Readers' Advisory: NonFiction: Do You Know Enough?

At any given time, I can probably come up with a topic that I don't know enough about.  That is humbling to admit, but even librarians can't know everything!  Let's brainstorm for just a second here.. I could easily learn more about Area 51, Wind Energy, the French Revolution, Norway, Taekwondo, or Vladimir Putin.  Thank goodness that the key word to that last sentence is "easily."  So let's start from the top!

How much do you know about AREA 51?

I have heard and seen much about this topic in films, movies, television shows, and other fictional portrayals, but what is fact and what is fiction?

Come on a journey with me, and find out for yourself by reading:

INSIDE THE REAL AREA 51: THE SECRET HISTORY OF WRIGHT PATTERSON
by Thomas Carey and Donald Schmitt

ARE WE ALONE?

Readers' Advisory: Fiction: GRAB AND GO!

DON'T MAKE ME READ!

Having worked in public schools and their libraries over the past few years, I've run into my fair share of resistant readers.  They say that reading is BORING, TIME CONSUMING, and sometimes they might even admit that it's just too HARD!!!!!

So what is a parent, teacher, or librarian to do when a child is resistant to new worlds hidden in words?  Since we obviously can't just let them miss out on some of the best experiences of their young minds and all of the benefits that come from reading at such a young age, we need to find books that will get them excited about reading.  They're out there, I promise!

My solution to the most resistant readers is what I like to call the GATEWAY BOOKS, but others commonly refer to them as graphic novels.  They are the perfect books to introduce students to the excitement that books share with all the bells and whistles attached in the form of great illustrations.  It also shows students that being an author also means that they can use their illustration skills if they practice hard enough!  I've met plenty of artists which working in public schools, and I am sure that a few of them are graphic novel illustrators in the making!

All of that being said, the graphic novel sections in libraries grow EVER DAY (WOO-HOO!).  Entering that section can be overwhelming before it becomes exciting.  So I have included my top five graphic (fiction) novels for young adults.  I have tested these books out on real students with incredible and sometimes heart-swelling results!

 

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1.  ANYA'S GHOST by Vera Brosgol

Sometimes making friends, fitting in, and going to school can be overwhelming.  Young adults are plagued by minor worries, and Anya is no exception.  When she makes a friend in a very unlikely location-down a well-she is forced to take a second look at her "plagued" life to see where the exceptional qualities are hidden.

 





 2.  TALES FROM OUTER SUBURBIA by Shaun Tan

Shaun Tan's books seem to avoid any genre identifier.  Is it a children's book?  Is it a graphic novel?  Is it a flash fiction book?  Yes, Yes, and yes?  No matter what genre it fits into, Shaun Tan books are always a hit with young adults.  His illustrations are, frankly, OUT THERE!  I chose TALES OF OUTER SUBURBIA for this list, but all of his books are worth a gander.

 

 3.  GHOSTOPOLIS by Doug TenNapel (and BAD ISLAND)

I mentioned heart-swelling earlier, and Dough TenNapel's GHOSTOPOLIS is the book that made my heart swell one day while substitute teaching.  One student in my class was a stereotypical hyper, easily distracted, active boy who wanted to be out of his seat, and involved in every conversation.  I was racking my brain to find a way to keep him from turning Study Hall into a Free Period.  I decided to bring in Doug TenNapel's GHOSTOPOLIS.  I walked straight into the room and handed the graphic novel to the student and simply said, "When I saw this book, I thought of you."  He proceeded to sit down and read the book for the entire period!  He would not allow any other students to distract him at all!  He even asked me if there were any other similar books, and I recommended BAD ISLAND, Doug's other graphic novel.  He thanked me and said, "I needed a me-period, and this book really helped." 

 

 4.  A WRINKLE IN TIME written by Madeleine L'Engle illustrated by Hope Larson

One of my struggles when working with young readers is my knowledge of higher level reading material than the young adult is ready to conquer.  One way that I love to share classics with struggling or early readers is through graphic novel versions of classics.  A WRINKLE IN TIME is one of my favorite books, and I can share that amazing classic with Hope Larson's illustrated version.  If readers enjoy the illustrations from this graphic novel, Hope Larson has a great collection of other works that readers can enjoy once they're finished with this one!

5.  DRAMA by Raina Telgemeier

It doesn't matter if you are in a elementary library, middle school library, high school library, or public library; this book flies off of the shelves!  That alone is a great reason to have this book, and Raina Telgemeier's other famous graphic novel, SMILE, in the hands of a reluctant reader.  This is a great example of realistic fiction in a school setting (in the drama department).  Does the drama in your life compare?

 



Keep reading!

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon

E-Reader (Kindle Touch 3G)

It took me a long time to decide upon a personal use e-reader, but I finally decided upon the Kindle Touch 3G, which my wonderful boyfriend bought me for my birthday last year. While the Kindle Fire seems like a blast, I prefer to have the 3G option available, and I disliked the glare that tablet screens produce. I’ve had the Kindle for a few months now, and I’m really enjoying the device! I have read The Lightning Thief, The Maze Runner, My Ántonia, The Omen Machine, and Hattie Big Sky on the device so far, and I plan on reading a few free classical selections for a the literature course very soon.

I tried working with the MintanaLibrary2Go previously, but I don’t think I ever managed to transfer my downloads to my Kindle. Since I never transferred them, I never ended up reading them, so this assignment will encourage me to use the library e-reader resources more often. I love saving money, so renting the books I want to read appears ideal. Even though it appears that the e-book renting business is on the verge of being withdrawn to some extent in libraries, I’m hopeful that the e-reader market will flatten out soon to make it easier for librarians to be able to decide if they should use e-readers in their libraries.

I already downloaded OverDrive Media Console and Adobe Digital Editions, so I started out by looking for a book and audio book that I wanted to download. For most of the popular books, you need to get on a waiting list to download the book, but I ended up downloading Angle of Repose by Wallace Stegner and A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. I figured out how to get the books and audio files onto my Kindle with some tinkering with Adobe Digital Editions and OverDrive Media Console. I'm actually slightly ashamed how long it took me to figure out how to download the e-books.... My main complaint about the program is the fact that if you have to wait in line for an e-book you might not have time to read it once it's avbailable, but who can argue with free?

In overview, I’m very excited about the fact that I can listen to audio books with my Kindle since I adore audio books and listen to them frequently on my iPod. I am also excited about saving some money on e-books! I can imagine multiple ways that they would be exceedingly valuable in a K-12 setting, but I have not worked in a library where they use them regularly. The library at the school where I substitute teach just received their first Kindles within the last month or so, and they aren’t yet prepared to rent them out to students. One suggestion that I might give to libraries that are just now starting to use e-readers is to save money for some protective accessories such as cases and screen protectors. I haven’t used a screen protector yet, but they, in my opinion, are expensive for a piece of sticky plastic! I will be reading up on e-readers in libraries and hopefully gain a good understanding of my position on the devices as a reading aid before I am employed as a librarian.

Automation Systems Assignment #2

Since I have not yet worked as a librarian, I chose the
second assignment option. After reading
the Wikipedia page and Automation Marketplace article, I decided to look into
Ex Libris’s Alma, which is mentioned early on in the Automation Marketplace
article as a new product that differs from older and more popular products such
as the mentioned Symphony and Millennium.
I enjoy researching newer technologies and products, but the main detail
that caught my eye was the fact that Alma is primarily cloud-based and works
for both print and electronic resources, which is where libraries are headed. (I did not pick OCLC’s WMS, which the article
also mentioned as a new product, because I’m not a fan of WorldCat… it seems to
lack structure in its records.)
The Wikipedia page did not mention Alma, but the Automation
Marketplace did offer some interesting statistics. Ex Libris, for example, was one of the few
ILS producers that saw an increase in sales during this period of budget cuts
in libraries over the past few years. I
found an synopsis at http://www.exlibrisgroup.com/category/AlmaOverview. In short, Alma claims to be a cost-saving/customizable/collaboration
encouraging program, which utilizes the Unified Resource Management (URM)
framework, that provides major functionalities such as combining acquisitions
with cataloging and inventory maintenance, easy-to-understand services for the
users, dissemination control, and multi-library coordination of various types
of resources. I’m not sure if this
aspect is a unique quality since I haven’t researched too many Integrated
Library Systems, but the program is also multilingual. Since this project is also in the testing
phase, a variety of buyers can participate as testers who can influence the
future of Alma.
I’m not sure if I would recommend this service to a K-12
library based upon the information I found.
The program seems to be focused more so towards a high education
audience based upon the current partner libraries listed on the Automation
Marketplace article. It will be
interesting to see if they attempt to pull in the K-12 library market.

I volunteer at a library at Hellgate Middle School in Missoula, MT. The library website, set up by Becky Mosbacher, can be found >>here<<. It is an extension of the school's website, so she did not need to create her own. I find that her website is the easiest place to find general information for the school. She includes staff information, school policies, club information, and a link to the iBistro catalog which is a part of the Montana Shared Catalog. My favorite part of her site is the "What to Read Next" link where students can find a book similar to one they just read and loved.

After reading the article on things to include on a library page, I agree that a library webpage should include a (1) Top 10 list of books that are commonly checked out of the library, a (2) wish list of books that are needed in the library, a (3) section that advertises special events such as Banned Books Week, a (4) monthly reading theme to keep the students inspired to read, and (5) a section requesting volunteers to improve the library experience for students. There are multiple ways to make a library site unique to that library including images of students reading and comments about books that students recommend. I've worked with HTML in the past, and I think that creating a library site would be very exciting!

"Nitwit, blubber, oddment, tweak. -Albus Dumbledore