W9A2 - Be More Bookish Blog Feedback - BMB is a good idea, and even better that it's self-paced.  The blog itself could use a new fresh look (new colors/fonts/background), and just a few things were outdated, but the main idea of those specific assignment was still valid.  I think the whole training could have been a little shorter.  My attention span faded around week 7, which incidentally was just way too long.  Reading articles and following multiple teen blogs for a week and then "write your thoughts" is a very passive assignment.  Week 7 should be a shorter, with a more specific focus.  Maybe since I'm not a big teen book reader... it just seemed to drag on and on.  The most memorable things that I learned from BMB: the many types of less-common genres, earlybird.com - a great source for hot-off-the-presses info for librarians, publishers' websites - tons of useful info, and how to use narrative nonfiction as a crossover from fiction.  Do I feel better about a person approaching me to recommend a book?  I don't really think so, and it would be unwise to think that this blog could change a persons comfort level about readers' advisory.  RA is skill that can only truly be built by experience; by doing it over and over.  That being said, I did learn from BMB, but it's time to close the curtain on this blog and move on to the next big thing:).  Happy reading!  Til we meet again...

W9A1 - Book Trailers - I didn't know book trailers existed, like many people, apparently, so I googled "book trailers" to see what comes up.  I found that there are an extensive amount of homemade trailers that are horrible, low-budget, lengthy, lame clips.  On the other hand, many good ones are out there that have been produced by the popular publishing companies, such as Knopf, and Harper Collins, etc.  After watching a few of these, I could see where good book trailers would make someone want to read the book (despite the discouraging article we just read). One good point in the article is that many readers may not know about them, and the good ones aren't really publicized. You have to know that they're out there, and where to go to find them - unless you frequent publishing sites, which general readers wouldn't do too often.  The first things that pop up on a google search will be all the crappy homemade $5 book trailers, not the ones that are actually produced with a real budget.  I'm not sure if I would use them for readers' advisory, only because I'd have to google to see if one exists for that particular movie, and you really can't turn the volume up in the library, then they're only like a 30 seconds long...  Naa.  I may tell them that book trailers exist, and to check them out on their own time... maybe.

W8A3 and 4 - Nonfiction Genres - The task here is to chose a good narrative nonfiction book in four of the sixteen nonfiction genres.  I chose travel (early 900s), food (641s), crime (mid 300s), and biography.  For travel, I would recommend "The Lost City of Z" by  David Grann because of the thrill and suspenseful story of a mans' dangerous journey to find a lost city in the thick of the Amazon rainforest.  I'm currently reading this book, and although he tends to drift away from the action sometimes, it's not just a bunch of boring facts that reads like an encyclopedia.
For a food book, hmmm... where do I begin?  I love the whole section.  I have dreams of me and a large slice of deluxe pizza skipping through the meadow...  Anyway, here's my newfound discovery.  I'm just now realizing that I haven't actually read any narrative nonfiction about food.  How is this possible?  I live in the 641s.  Nonetheless, I'm choosing "International Night" by Mark Kurlansky because it looks like something I would read.  It's about a father and daughter who share their tradition of preparing recipes from various regions, and the book includes over 250 recipes.  So the book is a good crossover from fiction because it shares a story, but also includes the "how-to" nonfiction part.
My third narrative nonfiction choice - crime - seems to have many choices of books.  One that stands out to me is "A Death in Belmont" by Sebastian Junger.  A murder in Belmont, Massachusetts has occurred at the same time as the Boston Strangler serial murders.  Two visitors were present at the home at the time of the murder; one man is convicted, but the other confesses to doing it.  It is said to be "one of the first and most controversial serial murder cases in America."  Sounds interesting to me!  I'd read it if I weren't interested in nonfiction books.  Lastly, (this is a long assignment), biography.  Let's do "Billy Graham: An Oral and Narrative Biography" by Deborah Strober.  This book traces Graham's career, development, and accomplishments as told through the eyes of family, friends, and colleagues.  Someone who's interested in the lives of traditional christian role models would appreciate this book.
I personally enjoy reading nonfiction.  I love the stimulation and ever-increasing knowledge that is available in this section.  This assignment has actually opened my eyes to the narrative nonfiction genre.  Now I know a good way to introduce fiction lovers to the world of nonfiction without them thinking they have to read what they probably consider a "dry book" filled with a bunch of humdrum facts.  P.S.  - Second assignment - It's hard to write a 1-2 paragraph on narrative nonfiction books when I haven't read any of them, but I get the gist of what I needed to learn here, so am I off the hook ;0) ?

W7A4 - Teen Imprints - Indulge me for a moment, but as you probably know by now, my brain makes an immediate decision on whether I'm attracted to a website by how it looks visually.  1.5 seconds max.  So here's my conclusion:  Teens@Random has a "teen" look that seems attractive to all teens, not just readers that lean toward specific genres.  Visually the site looks fun (not "dark"), comprehensive, easy to navigate, and not overloaded with information and "stuff."  I like the feature called "Figment Chat" - a blog that stays open for a week, where you can ask questions of top writers, editors, and publishing professionals.  I could actually hang out on this website, and I'm not really a "teen" person.  That says something:).  A second imprint I checked out was Harper Collins.  Their teen imprint Epic Reads is okay/average.  It doesn't stand out as "ooh, I want to stay on here longer."  It offers all the standard features you see on every page, and that's it, really.  Books, Authors, Giveaways, Social Media, blah, blah, blah.  Visually boring.  Too many sharp lines.  On the other hand, the Harper Collins's "Kids & Teens" page is awesome - great layout, bright and fun, with games, quizzes, printables and the like.  I immediately see different colors, shapes, more rounded corners, and things that make you want to click on them.  So now that you have my visual critique of these imprints (which is NOT what this assignment is about lol), let's get to the bottom line.  My conclusion is this:  If I were a teen, which site would I be more likely to hang out on?  Envelope, please.  Teens@Random! They win because of their Figment Chat page where readers can communicate with the groups that make this all possible.

W7A3 - Teen Blogs/Websites - School Library Journal's Someday My Printz Will Come is a seasonal blog about possible books that will be nominated for the annual Michael L. Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature.  The posts are written by three high school librarians, with the assistance of SLJ blog readers.  It covers best books, contenders, books to look for, predictions, and guest posts.  It seems to be a pretty popular blog judging by the number of comments from readers.  Another blog is Teenreads, which seems to offer a lot for its teen viewers, including fun things like contests, giveaways, polls, "cool and new," books on screen, etc.  The site is very active with social media, and has also recently joined Tumblr, which will add to the fame among today's very social teen culture.

W7A2 - Teen Articles - The two articles I chose to read were "YA Comes of Age" (Publisher's Weekly), and "Not Just for Teens" (Library Journal).  In the first article, I completely agree with much of what Sue Corbett is saying - the teen section has become very "dark" over the recent years.  When I started working at the library about 4 years ago and sauntered into the teen section, I was like Whoa! The whole aisle is "dark," literally.  The book covers, the themes (death, blood, vampires, dystopia...).  Is this all we have to feed them? I think I'd be hard-pressed to find two books in the teen section that have an image of someone who's happy on the front.  It's sorta sad.  Corbett also mentions the exhaustion of the paranormal subgenre, at least from the writers' viewpoint.  Teens seem to still be reading it, but authors are getting tired of it (this article is from 2011).  She predicts the growth of dystopia, referring to the then-recent release and craze of The Hunger Games.  I do agree that dystopia won't be dying out anytime soon.  I'm currently reading Z for Zachariah (2007) which is a dystopian story of life after a nuclear holocaust where everyone is believed to be dead from radiation, except two or three people.  The movie is coming out on August 28, 2015, and there's a wait list for the book now.  So yeah, dystopia fans, get comfortable!

The second article was "Not Just for Teens."  Angelina Benedetti is talking about how attractive the teen section has become for adults over the past years, and the reasons why.  She lists nine different reasons, some of which include the improved writing styles of teen authors, emotional immediacy (getting right to the point withing the first chapter or so), the rise in ebooks, and moms wanting to be "in" on what their kids are reading.  Although the article is a little long, it's written very well and the points are clearly expressed.  Her final thought was challenging librarians to promote the YA collection by becoming more familiar with it and buying in greater quantities to accommodate the growing audience of readers - good advice.  I can personally relate to the emotional immediacy appeal.  I have a very short attention span when it comes to books that start slow.  I need action on like the first page.  (Okay, maybe the second lol).

W7A1 - Not Just for Teens - The "What to Read Next" flowchart is a great tool, especially for me since I'm not a big "teen book" reader.  I printed it out to keep as a reference.

W6A3 - Prezi Link of Fiction Genres and Subgenres - First of all, Prezi's pretty cool, and the chart of the genres and subgenres is awesome, but I wish I could print it out for future reference.

Part 1: Subgenres
The assignment here is to pick three subgenres that I'm not as familiar with:  I chose Monsters, Offbeat, and Dystopia.  Here are the three examples I found for each subgenre:

Monsters
This subgenre includes topics such as vampires, werewolves, aliens, beasts, zombies, etc.  "These threatening and often misunderstood creatures are the centerpiece of the story."
Rolling in the Deep by Mira Grant
Dark Hollow by Brian Keene
Dweller by Jeff Strand

Offbeat
These books are "driven by quirky humor, idiosyncratic characters, and/or unusual situation which defy more traditional classification."
Ungifted by Gordon Korman
100 Sideways Miles by Andrew Smith
One Whole and Perfect Day by Judith Clarke

Dystopia
Dystopia takes "a speculative look forward at oppressive societies, dehumanization, and environmental disaster." 
Divergent by Veronica Roth
The Maze Runner by James Dashner
The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi

Part 2: Mashups
Mashups are books that fit into a category of two different, yet distinct, genres or subgenres.  An example is Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith.  Apparently, Lincoln had a secret obsession with the desire to kill vampires, and also believed the death of his mother was due to vampires.  The title pretty much says it all, but this book is a combination of historical fiction and horror.  Another mashup is Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Holmes by Loren D. Estleman, which combines mystery and horror.

W6A1 - Building Base Knowledge (Genres) - I chose the Mystery Readers International website to follow since... well, who doesn't love a good mystery?!  Unfortunately, this site seems to be more of a reference site for "where to find" things across the country, like reading groups at different libraries/venues, locations for mystery bookstores across the US, and places to get different mystery periodicals.  The Mystery Readers' Journal (blogger Janet's publication?) can be ordered from the site, but only two articles from each journal are viewable for free, so it's not very practical for a non-member.  Other than the excerpts from the journal, I haven't found any real reviews for books on the site.  Janet Rudolph apparently loves chocolate so there's a link to everything chocolate and books.  Nice, but ehh...  You can also find winners of the Macavity Award for mystery books, but you can't click on each book title and see more about it.  You would have to type each book into google, or wherever, to learn more about it.  Not helpful.  There's a link to Janet's "Mystery on the Menu" tour group that travels through California and nearby cities to perform, so that wouldn't be useful for the other 95% of the US.  So I have to be honest - I'm not sure why this site was chosen for Be More Bookish.  I don't think I would ever use it.  If I needed the location of local book clubs, or bookstores, or periodicals, I could find them easily with a quick google search.  ...and of course, I have to add that the site's just visually unappealing:).  P.S. - Janet started the blog in 1989, and I don't think she's ever updated the look of the website.  There has to be a better mystery book website out there...

W5A3 - Amazon's Best of the Month - This assignment is to pick a book from the list and describe why it would be popular and who it would appeal to.  I stumbled upon a book on the list that seems to be very pertinent.  It's called Confession of the Lioness by Mia Couto, and it has a similar appeal as the new hit series called  "Zoo," which is an adaptation of James Patterson's book of the same title.  In "Zoo" the animals communicate with each other (telepathically, of course) and instead of the humans hunting animals, the animals are actually killing the people.  A twisted thriller TV show that has everyone buzzing.  In Confession of the Lioness, "traditions and beliefs are threatened when ghostlike lionesses begin hunting and killing the women" of Kulumani (Amazon).  I believe this book would appeal to a large audience right now because of its pertinence.  I would say anywhere from teens to older adults.  People who enjoy exotic travel, mystery, suspense, and setting would probably appreciate this novel.   

W5A2 - EarlyWord.com - So I have a different impression of earlyword.com now.  When I originally went to the website, it looked way to visually overwhelming and the layout of the webpage is pretty... well, lame looking, so I didn't choose it for a daily review.  However, I visited again and took the time to leaf through the info and found some pretty good stuff, including upcoming movies based on books.  So I grabbed a few books for movies that are coming out next year - well ahead of the reserve rush:).  I'm seeing that Early Word will be a good site for hot-off-the-press information about books, authors, upcoming films, book awards, etc.  I'm still disturbed about the appearance of the site (yes, you'll keep hearing this from me lol), but I'm slowly getting over it as the great info reveals itself.
As far as what's popular in our branch, most adults come in with the titles that they are looking for, but they're not usually new books (at least the ones I get).  I have used the New York Times Bestseller List several times for those customers who are looking for the newest popular book, or Novelist for a quick read-alike list that I can print out for customers.  They've seemed to really like that feature.

W5A1 -  Building Base Knowledge (Part II) - The website I've been monitoring is nprbooks.org.  Awesome website.  One thing I think it's great for is the author interviews - hearing the inside scoop directly from the authors.  I just really love how the website brings together the book, the audio, interviews, music clips... whatever.  It's not just: click on the book and get a description and a review.  You get a lot more, either visually or audibly, and that's very appealing to me as a resource for all things books.   (...in addition to the clean, simple, easy-to-navigate web layout... I could go on forever baby!  lol Home Alone II).

W4A1 - Building Base Knowledge (Goodreads) - I became a Goodreads member last year and really enjoy using it.  But I've always used it as a personal (private) list to just keep track of my books.  So I added two friends (that's big lol), and commented on a book for each.  One of the books that was read was called Home by Carson Ellis.  I recommended Home Place by Crescent Dragonwagon which talks about a home that previously existed in a place that now sits empty.  The book takes you back in time as you imagine the home and its previous residents.  It also shares the same beautiful watercolor imagery.  Both books are very comforting to read.  The other book that I commented on was Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library.  I recommended I Kill the Mockingbird by which is not only completely relevant right now with the release of Harper Lee's newest book Go Set a Watchman, but it's a fun twist on To Kill a Mockingbird.  Novelist lists it as a read-alike for Lemoncello's Library because both inventive stories include games that involve books and readers.

W3A3 - The Readers' Services Conversation
--Conversation 1 - The first customer seems to enjoy the appeal factor of "character," where the reader is able to connect with the feelings and emotions of a person(s) in the story.  A book that takes place in another region or country would also appeal to her.  She seems to like a light read with a little humor, and a book from Oprah's book list will most likely be a sure hit.  I would recommend "Committed" also written by Elizabeth Gilbert.  This book is a continuation of Gilbert's story in "Eat, Pray, Love" and touches on the same topics of travel, love, reflection, etc.

--Conversation 2 - This customer wants a vampire book, but nothing with sappy romantic teen relationships, and nothing link the Twilight Saga books.  I turned to Novelist to find good recommendations for her.  If she wants a teen book, I would recommend Buffy the Vampire Slayer books because they have the vampire focus without the romantic relationships.  For an adult book, I would start with "Hit List" by Laurell K. Hamilton.  This book stars a U.S. marshal and a vampire hunter who find out that hit men are in the area and they are the targets - nothing like the Vampire Saga story lines.

--Conversation 3 - The third customer appears to be looking for a fast-paced, exotic, historical nonfiction mystery/suspense book ;).  I think this customer would really like the book "The Lost City of Z" by David Grann.  This nonfiction story takes place in the Amazon, and is about one man's quest to find a British explorer who vanished in 1925.  It's dramatic, fast-paced, and full of "thrilling dangers."

W3A1 -  The RA Conversation - The 15-second rule is a good tip: "When you work with readers in person, you need to express the appeal of a book verbally.  And you need to do it in about 15 seconds or you will lose the attention of your reader."

W2A2 -  Book Annotations
--The Outlaws of Sherwood Street: Stealing from the Rich, by Peter Abrahams - Fast-paced story line, set in Brooklyn, NY; good mix of young characters from different socio-economic backgrounds, element of mystery and suspense throughout; the theme is a modern urban twist of Robin Hood's tale.

--The Light Between Oceans, by M.L. Stedman - Set in Australia, mysterious Baby-Daddy element, (lol, yes I had to go there); has a bit of a learning experience for anyone not familiar with lighthouses; suspenseful tone keeps the reader interested; story line leads reader to ask "what would I do in this situation?"

--Love Finds You in Sugarcreek, Ohio, by Serena Miller - Mysterious character, rural Amish setting, secrecy, suspense, police quest, a building relationship leads to a romance.

W2A1 - Novelist Appeal Factors - I liked learning about the three different approaches, or ways, of working with appeal.  The second and third ways are interesting because they seem to streamline and simplify the RA process.  One approach was modeled by Joyce Sarick - grouping books under four areas of appeal: adrenaline, intellect, emotion, and landscape.  I can easily place myself in two of these categories - adrenaline first, then intellect - which again has me thinking I should be giving science fiction a shot (really?...).   The other approach is Nancy Pearl's idea called "the doorway method." This approach groups the way readers enter a book: through the story, setting, character, or language.  I'm definitely NOT a character person.  I found that out when I read "The Language of Flowers." I hated it because it was all character, no real change of scenery, no suspense, no climax or building of plot...  It read to me like "a day in the life" kind of story, and all the days in her life were depressing and dreadful.  Needless to say the book dragged on for an eternity.  I apparently enter a book through the story or setting; I'm not really interested in the language.   Both approaches keeps it simple, which is what I will remember.  Glad to have learned this:).

W1A5 - Judging a Book By Its Cover -  The Steppenwolf comment was my favorite.  The six-year-old says, "This story is about a very very hairy eagle who hangs out with fancy ladies." lol.

W1A4 - Recommended Links - I chose NPR Books and Mystery Readers International for my two recommended links.  The NPR website attracted me because of its familiarity - I tune in to the station periodically, but also because their website is more visually appealing and easy to navigate.  I wanted to just hang out there longer!  I also like that it has audio summaries of many books, and audio interviews with authors.  Mystery Readers International, well... the website is pretty low budget, but I'm sticking with it because it claims to be "the largest mystery fan/reader organization in the world," so I'm curious to find out why.  I also plan to visit EarlyWord frequently to catch the latest updates, but their website is a little too busy for me.  Lots of good information, but way too much going on.

W1A3 - Golden Rules of Readers' Advisory - I like this list, particularly Rules #2 and #6.  Rule 2 is "Write, Write, Write."  I record the books I read, but tend to rely on my memory to recall detailed information about the book.  Writing it down will help me remember things that may not stick as well.  Rule #6 is "Don't Pigeonhole the Books."  Since I'm not a Science Fiction reader, for example, I assume they are all the same, but alas - apparently they're not!  So this rule will help me to approach genres in a different open-minded way, and not under the assumption of "that's so not me!"