I Want The Revenant. . .

When the Oscar films are chosen, the number of holds on the books they are based on skyrockets!  Often, these are older titles and the publishers are scrambling to print movie-tie-ins.  There are a number of resources which can help you predict upcoming movies that are made into books.  You can't always predict how popular the book will become so this will always be a bit of crapshoot to match demand from the public.  EarlyWord and CBC Books have recently been the most helpful to me.

The Conversation:

Customer: "I am looking for The Revenant.  I want to read the book before I watch the movie."

Readers' Advisor: "That might be difficult because there are currently 200 holds on that book."

C: "Really?!  Oh, I was looking forward to reading it this weekend."

RA: "The book is widely available to purchase if you are really desperate to read it.  I can check availability at the local bookstore for you.  Can I make a few suggestions of books that are similar?  Do you know anything about the book?"

C: "I heard it was about a bear attack!  I like to read books about survival."

RA: "I checked Amazon and the books seems a lot like a Western.  Do you like Westerns?"

C:  "That part doesn't matter to me so much, I just like to read about how humans survive against animals."

RA:  "Okay, I'm going to do a search and make some suggestions."

The Search:

Your suggestions will likely come more from collection knowledge than search tools.  Some subject headings include: "revenge," "trappers" and "wilderness survival."  The BookList Reader has this list which can get you started if nothing comes to mind.

Suggestions:

The Bear (2014) Claire Cameron

Grizzly Man (2005) film

Into the Wild (1997) Jon Krakauer - book and film

The Tenderness of Wolves (2007) Stef Penney

The Tiger: A True Story of Vengeance and Survival (2010) John Valliant

I can't get enough of "Making of a Murderer"

The television show that is currently being binged upon is Netflix's "Making a Murderer."  This is a documentary series which follows a man convicted of rape who is later exonerated by DNA evidence.  He is subsequently charged with murder and the series follows the case over ten years.  Customers who have access to Netflix will be watching and discussing the series while customers who have no access to Netflix will hear about it and will be anxious to get their hands on the series when released on DVDs.

The Readers' Advisory Conversation:

Customer: "I have been watching this "Making a Murderer" series and I just can't get enough of it.  Do you have anything similar?"

Readers' Advisor: "I have hear about it but I haven't watched it.  Tell me about it and what you specifically like about it."

C: "It is about this guy who goes to jail, then gets out of jail and then goes to jail again.  I was so fascinated by all of the legal issues, how evidence is used and how it seems that no one knows the truth."

RA: "That's crazy!  I love movies and books that look at true crime.  You said that you liked watching the legal issues.  Are you interested in murderers in general or just ones who have their convictions questioned?"

C: "Nah, I hate that serial murderers stuff.  I want something that challenges my assumptions about the court case?  Anyone else who has been exonerated?"

RA: "Did you want books or films right now?"

C: "More movies, just movies right now."

RA: "Great, I'll give you some suggestions."

The Search:

Start with a catalogue search, limit your search to DVDs.  Search using search terms such as: "murder," "trials," "criminal investigation," and "criminal justice, administration of."  Do not limit your searches to just fiction DVDs as many of these films are documentaries.

Suggestions:

Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hill (1996), Paradise Lost 2: Revelations (1999), Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory (2012) and West of Memphis (2013).  Atom Egoyan directed a fictionalization of this real-life court case called, Devil's Knot (2013).

The Jeffrey Dahmer Files (2012)

The Thin Blue Line (1988)

Murder on a Sunday Morning (2003)

Capturing the Friedmans (2003) - this films features a child abuse case but is focused on the trial

An Unreal Dream: The Michael Morton's Story (2013)

The Central Park Five (2012)

Loan Stars

Early reviews can be one of the most important tools for a readers' advisor.  Your readers will often come into the library to ask about the newest books because they are seeing them in the bookstores or in the media and they want to get information about the book to make a reading decision.  Library staff who have direct access to publishers' reps - Dewey Divas and Dudes - may be seeing forthcoming books and getting reviews however this is not available everywhere.

There is a new program in Canada which will keep you informed about the new forthcoming reads with reviews available.  Loan Stars will launch shortly and it will provide library staff with lists and reviews for forthcoming titles before books are even published.  This project is a partnership between BookNet Canada, Canadian Urban Libraries Council (CULC), Canadian library associations, library vendors and publishers.  Library staff can volunteer to be readers and reviewers.

Loan Stars is based on a similar American program, Library Reads.  This program features ten library staff picks per month.  The books featured are largely fiction with a few narrative non-fiction included.  The format of the Canadian version will be revealed when the tool is launched and it will be a great source of information for selectors and advisors.

Canadian Reading Habits

This study has been circulating for the past few days and it is an interesting consideration of American and Canadian readers.  Booknet Canada had a look at the Pew Research Centre's study which suggests that Americans are reading less than they were in the past.  There are some additional statistics that can lead you to develop a profile of those who are reading the most and who are reading the least.  Generally, white women with higher education and higher salaries are the best readers.

Booknet Canada was intrigued by the American numbers and conducted their own survey.  The results of that survey is displayed to the left.  This information is particularly helpful for readers' advisors as it identifies who might be your most avid readers and new markets that might be important to target.

Booknet Canada also cites a NOP World Culture Score Index study that identifies who reads the most in the world.  Not sure why they profile only Russia for genre interests, but the whole map is interesting.

Readers' advisors can learn a lot about their business from these and other studies that look directly at reading habits.  There have been studies in the past which ask readers where they find out about books and libraries barely rank.  Readers are finding out about books from friends and booksellers.  The readers are using libraries but they are not engaging with library staff to find out about books. 

That is something we have to work to change.

Scotiabank Giller Prize

It is old news the Andre Alexis won the 2015 Scotiabank Giller Prize.  I have tried diligently to locate an online version of the ceremony, hosted by Rick Mercer, but I have not been able to locate one. You can check out other Giller-related videos on their site.

Readers' advisors can learn a lot about booktalking and promoting books from the award ceremony. The show is typically one hour long and the shortlist includes 5 books.  During this year's broadcast, presenters were tasked with "booktalking" their assigned title.  A booktalk does not summarize the book but identifies the most interesting aspects of the book in a way that promotes interest.  The author is invited to read some of their book and then they participate in some random television activities.  This is a great way to conduct an author visit and most authors are familiar with the structure.  Be sure to check this out next year and assess the show as a readers' advisor.

The CBC Books webpage really deserves its own post but I will mention it here to direct you to one of the best Canadian book resource.  There are many timely lists and related book news.  Their Facebook page is equally informative and will keep you up to date on the latest news that your readers already know.

Library Reads

Librarians and selectors regularly read reviews to determine appropriate additions for their library collections.  These reviews are written by professional writers, some academics and some librarians and consider the item on its merit and may consider the relatively value that the item will have for library users.

There is a resource for forthcoming reviews which employs only librarians and library staff as reviewers.  Library Reads is a partnership project with prominent librarians and major publishing firms to provide reviews of new publications.  The books are reviewed in advance of publishing to allow time for selectors to assess and add them to the upcoming orders.  The project is two years old and it is well-know stateside by librarians and fiction selectors.  The top 10 adult titles are displayed monthly with a majority of fiction titles and a few non-fiction titles.  

The reviews are timely and can easily aid library staff in developing readers' advisory intelligence from the reviews.  They help to set up staff for success with readers by providing good forthcoming coverage, predicting the possible books of interest which your users will be clamouring for.  The website has a number of print templates which could be used to promote the program and the books selected.

Library staff are encouraged to participate by reading and reviewing books provided by the publishers.  At present, this is an American initiative but there will be exciting news of the Canadian front in a few more months.  If library staff want to get access to forthcoming publications, subscribing to NetGalley is another way to get free access to new books.

Get to Know Harlequin

Libraries are pretty hostile territories for Harlequin books. Librarians were discussing how either libraries don't actually purchase them or bother to catalogue them which makes them hard to access for romance lovers.  At my library, we - literally - put these books in the back corner.  These books are seen as just ephemeral and that readers who like one would like any other one.

Libraries and library staff are not doing their readers any service if they are not familiar with Harlequin and the various series that are offered.

Check out the Harlequin site: http://www.harlequin.com/store.html

There is further information about the books which are published by Harlequin and there is a lot of series information available on the site.  Harlequin has done a lot of work already for readers' advisors to direct readers to their perfect Harlequin.  In addition to series information, they have sub-divided their publications into fiction categories.

There are a few library resources but they aren't as helpful as the information included on the main site.

Everyone has a Harlequin memory and do not discount how well loved these books are by readers.