It is, of course, a good and necessary thing to have a break from study if you are able to over the holiday season. We’ve had some ideas on here before of good ways to wind down, but if you’re scared that once you stop you’ll never get going again you might still want a library-related project to work on to keep the momentum going.

My two suggestions are “This Book is Overdue!” by Marilyn Johnson – a selection of stories of innovation and dare-doing by library people – and “Revolting Librarians” – a collection of poems, stories, and articles from the library underground of the 70s.

You could spend a few hours learning to make a website or learning java, or anything else you might not have covered (or going to be) in your course.

Have a look at the LibraryBox project and build your own – you don’t need experience. It has a variety of uses ranging from providing information in emergency situations to enabling private and secure sharing of files amongst friends.

If you’re feeling very practical you can even make your own home office and get really organised for your next term of study.

Visit some local libraries and think about how things are from the other side of the desk. Use the library. Find out what services it offers, think about what’s missing. Putting yourself in the place of the library user can really help you think about what you need to do as library staff.

And then, just take a break. Forget about library things and relax. Happy hols.