Appropriate since snakes do not have arms.

Currently advertising two fixed term parental leave posts: Special Collections Librarian (13 months; £43,622-£49,097 - closes 9 March) and Special Collections Assistant (6 months; £30,508-£33,096 - closes 7 April). It's a great chance to work with a brilliant collection jobs.joh.cam.ac.uk

Something nasty on the bookshelf: my review of @tanyakirk.bsky.social's collection of stories about books and libraries for @blpublishing.bsky.social, ‘The Haunted Library’ drfrancisyoung.com/2026/03/04/s... 📚👻

Job Opportunity! We're looking for a Graduate Trainee Librarian #libraryjob www.trin.cam.ac.uk/vacancies/gr...

Job Opportunity! We're looking for a Graduate Trainee Archivist. #archives www.trin.cam.ac.uk/vacancies/gr...

Very good reporting on the situation at the British Library by Claudia Cockerell in The Evening Standard. Appreciate the time and care taken to investigate and explain it all. I believe Library workers on the ground are prompting much-needed culture change there. www.standard.co.uk/news/london/...

It's wild that there appears to be more current concern for the Lost Library of Alexandria than for the British Library. The BL's crisis exemplifies the accelerating destruction--through apathy as much as by design--of human knowledge & learning. I'm not even being dramatic.

Nolo Mortem Peccatoris (& @tanyakirk.bsky.social!) www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/202...

I’ve written a piece on the curious lack of media and political interest in the issues faced by our national @britishlibrary.bsky.social. This is strange given we live in a world where ideas, knowledge and research are a long-term source of innovation and insight www.cityam.com/the-british-...

This headline ticks all the boxes for me.

Cursed shelves and ghoulish libraries... 👻 Dive into fourteen tales featuring bewitched books in The Haunted Library, for lovers of the weird and the written word. Available now: shop.bl.uk/products/the-haunted-library-tales-of-cursed-books-and-forbidden-shelves

Book mail: November Tales of the Weird from @blpublishing.bsky.social The Haunted Library edited by @tanyakirk.bsky.social This is not a new version of the original Haunted Library book they published (see post 2), but there are some crossover stories #weird #horror #library #books 🩸📚💙

am reminded of the old joke: what did James Watson discover? Rosalind Franklin’s notes.

Calling English a 'rip-off degree' is one of the most blatant exhibitions of personal barbarism I've ever seen. You've demonstrated nothing but the poverty of your own mind.

I couldn't resist. #pleasingterror

The Haunted Library is out on 13 November! This is a collection of classic bookish ghost stories. Thanks @blpublishing.bsky.social for letting me moonlight even though I’ve left the BL

Over the weekend, the world's richest man appeared on screens in central London to call for a race war and for the UK government to be overthrown. No arrests were made in connection with that communication.

Entirely agree.

This, from the Quakers, is a pretty good example of how to resist pressure from bigot lobbying groups. Effectively “we legally can allow trans people to use the loo, we morally should, and we tried it and nothing bad happened”

I want to write a new blogpost, academic pals! What’s your best advice for sustaining your motivation as an early career scholar, post PhD, without institutional affiliation? How can you feel supported in carrying on with your work? And what can those of us lucky enough to have jobs do to help?

Very excited for this!

hello. if you work at a university please ask your library to buy my book. it is all about books and libraries and also plants, museums, the Royal Society, and the ways we learn. I think it will be interesting to lots of people, hopefully. thank you www.cambridge.org/gb/universit...

Exciting heritage science project using St John’s special collections!

This discussion of Sylvia Townsend Warner's 'The Corner That Held Them' is fabulous! (And it's great to hear @tanyakirk.bsky.social on the show again.) The earlier Backlisted episode on STW's 'Lolly Willows' was terrific too. May we please have a discussion on STW's 'Kingdoms of Elfin' next?

Nonstop nuns on the new episode of @backlisted.bsky.social, in which we discuss "The Corner that Held Them" by Sylvia Townsend Warner. With fellow postulants Tanya Kirk and Andy Miller, and Mother Superior Nicky Birch. @tanyakirk.bsky.social @iammilliam.bsky.social www.backlisted.fm/episodes/242...

New episode up now. The Corner That Held Them by Sylvia Townsend Warner, with Tanya Kirk in conversation with Andy Miller, Una McCormack and Nicky Birch. An hour of Mother Superior book chat. @tanyakirk.bsky.social @unamccormack.bsky.social @iammilliam.bsky.social www.backlisted.fm/episodes/242...

So many nuns, so much fun. I had a brilliant time recording this; thanks so much Andy, Una and Nicky

📢Dream job alert! 🚨 You could lead our small & friendly team at the Antics and work with one of ✨the best✨ special collections in the country! Happy to answer informal questions about SAL / the library. Please share amongst your networks of #library, #archives & #heritage professionals! 👇

Reposting for the Monday crowd!

Exciting job opportunity to become St John's College's Special Collections Librarian www.joh.cam.ac.uk/special-coll... - permanent post, salary £41,944-£47,208 (depending on experience) plus benefits. Working with a great collection and a friendly team. @ciliprarebooks.bsky.social #LibraryJobs

We are hiring at St John's! We have an opening for an Early Career Librarian post, 3 year fixed term, salary £27,786, and as part of the role the College will pay the successful candidate's fees and give them day release to undertake a Masters' degree in Librarianship. www.joh.cam.ac.uk/vacancies

unplugged from work. armchair in a strange and unfamiliar old building. owls, bats and a yawning dog nearby. fireplace and fuel. whisky, and a beautiful new book… Let’s go. 🙏 @tanyakirk.bsky.social

Attention Cambridge friends

@calfraser.bsky.social thanks for the follow! Just wanted to say I loved Prairie Fires! A great book.

If you're a fan of a creepy Christmas tale and you're local to London, you might fancy coming to see me and Jess Starr from Jarndyce Antiquarian Booksellers, chatting about the publishing history of ghost stories on 10 December ies.sas.ac.uk/events/conve...

Christmas just ain’t Christmas without @tanyakirk.bsky.social’s three volumes of dark arts and crafts from British Library Publishing. @backlisted.bsky.social

Today is #TransDayofRemembrance. A day to mourn all our trans siblings lost to transphobia. It is also a day of action and education so that one day the list of those we have lost does not grow year on year. Below is a short list of some basic educational resources on trans activism.

Interested in Recruitment and Interviews for #Neurodiverse #Library workers? Have a look at the Recruitment and Interviews Report on the NLISN website here: nlisn.org/outputs/ #Neurodiversity #Neurodiverse #accessible #accessibility #autistic #dyslexic #dyscalculia #Dyspraxia

I am trying, for a whole variety of reasons, to compile a comprehensive list of Published Authors Who Are Le Guin Admirers, and this is a surprisingly hard thing to compile—so if you fit the bill and would like to raise your hand, I would be delighted. (Nothing nefarious, I promise!)

The absolute best #JacobinDay of them all ❤️🐰

@neilhimself.neilgaiman.com after we chatted about fountain pens in the British Library green room I’ve fallen down a Pilot rabbit hole and now own a Custom 823 (from the amazing Choosing Keeping; I said hi from you) and a secondhand capless/Vanishing Point. No regrets. 🖋️

A fun interview with Story Radio about Fantasy: Realms of Imagination recorded at the end of last year - @tanyakirk.bsky.social and I talk about the ideas behind the exhibition, its design and its reception. If you haven't made it to the British Library yet, the exhibition runs until Feb 25th.

Inordinately excited about this. If like me you can’t make the British library Fantasy exhibition in London you can go to this and lots of other talks online

There's a digital book launch for Realms of Imagination on Thursday December 14th (6pm-7:30pm GMT), featuring @tanyakirk.bsky.social, Cristina Bacchilega, @dimitrafimi.bsky.social, Sofia Samatar, @annvandermeer.bsky.social and myself - hope to see you there!: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/realms-of-....

asking for an image of a professor and asking to make it "more professor", a thread.

JOB: There’s a 12-month Research Associate post associated with my AHRC project on the history of book forgery. Deadline soon: 21 November. Details here: www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DDU783/r... Always happy to receive informal questions via email.

It was a really exciting book to put together - Tanya and I were continuously delighted as amazing new essays arrived. Very much looking forward to others being able to read and enjoy them!