Using Awards Lists as a RA Tool: National Book Awards Edition

This is part of my ongoing series on using Awards Lists as a RA tool. Click here for all posts in the series in reverse chronological order. Click here for the first post which outlines the details how to use awards lists as a RA tool.

The National Book Award finalists were announced yesterday. Please go here to see the list and to access all of the virtual events that will surround the announcement of the winners.

One of the things I really like about the announcement is that there is a paragraph after each category containing a very short blurb about each title. This is invaluable to you as you work with readers. When patrons come in wanting to know more about the books they heard about in the news, you can access a quick soundbite for them with one click [whether you have even heard of the book or not]. 

This is a great example of what I mean when I talk about how essential it is for all of us to use resources to help leisure readers. You do NOT get bonus points for not using a resource and just knowing about a book. In fact, as a library worker I say you should LOSE points for NOT using resources. Using resources is what we do as a profession; it is what we are known for-- being able to find the answers, not knowing them all in our  brains. You  should NOT be proud of yourself for not using resources; actually, you should be ashamed of yourself.  

You can also click here to see my post on how to use this list to help readers with more detail, from a few weeks ago when the long lists came out.