Answers about ricklibrarian

I think more and more that the best thing about library conferences is meeting people. This morning I received an email with questions about writing my blog from a librarian I met at the American Library Association Annual Conference this week in Chicago. Since I have not really said much about the blog itself in a long time, I am also posting modified answers to her questions.

I stay at least partially informed on book and library industry trends by reading articles linked from AL Direct and Library Link of the Day as well as listening to the New York Times Book Review podcast. I read newspapers and journals. I also learn at librarians' meeting and from my Facebook friends.

I receive no dollars or cents from my blog. I have never tried because I want to stay totally independent. Money is not as valuable as peace of mind.

I ignore most of the email I get from marketing agents trying to get me to read books. Maybe twice a year I might be willing to read something and tell the author/agent that I make no promises about reviewing. It has probably been more than a year since I have reviewed anything on ricklibrarian by request. I mostly review books from libraries. I have requested maybe three electronic readers copies through Edelweiss.

I review instead of promote. I usually stick to books and media and ignore products and services. I might comment on a product/services good for libraries or readers, but it rare.

I have enjoyed blogging, and it led to my writing two readers' advisory books. It has made me lots of friends. That's the payoff.

50 Great Cookbooks at Thomas Ford Complete

It took all year! With a review of Jacques Pepin Celebrates, the staff of the Thomas Ford Memorial Library has posted reviews of 50 of the library's most interesting and useful cookbooks. These reviews may be found on the library's Thommy Ford Reads blog and their book jackets may be seen as a group on our 50 Great Cookbooks Pinterest board.

50 is a lot of reviews. We chose the number after seeing what National Public Radio was doing with some of its continuing reports, such as 50 Great Voices, which profiled incredible singers. Like NPR, we called upon staff from various departments of our organization to select and review candidates. Since we have many good cooks on the staff, it seemed a project tailor-made for us. We did not have a committee to vote on the books nor did we make anyone write a specified number of reviews. Still, we got the reviews written and in the process highlighted a great variety of titles from both our adult and children's collections.

Two of our objectives were to 1) draw more people to our review blog by diversifying the content and 2) increase the use of the cookbook collection. Whether we succeeded here is not really yet known. Visitors to the blog are up 48 percent in 2012 over 2011, but it is only the second year of the blog; that increase might have happened anyway. The second most read post ever on our blog is our review of Dining with the Washingtons: Historic Recipes, Entertaining, and Hospitality from Mount Vernon at 247 views. Only two other cookbook reviews have cracked the top 25 all time posts so far. Stats on our cookbook circulation have not yet been tallied.

There are other benefits of the project. We have tested some new methods of marketing, introduced some of the staff to review writing, and all learned more about what to expect from a cookbook. From the books I reviewed, I have some new recipes, improved my vocabulary, and learned about numerous helpful kitchen gadgets. Having cookbooks on the reference desk through much of the year, helped us initiate readers' advisory conversations with some clients.

I think it is now time for a party.

On Writing Book Reviews for Booklist

For the past two years, I have been writing book reviews for Booklist, the review journal for public libraries from the America Library Association. Every month or so, I get a package from Adult Books Editor Brad Hooper with one, two, or (once) even three review copies of forthcoming books. Most have been science and nature books aimed at general readers. Early on, I received a series of human-animal interaction books - a man and his pet grizzly kind of books. I also got collections of thoughtful essays on human stewardship (or lack of) of our environment. I enjoyed all of these books immensely.

Then, I started getting books about the seas and oceans. Perhaps there is a boom in this field of publishing. I was not expecting it, but I am starting to feel I could test for some college credit in marine biology. I am sure I can now talk very knowledgeably with my old biology major apartment mate Joe about microorganisms and fisheries. Here is a list the marine-related titles that I have read and reviewed to date:

• Demon Fish: Travels through the Hidden World of Sharks by Juliet Eilperin
• Kraken: The Curious, Exciting, and Slightly Disturbing Science of Squid by Wendy Williams
• Sex, Drugs, and Sea Slime: The Ocean's Oddest Creatures and Why They Matter by Ellen Prager
• Bayshore Summer by Peter Dunne
• Arctic Summer by Peter Dunne
• The Great White Bear: A Natural and Unnatural History of the Polar Bear by Kieran Mulvaney
• Fraser's Penguins: A Journey to the Future of Antarctica by Fen Montaigne
• Horseshoe Crabs and Velvet Worms by Richard Fortey
• Overfishing: What Everyone Needs to Know by Ray Hilborn
• Ocean of Life by Callum Roberts
• Floating Gold: An Unnatural History of Ambergris by Christopher Kemp
• Horseshoe Crab: Biology of a Survivor by Anthony D. Fredericks
• In Pursuit of Giants: One Man's Global Search for the Last of the Great Fish by Matt Rigney

The books at the bottom part of the list are not yet available in stores, but I have gotten to read them already. That is half the fun of being a book reviewer.

I have also found my reviewing has helped at parties. I go to very few, but I actually found myself in a conversation at one about the books of biologist Richard Fortey and was able to say "I've read his forthcoming book." Maybe I will now get more invitations. Everyone wants to know a book reviewer.

Poets & Writers on the State of Book Reviewing:

The September/October 2011 issue of Poets & Writers has an article that should interest any librarian or reader interested in current trends in book reviewing. Back From the Dead: The State of Book Reviewing by Jane Ciabattari does not consider reviews generated by libraries and librarians but does a good job of reporting on the transformation and survival of the book reviewing "establishment," the reviews in industry journals, newspapers, magazines, media, and big-time online. There are numerous links so an interested reader or librarian can revisit review sources that he or she may have neglected of late. (I have neglected many of late.)

Ciabattari mentions in her article that in 2010 there were three million new book titles of which two-thirds were self-published or print-on-demand. I'll bet few from that two-thirds ever get mentioned in the sources the author cites.

Six Years of ricklibrarian and Many Years of Letters

Today I have been blogging for six years. I started with a short review of the novel Hannah Coulter by Wendell Berry, which is still one of my favorite books. I have given it to a lot of readers at my library. It is not actually representative of what I review, as I read much more nonfiction. I also now aim for three paragraphs instead of the review journal model of about 150 words. I feel the longer review lets me sound more like I'm writing you a letter.

I miss writing letters. I used to keep a box of nice masculine stationery (nothing flowery and no perfume) in my desk and bought sheets of commemorative stamps to attach to the top right hand corner of the matching envelopes. I enjoyed composing messages to friends in far-flung places and then getting replies with out-of-state or foreign postmarks. Weeks might go by before a response, but I cheered finding replies in our mailbox. I always enjoyed receiving news and stories paired with kind words and encouragement from my friends in other places. (I still have boxes of letters in the closet and am contemplating a conservation project.)

I have reaped many benefits from writing this blog, but I have always wished that more readers would comment - satisfy my letter-in-the-mailbox desire. Many bloggers have told me the same tale of too few comments. We're all Charlie Brown's waiting for Valentines. I understand that many readers are busy and just pass by to see the latest posts, reading only when the subjects appeal. Often, they may feel they have nothing to say about a book that they have not read. I am more likely to find comments when I write about something other than books or other library materials. I got many comments last summer when I wrote about the library job market.*

When I finish my latest book project, I may try to reflect more on library services and culture, like I did in the early days of this blog. What do you think? Send me a comment.

* By the way, we now have another opening for a tech savvy reference librarian who enjoys event programming, writing, and readers' advisory. Check the Thomas Ford Library website.

Zeitoun by Dave Eggers

Painting contractor Abdulrahman Zeitoun of New Orleans was nearly a model citizen. As an immigrant from Syria, he had worked hard to build up his own business with dozens of employees and many loyal customers across the city. He had children in school and was a good neighbor. His only fault was not obeying the mayor's order to vacate the city in advance of Hurricane Katrina. In Zeitoun author Dave Eggers recounts the good deeds, bad fortune, and graceful recovery of an honest man wrongfully accused of being something that he was not.

I was fortunate to read Zeitoun without knowing what was going to happen. Not wanting to spoil the story but to urge reading, I will say that the book is divided into several sections that correspond with parts of the story: before Katrina, during Katrina, soon after Katrina, another week after, the resolution of the story, and an epilogue. In telling this story, Eggers also tells about Zeitoun's childhood and years as a sailor. I also see the book in two emotional halves. The first is light, joyful, inspiring, and the second is dark, troubling, apt to make the reader very angry. At the end, Eggers explains what happened as partly justified and wholly regrettable.

After finishing the book, I wondered how I had missed this story. In my search of newspaper and magazine databases, I found no mention of Zeitoun and his misfortunes until the reviews of Eggers's book, reinforcing the point that we sometimes have no idea what happens in our country. Zeitoun would be a great discussion book.

Eggers, Dave. Zeitoun. McSweeney's Books, 2009. ISBN 9781934781630.

Writing Reviews for Readers' Advisory by Brad Hooper

With the push on at many libraries for staff to write reviews and annotations of books and media, there is a need for instruction for new reviewers. Brad Hooper at Booklist noticed this several years ago, and, being an experienced reviewer and editor, he offered workshops for libraries wanting to train their staffs to be effective reviewers. To reach a wider audience, he has now written Writing Reviews for Readers' Advisory, recently published by the American Library Association. My library received a copy just before the Public Library Association Conference in March, and it was processed and waiting for me when I returned from Portland.

Back to Portland for a moment. Without forethought (full disclosure), I met Brad for the first time (I think it was the first time, but I have met a lot of people over the years) at the PLA table talk Building a Readers' Advisory Team. He invited me to stop by the Booklist booth in the exhibit hall, where he later asked me to consider reviewing popular science books for the journal. The result is that I may soon have reviews in Booklist - if I measure up.

You see why Writing Reviews for Readers' Advisory rose to the top of the stack of books on my desk. I have now read it and found it a fairly easy and reassuring read. Brad lightly takes potential and experienced reviewers through his systematic course of instruction. At each step he illustrates his lessons with reviews from Booklist and quotes from reviews from the New York Times Book Review, GQ, the New Yorker, and other periodicals. By the end, you will want to try writing for your library and for any rag that will accept your reviews.

Joyce Saricks contributed a chapter on writing audiobook reviews, which differ from book reviews in that they need to acknowledge and evaluate narration and narrator. Tone and pacing are particularly important for the satisfactory listening experience, according to Joyce. She names names, letting readers know some worthy readers and titles.

Reading Writing Reviews for Readers' Advisory is only a beginning. Brad recommends exercises in reading and writing and provides a list of websites with book reviewing advice. He ties his book up with an appendix identifying his favorite review writers, masters from whom we all can learn.

Hooper, Brad. Writing Reviews for Readers' Advisory. American Library Association, 2010. ISBN 9780838910177.

Baseball Americana: Treasures from the Library of Congress by Harry Katz and others

In April each year, no longer able to throw a baseball without pain, I turn to baseball books to celebrate the passing of winter. There is never a shortage of good books on the topic. This year I found an over-sized volume called Baseball Americana: Treasures from the Library of Congress by Harry Katz and others. This colorful book filled with illustrations and short texts serves as a cultural history of baseball in America.

There are many histories of baseball already, and like most, Baseball Americana features some stories from the major leagues. Its best parts, however, focus on the amateur game and fans. It begins with an excellent chapter on the early history of the game, showing drawings from school primers and letters from early players, proving that baseball existed long before the fabled invention by Abner Doubleday in Cooperstown, New York in the 1839. My favorite parts may, however be the sections about illustrated sheet music covers for baseball songs and about early baseball cards.

Throughout Baseball Americana are book jackets, posters, magazine illustrations, and splendid photographs. The Library of Congress must have a great collection of team portraits in which the players gathered together to all fit in the frame. They look athletic, stylish, casual, and proud; they also come from all classes and races. Among the other great photos, I especially like the 1920 photo (page 133) of players from The House of David team, all with their long hair and beards, coming out of the White House after a meeting with President Wilson and the 1943 Ansel Adams photo (pages 186-187) of Japanese American internees playing before a crowd and the mountains at Manzanar Relocation Center.

There are plenty of big baseball books out there, but Baseball Americana stands out for showing how baseball connects with people. It is a wonderful addition to a library or personal collection.

Katz, Harry. Baseball Americana: Treasures from the Library of Congress. Smithsonian Books, 2009. 9780061625459.

ricklibrarian Personal Cliche Report

I did not bingo in the game of Cliche Bingo.

In her post at the Book Examiner on March 11, Michelle Kerns identified twenty words or phrases that she believes book reviewers use too often, tiring book review readers with their lazy language. In a subsequent post on March 15, she modified the list slightly to make Bingo cards. Seeing the fun, I decided to play the game. I searched five years of this blog using the Blogger search box to see how often I had used these words and phrases. Taking the first Bingo card, I failed to score five in a row up, down, across, or on the diagonal. I did, however, have to place a few beans on the board. (I remember playing Bingo with dried pintos as a kid.)

Here is my report.

First line across:

• compelling - A whole pile of beans right at the start. I have used "compelling" eleven times just since January 1, 2009. One use was to say a book was "not compelling." Of course, I have read a lot of good books that I felt driven to read in that time. What word would you have used?
• tour de force - I have never used this French phrase. I pretty much stick to English.
• nuanced - I have never used this term in five years of blogging, but as I look at it I think it could be occasionally handy.
• pitch-perfect - Never used.
• gritty - I have used the word once in five years.

Second line across:

• beautifully written - Zero.
• thought-provoking - I used this phrase in my very first post in 2005 and in ten posts since. I am surprised I have not use it more, for many books make me think, but that is the purpose of a book. Maybe it is only news when a book does not make me think. Remind me not to say "thought provoking" again.
• x meets x - Zero again. The idea here is "boy meets girl" or "predator meets prey" or such. I do not know how to search this, but I am sure that I have never used this construction.
• readable - Pile the beans. Fifteen uses in five years. Not a very inspiring adjective.
  
• powerful - While I have used this term frequently, I defend most of those uses, which are applied to the description of plots or characters. "Powerful storms" and "powerful politicians" seem acceptable to me. Only five times in five years have I used "powerful" to describe the book or movie that I reviewed.

Third line across:

• lyrical - One use in five years.
• at once - Zero.
• cliche-free - Is this the free space in the card? I did search. I have never used the term.
• timely - Six times in five years.
• sweeping - One use.

Fourth line across:

• in the tradition of - One use in five years.
• haunting - Three uses, all of which were in music reviews.
• stunning - Eight times.
• unputdownable - Zero. I guess some reviewers are trying to avoid "compelling."
• unflinching - Never used but maybe I could.

Fifth line across:

• rollicking - Never used the word.
• riveting - Six times in five years. All six are in the last two years. Am I letting my writing slide? I see that I used "stunning" and "riveting" in one of last year's reviews. Shocking.
• epic - Most of the uses of "epic" were actually in the titles of books. The authors, not me, used the word. I did manage to use the word seven times on my own, twice in describing Tolkien books.
• that said - Once.
• fully realized - Never.

As you can see, the beans never made it across the board. If you want, you can plot the beans up and down and diagonally to see no five in a row. I did not score all four corners either. Of course, I am glad not winning this game. I do see a little space here for improvement - "readable" and "thought provoking" in particular. I am going to keep a Bingo card handy as a reminder and tool for better review writing.