird watching?
>> Well, when we take trips
sometimes I go up to Massachusetts.
>> Ah.
>> We'll do a birding trip there.
>> Now, you said that at the time
of the essay you had identified
or photographed 90 different birds.
Have you increased
that total lately?
>> Yeah, I have 97 now.
>> Okay. Alright, now how
many birds are in the book,
I mean how many birds
do you have to go?
>> I think like 700 something.
>> Ah, so you have a, quite a,
quite a job in front of you.
Alright. Yeah, one of
the things I was curious,
do you're other friends
enjoy birding?
Have you gotten friends
to go along with you?
>> Yeah! I have.
>> Oh, really?
Okay. How many of them
have you taken along?
>> Oh, 1 or 2.
>> Oh, okay great and they're
getting interested too?
>> Yes.
>> Okay, well maybe someday you can
give me a call, I'd to go along.
You make it sound so interesting.
Well, thank you very much.
Everyone did just a wonderful job.
[ Applause ]
[ Background Conversation ]
>> Big smiles everybody.
Great. Thank you.
[ Pause ]
>> Well, thank you all very much.
This is, again, for someone
who promotes reading you know
for a living this has really
been an inspiring session,
and we aren't done yet.
Before we give a final thank you to
all of our finalists and our readers
and our speakers, let me outline
what else is in store for you here
at the Library of Congress.
We're going to have a brief,
some more photos, hey surprise.
We're going to have a period of some
refreshments and then we are going
to be offering a brief
tour to everybody
of this most beautiful
library building in the world.
Before I release you though for
the refreshments and the tour,
we are going to have a group
picture in the back of the room
of everybody together it's about the
only combination we haven't gotten
yet, but that will be good, but
I also want to, and will happen
after the refreshment period
our guides will appear,
these are docent guides
who will take you around
and everything is color-coded.
They will call your groups by
the color based on the stickers
that you received in the check-in,
now isn't that clever and tricky?
So, check you colors.
I'll tell you roughly
what will happen.
This building, I'm going to give you
just another 3 minute history lesson
to make you appreciate
the building a bit.
The first Library of Congress
was actually in the capitol.
We were created in 1800 when
our country was created.
The capitol was still
in Philadelphia
and congress wanted
books from the beginning
and so money was appropriated
and the very first Library
of Congress was in the capitol
building while it was being built,
but the big problem was
the British came along
and burned the whole
thing down in 1814.
Thomas Jefferson had been the
president during that period
and we all know that he
loved books and reading,
so he nurtured this little library
so when he read from Monticello
that it had been destroyed,
he not only was unhappy,
he decided to do something about it
and he offered to sell his library
which covered all the subjects
that you could imagine;
a comprehensive library that
included even bird watching to back
to the Library of Congress
to start it in.
So, we started again in the capitol
and Jefferson's 6000 books were
in the capitol and the basis of
it, but then there was a fire
in the capitol in 1851 and 2/3 of
Jefferson's books were destroyed.
After the Civil War though the
Library of Congress started to build
up again and flexed its muscle and
wanted to show off American writers
and figures and congress approved
the first separate building
for the Library of Congress
and that's because in order
to build the collections
a very smart Librarian
of Congress centralized copyright at
the library which meant we got two,
had the right to two free copies
of not just books and pamphlets,
but music and maps and photographs
which later became movies,
so what happened was we gradually
because of the collection overflow,
had to build this building
which you're going to see
and by then we were getting proud
of America and decided to try
to show Europe that our
culture was just as good and to
out Europe-Europe by building this
building between 1886 and 1897.
So, when you go outside you're going
to see magnificent marble hallways
and lots of really embellishments
or paintings and sculpture
and quotations, lots of the
quotations are about reading
and their importance and books and
their importance and we started
to be happy about American
writers and so way up in some
of the ceilings every once
in a while you'll see a name
of an American instead
of Shakespeare,
well Shakespeare is there,
but you'll also see James
Fenimore Cooper, you know,
and other Americans are in the
building and so we're proud
of this building which
indeed did out Europe-Europe
and made American culture proud
of itself and it turned out though
that it was a building that was
so open, so popular when it opened
in 1897 that 4700 tourists came
the very first holiday just
to see how beautiful this building
was and to be proud of America
and Americans who helped
with this building,
and so we today are still
the library that's both
for the congress, but like
Thomas Jefferson wanted,
also open to all the American people
and because congress has okayed all
of this expansion, they've also
okayed an international role for us
because once the Internet came
along and we digitized and scanned
so many things, our
collections are available
and our catalogs are available
around the world, so when you go out
and see this beautiful building
you also will have a chance
to see Thomas Jefferson's
library, remember that?
I said it was burned when
we were in the capitol,
but when we were 200 years
old in the year 2000,
Dr. Billington whom I
mentioned earlier decided
to help celebrate our
200th birthday,
we would recreate Thomas
Jefferson's library
and well you'll see it now it's
almost completely recreated
in a beautiful space, and so
it truly is the intellectual
and practical heart of
the Library of Congress
because we also use Thomas
Jefferson's classification system.
Among his other things, he
was not only a bird watcher,
he was a librarian and he developed
a classification system, so that's,
when you go to the, out in the
building think of that history
and think of the history of our
country and how proud we are
of this national and
international institution.
Now, we're done, but we're going
to conclude with another round
of applause before you go
back for the photo to the back
and let's just say thank you again
to our wonderful young
writers and readers.
[ Applause ]
>> This has been a presentation
of the Library of Congress.
Visit us at loc.gov.