While I usually base these posts on a book, today I am going to use a popular show from the streaming service Netflix to talk about creating a book display with one title as inspiration. The Lincoln Lawyer is based upon the book series by Michael Connelly. From the author’s website:
Haller is a Lincoln Lawyer, a criminal defense attorney who operates out of the back seat of his Lincoln Town Car, traveling between the far-flung courthouses of Los Angeles to defend clients of every kind. Bikers, con artists, drunk drivers, drug dealers — they’re all on Mickey Haller’s client list. For him, the law is rarely about guilt or innocence — it’s about negotiation and manipulation. Sometimes it’s even about justice.
While it will seem as if it makes sense to use the easiest option and simply grab titles from the author’s backlist, Connelly’s books already circulate well in public libraries and are bestsellers. It’s a better use of the book display space to harness the popularity of the Mickey Haller series to shine a light on some other titles which would benefit from some attention.
There are several easy ways to approach this title from the brief description above. It’s legal fiction about a defense attorney, for starters. Beware of lists you find online that only suggest other bestselling authors. Don’t forget to look at fiction and non-fiction about the legal system in other countries. There may also be biographies in your collection which would fit.
You can even use phrases like guilt or innocence in your display, putting up fiction and non-fiction which
Another option is to look at books and movies which have a focus on automobile or in which cars feature in the plot or even on the cover. It’s good to remember that a display with a loose connection like a car on the front cover will be easy for anyone to fill in. Some months that is what you will need due to other obligations or staffing issues.
Los Angeles as a setting opens a lot of options for titles to include. There are many books about the darker side of the City of Angels. Bring in movies and non-fiction as well. It’s been a popular fiction setting for a long time. Don’t forget to include books which cover the depth and breadth of Los Angeles’ population.
I hope I have demonstrated that it's possible to use a popular title as inspiration for a number of different displays. Remember that just like with a book display, a reader can approach a book from a number of different ways.
