Disability History Month runs from 14th November until 20th December 2024 and the theme is Disability, Livelihood and Employment this year. In our job as trainees, many of us create book displays for our libraries. Take a look at the displays for Disability History Month (DHM) in the Social Science Library (SSL), the Bodleian Law Library and the New College Library.
Social Science Library – Gia Simmons
As this month is Disability History Month, one of my colleagues and I have put together a display of books surrounding this year’s theme, Disability, Livelihood and Employment. In addition to creating the book display, I also followed in the footsteps of my SSL trainee predecessor and created an updated ORLO reading list. On this reading list, you can find titles linked to this year’s theme, as well as other resources about disability history more generally.
While putting this display together, I first had to look to our collections to see what books we had in the SSL that were on theme and also appropriate for the display. As we are the Social Science Library, the books in our display are mainly academic social science books. While selecting my books, I was looking at both their content and physical appearance (because, in reality, we all do gravitate towards pretty books!)
Once I figured out how many physical books and eBooks to include, I had to pull them from our shelves and make sure that they were the right fit. For instance, I checked that they were on topics that were relevant to the theme as well as ensuring that the texts contained up to date information. Once I was happy with the books that I selected, I then had to create the visual elements to go along with them. This included a poster, a display for our screen behind the issue desk, bookmarks that indicated whether a book was loanable or library use only and also a blog post for the SSL blog. A lot of work goes in to our book displays here at the SSL!
I followed the theme for DHM quite closely while selecting the books and used the title of this year’s theme as the key words in my search terms. While searching SOLO, I first looked to titles that were physically in the SSL and then to the Collections Storage Facility. Once I had chosen a few titles that were on theme or very closely linked to the theme, I moved on to select titles which covered other topics in disability history. Of course, some titles are only available via eBook, so I had to decide how best to display those. For this, I adapted a pre-existing template that I frequently use to create our new eBook displays in the SSL. This includes the cover of the book, as well as a QR code that brings readers to the SOLO record.
In my post for the SSL blog, I also included links to other important online resources that have been created in previous years by other colleagues around the Bodleian and the wider University community. For instance, I linked a reading list on understanding disability on ORLO which was created by a joint team of staff across the Bodleian Libraries, College Libraries and the Oxford Union Library. It covers a range of topics from ‘Disability and the Law’ to ‘Neurodivergence’.
I also linked the Disability History Resources LibGuide, which contains a great deal of information. This guide was created by the 2022-23 History Faculty Library trainee as part of a year-long project. The resources within were crowdsourced during a Hackathon by 24 volunteer researchers in 2022.
New College Library – Jess Pascal
Normally when I’m putting together a book display, I’ll go for a walk around the library to look for inspiration under the shelfmarks associated with the theme of the display. However, disability history is so spread out across different subjects that I tried a different approach with this display, and began by searching online. My starting point was the Disability History Resources LibGuide, which provided a list of introductory sources and directions to more extensive reading lists with suggested books that I could then look for in my library.
When choosing books, I tried to cover a range of types of disability, as well as a range of time periods. I picked out as many personal stories from the biography section of the library as possible, as biographies and autobiographies are a relatively approachable form of non-fiction, and I felt it was important to include as many disabled people’s own voices as I could. One difficult decision was whether to use books that contain terms that could be considered offensive to disabled people. I ultimately decided to include the books I was concerned about, as I felt it was clear based on context that the terms they used were being reclaimed by disabled people themselves, and it felt wrong to censor them.
Finally, I had to make a sign, which is one of the most fun parts of putting together a book display, giving me the chance to get a bit creative. I designed the sign around the disability pride flag, because it’s colourful and eye-catching while still being meaningful and relevant to the subject of the display. I made sure to use high-contrast text and a clear, readable font so that it would be as accessible as possible. I always include a reminder that books on the display can be borrowed – it isn’t just there to look pretty!
Books used:
Adam, David. The man who couldn’t stop : the truth about OCD. London: Picador, 2015.
Bauby, Jean-Dominique. The Diving-Bell and the Butterfly. London: 4th Estate, 2019.
Girma, Haben. Haben : The Deafblind Woman Who Conquered Harvard Law. New York: Twelve, 2019.
Hanes, Roy, Ivan Brown, and Nancy E. Hansen, eds. The Routledge History of Disability. London: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, 2018.
Kafer, Alison. Feminist, Queer, Crip. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press, 2013.
Keller, Helen et al. The Miracle of a Life : The Autobiography of Helen Keller. London, New York: Hodder and Stoughton, 1909.
Metzler, Irina. Disability in Medieval Europe : Thinking about Physical Impairment during the High Middle Ages, c. 1100-1400. London: Routledge, 2010.
Ryan, Frances. Crippled : Austerity and the Demonization of Disabled People. London: Verso, 2019.
Shakespeare, Tom. Disability : The Basics. London: Routledge, 2018.
Shakespeare, Tom. Disability Rights and Wrongs Revisited. 2nd edition. London: Routledge, 2014.
Silberman, Steve. Neurotribes : The Legacy of Autism and How to Think Smarter about People Who Think Differently. Paperback edition. London: Allen & Unwin, 2016.
Turner, David M. Disability in Eighteenth-Century England : Imagining Physical Impairment. Abingdon: Routledge, 2017.
Wong, Alice, ed. Disability Visibility : First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century. New York: Vintage Books, 2020.
Bodleian Law Library – Hannah Richmond
With just over half a million volumes on our shelves here at the Law Library, you would think finding items for display would be easy. Despite the hefty collection, however, finding items that are relevant whilst being varied enough to offer a range of perspectives has proven to be a tricky (but extremely rewarding) part of curating displays. Mainly, I am aiming to put the spotlight on pieces of the collection that readers (and sometimes staff) might not be familiar with.
A good way to start is by identifying some keywords to pop onto SOLO. Although this isn’t how I usually find some of the more interesting items, it helps me get an idea of whereabouts in the library I should be looking. I always check official websites early in the process to see if there is a particular focus for the year. In this case it is ‘Disability, Livelihood and Employment’, with UK Disability History Month raising awareness of both the history of employment within disabled communities as well as the barriers still faced by many disabled individuals seeking employment today. I’d recommend checking their website for some really informative resources on the topic, as well as past years’ themes.
I make a list of potential options before embarking on a hunt around the library. This is my favourite part as I often discover really interesting books that weren’t suggested on SOLO, usually because the keywords aren’t in the title. Sadly, this is also where I have to cut some books from the list as I don’t have the space to display everything. For this one, I originally had 30 titles on my list (not including the ones I pick up along the way) but I managed to reduce it to 17.
Accessibility is always a crucial factor in curating a display and is something
I aim to improve on throughout the year. Fonts and colours used for any posters should be chosen with everyone in mind, factoring in readers who may have dyslexia or sight impairments, for example. Positioning is also something I try to be aware of. I tend to use the middle shelves and avoid placing heavier items higher up. Having a Disability Liaison check your display and always being receptive to feedback from staff and/or students are two really helpful ways to strive for accessibility improvement.
I like to include QR codes in my displays. Just print them out and put them with the relevant item so readers can go directly to the SOLO link. This allows them to view related texts and/or view the shelfmark for future use. One tip is to save the QR codes and print them out on a sheet, which can then be added to a ‘QR code booklet’ kept beside your exhibition space. This grants your display some degree of permanence and allows readers to browse past displays and gain easy access to any of the texts that pique their interest.
Some titles currently on display in the Law Library include ‘Ableism at Work: Disablement and Hierarchies of Impairment’, ‘Deaf People in the Criminal Justice System: Selected Topics on Advocacy, Incarceration, and Social Justice’, ‘The Disabled Contract: Severe Intellectual Disability, Justice and Morality’, and ‘Discrimination, Copyright, and Equality: Opening the E-Book for the Print-disabled’. You can browse the full list here: DHM
