Creating Music

This afternoon I attended a public program for adults at the IMCPL. It was a celebration of music using items that you could find in a thrift store (its purpose). Teams were given $25.00 to purchase items. The musicians were very talented making good use of a belt, cans, water glasses, basketballs and toy keyboards. One musician used a doll to create music. The library presented the event with Big Car Collective and supported by Great Indy Neighborhoods Initiative.

I did not stay for the entire event but I had counted 118 guests in an hour. This is a great turnout. The event was listed as adult on the library website but there were a fair amount of children attending with adults. It was a good program (its strength) as it encouraged creativity. Additionally, the program appealed to the young old; all attendees could find something to enjoy, silly songs or craftsmanship in making new instruments.

There were no extreme weaknesses. The program started a little later than the advertised start time but that is understandable when you have nine groups of individuals included in the performance line-up.

http://www.imcpl.org/events/featuredevents.html

Adults are invited to a unique series of programs that offer an unusual twist on a lecture, experimental audio and video, a music competition and a live multimedia performance.

Made for Each Other: A Series of Interactive, Community-Inspiring Events will be presented through May in the Clowes Auditorium at Central Library, 40 E. St. Clair Street. It’s sponsored by Big Car Gallery and Know No Stranger.

Thrift Store Music
Wednesday, April 28 at 7 p.m.
Sunday, May 2 at 2 p.m.
This two-day event invites local bands to explore, create and share self-made musical instruments. On April 28, musicians will meet at Central Library, be given a budget, and sent to thrift stores to find objects that can be used as musical instruments. For the next four days the musicians will create songs with their self-made instruments. On May 2, the musicians will return to Central Library to perform music created from their thrift store finds.

Final Reader Results

Reader #3
1. What is the last book that you read?
Blue Collar Blues by Rosalyn McMillian

2. Who are some of your favorite authors? Please list three.
a. Jacqueline Thomas
b. Rosalyn McMillian
c. Benilde Little
d. Bebe Moore-Campbell

3. “Tell me what kind of reading experience you’re looking for”?*
a. Love stories with comedy and happy ending
b. Self- help, devotional and inspirational

4. What are your favorite genres? Please highlight your top two answers.
Romance
Adventure
Suspense
Women’s Lives and Relationships

5. Are you willing to try a new genre? If so, please indicate genre below?
a. Yes, mystery and chick lit

6. Are there certain genres/types of books that you do not like to read? Please list below?
a. Horror, street lit

* Question obtained from Ross and Chelton, Reader’s Advisory: Matching Mood and Material, 2001.

Suggestions

1. Faith
A Change is Gonna Come
By Jacqueline Thomas

2. Inspirational
Have a Little Faith
An anthology with a story by Jacqueline Thomas

3. Mystery
Plain Brown Wrapper: An Alex Powell Novel
By Karen G. Bates

4. Romance
The Nicest Guy in America
By Angela Benson

5. Romance (this is a read alike compared to Benilde Little using Rich African Americans)
Just for You
By Doreen Rainey

6. Romance; Women’s Lives and Relationships
The Ideal Wife
By Jacqueline Thomas

Reader comments
“I would read all of these, I love Jacqueline Thomas.”

Reader #5

1. What is the last book that you read? Currently reading Life Beyond Measure: Letters to My Great-Granddaughter

2. Who are some of your favorite authors? Please list three.
None at this time

3. “Tell me what kind of reading experience you’re looking for”?* Comfort and learning; educational reading; biographies; sometimes, likes to read nonfiction

4. What are your favorite genres? Please highlight your top two answers.
List provided NA; enjoys biography, educational materials, and poetry

5. Are you willing to try a new genre? If so, please indicate genre below?
Chick lit once in while

* Question obtained from Ross and Chelton, Reader’s Advisory: Matching Mood and Material, 2001.

Suggestions

Autobiographical
1. A Hand to Guide Me
By Denzel Washington

2. The Pursuit of Happyness
By Chris Gardner

Literary/Historical Fiction
3. Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
By Mildred D. Taylor
Shw has enjoyed excerpts from the book.

Educational and autiobiographical
4. Letters to a Young Brother: MANifest Your Destiny
By Hill Harper

Women’s Lives, Chick Lit

5. The Yummy Mummy
By Polly Williams
NO

Life Stories

6. Tuesdays with Morrie: An Old Man, A Young Man, and Life's Greatest Lesson
By Mitch Albom
She had already read this book.

Reader #2 and Reader #4

Reader #2

1. What is the last book that you read? Sleeping With the Enemy

2. Who are some of your favorite authors? Please list three.
Zane, Francis Ray, Carl Weber

3. “Tell me what kind of reading experience you’re looking for”?*
Page turner with lots of action

4. What are your favorite genres? Please highlight your top two answers.
Chick Lit
Street Lit

5. Are you willing to try a new genre? If so, please indicate genre below? Women’s lives and relationships

6. Are there certain genres/types of books that you do not like to read? Please list below?
Thrillers and adventure

* Question obtained from Ross and Chelton, Reader’s Advisory: Matching Mood and Material, 2001.

Suggestions

1. Urban Fiction
Moth to a Flame
By Ashley Antoinette
YES

2. Page Turner
Resurrecting Midnight
By Eric Jerome Dickey
NO

3. - 4. Women’s Lives and Relationships
Some Things I Never Thought I Do
Baby Brother’s Blues
By Pearl Cleage
NO

5. Chick lit and Zane
Freak in the Sheets: Chick lit with a Twist
By Madamek
YES

6. Read alike author to Francis Ray
Harvest Moon
By Rochelle Ayers
YES

Reader #4
1. What is the last book that you read? Act like a Lady, Think Like a Man

2. Who are some of your favorite authors? Please list three. Mary B. Morrison, Cheryl Robinson, Katherine Langhorne, Chonda Cheeks, Denene Millner.

3. “Tell me what kind of reading experience you’re looking for”?* Good plots about girlfriends, romance, drama.

4. What are your favorite genres? Please highlight your top two answers.
Romance
Women’s Lives and Relationships

5. Are you willing to try a new genre? If so, please indicate genre below? Yes, mystery, fantasy

6. Are there certain genres/types of books that you do not like to read? Please list below? Horrors, suspense, thriller

* Question obtained from Ross and Chelton, Reader’s Advisory: Matching Mood and Material, 2001.

Suggestions

1. – 2. Favorite Author Titles Denene Millner
The Sistah’s Rules
In Love and War

3. Good plots about girlfriends, romance, drama
The Ex Chronicles
By Carol Taylor

4. Chick Lit
Divas
By Donna Hill

5. Women’s Lives and Relationships
What Looks Like Crazy on an Ordinary Day
By Pearl Cleage

6. Fantasy
Legend of Tarik
By Walter Dean Myers


Reader #4 Comment

"I would read all of them but the first one, the Sistah’s Rules.  I don't want to read anyone's advice on how to get or keep a man."

Reader #1

1. What is the last book that you read? Be Careful What you Pray For

2. Who are some of your favorite authors? Please list three. VC Andrews, Kiki Swinson and Zane

3. “Tell me what kind of reading experience you are looking for”?* I need to be able to gain more knowledge in regards to US history.

4. What are your favorite genres? Please highlight your top two answers.
Romance / Suspense / Women’s Lives and Relationships

5. Are you willing to try a new genre? If so, please indicate genre below? Yes, Historical Fiction

6. Are there certain genres/types of books that you do not like to read? Please list below? Horror

* Question obtained from Ross and Chelton, Reader’s Advisory: Matching Mood and Material, 2001.

Suggestions
Finding Forever
Keisha Ervin
Urban Fiction
YES


Midnight
Sister Souljah
Urban Fiction
NO

Night Song
Beverly Jenkins
Historical Fiction with Romance
YES


Diary of a Street Diva
Ashley JaQuavis
Urban Fiction
YES










I Wish I Had a Red Dress: A Novel
Pearl Cleage
Women’s Lives and Relationships

Shades of Jade: A Novel
Gloria Mallette
Suspense

Sweet Justice
Suspense
Shirley Harrison


Comments from reader....
"I haven't read any of these books...I guess
I'm holding back on reading Midnight based on feedback from others."

E-Reads: Electronic Reader's Advisory

My sisters and three friends became my lab participants. I e-mailed them a list of questions and the advising began.

Reader Profiles

All of the participants are females and mothers. Reader #5 is non-fiction reader. Reader's #1 -#4 read often. Reader #5 is in mommy mode and is currently able to read.

Questions and Answers

What is the last book that you read?

1. Be Careful What you Pray For
2. Sleeping with the Enemy
3. Blue Collar Blues by Rosalyn McMillian
4. Act like a Lady, Think Like a Man
5. Sidney Poitier Life Beyond Measure: Letters to My Great-Granddaughter

Who are some of your favorite authors? Please list three.

1. VC Andrews, Kiki Swinson and Zane

2. Zane, Frances Ray, Carl Weber

3. a. Jacqueline Thomas
b. Rosalyn McMillian
c. Benita Little
d. Bebe Moore-Campbell

4. Mary B. Morrison, Cheryl Robinson, Katherine Langhorne, Chonda Cheeks, Denene Millner

5. None at this time

“Tell me what kind of reading experience you’re looking for”?*

1. I need to be able to gain more knowledge in regards to US history.

2. “Exciting page turner with lots of action”

3. a. Love stories with comedy and happy ending
b. Self- help, devotional and inspirational

4. Good plots about girlfriends, romance, drama

5. Biography and educational

What are your favorite genres? Please highlight your top two answers.

Romance III
Gentle Reads (generally no sex or violence)
Chick Lit I
Adventure I
Street Lit I
Horror
Mystery Suspense II
Science Fiction
Thrillers
Historical Fiction
Fantasy
Women’s Lives and Relationships III
Young Adult Fiction (ex. Twilight)

Are you willing to try a new genre? If so, please indicate genre below?

1. Yes, Historical Fiction

2. Women’s Lives and Relationships

3. Yes, mystery and chick lit

4. Mystery, fantasy

5. Chick Lit, Street Lit

Are there certain genres/types of books that you do not like to read? Please list below?

1. Horror

2. Thrillers and Adventure

3. a. Horror, street lit

4. Horrors, suspense, thriller

* Question obtained from Ross and Chelton, Reader’s Advisory: Matching Mood and Material, 2001.

Their answers helped me to select book choices. I e-mailed the titles, images, synopsis, and in some cases reviews to the reader's.

I reviewed the following resources to create the list of suggestions:

aalbc The #1 Site for African American Literature
http://aalbc.com/
Amazon.com
Bella Online African American Lit Site
http://www.bellaonline.com/subjects/6222.asp
Goodreads.com (did not find anything)
Novelist
Readalike.org
Reader's Advisory Online

Reader's responded, by e-mail, if they would read the book, had read the book, or would not read the book. The responses for Reader #5 were obtained by phone. I recommended seven books to Reader 1. She indicated that she would read three of the books. Six books were selected for each remaining reader's. Reader #2 would read three books. Reader #3 would read all six selected books. Reader #4 would read five books. Reader #5 would read four books and had read one of the suggested books.

Lessons Learned

I will not have the luxury of hours to find a good read when working with library patrons so I must move quickly.

The person helping the patron may find great books as well.

Up at the College
By Michele Andrea Bowen
Hardcover: 304 pages
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing (April 1, 2009)
ISBN-10: 0446577758
Genre: Romance

I selected this book because I did not want to read a book labeled as a romance. I wanted a story filled with the longing and anticipation of love; where the people grew to love one another. In this regard, this book met my expectations.

It begins with the divorce of the heroine Yvonne Fountain Copeland who has put up with her husband’s awful taste in music and even more awful behavior. Darrell, the husband, cheats on Yvonne and then informs her, “I want you and the girls [his daughters] out of the house seven weeks from today” (5).

There are great descriptions and humorous sentences like the following from the Prologue that made continue reading.
After much contemplation, relentless journaling to soothe my endless vexation with you, tai chi, acupuncture and colon cleansing to rid myself of the impurities brought on by my anxiety over this situation, I have decided that I must find my way back to my original self through a wrenching detachment process some refer to as divorce.

Yes, I would be shocked and devastated if my husband expressed these thoughts but I think that at some point these same words would make me laugh intensely. (Note, I have never been married or experienced this kind of betrayal.)

So funny lines keep me in this book and the love story makes it more enjoyable. Of course Yvonne, “an authentic church girl,” is going to find a new mate. She finds him in the form of Coach Curtis Parker. They both work at Evangeline T. Marshall University in her hometown of Durham, North Carolina. There is the problem of Curtis having not yet devoted his life to Christian living but this obstacle can and will be removed. These two individuals became a couple after time and consideration. The couple falls in love while dealing with life; she is in need of a permanent position at the college and he has problems with the basketball team.

Up at the College has the characteristics listed by Saricks. There is an immediate emotional tone, you dislike her husband; the man is handsome and the female is “strong, bright, independent, and often beautiful” (Saricks, 204); I did not read this quickly but I could stop and start with ease; and the language is “instantly recognizable” once the couple is together. They are holding hands and Yvonne thinks “I can feel the touch of the palm of your hand in the center of my heart” (216).

Although, the book is too long and at times extremely predictable, I do enjoy her characters and discussion of the impact of gentrification on the African American community. Her characters and this theme appear in some of her other titles.

This is a good book for those who enjoy love stories; fiction that includes stories of faith and triumph; and real life situations.

Super Service

I originally sought help for a Historical Fiction book on Friday, February 5th. Arriving at the library right after opening allowed me to do work for another class and view the art featured in the annual Meet the Artist exhibit. I went up to the fiction section and asked the person at the desk for help with finding a book. She was the only person at the desk. Instead of beginning with a computer search, she selected a book from the ready reference shelf in back of the desk, Historical Fiction: A Guide to the Genre by Johnson (I did not write the first name but a web search indicates that the author is Sarah L. Johnson). I browsed the book while she did a computer search. She then went to a public computer station and showed me NoveList and remarked that I could access the resource from home. By this time, I had found a selection in the genre book, Until that Good Day. She in turn went and found the book on the shelf which was great, because the shelving at this particular library can be somewhat confusing.

I am not sure that she was a librarian ( I have seen and talked to her before and am pretty sure that she is a librarian) but she was extremely helpful. Although I did not read this book, I appreciated her willingness to help.

After scanning some of the secret shopper posts and the e-mail concerning the project, I decided to visit another library to see if I would have a different experience. I am happy to say that again, excellent service was rendered.

This time I arrived prior to opening (Friday, April 2nd) and had to wait for the gate to be lifted. I was not alone as there were several other anxious patrons. I returned some books and then went to the reference desk. I asked the person (again, not sure that the person was a librarian as she did not have a visible badge) at the desk for help in finding a Literary Fiction book. She asked about the content of this type of book. I described literary fiction as usually darker with a slower pace (Saricks, 127). She then asked about the characters. I explained that Toni Morrison writes in the literary style. At this point, she did a computer search. She asked if I liked James Baldwin or Their Eyes Were Watching God. She also asked if I was okay with a children’s book to which I responded that I preferred not to have a juvenile book. She further explained that the book was not a children’s book.

Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred Taylor was her suggestion. The lady assisting me seemed very enthused about this book and author commenting that the author had written excellent books. I was pleased with this selection as I have not read the book and plan on reading for this and another class. She went to retrieve the book from the shelf. I asked her how she found the book to match my inquiry. She responded that she had used Amazon.com and the section that suggests additional books and authors if you like such and such. In this case, she used Toni Morrison as I mentioned early in the Reader’s Advisory interview. She suggested that I use websites that have .lib or .org as they are more authoritative.

Finally, I asked about Elizabeth Berg. A classmate recently presented one of her books as a similar read and I am interested in reading her work. She was familiar with the Berg. She suggested that I use the computer catalog to search for Bergs work (I told her that I would just go to the fiction section and search) since all the books might have the same call number. This was not necessarily part of the secret shopper experience but I felt comfortable in asking and confident in her ability to assist.