Busy busy busy

I spent three hours at the Wheeler Taft Abbett, Sr. Library the day after the Memorial Day holiday. Because the library had been closed, it was a very busy place. In the backroom, there was a backlog of materials to be checked in and shelved, and lists of materials that had been reserved by folks through other branches that had to be prepared for pick-up.

Out on the floor, you could tell that school was out. There were a lot of children with grandparents, parents, babysitters, friends … and some teens hanging out in their space back in the corner. Kendra Davey told me that there were 700+ children that registered for the Summer Reading Program over the weekend at Abbett alone – and it looked to me like another 700 signed up in just the three hours that I was there! I think the new format and materials are going to be very popular. There was an article in the Arizona Daily Star that morning, which I’m sure helped boost interest.

Before the library opened, I went out on the floor with a list of reserves for other branches and pulled materials, then packed them in the appropriate box. There were several things I couldn’t find and had to go on a real search to see if they were tucked away somewhere. The primary places to look: misfiled in the general area and displays (New Books, Staff Picks, New Fiction, New Non-Fiction, racks at the end of stacks, etc.). It was a real scavenger hunt.

When I finished that task, I took a cart and filed books. I found one that had been mislabeled and a few that were out of order. Kendra told me that if there are only a couple of books misfiled, go ahead and take care of it. If the whole shelf has been mixed up, there is a form to complete alerting the pages so that when they have a moment, they can go out on the floor and fix the problem.

It is the same situation if you find that a shelf is too tight. If it is simply a matter of moving one or two books to another shelf, go ahead. If the entire section needs to be re-organized to create more space, complete the appropriate form and the pages will take care of it when they have the time.

In the two hours I shelved, I got through about half of the books on the cart. It was a little discouraging but I trust I will get faster as I have the chance to practice. Besides, I was interrupted a couple of times to help patrons find items they were looking for. Success!

How to write a book review

I have always wanted to learn how to write a book review. If I can teach myself to Tweet, I should be able to teach myself how to do this as well.

According to the authors of the website “How to Write a Book Review”, it is a 10-step process.

1. Don't read the book. At least, not yet. Instead, start by looking at it. Look for clues to the nature of the book you'll be reading. Is it a richly manufactured item aimed at collectors? What does the cover illustration indicate the book will be about? What sort of blurbs are included? How is it categorized by the publisher? All of these will tell you the book's target audience.

Too late. I read and am going to review Milo: Sticky Notes & Brain Freeze written and illustrated by Alan Silberberg. I checked it out of the library because the cartoon drawings reminded me of Daniel Pinkwater. There is a drawing of a dog on the back cover peeing on one of those tree-shaped car fresheners. I found it in the teen section and next to the dog in little tiny type are the words “ages 9-13”.

2. Don't read the book. At least, not quite yet. Instead, open the book and flip through it. Look at how the words are arranged on the pages. Start with the largest distinctions—the number of pages, the number of chapters, and so on. Then move to the size of paragraphs, how much of the book is dialogue, etc. This will tell you about the book's readability and how the author structured the book.

275 pages, a bunch of chapters (they aren’t numbered and I am not going to count them), the paragraphs are short and to the point, realistic dialogue, lots of great illustrations – some of which are actually part of the story itself.

3. Build a framework for taking notes. You always focus better if you have something specific to look for and markers to pay attention to along the way. Start with the simplest things—the number of chapters, for example—and then move on to more complex tasks, such as questions you'll want to answer: "What makes this book a classic?" or "What made this book 'speak for a generation' like the introduction said it did?"

The blurbs on the back of the book indicates that it won the 2011 Sid Fleischman Award for Humor, the New York Public Library’s 100 Books for Reading and Sharing 2010, and was a 2010 Cybil Awards Finalist. The illustrations, along with these accolades, make you think it is going to be light and full of silly situations. But when you actually read the one-paragraph synopsis on the cover, you get clues like “lived in 5 different houses”, “have to start the 7^th grade in a brand-new school”, and “My dad thinks everything is going to be okay – but I don’t think that’s possible. How can it be when my mom isn’t around to fill the house with noise anymore?” and realize it is going to be a lot more serious than you first thought.

4) Read the book. And as you do so...

Done.

5) Pay attention. That isn't a disciplinary command like, "Don't let your mind wander!" Instead, pay attention to your reading experience. This is the first real challenge for most people. What caught your attention, and when were you bored? When was the book suspenseful? Which characters did you like, and why?

I certainly wasn’t bored. From the first paragraph, I was anxious to know more about Milo and his friends, Marshall and Hillary. Summer Goodman, Sylvia Poole, Mr. Shivnesky and Milo’s alias, Dabney St. Claire, are all essential to moving the story forward. So is Milo’s dad – he is there but not really present.

6) Review the book and take notes that let you explain its effects. This is the second tough step for most people. Remember that note-taking framework you built earlier? Now's the time to fill it in. Flip back through the book and write brief, purposeful notes. What happens in the first chapter—and what was its effect on you as a reader? When you passed from one part of the book to the next—chapter, section, or setting—what kept your attention? This is the part most people neglect, but it lays the foundation for the rest of the book review, so keep at it until you can do the following:

Explain how the book as a whole affected you.

Very moving
Explain how the author achieved the effects he or she did.

Alan Silberberg strikes a balance between funny, awkward situations that anyone can relate to – since we’ve all been an outsider at one time or another - and the pain of losing your mother.
Explain the relationship between form and content.

The goofy cartoon illustrations draw you in, making you feel as if you know each of the characters, and help you see the world from Milo’s point-of-view. Without them, and the clever handwritten chapter headings, the topic would be much more difficult to handle.
If it is fiction, explain the function of each character in the novel.

Dabney St. Clair: Milo’s alias who is cool, calm, collected, smart and popular. This voice in Milo’s head is who he wants to be and he offers advice about social situations.

Summer Goodman: a blond and beautiful 7^th grader. Milo has a crush on her and she doesn’t know he exists – or does she?

Hillary Alpert: a girl in Milo’s grade who lives next door and is as different from Summer as one can get. A real friend though it takes him a while to realize it.

Marshall Hickler: a cool kid in Milo’s grade who passes the Friend Test right away. You just know that the two of them are going to end up college roommates and buddies for life.

Sylvia Poole: a woman who lives down the street that Milo mistakes for a very uncool, very old lady who turns out to be the opposite. She gives him sage advice based on her own experiences.

Mr. Shivnesky: the math teacher who cares enough about Milo to tutor him after school two days a week. His bald head really bothers Milo – you find out why toward the end of the book. When looking back on middle school, Mr. S. will be one of those teachers Milo thanks for changing his life. Hey, he may even learn to like math!

Milo’s dad: he doesn’t know how to handle his own grief, let alone Milo’s. He has withdrawn, causing great pain to those around him – the silence in the house is deafening.
Explain the characters' relationships to one another.

Friends, potential friends, acquaintances, mentors, family figures, family.

7) Sum up the book. This is the easy part, and half of what most people think a book review is. Put the book in a nutshell. Keep summarizing it until you've got everything covered clearly. Use that to start your review.

Milo Cruikshank tries to find his way after losing his mother to cancer. He is supported in his search by friends, neighbors and teachers. He learns how to reconnect with his father and keep his mother’s spirit alive.

8) Pass judgment. This is the other half of a book review for most people. Is this book good or bad? This is the time for you to say so. Put that second in your review—but use your notes from earlier to explain why and to make your judgment persuasive. Give specific examples, and move from passing judgment to explaining the book. That comes third.

I would recommend this book to teens and up (including adults) who have lost their mother, find themselves in a new situation, feel alone, and/or estranged from a family member. The author hits all of the right notes. For a sense of his style, click here.

9) Put the book in context. You might have been able to get this information from looking at the book's cover and introduction, or you might need to do a little research. What categories does this book fall into? Is it science fiction or fantasy? Is it the first of its kind or an imitation? The author's first book or fifteenth? Spend some time relating this book to others in its category to further explain the book and your judgment of it.

There are books that explain death to very young children (The Tenth Good Thing About Barney, The Giving Tree) and for adults. This is an important, contemporary book for teens – especially boys - who are experiencing, or have a friend who is experiencing, profound loss.

10) Check your aim. You've written your review. Now's the time to step back and apply this sort of reasoning to your own review. Did you explain every major aspect of the book? What was your target audience? Did you write this for a class with specific criteria—or for a fan magazine whose audience already knows this type of book well? If so, you might have to edit your review to add or remove details. If you don't...you're done!

Hmm…this was fun. But Kirkus Reviews said it all in two words: painfully funny. Can’t add anything to that.

Making connections in Marana

I spent Tuesday, May 22 at the Geasa Marana Branch Library. The variety of tasks I was assigned meant that the day flew by: re-arranging shelving so that mysteries and large print books were spread out a little more evenly, checking books in and out, going through the teen collection and pulling books considered “grubby” (stained, broken binding, ripped pages, etc.), and helping patrons search the web.

I arranged for Kendra to meet with Rev. Dave Hedgepeth, pastor at the Community Christian Church of Marana, in early June. Not only is Dave an important contact, he is interested in connecting members of his congregation with community assets and volunteer opportunities. The church also hosts a pre-school at the facility and the teacher might be interested in Story Hour and other library programs.

We also had the chance to go over the Government Complex and meet with T Van Hook, Director of Community Development for the Town of Marana, and Melanie Nelson, the Grant and Housing Coordinator. As gracious as always, T made arrangements to introduce Kendra to some of the key folks who work for the Town, including Mayor Ed Honea, and take her to lunch at THE spot where she will be sure to meet everyone: R&R Pizza.

I am familiar with the R&R. Whenever the Catholic Daughters would come to town to work on the Pottenger’s house, they would always stop in for a little lunch, a chance to socialize and conduct some official business before scattering across the state.  What I did not realize: if you want a comprehensive list of what is really going on, stop in there and read the bulletin board. Anything of any importance is posted there. Forget the newspaper, forget the Internet – it’s the R&R!

I hope when Kendra and T stop in for a bite to eat, Kendra takes information to post. Wouldn’t it be interesting if this is the only advertising needed to promote the Summer Reading Program and Story Hour? I love small towns!

Summer has arrived at the library.

Today at the Wheeler Taft Abbett, Sr. Branch Library, I had the opportunity to work the desk for a few hours with Cheryl who handles publicity and outreach. It turns out she lives in Picture Rocks (my neighborhood!) so she visits Desert Winds Elementary, Picture Rocks Middle School and Head Start on a regular basis. She also attends the Citizens for Picture Rocks meetings and shares the latest news from the library.

Cheryl has been busy promoting the summer reading program, which is almost upon us. This year’s theme is “Our State, Our Story” in celebration of Arizona’s 100^th birthday. As we were conducting an inventory of the materials that will be handed out to anyone who signs up, Branch Manager Kendra Davey explained to me that instead of purchasing a theme and ancillary items from a vendor as they have in the past, Arizona decided that, given the unique opportunity the 100^th affords, to produce its own program and materials.

Another change: unlike previous years, rather than giving participants a prize when they hit certain milestones that have been set by the vendor (Great – you read 30 books, here is a pencil!), anyone who signs up sets their own goals. It may be reading a certain number of minutes, pages, books, books in a series, or non-fiction books – whatever the participant decides. The goal is recorded in a passport and, once it has been achieved, the participant gets a book of their very own.

The newspaper, Summer Reading Times, has a list of 100 activities. Participants are encouraged to try six and, every time they complete one, record it in their passport and bring it to the library to have it stamped. Depending on the situation, it either gets stamped with a rubber stamp or a real postage stamp gets glued inside. (I got a glimpse of the mini-suitcase holding all of the stamps donated by the Postal History Foundation – it’s very cool.)

A sampling of activities: make an Arizona flag, create a bookmark, spend some time outside and write down what you observe, read the newspaper, keep a journal for a week, read a ghost story with a flashlight, visit an Arizona museum, take a computer class at the library, try a new food...there is something on the list that covers every interest.

The newspaper also contains a calendar of events scheduled at each of the branches. You could literally do something different every single day of the week the entire summer – from cartooning to making pizza, learning about reptiles to yoga. The number and diversity of events is really impressive.

Adventure Pass 2012 lists 14 different places to visit in the state and contains coupons that can be clipped to help reduce admission fees. A reading list has been provided for each location along with a photo, short description, days/hours of operation and contact information.

It is obvious that a lot of time, energy and creativity went into this year’s program. I’m glad I am going to be around to see how it is received.  I’m betting it will be a great success and maybe, just maybe – since it is open to children, teens and adults – I will sign up!

Hmmm…what goal should I choose?

Goal: reading fluency

I just completed a very interesting course, Ethics for Library and Information Professionals, taught by Kay Mathiesen. This is one of the core courses required for a Masters degree from the School of Information Resources and Library Science at the University of Arizona.

For the final paper, we were assigned to

·      investigate the policies and practices of an organization that collects, stores and distributes information,

·      perform an ethical evaluation of these policies and practices using one of the theories that we studied during the semester, and

·      propose any changes that may improve the ethical standing of the organization or help prevent ethical breaches.

I chose to focus on Reading Seed, a program of Literacy Connects, since I have always wanted to learn more about it and thought this would be a good opportunity to do so. Its mission, to help children in Pima County learn to read so they can read to learn, complements the work of public libraries, which is the area of study I am pursuing.

During the course of my interviews and, after attending a Reading Seed volunteer orientation, I thought that I would like to be a Reading Coach during the 2012-2013 school year provided I could work with students at Desert Winds Elementary School, located in Picture Rocks, less than 10 miles from my home.

Not only do they have a need at this particular school for coaches, the demand is probably going to increase due to the adoption by the State of Arizona of legislation titled Move On When Reading. The law states that if a student reaches the third grade and can not read at grade level, he/she will automatically be held back. In order to ensure that their students are prepared to hit the required benchmarks, schools will be looking to programs like Reading Seed to provide additional support for children who are struggling.

The inviting entrance to the library.

In order to begin preparing for my assignment, I attended a training session on fluency at the Martha Cooper Branch Library in mid-town Tucson. Fluency is defined as being able to read the text correctly, quickly, smoothly and with the proper expression and comprehension. Reading Seed staff member Tamara McKinney, aided by an intern from the University of Arizona, presented some strategies to promote fluency – and we got to try a few of them. We took turns reading a story from Toad and Frog by Arnold Lobel. These stories are perfect because the two main characters have very different personalities (so it is easy to adopt a distinct voice for each one) and they are silly, filled with jokes and illustrated with great drawings. We also practiced being very dramatic (watch out Dame Judy!) by reading a Shel Silverstein poem. Mine was called “The Voice”:

There is a voice inside of you

That whispers all day long,

“I feel that this is right for me.

I know that this is wrong.”

No teacher, preacher, parent, friend

Or wise man can decide

What’s right for you – just listen to

The voice that speaks inside.

Held monthly except in June and July, these trainings are optional but staff may want to reconsider and think about asking each coach to attend a training once a quarter (or three a year since the summer is “down time”). Several of the coaches that I met at the session have been volunteering for more than five years, but I know from their comments that they all learned something new. Besides, it is fun to meet other coaches and, for us newbies, get pointers from the experts!

Small is beautiful

I spent Tuesday, May 15 at the Geasa-Marana Branch Library. Situated in “Old Marana” (west of I-10, north of Tangerine Road, east of Sanders Road, south of Trico-Marana Road), it is next to Ora Mae Harn Park, the Senior Center, and a post office; a couple of blocks from the Civic Center and new Marana Health Center; and within walking distance of Estes Elementary and Marana Middle Schools. The location is ideal but, despite that, circulation and facility use is not as high as it could be.

According to Kendra Davey, the branch manager, there are several reasons for this:

1)    because there isn’t a grocery store along with other shopping options or a large employer in Old Marana, residents have to travel outside the immediate area. Before or after work and/or as they do their errands, there is a tendency to stop at the library located close to where these other activities are taking place.

2)    Gladden Farms, the largest development in the area, is situated at the south end of Old Marana with easy access to I-10. There is a tendency to look south rather than travel a mile north to recreate.

3)    a small library is perceived as not having the resources that bigger facilities have. Given the Internet and the fact that the Pima County Library system consists of the main library in downtown Tucson, 25 branches and a bookmobile, no library is small – or isolated.

4)    the marketing of the library has not been consistent over the years, and staff has not implemented strategic outreach efforts to engage the community’s newest residents.

So, in addition to spending Tuesdays learning the procedures that ensure the Geasa-Marana Branch Library runs as smoothly as the Wheeler Taft Abbett, Sr. Branch Library and is as responsive to its patrons as all of the others in the system, I will be introducing people I know in the local area to Kendra and developing new relationships that will help to spread the word about this small gem. I will draft suggestions for outreach efforts designed to compliment the organization’s strategic plan and possibly get the chance to try a few of them out before my internship is over.

While working with the good folks at the Geasa-Marana Branch Library, I will use as my mantra a quote from Mark Twain: Many a small thing has been made large by the right kind of advertising.

And so it begins...

I started my summer internship on Monday, May 14 at the Wheeler Taft Abbett, Sr. Branch Library. My supervisor is Kendra Davey who graduated from the SIRLS program and was initially assigned to libraries on the east side before being transferred to locations closer to home as part of a county-wide green effort. Her specialty/interest is in children’s literature, particularly teen-level books and activities.

The Abbett Library is located just off Silverbell surrounded by a beautiful park. This is the entrance to the meeting rooms.

From the moment I arrived at 11 AM until the time I left at 8 PM, the place was jumping, not only out on the floor but in the back room as well. I think the biggest surprise for me was the number of pages and clerks there are at the branch, checking materials in and getting them out on the floor as quickly as possible. Everyone rotates jobs every few hours, including the librarians assigned to work the desk, so that no one person does the same activity for too long. This cuts down on repetitive motion injuries, boredom and, for those assigned to the desk, exhaustion at being inundated by a variety of requests one right after the other.  It is a very fast-paced environment.

This doesn’t mean that staff and volunteers don’t have fun or take a few minutes to talk – they do. I have never been around such a large group of people who are, to a person, incredibly welcoming and friendly, not only to me but to each other and the patrons. The whole experience reinforced why I would love to work in a public library.

I have a few initial observations about why the tone/atmosphere at this particular library is this way:

1)   staff is being cross-trained. Kendra told me that there is a one-desk philosophy system-wide that has eliminated the segregation of reference and circulation duties: they are all done in one location by anyone assigned desk duty. Additionally, it appears that clerks and pages not only know each other jobs, they are assigned other duties to help out where needed.  Since anyone who works at the library is considered a librarian, pages are approached while shelving.  They have been schooled on how to gracefully hand off a customer to another staff person when appropriate, emphasizing service and courtesy.

2)   the philosophy of being welcoming and helpful starts at the top. Senior staff moves on a regular basis between the Abbett Library and Geasa-Marana Library so that they are comfortable at either location and can role model the kind of behavior they want to see in staff (and staff can see that the philosophy isn’t just one person’s idea but is a value held system-wide). An added bonus is that they can bring their particular expertise to a different setting/customer base, who then benefit from what they have to offer.

3)   there is a push to get folks out from behind the desk and make sure that patrons can find what they want. Some branches utilize greeters. They tried that at Abbett but it didn’t quite work as they had hoped. They do, however, ask desk personnel to roam during their shift as they are able, approaching people to make sure they are finding what they want. Kendra and I took a few minutes to roam and the three people she talked to all needed help finding a resource. By reaching out, they were invited to ask questions and Kendra didn’t just walk them to a shelf and pull the book for them, she took the time to educate them on how to use the computer, how the library is organized, etc.  This is empowering so they will either be able to find what they are looking for more easily the next time they visit or won’t hesitate to come to the desk.

The atmosphere was so congenial that I fully expected everyone to high-five each other for a job well done as we lined up to exit the building together at the end of the day. I was exhausted from trying to take it all in and from jumping from one task to another (and there is no way I am going to remember anyone’s name) but at the same time energized. I can hardly wait to go back next Monday!!

Words describing a library and its contents are captured in this sculpture. Located near the main entrance, it is spectacular when lit at night.