ARRT Takes Over the Blog: What is ARRT?

Those who are regular readers of RA for All know that I am a member of the Steering Committee for a group called The Adult Reading Roundtable. And although I have talked about ARRT many times before, I am sure some of you don't know who we are or what we do.

Well, I thought I could combine a short summer blogging break for me with a chance for you to see what ARRT does. So for the next 7 days of blogging, ARRT will be taking over RA for All.

To kick it all off, here is our current chairperson, Stacey Peterson with an introduction to ARRT and what we do.

********************************************************
If you love reading, then you’re going to love the Adult Reading Round Table. Since it sprang into existence in 1984, ARRT has been dedicated to developing readers’ advisory skills and promoting reading for pleasure through public libraries in the Chicago metropolitan area.

And when we say “reading for pleasure,” we’re serious. Our members are some of the most devoted readers of every genre, topic, and format imaginable. (Admit it: you, too, read the cereal box. You’ll fit right in.)

While the Adult Reading Round Table is based in the Chicago area, its reach extends far beyond… Our membership ranks include people from Massachusetts to Alaska. And the 4^th edition of the ARRT Popular Fiction List, which we published last fall, is now available nationwide on NoveList as a training resource.

 

 ARRT membership costs only $10 and serves as your ticket to continuing education opportunities, such as a Genre Study (currently Graphic Novels) and Quarterly Book Discussions. Members also receive the ARRT e-newsletter and annual bibliography.

The Adult Reading Round Table offers three programs each year, which range from nuts-and-bolts readers’ advisory skill-building programs to author presentations. This year’s roster includes a genre boot camp (which took place in May), a program about Whole Collection Readers’ Advisory (on August 22), and an Unconference (on October 29).

If you live in the Chicago area, please consider joining the Adult Reading Round Table.

And if you live outside the Chicago area, please consider joining the Adult Reading Round Table. You can still reap many of the benefits.

Wherever you are in the universe, we invite you to Like the Adult Reading Round Table on Facebook. There you’ll find rampant reading goodness: book lists, pop culture bookish stuff, what authors are reading, book trivia, reading suggestions, and literary humor. And, of course, we’ll keep you updated about upcoming ARRT events.

Amidst all the hype about eBooks, we know the real story is still the stories. The Adult Reading Round Table can help you connect readers with stories they’ll love. Seriously, does it get any better than that?

__________________________________________________

Stacey Peterson is the Adult Services Manager at the Batavia Public Library  and the current chairperson of the Adult Reading Round Table. She’s nuts about narrative nonfiction, especially books riddled with tragic events. Her monthly book reviews appear on the Batavia Public Library’s Good Reads blog.

Recently, in a move that shocked all who knew her when she was a gym class flunk-out, she placed 5^th in the women’s division (and lucky 13^th overall) at the ALA 5K.