Week 12 Prompt

 THE READER’S ADVISORY MATRIX: Educated by Tara Westover

1. Where is the book on the narrative continuum?

• 

  Highly narrative (reads like fiction)

• 

  A mix (combines highly narrative moments with periods of fact-based prose)

• 

  Highly fact-based (has few or no narrative moments)

2. What is the subject of the book?

The book is about Tara Westover’s life and experiences with a religious survivalist family and experiencing education and other experiences for the first time. 

3. What type of book is it?

A biography in narrative form

4. Articulate appeal

What is the pacing of the book? The story's pace is fast but informative. 

Describe the characters of the book. 

Tara Westover is the main character who grew up in Idaho and initially had little experience of the world outside her family’s property. 

How does the story feel? Dramatic, Inspiring, and Hectic

What is the intent of the author? The author intends to talk about her life and experiences on how she gained an education in both school and in life as it truly is. Not what her father told her it was. 

What is the focus of the story? The life of the author and her experiences and troubles while growing up.

Does the language matter? Yes

Is the setting important and well-described? The setting is important because it provides a sense of past and present for the author and the pull each has on her. The setting is very well described. 

Are there details and, if so, of what? There are a lot of details in both the feeling and description of the settings. 

Are there sufficient charts and other graphic materials? Are they useful and clear? No

Does the book stress moments of learning, understanding, or experience? Yes to all. The book focuses on the author's learning, understanding, and experience of the world as she knows it to be and how she is learning how it truly is. 

5. Why would a reader enjoy this book (rank appeal)?

1. Experiences of the author  2. Narrative  3. Tone

Educated - NonFiction Annotation

 

Author: Tara Westover

Title: Educated

Genre: Non-Fiction

Publication Date: Fe 29, 2021

Number of Pages: 352 pages

Geographical Setting: Idaho, Massachusetts, England, New York.

Time Period: Mid to Late 90s to Present

Series: N/A

Summary:

Tara Westover grew up in the mountains of Idaho in a family of religious survivalists. Her life was spent learning how to mix and stew herbs with her mother or helping her father and brothers scrap metal. All so they can fund their way to surviving the end of days. It wasn’t until Tara was 17 that she stepped into a classroom and began to discover the world for what it is and discover herself. 

Subject Headings

• Adult children of dysfunctional families

• Survivalism

• Homeschooling

• Victims of family violence

• Subculture

Appeal:

Tone: The tone of this book is Informative and serious.

Characterization: 

• Tara Westover is a trusting, motivated, and compassionate person who struggles with her loyal nature. 

• Gene Westover is a religious survivalist who occasionally shows a loving and kind nature to his children but is a mainly dominant and manipulative man. 

• Faye Westover is a character with a huge loyalty to her husband but occasionally is sly and supportive of her daughter despite this going against her husband’s beliefs and wishes.

• Shawn Westover is a violent and abusive brother who uses religious beliefs to lie and manipulate his siblings and parents. 

• Tyler Westover is smart and studious and supports his sister Tara in finding herself through life and school. He is an encouraging and wholesome light in this story. 

Setting: Idaho, England, and Massachusetts 

Pacing: A fast-paced novel with a multitude of drama and emotions. 

Short Review: Although I questioned how I would like this book at first it is a beautiful yet heartbreaking, and mending, story about survival and self-discovery. 4.5/5 stars

Read-Alikes:

Walls, J. (2005). The Glass Castle. Scribner.

Obama, M. (2018). Becoming. Crown.

McCurdy, J. (2022). I’m Glad My Mom Died. Simon & Schuster.

Week 11 Prompt

 Ebooks and audiobooks are a part of our landscape. What does the change in medium mean for appeal factors?

For Ebooks, I believe the appeal is somewhat greater than a regular book. It’s easier to transport, you can keep more books on your device, and each book can be changed when it comes to accessibility needs. For example, bigger text for people with worse eyesight. 

When it comes to audiobooks, I’m not much of a fan of them but I have heard patrons say that it appeals to them more because they can listen to them when they work or drive, people who are blind can still read their favorite books, and that some narrators and audio sounds help them get more into the stories. 

If you can't hold a book and feel the physical weight of it in your hands, how does that affect your knowledge of the genre?

Although I love the feel and, admittedly smell, of books I don’t think it has any effect on how I think of the genre. Nor have I heard any of my patrons any changes in their perspectives on it. Although Ebooks and Audiobooks are different I feel that I and my patrons can respect it as part of the genre as a whole.  

How about readers being able to change the font, line spacing, and color of text - how does that affect pacing and tone?

I feel that, at least in my mind, changes to text and line spacing can quicken the pace of the book from either being quicker, with small text and shorter spacing, or slower, with bigger text and closer spacing. However, the color of the text and it’s background is nice for when your eyes need a break and have less strain. I know many people, myself included, who use white text on a black background when reading because it has less strain on them and allows them to read longer. 

How about audiobooks? Track length, narrator choice, is there music?

One of the main reasons I don’t like audiobooks is because, depending on the narrator's voice or audio additions, it is really hard for me to get into or concentrate on the story. However, many patrons have mentioned to me that these are the things that help them get into the story more. 

Historical Fiction Annotation - The Personal Librarian

 

Author: Marie Benedict

Title: The Personal Librarian

Genre: Historical Fiction

Publication Date: June 29, 2021

Number of Pages: 341 pages

Geographical Setting: New York City, New York; London, England

Time Period: Early 1900s

Series: N/A

Summary:

Belle da Costa Greene is a white woman with a Portuguese grandmother which is why her skin is a bit darker than others. At least, that's what she tells J.P. Morgan and anyone else who asks. But in reality, she's an African American woman who is able to pass as white. And it's because of this that she is able to get a job as the librarian at J.P Morgan's historic Pierpont Morgan Library. She is also able to be a part of high society events, deal with important art and book dealers, and even have a romantic rendezvous or two. However, the real question is…how long will she be able to keep the secret of her true identity? Will she be able to keep the life she has built herself? Or will everything fall apart?

Subject Headings

• African American Women

• Passing (identity)

• Women librarians

• Biographical Fiction

• Pierpont Morgan Library

Appeal:

Tone: The tone of this book is Assertive, Formal, and Worried.

Characterization: 

• Belle daCosta Greene/Belle Marion Greener is based on a historical figure of the same name. Although careful at first in her career she later becomes more bold and even reckless in her interactions with strangers and colleagues. 

• J.P. Morgan is a bold and assertive financier who has a passion for art and rare books. A passion he seems to only be able to share with Belle. 

• Genevieve Fleet is Belle’s mother and is a brave and protector of Belle and her siblings. 

• Richard Greener is the father of Belle. He is an activist, scholar, and educator.

• Anne Morgan is the daughter of J.P. Morgan. A philanthropist for women’s rights. She has a jealous attitude toward Belle and her father’s relationship. She is bold and passive aggressive in her demeanor toward Belle. 

Setting: New York City and London

Pacing: This book has a fast pacing due to time skips within the story. 

Short Review: I loved the historical knowledge of this book. Even though this book is technically historical fiction, the authors took great care in making sure they were as accurate in their information as possible. It was an amazing way to learn about such a historical person and relationship. 4.5/5 stars

Read-Alikes:

Golden, A. (2005). Memoirs of a Geisha. Vintage Books USA.

Kostova, E. (2016). The Historian. Little, Brown and Company.

Morris, H. (2018). The Tattooist of Auschwitz. Harper.

Book Club Experience

 For this assignment I decided to participate in a bookclub in the next town over. We read The Personal

Librarian by Marie Benedict, who I have heard is an amazing author, and is from what I have read.

Highly recommend the book. 

During the bookclub program I didn’t give any details about doing the program for a class or about me working at a library. I just told them that I was interested in the book and, after reading it, was excited to see what other people had thought. When the program began the librarian heading the program introduced herself and had everyone else introduce themselves as well. I suspect this was more for my benefit than it being normal since it seemed that everyone already knew each other. The librarian, Becky, asked everyone what they thought of the book. Everyone took turns answering and just gave basic answers at first but soon started discussing their likes and dislikes of either the book or characters themselves. After every answer Becky would as look at her list of notes on the book and ask a more in depth question relating to the book. Some questions included, “Why didn’t the main character reveal her secret at the end?”, “Who do you think she went back to the man who betrayed her so badly?”, etc. It was interesting to hear the answers everyone gave. One person even stated they didn’t like the main character due to her continuous attitude and entitlement. Yet after discussing the main character more they stated they may need to read the book again with the new insight and views everyone gave to see if they would like her more. I thought it was interesting to hear since it meant they had an open mind and were willing to change their views. 

Everyone in the group participated willingly and freely, however there was one person who seemed to always try to bring the conversation back to themself and what they experienced. Now normally this would be a great thing when trying to relate to the book but it seemed like whenever someone would try to give their opinion they would bring the conversation back to themselves. I believe Becky saw this but she didn’t say anything and only tried to push them back to the topic at hand. I feel like this was a good move on her part because it meant that she didn’t embarrass the participant by calling them out but she also didn’t let the conversation get too off topic. I did sense a little annoyance from a couple participants who they had interrupted but nothing too bad. 

The overall atmosphere of the discussion throughout the program was happy and inclusive. I was worried about when some heavier topics from the book were starting to be discussed since I know it could get uncomfortable. Yet that wasn’t the case at all with this group. The group attentively listened to everyone’s views on the heavier topics and seemed to have open minds if someone disagreed about something with another participant. It definitely gave off the feeling of being a free space.

Near the end of the book club, when all the questions seemed to be asked and answered, everyone began talking about different books they have been reading during the month and giving suggestions to other participants and even to the librarian for future club meetings. I also got a lot of great suggestions of books to add to my neverending reading list. Not long after people began leaving to go get lunch, there were no snacks or drinks provided, or run errands. I stayed back to ask Becky what other books the club has read and she told me about how, since she tries to expand everyone’s mind and interests, including her own, she switched reading nonfiction books and fiction books month by month. So since they had read The Personal Librarian, a fiction book, they will be reading a nonfiction book, Educated by Tara Westover, next month. I thought this was a smart idea and am thinking about incorporating it to my own bookclub. 

Overall I feel that I would definitely join this bookclub if I had more time. They were very welcoming and open to hearing everyone’s thoughts and opinions. Although I will say the one thing that would make the bookclub better is if they had coffee and snacks. Just because I was hungry during the program and love talking about books over coffee and snacks.

Special Topics Paper Summary

 My special topic paper discusses the consequences of problematic authors, how people view their works after their controversies, and how libraries handle controversial books and authors. Not only that but with my paper I have discussed the question of whether people should separate the art from the artists, especially in regards to books and their problematic authors. 

Since J.K. Rowling took to Twitter, now called X, about her views on an article talking about people who menstruate, in which she hinted that the word they were looking for was women. There has been backlash and debate on whether people should be reading her books and supporting the author through her books. 

This argument brought up a long-argued debate on whether people can or should separate art from their artists. Whether it be books, paintings, music, etc. I discussed both sides of this debate and discussed the issues of each argument. I then went on to discuss what consequences these authors and their books would have in public libraries, even when public libraries take neutral stances on these issues. 

Gentle Reads Annotation - The Alchemist

 

Author: Paulo Coelho

Title: The Alchemist

Genre: Gentle Read/Fiction

Publication Date: January 1st, 1988

Number of Pages: 182 pages

Geographical Setting: Northern Africa/Spain

Time Period: Unknown

Series: N/A

Summary:

After having multiple dreams filled with the message to seek out treasure at the Egyptian pyramids, the Andalusian shepherd, Santiago, seeks advice on what he should do from a gypsy and an alleged King of Salem who tells him to go on this journey of treasure. On this journey, Santiago meets a 200-year-old alchemist who accompanies him on his journey to the pyramids. With the alchemist, Santiago experiences moments of magic, mysticism, and wisdom that help in his journey. 

Subject Headings

• Fables

• Alchemy

• Quests (Expeditions)

• Self-realization

• Shepherds

Appeal:

Tone: The tone of this book is straightforward, happy, and mythical.

Characterization: 

• Santiago is a determined and curious man who is determined to follow through with his journey to find treasure. He is also known to be a traveler even before his dreams and is the reason he has become a shepherd. 

• The Alchemist is a mysterious character who is knowledgeable enough to guide and teach Santiago throughout their journey. 

Setting: Egypt, Morocco, Spain.

Pacing: This book has a slow but meaningful pace. 

Short Review: Although I didn’t believe I would like this book before reading it, I enjoyed it, not just for the travel of multiple places in countries I haven’t been to, but also because of the inspiring message which is why I initially didn’t think I would like it. 4/5 stars

Read-Alikes:

Gilbert, E. (2007). Eat, Pray, Love. Riverhead Books.

Hosseini, K. (2004). The Kite Runner. Riverhead Books.

Tolle, E. (2004). The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. New World Library.