Recreational Reads Available Through New OverDrive Subscription

Looking for your next great read? Northeastern University Library is proud to announce our new OverDrive platform, which offers a dynamic collection of e-books and audiobooks to all members of the Northeastern community. Enjoy curated selections of new fiction, popular nonfiction, classic works, and audiobooks.

You can explore the full OverDrive collection at northeasternuni.overdrive.com. We’re adding new materials all the time, so be sure to check back frequently! Northeastern’s OverDrive platform connects seamlessly to the free Libby app for iOS and Android, which allows you to place holds, check out books, and read or listen on your tablet or smartphone. If you’re a member of a public library that supports Libby, you can quickly switch between library accounts to maximize your reading experience.

E-books and audiobooks in the OverDrive collection are also linked directly from Scholar OneSearch, our library catalog, so you can do all your searching in one place!

Users are currently able to check out three titles at a time for up to two weeks, and can place a maximum of three simultaneous holds. When accessing materials on OverDrive, you’ll be prompted to log in with your Northeastern/Mills or NCH London credentials.

Northeastern’s OverDrive instance replaces our previous membership to the SAILS OverDrive platform, and allows Northeastern librarians greater control over the materials in the collection. This means that we’re able to respond to your requests! If there’s something you’d like to see in the library’s collection, just fill out the Recommend a Purchase form to let us know.

Here are some recommended reads to help you get started…

The cover of the book Persuasion by Jane Austen


Persuasion: The recent Netflix adaptation of this Jane Austen novel may have been a bit of a flop, but the original story is a classic for a reason. Austen’s final work is a romantic meditation on love and duty.




The cover of Book Lovers by Emily Henry



Book Lovers: This New York Times bestseller is a love letter to books and reading, and a romance between two very different—but maybe not so different?—readers.




The cover of Between Two Kingdoms by Suleika Jaouad

Between Two Kingdoms: At twenty two, Suleika Jaouad has just graduated from college and has her whole life ahead of her. Then, without warning, she’s diagnosed with leukemia. But this is not a book about surviving cancer. It’s a book about what comes after: learning to live in the world again.

Library Welcomes New First-Year Experience Librarians

Rachel Landis and Tamara Uhaze

This spring the Library welcomed First Year Experience Librarians Rachel Landis and Tamara Uhaze. Their goal is to help new Northeastern students with their transition to college research. They also plan events for first-year students to network with one another and familiarize themselves with the library and all it has to offer. Some events they are planning for this fall include a movie screening and trivia night. Keep an eye out for them on the library calendar!

Rachel graduated with her MLIS from Drexel University and previously worked in the libraries at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Virginia. In her free time, you’ll find Rachel reading thrillers, trying new restaurants around Boston, or hanging out with her two-year-old Beagle-mix, Leo. Tamara received her MLS from Texas Woman’s University and previously worked at The College of New Jersey as a librarian.  Tamara spends her time gardening, watching the latest movies, and checking out the museums in Boston.

Be sure to find the library’s table at Fall Fest on Tuesday September 6th. Rachel and Tamara will be there to answer your questions about the library and to facilitate a fun game where you have the chance to win a gift card. During Welcome Week, the library is also offering tours on Wednesday September 7th and Thursday September 8th departing at 1 and 1:30 p.m. from the lobby of Snell Library. 

Library Adds New York Times, Financial Times to Growing Online Newspaper Collection

The Northeastern University Library is very pleased to announce that the New York Times and Financial Times are now available to the Northeastern community through their publishers’ websites.

The New York Times is America’s most influential newspaper. In addition to daily news from the city of New York, it is best known for its extensive political coverage of the United States, international news, and in-depth focus on books, arts, and culture.

Northeastern’s subscription includes all the newspaper’s journalism, from today’s breaking news to full archival coverage (with digital images of the newspaper) back to 1980. Users can read and participate in comments, view data visualizations, and access video journalism and podcasts. To read on your phone, use the New York Times app on Apple or Google Play. Up to 10 articles per month can be shared gratis with non-subscribers.

Individual registration with your Northeastern (or New College of the Humanities-London) email is required. Current Northeastern faculty, staff, and students are eligible for access. Learn more and register for the New York Times.

The Financial Times is London-based and is also international in scope. From its roots as a business newspaper, it has grown to include political, economic, and cultural news. Northeastern’s subscription includes both the International and UK editions. The Financial Times tracks global markets, offers extensive coverage of business management and marketing news and trends worldwide, and hosts subject-focused newsletters, podcasts, and live conferences.

For classroom use, instructors can easily create reading lists to share with students. In addition, up to 20 “gift articles” per month can be shared with non-subscribers. A Financial Times app is available on Apple and Google Play.

Individual registration with your Northeastern (or New College of the Humanities-London) email is required. Current Northeastern faculty, staff, and students are eligible for access. Learn more and register for the Financial Times.

These two news sites join the hundreds of daily newspapers from Access World News and PressReader, as well as the Economist, the Wall Street Journal, Foreign Policy, and more, in the library’s growing collection of news sources from around the world. These highly requested newspapers meet the information needs of an increasingly global Northeastern.

Learn more about accessing newspapers through the Northeastern University Library on our News and Newspapers Guide.

This post was written with Roxanne Palmatier, Christine Oka, and Brooke Williams.

New Librarian Dedicated to Improving Library Accessibility

A smiling person with long brown hair and glasses wearing a white button-down shirt and a dress with avocado cats stands outside.

Hello! I’m Anaya Jones and I’m very excited to join Northeastern University as the Accessibility & Online Learning Librarian.

I became interested in scalable information literacy instruction at Mary Baldwin University. Building on that knowledge, I joined Southern New Hampshire University. Here at Northeastern, I’m joining an established team of online learning librarians who support students around the world. Depending on where you are and what you’re studying, you just might see me in a workshop, a research guide, or in your Canvas course.

A big part of my personal philosophy is that accessibility plays an integral role in librarianship and education. Our world is largely designed for non-disabled people, and this creates barriers for folks with disabilities. Access to information and services are at the core of the work librarians do in a wide range of roles and contexts. It’s important to me that our dedication to access extends to accessibility. Contributing to an accessible world is the ethical thing to do — but accessibility doesn’t happen accidentally. I’m at the Northeastern University Library to collaboratively remove accessibility barriers.

Everyone shares the responsibility to increase accessibility. Think about the things you can do to make your corner of the world more accessible:

  • Use Microsoft’s Accessibility Checker in Outlook, Word, and PowerPoint
  • Make your social media posts accessible by:
    • including alt-text for images
    • avoiding overusing emojis, symbols, or capitalized letters
    • use CamelCase for hashtags
    • edit auto-generated alt-text and captions
    • use inclusive language and gender-neutral pronouns
  • When working on new projects, ask about access for people with disabilities. How does your app work with a screen reader? Can you navigate that website with a keyboard? How will a person in a wheelchair access that new building? You don’t have to know everything to ask good questions.
Two adorable brown, white, and black dogs sit together in a blue chair, looking ready for you to pet them
Mordecai and Moxxi

This isn’t all there is to increasing accessibility, but it will help! If you experience barriers with Northeastern University Library resources or tools, let us know using the Report a Problem form.

Thanks for reading this far! I hail from Southern California and also lived in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley for 10 years. I earned my Master of Library and Information Science degree from Drexel University. Last year, I earned my International Association of Accessibility Professionals (IAAP) Certified Professional in Accessibility Core Competencies (CPACC) certification. I spend all my free time thinking about and petting my ridiculously adorable dogs Mordecai and Moxxi.

Art and Organized Action in the Context of the AIDS Crisis

A group of protestors hold signs criticizing George HW Bush and demanding AIDS prevention and resources.
“ACT Up members protest George Bush’s response to AIDS,” ca. 1990-1999 ACT Up (Robert Folan Johnson) collection. Northeastern University Archives and Special Collections.

Nearly 30 years removed from the peak of the AIDS crisis, it is difficult for many young queer individuals to imagine not only the fear, but also the organized action that occurred throughout the LGBTQ+ community to rally support for those affected. The 1980s and ’90s especially were filled with opportunities for many within the community to find solace in one another and find their voices to try to change things and improve the lives of those dying from AIDS as well as those who had survived the infection.

But what happened to generate the steadfast work toward saving the lives of those affected by AIDS, or those who have been historically more susceptible to its spread? What finally pushed not only the government to authorize such work, but also pharmaceutical companies to pursue solutions?

Northeastern’s Archives and Special Collections (NUASC) holds a trove of valuable archival collections documenting the organizing efforts of the queer community in Boston during the ’80s and ’90s. The ACT UP/Boston (David Stitt) and ACT UP/Boston (Raymond Schmidt and Stephen Skuce) collections provide information on demonstrations and organizing by ACT UP (AIDS Coalition To Unleash Power). Administrative records exist alongside protest ephemera that can give present-day researchers an idea of the common talking points and demands that were being made regarding AIDS treatment and medication throughout the country at this time.

A bright orange ticket with VIOLATION on the right side. On the left it reads "TO OFFENDER: Reported violence against queers increased by 75% in Boston last year. What was the role of the Boston police in addressing this crime wave? Five serious anti-gay police incidents have been reported since September, and 11% of lesbians and 20% of gay men report being harrased or physically assaulted by POLICE OFFICERS. This notice serves to remind police serving the people of Boston of your responsibility to all citizens regardless of race, sex, or sexual orientation. We are SICK AND TIRED of being beaten up by the police, and we won't be silent. Are you part of the problem, or part of the solution? Failure to reform the police may subject Boston to queer rage." The address is "The Queer Nation, Every House, Every Street, Every City, Every Country."
“Ticket issued by Queer Nation against Boston Police Department,” ca. 1990-1999. ACT UP Boston (Robert Folan Johnson) collection, Northeastern University Archives and Special Collections.

The ACT UP collections are also special because they display the intersection of art and organizing in ways that emphasize the importance of artists being involved in social movements. A striking example is this ticket issued to the Boston Police Department by the group Queer Nation, citing statistics of violence committed by individuals and the BPD against the LGBTQ+ community. Utilizing an item that so many recognize instantly, such as a parking citation, and subverting its purpose to convey information about the institution that issues such citations allowed organizers to gain attention and critically engage the public.

A drawing of three outlined people - one covering their eyes, one covering their ears, and one covering their mouth in the "see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil" sign, with a question mark in the center. Around the edge, it reads "Is this the policy of the AIDS Action Committee"
“Is this the policy of the AIDS Action Committee?” Front page, ca. 1990. AIDS Action Committee, Inc., records, Northeastern University Archives and Special Collections.

Keith Haring, who has become a symbol of not only the AIDS crisis organizing but queer culture in general, is also present in NUASC’s collections, providing art that emphasized the AIDS Action Committee’s inaction from the perspective of the LGBTQ+ community. Haring’s art is often associated with queer joy and the nuance of queer experience. Seeing Haring’s familiar figures put into conversation with a demand for more action from within the queer community is a unique contrast.

June is a month to celebrate LGBTQ+ individuals and reflect on the past. To learn more about the social organizations working for justice for those with AIDS in Boston, NUASC’s Digital Repository Service and digital exhibition Boston’s LGBTQA+ History are great places to start.

Sources
“ACT UP members protest George Bush’s response to AIDS.” ACT UP Boston (Robert Folan Johnson) collection (Z15-005). University Library Archives and Special Collections Department.
“Ticket issued by Queer Nation against Boston Police Department.” ACT UP Boston (Robert Folan Johnson) collection (Z15-005). University Library Archives and Special Collections Department.
“Is this the policy of the AIDS Action Committee?.” AIDS Action Committee of Massachusetts, Inc., records (M61). University Library Archives and Special Collections Department.