Week 9 - Assignment 3

I mostly liked the concept of appeal factors. I could never really put my finger on those things that may be important to a reader, such as pace. The appeal factors for me open up more possibilities for readers advisory, recommending titles that may be different than what the reader would normally choose, but the pace or setting etc. may make it appealing beyond the author or the basic story.

I also liked the nonfiction section. One reason is I have been reading more nonfiction lately and it made me realize we can do some crossover titles that may compare to a fiction title the reader enjoyed. This, of course, will increase the possibilities of titles to recommend and help the reader branch out into another genre of reading.

Week 9 Assignment 1 and 2

I looked at about 5 book trailers on You Tube. They were for the following titles:

Glass Castle
Room
Destiny of the Republic
Hole in My Life
Art of Fielding

Some of them were very good and others looked so amateur that I really was not sure they were the official book trailer. The good ones I felt, at least for me, really worked. They made me want to read the title and left me with a good amount of curiosity about the title. It helped that I am a very visual person.

I think they would be helpful in a limited way for readers advisory. It could be a start for someone to maybe get an idea of something to read by looking at the trailer.

Week 8 - Assignment 4

Fast Food Nation - Eric Schlosser does an in depth study of the fast food industry. Not just a behind the scenes at the various fast food establishments, but a true behind the scenes as he takes the reader to the industries, meat packing, french fry factory, farm conglomerates, etc. to show what goes on to bring us this fast food.

We see the good, bad and unbelievable from the miss treatment of animals at meat packing plants to the mistreatment of workers as well as the monopoly by corporations over farmers.
 
I would recommend Fast Food Nation to someone who likes detailed investigations that expose truths that may not been known by most. I feel anyone who enjoys fiction such as The Jungle or any investigation fiction may like Fast Food Nation.

 

Destiny of the Republic - The true story of the shooting of President James Garfield and the eventual death of Garfield from infection due to his wounds, and the doctor’s unsanitary treatment of him.
 
This account takes on a variety of subjects as it deals with the main subject. We get to see some detail of the killer’s life, motive, and his mental state. Politics takes center stage throughout much of the book giving an inside look at the atmosphere of politics at that period in the United States. Medicine in the United States is scrutinized through the treatment of the president. Invention is part of the story following Alexander Graham Bell and not just his invention of the telephone but is invention of a device to help locate the bullet logged in Garfield’s back.
 
This title would appeal to so many different readers because of the subjects mentioned above. It at times really reads like fiction. I think anyone that enjoys character study should like this title since we get a glimpse of a number of characters that are part of the story.

Week 8 - Assignment 3

• Biography - Beginning of Nonfiction in the Biography Section Hole In My Life - Jack Gantos
• History - 973.009 Destiny of the Republic - Candace Millard
• Food -  647.9573 S Fast Food Nation - Eric Schlosser
• Overcoming Adversity - Biography Section  Unbroken Laura Hillenbrand

Week 8 - Assignment 2

The video presentation was helpful, though I did know much of what was presented it was a good reminder of some important factors that go, or should go into, nonfiction readers advisory.

Week 8 - Assignment 1

I liked both articles. In the Borderlands I felt the crossover examples for certain nonfiction genres where helpful.

In the Reading Nonfiction for Pleasure I thought the Implications for the Readers’ Advisory Transaction list was good and made me think deeper into the way to do readers advisory with customers in regards to nonfiction.

Week 7 - Assignment 4

I took a look at Harper Teen. I really liked the uncluttered look of the page and that the top books and top authors are on the first page making them easy to access. This is nice if you are new to the YA genre since you can quickly see some of the more popular titles and authors. The In The News section was also a nice addition and presented cross over information about a TV series that was in production called DELIRIUM based on the bestselling series by Lauren Oliver.

The changing banner highlighting some new titles had a very appealing look as does the whole website.

Teens At Random was the other site I viewed. It was similar in some ways to Harper Teen, Author and New Release sections, but also had the Fun Stuff section that connected readers to more about particular titles, such as games based on the books, ereads, videos etc.

I liked both sites and feel that either one or both are worth viewing regularly to get a sense about YA material and may help in reader’s advisory for teens. They would certainly be worth recommending to a YA reader.


The trend appears to be toward fantacy type fiction.