Secret Shopper

The Event: 

I walked up to the reference desk and said, “I have a few hours, days to relax and was wondering if you could recommend a good book for me to read?”

                The librarian said, “Oh, uhm, okay.  What type of books do you like to read?”

                I answered, “I like mysteries and romances.  Sometimes I read suspense.”
                He thought for a second, then got up and started walking through the new book section.  He said, “I’m thinking something by Evanovich.  I thought she had something new, but I don’t see it.  Evanovich has some mystery with a bit of romance thrown into it.  Have you ever read anything y Evanovich?”

                “I’ve read a couple of her books,” I replied. 

                “Have you read any of her Plum stuff?  She was the first one that popped into my head,” he continued.  “Her older stuff is just as good I heard.  I personally haven’t read anything from her.” He walked me to the Evanovich books and handed me One of the Money.  “You don’t always have to start with the first one, but it’s a good place to start.”

                “Thank you,” I said.  I turned the book over to read the back of the book.

                He turned away and headed back to his reference desk.  After he left, I realized, this is the one book of Evanovich that I have read.

ANYALSIS:

The librarian didn’t use any tools to help him choose a book.  He made an okay pick for me, however I’m not a fan of Evanovich.  I think if he would have asked a couple more questions he would have found that out and maybe given me a different choice.  The book he did give me just happened to be the one I’ve read before.  I should have said so but didn’t.

                This shop was not what I was expecting.  I thought there would be more questions for me to answer.  I thought he’d use some type of tool to help him, either a book or a website.  I did expect more conversation between the two of us.  However, that could be lacking because of me not expanding my answers to his questions.  I also thought that he might have given me 2 or 3 book/author choices instead of just the one. 

                For the most part, I guess that I was looking for what Joyce Saricks says on page 5, “Most readers appreciate the conversation and the process more than a quick answer.  Readers want us to listen and help them explore.”  I was looking for that conversation about books that didn’t really happen.  Quick answers are what I felt I got and a rush of the process is what I felt was happening. 

                “Recommending is saying, ‘Take this book; it is good for you.’ Suggesting makes us partners with readers in exploring the various directions they might want to pursue.” (Saricks, pg2) This interaction was all recommending.  Maybe I should have said suggest a book instead of recommend a book at the beginning of the conversation.  I wonder if that would have made any difference?

                I might go back and try getting a different response from a different librarian.  I should be more explanatory in my answers to help get a better book recommendation.

Reference

Saricks, J. (2009). The readers’ advisory guide to genre fiction. Chicago: American Library Association.

Week Three Prompt Response.

1.      I am looking for a book by Laurell K. Hamilton. I just read the third book in the Anita Blake series and I can’t figure out which one comes next!

The 4^th book of the Anita Blake series is Lunatic Café. I went to Novelist and entered Laurell K. Hamilton.  When I got to the list of books I went to the 2^nd book and hit the link to the vampire series.  The link took me to the list of book in order for this series.

2.      What have I read recently? Well, I just finished this great book by Barbara Kingsolver, Prodigal Summer. I really liked the way it was written, you know, the way she used language. I wouldn't mind something a bit faster paced though.

I looked up Prodigal Summer by Barbara Kingsolver to see what the language style was: Descriptive, lush, lyrical. Along the edge of the page it listed some books that are read alikes so I made sure my choses have the same language.  I would suggest the following: Anthill by Edward O. Wilson and The History of Bees by Maja Lunde.

3.      I like reading books set in different countries. I just read one set in China, could you help me find one set in Japan? No, not modern – historical. I like it when the author describes it so much it feels like I was there!

I entered Japan and historical setting in to the search boxes.  I read the list of books until I came to one that was in a series.  The following is what I came up with: I.J. Parker’s Sugawara Akitada mysteries: The Dragon Scroll (bk 1) or Liam Hearn’s Across the Nightingale Floor, Tales of the Otori (Book 1).

4.      I read this great mystery by Elizabeth George called Well-Schooled in Murder and I loved it. Then my dentist said that if I liked mysteries I would probably like John Sandford, but boy was he creepy I couldn't finish it! Do you have any suggestions?  

I looked up the book by author and title.  Along the right side is a list of read alikes.  I went with Roseanna by Maj Sjowall because they both have detectives from Scotland Yard. I also chose Still Life by Louise Penny because they are both leisurely reads and character-driven.

5.      My husband has really gotten into zombies lately. He’s already read The Walking Dead and World War Z, is there anything else you can recommend?
I looked up zombies under the genre of science fiction.  I choose the following: Z by Michael Thomas Ford and Rot & Ruin (Benny Imural, bk 1) by Jonathan Maberry.

6.      I love books that get turned into movies, especially literary ones. Can you recommend some? Nothing too old, maybe just those from the last 5 years or so.

This time I looked up the books using Google & goodreads.  First I googled books into movies after 2013.  I got a list of books to look up from goodreads and chose these books from there: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn and The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.

7.      I love thrillers but I hate foul language and sex scenes. I want something clean and fast paced.

In NoveList, I entered thriller for the genre, fast-paced and clean also in the search boxes.  I came up with the following books: Clean Kill by Jack Coughlin and Rain Fall by Barry Eisler.

For myself I usually look up books using goodreads, Google, or Amazon.  I will enter the subject of what I want like cozy mystery list of books in google and then a link to goodreads will usually be the first or second link to choose.  If I know the title or the author, I’ll go straight to goodreads or Amazon and enter the information.  Right now I don’t work at a library so I do not look up books for others.  When I do start working in a library I hope they have Novelist because I can see where it will be a helpful tool to have.

Suspense Book Annotation

                Hide by Lisa Gardner

Genre: Suspense

Publication Date: 2014

Number of Pages: 350

Geographical Setting: Boston, Mass.

Time Period: contemporary

Series: Detective DD Warran

Plot Summary:  Annabelle and her parents have been moving from city to city for most of her life.  Now as an adult she is ready to settle down in the city that she remembers first living in as a child.  Soon an underground cavern is found with the remains of 6 little girls. One of which has Annabelle’s name etches on a locket.  Annabelle remembers giving the locket to her childhood friend, Dori.  Is Dori one of the dead girls?  Is Annabelle connected to the girls’ deaths and if so how?  With both of her parents gone, Annabelle searches for answers on her own and with the help of the police especially police Detective Bobby Dodge.

Elements of Suspense:

*Pacing – Suspense demands a page-turning pace that draws a reader in from the first page and keeps them reading to the final twist.  The action takes place within a narrow time frame.

*Tone/Mood – Much of the action takes place at night or on a rainy or cloudy day.  The menacing atmosphere is crucial to the readers impression.

*Style/Language – The story unfolds quickly in the first few pages.  A roller-coaster style that builds the feeling of dread anticipation is another style technique used.  The style can be used in different chapters by different characters points of view.

*Characterization – Readers know the thoughts of the main characters, the hero and the villain.  This helps to build tension in the story.

Appeal: Action-packed, page-turner, gripping

Read-a-likes:

Triptych (Will Trent, #1) by Karin Slaughter

Judas Kiss (Taylor Jackson, #3) by J.T. Ellison

Lost Souls (New Orleans, #5) by Lisa Jackson

Postmortem (Kay Scarpetta, #1) by Patricia Cornwell

Personal Reading Profile:
     I enjoy reading even though I consider myself a slow reader.  My go to genres are  mysteries, suspense, romance, Christian, and young adults.  However, I'm usually caught reading mysteries or romance the most.  I like trying to see if I can solve the mystery or how would I react to different bumps in the road during a romance.  If the book is great I have a tendency to 'live' the life of the main characters.
     Heather Graham and Lori Foster are my two favorite authors at this time.  I've read all of Lori Foster's books and only need to read 2 more of Heather Graham's book.  At this time I am trying to read James Patterson's Women's Murder Club books as well.
     I've always enjoyed having books read to me as well as being the one doing the reading.  Recently I've started listening to books on Overdrive and Hoopla.  This is helping me get my long list of 'to read' boos read faster.  I believe with listening to the books I tend to listen to a wider variety of genres then just reading the books.  I will admit I believe that nothing can beat the feeling of a book in my hands as I'm reading it.

Trying to post a trial run for a class blog.