I have customers asking for advice finding audiobooks. How do I do reader’s advisory for audiobooks?

It’s important to remember that many customers often listen differently than they read depending on where they listen and whether they listen alone or with family.

Many customers listen in their cars, while working, exercising or at home.  Reader’s Advisory skills and knowledge transfer from print material to audiobooks; however, there a few exceptions to consider.

Narration
The narrator interprets the printed word rather than merely reading the words.  Many customers chose audiobooks based solely on the narrator regardless of the genre.  Does the narrator capture your interest? Is the audiobook worth listening to? Another consideration is type of narration: single voice, multi-voiced (a narrator may voice more than one character), and full cast (every character has a different narrator).

Format
Audiobooks are available in many formats: audio cassette, cd, mp3 cd and ebooks or digital downloads.  Does the customer have a format preference? Also, be sure to inquire about abridged and unabridged editions.  In some cases, the abridged version is released on audio prior to the unabridged version.  The abridged version offers the opportunity to sample the author’s work as well as a particular narrator.

Characterization
How does the narrator portray the different characters? This can be a challenge for the listener who does not have visual cues to denote character changes.

Music
What role does music play in the audiobook?  Music is often used to transition between chapters, to create a mood, or as an introduction and closing to an audiobook production.

If you are new to audiobook reader’s advisory, Audiofile magazine is a good resource for reviews, author interviews, articles, audio clips and narrator biographies. The magazine also includes listening recommendations for the whole family.  Recorded Books, LLC also features new releases, award winners, brief summaries, featured narrators and genre recommendations.  If you need recommendations for children or young adults, see the Odyssey Award; it’s awarded annually for best audiobook production for children and young adults. 

The best way to become familiar with audiobooks is to select different genres, listen to a few tracks, read the wrapper (comparable to the book jacket) and decide the overall audibility.  Is it a good listen or a better read?

For additional resources and Web sites, check How to Find the Audiobook That You Want.

I have more customers asking for help finding non-fiction books to read for pleasure. How do I do non-fiction reader’s advisory?

Library customers in search of leisure reading for enrichment, entertainment, pleasure, and recreation are drawn to non-fiction as well fiction, so it’s useful to move back and forth between the two in order to provide good readers’ advisory service.

Some fiction readers may be open to a non-fiction title with appeal factors similar to a novel they’ve enjoyed.

Although non-fiction can be read for its informational value, those non-fiction titles that tell a good story, develop characters, set a scene, create suspense, and are written in an engaging style appeal most to customers in search of an engaging  read.  Non-fiction that reads like fiction, which can also be called narrative or readable non-fiction, incorporates fiction-like elements in such a way that increases the readability and the appeal of the title.

Some well-known examples of such non-fiction shaped and written like imaginative works include John Berendt’s Midnight In the Garden of Good and Evil, David McCullough’s John Adams, Azar Nafisi’s Reading Lolita in Tehran, Sebastian Junger’s The Perfect Storm, and Jon Krakauer’s Into Thin Air.

Appeal characteristics are those elements of a book which make it attractive, compelling, or accessible to the reader.  Such appeal characteristics as plot/story line, characters, writing style, setting, dialog, theme, pacing or tone are important to both narrative non-fiction as well as fiction. 

In doing booklists and displays mix fiction, non-fiction, and audio-visual titles for broad appeal.

When suggesting readalikes mix non-fiction as well as fiction.  For example, will someone who enjoys Patricia Cornwell’s mysteries also enjoy Ann Rule’s true crime titles? 

Classification of non-fiction serves as a readers’ advisory tool since it provides links between titles. 

Overbooked and Library Booklists both provide annotated booklists of readable non-fiction.

You’re at a busy public service desk and a customer approaches you and says “I’ve read everything by author X, can you think of another author who writes like him?” How do you respond?

It’s important to interview the customer in order to determine what it is that he or she likes about that author.  Listen carefully to determine elements of appeal.  Once you’ve determined that, your challenge is to then match the customer’s reading interest with another author who has similar elements of appeal.

Try to think about books in such a way that looks for similarities and links between titles or between authors.  Group books by genres, be aware of distinctions within genres, think across genres, and utilize non-fiction, fiction and other formats.

If a library customer approaches you asking for a suggestion for a read-alike and you haven’t read anything by that author don't panic.  Be candid about your lack of knowledge, and invite the customer to provide more information.  Ask your co-workers for assistance. 

One extremely easy way of answering the customer’s question is do a simple Google search.  Type the phrase “read-alikes for author x” (try doing it both with and without quotes around the phrase) and you may be pleasantly surprised.  You may find booklists done by other librarians around the country that suggest other authors similar to the author that your customer enjoys.  These librarian-compiled booklists frequently have titles like “If You Like (Author X) ... Then Try.”

The Fiction and Young Adult Department at the State Library Resource Center has done a how-to guide called Click Now to Find Your Next Good Read.  This guide includes a section called “Read Every Book By Your Favorite Author?” which includes a number of good Web sites that you and your customers can use in your quest for read-alike authors. 

Novelist is a subscription database available to every public library in Maryland through Sailor.  It too contains a user-friendly author read-alikes section that appears on its top level page.

Top Ten Tips for Library Outreach

Library outreach is important for reaching potential users who generally do not come to the library.  It brings the library and its services to them.  We typically view these groups as:

• Those who are non-users
• Those who have special needs (e.g., visually, hearing and mobility impaired)
• Those who are typically underserved

If you are responsible for outreach in your community here are some tips to help your planning:

1. Identify those who do not have access to the library.  Conduct a cursory demographic search of the community.  The Census Bureau’s American Factfinder and new  programs like the American Community Survey can provide the latest statistical data.
2. Do not approach outreach services as a one-time event or program.  Your goal is to foster an on-going working relationship with the targeted group.
3. Are you busy but need a low impact idea to reach the underserved?  Why not arrange to go to a facility or institution regularly to read the newspaper or discuss current events?  It will allow you to promote materials from your library.  Technorati has a great page with up-to-the-minute blogs on all things current.
4. Go outside your system.  Marketing your library will help make contacts that can help facilitate your objective.  This should include using the web (RSS, wikis, blogs) and local media for promotion.
5. Need a reason to approach a group or institution for outreach?  Find special days or months to celebrate and prepare accordingly.  To identify what’s being celebrated, use Google to search special holidays (Chase’s Calendar of Events can be viewed online at Google Books).
6. Approach a senior citizens center, nursing home or assisted living facility.  They’ll be happy to have you.  Can you do a simple book talk during lunch at an adult day care center?
7. Be informal.  Is there a large business, school or government agency in the area where you can present while holding a brownbag lunch.  You bring the soft drinks and cookies, attendees relax and listen while you handle your topic.
8. Is it possible to conduct outreach invisibly?  Eye catching displays promoting your services can be effective.  Don’t forget to leave ample bookmarks or fliers so they know how to contact you.  And always include your library’s URL on the promotional material-that’s the first place they’ll look.
9. Use your technology skills.  Demonstrate social networking to one of the many groups you can educate about communicating in today’s world.  Can you teach adults to use Flickr or Delicious?  Can you produce podcasts for the visually impaired or streaming video for the hearing impaired?
10. If you do not have the training, or can’t find the expertise at your local or regional library, consider partnering with SLRC staff to satisfy your outreach responsibilities.  SLRC specialists have the requisite experience to help and will be happy to work with

Where can I find answers to math questions?

Many of us can find math questions challenging, difficult, or down-right scary. Never fear: math help is here. There are now many good Web sites available that will help you and your customers figure out the answers from all kinds of math questions, from arithmetic to calculus.

Some will give you answers and tell you how they calculated them, some will explain how to look at a problem, like a word problem, and figure out what they’re really asking, and many have games and exercises to help you work out your math muscles.

If you are interested in learning more about answering math questions, you can take SLRC’s Math for Librarians online class.

Math Web Sites to Use

Google
 You can use Google to convert measurements, such as "16 ft. to yards."

Lowe’s Using and Maintaining a Tape Measure
This is a great site to help you learn to use a ruler. The measurement markings are explained clearly, and there is a quiz to see how well you’ve learned.

mathFiles.com
This site offers hundreds of sample word problems with solutions. Although they try to get you to purchase their services, about half the problems they show give the solutions for free.

The Math Forum @ Drexel
An authoritative resource for math students, educators, and parents. You can search through the archive of frequently asked questions posed to Dr. Math, submit your own questions, play games, join math discussion groups, and more.

Maths Is Fun
A British site for children that gives tables and explanations on how to solve different types of math problems. It also has games, puzzles, and worksheets to help you practice the concepts.

PurpleMath.com
A site started by a former math teacher. It explains how to answer word problems, first by showing how to translate English into math, then breaking down the different types of problems (e.g., distance or money problems) and illustrating how to solve them.

Webmath.com
If you are stumped by problems involving percents, fractions, algebra, or calculus (just to name a few), this site can help. Simply select the type of problem you need, fill in the blanks, and then click "Solve."

Math Games for Kids

Cool Math 4 Kids
This site has math definitions for K-6 Algebra, math games, practice math problems, and math lessons (for help). Some fun activities include: Crop Circle Geometry, jigsaw puzzles, brain bender puzzles, and number monster.

Free Math Worksheets
Includes printable worksheets and answer sheets. Worksheets on different math topics and holiday themes are available for teachers, parents, or students.

Math Arcade on Funbrain
Flash enabled online games that help children learn math. Game is customized by gender and grade level up to 8th grade.

Questions Needed

Have you encountered some tough questions while working in your library? Need suggestions on where to find an answer for a particular topic? We're looking for suggestions for new questions to answer!

Topics can be anything -- programming tips to technology help to great Web sites. We want to answer your questions!

Please post your questions in the comments or email them to rimmich@prattlibrary.org.

We look forward to hearing from you!

What are your top ten tips for putting together great adult programs?

1. Know your community.  You want to make sure that the program is relevant and is something that the community is interested in and wants.  Community demographics are a great way to start finding out who your customers are but also look at who’s coming into the library and what they are asking for.  Another way to find out about your customers is to conduct a survey.
   
   
2. Know the goal of the program.  Will you be focusing on highlighting library resources, disseminating information, providing entertainment or maybe all of the above!
   
   
3. Publicize, publicize, publicize.  You could have the best program ever, but if people don’t know about it they won’t come.  Send out press releases to the local media, be sure it’s included in your library newsletter, hang flyers in the library and around your community.  Make sure that local community groups and businesses know about your event and have flyers to post.
   
   
4. If you have a budget for programming, great! Consider spending it on refreshments, speaker fees or paid publicity.  A great program is not dependent on having money though.  Think creatively – try to get donations from the community!
   
   
5. Will you be using AV equipment such as a laptop/projector or a microphone?  Make sure you’re comfortable using it or know who to call if you run into problems.  If you’re able – it’s helpful to test out the equipment before the program to make sure it actually does work.
   
   
6. Participant introductions are very helpful and help to make everyone feel more comfortable in the room.  Ice breakers can also be fun, even for adults.
   
   
7. Encourage participation.  Adults don’t always want to be lectured to and often times the participants have valuable information to add.  Tossing a small piece of chocolate to participant when they ask a question is a great and inexpensive way to get people involved.
   
   
8. Refreshments are not expected but are a nice way to make people feel more comfortable.  You don’t need anything elaborate, water and coffee will work just fine.
   
   
9. It’s ok to say, “I don’t know” when asked a question just be sure to follow up with “but I’ll be sure to find out and get back to you.”  We can’t be expected to know everything!
   
   
10. Lastly, have fun!!