Season Reads

Posted on by litwithalibrarian

Have you ever picked up a book and thought “This is a good read for (insert season)” and then waited until that season to read it? I have quite a few times. Why is that? Shouldn’t readers be able to enjoy books at any time of the year?

Well, in theory, yes. But some books give off vibes that are better enjoyed in certain seasons. For example, the term “beach read.” Most people wouldn’t pick out murder mysteries to take with them on their beach trip. No, most people would take a light-hearted read with a happy ending because that is the feeling that summer gives people.

So, what about fall/winter reads? Do people tend to lean more towards cold, mysterious novels or do they want to cozy up with a romantic getaway story? Well, I think it depends on the person.

I asked a couple of fellow librarians what they prefer to read around this time of year and my favorite response was:

“Anything that looks like a cozy read. You can really tell by looking at the cover what kind of vibe you are going to get from a book.”

My friend who said this tends to read mysteries year around, but she admitted to reading the more romantic mysteries around this time of year. Is that the vibe readers get from cold weather- romance? Or do we just want to feel warm and fuzzy like our jackets on the inside? I mean, if we’re going to be cold our hearts might as well be warm.

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*Image credit: https://foodtank.com/news/2017/01/food-tank-2017-winter-book-list/

Personally, I tend to lean towards more dramatic storylines when the weather gets colder. Whether that drama comes from trauma or relationships, I like it all.

Another thing that I tend to do around Christmas time is re-read some of my favorite books. I’ve already started re-reading my favorite series, Vampire Academy, and I love it as much as the first time I read it. Reading something familiar that I love makes me happy and I will read every single line as if it is my first time reading it.

If you are looking for a new book to cozy up to this winter, here is a really great list categorized by genre. I’ve already picked a few off of it, myself.

Until next time- Go find a winter read!

-Lit Librarian

Chatting with a Fellow Librarian

Posted on by litwithalibrarian

*Featured image credit: https://www.lifehack.org/articles/communication/10-reasons-people-read-lot-likely-successful.html

Today has been a rather slow day at work, so I asked one of my librarian friends to sit down and have a chat with me about programs and what books she is loving right now. I thought it would be cool to bring another librarian’s perspective to my blog. Enjoy!

How long have you been a librarian?

3 years as an Assistant Young Adult Specialist.

What is your favorite part of your job?

I enjoy interacting with teens and enriching their lives. Sometimes when I have a teen who comes to my programs who is not a very confident reader, I love finding a book for them that makes them love to read.

What is your favorite program that you have ever hosted/planned?

It would probably be the Poetry Jam that I co-hosted this past July because it brought the community together. It was the most attended program over the summer and it fostered a collaborative environment for our community story-tellers.

What are your future plans in the library field?

My goals as a librarian are to create community-oriented programs for all ages. I would like to continue applying for grants and do more outreach in rural school systems.

What are you reading right now?

Currently, I am reading The Librarian of Auschwitz by Antonio Iturve, which is a YA novel. It’s a fantastic historical non-fiction book and I am excited to really get into it.

What are your top 3 favorite books that you have ever read?

  1. My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry by Fredrick Backman. It creates a universe inside of a universe inside of a universe that has supernatural elements. It’s a story about real loss and a sense of family and community. The world-building in it is incredible.
  2. I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson. There are real issues and coping with issues in a very artistic way. It has a happy ending that most YA books don’t have, which is nice.
  3. Paper Towns by John Green. Only because it’s set in my hometown, though. It’s very sentimental to me because I read it as I was moving away from my hometown.

Any advice for future librarians?

My advice to any future librarian is to plan big things. Have big ideas and if no one comes- try again. I would also say make really good friends with your fellow librarians. They are great resources for ideas and book recommendations. Also, dollar crafts will get you through budget cuts! *

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Until next time- Go to a program at your local library!

-Lit Librarian

‘Tis the Season to Explore New Genres

Posted on by litwithalibrarian

Although I tend to stick to the Young Adult Genre when I read, I do enjoy exploring different genres on long, slow days at the library. Things really start slowing down at work around the time of Thanksgiving and it stays slow until after the New Year. People are busy eating and partying- I get it.

But what is a bored literary enthusiast to do on slow days surrounded by books? Why look for new things to read, of course!

As of late, I have been really into the magical realism genre. Magical realism, according to is “an alternative to an accepted reality.” Who doesn’t want that in life? I had never heard of this genre before two months ago, and it might be a new favorite of mine.

I read Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders a few weeks ago, and it is fantastic! I knew from the description it was going to be an interesting novel, but I had no idea how much I would love it and the questions that Saunders poses in it. This novel will really make you think about what happens to your soul after death and how it affects your loved ones when you are gone. That sounds morbid, but trust me, it isn’t. Saunders has a beautiful writing style and does a great job of roping readers in from the beginning.

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https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/231506/lincoln-in-the-bardo-by-george-saunders/9780812985405/

Another novel I read recently that fits in the magical realism genre is Jesmyn Ward’s Sing, Unburied, Sing. I didn’t love this novel as much as I loved Saunders’, but it is still an interesting read for those who are just getting into the genre. Ward’s characters make you question what is real and what is only desired to be real. It is beautifully written.

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   https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32920226-sing-unburied-sing

I hope to explore this genre more as the holidays approach and I’ll have more time to read for fun. Both of these novels really peaked my interest in the concept of magical realism, so I highly recommend both if you are interested in exploring this genre, as well.

Until next time- Go explore a new genre!

-Lit Librarian

Do kids care about the who, what, and where?

Posted on by litwithalibrarian

I’m a Youth Services Librarian which means that I mainly work with children ages 0-10. We offer programs for every child within this age group, and this semester I have been teaching a program to kids first grade and up called “Who, What, Where?” This program is based on the popular  “Who Was…” children’s series.

Before I started this program, I enjoyed reading books from the series on slower days at work. The authors of this series write the books in a manner that is fun, but still educational. We have lots of library kids who love the series, as well, which is why I thought it would be a fun program to host.

What is the “Who Was…” series, you may ask?

When this series was first published, it was primarily books about famous people who have had an impact on others or on the world as a whole. There are books on various people such as Eleanor Roosevelt, Martin Luther King Jr., and Sacagawea. There are even books about bands like The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. Over the last few years, the authors have added books about notable places, such as Macchu Picchu and the Mississippi River, and historic events, such as the Women’s Right Movement and the Underground Railroad.

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                                 Photo Credit: https://sjiassociates.com/work/who-hq/.

In my weekly program, I cover the high points of the books. For example, if we are learning about the Underground Railroad, I tell the kids about why the railroad was created, who used it, and who helped along the way. We do an activity that relates to the lesson after everyone has a chance to ask questions.

I teach this program at the library and at the local YMCA’s Afterschool Program. All of the kids who come to the program love learning and they later tell me that they taught their parents about we learned in class the previous week. I do a pop-quiz each week to see who remembers what the last lesson was, and I am always proud when I see lots of hands raised.

Every book in the “Who Was…” series is quite short with pictures and little facts between each chapter. Books like these are small reminders that kids want to learn. The “Who Was…” series is catered to young children who are old enough to learn but aren’t quite ready to know the whole story yet. Some of the kids in my programs ask me questions that are hard to answer sometimes because they are so young. I often have to remind myself that teaching them is what I’m there for.

Whether you are a librarian, a teacher, or a parent, I would recommend this book for you to read to or have available for the children in your life. You may think that some kids aren’t ready, but they never will be until you teach them to be. Education is so important. I’m so glad that the “Who Was…” series exists so that I can help my kids understand a small part of the world.

Until next time- Read something educational!

-Lit Librarian

 

 

 

Why YA Should be Your Favorite Genre

Posted on by litwithalibrarian

*Disclaimer: This blog post is entirely my unprofessional opinion. I will be giving reasons as to why I love YA as a librarian and literature major.*

“Why do you love Young Adult books so much? Aren’t they for, like, angsty teens?”

I get asked this a lot as someone who would much rather browse the “teen” section of the library or bookstore than the “adult” section. Yes, I am aware that I am in my 20s. No, I do not care and will not let my age keep me from reading what I think is the greatest genre of literature.

“Why?”

Mainly for two reasons:

  1. YA discusses and presents issues that other genres tend to neglect.

Authors of YA are not afraid to create characters who need help, whether it be mentally, emotionally, or physically. Everyone needs a little help every now and then, so these YA characters are relatable for everyone. My favorite YA novels are ones that have characters who struggle with a mental illness because I deal with anxiety and depression on a daily basis. There are some authors who I think write the symptoms and thoughts of someone with a mental illness better than others, but at least authors are trying to present these characters so that readers can relate.

Every character in YA deals with their struggles in different ways. I have yet to read two YA novels with characters that struggle with the exact same thing in the exact same way. This is because every person deals with situations in different ways. Characters in YA are real. They feel real pain, love, and anger just like anyone in their mindset or situation would. You won’t get that kind of realness or relatability from any other genre.

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2. The YA Genre adapts and grows with its audience. 

A YA novel published in the 90s will contain different situations and characters with different struggles than a book published in the last 2 or 3 years will have. This is because authors and publishers of YA actually pay attention and listen to their audience in order to keep YA characters and books relatable. Even if an author follows the most basic of YA templates, the novel will still be more original than most adult novels.

Don’t get me wrong- I am not a hater of all adult fiction. I have read some wonderful, earth-shattering novels from the adult genre. However, I think that the majority of authors get stuck on this idea that all adult novels need to contain love and sex in order to be recognized. This just isn’t true. If writers started making their characters more realistic in terms of struggles (and appearance, for that matter)then adult fiction could be completely revamped. Will that happen, though? I sincerely doubt it.

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“It’s still written for teens, though.”

YA is written for anyone who enjoys more realistic stories and wants to really feel something. There are Sci-Fi and Fantasy novels within the genre, of course, like The Hunger Games series or the Arc of a Scythe series, but even these sub-genres of YA contain more realistic plot aspects and characters than other genres.

There is not an age limit on literature, save for the more sexual or darker adult novels. A person should read whatever they are interested in no matter how old they are. Thousands of adults like the Harry Potter series and it is Juvenile Fiction! Next time you go to your local library or bookstore, I recommend you look for a YA book from the list below. Read one and tell me that it didn’t make you feel something real.

My Top YA Recommendations:

I’ll Give You the Sun

Girl in Pieces 

The Hate U Give

The Inexplicable Logic of My Life

The Sky is Everywhere

Fangirl 

Scythe 

American Street

Every Last Word

If I Was Your Girl

The Serpent King

What We Left Behind

Turtles All the Way Down

Looking for Alaska

Until next time- Go read a YA novel!

-Lit Librarian

 

Banned Book Week: The Hate U Give Review

Posted on by litwithalibrarian

Banned Book Week is September 23-29th. I hope you all celebrated this week by reading your favorite banned book while feeling like a bad person for reading it. Because that’s what a banned book means, right? That you’re a bad person for reading it?

If so, call me the worst of the worst. Most of my favorite books appear on the banned books list, and I am more than okay with that. To me, the reason that most of these books are banned is also the reason that the book is so great.

One of my favorite books is The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas, which was banned in 2017 by a high school in Texas. I was shocked when I found out that it was on the list of banned books. At first, I thought maybe it was banned because of the detailed violence and murder that happens in the book. But no. It is banned for being pervasively vulgar and containing drug use, profanity, and offensive language.

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Yes, the book does have all of that in it, but did you happen to get to the part where Starr’s best friend was literally murdered in front of her? What about the part where she fights back against the media’s portrayal of her and her dead friend? Starr is a badass woman and is a beautiful, literary role model for young readers because she fights for what she believes in. I guess that isn’t good enough to cover for all of the bad words in the book, though, huh?

Now that I have told you that the book is banned, let me give you my totally honest review of The Hate U Give:

This is one of the best books you will ever read. Thomas’ writing style is absolutely gorgeous. Her characters, especially Starr, are relatable for any reader and practically jump off the page because they are so real. I wish I could make myself forget what the book was about so I could read it again for the first time. I read it in less than a day and cried for the majority of it because it is so raw and emotional. Even though the characters are fictional, the story is real and is one that is in U.S news practically every week, unfortunately. I am more than ready for Thomas’ next book and for The Hate U Give movie to come out on October 5th so I can experience all of the emotions all over again.

If you like this book, check out Dear Martin by Nic Stone next!

Until next time: Go read a (preferably banned) book!

-Lit Librarian

Ready to get lit?

Posted on by litwithalibrarian

As a librarian, I am often asked for book recommendations and what I think about a certain book or author. Patrons trust their librarians and their literary suggestions, and with good reason. This is the world we live in and we never want to leave.

This blog is going to be a place for me to review popular books and give recommendations for ones that I think are not receiving the love that they deserve. My favorite genre is Young Adult so many of my posts may be of YA novels. However, I do plan to suggest some children’s books that I think are killing it and some adult fiction attention that needs to die down.

If you just cannot get enough of the good stuff (literature, that is) then this blog is for you! If you like literary puns and the occasional drink, then we’re going to have a good time.

Until next time: Go read something!

-Lit Librarian