No More Bookish

Book trailers? Alright, sure. Although, I agree with Nick Davis that they shouldn't be called "book trailers." It seems to me, from the linked videos in the two articles we read, that they fall into two categories. First, there's the cheesy and fun. However, I can't help but feel like I'm on the outside of an inside joke since I'm unfamiliar with the book. Second, there are the kind that are the author describing their own book in a way that only they can. I prefer the second kind. Whether it's Thomas Pynchon's unique voice, which his fans probably love, or  Jeannette Walls discussing her motivation for writing a book, I find it much more meaningful to hear it from the horse's mouth. Better to go to the primary source than learn about the book through the lens of a third party's interpretation.


What I really want to know is if devout bibliophiles watch these. They have hundreds of thousands or millions of views so somebody is watching them. It just strikes me as a very niche thing that will likely only be seen by people who are already going to read that book anyway. Of the handful I watched, I do not think they are great reader's advisory tools. What I did get out of them were a few general plot themes and the overall tone. That is of course assuming the trailer provides an accurate depiction of these things.




Well, I guess that's it. Be More Bookish is no more. Overall, I think the program is useful. It exposed me to several things that, as a newly minted librarian, I had no idea existed. All kinds of genres and subgenres that I hope to remember at least a few of. The program also had useful parameters by which to describe books. I might struggle to remember them all but the eight elements of appeal will always be floating around in my head when speaking to a customer about a title.

• Pacing
• Characterization
• Story Line (including the books context, type, genre, theme, and subjects)
• Language
• Setting
• Detail
• Tone
• Learning/Experiencing

Until next time, fellow bloggers.

From Fiction to Nonfiction without Friction

I love nonfiction!


I've read a few Disaster/Survival books. While they bleed into the 900's, one title that comes to mind that I enjoyed is Into Thin Air: a Personal Account of the Mount Everest Disaster by Jon Krakauer; 796.522 K.


Crime is an interesting section, well all the 300's really. The section really seems to a sampling of others at times. One good Crime title is Manhunt: the twelve-day chase for Lincoln's Killer by James L. Swanson; 364.1524 S.


Travel is fun! A great book, which I might refer to as a beer lovers reference book is Mid-Atlantic best breweries, brewpubs & beer bars by Bryan Kolesar; 917.4 K.


History is my jam. Washington's Revolution: the making of America's first leader by Robert Middlekauf is a great book. It's number is 973.3 M.


John Krakauer's Into Thin Air is the compelling story of survival against all odds in one of the most unforgiving places on earth. Setting is vastly important to a book that takes place in such at such an extreme location. Thankfully, the book is much more approachable than Mount Everest. In both the style it is written and its length, this title is an easy read for even casual readers of nonfiction. Krakauer's books are always thoroughly researched and he really delves into the character of the people he is writing about so you can get to know them, warts and all.


Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln's Killer by James L. Swanson is the exciting blow by blow story of a fugitive on the run. John Wilkes Booth is an infamous name but Swanson does a great job of shedding light on this dubious historical character. The reader gets the full picture of what motivated Booth and his coconspirators, the mournful mindset most Americans in in the wake of the Civil War, and the clues that kept the authorities on the assassin's trail. The length of the book might be a bit daunting to readers used to lighter, nonfiction titles but the fast paced exciting nature of the book will keep your attention.

O! Thank heaven: Week 7

Assignment 1: I really enjoyed this flowchart. I have not read The Hunger Games so if a customer were to ask me what to read next this would be of great assistance. The sense of humor of whomever wrote this is also right up my alley. Maybe we should organize the Teen section by variety of apocalypse?


Assignment 2: The first article I chose to read was "Who's buying teen books? Lots and lots of adults" by Molly Driscoll. I have seen time and again that there are no shortage of adults who like to read from the Teen section. I'm inclined to agree with her speculation that "...part of the appeal may be that young adult books are sometimes written in a less complicated fashion than adult books and may offer more of a literary escape..." After a long day or week, escaping with a book, TV show, or movie makes perfect sense.  I wonder if it also has to do with the fact that these aren't the classic. These books are newer and nobody is telling me to read them. People aren't usually as enthusiastic about doing things when they do it out of obligation.


The second article I read was "New Adult: Needless Marketing-Speak Or Valued Subgenre?" by Rachel Deahl. My first thought was to wonder if the content of this article was still relevant since it is 3 1/2 years old. A quick search on Goodreads for "New Adult" confirmed that designation for a subgenre was still in use and revealed several Romance-sounding titles like Falling Hard and Fifty First Times. This made sense when I read Margo Lipschultz's perspective in the article, "there is more going on with the term [New Adult] than marketing, and that the category is filling a hole, especially in the romance genre." This isn't a genre I read but, her contention holds up.
Assignment 3: I have decided to follow Teenreads and Forever Young Adult. I signed up to receive emails from them, which will hopefully encourage me to make more observations.
Assignment 4: I chose to look at Harlequin Teens. The section specifically for teens in not expansive but has a few worthy features. Being able to sort by newest to oldest or by series would be useful to regular readers of this genre. Upcoming books as far out as July 2017 could really start a buzz. The most recognizable trend here seems to be romance with racy covers.
Then I took at look Teens@Random. This site appears to cater more towards teens seeking action titles. Eragon, Maze Runner, and books with comparable titles/covers. These are the kind of titles that typically occupy the end cap of Pikesville's Teen section that is geared towards boys. Something I do like about the site is the Author Spotlight because I'm always curious to learn more about an author.