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Readers' Advisory

lhayden — Fri, 22 May 2009 13:31:09 CDT

Definition

Readers' advisory is a library service dedicated to answering the question, "What's a good book to read?" In the past this has meant uniformly recommending books to improve the reader's mind. Today readers' advisors are more interested in suggesting leisure reading (fiction and narrative nonfiction) based on knowledge of the individual reader's interest. Readers' advisors also do indirect readers' advisory (see below), which does not involve one-on-one interaction.

Direct Readers' Advisory

Direct RA means using direct communication with the reader. This could be a reference librarian conducting a readers' advisory interview, a circulation clerk talking with readers about their selections at the checkout desk, using IM software or email to chat with readers about books.

Indirect Readers' Advisory

Indirect RA uses print or electronic information rather than direct interaction to help readers find materials to take home. Here are examples of indirect RA:

Displays
Bookmarks/booklists
Forms
Promoting tools
Librarian reviews/staff picks
Library Web site
Catalog
Reader Alert programs
Shelf-talkers

History of Readers' Advisory

Urban/Modern Fantasy

lhayden — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 15:06:30 CST

Characteristics

Urban fantasy takes traditional fantasy or even fairytale elements and places them in an urban and often recognisable setting e.g. a city near you! Many of the books in this genre could also be called alternate history or alternate reality books - i.e. what would this world be like if everything was exactly the same except that werewolves existed.

Wikipedia describes "Urban Fantasy" as
"a subset of contemporary fantasy, consisting of magical novels and stories set in contemporary, real-world, urban settings--as opposed to 'traditional' fantasy set in wholly imaginary landscapes, even ones containing imaginary cities, or having most of their action take place in them. The modern urban fantasy protagonist faces extraordinary circumstances as plots unfold in either open (where magic or paranormal events are commonly accepted to exist) or closed (where magical powers or creatures are concealed) worlds" (Wikipedia: Urban Fantasy).

History

Appeal

The appeal of this genre has to do with the interaction of the everyday with the fantastical - unlike characters in a completely created world, we have much in common with the protagonists ( quite often young and female) and might wish we have their problems. (e.g. power over the weather or being hunted by a fairy assassin) Urban fantasy also crosses successfully with other genres e.g. the Dresden Files cross Urban Fantasy with Crime and Noir genres.

Talking with readers

Key Authors

General Urban Fantasy

Emma Bull - War for the Oaks
Kelley Armstrong - Women of the Otherworld series
Kim Harrison - Rachel Morgan books (e.g. Dead Witch Walking)
Rachel Caine - Weather Warden series
Patricia Briggs - Mercy Thompson Series
Stephanie Meyer - Twilight series
C.E. Murphy - The Walker Papers (series)
Margaret Mahy - The Crossover (YA)
Scott Westerfeld - The Midnighters Series (YA)

Crossover or Contested Urban Fantasy

Crime/ Noir

Jim Butcher - The Dresden Files

Futuristic (possible Science Fiction)

Emma Bull - Finder
Lilith Saintcrow - Dante Valentine series.

Horror

Mike Carey - Felix Castor novels

Mythic

Neil Gaiman - Neverwhere, American Gods

Romance

Keri Arthur - Ripple Creek Werewolf Series

References

Urban fantasy. Wikipedia Web site: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_fantasy

Urban Fiction

lhayden — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 11:15:53 CST

Characteristics

History

Appeal

Talking with readers

Key Authors

References

Fantasy

RachelCrowe — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 13:09:34 CST

Fantasy deals in the impossible, focusing on magic and other supernatural elements, rather than on technology. However, the magic does have rules. The fantasy universe is consistent within itself; generally the author poses a "what if" setting, and creates rules around the fantastic elements. Fantasy can be set in a fictional world, or in the real world with impossible elements. In fantasy, the characters accept the supernatural elements as a normal part of life.

Characteristics

History

Appeal

The primary appeal of fantasy is escapism. Most fantasy readers will tell you that they get enough reality in daily life without burdening their leisure time with it, as well. The secondary factor is the ability to address issues by way of extensive metaphor. Whether it comes as an overarching political satire or merely the personification of an abstract personal issue, fantasy can put a face on any problem and illustrate methods to confront it. Individual appeal will vary, however, as fantasy can be applied to any other genre, from romance to horror, from the literary to erotica.

Talking with readers

The most crucial thing to keep in mind when talking to readers of fantasy is that they are expecting you to shun them. Fantasy is a highly marginalized genre, associated—right or wrong—with being juvenile. It's very important to keep from expressing judgement; so long as you are giving a welcoming ear, readers will usually be more than happy to fill you in on the details, which will generally fall into one or more subgenre.

Key Authors

Subgenres

High Fantasy
Epic Fantasy
Sword and Sorcery
Urban/Modern Fantasy
Dark Fantasy
Comic Fantasy
Gothic Fantasy

References

Graphic Novels

lhayden — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 11:21:16 CST

Graphic novels and comics are more or less interchangeable terms. If we are to distinguish, we may say that a graphic novel is a lengthy comic with a novel-like storyline. While graphic novels are not necessarily a separate genre, their appeal is unique enough to merit a separate discussion.

Characteristics

Graphic novels do not have much in common with each other, except that they are primarily visual; that is, the story is told mostly with pictures, like a comic strip. Graphic novels can be fiction or non-fiction, on any subject.

History

Appeal

Talking with readers

Key authors

Alan Moore
Frank Miller

Subgenres

Manga

References

Historical Fiction

lhayden — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 11:14:56 CST

Characteristics

There are some arguments about how to define historical fiction. We can consider a historical novel to be any novel set in a time before the author was born. According to the Historical Novel Society, for a novel to be considered historical, it must have been written "at least fifty years after the events described, or have been written by someone who was not alive at the time of those events (who therefore approaches them only by research)." The society also considers alternate histories, time-travel novels, historical fantasies, and multiple-time novels to be historical. Read more about defining "historical" on the Historical Novel Society's page Defining the Genre.

History

Appeal

Talking with readers

Key Authors

References

Defining the genre. Retrieved December 10, 2008, from Historical Novel Society Web site: http://www.historicalnovelsociety.org/definition.htm

Manga

lhayden — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 11:09:34 CST

Types of manga

Manga is often classified based on the sex and age of its readership.

Kodomo - Manga created for young children just beginning to read.
Shojo - Manga created for pre-teen or teenage female readers.
Shonen - Manga created for pre-teen or teenage male readers.
Seinen - Manga created for adult male readers.
Josei - Manga created for adult female readers.
Shonen-ai/Yaoi - Manga that focuses on male-male romantic relationships. (These are popular among teenage and adult female readers.)
Shojo-ai/Yuri - Manga that focuses on female-female romantic relationships.
Hentai - Manga with pornographic content, where the focus is on graphic sex.

References

Williams, J.M. (2008). Types of manga. Retrieved December 10, 2008, from BellaOnline Web site: http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art20006.asp

Genres

lhayden — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 10:55:59 CST

Welcome to genres! Choose a genre from the list below, or from the left side of the page.

Book reviews

lhayden — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 16:52:48 CST

WorldCat has user reviews from Amazon, along with its own user reviews.
Writing Reviews for Open WorldCat

User-created bookmarks

lhayden — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 10:12:18 CST

By Author

Child, Lee. Nothing to Lose. Created on 8/19/2008 by Laura Hayden.
Coben, Harlan. Hold Tight. Created on 6/4/2008 by Laura Hayden.
Frank, Dorothea Benton. Bulls Island. Created on 7/16/2008 by Laura Hayden.
Giffin, Emily. Love the One You're With. Created on 8/25/2008 by Laura Hayden.
Gilbert, Elizabeth. Eat, Pray, Love. Created on 6/10/2008 by Laura Hayden.
Gregory, Philippa. Tudor series. Created on 10/20/08 by Laura Hayden.
Hosseini, Khaled. A Thousand Splendid Suns. Created on 6/3/2008 by Laura Hayden.
Koontz, Dean. Odd Hours. Created on 6/3/2008 by Laura Hayden.
Macomber, Debbie. Twenty Wishes. Created on 6/3/2008 by Laura Hayden.
Patterson, James. Sail. Created on 8/29/2008 by Laura Hayden.
Roberts, Nora. Tribute. Created on 8/25/2008 by Laura Hayden.

By Subject

Bookmarks and booklists are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License. Please feel free to alter and share them with credit, under the same license.

User-created Booklists

lhayden — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 13:12:24 CST

By Author

Arthur C. Clarke Created on 4/30/08 by Laura Hayden

By Genre

Inspirational Authors (list, with short descriptions) Created on 7/16/08 by Laura Hayden
Mystery Created on 6/18/08 by Laura Hayden

By Theme

Indiana Jones Created on 4/30/08 by Laura Hayden

Bookmarks and booklists are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License. Please feel free to alter and share them with credit, under the same license.

Free online resources

lhayden — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:53:25 CST

Allreaders.com
Amazon.com
Barnes and Noble
EarlyWord: Nora Rawlinson's "News for Collection Development and Readers Advisory Librarians"
Fantastic Fiction
Fiction-L (mailing list and archives)
LibraryThing
Shelfari
Wake County (NC) Public Libraries R eaders' Corner (Check out the reading lists!)

Print resources

lhayden — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:47:22 CST

Books

Booth, Heather. Serving Teens through Readers' Advisory. Chicago: American Library Association, 2007.
Burgin, Robert, ed. Nonfiction Readers' Advisory. Westport, Conn: Libraries Unlimited, 2004.
Saricks, Joyce. Readers' Advisory Guide to Genre Fiction. Chicago: American Library Association, 2001.
Saricks, Joyce. Readers Advisory Service in the Public Library, 3rd ed. Chicago: ALA Editions, 2005.
Wyatt, Neal.The Readers' Advisory Guide to Nonfiction. Chicago: American Library Association, 2007.

Magazines/Journals

Library Journal

Articles

Wyatt, Neal. Keeping up with genres. Library Journal, 133(18), 30-33.

Read This Book

lhayden — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:49:44 CST

"Never apologize for your reading tastes."

-Betty Rosenberg, Genreflecting

Welcome to Read This Book, now open to new members! RTB will be a one-stop go-to for new and experienced readers' advisors to learn, share, collaborate, and dump knowledge as you come across it. Join, jump in, and add what you know!

RA Resources

lhayden — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 15:06:24 CDT

Includes print and online resources.

Bookmarks and booklists

lhayden — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 13:36:40 CDT

There are no stringent guidelines for bookmarks and booklists. Be creative in making them! However, they should be created in a widely used format such as a Microsoft Word or Publisher document.

Bookmarks and booklists are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License. Please feel free to alter and share them with credit, under the same license.

Romance

lhayden — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 11:19:56 CDT

Characteristics

History

Appeal

Talking with readers

Key Authors

References

Lad Lit

lhayden — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 11:19:23 CDT

Characteristics

History

Appeal

Talking with readers

Key Authors

References

Horror

lhayden — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 11:18:40 CDT

Characteristics

History

Appeal

Talking with readers

Key Authors

References

Adventure

lhayden — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 09:42:19 CDT

Adventure (or action-adventure) fiction is fast-paced fiction with lots of physical action, usually in an exotic locale. This genre is characterized by larger-than-life cinematic elements, (Think Indiana Jones, James Bond, or The Librarian: Quest for the Spear.) sometimes fantastic. The protagonist is usually male, but may have a female companion along on the adventure.