Assignment 1
"Borderlands" by Jennifer Brannen
I think Brannen makes some very good points about the relationships between fiction and nonfiction in RA. I enjoy reading nonfiction, particularly what is termed narrative, and have often recommended titles to customers. However, I don't know why it didn't occur to me that someone who enjoys certain types of fiction (such as Brannen illustrates) may also enjoy a similar 'story' in the nonfiction section. I hope to put these ideas into practice on the desk.
"Reading Nonfiction for Pleasure" by Catherine S. Ross
Ross advises that when doing RA, it's important to really understand what the person is looking for by doing an effective reference interview with them and not to make assumptions. I agree that sometimes it's easy to immediately want to lead a customer to a particular book or genre based on the first thing that he/she tells you. However, it's important to go beyond that initial comment to find out what they really want. I also found it interesting that during her research, many people responded that not being able to read would affect them profoundly in a negative way. I have to agree that I can't imagine my life without the ability to read or the materials to read.
Assignment 2
I viewed Pratt's Nonfiction RA video by Richard Oloizia and found it overall to be very helpful. I think the 16 types of narrative nonfiction he lists are pretty comprehensive and useful. I also thought it was interesting the he not only listed 16 Appeal Factors but had separate lists of Author Appeal, "Lack of Appeal" and Appeal for Non-fiction. It seems like a lot to know or to try and go through (at least in your mind) when doing at RA for someone interested in nonfiction.
Assignment 3
History (900's, depending on era) Stealing Lincoln's Body by Thomas Craughwell, 973.7092 C
Travel (also 900's, usually lower numbers) A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson, 917.4 B
Essays (in the lower 800's) Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris, 814 S
Biography (BCPL shelves them by last name of subject) Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by Fiona, Countess of Carnarvon, Bio CARNARVON
Assignment 4
Stealing Lincoln's Body by Craughwell is probably one of the best written non-fiction narratives I've ever read. Craughwell offers enough details about the events leading up to this improbable story of the attempt to kidnap Lincoln's body from his tomb in Springfield, Illinois, to engage the reader without bogging down the flow of the story. The plot is both obscure enough and intriguing to hold the reader's attention. I think it would appeal to anyone who enjoys historical narratives, Lincoln, 19th century history, grave-robbers, crooks, and counterfeiters, or anyone who is looking for a quirky but true story.
David Sedaris is known for his satire and humorous stories both in written format and on radio and TV shows. Sedaris' Me Talk Pretty One Day recounts through a series of very funny vignettes his life as an ex-Pat living in France as well as other stories including insights into his rather odd family. This book will appeal to those who enjoy satirical humor, fast-paced essay type books, unusual insights and characters, or/and someone who appreciates a quirky view of the world. This book is also hilarious in audio format which is read by Sedaris himself.
Monday, June 10, 2013
Monday, June 3, 2013
Week 7: Not Just For Teens
Assignment 1
I looked over the Lawrence Public Library's flow chart for "So you love the Hunger Games...What Should You Read Next?" Overall, I think it will appeal to Teens and especially those who enjoy instant answers with little text to read. The arrows were a nice touch although I did find them a bit confusing in spots, particularly when there were titles that fit into more than one genre. Also, why did they drop the ball with the "Still looking? Try a classic!" titles? They could have put any of these in their corresponding genres they identified above since the 'classic' category is a catchall here. I mean, it doesn't help the person looking at this list who doesn't know what these classics are about, identify what the basic plot is.
Assignment 2
I read "Who's buying teen books?" in the Christian Science Monitor and "YA comes of age" in Publishers Weekly. The CSM article discusses the phenomenon that over 50% of the readership of YA titles is people over the age of 18. They site specific titles (ie, The Hunger Games) as being responsible for attracting an older audience to this genre. I have noticed that people who are obiviously not Teens checking out or asking about YA titles for years now. I read in that genre and didn't think anything about it being 'a trend,' I just like some of the authors and titles. I find it interesting that the publishing industry was somewhat unaware of this trend which I think has been going on longer than they suspect. I do agree that many YA books (with the exception of such titles as the over-hyped Twilight series) tend to have tighter story lines without a lot of padding.
The PW article article discusses that YA has undergone a huge transformation in the past decade or so into a darker, more supernatural type of story line. However, they do say that the industry is noticing something of a 'paranormal fatigue' and vampire/supernatural plots are giving way to dystopian-based stories. I have to say that I am THRILLED that the vampires are starting to finally die off (sorry about the pun) from YA fiction and there are more stories that tend more towards realism. I do think that there is plenty of dystopian fiction in YA and Adult fiction, but there is plenty of realistic fiction in YA, too. I don't know about the must have a hardcover copy of a title issue, but it sounds plausible. Also, I found it interesting that neither article mentioned how e-books are impacting the YA genre and its readers.
I published comments to the blogs of April F and Kathleen M.
Assignment 3
I'll be following the John Green blog (which is written by author John Green) and Stacked which is written/maintained/edited by two librarians, Kimberly Francisco and Kelly Jensen.
John Green's blog is mostly written/edited by Green although there are a lot of posts from fans and videoblogs from his brother Hank and himself. Its targeted audience is fans of Green's books and YAs in general who like that kind of fiction. It's self-consciously clever which can be annoying at times, but he seems sincere is his efforts to try and 'make the world a better place' or at least entertain his readers.
Stacked is obstensibly about "librarians, reviews, and mayhem" and it does contain a lot of well-written reviews and insights into the YA genre. They also include other info such as "Twitterviews" of authors and guest blog posts on vaious topics. I liked how they have a list of "Labels" on the left-hand side of the page so you can easily navigate to a variety of topics. I feel this to be a more useful RA tool for YA questions than the Green blog.
Assignment 4
Harlequin Teen: What I noticed is that the trend and hot titles (at least here) tend to be romances (go figure!) that involve a teen girl (who is misunderstood or an outsider or suddenly thrust into a world that is foreign to her) who meets that guy (who is also misunderstood or has a dangerous secret or has supernatural powers) and they hook up. I'm sure there are plenty of adventures, misunderstandings, and steamy or passionate or mild romantic scenes and they will probably end up together. Unless it's a series, then it may take several books before they finally end up together. I think the main thrust of Harlequin Teen is to groom a younger audience to transition into their adult line of romances. That's just my thoughts from looking over their site.
Teens at Random: Well, although these aren't necessarily romances, many of the titles and new/upcoming releases are along some of the same lines as Harlequin. It seems to be a lot of fantasy (ie, Grimm's fairy tales), alternate realities (ie, Norse gods runing the US), dystopians (ie, nuclear disaster survivors), paranormal (ie, ghosts) and similar settings where teens have to deal with unusual, unexpected, and/or scary situations and make the best of it. It also seems to have a lot of 'nobody understands me' element to many of these stories. Interestingly, there is a series entitled The Flappers which sounded as if they set the cast from Pretty Little Liars down in the roaring 1920's/Great Gatsby era. Even though some of these titles are obviously leaping on the popular themes that appeal to YA readers, a few did sound worthwhile.
I looked over the Lawrence Public Library's flow chart for "So you love the Hunger Games...What Should You Read Next?" Overall, I think it will appeal to Teens and especially those who enjoy instant answers with little text to read. The arrows were a nice touch although I did find them a bit confusing in spots, particularly when there were titles that fit into more than one genre. Also, why did they drop the ball with the "Still looking? Try a classic!" titles? They could have put any of these in their corresponding genres they identified above since the 'classic' category is a catchall here. I mean, it doesn't help the person looking at this list who doesn't know what these classics are about, identify what the basic plot is.
Assignment 2
I read "Who's buying teen books?" in the Christian Science Monitor and "YA comes of age" in Publishers Weekly. The CSM article discusses the phenomenon that over 50% of the readership of YA titles is people over the age of 18. They site specific titles (ie, The Hunger Games) as being responsible for attracting an older audience to this genre. I have noticed that people who are obiviously not Teens checking out or asking about YA titles for years now. I read in that genre and didn't think anything about it being 'a trend,' I just like some of the authors and titles. I find it interesting that the publishing industry was somewhat unaware of this trend which I think has been going on longer than they suspect. I do agree that many YA books (with the exception of such titles as the over-hyped Twilight series) tend to have tighter story lines without a lot of padding.
The PW article article discusses that YA has undergone a huge transformation in the past decade or so into a darker, more supernatural type of story line. However, they do say that the industry is noticing something of a 'paranormal fatigue' and vampire/supernatural plots are giving way to dystopian-based stories. I have to say that I am THRILLED that the vampires are starting to finally die off (sorry about the pun) from YA fiction and there are more stories that tend more towards realism. I do think that there is plenty of dystopian fiction in YA and Adult fiction, but there is plenty of realistic fiction in YA, too. I don't know about the must have a hardcover copy of a title issue, but it sounds plausible. Also, I found it interesting that neither article mentioned how e-books are impacting the YA genre and its readers.
I published comments to the blogs of April F and Kathleen M.
Assignment 3
I'll be following the John Green blog (which is written by author John Green) and Stacked which is written/maintained/edited by two librarians, Kimberly Francisco and Kelly Jensen.
John Green's blog is mostly written/edited by Green although there are a lot of posts from fans and videoblogs from his brother Hank and himself. Its targeted audience is fans of Green's books and YAs in general who like that kind of fiction. It's self-consciously clever which can be annoying at times, but he seems sincere is his efforts to try and 'make the world a better place' or at least entertain his readers.
Stacked is obstensibly about "librarians, reviews, and mayhem" and it does contain a lot of well-written reviews and insights into the YA genre. They also include other info such as "Twitterviews" of authors and guest blog posts on vaious topics. I liked how they have a list of "Labels" on the left-hand side of the page so you can easily navigate to a variety of topics. I feel this to be a more useful RA tool for YA questions than the Green blog.
Assignment 4
Harlequin Teen: What I noticed is that the trend and hot titles (at least here) tend to be romances (go figure!) that involve a teen girl (who is misunderstood or an outsider or suddenly thrust into a world that is foreign to her) who meets that guy (who is also misunderstood or has a dangerous secret or has supernatural powers) and they hook up. I'm sure there are plenty of adventures, misunderstandings, and steamy or passionate or mild romantic scenes and they will probably end up together. Unless it's a series, then it may take several books before they finally end up together. I think the main thrust of Harlequin Teen is to groom a younger audience to transition into their adult line of romances. That's just my thoughts from looking over their site.
Teens at Random: Well, although these aren't necessarily romances, many of the titles and new/upcoming releases are along some of the same lines as Harlequin. It seems to be a lot of fantasy (ie, Grimm's fairy tales), alternate realities (ie, Norse gods runing the US), dystopians (ie, nuclear disaster survivors), paranormal (ie, ghosts) and similar settings where teens have to deal with unusual, unexpected, and/or scary situations and make the best of it. It also seems to have a lot of 'nobody understands me' element to many of these stories. Interestingly, there is a series entitled The Flappers which sounded as if they set the cast from Pretty Little Liars down in the roaring 1920's/Great Gatsby era. Even though some of these titles are obviously leaping on the popular themes that appeal to YA readers, a few did sound worthwhile.
Tuesday, May 28, 2013
Week 6: Building Base Knowledge (Genres)
Assignment 1
Well, I chose the Romantic Times and it has proved to be an interesting RA site. I specifically am looking at Sci Fi Romances (I didn't even know that was a sub-genre of Romance) and was amazed at how many men are writing in this field. I just assumed that women were the majority of readers and writers of Romance, but I've learned that quite a few men enjoy this genre, too. As yet, I haven't had a chance to read any of the titles that look interesting, but I hope to soon. I also like the author interviews and was surprised to see that they have an annual RT convention for fans and writers. This past April it was in Kansas City, but next May it's in New Orleans! Even though I'm not a fan of the genre, it does make me want to go since New Orleans is such a romantic city. Oh, well.
Assignment 2
Okay, my first reaction to this Prezi on genres and sub-genres was WOW! Alex did a fantastic job of encapsulating a lot of information in a concise manner with examples. Plus, I learned some new things. For instance, I didn't even realize that there are so many sub-genres of Urban Fiction. I liked the arrows connecting related topics across genres and the "customer questions" that lead to each main genre. I think this is a great RA tool, and makes me want to learn Prezi better so I can create one, too!
Assignment 3
The three sub-genres I chose are: Hip Hop (Urban Fiction), Cyberpunk (Science Fiction), Hard Boiled (Mystery). All of the sites listed below I found through searching Google and also Goodreads.
Hip Hop: Here the fan site I found
Forums » Dante's Inferno » African American/Black Urban Fiction/ Ghetto Literature/ Hip-Hop Fiction/ Gangster Fiction
It's more of a Forum (as the name suggests) than a site, but I found the current conversation interesting. It seems to be centered around the use of slang in Hip Hop fiction and do people really talk that way regularly. Some posters felt that the slang was too much and they didn't really know anyone who talked like the characters in the books/stories do. Also, there was a debate about why is proper English considered 'white English' or is that not a positive way of looking at it. A couple people chimed in that it is better to see more black/African American characters in 'mainstream books' and not just Urban Fiction.
Cyberpunk: This fan site http://www.reddit.com/r/Cyberpunk has a forum where people talk about a variety of subjects, although I'm not sure they are all related to cyberpunk, per se. Some of the topics include German graffiti drones (about German police using drones to catch graffitists), what makes a 'punk' genre a punk genre (where they discuss what is at the core of any kind of punk labelled writings or movements), and Google blimps will carry wireless across Africa (which is pretty self-explanatory). I think this subgenre tends to attract techies and hackers by what I can glean from the sites and postings I read. I did see a tendency to get lost in discussing technology and not so much plots and stories.
Hard Boiled: Now this is an interesting site http://www.thrillingdetective.com/ It has a slick landing page and plenty of information for fans of Hard Boiled detective fiction. It seems that Hard Boiled and Noir fiction are closely related by the topics found on this site. This site has essays, articles, and reviews all related to Hard Boiled mysteries. There is also a blog and TD Newsletter via Yahoo web group that you have to subscribe to, which I didn't since I'm just reviewing the site. I think the best part is the "Word on the Street" section that features recent releases and upcoming titles that appeal to fans of this subgenre.
Hip Hop: Three authors associated with this subgenre are Nikki Turner, who is called the Queen of Hip-Hop fiction after the release of her first novel A Hustler's Wife and many more titles relating to the woman's point of view, K'Wan, whose gritty novels include Blow which he penned with rapper 50 Cent, and Erica Kennedy, whose novel Bling is a kind of Cinderella story set in the world of Hip Hop.
Cyberpunk: Three very popular authors in this subgenre are William Gibson, Tad Williams, and Richard K. Morgan. Gibson's body of work includes the classic Neuromancer. Williams' output in the subgenre includes the series Shadowmarch. Morgan's titles include the Takeshi Kovacs novels and his work is sometimes described as a genre crossover with elements of the gritty noir genre.
Hard Boiled: Obviously, the authors that come to mind are the classics such as Dashiell Hammett (Thin Man) and James M. Cain (Double Indemnity). However, there are some contemporary authors at work in the genre who are worth noting including Philip Kerr (especially the Bernie Gunther series), Walter Moseley (Easy Rawlins), and James Lee Burke (Dave Robicheaux). They all have tough as nails detectives who don't take any guff from anyone. Especially dames! (Okay, it does lean a lot towards the sexist side).
I chose A Gift from Home: An Irish Western Novel by C. H. Admirand which is actually the fourth book in the Irish Western series. I think it's an interesting example of a crossover or mash-up of the Western and Historical Romance genres which may appeal to readers of either of these two genres. My other choice is Sorcery and Cecelia, or, The enchanted chocolate pot: being the correspondence of two young ladies of quality regarding various magical scandals in London and the country which crosses so many genres, it's difficult to nail it down. I would say that is has elements of Mystery, Regency Romance, and Fantasy/Alternative Realities with a definite Teen appeal factor. It's written by two authors, Patricia Wrede and Caroline Stevermer, who began the story of Cecilia and Kate for fun and it developed into a series that begins with this book.
Well, I chose the Romantic Times and it has proved to be an interesting RA site. I specifically am looking at Sci Fi Romances (I didn't even know that was a sub-genre of Romance) and was amazed at how many men are writing in this field. I just assumed that women were the majority of readers and writers of Romance, but I've learned that quite a few men enjoy this genre, too. As yet, I haven't had a chance to read any of the titles that look interesting, but I hope to soon. I also like the author interviews and was surprised to see that they have an annual RT convention for fans and writers. This past April it was in Kansas City, but next May it's in New Orleans! Even though I'm not a fan of the genre, it does make me want to go since New Orleans is such a romantic city. Oh, well.
Assignment 2
Okay, my first reaction to this Prezi on genres and sub-genres was WOW! Alex did a fantastic job of encapsulating a lot of information in a concise manner with examples. Plus, I learned some new things. For instance, I didn't even realize that there are so many sub-genres of Urban Fiction. I liked the arrows connecting related topics across genres and the "customer questions" that lead to each main genre. I think this is a great RA tool, and makes me want to learn Prezi better so I can create one, too!
Assignment 3
The three sub-genres I chose are: Hip Hop (Urban Fiction), Cyberpunk (Science Fiction), Hard Boiled (Mystery). All of the sites listed below I found through searching Google and also Goodreads.
Hip Hop: Here the fan site I found
Forums » Dante's Inferno » African American/Black Urban Fiction/ Ghetto Literature/ Hip-Hop Fiction/ Gangster FictionIt's more of a Forum (as the name suggests) than a site, but I found the current conversation interesting. It seems to be centered around the use of slang in Hip Hop fiction and do people really talk that way regularly. Some posters felt that the slang was too much and they didn't really know anyone who talked like the characters in the books/stories do. Also, there was a debate about why is proper English considered 'white English' or is that not a positive way of looking at it. A couple people chimed in that it is better to see more black/African American characters in 'mainstream books' and not just Urban Fiction.
Cyberpunk: This fan site http://www.reddit.com/r/Cyberpunk has a forum where people talk about a variety of subjects, although I'm not sure they are all related to cyberpunk, per se. Some of the topics include German graffiti drones (about German police using drones to catch graffitists), what makes a 'punk' genre a punk genre (where they discuss what is at the core of any kind of punk labelled writings or movements), and Google blimps will carry wireless across Africa (which is pretty self-explanatory). I think this subgenre tends to attract techies and hackers by what I can glean from the sites and postings I read. I did see a tendency to get lost in discussing technology and not so much plots and stories.
Hard Boiled: Now this is an interesting site http://www.thrillingdetective.com/ It has a slick landing page and plenty of information for fans of Hard Boiled detective fiction. It seems that Hard Boiled and Noir fiction are closely related by the topics found on this site. This site has essays, articles, and reviews all related to Hard Boiled mysteries. There is also a blog and TD Newsletter via Yahoo web group that you have to subscribe to, which I didn't since I'm just reviewing the site. I think the best part is the "Word on the Street" section that features recent releases and upcoming titles that appeal to fans of this subgenre.
Hip Hop: Three authors associated with this subgenre are Nikki Turner, who is called the Queen of Hip-Hop fiction after the release of her first novel A Hustler's Wife and many more titles relating to the woman's point of view, K'Wan, whose gritty novels include Blow which he penned with rapper 50 Cent, and Erica Kennedy, whose novel Bling is a kind of Cinderella story set in the world of Hip Hop.
Cyberpunk: Three very popular authors in this subgenre are William Gibson, Tad Williams, and Richard K. Morgan. Gibson's body of work includes the classic Neuromancer. Williams' output in the subgenre includes the series Shadowmarch. Morgan's titles include the Takeshi Kovacs novels and his work is sometimes described as a genre crossover with elements of the gritty noir genre.
Hard Boiled: Obviously, the authors that come to mind are the classics such as Dashiell Hammett (Thin Man) and James M. Cain (Double Indemnity). However, there are some contemporary authors at work in the genre who are worth noting including Philip Kerr (especially the Bernie Gunther series), Walter Moseley (Easy Rawlins), and James Lee Burke (Dave Robicheaux). They all have tough as nails detectives who don't take any guff from anyone. Especially dames! (Okay, it does lean a lot towards the sexist side).
I chose A Gift from Home: An Irish Western Novel by C. H. Admirand which is actually the fourth book in the Irish Western series. I think it's an interesting example of a crossover or mash-up of the Western and Historical Romance genres which may appeal to readers of either of these two genres. My other choice is Sorcery and Cecelia, or, The enchanted chocolate pot: being the correspondence of two young ladies of quality regarding various magical scandals in London and the country which crosses so many genres, it's difficult to nail it down. I would say that is has elements of Mystery, Regency Romance, and Fantasy/Alternative Realities with a definite Teen appeal factor. It's written by two authors, Patricia Wrede and Caroline Stevermer, who began the story of Cecilia and Kate for fun and it developed into a series that begins with this book.
Monday, May 20, 2013
Week 5: Building Base Knowlege (Part II)
Assignment 1
Okay, I picked Salon as the site I would follow and I've had mixed results. I have not used it for RA when working because it is rather cumbersome to upload, is full of pop-up ads, and doesn't seem to cover topics that customers ask about. Other than that, it's great!
Well, I have read a couple of the books that were recommended there including Going Clear which is about scientology and the various wealthy and famous people who buy into that cult. Not bad, but not a fast read, and the author clearly dislikes scientology but I think that's the whole point of the book.
I did sign-up for the Early Word newsletter and have to say that their site looks much better to me than Salon. I wish I had chosen that originally, since I can see that Early Word is a more practical RA tool in my opinion.
Assignment 2
Okay, after looking over Early Word's site, I think one of the areas that I will use is ALA — Great Nonfiction Read-Alikes. I really think that read-alikes are something that I get asked about a lot when I'm on the desk. I do use NoveList, but I like another point of view. Also, I like their Awards section since they're listed alphabetically in one place and that makes it a quick access when doing RA. There is so much on Early Word that I am still trying to sort it out, but I know I will be using this site quite a bit in the future.
Assignment 3
Using PW Most Anticipated Books of Spring 2013, I chose Neil Gaiman's newest novel due out in June 2013 entitled The Ocean at the End of the Lane. Like many of Gaiman's works, this novel involves supernatural elements as a young man tries to remember the events that almost destroyed his family when he was a boy. Gaiman tends to concentrate on place and character and his plots are full of fantasy type of elements such as witches and evil spirits. I think this book will appeal to readers who have enjoyed Gaiman's past works and those who like a somewhat creepy tale with an ominous feel to it. I would say that those who care for authors such as Stephen King or Cliver Barker or Terry Pratchett would probably enjoy Gaiman, too.
Okay, I picked Salon as the site I would follow and I've had mixed results. I have not used it for RA when working because it is rather cumbersome to upload, is full of pop-up ads, and doesn't seem to cover topics that customers ask about. Other than that, it's great!
Well, I have read a couple of the books that were recommended there including Going Clear which is about scientology and the various wealthy and famous people who buy into that cult. Not bad, but not a fast read, and the author clearly dislikes scientology but I think that's the whole point of the book.
I did sign-up for the Early Word newsletter and have to say that their site looks much better to me than Salon. I wish I had chosen that originally, since I can see that Early Word is a more practical RA tool in my opinion.
Assignment 2
Okay, after looking over Early Word's site, I think one of the areas that I will use is ALA — Great Nonfiction Read-Alikes. I really think that read-alikes are something that I get asked about a lot when I'm on the desk. I do use NoveList, but I like another point of view. Also, I like their Awards section since they're listed alphabetically in one place and that makes it a quick access when doing RA. There is so much on Early Word that I am still trying to sort it out, but I know I will be using this site quite a bit in the future.
Assignment 3
Using PW Most Anticipated Books of Spring 2013, I chose Neil Gaiman's newest novel due out in June 2013 entitled The Ocean at the End of the Lane. Like many of Gaiman's works, this novel involves supernatural elements as a young man tries to remember the events that almost destroyed his family when he was a boy. Gaiman tends to concentrate on place and character and his plots are full of fantasy type of elements such as witches and evil spirits. I think this book will appeal to readers who have enjoyed Gaiman's past works and those who like a somewhat creepy tale with an ominous feel to it. I would say that those who care for authors such as Stephen King or Cliver Barker or Terry Pratchett would probably enjoy Gaiman, too.
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Week 4: Building Base Knowledge (GoodReads)
Goodreads
My impressions of Goodreads are that it is a fairly good RA tool and has a lot of interesting features. However, it has a lot of everything and is overwhelming and not very well organized. Although I have a Goodreads account, I use Shelfari more often and find it much more user-friendly, better organized, and is my choice for RA over Goodreads.
I have explored the Listopia and Explore (which sounds redundant now that I've written it down)section, and they're okay. Again, very flashy and probably what is preferred by the majority, but I like Shelfari. I have created shelves and have added about 40 books or so. I don't like the way Goodreads does their tags, but I do like their rating system for books.
Goodreads is connected with Barnes and Noble and Shelfari is connected with Amazon. So, they both have corporate sponsors, but most web sites seem to have one anyway. I tried to find some friends, and have sent out 'invites' and have gotten a couple responses so I should be able to complete the rest of this week's assignment. Stay tuned...
I now have 6 friends on Goodreads (which is more than I have in real life, but I digress). I am looking over the books that they read so I can make a recommendation. Which lucky friend will be the recipient of my sage advice? It's hard to say.
I decided to leave a comment on Janet R.'s Goodread page which said the following:
"Have you tried any of the Lillian Jackson Braun "The Cat Who..." series? These are cozy mysteries with quirky characters including the two Siamese cats owned by the main character Quill. I know you're a dog person, but I think you might enjoy this series. Plus, the audio version read by George Guidall is very well done."
Since Janet likes cozy mysteries and didn't have any of the LJ Braun titles listed, I thought it was a good match.
My impressions of Goodreads are that it is a fairly good RA tool and has a lot of interesting features. However, it has a lot of everything and is overwhelming and not very well organized. Although I have a Goodreads account, I use Shelfari more often and find it much more user-friendly, better organized, and is my choice for RA over Goodreads.
I have explored the Listopia and Explore (which sounds redundant now that I've written it down)section, and they're okay. Again, very flashy and probably what is preferred by the majority, but I like Shelfari. I have created shelves and have added about 40 books or so. I don't like the way Goodreads does their tags, but I do like their rating system for books.
Goodreads is connected with Barnes and Noble and Shelfari is connected with Amazon. So, they both have corporate sponsors, but most web sites seem to have one anyway. I tried to find some friends, and have sent out 'invites' and have gotten a couple responses so I should be able to complete the rest of this week's assignment. Stay tuned...
I now have 6 friends on Goodreads (which is more than I have in real life, but I digress). I am looking over the books that they read so I can make a recommendation. Which lucky friend will be the recipient of my sage advice? It's hard to say.
I decided to leave a comment on Janet R.'s Goodread page which said the following:
"Have you tried any of the Lillian Jackson Braun "The Cat Who..." series? These are cozy mysteries with quirky characters including the two Siamese cats owned by the main character Quill. I know you're a dog person, but I think you might enjoy this series. Plus, the audio version read by George Guidall is very well done."
Since Janet likes cozy mysteries and didn't have any of the LJ Braun titles listed, I thought it was a good match.
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Week 3: The Readers’ Services Conversation
Neal Wyatt's article
I thought Wyatt made a lot of good points regarding the RA interview and how to approach and engage a customer. He's right that it can intimidating to both the customer and the librarian to begin a conversation about RA. I did like the point he made that it's a conversation and NOT a test. It often feels like a test and librarians don't want to come across as not knowing enough about the genre, author, or title that the customer likes. However, tools like NoveList do make RA a lot easier. I also enjoyed the suggested exercises and was wondering if it is something we could do during a Librarians' Meeting at my branch (maybe just one of the exercises).
Nancy Pearl podcast
Listening to Nancy Pearl's podcast on NPR was interesting in that she describes her books with a mixture of plot points and personal insights and thoughts about how the book made her feel. Of course, she has written books on RA, so you would hope that she is good at book talking. I think that she does a fairly good job, but I also felt as if she was selling these books in a different way then I believe most librarians do. By this I mean that she has an agenda other than just hooking up books and readers; she needs her listeners to buy (literally and figuratively) the ones she recommends because, it's at least in part, how she makes money. Her model is a hybrid of librarians matching readers with what they might like and bookstore workers who need to push certain titles. It's not meant as a negative criticism of her, but just an observation from someone who has worked in both fields.
Conversations
1. This customer seems to be saying that she wants to find a title for her bookclub that is well-written, probably non-fiction with a similar feel to Eat, Pray, Love. She likes books where there's a lot of substance and the writer is not self-obsessed, but she not opposed to going with a title that's popular similar to the ones in the Oprah book club. Based on this criteria I would recommend either Under the Tuscan Sun by Frances Mayes or The Feast Nearby by Robin Mather
2. What I'm hearing this customer saying is that she likes the vampire genre but not the Twilight franchise. She is looking for a more mature vampire-themed book or series that steers away from the teen setting of Twilight. I would ask some follow-up questions to this such as do you like well-developed characters or lots of action or gore? Based on the answer, I would recommend the Vampire novels by Linda Howard or the Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris or NOS4A2 by Joe Hill.
3. It sounds as if this customer enjoyed not just the mystery and action of this title, but also the fact that is was a true account of an historical event. If this customer wants to read another book about Teddy Roosevelt, I would recommend The Big Burn by Timothy Egan or if he wanted a similar book with another historical figure, I would suggest Stealing Lincoln's Body by Thomas Craughwell which has many elements of the book the customer liked.
I thought Wyatt made a lot of good points regarding the RA interview and how to approach and engage a customer. He's right that it can intimidating to both the customer and the librarian to begin a conversation about RA. I did like the point he made that it's a conversation and NOT a test. It often feels like a test and librarians don't want to come across as not knowing enough about the genre, author, or title that the customer likes. However, tools like NoveList do make RA a lot easier. I also enjoyed the suggested exercises and was wondering if it is something we could do during a Librarians' Meeting at my branch (maybe just one of the exercises).
Nancy Pearl podcast
Listening to Nancy Pearl's podcast on NPR was interesting in that she describes her books with a mixture of plot points and personal insights and thoughts about how the book made her feel. Of course, she has written books on RA, so you would hope that she is good at book talking. I think that she does a fairly good job, but I also felt as if she was selling these books in a different way then I believe most librarians do. By this I mean that she has an agenda other than just hooking up books and readers; she needs her listeners to buy (literally and figuratively) the ones she recommends because, it's at least in part, how she makes money. Her model is a hybrid of librarians matching readers with what they might like and bookstore workers who need to push certain titles. It's not meant as a negative criticism of her, but just an observation from someone who has worked in both fields.
Conversations
1. This customer seems to be saying that she wants to find a title for her bookclub that is well-written, probably non-fiction with a similar feel to Eat, Pray, Love. She likes books where there's a lot of substance and the writer is not self-obsessed, but she not opposed to going with a title that's popular similar to the ones in the Oprah book club. Based on this criteria I would recommend either Under the Tuscan Sun by Frances Mayes or The Feast Nearby by Robin Mather
2. What I'm hearing this customer saying is that she likes the vampire genre but not the Twilight franchise. She is looking for a more mature vampire-themed book or series that steers away from the teen setting of Twilight. I would ask some follow-up questions to this such as do you like well-developed characters or lots of action or gore? Based on the answer, I would recommend the Vampire novels by Linda Howard or the Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris or NOS4A2 by Joe Hill.
3. It sounds as if this customer enjoyed not just the mystery and action of this title, but also the fact that is was a true account of an historical event. If this customer wants to read another book about Teddy Roosevelt, I would recommend The Big Burn by Timothy Egan or if he wanted a similar book with another historical figure, I would suggest Stealing Lincoln's Body by Thomas Craughwell which has many elements of the book the customer liked.
Thursday, May 2, 2013
Book Recommendations
I recommended a couple of books to Doris S.
I hope someone recommends a book to me! :(
I hope someone recommends a book to me! :(
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