Week Nine: Wrap Up

Assignment 3 WRAP UP!!!one!!!

This training has been incredibly useful, especially for a part-timer like me. I have been *really* using NoveList now, and feel so much more comfortable talking about books and writing about books. The key was learning about appeal factors. That really simplifies the process for me.

I also found the websites I am now following to be extremely informative, particularly Early Word, but the Book Beast is just fun. I found out I love writing about books and blogging and will probably continue with my shenanigans.

Week Nine: Book Trailers

Assignment 1

Read the Chicago Tribune and New York Times articles on Book Trailers, and watch a few popular ones on YouTube.

Assignment 2

Book Trailers. My knee-jerk reaction, what the ? what do we need book trailers for? Sounds like a dumb idea. I hadn't actually seen one before. Where are they hiding? I spend a good amount of time online and never even see them. Then I recall that I did see a few trailers on the Penguin for teens site, but I ignored them.

After reading the New York Times article on book trailers, I was more skeptical. How unfair to authors. What if they don't want to be in front of a camera. It seems like it would just add more stress to promoting a book. Now they have to come up with a clever idea AND look half-way decent for the camera? But, after looking at the trailer for The Glass Castle, by Jeanette Walls, all I could think was "I need to read this book" so then I was on to the next. I looked at the trailer for Lit by Mary Karr, I'd Know You Anywhere, by Laura Lippman, and 11/22/63 by Stephen King. I think they were interesting narratives that  explained the authors' insights and could be useful tools for readers advisory: either watching them myself or directing customers to watch.

That was the positive, now to the negative. The Chicago Times article discussed the side of book trailers I don't find so appealing. At the risk of sounding too "get off my lawn" ACK, I just don't like seeing the book acted out in a film clip. The trailer for Packing for Mars was amusing, but I couldn't even watch it all because I started to get motion sick from the herky-jerky camera. I don't see the point in this sort of promotion--it came off as a commercial to me--but it may be popular with some readers.

The low down is that it depends on the book and how the trailer is done. I enjoy seeing the author talk about what they were thinking about when they were writing the book. I'm not interested in mini-videos of a book, but it may be interesting to others, so I'm not going to knock it.

Week Eight: Nonfiction

Assignment 1

Read the following:

• Borderlands: Crossing between Nonfiction in Readers’ Advisory
• Reading Nonfiction for Pleasure: What Motivates Readers?

Assignment 2

View this E-Learning video produced by the Maryland State Library Resource Center.

Assignment 3

There are plenty of narrative nonfiction titles to be found in History, in the 970s. From this genre, I chose The Feud: the Hatfields & McCoys, the true story, by Dean King for the historical fiction fan.

For the Chick-Lit fan, I chose from the Biography section: Paris in Love, by Eloisa James. It is catalogued as a Biography, but kind of a travel piece.

For the Mystery or Thriller fan, I recommend a True Crime selection, which can be found in the 360s and I chose Manhunt, by James Swanson, which is also historical.

And, for someone who likes books like The Kite Runner or The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga, from the the 305.5 area, a story about poverty and class issues in Behind the beautiful forevers: life, death, and hope in a Mumbai undercity by Katherine Boo.

Assignment 4

I would recommend Paris in Love by Eloisa James to a customer who had read all of Jane Green's books and wanted to try something new. Like Green, she is witty and insightful, and gives you a peek at her trials and tribulations during her year living in Paris with her family.

It is in a conversational format and includes her children's difficulties in their more stringent Parisian school, the beauty of Paris, an enduring marriage, and recovering from her bout with breast cancer, all with humor and grace. All in all, she is a likable heroine.

For a customer who was a big Daniel Silva fan, I would recommend Manhunt, by James Swanson. Like Silva's books, it has a compelling style and a fast pace.

It is the story of the 12-day chase for Lincoln's murderer, and goes into great detail, from his fleeing the scene of the crime to the hunt for him throughout Maryland and Virginia. It is full of suspnse with a compelling writing style.

Week Seven: Not Just For Teens

Assignment 1

What to read next? Perhaps we should post this flowchart in the teen area?

Assignment 2

I read Not Just For Teens by Angelina Benedetti, in the Library Journal. I too enjoy YA fiction and will mention that to customers. Some of it is good stuff! This article outlined the why behind what motivates non-teens to read YA, and the reasons are varied. I like good YA because, A. I just love a good classic coming-of-age story. It never gets old! A good writer can bring you back and let you revisit and explore every angst-filled moment. And B. I enjoy the emotional connection you get in the characters.

Also read was New Adult: Needless-Marketing or Valued Subgenre? in Publishers Weekly. I'd say both, if they're asking.

During college, I remember being attracted to books of my age group, like Less Than Zero, so I don't think it is a new topic. It is defined by "voice, style, and theme" and I think edgy-style books centered on this age group will always be popular, but I'm not sure how helpful it is to separate and label them as a subgenre. I think people are wary of being obviously marketed to. While some will eat it up, others will just find it condescending.

I commented on Julie B. and Kathryn T.'s blog.

Assignment 3

I followed the Forever Young Adult blog. The site is nice looking and has a retro feel. From the "About" page: Forever Young Adult is a community for YA fans who are a little less "Y" and a bit more "A." It is also described as a site for Lady Nerds, but it is definitely not "girls only." The bloggers are writers and librarians.

The book reviews are very funny. And I like how they break them down with an outline, as in an old-school book report. Brian Katcher's review of Boy Nobody used the following:

• Cover Story
• Drinking Buddy
• Testosterone Level
• Talky Talk
• Bonus Factor
• Bromance Status

And these headings are used to classify the appeal factors of the books. It is neat and tidy system. The site looks to be geared to YA fans, but judging from the comments I think a lot of teachers and librarians read it.

There is also an advice page "Dr. FYA" that offers advice and readers advisory. Topics like: YA Advice for A's from Dr. FYA. In this post, a plea for books to reach a troubled teenage boy and Dr. FYA prescribes LGBTQ literature for a reader whose teenage brother had come out to their family. I've never seen anything like this; it's very amusing and informative.

One of the funniest blog posts from this week was Cover Story: 1984 where the blogger wrote a mock description of George Orwell's 1984 based only on the cover artwork. It leads with:

The year is 1984. As the world eagerly awaits both the inevitable presidency of Walter Mondale and the highly anticipated New Coke, a lone boy named Winston Smith languishes at Oceania High. Depressed at not being neckless enough to join the Gay Bondage Bricklayers' Club, Winston spends his afternoons jamming on his synthesizer and watching The A Team.

I may come back for it, just for the Dr. FYA section.


I also looked at John Green's Tumblr. This is an online diary/scrapbook profiling his personal interests and some book reviews or discussions here and there. It's fun to have a peek at his personality like this. He shares a post from Diversity in YA with a list of YA books with transgender characters, adding his own comments. He invites people to comment on his posts, which can create some interesting discussions.

Assignment 4

First I looked at Harlequin Teen. This is a popular site for teen romance readers. It has links to every subgenre imaginable, plus blogs, and bulletin boards for readers and authors. Romance readers can discuss books to their hearts' content! Right now, it looks like summer inspired books (vacation/beach) are popular.

I also looked at Teens- Penguin Young Readers. I really like the layout of this site. It's more information and less fluff and socializing (well that doesn't surprise me) and it also has a section for librarians and teachers that looks to be very useful. I like the "most clicked" feature, that changes frequently, but lets you know what is popular. Right now there is a nice summer read of realistic fiction, The Moon and More by Sarah Dessen, a crossover author from the adult shelves, Rick Yancey (The 5th Wave), an adventure/thriller a la Hunger Games,  Proxy, by Alex London, and a historical fiction book, Tarnish, by Katherine Longshore.

Week Six: Building Base Knowledge (Genres)

Assignment 1

The genre site I chose to follow is Stop, You're Killing Me. Like Early Word, they have managed to streamline an enormous amount of information (over 47,000 titles) into an easy-to-navigate, organized site. They must be librarians. :-)

What I like about this site is that I can look at the award lists for "best of" for sub-genres of my favorite style of mystery books. I lean toward the Edgar Awards types, but I also enjoy the old-fashioned Agatha style books. I can see this being helpful as a readers advisory tool. There are also a slew of indexes featured on the left. The Historical Index could be very useful in hunting down old volumes for customers. "Do you remember a mystery series from..." As it goes back to the Classical era, it is very extensive!

Assignment 2

This chart is fun to explore. I think it needs a few more branches, but then I'd need a much larger screen!

Assignment 3

With some Googling, I found ScienceThrillers.com, "where thriller fans put their Geek on," which is a Science Thriller fan site. Reading some of the comments and reviews, I can see that the fans enjoy nonfiction and the subject of science, but when you combine that with a complex plot and authentic details in a fiction book, they get pretty stoked. 

On the site, I also found a pretty good formal definition of Science Thrillers, not to be confused with Science Fiction. First of all Science Thrillers can be fiction or nonfiction, and Science Fiction, by default is fiction. But here is the site's more complete definition: 

Story must be plot-driven, page-turning, with some (or a lot of) action The science should be largely grounded in scientific reality. If a scientific plot element is technically impossible, it must be plausible to an average reader.

One very popular Science Thriller author is Michael Crichton. They have a listing of all the 5-star books from the site, and Jurassic Park is one of them, and actually a book I have read. I'm not even familiar with the genre, but way back when, I was on vacation, and picked it up in a used book store and read it while on my trip. I really liked it, so I agree with their rating. Extinction by Mark Alpert and The Hot Zone by Richard Preston are two other well received Science Thrillers.

For my second subgenre, I chose Horror Zombies. I found a fan site for books on Zombie Hub.com. They are pretty straightforward on this site. It is basically a listing of "every zombie book every written" catalogued alphabetically and divided by fiction and nonfiction, and people are free to post their reviews. What makes a Zombie Horror book good is, if it scares you. How that is accomplished is open. Joyce Carol Oates has a book called Zombie, and it is very effective in scaring the reader, as her character was

so convincingly written through the voice of a killer, you will feel nervous while reading at how familiar, how human, he is. Part of how she achieves the effect is through sparing use of bizarre capitalization (e.g., "MOON" and "FRAGMENT") and crude drawings done with a felt-tip pen.

Sounds chilling, and they liked it! Popular Horror Zombie writers are Robert Kirkman and Brian Keene. 

And my third subgenre is Urban Fantasy. I found a fan site called Urban Fantasy Fans. It is displayed in my least favorite website graphics combo: dark background with light text. Hey, I guess they want to be dramatic! Skimming over this site, I am getting the impression these fans are voracious readers. These stories encompass much: exciting supernatural circumstances, complex plots, well-developed characters, and then some humor and romance for good measure. Kim Harrison, Linda Grimes, and Sherrilyn Kenyon are popular Urban Fantasy writers.

One mash-up of Historical Fiction and Horror Vampires is Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, a humorous account of Lincoln, a secret vampire hunter, who figured out that in order to eradicate slavery he had to kill every vampire in the country. Another is Deck Z: The Titanic, a story collaborating historical fiction, the fateful sinking of the Titanic, with a tale of horrific zombie anarchy.

Week Five: Building Base Knowledge (Part II)

Assignment 1

Visiting The Book Beast, it's very easy to get a wee bit distracted. Who doesn't want to look at the weirdest chickens ever?

The Fancy

But I digress. One fun article I stumbled upon was, Jane Austen Coined Modern Slang from the Women in the World pages. Yes, did you know "dinner-party" and "brace yourself" and 1,640 other fabulous phrases in the Modern Oxford English Dictionary come from none other than Jane Austen?

On another visit I became overcome with laughter when I spied the The Oatmeal: the stories behind the funniest comics (photos)

But, I digress. Again. I caught an article on the new biography by Jimmy Connors, The Outsider. And with a heading of "Jimmy Connors, Still a Jerk" who can pass that one up? And I'm glad I didn't because less than one week later a customer came in to request that book and I already knew about it and we were able to chat about the book. Awesome!

I'm really enjoying this site. I have set up my Google Calendar with a reminder so I can read the articles on a regular basis. I cannot read ALL of them, but I can look at a few. Thankfully, they are short and sweet. 

Assignment 2

Popular fiction, and whatever just came out and "I heard this on the Today Show this morning" are pretty popular at Perry Hall. We have our regular "Hot Titles" readers for sure. I have always scanned the People Magazine book pages and NPR Books, but I am finding Early Word extremely useful and nice to look at. How they managed to streamline that much information is beyond me, but color me impressed.

As a bit of a grammar nerd, the first thing I noticed is that they use "readers" as an adjective instead of a possessive noun when writing "readers advisory." I can't be the only person who wonders about style choices like that! I believe I may be rambling now, but I think that is what blogs are for.

I then immediately saw an article on Fairyland, Alysia Abbott's memoir. Since I had JUST heard that interview on Fresh Air, it is all coming together.

There are so many links, but I like the readers advisory page the most and am putting that on my "to read" schedule. I obviously do not read fast enough; you know what they say: so many books, so little time, but being able to read small blurbs on what is up and coming helps immensely.

Assignment 3

Last week I perused the up-and-coming titles and chose The Yonahlossee Riding Camp For Girls. It is a coming-of-age story for young adults, but I think it is one that will appeal to adults as well. It is described as having a lush writing style with a strong sense of place with steamy and disturbing appeal factors. It delves into class issues and takes place during the Great Depression, which is an interesting backdrop as well. People who enjoy a dramatic story with heartbreak and family mystery should enjoy this book. I think a good read-alike would be The Girl With a Pearl Earring. I put it on my "to read" list myself; it looks intriguing.

Week Four: Goodreads!

Yes, yes, and yes! I have had a Goodreads profile for a few years now and find it a handy way to keep track of my reading (if I can remember to post my books!) I have "want to read," "read" (that's past tense), and "to read" shelves. Maybe I should expand the shelves: favorites? by topic?

I made a book recommendation to Andrea S.

I enjoy Goodreads for keeping in touch with friends, and what they are reading, and for exploring new titles. But I probably use it for the social aspect, and personal library diary, more than exploring new titles. The recommendations page has not piqued my interest as much as doing key-word advance searches in NoveList has. I'm not sure what kind of appeal factors they use for that, but then I don't find the "read alike" feature on NoveList appealing for me either. It is a fun site.

But, Goodreads isn't just for keeping lists and searching for books. I "attended" a live webcast with author Susan Cain. It was super! And I was invited simply because I read her book Quiet: the power of introverts in a world that can't stop talking, which is very good BTW. I intend to explore this aspect of Goodreads further!

Week Three: Conversations

Assignment 2:

I  have been listening to Nancy Pearl's book reviews on NPR for years, but after completing Assignment 1, reading "The RA Conversation" by Neal Wyatt, I heard her book review with new ears. OK, new ears sounds a little silly, how about a fresh perspective! She didn't really spend a lot of time going into the plot of the books. She described her very favorite book, A Gay and Melancholy Sound, by Merle Miller as having "mid-century markers" like McCarthyism, and having all the "snark, wit, and irony" that any 21st century reader could appreciate. Sara Levine's Treasure Island!!! was described as having "high quality writing" and she found herself "laughing and wincing" at the same time. And Lost by Michael Robotham was described simply by what she thinks makes a mystery good: a flawed but appealing hero who tries to get to the bottom of a very complex plot. I'll be sure to pay more attention to the way she describes books from now on. This was very enlightening!

Assignment 3:

Conversation 1

Customer: ... 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... Anyway I wanted to ask you for a few suggestions for my book group. It’s my turn to pick the title.

Oh, I love travel memoirs! While it's a little more food-oriented, you may enjoy Ruth Reichl's Comfort Me With Apples. Are you familiar with her? She was a food writer and restaurant critic for many years and has had some TV shows on PBS, and was the last editor for Gourmet magazine. This is kind of "part two" in her memoirs. She is embarking on her food writing career as her marriage falls apart, and travels to New York, China, France, and Los Angeles. In it she shares recipes and intimate stories, often hilarious, sometimes painful, but always honest.

Another title that could work for a book club, and is incidentally being made into a film, Orange is the New Black, by Piper Kerman, is a story about the author's one-year stay in a minimum security federal prison for a drug smuggling/money laundering scheme she had been tangled in 10 years prior, shortly after graduating from Smith college. Not the typical inmate, she had to rely "on the kindness of strangers," and quickly learn the many unwritten rules of the "game" in order to survive. Full of humor, heartbreak, and humiliation, she takes the reader into a seldom seen world, and surprises herself by finding new friendships. I think your book club would find a lot to talk about with this one!

Conversation 2

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 hear ya! Many of the popular vampire series are very relationship based. I did a search in our database, NoveList Plus, which is right on our website and I can show you how to use, and found a series that is more action-packed and fast-paced. They are called the Lee Nez Novels, by David and Aimee Thurlo. The series follows a Navajo vampire, Lee Nez, who is also a New Mexico state police officer. In his work he ends up coming across other vampires and werewolves, since they are attracted to his supernatural nature. So, it combines vampires with police mystery, and has plenty of suspense.

Another thought is Ann Rice's Vampire Chronicles. I really enjoyed Interview With the Vampire and The Vampire Lestat, the first two. They are very detailed, melancholy, and sensual accounts of the lives of a group of vampires who end up in New Orleans.

Conversation 3

Customer: I just read this great book The River of Doubt...  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?

You may enjoy Argo (the book) by Antonio Mendez. Like The River of Doubt, it is a true story, suspenseful, dramatic, and dark. If you haven't seen the movie, it is the story of the Iran Hostage Crisis, and how the CIA joined forces with the Canadian government to make the rescue. It has been described as "a real-life tale of intrigue and deception."

But then, if you have seen the movie, perhaps you would like to try something else. The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson was my first thought. It's a true crime story that takes place during the Chicago's World Fair right before the turn of the (20th) century. It is dark and gritty. The World's Fair is supposed to be this bright and shiny feat of wonder, and one of the characters is using that aspect to lure dazed and unsuspecting people in to murder them. There are a lot of interesting historical details described along with a gruesome story line.

Week Two: Annotations

Assignment 1

Read "Appeal Factors" by Neal Wyatt: Check!

Assignment 2

Book 1

I just finished Kate Atkinson's One Good Turn, which is the second book in her Jackson Brodie mystery series.

Like other books of hers I have read, this one has a somewhat dark and cynical tone, and she takes her time letting the story develop, letting the reader get to know the characters' personalities. It is very realistic and much in tune to our modern world. The story takes place in Edinburgh, Scotland, which becomes an interesting and endearing character in itself. While having a dark tone, Atkinson is also a master at making you laugh out loud in surprising places throughout the book.

Jackson Brodie, the main character of the series, is an ex-cop, ex-military, ex-private investigator, ex-husband, and all-around helpful, though irreverent guy who keeps ending up being in the wrong place at the wrong time (or is it the right place at the right time?) and always looks like he's been caught red-handed in something nefarious. He often finds he is defending himself throughout the story. He is not perfect--he makes plenty of mistakes, but he also has many endearing qualities, like listening to the most heart-breaking country music he can find. But, he really does try to do the right thing.

I find all the characters in this book so interesting because they are complicated. They are not black and white, good or bad, but every-day people who struggle getting through life, and sometimes fall victim to the circumstances they've been thrust into, finding themselves unable to act. Ambiguity is evident in every character, except probably "Honda-man," but I won't share any tidbits about him! There were many crimes committed in this story, but I wonder if indifference, self righteousness, and other character flaws were also crimes, in a sense. Having questions like that to contemplate after reading a book is what makes me appreciate it.

While this book is classified as a mystery (although BCPL has it in fiction), Kate Atkinson is able to dip into the classic tragedy seamlessly, and that is how all of her books read for me. One of the many reasons I love them!

_______________________________________________

Book 2

I am such a fan of Laura Lippman that I managed to become her Facebook friend. So long as I keep my stalking to a minimum, I think I’m OK; she doesn’t seem to mind my frequent “likes.” :-)

Laura Lippman is known for her Tess Monahan private detective series. Every Secret Thing is her first “stand alone” novel and probably my favorite, so I was pretty thrilled when she spilled the beans a few months ago and revealed that it was being being made into a movie, due to be released in the spring of 2014.

Every Secret Thing draws on my very favorite appeal factors.  

As far as the story line goes, it is a crime novel that has elements of psychological suspense, childhood darkness, and tragedy.

The setting is Baltimore, and the details are very particular. As a fan of Baltimore, and all its neighborhoods, I especially enjoy this factor. She includes details that native Baltimoreans will recognize and appreciate, like 11-year-old children being told not to cross Edmonson Avenue alone.

The characters are not so easy to define at first glance and your sympathies for them evolve as the story develops. The story involves two 11-year-old girls who find an unsupervised baby, and things go terribly, terribly wrong.  At first it is assumed they are the “good girl/bad girl” thing, but as the story unfolds, you realize there is so much more to both of their characters than that. The exploration of Cynthia Barnes's feelings, the character whose baby was stolen and a woman from a prominent black family in Baltimore, feels so spot-on. With a subtle pen, Laura Lippman is skilled at portraying how complicated, and sometimes uncomfortable, race relations are in a city like Baltimore.

The tone is dark and tragic. This is not a cozy and comforting read, but bringing in familiar details, and childhood memories that I can relate to brings a certain amount of comfort to the read.

______________________________________________

Assignment 3

I commented on Jaime Bink's blog.

___________________________________________________

Week One: What I Already Know

Greetings! My first post for BCPL's "Be More Bookish."

The "Recommended Links - Books" link I have chosen is the Book Beast from the Daily Beast website. I like that it is news oriented and somewhat trendy. I like to stay on top of trends, and I am already familiar with the NPR and Salon book pages, and I've been on Goodreads for a while now. I'm already spying several books on the Daily Beast page that look fascinating... stop me, I must get off this page. I only have an hour to spend!

For my "Recommended Links - Genre" selection, I have chosen Stop You're Killing Me a website devoted to lovers of mystery, spy, and suspense books. While I do consider myself a fan of mystery books, I don't know enough about them, and have only read a few series, so I'd love to expand my knowledge.

Assignment 1

The adult books I did OK on (I missed Dan Brown's book? Really?) but I did better on the children's books than expected.

Assignment 2

I did really well on this one. I am not sure why. I think it is the marketing aspect. I look at a lot of magazines!

Assignment 3

Check!

Assignment 4

See above.

Assignment 5

Adorbs.