New Episode of Shelf Care, Booklist's Podcast, Featuring Book Display Expert Lila Denning

The most recent episode of Shelf Care The Podcast hosted by my Booklist editor, Susan Maguire is now live. See the details below. 

But real quick, before I lose you to the episode (which is great) a quick reminder that Shelf Care is THE ONLY podcast out there with the mission of helping you, the library worker, serve your leisure readers.

I need you to sit with that for a moment. 

I know we all listen to many book podcasts, but no other podcast, besides Shelf Care from Booklist, is focused on you the library worker and all the ways we serve our readers-- of all ages. And it is from a trusted not for profit publication. 

Why are you not subscribed? Well, don't worry about excuses, just fix that by subscribing wherever you listen to your podcasts.

Also remember you can always click here to access the backlist of Shelf Care The Podcast. Every episode for free, with one click.

On this episode of Shelf Care: The Podcast, host Susan Maguire chats with librarian Lila Denning about the ins and outs of book displays; Audio Editor Heather Booth talks audiobooks to fall asleep to (really!); and Kelly Ferreira, Senior Editor, Books for Youth, shares a few books they’ve been reading and loving lately.

Chase’s Calendar of Events

“Unshelve with help from Booklist—Body Horror” blog post

RA for All: Horror

“Unshelving When Inclusive Displays Make People Uncomfortable” blog post

Bruja’s Nest, by Brenda LaTorre

The Mars Room, by Rachel Kushner

Passively Recommending Books (Lila’s blog)

The Count of Monte Cristo, by Alexandre Dumas

Game Changers, by Rachel Reid

Heated Rivalry, by Rachel Reid

Tough Guy, by Rachel Reid

The Legend of Korra: Turf Wars, by Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino, illustrated by Irene Koh and Killian Ng

The Legend of Korra: Ruins of the Empire, by Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino, illustrated by Michelle Wong and Killian Ng

Scream with Me: Confronting Social Injustice through Horror (webinar)

When Evil Lingers, by Melissa Blair

Off the Reservation, by Stephen Graham Jones

Yesteryear, by Caro Claire Burke, read by Rebecca Lowman

Click here to access any episode of Shelf Care The Podcast.

Unshelve Your Collection Using Celebrity Picks via Passively Recommending Books (Lila Denning)

Over on Lila Denning's blog she had a great post about Using Celebrity Picks to help you "unshelve" your Collection-- get the books out of the stacks and into the hands of readers.

I have the full text of the post below, but I want to add a few more tips to her great suggestions. First, this idea of using Celebrity Picks for displays online and in your buildings is great, but I want to challenge you to not make the display specific. Rather, I am encouraging you to find a space for an ongoing display in your buildings that is always for all Celebrity Picks, from as wide a range of celebrities as you can image, lumped all together.Think about it.

This is a display you can have up at all times and it is super easy to fill. And, the more inclusive you are of the "celebrity," the more inclusive your choices will be, the more readers who will be drawn to your display.

Now I know library workers and many of you are not happy with this. You think you HAVE to do smaller displays or online lists separated by celebrity who is recommending.

Well you are wrong.

And in fact, it is that kind of attitude which hurts all of us trying to be more inclusive and do less gate keeping. You want the books to be unshelved, to leave the library, to not linger on the shelf. ALL OF THEM. And if you don't want a book to be checked out, weed it. 

If you only do books mentioned by a specific celebrity on a display or list, you only appeal to their fans, but when that celebrity's books are mixed together with lots of others, when all you tell your patrons is that someone "celebrity" pick these books, you invite MORE people to check out the display. And I promise you, someone who came for that Taylor Swift book is going to leave with a book recommended by someone else without know it. 

You can also add a QR code to the in person display (or a link on your online displays and lists) that leads to the list of resources you used to build it the display. I suggest having that list in a Google Doc or similar, something where when you update it, the list updates. This way you have a long list of celebrity picks lists and resources always available to you (to add to the display) and for your patrons who want something specific or need even more choices. 

And level this all up by turning it into a "conversation starter to display" moment as well. Ask your patrons what celebrities they would like read recs from and/or what lists do they want to share. Help them help you to keep this display going. Click here for my conversation starter to display instructions.

This is one you might never need to take down if you do it correctly (aka my way).

Here's Lila's post to get you started.

Unshelve Your Collection - Using Celebrity Picks

One constant is that readers enjoy celebrity reading picks. We can see this every time someone like Taylor Swift is seen with a book under her arm. I have had great success with celebrity reading focused book displays. Bill Gates and President Obama are two people who come out with annual lists. When Gates recommended a book on the history of shipping containers I put it on a displays and it was checked out the first day.

You can find lists by searching for [celebrity name] reading list , favorite books, or reading recommendations. For a different take on this idea, you can create a display inspired by a particular album, artist, movie, or song. Use the title "Reading with [celebrity name] and put up those books along with titles you have that feature that actor, musician, or author. 

Billy Porter Shares His 6 Favorite Reads — Including This Viral Self-Help Book (People)

Radical Reads: Celebrity Book Recommendations

Celeb Book Recs (Instagram)

celebrities with great reading lists? (Reddit)

20 Great Celebrity Book Recommendations (Book Riot)

Amazon Book Review - Celebrity Picks

Listopia > books taylor swift has mentioned (Goodreads)

What books do we know Taylor has read and liked? (Reddit)

Bad Bunny Reading List (from a library)

 Listopia > Beyoncé Cowboy Carter Reading List (Goodreads)

Pedro Pascal's Favorite Books Just Proves This Man Has Impeccable Taste (Esquire)

12 Celebrity Book Recommendations (from a library)

Celebrities Who Read Diversely and The Books They Recommend

The Shameless Book Club: Jacob Elordi 

Pop Star Picks: Books, TV & Films Recommended By Taylor Swift, Harry Styles, Zendaya & More

Book Recommendations from Celebrities (Instagram)

Click here for more from Lila Denning's Blog, Passively Recommending Books. 

Inclusion as the Norm: The Power of Diverse Book Displays via Lila Denning in RUSQ

Today I am sharing a post from Lila Denning's blog, Passively Recommending Books. Her article in RUSQ, a journal of Reference and User Experience is now live.

In her article, Denning talks frankly about why making all of your book displays as inclusive as possible is  not just about doing the right thing, it is literally your job to showcase as much of the collection as possible. She explains it in language that makes sense from every angle. You can argue this from an antiracist standpoint and an economic standpoint (getting the most checkouts of the most books which you have used taxpayer money on). And more.

And for those who are still making excuses that they cannot do this, a reminder,  Denning works in Florida and has put everything she talks about into action. So, if she can do it, what's your excuse.

(I have answers to that question but they are not kind to those of you who aren't doing this work yet, so I will leave them off this post.)

Click on this link or read below to access her blog post with access to the article. This is the argument you need to make your displays as inclusive as possible every single time (not just during heritage months).

RUSQ: A Journal of Reference and User Experience - Inclusion as the Norm: The Power of Diverse Book Displays

I was fortunate to have an article published in RUSQ. The Reference and User Services Association of ALA relaunched its journal in 2024. It's purpose is "... to disseminate information of interest to reference librarians, information specialists, and other professionals involved in user-oriented library services." In Vol 61, No 2 (2026) Winter Issue you can find my article "Inclusion as the Norm: The Power of Diverse Book Displays."

A pdf of the article is available online. 

I will quote from one paragraph here: 

" It centers a white, straight, Christian perspective as what is in “normal” books while making diverse books more of a niche interest, to be read by members of those communities and on special months. These books are not interesting or valuable because their authors and characters are diverse.  They need to be added to the displays, lists, and suggestions that are made to readers interested in a particular genre or topic. Moving who is centered in the culture of reading that is created in a library, allowing those who are marginalized to take center stage, even if a sign does not declare their identity, is actively promoting a culture of anti-racism. This active promotion does not require signage identifying the author’s characteristics to be actively anti-racist. These books are books that should be treated as titles to be potentially enjoyed by any reader. Deliberately developing a regular practice of adding diverse titles to all displays and lists both increase staff knowledge of those titles, creating more opportunities for them to be included in staff recommendations."

You can click here to head over to Denning's blog on your own or click on this link to access her article directly. 

Circulating Ideas Podcast: Passive Readers’ Advisory, with Lila Denning

I am on an airplane this morning en route to my book event event in MA, but I wanted to alert you all the Steve Thomas' excellent podcast Circulating Ideas, specifically his most recent episode. Click here or see below. 

306: Passive Readers’ Advisory, with Lila Denning

Steve chats with collection development librarian Lila Denning about passive readers’ advisory, practical tips for creating effective book displays, making displayed accessible and inclusive, partnering with local businesses to promote library services and collections, and how the horror genre helps readers understand different perspectives and emotions.

Read the transcript!

Lila Denning is a librarian in Florida specializing in Passive Readers’ Advisory for patrons of all ages. She is the Acquisitions Coordinator for the St Petersburg Library System and has worked in circulation, collection development, reference, and youth services. She serves the volunteer coordinator for the Horror Writers Association. You can find her  on BlueSky @Vantine.bsky.social. On her blog, bookdisplays.blogspot.com, she talks about ideas for book displays and other forms of Passive Readers Advisory and how to best use it to serve your patrons.

SHOW NOTES:

Passively Recommending Books

While this episode gives you an introduction to Lila's work and provides the link to her blog, I want to direct you specifically to this post where Lila introduces who she is and how she can help you and your staff. 

I will end with Lila's own words from here:

Let Me Help You Unshelve Your Collection This Year!

A short introduction to me and what I try to do here. I have worked for my library system for 18 years as of this year. My time here has taken me from a branch library to reference to circulation and then to acquisitions. I updated our website, was an administrator for our ILS, and created and ran reports. As far as programming is concerned, I have created and ran programs for infants through older people. 

Basically, except for administration, I have done it in a public library. 

Before libraries, I earned a masters degree in religious studies with a focus on Holocaust studies and antisemitism. For a time, I was a manager at Barnes and Noble, ran a comic book store, and worked for a brokerage firm. 

I serve as Volunteer Coordinator for the Horror Writers Association and review (primarily) horror for both Booklist and Library Journal. I love promoting the books I love on my social media accounts. Spending energy putting a light on what you love is a better use of time than dragging books that didn't work for you online. I also add photos of displays I love to help give you ideas!

Now, I work to help library workers learn how to use passive readers advisory to market their collections more effectively. A well designed book display can help shine a spotlight on those titles that haven't received love from your patrons recently. Focusing on the books rather than decorations or elaborate signage, borrowing book store techniques can help your patrons find their next great read. This will likely be a book that they hadn't had on their mind when they entered your building. 

I have presented for a variety of state and national organizations including webinars for PCI. These topics include:

*Book Display Basics for Every Library Worker

*Book Displays That Do More - Interactive Book Displays with Passive Programming 

*Engaging Patrons With Better Book Displays

*Inclusive Readers Advisory for Any Library Worker

*An Introduction to Passive Readers Advisory

*Love Is In the Air : Marketing Your Romance Collection Using Passive Readers Advisor

*Marketing Your Collection, Services, and Programs with Better Book Displays

*Not Just In October: Marketing Your Horror and Dark Literature Collection with Passive Readers Advisory

* Using Book Displays and More to Market Your Winter Holiday Collection 

If you are interested in having me teach your staff my techniques for using passive readers advisory, please reach out to me - Lila.Denning (at) gmail (dot) com. 

Unshelve the Titles That Have Become Lost in the Stacks via Lila Denning's Blog

I am on deadline for my Library Journal October column today. I will easily get it done, but I need every brain cell, so today I am calling in backup...kind of. Lila Denning's Passively Recommending Books blog is a great resource for no nonsense display information.

In a post from a few weeks ago, she alludes to an exchange that happened during the ALA Annual panel we were on for Booklist. There was a person in the audience who took offense to my saying that authors like Stephen King, Nora Roberts, and James Patterson should NOT ever be pulled out for display because they don't need the help to circulate. Instead, our focus should always be on the books people would not find without our help. You can read a much longer post on this by me here.

While Lila was one of the panelists who answered her in person, she also wrote this post after we returned. While it does not refer to the person directly, it does expound upon the points we were all trying to make in that ALA presentation.

Take it away Lila. And while you are reading her post, click through to see how else her blog-- Passively Recommending Books-- can help you help your patrons better. 

Unshelve the Titles That Have Become Lost in the Stacks

by Lila Denning 

 When librarians involved in readers advisory trainings advise library workers to avoid putting bestsellers on a display, there is often a lot of pushback. No one is suggesting that you not buy the most popular authors or those breakout hit titles. What is being suggested is since book displays are a form of marketing for your collection, it makes no sense to waste that space and effort on the titles with long wait lists and a solid fan base. If you have a long list for Rebecca Yarros, you don't need to promote her books. (Other than using them as a source for "read this while you wait for ..." displays.)

Remember that what needs attention at one library will be different at another. There can be genres, authors, and titles that fly off the shelf at one library but languish at another. I can't tell you which titles need attention at your library but whomever runs reports for you can do that. Because it is your collection and your library, you will need to adapt whatever collection marketing ideas to your library. 

Rather than worry about creating something super creative with a snappy sign, start with some reports that list titles which haven't circulated in awhile. Look at what new releases haven't found their reader yet. Make a sign that says NEW! or FICTION! or CHECK US OUT! and put up your display. What gets books checked out is the face out and the creation of a smaller collection on the display.l Someone on staff may find a book they love on that display and can hand sell it to a patron who needs a great read. By investing some attention in in those titles, you will have given them another chance before they are deselected. 

I also suggest that libraries invest in easels for their shelves. At the end of your shelves, put one title on an easel. Titles faced out like that will get attention and will likely find their reader. It's a low effort way to promote your collection that everyone in your library can fill them in when they pass an empty easel. It's not a huge investment but will have a great payoff as far as getting titles in the hands of reader

Click through to read more on Passively Recommending Books. 

Steal This Idea: NPR Book of the Day Podcast As an Easy and Timely Book Display Prompt via Passively Recommending Books

Today to round out the week I am posting a great idea from my colleague Lila Denning (with her permission), from over on her blog-- Passively Recommending Books.

This is an evergreen idea that you can use for a display that is swapped out every day  or weekly by showcasing the previous weeks titles. But the best part is, it will be timely AND you are using resources to give you your display ideas and content. 

Side note-- to be announced soon, but Denning will be appearing on a panel with me and Robin Bradford and others at ALA Annual. It is sponsored by Booklist and moderated by Susan Maguire. Once it is officially added to the schedule, I will post the details on the blog.

In the meantime, see below for more details and ideas from Denning on this specific topic.

Unshelving Your Collection Idea- NPR Book of the Day

One quick and easy way to get some readers advisory information about recently published books is to listen to NPR's podcast Book of the Day. From their website: 

In need of a good read? Or just want to keep up with the books everyone's talking about? NPR's Book of the Day gives you today's very best writing in a snackable, skimmable, pocket-sized podcast. Whether you're looking to engage with the big questions of our times – or temporarily escape from them – we've got an author who will speak to you, all genres, mood and writing styles included. Catch today's great books in 15 minutes or less.

 While this is certainly something that library staff should be encouraged to listen to when not at a public service desk, it's also an opportunity for a quick and easy book display that will be small enough that it can be fit in almost anywhere in a library. 

If you don't own that book, you can skip a day. Remember to check your eBook and eAudiobook collections as well. A book display in your library can also reference those collections to remind patrons that you are a source of digital materials as well. It's also a great readers advisory post for social media. 

Here is an example of a sign that could be posted on a public service desk: 

'Adventures in the Louvre' will teach you how to fall in love with the famous museum

Scan this code to check out this book from our eBook collection!

April 15, 2025

From NPR.org: 

Elaine Sciolino has one mantra: "Never go to the Louvre on an empty stomach or with a full bladder." The former Paris bureau chief of The New York Times has written a guide filled with her best advice for enjoying the world's most-visited museum. Her new book, Adventures in the Louvre, is part journalism, part memoir and part art history. In today's episode, Sciolino speaks with NPR's Mary Louise Kelly about the contested origins of the museum's name, the staff's love-hate relationship with the Mona Lisa, and why some Louvre visitors might feel underwhelmed.

To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookoftheday

Support our local NPR station! [Name of station] [website]

W. W. Norton & Company

Be certain to credit NPR and the publishers when you use their text and images. I would reference your local NPR station in case patrons want to listen as well as NPR.org

Unshelve Your Collection in 2025: A Guest Post by Lila Denning

One of my regular guest posters is Lila Denning, an expert presenter on library book displays. In early January she proclaimed 2025 the year we "unshelve our collections" on her Passively Recommending Books Blog.

From that post:

While we all re-evaluate what will be different in 2025, I want to encourage you to unshelve your collection more this year. I've chosen that well-used library phrase to describe taking books out of the stacks and moving them around your building to show off what treasures are in your stacks. 

You can keep reading that post here.

While Denning plans to post on this topic all year (you can pull up all if her "unshelve" posts here), after I read it, I asked her to expand upon this introduction for my readers. The simplicity of the idea and the fun word play makes this an easy to promote strategy.

And so, here is Unshelve Your Collections by Lila Denning.

Shelves and shelves of book spines can create a great picture but it's not always the best way for a patron who is browsing your stacks to find their next great read. That's why this year I am encouraging everyone to unshelve their collections. All this means to find as many ways as possible to get your collection away from being lost in your stacks and out where it can be discovered by someone. 

There are simple ways to accomplish this. The easiest is to purchase some easels and put one book face out on every shelf. You will be amazed at what will be checked out simply because you put it face out on a shelf. This also is easy for any library worker to help keep filled; all that has to be done is pick a book from that shelf and place it on an empty easel. There is a sort of serendipity to this as everyone in your building will likely pick a different book so what’s faced out will constantly change. 

Book displays are another way to unshelve your collection by curating a small collection of materials on a theme and grouping them together. I cover basics and try to provide ideas on my blog and in my presentations for library workers. The magic behind book displays is that when the covers are faced out, they will always catch someone’s eye. Mix up fiction and non-fiction. Move materials to a part of your building that is far from where the rest of the collection is located. Add audiovisual materials to a display with books. Keep the signage and decorations simple. The focus should be on the covers.

Your eBooks and eAudiobooks are a treasure that not everyone in your community knows about. You can unshelve them by setting up a book display with covers from the titles included in your digital collection. Add QR codes to the website and information about how to sign up for the service. You can mix the face outs on your shelves by adding signage on some shelves with suggestions for titles in your eBook collection. 

Whatever social media accounts your library uses can also help you unshelve your collection. One idea I have suggested is a “Five for Friday” series. Just pick five titles on a theme and take a picture. You can put them on a cart, table, or have a staff member hold them. A schedule can be set up and anyone who works in your library can have a chance to pick a theme and their five items. Add a short paragraph explaining the titles and provide information about how to put them on request. If staff are comfortable, you can have a short video where the staff member explains their choices. 

If a topic pops up in the news, use that as a reason to add a post with some titles that might be of interest to someone who wants more information. Find a theme similar to what you would use for a book display and create a grouping of covers for your social media. If someone has the interest and skills, you can create clever graphic or just use a series of book cover images. 

Don’t limit your unshelving efforts to your building. Partner with local businesses and get small posters and fliers out into your community that include titles and covers from your collection. You can use local celebrations and events for inspiration. Create bookmarks with covers that can be given away. Make some themed posters and book marks with coffee related titles for a cafe or pizza related titles for a pizza shop. There are pet speciality stores that are popping up. There are many pet related titles in our collections. Remind the people in your community who don’t regularly come into your building how amazing your library is. 

These are but a few examples of unshelving your collections to get you started thinking about the concept. For the rest of 2025 I am going to try to discuss many ways of unshelving your collection that can be used by libraries regardless of size or budget. Reach out to me if you have ideas that your library has used to show off the titles in your collection. I would love to share them! Let’s use this year to help readers discover what treasures are waiting for them on our shelves. 

Click here to join Lila in her "Unshelve Your Collections" year of posts. Let her help you get your ideas to get started and then reach out to her (as she mentions above) if you have idea that worked for you so she can share them with others. 

August Book Display Ideas via Passively Recommending Books with Lila Denning

Lila Denning runs the Blog Passively Recommending Books where she helps you with book display ideas. You can click here for the other times I have sent you to learn from her.

Her ideas are meant to kick start your own creativity with what you display. What I also love about her display ideas is that they are about the books you put out, how you curate better and NOT about the decorations or ephemera. Like me she thinks there should be none. The books are what matter and if you can get them out more quickly, you will have the energy to do more displays, which means more books will go out.

Every month, just a bit before a new month, she has a post on ideas for the next month. Here on my blog, I have been trying to start a new month by reminding you of her ideas. Last month I had this post with her July ideas.

Today is August 1, so here are Denning's ideas to help you plan some fun displays.

But her blog is more than once a month. One of my favorite reoccurring posts she does is Book Display Inspiration Using One Book. Here is a recent one for Kristin Hannah's The Women. This is a great example using popular books to promote all of the other great books that you have on the shelf waiting for them to enjoy, if only they knew they were there.

Side note about Denning, she has been ramping up her formal training for library workers on how to create better book displays and has been replacing Robin Bradford (by Robin's choice and with her recommendation) on some Collection Development webinars as Denning works in collections for a FL library. Look for her offerings through PCI, ALA, and more.

As a result of those programs, Lila has gathered a list of questions and concerns people have about upping their display game and she is planning a series of posts to answer those "how to" questions. I will cross post here in the coming weeks.

But do check out her blog regularly. I have added it to my "Sites Worth Checking Out" list on the side bar.

Resource Alert: Passive RA from Lila Denning

Passive Readers Advisory is the fancy way of saying everything we do to suggest books to readers that isn't us directly handing them a book. In other words, all of our merchandising, displays, and lists.

My colleague Lila Denning not only has an entire blog entitled, "Passively Recommending Books" but she has also begun to offer presentations on how to be better at it. 

I wanted to highlight her site as an excellent resource for book display ideas but also let you know about her recent and upcoming presentations in case you want to sign up. The next 2 are with PCI webinars which I know has a wide reach.

That specific post is here.

Recently, she has been compiling lists of where to go to find ideas for Book Displays from the most general to genre specific. There is a lot of great content here. 

Get familiar with her site, try to catch one of her presentations, and.....here is a teaser, we are going to be planning a presentation for the 2025 conference cycle. More soon.

For now, get working on your Passive RA skills with this free resource. 

And if you are at PLA, find me and you will probably find Lila. We can all chat about your service to readers be it active, passive, or, my favorite, interactive. 

Resource Alert: Where to Find Book Display Ideas by Lila Denning

Happy Friday. Earlier this month my colleague Lila Denning, had a great post on her blog which is all about Book Displays entitled, "Where to Get Ideas for Your Displays!"

In general, her site is an excellent resource for all of your Passive RA needs, but this post in particular answers a question I ge often. Thanks to Lila for allowing me to report it here for all of you. 

Check it out here or below. And, bookmark this site to use when you are looking for book display inspiration. 

Where to Get Ideas for Your Displays!

Many library workers are doing multiple jobs or working short staffed. The idea of creating different book displays every month can seem daunting. Never fear! You can borrow ideas from all of those marketing emails that publishers and vendors send you daily. Use the subject line and go from there. Don't feel as if you are obligated to include every book that was in the original list. The purpose of your book displays is to market your existing collection, not to exactly copy someone else's list.

I pulled some ideas from today's marketing emails and have suggested some titles and resources to get you started. What do they mean? What should you put on them? Whatever you have in your collection that will work. The idea is to market your collection and get books faced out where your patrons can see them. 

Wedding Themed Mysteries and Thrillers

Grief is a Complicated Journey 

The Music of the Night  - Phantom of the Opera inspired romance novels

Prioritize Your Mental Health - Mental Health Awareness Month

Historical Fiction Set in the 1960's 

Staff Picks: 10 Books We Unexpectedly Binge-Read

Summer Reading Camp

In addition to these, publishers were also encouraging titles to be nominated for both the Indie Next and Library Reads monthly lists. Either of these lists, the first curated by indie bookseller and the second by library workers, can be easily used as a book display. Use this month's list, last month's, the Library Reads Hall of Fame... 

Go out there and mine those marketing emails for ideas!