Getting Ready for February - Black History Month

 

It's time to start thinking about Black History Month book displays. I will be posting pictures and ideas for the next few days. 

I wanted to share one of the more popular ones I put up. This is devoted to biographies of black chefs and cookbooks by black authors. 

It emptied out the library of all the books on the subject very quickly and I had to pivot to another topic. 

When you are thinking about promoting various history/heritage months, think outside the box. Don't limit yourself. Think about your own city/town/community. Think local history. Think about culture in a broad sense. 

Creating book displays is a good way to inventory your collection. If you can't find books for a display, your library might need to diversify its collection. There are always constraints due to collection development policy and budget but we can add books to represent our entire communities. Promoting them through passive readers advisory like displays, bookmarks, and lists will help your patrons find them. 

 On Politics and Book Displays

My first instinct is to say "don't." It can be difficult and is usually not worth the amount of difficulty that you will face. However, it's totally acceptable to grab subjects from the news and toss up a book display. (Please make certain you know your library's policies and the thoughts of your administration if you have any second thoughts.)

How do you break down a news event into subjects? In 2017, I put up an FBI themed display. I 

used fiction and non-fiction titles. The sign simply had the FBI logo. You have the option of so many thrillers, romantic suspense, and mysteries. There are histories of the agencies and books about famous agents and cases. 

No one complained and the display was successful in getting books into the hands of patrons. 

This display in March of 2017 invited patrons to "Learn more about Russia." The books were mostly about modern Russia and Putin. Within a few days, the books on Putin were all checked out and I had to find other books to fill in the display. 

These sort of displays allow people browsing your collection to discover books about topics they are hearing on the news. Chances are, the people who grabbed the non-fiction didn't come in looking to research that topic but the face outs grabbed their attention. 

What kind of display to put up right now, based upon current events? Depends on your community but some suggestions would be:

Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton books - these are the other recent impeachments. Don't forget to add any DVDs you have in your collection. 

Congress - Fiction and non-fiction about Congress and the Capitol

US Constitution - Fiction, non-fiction, lists of online sources about the American Constitution

Washington D.C. - There is so much fiction that takes place in DC. Don't forget non-fiction and travel books. 

Add books about the March on Washington to your Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day display. 

I hope this helps you to see that breaking down current political events into subjects allows you to bring some attention to books that patrons might not discover on their own. 

When Things Go Wrong Book Display

When Things Go Wrong book display with titles about disasters including some local/state titles. I borrowed this idea from ALA's Booklist. They have lists that are great jumping off points. This display could include fiction from any and all genres including horror, suspense, and thrillers.

Roaring Twenties Book Display

People were thinking about the 20’s at the beginning of 2020 so I obliged them with a book display. First things to be taken from this display were books about fashion. In theory, you could put this up every year until 2030. 

Pay at least some attention to what is bouncing around in popular culture; you can mine it for ideas for easy book displays that let you faceout backlist lonely books. 

Mardi Gras/New Orleans

One of my favorites,

@RAforAll

, asked for a Mardi Gras book display with New Orleans themed titles. I started with just fiction because that was the fastest and easiest.

As the display emptied out, I added non-fiction and audiobooks. For non-fiction, some places to check are: biographies, music, cooking, history, and travel.

Women's History Month - Historical Fiction

Women's History Month offers a lot of options but when given a chance, I will try to include some fiction. People who won't pick up a long history book will invest the time in a novel that appeals to them. Expand your definition of historical fiction and don't forget mysteries and romance. Your display should include a wide range of time periods and places. 

Absinthe

Absinthe book display is fun and can be used at any time of the year. There is plenty of public domain artwork that can be used for signs. Historical fiction, historical romance,  and steampunk can be used to fill out the display. I was also able to find some cocktail books that included drinks that used absinthe. There are also non-fiction titles that review the history of the drink.

Other Resources: 

Absinthe Fact and Fiction from Discovery.com

Absinthe: How the Green Fairy Became Literature's Drink from BBC.com
Devil in a Little Green Bottle from the Science History Institute

The Art of Drinking Absinthe, the Liquor of Aesthetes from NPR.org

World Fragrance Day.

World Fragrance Day is March 21. This is a good display for mixing non-fiction and fiction, A/V materials and books. Perfume, fragrance, fashion, and lifestyle are all subjects to check in your catalog. Being more flexible with how the items fit into the theme helps keep displays like this filled. 

Adult fiction was surprisingly easy to find as perfume and fragrance are popular themes but fragrance/perfume is one of those themes that are present in popular non-fiction as well. I found guides to perfume as well as histories of fragrance and various fashion houses in our collection. 

Do some quick research on the history of perfume to find materials in your collection that is tangentially connected to the theme. The idea is to help people discover hidden gems in your collection not to strictly maintain a theme. 


Other resources: 
Perfume Society

Strange History of Perfume from Bustle.com

The Ugly History of Beautiful Things: Perfume from Longreads.com 


The Fragrance Foundation - World Fragrance Day