Wrapping Up

I learned a lot over the past 9 weeks. I discovered new genres and fine-tuned my Goodreads usage. I got to practice book talks using appeal factors. I learned about the many different appeal factors. Having said that, I think the curriculum needs to be revamped. As others have pointed out, the resources and topics are dated. Instead of book trailers or some of the resource links on the main blog, participants should be encouraged to explore the book communities on social media. For example, the Epic Reads youtube channel.
I think the way the material is presented and the way participants communicate could be improved. I wish that the program was more discussion based as opposed to blogs. Like, instead of each participant writing his or her own blog post every week, we all just comment on the main blog with the expectation that participants reply/respond to at least one other comment by another participant. This is how many of my online courses worked in college/grad school.

Week 9, Book Trailers

I think Book Trailers were initially a neat idea. However, after having watched a bunch this week, I have come to the conclusion that they are/were an ineffective gimmick. First of all, are book trailers still even a thing? I had a hard time finding book trailers on YouTube from the past two years, but eventually did find some from the past couple of months. It seems they are used mostly for YA titles.
I did watch a lot of trailers. Many of them were very well made but I found them ineffective at making me want to read the book. Especially the ones that used actors to play out actual scenes from the book, making the book trailer look like it was for a movie, just made me want to see what that full-length movie would have been like. Perhaps it is effective with teen audiences.

If I were an author making a marketing plan for my book, I would skip the book trailer (even if it was a YA book). Instead, I would try to build an audience by sharing passages of the book and doing interviews. I always want to a read a book after hearing an author on NPR's Fresh Air. Reaching a teen audience would be a lot more effective using social media platforms not around when the book trailer gimmick first emerged, like Snapchat and Instagram.

Week 8: Non-fiction

Below is a just a sample of different types of narrative non-fiction along with some related recommendations.


Science
500s for Natural Sciences (like Math, Physics, Biology, Chemistry, etc.) and 600 for Technology; 610s for Medicine; 620s for Engineering.

Bomb: The Race to Build and Steal the World's Most Dangerous Weapon by Steve Sheinkin is not just a book that helps readers understand the science and technology behind nuclear weapons. It is also a history book about World War II since the creation of the bomb was heavily linked to the war time politics and strategies. This book is well researched, the rich details make it read like a story the author had created in his head instead of a dry recitation of facts. There's a large cast of characters, ranging from the scientists working overtime to create the bomb to low-level Soviet spies and even a group of soldiers conducting a covert operation to gather intel from the Germans. Lot's of action, lots of interesting information, but a rather quick and fun read!

Overcoming Adversity
These non-fiction stories will be found all throughout the collection depending on the subject. It is also possible many of these books will be found in a biography section, if the collection shelves these books separately.

Anyone that enjoys reading stories that introduce them to a variety of perspectives/experiences will be captivated by Some Assembly Required by Arin Andrews. Andrews, who is today just 20 years old, was born a girl. His memoir recounts his struggle to understand his gender identity and the even greater challenge of communicating this to his mother. It's an important read for developing an understanding of the experiences of the transgender community. Because the book is largely set during Arin's teenage years, it also happens to contain a good amount of drama. Arin is from Oklahoma, so the reader also gets to see the heartbreaking side of coming out as transgender in a conservative Christian community. This book is also a good read for parents of transgender children who may be interested in the experience of other parents since this book talks at length about Arin's mother's journey towards acceptance and understanding.


Memoirs
Like the previous category, these books might be found throughout the collection depending on the subject, although many can be found in the 818s.


Some memoirs that may appeal to fiction lovers:


Night by Elie Weisel
Hyperbole and a Half by Allie Brosh (for those who love Graphic Novels)
Smile and Sisters  by Raina Telgemeier (another for Graphic Novel lovers, this is a Juvenile selection)


Travel
Travel non-fiction can be found in the 910s.


Bill Bryson is a very popular travel non-fiction writer. His books include A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail, Notes From a Small Island, and Neither Here nor There: Travels in Europe.


Lovers of Literary Fiction might appreciate Travels with Charley: In Search for America by John Steinbeck or Jack Kerouac's On the Road.

Week 7: Not Just for Teens

This morning I read two great articles about the trend of adults reading young adult fiction: New Adult: Needless Marketing-Speak or Valued Subgenre by Rachel Deahl (Publishers Weekly) and A Not-So-Young Audience for Young Adult Books by Meg Wolitzer (New York Times).

The first article addresses the term "New Adult" used in-house at various publishers to describe books that would interest YA fans entering actual adulthood, ages 18-23. Editors and agents like the term because they feel it is an effective way to communicate their marketing goals for the books. On the other hand, you have book sellers  (and, I assume, Librarians) who told the reporter that they have not heard of the term yet, or they think it is lame. All in all, there seems to be agreement that there needs to be a good way to organize these books, that are very much YA but with slightly more mature content. It seemed to me that many of the examples of New Adult were basically romances but with younger characters. If that trend continues, a "Young Romance" tag might be effective.

The New York Times article focused on those adults who enjoy reading YA and explored possible reasons why some prefer YA over adult fiction- and it's not all about nostalgia. I happen to be an adult who enjoys reading not just YA but also children's fiction. I like the variety these genres offer, especially in children's. Characters can be of many different ages and backgrounds and they can be anthropomorphic, too. I also account my interest in these genres to having been a reluctant reader as a child, so now I am trying to read all of the awesome books I missed.

I personally think the distinction between children's, YA, and adult is most useful for recommending appropriate content.


I also had the opportunity to explore two YA-inspired blogs.  The first was John Green's tumblr. John Green is the author of some very popular YA novels, including The Fault in Our Stars and Paper Towns. He also publishes podcasts and some very entertaining mini-lessons on Youtube on his channel Crash Course. His tumblr is geared towards his fans who are interested in all of the interesting things he does in addition to writing spectacular YA novels as it contains alerts to newly published podcasts, youtube videos, comics, etc.


I also looked at a cool blog called Forever Young Adult. This blog seems to be feared towards older fans of YA as it contains posts devoted to nostalgic teen things from the 90s era, like Dawson's Creek and Baby Sitter's Club. Having said that, it also provides timely updates on new YA releases. I like how it includes lists (I LOVE lists) like "most anticipated books of 2016" (of which there are two, one for standalones/series starters and another for sequels/follow-ups).

Lastly, I browsed the new teen releases for Harpers and Penguin. I noticed a nice trend of books that have LGBTQ characters. Besides that, there is your usual books focusing on high school drama/cliques and/or dystopia settings.

Week 6

Assignment 1


During week one, I chose StreetFiction.org as my genre resource. I have been checking it every once in a while. This website is not very user friendly, in my opinion. The layout is confusing and the posts are not dated, so I do not truly know how timely these updates are. Here is what I do like: a comprehensive list of authors who write in this genre (although, each author page is different. Some have interviews, others have books written by the author). I would prefer something with concise lists (upcoming, new releases, top authors, best sellers, etc.).

Assignment 3

Here are a few subgenres I learned about from this fiction genre flowchart.

1. Main genre: Urban Fiction
Subgenre: Borough Warfare

Examples of this genre include Street Pharm by Allison Van Diepen, The Coldest Winter Ever by Sister Souljah, and Gutter by K'wan. This genre frequently have plots based on "turf wars" betweens gangs/drug dealers.

2. Main genre: Mystery
Subgenre: Pet Investigators

Spencer Quinn (Chet and Bernie Mysteries), Carol Nelson Douglas (Midnight Louie Mysteries) and Eric Garcia (Vincent Rubio Mysteries) all write books with crime-solving anthropomorphic characters.

3. Main genre: Romance
Subgenre: Paranormal Romance

Popular authors for this subgenre include J.R. Ward (Black Dagger Brotherhood series), Jeaniene Frost (Night Huntress series), and Kresley Cole (Immortals After Dark series). This genre is characterized by a romance between a human and fantastical creatures like vampires, werewolves, and even ghosts.

Genre Mashups:

The Pepper Martin series by Casey Daniels is a 3-way mashup of paranormal, cozy mytery, and chick-lit. The female lead is the daughter of a disgraced millionaire and a freak accident at the graveyard where she is now working her first job has resulted in her focusing more on seeking revenge for the mob boss that now possesses her body.

Piercing the Darkness by Frank E. Peretti is a Christian Thriller/Mystery mashup (Novelist categorizes it as Christian Suspense, so I guess that is the official subgenre). After being caught in the middle of some strange events, Sally Roe is fleeing from her life. She turns to her religion to overcome her life challenges.

Week 5, Assignment #3

If you enjoyed Siddharta Mukherjee's Emperor of All Maladies or the 2015 documentary of the same name, you should check out this Pulitzer-prize winning author's newest release The Gene: An Intimate History. This "biography" of the gene provides scientific information in a manner that is accessible to anyone, an advanced science education is not needed. This is a must read for non-fiction lovers who are interested in building their knowledge of scientific issues.

Week 5, Assignment 1 & 2

During week 1, I chose to monitor the website EarlyWord. This website bills itself as the "Publisher/Librarian Connection," and I think they live up to that. The site could be more user-friendly, in my opinion. It has a clunky layout, which was intimidating/annoying at first. But I can overlook it because there is just so much neat information. I signed up for the weekly newsletter since I don't usually have time to read during every shift.

The features that stood out to me the most are the numerous lists of Movies & TV based off of books. It's hard enough to keep track of upcoming book releases, let alone movies based off books. I also appreciate the variety of tags they use. This makes it easy to browse posts on Bestsellers or on Children & YA Fiction.

I also appreciate the side bar with links to all of the book awards. I know a fair amount about awards, but this list has introduced to me some I was not aware of before, like the Women's Prize for Writing. It's especially useful how they note which month the award is announced.

Week 4: Building Base Knowledge with GoodReads

I created a Goodreads account in 2007. I added some books I read in high school and then did not use the account for many years. I started adding books to my account again last year when I received a Kindle. The Kindle automatically asks you to rate a book when you finish and it gets posted to Goodreads.



When I first logged back onto Goodreads this week, I realized the suggestions were not what they should be because my shelves were polluted with things that reflected my 18 year-old self. Today, I enjoy reading narrative non-fiction and children and teen fiction. I cleaned up my shelves, created some additional shelves, and added some books to my Want To Read shelf. Now my recommendations are on point!



Shelves I created include: Teens, Picture Books, Storytime (books that are good for reading aloud), Children, Non-Fiction, and Memoirs. As I read more, I will create more shelves. I think this will be helpful when I reference my account to make recommendations.


I am glad I am now friends with other BCPL librarians! It's super cool to be able to learn what others are reading. This will help increase my awareness of books that might interest readers at my library.


I left suggestions for my colleagues Andrea and Varshea. For Andrea, I noticed her Read shelf contained a lot of cookbooks and books written by popular chefs. She also had given Wild by Cheryl Strayed 4 stars. From this, I suggested a memoir called Julie and Julia in which, like Wild, the author goes on an adventure of a lifetime, but instead of a months long hike, Julie resolves to cook every recipe (over 500 of them!) in Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking in just 365 days.


For Varshea, I noticed that she is currently reading a couple of memoirs written in prose that discuss race, gender, and other social issues facing people of color. I suggested the 2014 National Book Award winner Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson. Woodson's memoir is also written in prose. Although it is more subtle in it's discussion about race and gender due to it being geared towards children, it offers the unique perspective of a woman who grew up in the 60s, spending time in both South Caroline and Brooklyn.

Add me as a friend on Goodreads!

Here is the url to my GoodReads account. Please friend me!
https://www.goodreads.com/librariankelsey

Week 3: The RA Conversation

Conversation 1
"The last book I read was Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. Everyone is reading it so I had to pick it up. It was lovely. She is such an interesting woman and so brave. I enjoyed the descriptions of the countries she went to and what she did while she was there, of course, but I think what I liked most was how she shared her inner thoughts — so reflective but funny too. I thought it might be just light fluff or all me, me, me, me, but it was so much more than that. I read all the Oprah books and just love them. Anyway I wanted to ask you for a few suggestions for my book group. It’s my turn to pick the title."

It seems to me that this reader finds books with characters with a lot of depth as well as interesting and exotic settings. She also seems to be motivated by books that are getting a lot of attention a la Oprah book club books. My first recommendation is Wild by Cheryl Strayed. The descriptions of the Pacific Crest Trail and all of the logistics, preparation, and skill required for a 3+ month hike are fascinating. Even more fascinating is that Cheryl embarked on this journey on a whim in attempt to untangle her life after her divorce, addictions, and mother's death. I would also recommend any of the following best-selling celebrity memoirs, for their comical insights on life: Bossy Pants by Tiny Fey, Yes Please by Amy Poehler, and Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (and Other Concerns) by Mindy Kaling.

Conversation 2

Customer: Can you recommend any vampire books that are nothing like the Twilight series?

Librarian: Let me see how I can help you. What don’t you like about Twilight?
Customer: Everything, but especially that teen love story – way too much angst! And way too slow.  Have you read any good vampire stories lately?  

I am going to assume this customer is an adult because they say "that teen love story". Having said that, it sounds like this customer wants books with characters who are vampires but not necessarily the same books that are popular with the members of some of Good Reads' vampire sub genre fan groups like the Sookie Stackhouse or Anita Blake series. This customer may like The Passage Series by Justin Cronin. This series is more reminiscent of Stephen King than Anne Rice, and With a compelling tone, the customer will find it faster-paced than Twilight. I would also provide the customer with a list from Goodreads or NoveList with readalikes.


Conversation 3
I just read this great book The River of Doubt.  It was about Teddy Roosevelt and this ill fated expedition to chart an uncharted river in the Amazon.  They lost almost all their provisions, the president was injured, and it turns out one of their crew was a murderer since there was a murder.  And the most amazing thing was that it true.  It was fascinating and really fast paced.  Do you have anything to recommend that is like that?

I also love unbelievable true stories like this! This customer may like The Cruelest Miles by Gay Salisbury, a fast-paced true story about the team of men and sled dogs who raced hundreds of miles in the arctic to obtain life-saving supplies for the diphtheria outbreak in 1925 Nome, Alaska. The team travels through unbroken trails in temperatures more than 60 degrees zero. Keeping with this Ice/snow theme I have introduced, this customer might also enjoy Touching the Void by Joe Simpson (has been adapted into a movie, too). Simpson writes about his adventures mountaineering in the Andes. Another fast-paced selection that is unbelievable page after page.

Week 2: Appeal Factors

*The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie*
Learn about the struggles of growing up on a native american reservation in the 21st century through the lens of Junior, a goofy yet motivated 14 year-old boy residing on the Spokane Indian Reservation. This medium-paced young adult novel is surprisingly funny considering the tough issues- such as the alcoholism of his elders, poverty, and death- that Junior grapples with at home on the reservation. Junior's life on the reservation- where there is little hope for a bright a future and even fewer resources- is juxtaposed with his life at the high school he recently transferred to outside of the reservation in a middle-class and predominately white community where he has found success socially, academically, and athletically. 



*Sold by Patricia McCormick*
This novel, written in prose, begins with 13 year-old Lakshmi's simple life living in a hut in a small Nepalese mountain village with her mother, step-father, and new baby sibling. Lakshmi's life suddenly changes when her family's poverty deepens and she is sent to work in a far away place. When this "work" turns out to be nothing more than sex slavery, Lakshmi's courageous side shines as she refuses to accept the same fate as the older girls in the brothel. Well-researched and rich in detail, this novel exposes readers to the experiences of the world's many victims of human trafficking. 


*Bomb: The Race to Build--and Steal--the World's Most Dangerous Weapon by Steve Sheinkin* It is common knowledge how this story ends in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, but thanks Sheinkin's impeccable research and the resulting rich detail, readers still get to enjoy a suspenseful and thrilling story that intertwines the actions of the military, spies, politicians, and scientists of multiple nations. Readers will develop a more intimate understanding of the events and efforts that lead up to the creation of the atomic bomb as well as the aftermath of its use.

Week 1, Assignment #4

From the Recommended Links- Books list, I am choosing Early Word since it is the one resource I wasn't familiar with. I also feel that Early Word will feature a diverse array of books compared to NPR, Salon, or Daily Beast. I had the feeling that those publications might only feature books that would appeal to their readers

From the Recommended Links- Genre list, I am choosing StreetFiction.Org. I selected this resource because Urban fiction is one of the most popular genres in my branch's community.

Week 1, Assignment #3

I reviewed the Golden Rules for Readers Advisory. Rule #6, Don't Pigeonhole the Books, stood out to me. The author, Cindy Orr, writes, "if you don't read in a particular genre, all the books in that genre may seem the same. But to genre fans, there are infinite nuances." This is something I am guilty of. I read a lot of books outside of my preferred genres for Genre Bootcamp and I actually really enjoyed it. This article was a good reminder that I need to continue this practice even when I am not required to for formal professional development opportunities.


I also like Rule #2 "Write, Write, Write." The author suggests keeping a log of all of the books you have read along with notes about possible audiences, readalikes, and appeal factors. I like this idea and will consider implementing it. My boyfriend and I actually keep a log of the movies we watch and I have referenced it to make movie suggestions for friends. I can't believe I never thought about doing the same thing for books!

Week 1, Assignment #2

I took the "blank covers" quiz. I am glad I am participating in Be More Bookish because I had no idea there were so many sub-genres! Here are a few sub-genres that I found especially interesting: Small Town Romance; Literary Realistic Fiction; Cozy Mystery; Hard/Soft Science Fiction; and lastly, Urban Fantasy.

Judging Books by Their Covers (Week 1, Assignment 1)

I took two Sporcle quizzes to test my knowledge of book covers.

The first was general fiction/non-fiction popular titles. I scored 75%, correctly naming 18 out of 24 book covers.

The second Sporcle quiz was popular children's titles. I did a bit worse on this one, scoring just 60%, correctly naming only 12 out of 20.

Welcome!

Hello! My name is Kelsey. I am a librarian at the Woodlawn Branch of the Baltimore County Public Library in Maryland.