The book cover games were fun, and enlightening. When looking at the covers of well known books on Sporkle, I did pretty well (17/20 on both adult and children). Even when I didn't fully recognize the cover, I was often able to guess the book, and I recognized three of the six I didn't get, but just couldn't remember their titles. So I'd say I have a pretty good memory for books I'm familiar with, even when I haven't read them. I had much more trouble identifying genres based on covers. I think because I also rely a lot on font when evaluating an unknown book on sight. Even when I think I can place something in a genre based on the cover, I always like to read the inside or back cover, just to be sure. I also need to brush up on my fantasy and sci-fi sub-genres.
The RA Rules will be useful to keep in mind. The one I probably struggle with the most is #8 There Is No Perfect Answer. I always want to find the perfect suggestion, and sometimes forget that it can actually be better to give a range of options. I also like the idea of keeping a reading log. Taking time to really think about what I read from an RA perspective, not just as a reader, will definitely help sharpen my RA skills.
I've decided to start regularly checking in with NPR Books and Urban Reviews. NPR Books looks like it has a good mix of book news, author interviews and book reviews. It also seems to hightlight a mix of fiction and non-fiction, new and old, etc. Urban Fiction is a genre I have only a passing knowledge of and it's one that is pretty popular here at Randallstown, so knowing more will definitely be useful.