Tuesday, April 22, 2014

Week 16 Prompt

Week 16 Prompt

Both of our readings this week talk about the culture of reading and the future of the book. So I have two questions for you as readers, pulling on your own experiences and all of the readings we have done over the semester: First, how have reading and books changed since you were a child, for you specifically? Second, talk a little about what you see in the future for reading, books, or publishing - say 20 years from now. Will we read more or less, will our reading become more interactive? What will happen to traditional publishing? This is  a very free-form question, feel free to wildly extrapolate or calmly state facts, as suits your mood!


      How have reading and books changed since I was a child? I was born in 1955 and remember as a child going to the Carnegie Library in Greensburg. Although I remember the main floor of the Carnegie library as very dark - old dark wood floors, small windows placed high, dark furniture, bad lighting, brownish paint - the downstairs addition to the library which housed the children's collection was full of bright lights and bright yellow paint with colorful I decorations on the walls. I was always excited to go there and  browse for my favorite books which were primarily Nancy Drew mysteries and non-fiction and fiction books about animals - cats, dogs, horses, etc. I loved to go home and find a comfortable spot to start reading - I could read all day! I also loved to play "librarian" with neighborhood friends

     Unfortunately, some of the excitement about reading I relished as a child has gone due to commitments and time constraints. I still love to read but my time is so limited. I do like the advances in technology that have taken place in the past few years. I am able to take my phone out of my pocket and read a book about anywhere I want so if I am limited on time, I can still read for a few minutes if that's all I have.

     I believe in twenty years from now it will be easier than ever to read a book. While currently Google Glass is not being used to download books I don't think it will be long before many books will be able to be downloaded on the device (Publishing Technology, 2014). Maybe in twenty years an entire library will be able to be downloaded to a small device like Google Glass and all the user will have to do is say the name of the title and the book, article, song, movie, magazine, etc. and it will pop up on the glass. It freaks me out to think that in twenty years I will be approaching 80 (mentally, I feel like I should be in my thirties!) so I don't know how receptive I will be to new technology by then. I will probably try to learn new things, though. I know I won't forget my excitement as a young girl checking out a Nancy Drew mystery in the old library!

Publishing Technology. (2014). Don't read War & Peace with your Google Glass...                                 yet.ContentForward.Retrieved from http://www.publishingtechnology.com/2014/02/dont-       read-war-peace-with-your-google-glassyet/                                      











Week 15 Prompt

Week 15 Prompt

What do you think are the best ways to market your library's fiction collection? Name and describe three ways you do or would like to market your library or your future library's fiction. These can be tools, programs, services, displays - anything that you see as getting the word out.


     I work at Bartholomew County Public Public Library at the reference desk. One way we market the library's fiction collection is via our weekly newspaper column in the Sunday edition of Columbus' Republic newspaper which is available in print and e-edition. The column is usually featured every two weeks but the topic is not always about adult readers' advisory. Some of the columns are about library programs, children's books, non-fiction books, and other miscellaneous library information such as construction progress on the renovation of the library plaza. I went back about four months and only found one article on adult readers' advisory fiction. I think it is great that the newspaper features a column for the library but I wish we had more information available for adult readers' advisory.

     The library also has a Facebook page that provides information regarding the library; however, readers' advisory is not prominently featured. There is some RA information presented amid other posts about library programs; the construction at the library; library resources such as Overdrive, Freegal, Hoopla, and Zinio; and other available materials and databases. All of the information that is presented on Facebook is relevant but I really wish we had more readers' advisory information available.

     The library has a few handouts available for readers' advisory but they are simply pages with authors listed for about four genres. For instance, for the mystery genre, there is a page with "mystery" listed at the top and a list below of numerous mystery authors. We need more detailed information to assist patrons with finding books they might be interested in.

     That's where I hope to be "coming in". Although the library does not have any openings for new librarians and I am not willing to relocate away from Columbus for family reasons, I offered to do several readers' advisory handouts to be placed throughout the library. Some will be for several genres, some will be author read-alikes and others will be for title read-alikes. The assistant library director, my supervisor, agreed that we could use some readers' advisory handouts around the library. Perhaps I can also help out doing readers' advisory for the newspaper and Facebook. That is the next plan I will be proposing!

Wednesday, April 16, 2014

Week 14 Prompt

Week 14 Prompt

Consider yourself part of the collection management committee of your local library, or a library at which you would like to work. You must decide whether or not to separate GBLTQ fiction and African American Fiction from the general collection to its own special place. Some patrons have requested this, yet many staff are uncomfortable with the idea - saying it promotes segregation and disrupts serendipitous discovery of an author who might be different from the reader. Do you separate them? Do you separate one and not the other? Why or why not? You must provide at least 3 reasons for or against your decision. Feel free to use outside sources - this is a weighty question that is answered differently in a lot of different libraries.


I don't think it is necessary or relevant to separate GBLTQ fiction and African American fiction for the following reasons:

  1.      There are too many books and other materials that are multi-genre. I did a book annotation for this class on the novel The Help. That title can possibly fall under a number of genres and themes that I found on different websites: Women's Lives and Relationships, historical fiction, African-American fiction, literary fiction, and books-to- movies. What about the book Loving Her by Ann Allen Shockley? According to GBLTQ, the novel is classified as African-American lesbian or black lesbian literature (2002).GBLTQ also lists The Color Purple as African American lesbian literature (2002). If you had to separate African-American and GBLTQ literature from the rest of the fiction collection, where would you shelve these books? It would cause numerous problems and confusion for librarians, staff, and patrons!
  2.       If you separate African-American and GBLTQ books, there may be other patrons who complain that their favorite genres were not separated, too. The patrons who love romance or thrillers may say that their genre needs to "secede from the Union" because other genres have.
  3.       Privacy is an important matter for many patrons. Unfortunately, there are some areas of the country where there are still stigmas and prejudice regarding the GBLTQ population. Whether gay or straight, some patrons may not want to be seen browsing in the GBLTQ section for various reasons. I asked my 22 year-old gay son how he would respond if he found the GBLTQ section separated from the fiction area. Although he is secure with his sexuality, he still would not want to draw attention to himself because he was bullied in the past.He has had people preach that he would go to hell if he didn't turn straight and all he would have to do to turn straight was to "pray away the gay". I have had people tell me the same things when they talk about my son. I am a Christian but I disagree with their views!
  4.      I went to a library that had separated the western and mystery genres from the rest of the fiction. I thought it was odd to separate those genres from the rest of the fiction and wish I would have asked one of the staff members why they decided to segregate just those two in particular.In my library all fiction genres are grouped together with patrons finding their titles by looking at the first three letters of the author's last name and book titles listed in alphabetical order under each author. There is no need to run from one genre area to another to find books and try to figure out what genre the book falls under.

References


Keating, A. (2002). African-American literature: Lesbian.       GBLTQ. Retrieved from  
                                    http://www.glbtq.com/literature/african_am_lit_lesbian.html




































Saturday, April 12, 2014

Week 13 Prompt -

Week 13 Prompt

     I believe that no matter the genre or format the patron has an interest in, I need to respect their preferences and help locate the materials they are seeking at the reference desk. Any genre or format encourages the reader to read so it is a "win" situation for both the patron and the library. I also believe that libraries should represent the various genres such as graphic novels, young adult books and street lit because the more patrons relate to the topics they are reading, the more they will want to read.

       It helps to have a teen librarian or other librarian available to help promote young adult, street lit, and graphic books to readers. Some teen librarians will visit middle and high schools to inform students what genres and formats are available at their local library. The teen librarian at the library where I work mainly goes to middle and high schools to promote some young adult books and does not include graphic novels or street lit as part of the promotion. She also plans activities at the library which help promote reading and utilizing resources that the library offers. I believe it helps if the library director is open to promotion of the genres and formats, too. The library where I work also promotes genres by placing signs in the library, creating posts on the library's Facebook page, and writing for the library's weekly column.

       I work at the reference desk at my library and have noticed adults in their 20's, 30's, 40's and even older going over to the teen section to look for books. They also come to the reference desk asking for specific titles such as the Hunger Games trilogy, the Divergent trilogy, and The Fault in Our Stars. I think it's great that some of our patrons don't pay attention to the "young adult" and read these books because they are great to read! I work with one librarian in his early 30's who loves to read graphic novels. I have noticed other men browsing through the graphic novel section. I haven't had many patrons requesting street lit. There is one patron I know of that has to be around 70 years old and requests books that are similar to New Adult books. Someone told me she used to read inspirational and Amish novels then started to switch genres!







Monday, April 7, 2014

Young Adult Annotation - Classic



To Kill a Mockingbird

by Harper Lee

Genre: Modern classics, 
books-to-movies

Publisher: various publishers; there
are 249 editions of the book

Publish date: first published June 1960

Storyline: Character-driven

Tone: Bittersweet, Thought-provoking, Moving

Writing Style: Lyrical

Setting: Southern small-town strong sense of place; Maycomb, Alabama, 1935

Literary Awards: Pulitzer Prize for Fiction - 1961; Voted #1  - Best Books of the 20th Century - Goodreads (Goodreads, 2014).

Title Read-alikes:
Light from a Distant Star -  Mary McGarry Morris
Ellen Foster -  Kaye Gibbons
The Bottoms -  Joe R. Lansdale

Author Read-alikes:
Sue Monk Kidd
Truman Capote
David Guterson

Plot Summary - 

     Tomboy Scout Finch recalls the years of her youth from age 6 to 9, a time when she becomes exposed to the hatred, injustice, and violence towards African-Americans in her small town in southern Alabama. Her widowed father, Atticus Finch, is an attorney who asserts bravery while representing an African-American wrongly accused of rape. He faces alienation and disdain from some of the townspeople because he represents a black man.
     The first half of the book explores the summers Scout and Jem spend with visiting summer-friend, Dill; 
their preoccupation with the town recluse, Boo Radley; interactions with relatives and townspeople; and school experiences with students and teachers. The children learn from their soft-spoken, patient, and courteous father his integrity and ability to accept and respect others for who they are. According to Atticus, "You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view...until you climb into his skin and walk around in it" (Lee, 1960).
     The second half regards the rape trial of Tom Robinson and the bitter attitudes of the townspeople toward race and acceptance. Scout and Jem learn first-hand how hatred can lead to violence and the meaning of acceptance through Boo Radley.

My Opinion - 
     
     The book is beautifully written, an engrossing story told through the eyes of young Scout. There is a strong sense of place with vivid descriptions of what life was life in 1930's small-town Alabama. The characters are colorful and memorable.
     I believe this book should be required reading in high schools because it describes how ignorance can lead to hatred and prejudice (as seen through many of the townspeople) and how acceptance and respect can be taught (as seen through Scout and her father). I also believe it is important to tell the story of race relations in the South in the early-to-mid 1900's. This book seems to come up every year during Banned Books Week. Although some of the language in the novel can be strong, prejudice and hatred cannot be sugar-coated and the story needs to be told. 



References

Goodreads. (2014). Best books of the 20th Century.                     Retrieved from https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/6

Lee, Harper. (1960). To kill a mockingbird. New York, NY:           HarperCollins.


Friday, April 4, 2014

Week 12 Prompt - Readers' Advisory Matrix

Fire and Rain:

The Beatles, Simon and Garfunkel, James Taylor, CSNY, and the Lost Story of 1970

by David Browne

Published  - May 31, 2011
Publisher - Da Capo Press
Genres:  Non-fiction -  Music, History, Biography

Where is the book on the narrative continuum?
The book is a mix in which most of it is fact-based, told in narrative style.

What is the subject of the book?
The book examines the lives and careers of some of the most legendary singers of 1970, intertwining some social and political events that highlighted the year such as the shootings at Kent State and the Apollo 13 crisis. 

What type of book is it?
It is a historical, biographical non-fiction book based on some of the most popular musicians of the era.

Articulate Appeal

What is the pacing of the book?
The pace is moderately paced although set in a time of turmoil for the artists.

Describe the characters of the book.
The characters of the book are the artists: The Beatles (Paul McCartney, John Lennon, George Harrison, Ringo Starr); James Taylor; Simon and Garfunkel (Paul Simon, Art Garfunkel), and CSNY (David Crosby, Steven Stills, Graham Nash, and Neil Young).  Although they were all extremely talented and wrote some of the most influential music of their time, the friction that developed within the musical groups led to their demise. James Taylor and David Crosby also dealt with drug addiction although drugs were abused by several of the artists.

How does the story feel?
The reader feels the discord and animosity between members of the musical groups. The book also has a compelling feel.

What is the focus of the story?
The story focuses four relevant albums of 1970 (Let It Be by the Beatles, Bridge Over Troubled Water by Simon and Garfunkel, Sweet Baby James by James Taylor, and Deja Vu by Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young) and the personal and professional lives of the artists who made them.

Does the language matter?
The book deals with factual turmoil among musical group members so the language needed to be bold and descriptive.

Is the setting important and well descibed?
The setting is very important to the book. Amid the stories of the musicians are descriptions of some of the most important events of 1970, a year full of political and social strife:

Are there details and if so, what?
There are many factual details of the lives of the artists, the music business, and events that took place in 1970.

Are there sufficient charts and other graphic materials?
There are some photos of the artists included in the book.

Does the book stress moments of learning, understanding, or experience?
The reader will learn about the Apollo 13 crisis, Kent State shootings, radical group bombings, and the fading of the anti-war movement. The author also discusses the change from political-themed music to personal songs by singer-songwriters.

Why would a reader enjoy this book (rank appeal)?
1. A descriptive, inside look into the music industry.
2. Personal lives and careers of some of rock's greatest artists.
3. Historical elements - music history, political and social history of 1970.













Tuesday, April 1, 2014

Non-fiction annotation - Wild by Cheryl Strayed

Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest TrailWild: 

From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail 

  - Cheryl Strayed


Published - March 20, 2012

Publisher - Knopf

Pages - 315 (Hardcover)

ISBN - 978-0307592736

Genre - Nonfiction, Biographies 
and Memoirs, Adventure; Books to Movies (the film Wild will be released in the future, starring Reese Witherspoon)

Literary Awards - Indies Choice Book Award for Adult Nonfiction (2013); Goodreads Choice for Best Memoir & Autobiography (2012), Oprah's Book Club 2.0 Selection.
A Best Book of the Year: NPR, The Boston Globe, Entertainment Weekly, Vogue, St. Louis Dispatch.

Pace - leisurely 
Style - desciptive
Tone - strong sense of place, moving
Writing style - richly detailed; descriptive
Storyline - Character-driven


Title Read-alikes: 

  • Claiming Ground - Laura Bell
  • Once Upon a River - Bonnie Jo Campbell
  • Eat, Pray, Love - Elizabeth Gilbert
  • Into the Wild - Jon Krakauer

Summary -

     After the death of her mother from cancer, Cheryl Strayed fell into a downward spiral, leaving her devoted husband for numerous one-night stands and a stint abusing heroin with a new boyfriend. She also estranged herself from her once-close siblings and step-father.

     Although she was almost broke and had no backpacking experience, Strayed headed for California on an 1,100 mile journey for self-discovery on the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT).  Her hike lasted for several months, beginning in the Mojave Desert and ending on the Oregon-Washington border. She arrived on the PCT ill-prepared with a heavy over-packed backpack she could barely carry and shoes that didn't fit properly. Strayed also overlooked important trail information  - hundreds of miles of the PCT in the High Sierra was covered with ice and snow. She met various hikers, local people, and amusing "characters" along the way, forming friendships and obtaining help from some of them when she was low on food and money. They also offered practical information on hiking and maneuvering the PCT.  

My opinion:

     I found the book fascinating because Strayed painted vivid, detailed descriptions of the locations she visited along with her family members and the characters she met on her journey. I was constantly wondering what was going to happen next and enjoyed reading about the various places she visited.      

     Parts of the book are introspective, in which Strayed analyzed her weaknesses and relationships with her ex-husband and family members. While attempting to cope with the loss of her mother, she made unwise choices by using heroin and having numerous affairs while married to a loving husband. Throughout Strayed's journey, she commented about the many men who were attracted to her both on and off the trail. While at a trail stop in Oregon, she complained about how bad her body looked after weeks of hiking on the PCT. These complaints were made before her date with a guy she briefly met in a bar that ended up as another one-night stand on a beach. That was one time I felt no compassion for Strayed.









Thursday, March 27, 2014

Week 11 Prompt - Ebooks

Week 11 Prompt - Ebooks

     I work at at the reference desk at Bartholomew County Public Library and have seen the steady increase in the popularity of ebooks since I began working there almost three years ago. When I began working in the reference department, our assistant director told us that we needed to become familiar with how each device works (Kindle, Nook, iPad, etc.) and learn what is needed to download EPUB and Kindle ebooks (the two formats) because the library is the go-to place for help when trouble arises downloading titles. We have people come to the desk or call us every day with questions how to download ebooks from Overdrive or how to solve problems when they can't get their titles to download correctly. Some bring in their devices for us to take a look at. It can be difficult trying to figure out what the problem is when an ebook doesn't download correctly and is not showing on the device's "bookshelf". Sometimes we have to call the assistant director or another librarian who is very technology-savvy when we can't figure it out ourselves.

     People of all ages have gotten frustrated when they encounter difficulties trying to download ebooks to devices. Occasionally elderly patrons will come in multiple times with their e-readers and i-Pads, gifts given to them by their children, and become frustrated when they can't get titles to download. I have spent up to an hour and even more helping elderly patrons download ebooks. I enjoy helping them find an answer to why their ebook isn't downloading and answering any questions that they have. During busy periods, we may not have the time to devote helping patrons with their e-reader problems. When that happens, we ask if the patron is interested in the "Book-a-Librarian" program where the patron makes an appointment for an hour with a librarian or staff member and may return as needed if more help is required.

     Overall, I think that ebooks have been a wonderful and essential addition to our library. I believe that any format that encourages individuals to read is well worth the effort. I do believe that ebooks and their devices are here to stay and more improvements will be available in the future. There are some patrons that have told me that they prefer holding a book and turning its pages but some of those people also read books on devices. Overdrive does have some drawbacks. Users are not able to renew books and at the end of the checkout period. They must download the ebook again providing someone else has not put a hold on the book. Some patrons have complained about the Overdrive interface and have trouble locating titles. I recommend using the advanced search to narrow down titles. New titles on Overdrive are not available at the same time as the new books' publication dates.

     As for e-audiobooks, I seldom have patrons ask how to download them. It seems that CD audiobooks are far more popular and requested more often than e-audiobooks.

Saturday, March 8, 2014

Special Topics Paper

Nonfiction Genre and Readers' Advisory

What is Nonfiction?
        According to Goodreads (2014), "Nonfiction is an account or representation of a subject which is presented as fact."  According to author Sarah Statz Cords, "It is not an invented story, but rather (as David Carr defines it,) it differs from fiction in its presentation of documented experience as a written record, without fabrication" (as cited in Husser, 2012). 
     Nonfiction has also been described as books that allow one to acquire knowledge while enjoying what is being read.There are many varied titles that put the emphasis on the story and not on learning, while there are others that the reader will learn new and informative information (Beerbower & Wittmayer, 2006).Burgin argued, "Many users read nonfiction for pleasure and not to meet specific information needs or to conduct reseearch" (as cited in Alpert, 2006).
Narrative Nonfiction
     Nonfiction collections in libraries are predominately composed of information and "how-to" books; however, books for "story people" have been greatly emphasized in the past few years. Increasingly popular narrative nonfiction "tells a true story as a compelling narrative", including all categories and appeals for readers. It is not a genre; instead, it is a style that includes any nonfiction genre or topic that accentuates a story including biographies, memoirs, and essays (Alpert, 2006). Hume notes that "somewhere between the newspaper on your doorstep and the novel on your nightstand lies narrative nonfiction (as cited in Alpert, 2006). Herda explains, "The key word in Narrative Nonfiction is nonfiction. Narratives must be fact. Unlike the Historical Novel that uses a real-life element as a focal point and then is fleshed out with fictional elements and characters, the Narrative Nonfiction tale starts with fact and ends with fact (and, in fact, has fact sandwiched in between" (as cited in Alpert, 2006).
Nonfiction Readers' Advisory
     Finding nonfiction browsing material can prove difficult for patrons due to the use of numbers used to organize nonfiction for the Dewey Decimal or Library of Congress classification systems. For the Dewey Decimal System, patrons can locate fiction titles by simply knowing the first three letters of the author's last name and locating the book in the fiction section which is in alphabetical order (Husser, 2012). Some libraries my break down the fiction titles by genre. Saricks and Deutsch noted, "Patrons don't worry about Dewey when they're looking for a good book to read...they seek a story that meets their interests and mood at that moment (as cited in Husser, 2012). Utilizing the same approaches that have been used to locate fiction books and authors may also be used to find appropriate nonfiction titles (Alpert, 2006).
     There are three ways to assist a patron who wants suggestions finding an appropriate book: Appeal factors, also known as "read-alikes"; subject, also known as "read-" or "book-related"; and "author-related" (Beerbower & Wittmayer, 2006).
"Read-alike" Suggestions
     When attempting to discover what areas of a book a patron enjoys, there are appeal factors to consider such as story/plot, character, setting, language and pace. You may also ask yourself questions regarding the last book you enjoyed reading. What did you like most about it? What aspect of the book did you rave about when telling others about it? Consider what the patron is requesting in a nonfiction book that may produce a similar "read-alike" reaction that you felt when answering the above questions. Another question to ask yourself is if the nonfiction book has the same attraction as an appealing novel (Beerbower & Wittmayer, 2006).
"Read-" or "Book-Related" Suggestions
      For patrons who like reading fiction novels on a particular subject, you may suggest nonfiction books that provide more material on the matter. Another suggestion is to find nonfiction counterparts for fiction titles; for instance, locating true adventure/survival books for those who like fictional action/adventure(Beerbower & Wittmayer, 2006) .
"Author-Related" Suggestions
     Show the patron where there are nonfiction books by authors who mainly write fiction or books about the fiction authors themselves. Most of the titles are usually memoirs and written in the same style as the nonfiction books so they may provide reading enjoyment for the patron (Beerbower & Wittmayer, 2006). 
Narrative Nonfiction Readers' Advisory
     There are several resources that library staff can utilize to provide readers' advisory services, For instance, bestseller lists and reviews of new and upcoming nonfiction titles from review sources such as Library Journal, Publishers Weekly, Booklist, and Bookpages. The New York Times Book Review, along with other newspaper review sections, have been dedicating a larger amount of space to nonfiction titles (Alpert, 2006). 
     Websites that are recommended to discover new narrative nonfiction titles are Goodreads,com, Book Browse.com, Biography.com, Overbooked.org. and Marylaine.com. Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble. com can help to provide similar nonfiction titles of interest from reader-review suggestions (Husser, 2012). 
Other ways to become familiar with nonfiction
Read nonfiction - Begin reading nonfiction to become acquainted with titles and recognize matches among titles. Keep reading notes and annotations in order to keep track of what you have read. Keeping information about what you have read is helpful to understand the interwoven details of nonfiction and make connections between titles (Wyatt, 2007).
Practice whole collection readers' advisory - Begin a connection among the various areas of nonfiction to become familiar with the entire collection. Becoming familiar using fiction and nonfiction together will make it easier to make suggestions from one nonfiction title to another (Wyatt, 2007).
Create small lists – Make lists of subject-matched titles that have the same appeal, narrative, and type features. According to Wyatt (2007):
     Work within a defined subject to practice defining these key elements and
     create mental lists of possible matches within popular subject areas. Knowing,
     for example, that Anthony Bourdain’s  Kitchen Confidential  makes a good
     match to Bill Buford’s Heat  builds confidence and teaches us to read books in connection to each other.
Build a list you can count on once you start working with nonfiction – Collecting a list of nonfiction titles that hold broad appeal is a great resource to refer to (Wyatt, 2007).

Popular Subgenre Narrative Fiction Titles
      Some genres and subgenres for non-fiction are biography, autobiography, essay, memoir,diary, travel, adventure, food, nature, self-help, history, and crime.The following are just a few examples of subgenres  for narrative nonriction. Some of the titles cross-over to other genres.
Biographies and Memoirs - These are stories about an actual person, living or deceased. Readers learn about the individual's achievements, mistakes, and struggles. The main focus and appeal is the "character" (Husser, 2012).
  • The Diary of a Young Girl - Anne Frank
  • Eat, Pray, Love - Elizabeth Gilbert
  • Angela's Ashes - Frank McCourt
  • I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings - Maya Angelou
Survival/ True Adventure
  • Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster - Jon Krakauer
  • The Perfect Storm: The True Story of Men Against the Sea - Sebastian Junger 
  • Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Coast Trail - Cheryl Strayed
  • Kilimanjaro and Beyond: A Life-Changing Journey - Barry Finlay
True Crime
  • In Cold Blood - Truman Capote
  • Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil - John Berendt
  • Helter Skelter: The True Story of the Mansion Murders  - Vinvent Bugliosi
  • Columbine - Dave Cullen
History
  • Schindler's List - Thomas Keneally
  • Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption - Laura Hillenbrand
  • Night - Elie Wiesel
  • Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman - Robert Massie
     Becoming acquainted with the various subgenres of nonfiction and learning the proper techniques for performing an efficient readers' advisory will help librarians and staff member assist patrons with finding appropriate nonfiction titles.



References

Alpert, A. (2006). Incorporating nonfiction into readers' advisory services. Reference & User     Services Quarterly, 46(1), 25-32. Retrieved from                             http://search.proquest.com/docview/217895123?accountid=7398

Beerbower, R., & Wittmayer, B. (2006). Nonfiction Novels and Novel Nonfiction. PNLA             Quarterly71(1), 14-16. Retrieved from:    http://web.a.ebscohost.com.proxy2.ulib.iupui.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=24&sid=521eefb0-f819-4d2d-a222-f4133c8c0656%40sessionmgr4003&hid=4212

Goodreads. (2014). Genres>Non-fiction. Retrieved   from: https://www.goodreads.com/genres/non-fiction

Husser, K. (2012). Level 19: Nothing but fiction. [Web log comment]. Retrieved from: http://level19english.blogspot.com/2012/01/nothing-but-nonfiction.html

Wyatt, N. (2007). Exploring fiction. Library Journal, 132(3), 32-35. Retrieved from http://web.b.ebscohost.com.proxy2.ulib.iupui.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=ebf1e6ab-c05d-4da3-b769-6621753de185%40sessionmgr111&vid=4&hid=127