Passively Recommending Books

What everyone wants to do in January is a “New Year, New You” display. The fact is that individuals don’t need to craft new versions of themselves every year. Instead, encourage your patrons to – • Learn something new: Set up titles about learning a language, a skill, a craft. Look for basic history books about lesser-known events or places.  • Cook something new: Baking and cooking books that haven’t gotten enough attention.  • Meet someone new: Character centered fiction that hasn’t circulated recently.  • Visit someplace new: Travel books and books from your local collection. Look for titles that haven’t been checked out in the last six months.  You can expand these as you need to fit your collection. For example, it’s also a great time to try a new genre or start a new-to-you series. Pair these displays with your programs and services.  Don’t forget to include youth and young adult materials in your displays. Move those titles to areas outside of the designated youth and yo

  I have never liked "New Year, New You" book displays. Self improvement does not need to have an implicit or explicit aura of self-hatred. Save the diet books and exercise videos for another day.  Instead, focus on showing patrons how they can "____ something new." They can learn something new, eat something new, make something new! It's a way to showcase some of your non-fiction collection that needs more exposure as well as helping them find something new to focus on. I have some pictures here that showcase a few of the displays I have done in the past.  Think broadly and involve staff from all over your library. Don't forget to include materials from your audiobook and DVD collections. You can even include images and handouts from your ebook collections or databases.  This idea would also work for youth services book displays. There is a gap in-between the holidays and the start of school. You could encourage some learning and crafting from kids who othe

Regardless of your personal thoughts about Kobe Bryant and his legacy, he was an important figure in sports. A teacher friend told me of young people in her school using "Kobe!" to mean skills... We added books about the NBA and basketball as these were checked out. These don't have to stay up long; I think this one was up for a little longer than a week. But when someone significant dies, they are on the minds of your patrons. Not everyone will ask for help so putting materials in front of them will help your circulation while also being great patron service. 

This is another easy book display that staff created. The titles will be familiar to your patrons, even if they are not readers. Sometimes patrons won't even realize that a popular movie was based upon a book. You can pair the books with DVD copies of the film if you have it. It's also a good idea to include a list of books and films that are in your collection, both digital and physical. 

Rosa Parks' birthday is a great subject for a book display that combines youth and adult titles.  Don't forget to include books from your biographies, African-American studies, and history books. This display sat away from all of those areas and was a way for patrons to be reminded of books that might not have searched out on their own. 

A young adult book display  in the adult area! Unleashed! It’s read-alikes for PS I Love You by Jenny Han. Mix up your collection and put displays so people won’t expect them. Let fiction readers find non-fiction and people who don’t go to your teen area find young adult fiction. Not every patrons is familiar with every part of your building. Patrons who come in to use the computer may not think about picking up current young adult favorites. 

February is Black History Month and it's important to remember to try to branch out and include topics beyond the expected. This year, I put up one for Rosa Parks' birthday. I always include juvenile materials. Beyond children, they are often filled with pictures and can be more accessible to adults with low literacy skills.  The second one up this month is about African American food and cooking. Included are cookbooks and biographies/autobiographies of black chefs. When this one empties out, I will pick another topic. Thinking up displays like this is a good way to check the diversity of your collection in areas like cooking and food. Resources to help you include: https://www.africanamericanhistorymonth.gov/  -The Library of Congress, National Archives and Records Administration, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Gallery of Art, National Park Service, Smithsonian Institution and United States Holocaust Memorial Museum have created a site with inform