Reflections on 605 and Reading Advisory

During 605 on November 11th we had a very interesting conversation on Reading Advisory, which brought up a lot of questions about what is the best way to offer readers advice. What fascinated me the most was the different ways people chose books to read. Some people go on recommendations, some read book reviews, some use the Amazon site to suggest books, and others just browse books on the shelves. I know that I have used all of these methods to pick books, but my favorite is just to browse the shelves looking for something interesting. However, I was a little bit embarrassed to bring this up in class because the first thing that draws me to a book is the cover. Despite knowing that one can't "judge a book by its cover" that is always the first thing that catches my attention. It is a visual thing. I was pleasantly surprised to find out in class that I was not the only one who chose books this way. The selection of a book by cover is normal.  Covers are also not the entire reason that I choose a book to read, however, it is almost always the reason I pick a book up. With the reduction in the amount of bookstores I know that my book browsing days are becoming fewer. Already I find myself ordering more books from Amazon for my kindle because of the ease. Because of this I have had to rely on the other ways in which to choose a book. I know this is going to affect the way I advise readers to choose books. Advisory is no longer as personal as it probably once was. Librarians do not have to have personal knowledge of what they recommend. Rather, they can use technology to provide them with the information they need to help them choose what they think is best for the library member. However, it is still difficult to determine which is the best way to choose what to advise members to read. Everyone has a different opinion and personal bias is always present no matter what. In addition, it is hard to discern what a member will like without knowing enough about the member. Two of the most important things I have to remember when doing readers advisory is not to assume or judge. One should never assume anything about a member because reading tastes are wide and varied. Furthermore, one should never judge a reader's habits. Just because you don't particularly like a book or genre doesn't mean you shouldn't recommend it, it is a librarian's duty to be open and non-partial.