Week 9  Wrap Up!


Week 9  Assignment 1/2


I read both the Tribune and Times articles about book videos and found them to be quite dated.  I logged on to YouTube and typed in Book Videos and the choices that were featured were worth a look.  I choose the video for "Wonder" the novel by R.J. Palacio. There was no narration except for background guitar music and simply written paragraphs that hinted at the story. All under 3 minutes.  It kept my attention and was interesting enough  for me to want to read this book..  There was also a video titled"5 Books That Will Blow Your Mind," and that title was enough for me to take a second look.  The narrator was a young teen girl who very enthusiastically recommended her 5 choices.  I have young teenage daughters at home who I thought would definitely watch a video like this and read at least one of these five recommends.
Much has changed in producing videos since these articles were published, respectively 2012, 2010.. The possibilities for creating visually interesting, short and powerful videos is much easier and cheaper and the number of young teens using social media to connect to friends and beyond, is changing as we speak!
I think book videos will only expand as more and more of us look to our phones and computers for information.




Week 9  Assignment 3


BeMoreBookish has introduced me to several new areas that will be really helpful as I move forward in my position as a librarian.  First, I set up my first blog(!) which is a great way to connect with fellow booklovers. I've enjoyed discovering the EarlyWord, Mystery Readers International and the TeenReads sights and will look at them weekly to stay updated on recent releases. The GoodReads sight will also be a spot that I use for our customers ....and for me!  After perusing their sight, I don't think I will ever be without something good to read.
Each week this online course offered something new and interesting.  From judging book covers, to how to best assist a patron looking for the next read, exploring teen fiction or transitioning to nonfiction, there was much to learn and use in my daily work. I look forward to the next training.

Week 8   NonFiction

Week 8  Assignment 3/4

My four nonfiction genres are:

Politics
320 Political Science  324  The Political Process
(324.973.H)  Clinton, Inc.  Daniel Halpern
This recommendation comes as our country gears up for the general election in November.  Much has been written, analyzed and questioned about Hillary Clinton and most people have very strong opinions about her and her husband.  As the election nears, the political discourse will only intensify and this book may provide some nuggets of information to keep the conversation fiery!

Memoir
790 Sports, Games and Entertainment   796 Athletic & Outdoor Sports and Games
(796.332B)Strength of a Champion: Finding Faith and Fortitude through Adversity by O. J. Brigance
I would recommend this book for several reasons.  The author is a former Baltimore Ravens football player who is living with ALS.  He has become a local hero to many who have watched him struggle through this debilitating disease. This memoir is a personal story that is both uplifting but also very sad.  I had the opportunity to assist him while I was working at Johns Hopkins and he was always smiling and his eyes were full of life although he had lost the ability to speak.  He inspired me every single time.

Essays
810 American Literature in English    818 American Miscellaneous Writings in English
(818H)  Langston Hughes Reader:  Selected Writings of Langston Hughes
I would recommend this book as a wide ranging introduction to Langston Hughes.  Most people have heard of this author but may not have read anything by him.  This collections draws on his essays, plays, poems, songs and novels.  He was a key figure during  the Harlem Renaissance and his writings reflect that dynamic time .

Contemporary Social Issues
320  Political Science    325  International Migration and Colonization
(325.73N)  BrainGain: Rethinking U.S. Immigration Policy  by Darrell West
I choose Contemporary Social Issues as my genre and particularly this book on Immigration because it is a current hot topic.  Both candidates for the presidential election have strong views and there are equally strong reactions from the public. I would recommend this book to a customer who is interested in the current political discourse and wants to be informed of the issues.  And who doesn't like a heated and lively debate among friends?

Week 7  Assignment 4 

Looking at Trends at HarperTeen and Little Brown Books for Teens


Both of these sights have similar offerings.  HarperTeen leads with Epic Reads and Little Brown for Teens with Featured Books which comprise lists of the most popular and newly released novels.and both present videos of various authors talking about their latest work.
 The trend I see in these two  sights is the continuation of the "Dystopia" themes-Veronica Roth's "Curve the Mark," "Outliers" by Kimberly McCreighton  and a new segment of the Red Queen series by Victoria Aveyard were a few hightlights.  There are also new releases that seem to be an extension of the "Game of Thrones" storyline with dark tales of fantasy mixed with historical themes such as "Shadow Queen" by C J Redwine.
The success of the John Green novels like "Fault of Our Stars," which present complex emotional themes for teens will expand and continue.  On the HarperTeens sight author Owen Matthers was featured with his new release"The Fixes" about a father's high expectations for his son  and the pressures felt to reach them.
The appeal of the dystopia, fantasy and emotional storylines have branched out to adults as well.  There is so much to choose from and these three particular themes continually provide compelling reads.

Following John Green's Tumblr and TeenReads....

Week 7  Assignment 3

I choose John Green's Tumblr and the TeenReads sight to explore.  Both  sights had loads of interesting articles, YouTube videos, Reading Lists and Blogs.



John Green's Tumblr is chockful of humor, interesting facts far and wide as well as the books he has written, which are wildly popular with young adults and adults.  Earlier in the  week he featured his own video about the DFTBA Sock, which stands for Don't Forget to be Awesome. He also dispensed his particular viewpoint on Mars, the AFC Wimbledon and the Indy 500(takes place in his hometown.) There is also a Dear Hank and John section where young teens can submit a question and John/Hank will answer it and dispense abit of advice, too.  The Dear Hank and John column offers past videos that can be viewed on SoundCloud, iTunes and  Podbay.fm. This column started as a videoblog posted to YouTube and created a community of people called "Nerdfighters" who "fight for intellectualism and to decrease the worldwide level of suck!"
When I checked back later in the week, John's video was hosting "Paper Towns: Get lost and get Found Tour:Vote for you State" competition.  The movie trailer for his novel "Paper Towns" was also featured.  There was a quirky video called "Let's Go Outside!" as he urged his viewers to go outside and look at nature.  He said he loves DaddyLongLeg Spiders, Honeysuckle,  bubbles and Indianapolis!  There is an area where fans can post their thoughts and this was inspiring to read.  Comments like.... "Your books speak to a real teens' soul." is probably one of the reasons why there are 3.8 million who follow them on Twitter.




TeenReads..... always includes a daily quote... "Be nice to people on your way up because you will meet them on your way down."  Wilson Mizner


TeenReads hosts several  features such as  Reviews,  Ultimate Reading Lists(YALSA Best Lists), Contests, Teen Board, Newsletter and Blog. You can connect via Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, IndieBound, Amazon and subscribe to their various Feeds too.  One of the Bloggers wrote about her experiences at "BookCon" in Chicago.  There was a short video by the author Rick Lancy and his latest release "DarkStar,"  Teresa Toten's "Beward that Girl" and a new trilogy by Kimberly McCreight "Outliers." 
A few days later, I checked back and the featured article was "Vote in Our Poll," "Summer is finally here and we're ready for some great summer reading.  How do you decide what you will read over the summer?  Take our poll! Another part of the sight encouraged teens to join Tumblr and "stay connected."
Included in the Features and Contests area were several good, quick tidbits such as ALA Best Lists, Teen Board Q/A, Cool and New and New in Paperback.  There were several reviews of the latest books. 
Another quote of the day  "Blushing is the Color of Virtue"  Diogenes


There is something for everyone on either of these sights.  If either teens or adults want ideas on what to read or what young teens are interested in or asking questions about, you can find it here. 

Week 7  Assignment 2




"Who's buying teen books?  Lots and lots of adults."
                                                     by Molly Driscoll


This article dates back to September 2012 so some of the information may already be outdated.

There were some good points in the article that I found interesting:
1.  Many of the books aimed at the teen market and also being read by adults as well.( "55% of customers who buy young adult books are 18 or older.")
2.  The teen readers market generally directed to readers age 12-17, has widened it's appeal due to the popularity of books like "The Hunger Games", "Harry Potter and the "Twilight" series.

3.  What is the appeal of these books to adults?  This article states  "sometimes written in a less complicated fashion than adult books and may offer more of a literary escape than an adult contemporary novel, providing a relaxing experience for an adult reader tired from commuting, working all day and taking care of kids."
4.  Angelina Benedetti, Washington state librarian, wrote in a 2008 column for the Library Journal that "it took her awhile to catch on to the quality titles being released in the teen market but that now, when her friends come to her for reading suggestions, she points them to young adult titles."
5.  Amazon started to include "Best of the Month" picks which included young adult titles in its "Top 10 List" -not as a separate "young readers" list but as part of its overall survey of best titles available.


"YA Comes of Age" by Sue Corbett


This article is dated September 2011 and the following are important points;
1. " YA  continues to shine in an industry clouded by uncertainty.  A decade and a half after Harry Potter kick-started a fantasy boom, hardcover fiction remains the star category."
2.  YA adult subject matter features "menacing creatures, forbidden romances and apocalyptic versions of this and future Earth."  Rosemary Stimola, a agent for Suzanne Collins, states "this is a population of young people who don't remember a time when the country was not at war.  It makes perfect sense that their literature would allow them a way to exercise their thoughts about the nature of good and evil......"
3.  "Since bookstores moved the teen section away from the kids' departments, YA books lost the stigma what they were somehow inferior because they were written for teens..."
4.  YA books also changed their book covers to more "elegant packaging."  Bookseller Barry Goldblatt " cites the cover for The Hunger Games as....gender neutral, age neutral and sharp."
5.  There is a certain amount of "Paranormal Fatigue," according to Jennifer Laughran, an agent with the Andrea Brown Literary Agency, " "It can't be just about two shiny guys and a girl anymore.....doo something different with the paranormal elements.....super funny on one page and super scary on the next."
6.  This article ends by the "next big thing,"-dystopias-and in 2016, we see many titles such as the Divergent series growing in popularity.

Week 6 Assignment 3 Building a Base Knowledge - Subgenres

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Week 6  Assignment 3

This Me More Bookish training has introduced me to so many great sights, books and ideas and the Prezi chart was so interesting.  Who knew there were so many Genre/Subgenre categories! 
I decided to choose three different genre's I don't usually read, so here goes:


Urban Fiction/Literary

My first pick was Urban Fiction with Literary as the subgenre.  I profess to knowing absolutely nothing about the books in this category, however I was pleasantly surprised when I went to EarlyWord and found their "Listopia" list called "This Is the Definition of Urban Fiction."  I actually had heard of  the first 4 that were there. The Coldest Winter Ever by Sister Souljah  seems to be one of the standard bearers and I would like to read it to get a better sense of this genre.  Others on the list were Flyy Girl by Omar Tyree, True to the Game by Teri Woods and The Cartel by Ashley Antoinette.  The appeal factors seem to be  storylines within an urban setting that are edgy and confrontational.

Horror/Gothic
I have never read much Horror(my imagination is vivid enough!) but I choose this area to get a better idea of what is offered. Again I went to EarlyWord to see what they had on their lists and  choose new and classic offerings.  First off, Shirley Jackson"s We Have Always Lived in the Castle"-the book cover drew me in and the title as well.  Miss Peregrine"s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs had several appeal factors. The book cover alone-a black/white picture, looks to be back in the early part of the century of a young girl in a dress, levitating and staring right at you-is a curious sight,  but also, throughout the book are other B/W photos of unusual children.  I think using not just word but pictures is very effective. If you really love horror in it's finest where it goes to work in your imagination, a must read is Edgar Allan Poe(Also if you are from Baltimore, well....I don't need to say more!) and The Fall of the House of Usher and Other Tales should be on everyone's list.   I also choose another older book, Perfume: The Story of a Murderer by Patrick Suskind.  This book came out in the late 80's when I was working at an independent bookstore and it was very popular so I want to revisit and put it on my reading list.

 Western/Urban    

This combination of Western and Urban seems so unlikely, that I picked this for my third choice of subgenres.  I went, once again, to EarlyWord for guidance and this is what I found.  A classic read by Zane Grey, Riders of the Purple Sage, though probably very dated, should be read just to see how far the western novel has come.  Somehow, on this sight, the two genre's meshed together and The Chance She Took by Kole Black made the list so one sees a pretty big departure from a Zane Grey novel. My last title is a Comac McCarthy novel,  All The Pretty Horses.  Written in a sparse, tight style that reads like a contemporary novel, with a storyline placed in the 1950/1960/s.  I realize my three choices really run the gamut here, but I think this subgenre is evolving... which lead me to create my own.  Take the movie "Jango Unchained" and apply it to a new subgenre I will call "Urban/Southern Gothic"...Imagine Gone with the Wind, but with a contemporary dialogue and the history of that time  intertwined with  our current perspective. 


Please excuse the last,(very small)! paragraph.....I had some trouble getting the font to change.  

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Week 6 Building Base Knowledge (Genres)

Week 6  Assignment 1      I choose Mystery Readers International to explore and learn about.  I love mysteries, but don't often choose them when I think of what to read next, and I thought this sight might give me some good ideas.
Mystery Readers International is an organization with a worldwide fan base. It's web page features the Mystery Readers Journal, which is a quarterly newsletter with articles, reviews and author interviews. The current journal featured mystery stories about New York City.


 It also has a Mystery Fanfare Blog where contributers write about book related ideas and stories.  I found an article there about "Book Smelling" and why people smell books.  It caught my eye, because I have been a book sniffer ever since I can remember!  The smell reminds me of my hometown library and the many hours I spent there in pure happiness!  The article traces the smell in the following paragraph.

"The appeal of old books’ smell has been studied in depth. Wood-based paper contains lignin, a chemical closely related to vanillin, the compound that gives vanilla its fragrance. As the pages age and the compounds break down, they release that signature scent. An experienced rare book handler can date a volume by scent alone, according to the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers.

Furthermore, scent is strongly tied to memory. Just as the scent of sunscreen or fresh-cut grass can suddenly evoke memories of childhood summers, for the bookish among us the scent of old manuscripts recalls pleasures like reading an old classic, or scouring a library or used bookstore."

Also, part of the Mystery Fanfare Blog had some other interesting tidbits:

Cartoon of the Day(see below), CrimeFest Award Winners 2016, CWA Dagger Award Longlists, Noir City-Austin.

I also enjoyed reading their Twitter feed and a feature "Dying for Chocolate." that included some tasty recipes.

There is something for everyone on this sight.

It is always best to include something to make us laugh!