Week 9: Book Trailers and Training Wrap Up

Book Trailers

I enjoyed watching some of the book trailers, but like the Chicago Tribune article said, "Even the ones that are good don't make you want to buy the book." I love Zach Galifianakis, but I learned nothing about Lowboy from that trailer. I was very moved by Kelly Corrigan's essay on female friendships, but it didn't do anything to encourage me to read Middle Place. After doing some exploring on YouTube, I found that the trailers for horror books and teen books were the most successful at representing the appeals of the books and at enticing readers to pick them up. Trailers for horror books were able to create a sense of suspense that could draw in readers and trailers for teen books were able to portray the tone and voice of the books. While they are far from cinematic masterpieces, two of my favorites were:

 

 

Wrap Up

I found a lot of great resources through this training, including Early Word and Forever Young Adult, and I appreciated having the time to really focus on Readers' Advisory. I will admit that about midway through, as the assignments got longer and more complicated, I began to drag my feet a little, but I am really glad to have finished.

Week 8: Nonfiction

The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures
by Anne Fadiman
306.46

Contemporary Social Issues: Depending on the issue, these books can be found throughout the nonfiction section, though the early 300s and 360s are a good place to start.

I Feel Bad About My Neck and Other Thoughts on Being a Woman
by Nora Ephron
814 E

Essays: Many essay books can be found at 814 and 824.

Walking Home: A Poet's Journey
by Simon Armitage
914.2 A

Travel: Travel books, including travel writing and travel memoirs, can be found between 910 and 919.

Poor Man's Feast: A Love Story of Comfort, Desire, and the Art of Simple Cooking
by Elissa Altman
641.5092

Food: Food writing can be found at 641.

Week 7: Not Just For Teens

Articles

YALSA's article The Next Big Thing: Adults Reading Teen Literature and Publishers Weekly's YA Comes of Age provide useful insights into why adults are increasingly drawn to YA fiction. A lot of it seems to have to do with marketing and movie/TV tie ins. These things draw adult readers in, and once they realize that there is a lot of high quality writing and storytelling in YA, they continue to seek it out.

Blogs

I've been following Forever Young Adult and John Green for about a week or so and am enjoying them both more than I had expected.

FYA is a self-described "non-stop internet slumber party" for "YA readers who are a little less 'Y' and a little more 'A'."As someone who falls into that general category, I've been having a lot of fun with this site. They write about and review YA books, teen-centered TV and movies, and interview authors. The tone is a nice mix between snark and girlish-naivete, and so it will appeal to many nostalgic young women.

It took me a little while to figure out what John Green, a very popular YA author, was trying to do with this website. At first it just seemed like a bunch of random videos of him and his brother ranting. Okay, so that's exactly what it is, but that seems to be the point. He and his brother have a lot of interesting thoughts and ideas, and there are people out there in the world who want to hear them, so they've created a little internet community where they can all talk about these ideas. Why not?

Publisher Sites

I spent some time on Harper Teen (and their blog Epic Reads) and Little, Brown Books for Teens. Along with the usual teen romance, distopia, and fantasy, I noticed a number of YA books with historical elements.

Week Six: Building Base Knowledge (Genres)

I've been following Urban Reviews in an attempt to learn more about the urban fiction genre. Unfortunately, this site does not seem to have been updated since December 2012, so I haven't learned about any new titles. Through reading reviews and author interviews, though, I have been introduced to a number of urban fiction authors I wasn't previously familiar with, and I've learned more about some of the authors I did already know about.

Subgenres

Christian Urban Fiction, Urban/Contemporary Fantasy and Military Romance are three subgenres that I know very little about. I used Google to find fan sites that would teach me more about these subgenres.

Written Voices Blog: AA Literature the Edifies the Soul is a site for readers and writers of Christian Urban Fiction. The women writing for this site are very interested in exploring their connection to God, and they enjoy reading and promoting authors who write about spiritual journeys in the African American community. Three examples of this subgenre are:

 

All Things Urban Fantasy: Where Para is Normal is a site for readers of Urban Fantasy. In addition to book reviews, this site pays a lot of attention to cover art. They review new covers and host the Paranormal Cover Art Awards. They appear to be very interested in YA titles, as well as adult. Three examples of this subgenre are:

 

For the Love of Military Romance is a blog written by a group of Military Romance authors. These women are very interested in all aspects of the military, from the gear to the heroism to the sculpted physiques. Three examples of this subgenre are:

 

 

Crossovers

Christine Feehan's Mind Game could appeal to readers of both paranormal romance and military romance. This novel features a military hero with psychic and telekinetic abilities.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Queen's Rival by Diane Haeger might appeal to reader of both historical fiction and historical romance. This novel tells of the life and loves of Henry VIII's mistress Bessie Blount.

Week 5: Building Base Knowledge (Part II)

I've been following NPR Books and it is a fantastic resource for author interviews and book reviews. My favorite part, though, has been the book news through a feature called The Two-Way. Each day they give a roundup of book news, gossip and interviews from a variety of sources. This is where I found out that Lydia Davis had won the Man Booker International Prize and that Amazon will now be selling fan fiction. It is also where I read this great quote from a book review in the New York Times, "Calling a writer 'Midwestern' seems like a way to start up that familiar and imaginary battle between Plain Novels Full of People With Integrity and Dirty Fingernails versus Showoffy Books About People Having Martinis in Penthouses." I will definitely continue to use this site.

EarlyWord has so much information packed into one little site that it will take some time to sift through it all. One thing I found interesting to look at was the OverDrive 'best seller' list. It isn't something I'd seen before and is interesting to compare to other best seller lists, since not all books are available on OverDrive.

Happiness, Like Water, a debut story collection from Nigerian American author Chinelo Okparanta, caught my eye on the Huffington Post Best Books of 2013. This book may be of interest to readers who have enjoyed other recent works by Nigerian authors, including Ghana Must Go by Taiye Selasi, Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, and Open City by Teju Cole. It may also appeal to readers of short stories about women and families, including those by Alice Munro and Edna O'Brien.

Week 4: Building Base Knowledge (GoodReads)

I've been using Goodreads for quite a while, and have found it to be a great way to find out about new books and keep track of what I've read. At a previous job I even moderated an online book discussion group through the site. With the recent announcement that it's been purchased by Amazon, however, I've been rethinking my use of Goodreads. I haven't deleted my account yet, but I have cut back on how much information I give them about my reading preferences and habits. That being said, it can be a great RA tool. I particularly like the lists and I often use it to figure out the order of books in various series.

I connected with several colleagues on Goodreads and recommended The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie to Susan. She had read and enjoyed Wonder by R.J. Palacio and I thought she might also like this humorous and touching coming of age story.

Week 3: The Readers' Services Conversation

Customer #1

I would suggest Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Coast Trail by Cheryl Strayed. Like Eat, Pray, Love, it is a memoir about a woman's self-discovery after a difficult time in her life. There would be a lot for a book club to discuss after reading this.

Customer #2

I would suggest Soulless by Gail Carriger. Unlike Twilight, this vampire novel, the first in a series, is full of clever humor and supernatural action--in the first chapter a vampire upsets a tea tray and is killed by a parasol wielding woman with no soul.

Customer #3

I would suggest Destiny of the Republic: a Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President by Candice Millard. Written by the same author as The River of Doubt, this book focuses on the assassination of President James A. Garfield. It is a similarly fascinating, fast paced historical read.