To be honest, I hardly ever give book trailers any thought. If I want to know something about a book, I read a review (or, if available, the good ol' fashioned back cover). I can only remember one time I looked for a book trailer, and it was after I finished the book. It did not add anything to my reading experience. The problem seems to be awareness--seriously, who thinks about book trailers outside of publishing/collection development/purchasing? Of course, it would take a MASSIVE marketing campaign, from lots of publishers, to change that. For the time being though, I don't see them as terribly effective.
I do, however, quite like the concept of fan trailers (or other similar fanworks, e.g. Tumblr photoset memes) that reflect the work through the eyes and imagination of a single fan, made out of love of the source material. But the audience for that kind fanworks is comparatively small--on Tumblr, a thousand 'likes' or reblogs of a post is fairly significant, and of course is not a complete record of all who may have run across it. In real world numbers though, a thousand people is not a large audience.
Overall I found this program helpful. Oddly, while I was exposed to lots of literature while working on my MLS (specifically thinking of my youth services and multicultural lit courses) we didn't spend a lot of time talking about how to get these books into the reader's hands. It seems like a strange thing to omit. With regards to this training, I think I would have benefited from face-to-face discussion and the ability to view the Bookish blog from home without going to ridiculous lengths--it was sometimes hard to find the time to work on this during my shifts.
Tuesday, September 15, 2015
Monday, August 31, 2015
Week 8
Four potential areas in which to find narrative nonfiction: history 909, more likely 930-999; science (and math) 500s; travel 910-919; medical 610-619.
I confess I like my nonfiction dry, but reading adult fiction sometimes feels more like homework than pleasure. Narrative nonfiction is a good bridge, as on the whole it tends to be a quicker read than more academic nonfiction, and as noted in the presentation uses a style familiar to readers of fiction, with many of the same factors of appeal. To readers of fiction I would recommend the following nonfiction titles. The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Egan (978) in history, for those interested in a moving read about the Dust Bowl and the follies that lead to one of the greatest ecological disasters of the twentieth century. Great Plains by Ian Frazier (917.804) in travel, a rambling homage to the history and present of the sparsely populated region between the midwest and the Rockies for those fond of Ivan Doig, Kent Haruf, or Louise Erdrich. Stiff by Mary Roach (611) in medical, for those with an offbeat sense of humor and who don't mind the gory details of the strange things that have been done to human cadavers over the centuries. And finally in science (specifically 569), Brian M. Fagan's Cro Magnon, an accessible work on human origins, for those who enjoy Jean M. Auel. There's also the possibility of alternative formats--Harlem Hellfighters by Max Brooks is a great history graphic novel for those interested in African American or WWI history. Or Trinity: a graphic history of the first atomic bomb by Jonathan Fetter-Vorm, a stark look at the development of the atomic bomb and the scientists behind it (623.4511).
Book talk for The Worst Hard Time: Everybody knows about the Okies--migrant farmers who fled the devastation of the Dust Bowl for (they hoped) clearer horizons and better opportunities. Timothy Egan's The Worst Hard Time is a bleak look at the lives of those who remained on their Dust Bowl farms during one of history's greatest ecological and economic disasters. As a combination of overfarming, drought, and wind stripped the topsoil from thousands of acres of prairie, the people who had once farmed the land suddenly found the land to be their greatest enemy.
Book talk for Trinity: Jonathan Fetter-Vorm's graphic novel Trinity is a succinct, compelling history of the atomic bomb. Black-and-white illustrations create a stark, dramatic atmosphere--fitting for one of the greatest and most terrible scientific achievements of the twentieth century. I'd recommend this to anyone interested in either the history or the science of atomic research. To those wary of graphic novels--give this one a try. You won't be disappointed. The illustrations add a profoundly powerful element to the story without being distracting or cluttered, especially the double page spread of the Trinity test site the night the first atomic bomb was detonated.
I confess I like my nonfiction dry, but reading adult fiction sometimes feels more like homework than pleasure. Narrative nonfiction is a good bridge, as on the whole it tends to be a quicker read than more academic nonfiction, and as noted in the presentation uses a style familiar to readers of fiction, with many of the same factors of appeal. To readers of fiction I would recommend the following nonfiction titles. The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Egan (978) in history, for those interested in a moving read about the Dust Bowl and the follies that lead to one of the greatest ecological disasters of the twentieth century. Great Plains by Ian Frazier (917.804) in travel, a rambling homage to the history and present of the sparsely populated region between the midwest and the Rockies for those fond of Ivan Doig, Kent Haruf, or Louise Erdrich. Stiff by Mary Roach (611) in medical, for those with an offbeat sense of humor and who don't mind the gory details of the strange things that have been done to human cadavers over the centuries. And finally in science (specifically 569), Brian M. Fagan's Cro Magnon, an accessible work on human origins, for those who enjoy Jean M. Auel. There's also the possibility of alternative formats--Harlem Hellfighters by Max Brooks is a great history graphic novel for those interested in African American or WWI history. Or Trinity: a graphic history of the first atomic bomb by Jonathan Fetter-Vorm, a stark look at the development of the atomic bomb and the scientists behind it (623.4511).
Book talk for The Worst Hard Time: Everybody knows about the Okies--migrant farmers who fled the devastation of the Dust Bowl for (they hoped) clearer horizons and better opportunities. Timothy Egan's The Worst Hard Time is a bleak look at the lives of those who remained on their Dust Bowl farms during one of history's greatest ecological and economic disasters. As a combination of overfarming, drought, and wind stripped the topsoil from thousands of acres of prairie, the people who had once farmed the land suddenly found the land to be their greatest enemy.
Book talk for Trinity: Jonathan Fetter-Vorm's graphic novel Trinity is a succinct, compelling history of the atomic bomb. Black-and-white illustrations create a stark, dramatic atmosphere--fitting for one of the greatest and most terrible scientific achievements of the twentieth century. I'd recommend this to anyone interested in either the history or the science of atomic research. To those wary of graphic novels--give this one a try. You won't be disappointed. The illustrations add a profoundly powerful element to the story without being distracting or cluttered, especially the double page spread of the Trinity test site the night the first atomic bomb was detonated.
Monday, August 17, 2015
Week 7
I read New Adult: Needless Marketing Speak or Valued Subgenre and Look Homeward, Reader: A Not-So-Young Audience for Young Adult Books. Full confession here: YA may be my least favorite age literary age group. I love children's books; just never got bit by the YA bug. That said, I'm not surprised that it's widely read by adults my age (slightly older than 'new adult') and older. I have some suspicions about the impact of the book-to-bigscreen market, which seems to disproportionately affect YA, but I'm sure that's not all there is to it. Meg Wolitzer quotes one critic, who says "YA endings are uniformly satisfying." I fail to see why the critic is complaining about that, since the point of reading would seem to me to leave the book satisfied in one way or another. Otherwise you might as well just be doing a school assignment--read, report, move on to the next item. YA is not to my tastes, but it's enough for me to know that it is to the tastes of many readers. The trick is knowing when to suggest a YA book to an older reader (a skill I haven't yet mastered).
Regarding the term 'new adult', I agree it has some value as a marketing tool, although I wouldn't try to treat it as a separate genre from 'old' adult fiction. As far as libraries are concerned, I think we should just be aware of the term and what's being marketed under it to point patrons in the right direction.
I followed Shannon Hale's blog and Someday My Printz Will Come. Can I talk about how much I LOVE Shannon Hale's awareness of issues of gender and reading? How 'girl' books are simply not offered to boys, and how female authors are only considered relevant to girls? So far I've only read Hale's "Princess in Black." I'm definitely going to fix that. We, librarians, are in the perfect position to help fix that problem--and yet we rarely do. I can seldom pull off convincing a boy to read a book with a girl on the cover, even if it's a survival story (Julie of the Wolves) or an action/sci-fi (The Search for WondLa). When they see a picture of a girl on the cover they just shut down. And there's always that fumble when the book doesn't have an obvious cover--the "The main character is a girl but." But what? Parents aren't helpful here either--I had one mother today turn down Stella by Starlight for her son because it's about a girl (even though it's not about a girl, any more than Bud, Not Buddy is about a boy). I can't predict how her opinions on these matters will influence other readers, but I know I went from 'vaguely aware' to 'highly interested' after reading her thoughts on this eternally relevant issue.
Someday My Printz Will Come is the blog of YALSA's Printz Award, given to excellent teen books. Definitely a handy resource, even retrospectively (award season is not yet upon us). It's a great general guide to the what's what of recent young adult fiction (and nonfiction), with due consideration to diversity in YA publishing (something that can seem lacking when only looking at the list of winners).
Checked out Harlequin Teen (is it just me or does that seem...wrong, somehow?) and Harper Teen. Trends seem to still be fantasy oriented, as well as dystopian. Lots of romance, and a number of series that seem to be continuing (like Julie Kagawa's Iron Fey series).
Regarding the term 'new adult', I agree it has some value as a marketing tool, although I wouldn't try to treat it as a separate genre from 'old' adult fiction. As far as libraries are concerned, I think we should just be aware of the term and what's being marketed under it to point patrons in the right direction.
I followed Shannon Hale's blog and Someday My Printz Will Come. Can I talk about how much I LOVE Shannon Hale's awareness of issues of gender and reading? How 'girl' books are simply not offered to boys, and how female authors are only considered relevant to girls? So far I've only read Hale's "Princess in Black." I'm definitely going to fix that. We, librarians, are in the perfect position to help fix that problem--and yet we rarely do. I can seldom pull off convincing a boy to read a book with a girl on the cover, even if it's a survival story (Julie of the Wolves) or an action/sci-fi (The Search for WondLa). When they see a picture of a girl on the cover they just shut down. And there's always that fumble when the book doesn't have an obvious cover--the "The main character is a girl but." But what? Parents aren't helpful here either--I had one mother today turn down Stella by Starlight for her son because it's about a girl (even though it's not about a girl, any more than Bud, Not Buddy is about a boy). I can't predict how her opinions on these matters will influence other readers, but I know I went from 'vaguely aware' to 'highly interested' after reading her thoughts on this eternally relevant issue.
Someday My Printz Will Come is the blog of YALSA's Printz Award, given to excellent teen books. Definitely a handy resource, even retrospectively (award season is not yet upon us). It's a great general guide to the what's what of recent young adult fiction (and nonfiction), with due consideration to diversity in YA publishing (something that can seem lacking when only looking at the list of winners).
Checked out Harlequin Teen (is it just me or does that seem...wrong, somehow?) and Harper Teen. Trends seem to still be fantasy oriented, as well as dystopian. Lots of romance, and a number of series that seem to be continuing (like Julie Kagawa's Iron Fey series).
Thursday, August 6, 2015
Week 6 (back from vacation and playing catch-up...)
Assignment 1: Street Fiction has been kind of an eye-opener. I already knew urban fiction is a booming genre, and I was aware of some of the sub-genres (like urban fantasy). I learned that there's much more overlap between urban Christian fiction and erotica that I would ever have guessed. The website provides blurbs of decent length about recent releases as well as a link to their bestsellers on Amazon.com; however, they don't say when the item was released, or will be released (if not already). To me, the most interesting feature was that it seems to be fueled by self-promotion--that is, authors can submit their own works free of charge to be featured on the website. This explains some of the uneven quality to the book blurbs (and sometimes cover art).
Assignment 2 & 3: Legal thriller, culinary caper mystery, and literary urban fiction. John Grisham, Linda Fairstein, and Lisa Scottoline are all well-known writers of legal thrillers. I believe the appeal of a legal thriller is the detail given to legal proceedings, which may be glossed over elsewhere. Culinary capers are extremely similar to cozies, in that they lack the grittiness found in other mystery subgenres. The appeal is the plot and the detail of the protagonist's day job, not the brutality of the crime (which is largely offscreen). Dianne Mott Davidson and Alexander Campion are two authors to look for here. Literary urban fiction, such as that written by Sister Souljah and Wahida Clark, are gritty, realistic portrayals of street life. They are concerned with the issues facing African American characters living in inner city areas, such as drugs and gang violence.
Christian fiction is a fairly pervasive subgenre across the board. For example, Christian historical fiction, such as anything written by Julie Klassen or Tracie Peterson. Post-apocalyptic magic realism is another possible genre crossover, like Nnedi Okorafor's novel Who Fears Death, which is the story of a young woman in post-apocalyptic Africa (in what used to be Sudan) who is born with magical abilities. Magic is a much greater part of this world than technology, and far more common.
Assignment 2 & 3: Legal thriller, culinary caper mystery, and literary urban fiction. John Grisham, Linda Fairstein, and Lisa Scottoline are all well-known writers of legal thrillers. I believe the appeal of a legal thriller is the detail given to legal proceedings, which may be glossed over elsewhere. Culinary capers are extremely similar to cozies, in that they lack the grittiness found in other mystery subgenres. The appeal is the plot and the detail of the protagonist's day job, not the brutality of the crime (which is largely offscreen). Dianne Mott Davidson and Alexander Campion are two authors to look for here. Literary urban fiction, such as that written by Sister Souljah and Wahida Clark, are gritty, realistic portrayals of street life. They are concerned with the issues facing African American characters living in inner city areas, such as drugs and gang violence.
Christian fiction is a fairly pervasive subgenre across the board. For example, Christian historical fiction, such as anything written by Julie Klassen or Tracie Peterson. Post-apocalyptic magic realism is another possible genre crossover, like Nnedi Okorafor's novel Who Fears Death, which is the story of a young woman in post-apocalyptic Africa (in what used to be Sudan) who is born with magical abilities. Magic is a much greater part of this world than technology, and far more common.
Week 5: Early Word
Since Early Word was the resource I selected back in week 1, I'm combining assignments 1&2. The first thing that stands out about Early Word is the links. Links to everything! The left sidebar features internal links to tagged categories or to publisher pages; the left sidebar is for external links (awards pages, Amazon's best of the month, Publisher's Weekly, etc.). I do enjoy a well-organized website, so I found the tags (for everything from genre to format to Oprah's book club to author deaths) to make focused browsing very easy. There are a TON of awards lists, bestseller lists, and a whole list of official websites for movies/tv shows based on books. In fact, the focus on tv/film on the first page of the site was unexpected. It makes sense--when a movie or show based on a book goes out, checkouts and holds on that title skyrocket. For some reason it just hadn't occurred to me that there would be professional resources out there to help us anticipate that particular demand (other than keeping our own eyes on upcoming movie releases). I signed up for the newsletter; we'll see what I continue to use.
Assignment 3: The Wicked + the Divine Volume 2: Fandemonium by Kieron Gillen and Jamie McKelvie. Readers following this comic book series may be surprised by Laura's new relationship to the divine aspect of this world where the gods are pop stars (or is it vice-versa?). Those unfamiliar will want to pick up Volume 1--The Faust Act--first. The Wicked + the Divine is definitely on the superficial side of mythological adaptations, but it's an excellent satire of pop culture. What truly makes this book great is the artwork. The goddess Sekhmet bearing a startling resemblance to Rihanna? Lucifer as David Bowie during the Thin White Duke days? And Matt Wilson's colors are to die for."Edgy" themes and characters discovering that they are incarnated deities will appeal pop savvy teens and college-aged adults.
Assignment 3: The Wicked + the Divine Volume 2: Fandemonium by Kieron Gillen and Jamie McKelvie. Readers following this comic book series may be surprised by Laura's new relationship to the divine aspect of this world where the gods are pop stars (or is it vice-versa?). Those unfamiliar will want to pick up Volume 1--The Faust Act--first. The Wicked + the Divine is definitely on the superficial side of mythological adaptations, but it's an excellent satire of pop culture. What truly makes this book great is the artwork. The goddess Sekhmet bearing a startling resemblance to Rihanna? Lucifer as David Bowie during the Thin White Duke days? And Matt Wilson's colors are to die for."Edgy" themes and characters discovering that they are incarnated deities will appeal pop savvy teens and college-aged adults.
Friday, July 10, 2015
Week 4: Goodreads, or Social Media Awkwardness for Librarians
This was hard, because I kept thinking 'wow, I bet they've already read this and just haven't put it on their Goodreads page.' But oh well.
For Colleague No. 1: "Based on your Goodreads philosophy bookshelf, I'd say you enjoy philosophy. With that in mind, I would recommend Thoreau's "Walden and Civil Disobedience." Like Montaigne, who I see is someone you've read quite a lot of, Thoreau's philosophical insights come from personal observation. However, they're quite different in style and content (and historical context), so it wouldn't be a rehash of the same ideas."
For Colleague No. 2: "I know you love comic books and science fiction. Have you read Saga, by Brian K. Vaughn and Fiona Staples? Like the title says, it's the saga of Alanna and Marko, who fall in love despite (or because of) being on opposite sides of an interstellar war and are forced to run from both sides. The story is alternately hilarious and heartwrenching. The plot is straight-up science fiction (space wars!) but the character designs are deeply rooted in myth and fantasy. If you like comic art, it's hard to find better than Fiona Staples delicate, gorgeous illustrations."
Overall I can see Goodreads being a useful tool IF one keeps up with it. It's also very cluttered, and there's lots of stuff to wade through looking for, say, vetted reading lists in the Listopia feature. The genre pages are very helpful.
For Colleague No. 1: "Based on your Goodreads philosophy bookshelf, I'd say you enjoy philosophy. With that in mind, I would recommend Thoreau's "Walden and Civil Disobedience." Like Montaigne, who I see is someone you've read quite a lot of, Thoreau's philosophical insights come from personal observation. However, they're quite different in style and content (and historical context), so it wouldn't be a rehash of the same ideas."
For Colleague No. 2: "I know you love comic books and science fiction. Have you read Saga, by Brian K. Vaughn and Fiona Staples? Like the title says, it's the saga of Alanna and Marko, who fall in love despite (or because of) being on opposite sides of an interstellar war and are forced to run from both sides. The story is alternately hilarious and heartwrenching. The plot is straight-up science fiction (space wars!) but the character designs are deeply rooted in myth and fantasy. If you like comic art, it's hard to find better than Fiona Staples delicate, gorgeous illustrations."
Overall I can see Goodreads being a useful tool IF one keeps up with it. It's also very cluttered, and there's lots of stuff to wade through looking for, say, vetted reading lists in the Listopia feature. The genre pages are very helpful.
Monday, June 29, 2015
Week 3: The Readers' Services Conversation
Conversation 1: something like Eat, Pray, Love
Another memoir sounds in order here. An Italian Affair by Laura Fraser is also about the aftermath of a difficult divorce, and the author begins a transatlantic love affair with a professor from Paris. It is described as having "irresistible honesty," and the patron in the conversation said she liked the way the author shared her inner thoughts.
Conversation 2: Vampires that are nothing like Twilight
Something fast, probably no love story or teenagers. I may recommend Bloodsucking Fiends by Christopher Moore if they're looking for humor. When Jody is bitten by a vampire, she goes from a typical 9-5 workday to prowling the night in search of blood. I may also take a risk and recommend a film (gasp!)--in this case A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night (directed by Ana Lily Amirpour), which is a truly unique spin on the vampire genre (Iranian vampire Western; Lynchian film style). Another option is Peeps by Scott Westerfeld. The main character, Cal, contracts the parasite that causes vampirism from a one night stand (vampirism is an STD). Cal--who carries the parasite, but is not a full-blown vampire--works for an organization that tracks down other 'peeps' or parasite positives, an organization Cal begins to have reason to be suspicious of.
Conversation 3: something like River of Doubt
I'd recommend Jungleland: a mysterious lost city, a WWII spy, and a true story of deadly adventure by Christopher S. Stewart. The author attempts to retrace the journey of Theodore Morde (who would one day attempt to assassinate Hitler) through the South American jungles in search of a city Morde claimed to have discovered, which he called the Lost City of the Monkey God. I'd also recommend Sea of Glory by Nathaniel Philbrick, the story of the U.S. Exploring Expedition, a fleet of six ships and countless scientists and other experts sent to catalog and claim the Pacific, as well as the expedition's ambitious commander. Both are true, exciting, convoluted stories.
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