Cats!

This was my first fully fledged outreach storytime!

I took this storytime to almost 40 rooms/daycares/centers/ministries in September and October. Generally, the kids loved it. Cats are fairly popular, and they loved the books. The variations on the songs were hard to teach in the time provided, so sometimes I would have them sing a random song of their choice (and occasionally they would sing one I didn’t know).

It’s hard reporting on something I’ve done even a few months ago because I do so many storytimes a week, but I will do my best!

Parent Handout:

We leave a handout for the parents each storytime. I create mine using Canva. Each handout should include a general overview of some things that might have happened in the storytime. It should also include a parent tip. I sometimes use the handout if I have a blank in the middle of a storytime (doing it 40+ times can be tiring), but I typically don’t reference it during the storytime. I also don’t do everything that’s on there (that would take waaaay too long).

Books Brought Along:

Cat Nap by Toni Yuly

Cat’s Colors by Jane Cabrera

Come Along, Kitten by Joanne Ryder

Kitten for a Day by Ezra Jack Keats

Kitty’s Cuddles by Jane Cabrera

Never Say Boo to a Goose by Jakki Wood

Pop-up Peekaboo! Meow! by Dawn Sirett, Susan Calver

Pumpkin Cat by Anne Mortimer

Ten Red Apples: A Bartholomew Bear Counting Book by Virginia Miller

Songs/Activities Planned:

stand-up-cat-craft-instructions

The way our program works, we bring a craft to leave at the daycare for them to do later. This month, I brought a Stand Up Cat. Mine has to be propped up by this point (it’s December), but it was totally cute.

How it Typically Went:

Typically, I would start off by introducing myself, saying where I was from and talking about what you can find at libraries.

Then, I would put on a headband that had cat ears attached to it and say, “Can anybody guess what we’re going to read about today?” Ideally, they would say “Cats!”

Then, I would typically start off by reading Pumpkin Cat. I would gauge the energy level of the kids and decide what to do next. We sometimes would sing a song, or, if they were pretty chill, we would read another book (and sometimes two more books if we didn’t sing).

After reading another book, we would do The Cat Stretch and/or sing a song.

Finally, I would likely read a third book (typically Ten Red Apples).

We would end by standing up and reaching to the sky, reaching down low to touch our toes, reaching up high again, turn around to the right, turn around to the left, reaching up high one more time before waving goodbye because it was the end of storytime.

Final Thoughts:

I loved reading about cats, and of course, I always came across better cats books afterwards. I would definitely repeat it again, though now, I would include a cutout activity towards the end.

Prompt Response – Week 16

Greetings Earthkind!

As part of this class, we are required to publish a weekly response to a prompt given by our professor. This is my tenth prompt response!

Prompt

Both of our readings this week talk about the culture of reading and the future of the book. So I have two questions for you as readers, pulling on your own experiences and all of the readings we have done over the semester: First, how have reading and books changed since you were a child, for you specifically? Second, talk a little about what you see in the future for reading, books, or publishing – say 20 years from now. Will we read more or less, will our reading become more interactive? What will happen to traditional publishing? This is  a very free-form question, feel free to wildly extrapolate or calmly state facts, as suits your mood!

Response

As an only child whose only activities other than reading were music and dancing, I spent a lot of my childhood reading and re-reading anything I could. I read books, I read newspaper articles I didn’t understand, I read cereal boxes, I read anything I could get my hands on. (All of that, and I didn’t realize my career calling until I was actually working in a library in college as part of a scholarship).

Mostly, five things have changed for me:

1. I read less because of time.
2. I have a Nook and occasionally read on it.
3. I only listen to books on audio if I have physically read them.
4. I have fallen in love with nonfiction.
5. I am open to reading (slightly) more than “my usual.”

I still read everything from cereal boxes to newspaper articles I don’t understand (but now they’re online!).

As we move forward, I believe reading will endure. I have a poster in my cubicle for my graduate assistantship that reads: “Man builds no structure that outlives a book.” I believe that it is very true.

I think about my husband, whose main source of reading comes from audiobooks and video games. He reads a lot, most of it is online, but he doesn’t read too many novels.

I believe that, as we move forward, our human instinct to share ideas will continue to manifest itself one way or another. We humans do like to “write like” we’re “running out of time” (Thanks, Lin-Manuel Miranda for giving me words for that idea).

Future novels may be in virtual or augmented reality, or they might take shape in a way we can’t even imagine.

Even with that, I still believe that traditional “books” will still exist, but the face of book publishing will change.

With our society becoming more internet-oriented, more authors are self-publishing. Readers are turning to their libraries to access the free material they’re used to seeing on the internet, and they’re looking for affordable options if they want to purchase.

Traditional publishing will likely endure in one way or another, but like all industries, they will have to adapt to the changing climate. I highly doubt we will continue to see them in their current state for very long.

Those are just my two cents, though. We will find a way to read and share ideas, one way or another.

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Thank you so much for a wonderful semester, Earthkind! Happy Reading!

Prompt Response – Week 15

Greetings Earthkind!

As part of this class, we are required to publish a weekly response to a prompt given by our professor. This is my ninth prompt response!

Prompt

What do you think are the best ways to market your library’s fiction collection? Name and describe three ways you do or would like to market your library or your future library’s fiction. These can be tools, programs, services, displays – anything that you see as getting the word out.

Response

So, part of my responsibilities at my job include online marketing, and I will be taking the Marketing for Libraries class this summer, so I will probably know more after that.

Anyway, here are the ways I would market my fiction collection:

• Displays
  • These displays would include images, a heading banner of some sort, and a handout with a list or something on it for patrons to refer back to.
  • Displays that fit with themes such as seasons or “national-insert-here” weeks.
  • Displays that highlight authors.
  • Displays that highlight similar series and readalikes.
  • Displays that highlight staff picks.
  • Displays that highlight patron picks.
  • “Popular” items display.
• Connect topic-relevant books to already-existing programming and include them in future programming – not as an afterthought.
  • Book club? Find and display similar titles, readalikes, and books by the same author during, before, and after the club. Promote the club and the fiction selection.
  • Crafty club? Find and display books that have to do with the craft (cozy mysteries often include hobby-related themes).
• Online Tools
  • Pinterest
    • Share ‘highlights of the collection’ or titles from a display. Could include blog posts, staff picks, etc.
  • Blogs
    • Staff Picks
      • Use in the library and online.
    • Patron Picks
      • Use in the library and online.
    • Share information about displays.
      • Inspiration, lists, etc.
  • Facebook
    • Share images of our displays.
    • Share posts from the blog.
• Lists
  • Whether or not these are annotated, I love having lists of authors, books, or series in a particular genre. My library has a few bookmarks with authors on them, so something similar might be good to have.

Those are a few of my ideas. What do you think?

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Thank you for taking the time to read this response, and until next time, Happy Reading!

Prompt Response – Week 14

Greetings Earthkind!

As part of this class, we are required to publish a weekly response to a prompt given by our professor. This is my eighth prompt response!

Prompt

Consider yourself part of the collection management committee of your local library, or a library at which you would like to work. You must decide whether or not to separate GBLTQ fiction and African American Fiction from the general collection to its own special place. Some patrons have requested this, yet many staff are uncomfortable with the idea – saying it promotes segregation and disrupts serendipitous discovery of an author who might be different from the reader. Do you separate them? Do you separate one and not the other? Why or why not? You must provide at least 3 reasons for or against your decision. Feel free to use outside sources – this is a weighty question that is answered differently in a lot of different libraries.

Response

Background

Before I answer this prompt with my ideas, I’ll share what my library does, though I don’t know how they came to their decision (I was not a part of this decision, but I feel it probably influenced my thoughts on this).

I work in a neighborhood where a large majority of our patrons are not white. We have a (relatively small, in my opinion) section of Urban Fiction that is placed at the beginning of our literary fiction section.

All of our adult fiction wraps the back walls of our library. This is the order:

• Mystery
• Non-English
• Large Type
• Urban
• All other fiction
• Science Fiction (recently separated)

Frequently, I’m asked where our Urban books are, and it’s helpful to be able to point patrons to our shelves. Even though we have it separated, there are times where Urbans end up shelved in with the other fiction, so I always recommend taking a look at the regular shelves, too.

In addition to this, our Urban shelf doesn’t just include the labelled books; it includes our unprocessed paperbacks that fall in the Urban genre.

However, we don’t separate within Urban between Urban Christian and others.

My library doesn’t separate LGBTQ+ books.

My Response

Okay, so now that’s out of the way, here’s my thoughts.

There are several things to consider:

• What is a genre?
  • What separates a genre from one thing or the other?
• Do I have the space to separate genres out anyway?
• Would it help patrons find things easier or would it confuse them?
• Am I separating a genre because I want it to be separated or because the patrons want it or assume it to be separated?
  • Or, am I separating it just for the sake of separating it?

When I completed the secret shopper assignment, I had a difficult time finding what I was looking for because the science fiction and fantasy genres were separated from the rest of the fiction, but they were mixed together.

I can definitely see the value in separating out genres to allow an easier time for patrons looking for something within that genre.

My choice to separate would be based on three things:

1. Patron need
2. Volume of the collection that would be separated
3. Space
   1. Where would the new section go?

Before I would do any re-shelving, I would want to do a survey. I would ask all of our staff members to write down a tally of every time they were asked for a specific genre (Mystery, Science Fiction, LGBTQ+, Urban, African American, etc.). However, I am aware that this won’t be 100% accurate of what our patrons want. Many patrons may not feel comfortable asking for a particular genre, but this still would give us an idea of what our patrons are looking for.

I might also have a submission box that would ask what genres would a patron like to see separated (no names of patrons would be asked, and it wouldn’t be placed on the desk of a staff member).

I would evaluate how many items from each particular genre I have and whether or not I have enough to warrant a separate space for it. If I didn’t have enough to warrant a full space to it, a list of authors or an annotated book list might prove more helpful. Also, would I choose to include audiobooks or movies in this genre separation?

If there was patron need and if I had enough copies, where would I shelve the items? Because some patrons might be proud they read from a genre and others might be scared to show they like a genre, placement would be important.

Reasons why I would not separate:

1. No demand
2. Not enough materials on hand
3. If where the collection would end up might dissuade readers from browsing openly (i.e. if patrons are uncomfortable admitting they read in a particular genre, they wouldn’t want to browse a shelf that had a giant sign proclaiming the genre above it)
4. The race of the author is the same. Genre ≠ Race of the Author.
   1. Maybe there could be a display for, say, Black History Month highlighting Black authors, but overall, I wouldn’t advocate for shelving books separately based on the race of the author. Again, maybe a list of authors from a particular race would be helpful, but that list might be broken down into genres.
      1. See Lynn Spencer’s article: “Why Do Stores Still Practice Segregation?“
   2. Additionally, I wouldn’t separate out books by LGBTQ+ authors unless they wrote in that genre.

This is a really complicated question, and my viewpoint on what to separate is based on where I am and what the patrons want. If the patrons want an easy way to find a certain genre, I will do what I can to give it to them. I don’t think I would separate genres unless there was a need to. I wouldn’t separate for the sake of separating.

I do think I need more time to think about this, but this is how I feel at this time.

I would recommend reading:

• A House Divided? Two Views on Genre Separation by Barry Trott and Vicki Novak
• Why Do Stores Still Practice Segregation? by Lynn Spencer

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Thank you for taking the time to read this response, and until next time, Happy Reading!

Urban Fiction Annotation

Greetings Earthkind!

As part of this Readers’ Advisory class, I am required to read and annotate five books from five different genres.

This week, I am annotating a book from the Urban Fiction genre.

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Author: Marlon McCaulsky

Title: The Pink Palace

Series: The Triple Crown Collection

Genre: Urban fiction

Publication Date: 2008

Number of Pages: 228 (I read a paperback version from the library)

Geographical Setting: Atlanta, Georgia. (Other action takes place in New York City and Los Angeles).

Time Period: Late 2000s.

Plot Summary: This novel primarily tells the story of Janelle “Mo’Nique” Taylor, a woman from Atlanta who finds herself on her own without completing high school at 16. Her cousin, Nikki, eventually takes her in and introduces her to her line of work: dancing at The Pink Palace. Mo’Nique decides to join her and is extremely successful for a couple of years until she’s introduced to Tommy Holloway, who seems to be different than most of the other men she’s seen. Tommy works for Damien, the man Nikki is seeing, but the differences between Tommy and Damien are vast.

Mo’Nique suspects Tommy of hiding something, though she doesn’t realize just how separated he is from Damien’s drug-dealing world. As their relationship develops, Mo’Nique finds herself striving to complete her education and to go back to the Janelle she used to be.

This story, told from the perspectives of the four characters is about love and survival. Loving what you do. Loving who you are. Loving your family. Being able to provide for yourself. Figuring out what it takes to survive in this world and balancing your wants and your needs.

Will Mo’Nique and Tommy endure? Will Mo’Nique decide how to live her life? Will Tommy ever reveal who he really is? Will Nikki see Damien for who he really is?

Subject Headings: (All pulled from the Novelist Plus listing)

• Undercover operations
• Drug traffic
• Stripteasers
• Police
• Secrets
• Sexuality
• Betrayal
• African American men/women relations
• African American women
• Strip clubs
• Street life

Appeal: This book, though it does include the sex, revenge, and violence that many Urban Fiction novels include, is a wonderful example of how the genre really seeks to allow readers to empathize and get into the heads of the characters.

3 terms that best describe this book: Urban, Love, Survival

My Personal Thoughts:

This is my first time reading an Urban Fiction novel, and I’m glad I picked to read from this genre. I couldn’t have picked a better book, in my opinion. Marlon has really allowed us into the brains of the characters. I love the relationships that form, I ache for the pain that’s experienced by the characters, and I’m cheering for them as they succeed in being who they are, no matter what form that takes. There are several ways that I connect with Janelle, and I love being able to experience these events with her. She’s probably one of my favorite fictional female characters I’ve read ever.

This story is unapologetic in letting the characters do what they love and feel what they feel, and it makes me love them even more. As an outsider to their world, I can empathize with them and see who they are as people rather than just viewing their actions. The novel doesn’t ignore or gloss over details some people may find offensive, and I’m glad. These events, good or bad, lead these people to be who they are.

My only complaint would be that I wasn’t able to connect with Damien better. I get that he’s a massive jerk, but I honestly would have liked to see more of how he became who he is. That might just be a personal thing; I like to see into the minds of the villains just as much as the heroes.

Overall wonderful novel, and I have so much respect for Marlon as a writer and storyteller.

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Thanks for taking time to read this review, and until next time, Happy Reading!

Prompt Response – Week 13

Greetings Earthkind!

As part of this class, we are required to publish a weekly response to a prompt given by our professor. This is my seventh prompt response!

Prompt

Though this week’s group of “genres” (Young Adult, New Adult, & Graphic Novels) all seem very different, they all have in common the fact that many people don’t feel that they are legitimate literary choices and libraries shouldn’t be spending money on them or promoting them to adults. The common belief is that adults still don’t or shouldn’t read that stuff. How can we as librarians, work to ensure that we are able to serve adults who enjoy YA literature or graphic novels? Or should we?

Response

This is a complicated issue, mainly because it’s new to many people. I grew up with YA being a thing, so it’s not that big of a deal to me. I also grew up with the belief that any reading is better than not reading at all and to not judge others based on what they like to read.

There are three parts to this issue, in my opinion:

1. How we categorize the genres.
2. How we as library professionals view the genres.
3. How we validate readers of the genres.

How we categorize the genres

In my library system, most YA is shelved as “Teen Fiction.” I feel like this type of categorizing might dissuade readers not in their teens.

However, our teen and adult Graphic Novels recently just got merged together into one category (the kids GN books are still separate).

I think that works.

On the flip side, I’m not sure that shelving YA and NA in with the adult or kids books is right, either. Perhaps the genres could be shelved on their own, separate from the teen label.

In thinking about ways to promote them (outside of the genre titles), I think it’s about appeal.

Displays could highlight appeal terms and focus less on the “genre” and more of what’s in the book.

With YA and GNs especially, integrated advisory seems like it would work. Many YA novels and Graphic Novels are being turned into films or television series, so a display or recommendation list could include movies, CD’s, and books.

How we as library professionals view the genres

As library professionals, we do NOT get to choose what is a legitimate genre or not. If my patrons want to read it, I will fight to keep those items on my shelves.

We also don’t get to choose who we think is allowed to read the genre. I still read (and thoroughly enjoy) children’s fiction. I shouldn’t have to feel devalued as a reader because of my reading tastes.

If I seem fired up about it; I am.

People read for many different reasons, and I don’t get to choose what I think they should read and enjoy. That’s not my job.

My job is to encourage them to read what they want to read and to feel good doing it.

How we validate readers of the genres

In thinking about ways to validate readers of these genres, I believe we should make them known and seem popular.

Patrons shouldn’t feel like they have to sneak over into the “young people’s area” to pick up a book. We should pull them out and highlight them.

In addition to that, I would recommend using staff picks, patron picks, and other similar display tactics to show patrons the books are enjoyed by all sorts of people, and that’s perfectly okay.

Overall, yes, I do think we should “work to ensure that we are able to serve adults who enjoy YA literature or graphic novels.”

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Thank you for taking the time to read this response, and until next time, Happy Reading!

Prompt Response – Week 12

Greetings Earthkind!

As part of this class, we are required to publish a weekly response to a prompt given by our professor. This is my sixth prompt response!

Prompt

For your prompt this week, please complete the Readers’ Advisory Matrix, found on the last page of the reading title RA Guide to Nonfiction in the Canvas files, about a non-fiction book you have read.

Response

For this response, I will be using The Tao of Pooh by Benjamin Hoff. You can read the annotation for this book by clicking here.

• Where is the book on the narrative continuum?
  • High
  • There is lots of dialogue between the author and Winnie the Pooh, and he tells various Winnie the Pooh and Taoist stories.
  • An Excerpt (from page 95 in my 158-page hardback copy):
    • “Well–here’s Rabbit. ‘Hello, Rabbit. What’s new?’
    • ‘I just got back from Owl’s,’ said Rabbit, slightly out of breath.
    • ‘Oh? You were certainly gone a long time.’
    • ‘Yes, well … Owl insisted on telling me a story about his Great-Uncle Philbert.’
    • ‘Oh, that’s why.’
    • ‘But anyway–Owl said that he hasn’t seen the Uncarved Block, either, but that Roo is probably playing with it. So I stopped off at Kanga’s house, but no one was there.’
    • ‘They’re out in the Forest, practicing jumps with Tigger,’ I said.
    • ‘Oh. Well, I’d better be going then.’
    • ‘That’s all right, Rabbit, because—‘
    • Where’d he go? That’s how it is you know–no rest for the Backson.
    • Let’s put it this way: if you want to be healthy, relaxed, and contented, just watch what a Bisy Backson does and then do the opposite.”
• What is the subject of the book?
  • Religion, Taoism
  • Call Number: 299.514 HOF 1982
  • This book is a short course in concepts of Taoism, explained by stories from Winnie the Pooh.
• What type of book is it?
  • This book is like an essay, with strong narrative elements.
• Articulate Appeal
  • What is the pacing of the book?
    • This is a relatively short book, but it moves at a leisurely pace, as though we were taking a stroll through the Hundred Acre Wood.
  • Describe the characters of the book.
    • The characters include:
      • The author (who writes in first person)
      • Winnie the Pooh
      • Rabbit
      • Piglet
      • Eeyore
      • Owl
    • Most of these are characters we are familiar with (if we watched or read Winnie the Pooh growing up). We know their behaviors and attitudes, so the author doesn’t have to describe them in much detail. The conversations that happen between the characters are fictional, but the concepts of Taoism are illustrated through the discussions.
    • The really interesting part about characterization in this book is that, even though we know the characters well, we learn more about them as the book goes on (especially how each of them embody certain parts of Taoism or how they don’t embody concepts of Taoism).
  • How does the story feel?
    • The story feels leisurely, pleasant, and whimsical.
    • The characters are all sitting by the author’s desk and not much happens in that setting, but we learn quite a bit throughout the book. How? Dialogue and retelling of parts of other stories.
  • What is the intent of the author?
    • To help us learn about Taoism.
      • To show us that we can live leisurely, pleasant lives.
    • To illustrate how Winnie the Pooh and Taoism are related.
  • What is the focus of the story?
    • The focus is on the lives of the main characters and how they demonstrate Taoist concepts.
  • Does the language matter?
    • Yes.
    • The author uses language and specific terms (made up or otherwise) to demonstrate the concepts.
  • Is the setting important and well described?
    • No and no.
    • The setting is irrelevant, though it leaves room for us to imagine it how we want. I pictured the author sitting in something of a hobbit-hole surrounded by the characters at an old writing desk.
  • Are there details and, if so, what?
    • The whole book is made up of details (just not details of the setting). It takes a through details about stories that demonstrate the Taoist concept of the chapter.
  • Are there sufficient charts and other graphic materials? Are they useful and clear?
    • There are illustrations by the wonderful Ernest H. Shepard, and they allow us to enjoy the book as though it were just a regular Winnie the Pooh tale.
  • Does the book stress moments of learning, understanding, or experience?
    • I would argue it doesn’t. This book seems like one to read over and over again to really get a full understanding of what it teaches. The author doesn’t explicitly say, “THIS is what you should get from this chapter.” You either get it or you don’t, and then the author moves on. There’s at least one moment in each chapter where the author just told a story, and then the character from that story walks into the author’s room and illustrates the point again.

Why would a reader enjoy this book (rank appeal)?

1. Characterization
2. Learning/Experiencing
3. Tone

 

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Thank you for taking the time to read this response, and until next time, Happy Reading!

Nonfiction Annotation

Greetings Earthkind!

As part of this Readers’ Advisory class, I am required to read and annotate five books from five different genres.

This week, I am annotating a book from the Nonfiction genre.

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Author: Benjamin Hoff

Title: The Tao of Pooh

Genre: Historical Fiction

Publication Date: 1982

Number of Pages: 158 (I read a hardcover version from the library)

Summary: The Tao of Pooh talks about Taoism and explains its concepts through the actions and stories of Winnie the Pooh. Each chapter covers a specific topic within Taoism such as the Bisy Backson, Cottleston Pie, The Pooh Way, Nowhere and Nothing, among others. There are times where the author has fictional conversations with Winnie and the other characters from the Hundred Acre Wood to illustrate points, but other than that, he writes in first person as he explains how certain Pooh stories illustrate concepts of Taoism. He also tells us more traditional Taosit stories and discusses their concepts in terms of modern life.

Subject Headings:

• Religion
• Taoism
• Winnie the Pooh

Appeal: With its narrative of a conversation between the author and Winnie the Pooh, we get to enjoy learning about Taoism in bite-size pieces. The chapters look long, but with dialogue and illustrations, the lessons don’t drag on uselessly. Explaining any religion can be a tricky subject, but this book appeals to readers because it presents the subject in an way that’s easy to consume and understand. He relates it to our everyday lives and translates the concepts into English and then into Pooh-language. It’s a crash-course in Taoism that doesn’t feel like a crash-course in Taoism. It feels like a leisurely stroll in the Hundred Acre Wood where we happen to learn about Taoism.

3 terms that best describe this book: Whimsical, Laid-Back, Learning

2 similar books:

1. The Te of Piglet by Benjamin Hoff
2. Buddhist Bootcamp by Timber Hawkeye

My Personal Thoughts:

 

This book has been on my reading list for a very long time, so when it came across the desk where I work, I had to read it. This point of this book is to show us (in the West) how we have become “Bisy Backsons,” which is basically a person who runs around like a chicken without a head – doing a lot, but getting nothing done. Doing things for the sake of doing things.

It reminds us that things are likely to get done when we just relax and go with the flow. We are more likely to notice things we didn’t before if we aren’t rushing from one thought to another. This book isn’t meant to make you convert to Taoism; it’s meant to show us how we’re trained to never slow down until we’re in our grave. It reminds us to enjoy small things like listening to nature.

One of the most eye-opening lessons is one under the “Bisy Backson” chapter. In it, we see how China and France have places set up where people can go in, get tea and food and relax and talk for hours. I would argue that the pub in the UK is similar. In the US, however, the author points out that we have the “Hamburger Stand” where the point is, “Quite obviously, it’s: ‘You don’t count; hurry up.'”

I quite enjoyed this book, and I believe it’s worth it to read (and even listen) again periodically as a reminder to not be a Bisy Backson.

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Thanks for taking time to read this review, and until next time, Happy Reading!

Book Club Experience

Greetings Earthkind!

Life has been busy, and it’s been tough getting to a book club to observe!

For this assignment, I attended the Association for Library and Information Science Students (ALISS) book club discussion on The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie on Wednesday, 23 March 2016 at Tow Yard Brewing.

ALISS reads all sorts of books, from children’s to teens to adults to graphic novels to nonfiction.

This was one of at least five ALISS discussion I’ve attended, and I read the book. There were 6 people present, and at least four of them had read the book. Reading the book is not required for the discussion.

The discussion was really enjoyable, and I was so invested in it that I almost forgot I was there for this assignment. We discussed everything from race issues to Native American awareness to coping with death to teen recommendations.

The atmosphere was very laid back, though not as laid back as other discussions due to the place. Tow Yard Brewing was more of a restaurant and they appeared confused as to why we took forever. Most other brewing companies are less aware of how long we take. Other than that, we allowed the conversation to  drift from one topic to another.

ALISS bought a bunch of appetizers, but we were responsible for our drinks and any other food. Normally, ALISS provides pizza, but since Tow Yard is a restaurant, we bought their food.

There is a designated “book club czar” who asked most of the questions, but as topics were discussed, participants chimed in with their own questions. The discussion felt very organic and not strict at all. Often, the discussion would stray from the book itself to some of the issues brought up in the book, and the book club leader would allow it to happen because of the environment of the club. ALISS tries to provide students a chance to interact with their peers in person. It’s a very social book club, and it’s less about the book and more about the discussion.

Sometimes the leader would respond to her questions. Sometimes, not all of the participants were able to answer the question because the discussion shifted and more questions were asked after one person’s response.

I didn’t record any straight yes or no questions. Most of the questions asked had to do with the themes of the book. For example, “what do you make of the author’s depiction of poverty on the rez?”

Everyone was encouraged to respond to questions, even the ones who didn’t read the book. Four out of the six participants asked questions, and everyone eventually got to chime in with their opinion on one topic or another.

We were all fairly careful to make sure everyone got to talk. Sometimes, the leader wouldn’t notice someone wanted to talk before trying to ask another question, but those issues were resolved quickly.

Overall, this was a really enjoyable book club. It may not have been as formal as other book clubs, but we were able to use the book as a shared experience so we could connect with each other.

Leading an informal book club seems like a daunting task for me. I very much like structure and get worried when discussions get off track (though participant me doesn’t mind). However, I value the chance to attend book clubs and watch other people lead them.

Were I to have to lead a book club, I would prepare a list of questions and themes. I would have to accept that discussions do get off track, but I would allow the mission of the book club to guide me.

Additionally, I don’t like attending book clubs were I haven’t read the book. Not only do I run the risk of spoilers, I also feel left out. ALISS does a good job of including those who haven’t read the book (which is what happened in October), but I would still prefer to read the book.

Book clubs are great chances to meet new people and to connect over something, and I appreciate being able to reflect on this book club experience.

Thank you!

 

Prompt Response – Week 11

Greetings Earthkind!

As part of this class, we are required to publish a weekly response to a prompt given by our professor. This is my fifth prompt response!

Prompt

Ebooks and audiobooks are a part of our landscape. What does the change in medium mean for appeal factors? If you can’t hold a book and feel the physical weight of it in your hands, how does that affect your knowledge of the genre? How about readers being able to change the font, line spacing, and color of text – how does that affect pacing and tone? How about audiobooks? Track length, narrator choice, is there music?  For this week, I want you to think about how ebooks and audiobooks affect appeal factors – also think about appeals that are unique to both mediums. Please feel free to use your own experience and that of your (anonymous of course) patrons. I look forward to reading these!

Response

To respond to the prompt, I will break it down by type.

Firstly, I have a Barnes and Noble Nook with Glowlight. I had bought it for travel, and I still use it every now and then. Mostly, I only re-read the books that I have already bought for it. It’s useful, though I will say that the page count is strange. Based on the font, page 181 could last five “page turn” swipes. That’s confusing and makes me impatient. Other than that, I enjoy using the Nook.

As eco-friendly and accessible ebooks are, I don’t think there should be ebook-only books. Books can start out as ebooks, but it should also be published in other formats eventually.

For audiobooks, I have a couple of experiences to talk about.

To start, I don’t listen to a book until I have read it first. Personally, I find audiobooks to be really engaging and so major events (sad things, etc.) affect me WAY more than reading it. Also, I usually am out somewhere (either driving or walking) when I listen, so I don’t want a sudden surprise in the novel to distract me from, say, driving.

I use OverDrive to download audiobooks to my phone and iPad. I also check out CD versions from the library, and I own some Harry Potter cassette tapes from Half-Price Books.

My husband is a very slow reader. He takes years to get through one book. This is problematic for our relationship sometimes, and we’ve found that audiobooks are a good way for us to enjoy books together. For example, after I read the Percy Jackson series for the first time, I was really excited to share them with him. However, there are 10 novels total, plus a bunch of smaller short story books. We decided we would listen to them so I could talk about them with him. We’re on book 7 of 10, so we’ve made a lot of progress.

We’ve listened to other series on audiobooks together in the past, and we’ve found that we like them told only by one person. One time, we listened to a series that had a full cast of characters and music and it was very distracting to the story. It reminded me more of a radio drama than an audiobook.

The best audiobook narrators don’t distract listeners from the story; they enhance it.

Audiobook narrators need to be able to act. They can’t read the story dully, but they have to make sure they aren’t being over the top.

Essentially, audiobook narrators are the voice in our heads as we read through the books.

Something I’ve recently seen debated is whether audiobooks count as “reading” for non-visually-impared folks. I haven’t formed my opinion on this issue, but I understand the arguments both sides make.

Both audiobooks and ebooks enhance the reading experience in their own way, and I think that in terms of conveying the story, all three media do that in their own way.

Personally, for first exposure to a book, I would prefer to read a physical copy, but for everything after that first read, both ebooks and audiobooks are great choices.

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Thank you for taking the time to read this response, and until next time, Happy Reading!