Friday Reads for Now and Later [includes a mini rant about needing more whole collection displays]

Today I have a couple links that will provide you some great reading suggestions and display ideas for right now and a list to help you prepare for some of the best books coming out soon.

It's a Friday reads book list bonanza.

First up is the most obvious list. As we approach the exact middle of the year, it is time to look back on what the best books of the year have been so far. Amazon has their list and it is broken down into a variety of categories. Not only is this a great list for you to check and make sure you have these titles, but it is a ready made display. The lists are inclusive and cover fiction, nonfiction, graphic novels, all age ranges, etc... You can have a wonderful "whole collection" display with little effort. Simply put all of these items which are spread out across your entire building into one display to remind patrons that there is something for everyone at the library.

I want to hammer this point home a bit more while I have your attention. There is no rule that says we can only display books in the sections where they appear. We need to find ways to subconsciously remind our patrons that there is more to the library than the section they are standing in. Making displays that hold titles from across the entire library is the easiest way to market the breadth of our holdings. No one will go to library jail if a kids book and a cookbook are on the same display. In fact, my experience shows me that it is quite the contrary. Patrons rejoice when they find titles for everyone in their family in one place. And they are more willing to visit more areas of the library when they are reminded of how much we really have on our shelves.

Okay, back to the lists I have promised. One of my favorite book email newsletters is from the Washington Post's Book Section. Today they had an interesting list of The Best Books to Read At Every Age from 1 to 100." Like any list with such grand ambition, it is not perfect; in fact, the authors of the piece note that. But, this list is a super fun display idea, conversation starter, and even emergency book recommendation engine.

Use the list to make a 100 book display and ask patrons to recommend books for their age. You could make a board with numbers 1 to 100 and ask patrons to fill in books under various ages. Again this display adheres to what I said above about whole library displays.

But I especially love the idea of using this list to suggest books to people in a hurry. Ask them their age and give them the suggestion for their age and the 3 books on either aide of that age [so that's a total of 7 suggestions with the click of a link].

There are many more ways you can use this list, including making a completely new one yourselves.

Finally, here is the promised list of books to come [with bonus lists of already published titles]. At ALA Annual, Booklist sponsored their annual Read N Rave. I have been a part of a few myself and can tell you that this is a fun and useful event. Click here to see the titles that are coming soon which this year's participants are most excited about. And then, don't forget to click here to see past year's lists [including recommendations from me]. Previous year's titles are available now. They are a great sure bet backlist resource. So put out the new list and start taking holds, but make a display of previous titles for "while they wait."

That should keep everyone busy over the weekend.

Speaking of the weekend, quick programming note, I will be blogging next week. With the holiday in the middle of the week and my vacation at the end of July, I am only taking the 4th off next week. So if you are around [which since you all work in public libraries and they are also open every day but the 4th too, I am guessing is many of you], I will be here too.