Resource Alert: 35 Books Librarians Have Recently Read via BuzzFeed

I wanted to share this list of titles library workers shared with BuzzFeed News. 
I love two things about this list:

1. It gathers recommendations from all over the country so the list is extremely broad. More broad than any other list I have ever seen. Seriously, I am not exaggerating. The breadth is refreshing. The titles are literally anything library workers were reading and enjoying when asked. This would make an amazing display or list to gather for your website. It would even be fun to build a Goodreads shelf for your patrons to browse this virtually. You should always aim for having the most inclusive and broad displays as possible, and this list does the work for you on that front. Also, the title, "35 Books Librarians Have Recently Read" will draw readers to it like flies. Patrons love to know what others are reading and enjoying, and the library workers' opinions they tend to trust most of all.
2. Reading this list is like being part of a national bookish conversation. With comments from library workers from all over the country on why they enjoyed the book, reading the full list feels like being in a room with 35 colleagues I wouldn't have the chance to chat with otherwise, although I did know one of them [Hi, Nanette!]. It was very nourishing to my soul to spend a few minutes reading the comments by the library workers. We are all so busy that we don't often take the time to book talk to each other. Well, this list does that.

Those are the two things I love about the list, but here is also a tip on how you can use this list at your library with your staff-- use it as a model to do with your staff. 

Send out an email to all staff-- every single person on the payroll [with permission from your supervisor first please] and ask them to share a book they have enjoyed recently. Just ask for the title and a sentence as to why they like it. Remind people you do not want the summary. If you do this, you get to experience Numbers 1 and 2 again, from a local perspective.

But don't just do it once. I would highly suggest doing this a few times a year. Ask staff what books they are enjoying in their free time regularly. Not only will it give you plenty of info to stock displays, post recs on line, etc..., it will also create more buy in for RA Service across the entire organization. The more staff who help suggest books to patrons, the more broad and inclusive our suggestions are.

Also, I have found that staff who don't work with the readers of what they like to read on their own time, find it very satisfying to get to suggest books to them indirectly. They have just never been asked. That's up to you. Ask staff to tell you what books they have recently enjoyed. You will be surprised by how many responses you get, and what those responses are.

So whether you look at the list to make a display, get your staff more involved in helping patrons, or simply to nourish your own soul, just read it.