LJ Series "Redefining RA": The RA Tool Kit

Do you know what would be great for responsive readers’ advisory (RA) service? A Super Suit designed by Edna of The Incredibles. Instead of bulletproof fabric and elastic fibers, however, this suit would have special RA attachments such as instant and advanced access to the big books and lovely sleepers of each season as well as live feeds from the best book blogs and discussion lists. It would come with a LibraryThing-like interface that connects all the titles together and feeds them into our heads via a shiny Wonder Woman–esque golden headband.

Just think of the possibilities. Never again would we miss out on a book, disregard a read-alike, or fail to know what was talked about on Oprah. We would be constantly up-to-date, on top of it all, able to answer the toughest RA question with the greatest of ease. Alas, Edna is a fictional being, unlikely to create Super Suits for us. Luckily, however, the resources detailed here are already in our “closet.”

These tools and resources, employed effectively, can keep us engaged in the book buzz and fulfill four fundamental objectives of proactive RA service: knowing what is big (and when is it coming); finding great reads, listens, and views we shouldn’t miss; making connections between new and extant titles; and identifying what patrons see and predicting what they might request. With these strategies, we can make wider-ranging and more creative suggestions, build better displays, expand title possibilities for booklists, and inspire book discussion choices.

No one likes being two steps behind, and the fastest way to fall off the pace is by not keeping up with major titles and hot authors. Fortunately, there are numerous resources, both prepublication and postpublication, that can help.

It’s best when RA librarians know what is coming out months ahead of time—in order to think about read-alikes and read-arounds, consider possible display ideas, and be ready when patrons start to ask for a particular title. Pay special attention to the prepub coverage in library review journals as well as their special book announcement issues. LJ, Publishers Weekly (PW), and Kirkus also each devote some coverage to BEA (BookExpo America; May 30–June 1, 2008, in Los Angeles), publishing’s huge trade show, where the big books of the fall are featured. It is a fast way to get an overview of the season.

For ongoing updates of both pre- and postpublication titles, find a site that tracks big releases fairly frequently. Two to consider are PW’s on-sale calendar and the Coming Soon section of BarnesandNoble.com. Each provides information far enough in advance that it can really help you stay on top of the popular authors. Presented in weekly (Coming Soon) and monthly (PW) formats, these tools will ensure that you are never surprised by the next Dean Koontz or David Sedaris title.

Less-familiar titles, first authors, and books that didn’t win the PR lottery are harder to find, but it is essential to keep an eye out for them. We create depth in the materials we can discuss with readers when we go beyond the narrow expanse of the best sellers lists and the few monthly media darlings.

A first place to check is BookSense Picks. BookSense is the collective wisdom of a large group of independent bookstore owners who still hand-sell titles and conduct a version of RA with their customers. Each month, members highlight titles of note. Sometimes, these are books you will have already heard about in your big book scan, but often they are first novels, quirky surprises, or small gems getting little play elsewhere.

Look at reviews in newspapers, magazines, and on web sites as well. While Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and local chain bookstores focus on big publications with big payoffs, many review media still highlight a wider range of wonderful reading.

In the library literature, look for starred reviews of works by little-known authors, focuses on first novels (including LJ’s spring and fall First Novelists feature, published in print and online in the March 15 and October 1 issues, respectively), and roundups of core collections that feature titles you may have missed. To track starred reviews in library lit, as well as keep up with other book-related information, make a habit of scanning Overbooked.org, a mega–book web site designed by Ann Theis, the collection development administrator for Chesterfield County Public Library, VA. Her Star Review List compiles starred reviews and arranges them by genre, subject, and publication month. By looking it over, you can easily see if you missed any book that has gotten raves—regardless of the size of its print run.

There are other resources to help make the chaotic world of title information easier to manage. Tracking RA blogs, book awards, and the library marketplace all can help you stay ahead of the big and small news you need.

One of the best RA blogs is Libraries Unlimited’s Reader’s Advisor Online, by Cindy Orr. Fiction selector for Cuyahoga County Public Library, Parma, OH, Orr studies hundreds of resources for her Monday morning RA Run Down, a quick one-stop shop for RA-related news and information. Many library publications, libraries, and librarians have interesting blogs that model how librarians create buzz of their own (through postings, author visits, book group picks, and staff suggestions) and provide a heads-up of titles or stories you may have missed. (See The RA Media Guide, for some great examples.)

Awards are another way book buzz is created. Pay attention to both the major ones—such as the National Book Award, Booker Prize, RITA®, and Edgar—and to the library awards. The Alex Awards, Notable Book List, and Reading List (created in 2007 to recognize adult genre fiction) are critical because their selection criteria supports RA appeal concepts—making any book the respective committee selects one to be aware of, read, and suggested.

The library marketing departments of publishing houses are another great resource for RA librarians. While they are in the business of creating buzz to sell their own products, the tools they create offer advisors a fantastic support system. Catalogs, early news of mega-releases, book club support, and insider dope are just some of the things you can find on their web sites or through their newsletters. Talk with them at library conferences. They really do want to hear from you. Ask what they are reading, what they think is going to be huge, and what small gem you should seek out. They can help you navigate the mammoth publishing world.

Not going to conferences? Early Word is a newly launched web site and blog that connects librarians to the library marketplace, tracks what libraries might be missing, and provides access to a range of collection development and RA support tools. Produced by a real publishing insider, Nora Rawlinson—a librarian and former editor-in-chief of PW and editor of LJ—it is a fabulous way to make sure you are not bypassing anything exceptional—be it a sleeper or a smash hit.

Early Word has tapped into something collection development librarians have known for years: RA is as much a service of collection development as of adult services.

If your RA department is not part of your library’s collection development department, then start working more closely with collection development staff. Not only do collection development librarians often know about books long before they get reviewed or profiled by a media outlet, they have access to resources to track blockbuster titles. Ask your collection development librarians to show you copies of Baker & Taylor’s (B&T) Booking Ahead andIngram’s Advance (both highlight major books with huge print runs one to two months out). Also, ask to see Ingram’s I-Page list of Hits and Greatest Hits that shows the titles in highest demand by bookstores and libraries.

In exchange, while you work with patrons, keep mental notes on things the collection development department needs to know, such as books patrons want but can never find on the shelf, breaks in series, notices of titles asked for but not yet in the collection or on order, and popular areas of the collection that look dated or thin.

Of course, nothing brings a book to a patron’s attention faster than a spot on Oprah, the Today Show, or National Public Radio. Librarians don’t usually work hours that make catching these shows easy, and none of us can keep up with every media outlet. B&T’s weekly Fast Facts is an excellent way to keep on top of this data. It features an advance warning of media appearances for the upcoming weeks (sometimes as far as a month ahead).

But there’s also other popular print media. To keep up we need to participate regularly in an environmental scan. Read magazines such as Entertainment Weekly, People, Time, Newsweek, Essence, and O. These will help key you into the hottest buzz on books, movies, and music so that you can prepare for the demand. Also, follow the New York Times Book Review, your local paper’s book section, and any other local news products that report on books, movies, and music. Monitor best sellers lists, including Amazon.com’s Top 100, the Essence Monthly List, USA Today’s Weekly List, and LJ’s Best Sellers (based on books most borrowed in U.S. libraries).

To prepare for local demand, take field trips to area bookstores. Get on their mailing lists and observe their programming and author visits. What are they promoting, offering as staff selections, and displaying?

To go deeper into a genre or a particular writer, pay attention to fan blog sites, electronic discussion lists, and niche magazines. These will clue you into what readers of a particular genre or style enjoy, care about, and think about.

Have as wide a lens as possible on what your patrons are reading and noticing so you are ready to talk with them about their interests. Never forget that your readers are consumers of buzz. It will drive their curiosity, so you need to tap into the same stream that they do.

To be effective, tracking buzz must be strategic and focused. Spend a couple of weeks looking at the sites listed in the Media Guide and pick five or six that best suit your needs. Save the rest for occasional visits, or divide them among the staff with a promise to share highlights. If you rotate the sites periodically, everyone will become familiar with the range of resources available.

Once you start tracking, take notes. Just looking may help you remember important titles, or something that is getting a lot of play, but it will not help you make connections among new titles or with older ones in your collection. Make lists based on popular subjects, broad appeal factors, and genres. Track items in whatever way works for you, but try to get in the habit of writing things down.

The strategic use of buzz takes time and mental energy. By deliberately focusing your searching and professional reading, you can give direction to your efforts and make that time and energy pay off with improved RA knowledge. You can immediately start using the information you gather to make connections within your collection. Buzz has a great backward reach. Tracking it and learning about current books in advance enables us to match new titles with existing works. For example, Fans of Eat, Pray, Love can be directed toward Robert Hellenga’s 1995 publication The Sixteen Pleasures, while adult fans of Stephenie Meyer might enjoy Wilderness by Dennis Danvers, which was reprinted in 2000. The backlist may fuel our collections and suggestions, but it gets its energy from the buzz around current releases.

Getting into the buzz-tracking habit will increase your pool of suggestions and help you make better connections across the entire collection. It will inspire ideas for displays, booklists, reading guides, and discussion groups and add titles to your sure-bet lists and core reading selections. Knowing what is coming out in advance gains you time to think of read-alikes and read-arounds, and it gives you a sense of trends in publishing long before your patrons notice them. Most of all, staying on top of the buzz gives you confidence and that sense of ease and balance that makes you better with patrons. You may never get that Super Suit, but by keeping up with big books and charming sleepers, you can increase the odds that your patrons secretly think you wear one.