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.