Finding diversity in the library with Novelist - searching for books about disability for teens

Recently a colleague recommended me to an awesome webinar ran by the folk at NoveList Plus focusing on some great tips and tricks to help with children's and youth readers advisory queries.  ("Finding read-alikes", n.d.).   

It is super important for younger readers to find something that represents themselves in the books they read. Today I wanted to talk about how to find CYA books on the NoveList Plus database that have ability-diverse characters to show as an example of what I learnt. 

What did I learn?

Keywords are easy to use in NoveList and are a good place to start searching. After doing a keyword search (for example, 'invisible disibilities') you can select different limiters on the left side of the webpage like the audience age (teen, ages 9-12, ages 0-8). 

Also after you perform the keyword search the sidebar limiters then become relevant to that search - for example, after my keyword search, the 'character' limiter on the sidebar changed to include further relevant limiters like 'culturally diverse' or 'ability diverse' that could be selected to narrow results. 

The webinar also discussed Novelist's newer feature of 'theme' limiters, for example, from the 'invisible disabilities' keyword search I could then select themes from the sidebar that narrowed book search results that had themes like 'living with invisible disability' or 'living with visible disability' or 'dealing with bullies' or others.  

On the homepage there is also an 'I am in the mood for' book browsing suggestions area. By selecting, say, 'teen' there are tabs you can then select to browse titles that fit into a certain sub-genre or style and then browse the covers like a physical collection.  One of the tabs that can be selected is 'ability-diverse and character driven' that could help the reader pick titles they may like if they just have no idea where to start. 

Title read-alikes:  If your reader is after books similar to something they have already read then search for that title. There is a 'title read-alikes' link found just after the book's heading which will pull up a list of recommended books Novelist has somehow linked as a read-alike.  This is pretty great as a quick printable booklist. 

How was the activity relevant to my professional practice working with children and young adults?

By watching the webinar and then mucking around with Novelist Plus this has helped me feel confident in using the resource specifically for finding books for children and young adults that they want to read.  Practising using this resource more will really develop my readers advisory skills and I feel like I can offer a better service to young readers in knowing how to access more diverse books. It is really important because such books can act as "teaching and coping mechanisms" (Izzo, 2012) for children and youth.

What gaps in my knowledge were revealed and how might I fill those gaps?

Throughout the webinar I realized just how out of practice I was, how little I really knew about using Novelist Plus and how much learning I still need to do with my reader's advisory skills so that I could really serve our young library visitors well.  Novelist Plus offers a whole bunch of web tutorials on their Youtube page (EBSCO NoveList videos, n.d.) that I would like to work my way through so that I can hopefully one day feel like a reader's advisory superhero. 


Reference list

Izzo, C., (2012)., Bordentown librarian helps develop special needs section for library. nj.com. https://www.nj.com/mercer/2012/09/bordentown_librarian_helps_dev.html

Novelist Plus., n.d., https://www.ebscohost.com/novelist/our-products/novelist-plus

Novelist Plus., n.d., Finding read-alikes for younger readers. https://ebsco-australasia.webex.com/ebsco-australasia/lsr.php?RCID=8c8be502673c4ac582fc261c236a1ef5

Youtube., n.d., EBSCO NoveList videos. https://www.youtube.com/user/EBSCONoveList/videos

Censorship and CYA library displays

This week I was reading Scholastic's list of banned children's books (Scholastic, 2019) which led me to think about censorship issues in the library related to the CYA area. I got thinking about book displays and how sometimes I have felt censored in the library displays I have created, sometimes even by other staff.  

I found an online article titled 'Censorship Beyond Books' (Price, ALA, 2019) from ALA's American Libraries magazine that wrote about library display censorship issues which provided me with some great learnings.  

So, what did I learn?

I read of children's librarian Laura Broderick's experience when she created a children's book display for the 'Black Lives Matter' movement.  The display was met mostly positively. When a complaint occurred, instead of the display being taken down, with support from her supervisors the display remained. Broderick even added more content to the display to provide more understanding for those who were confused at the positive intention.  

The article re-affirmed for me just how important it is to ignore those voices in your head that are trying to censor the display and do it anyway.  "When displays and reading lists are eliminated, people don’t see it as censorship, they see it as avoiding controversy. But it sends a powerful message to underrepresented communities that they are somehow inappropriate, that their voice doesn’t count" (Price, 2019).  Representation of underrepresented communities is vital in saying they count in the library.  

Broderick talks of the now expected annual complaints they receive for their CYA Pride Month displays.  Broderick suggests for librarians to always be prepared for such complaints and to prepare other circulation colleagues with a well rehearsed script for patrons.  Preparing colleagues for possible complaints is something I had never thought about when making displays but it is a great practice to get into in the future! 

How was the activity relevant to my professional practice working with children and young adults?

Reading this article about censorship issues relating to library displays was relevant to my own practice because it has helped me develop skills and strategies in the future for dealing with complaints regarding censorship issues.  “Handling complaints about library displays can be challenging but banning material just because some find it controversial is a violation of core constitutional principles.  A public library’s mission is to foster a culture of inclusion, open dialogue and tolerance” (NCAC, 2018).  I now have some key tips in creating displays and dealing with possible criticism.  

What gaps in my knowledge were revealed and how might I fill those gaps? 

ALIA's Statement on free access to information states, amongst other points, that it supports "catering for interest in contemporary issues without promoting or suppressing particular beliefs and ideas;" (ALIA, 2015).  I admit to have sometimes found myself careful of my selections in case someone might feel challenged by the books on display which is frustrating and unfair to the diverse community of readers and this censorship is something to actively be aware of in any future display I do. 

Reference list

ALIA. (2015). Statement on free access to information. https://www.alia.org.au/sites/default/files/documents/FreeAccessToInformation_2015.pdf

NCAC. (2018). Free expression and LGBT rights groups oppose LGBTQ display ban in Southern Utah.  https://ncac.org/news/press-release/washington-county-lgbtq 

Price, S. (2019, September 24). Censorship beyond books. American libraries magazine.  https://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/2019/09/24/censorship-beyond-books/

Scholastic parents staff. (2019). Groundbreaking children's books that have been banned. Scholastic.  https://www.scholastic.com/parents/books-and-reading/book-lists-and-recommendations/banned-books.html

Stardew Valley and my return into the online gaming world

Online games: a look at user-led digital materials and emerging technologies in the library.

At pretty much any library I have worked at kids come in regularly to the library (goals, right?) and use the free computers to play games.  For librarians, according to Spatariu "it is important to understand that new media technologies such as online gaming, texting, and social networking are a central part of young children and young adults’ life" (Spatariu et all, 2012, p. 28) and I agree. 

So for the best professional development exercise I have ever done I roped my brother and teenage nephew in to help me learn how to play a popular online multiplayer game called  Stardew Valley (Stardew Valley, n.d.). This game is recommended for ages 10+.

What did I learn?

I learnt the content of the game!  It is a slow-paced cooperative game where you can get some land near a sweet little village and grow a farm with friends.  You can go fishing lots (one of my favourite things to do!) and have 'quests' to work on.   If you feel like a bit of 'hack and slash' in the gentlest possible way you can go down the mines and collect slimes. 

I also learnt about major online gaming communities out there that kids and adults are now using to access games, like Tabletopia (Tabletopia, n.d.), GOG (GOG, n.d.) and Steam (Steam, n.d.).

One big deal for me was learning how to operate a headset for communicating with team mates.    This can be done through online gaming-specific audio chatrooms like Discord (Discord, n.d.) which I also learnt how to use for the game. Now I will be able to help kids connect to headsets to control sound in the library.

How was me playing a game relevent to my professional practice working with children and youth? 

This will help me relate to kids in the library when they talk about games.   I also now have some sort of understanding how to set it up for them if they need help. "Most public libraries have recreational music and movies as popular forms of media. Gaming stands alongside movies and music as a popular form of recreation, so it follows that libraries supporting recreational media should also support games and gaming." (Nicholson, 2013, p. 341) I am lucky to work in a large library where there are PCs in the children's area and games and some sort of noise are allowed.

After playing the game it has also given me ideas for future CYA programming.  I see kids in the library playing online games, often getting tutted for being on computers when adults could be doing "important STUFF".   Maybe in the future public libraries could consider getting access to particular games and headsets and have dedicated sessions for popular games like Stardew Valley in a dedicated space for our youth where no tutting is allowed!

What gaps in my knowledge were revealed and how might I fill those gaps? 

I have watched from a distance the way that online gaming has transformed over the years but as a library officer I admit I had also became uncomfortable that I didn't understand the technology being used so much by our youth.  There was no way I could help them with any troubleshooting if they asked, which has led me to learn how to game again!

I say with a smile that I could fill these gaps in my knowledge by continuing to play online games to give me an broader insight into CYA interests and trends.

Reference list

Discord. (n.d.). https://discordapp.com/

GOG. (n.d.). https://www.gog.com/

Nicholson, S. (2013). Playing in the past: A history of games, toys, and puzzles in North Americal libraries. The Library Quarterly, 83(4), pp. 341-361. Retrieved from http://scottnicholson.com/pubs/playinginthepast.pdf

Steam. (n.d.). https://store.steampowered.com/

Spatariu, A., Peach, A., & Bell, S. (2012). Enculturation of young children and technology. In S. Blake, D.L. Winsor, & L. Allen (Eds.), Technology and young children: bridging the communication-generation gap.  (pp. 24-28). IGI Global InfoSci-Books. doi: 10.4018/978-1-61350-059-0.ch002

Tabletopia. (n.d.). https://tabletopia.com/

Hello!

Hi, hello, and how are you? (🎼 how are you, how are you? How are you today?🎼)

This is my first post so I thought I would start off with a 'getting to know you' type thing!   My name is Skye and I work in public libraries in Australia.  I love all things CYA and gosh have I recently learnt there is so many CYA things to learn!!!

I have been working in public libraries for a bit over five years now.  I dropped out for a couple months when I couldn't find work close to home but soon realized that public libraries were the place I should be, and even managed to find work close(ish) to home, amazing!  I am currently completing my Masters of Information Studies (pretty much my MLS for my American friends) and am specializing to be a children's and youth librarian!  Pretty excited.  I really recommend the course, I have learnt so much.  I finished my Diploma  of Library and Information Services through TAFE which was just as awesome.  I feel like the two compliment each other and would recommend doing both if you can!

Anyhoo.. back to me!  I am pretty excited to start this blog.  I have wanted to do this a while, after seeing all the amazing CYA librarian blogs of my world wide web of colleagues.  It is a place I will share what I learn and I hope you get something out of too.  Speak soon!