Fiction readers' advisory services in New Zealand public libraries : an investigation into how personal reading habits and other factors affect the confidence of library staff who answer adult or young adult fiction readers' advisory queries

<p>Fiction readers' advisory is the act of assisting a library borrower to find their next piece of fiction to read for leisure purposes. This is a significant part of public library work for staff members who work face-to-face with library borrowers. The confidence of library staff members who provide these services is therefore an important issue. It was hypothesised that a number of factors would influence the confidence of staff who answer fiction readers' advisory enquiries, including the amount and kind of pleasure reading undertaken, library size, years of library experience, and training. An online questionnaire was used to survey a sample of frontline public library staff members in New Zealand to gather data about readers' advisory services in public libraries in this country, as very little research has been undertaken here in this area. There was an excellent response to the survey invitation, and 130 completed questionnaires were received. Survey respondents' confidence about answering fiction readers' advisory enquiries was positively correlated with several factors, including amount and breadth of personal reading, length of public library service, kind of training received, and number of readers' advisory tools available. Negative correlations were suggested between library qualifications and confidence, and library size and confidence. Other factors which may influence confidence were also identified, such as library staff morale, having sufficient time for answering enquiries properly, and time for pleasure reading.</p>

Fiction readers' advisory services in New Zealand public libraries : an investigation into how personal reading habits and other factors affect the confidence of library staff who answer adult or young adult fiction readers' advisory queries

<p>Fiction readers' advisory is the act of assisting a library borrower to find their next piece of fiction to read for leisure purposes. This is a significant part of public library work for staff members who work face-to-face with library borrowers. The confidence of library staff members who provide these services is therefore an important issue. It was hypothesised that a number of factors would influence the confidence of staff who answer fiction readers' advisory enquiries, including the amount and kind of pleasure reading undertaken, library size, years of library experience, and training. An online questionnaire was used to survey a sample of frontline public library staff members in New Zealand to gather data about readers' advisory services in public libraries in this country, as very little research has been undertaken here in this area. There was an excellent response to the survey invitation, and 130 completed questionnaires were received. Survey respondents' confidence about answering fiction readers' advisory enquiries was positively correlated with several factors, including amount and breadth of personal reading, length of public library service, kind of training received, and number of readers' advisory tools available. Negative correlations were suggested between library qualifications and confidence, and library size and confidence. Other factors which may influence confidence were also identified, such as library staff morale, having sufficient time for answering enquiries properly, and time for pleasure reading.</p>

Repeated Pleasure: Reading the Threesome Ménage Romance as Digital Literature

In this chapter, Elina Valovirta discusses a type of romantic love explored by recent New Adult literature; the polyamorous romance. Titles, such as Two Close for Comfort (2015) and Two Billionaires for Christmas (2017) are examples of the 'reverse harem' or 'MFM menage' e-romance bracket, which capitalizes on the erotic and exotic obstacle of two male friends falling in love with - and, ultimately, sharing - the same woman. The polyamorous romance's particular way of eliciting pleasure in readers is tied with specific stylistic strategies, such as alternating first-person narrators and using the plural form in dialogue. The chapter interrogates, how these elements are repeated throughout the genre to titillate and arouse readers.

The role of the library within school-level literacy policies and plans in Australia and the United Kingdom

Libraries are valuable resources that schools can draw upon to enhance their students’ literacy outcomes. However, the role of libraries in supporting student literacy attainment and maintenance may be poorly understood in schools. To determine if libraries are a valued literacy resource within schools, investigation of their incorporation into school-level literacy policies and plans was warranted. Literacy policies and plans from Australia and the United Kingdom were examined using a hybrid content analysis approach to explore if libraries are commonly featured in school literacy policies and plans. Analysis also identified the kinds of libraries that were mentioned, and the roles that libraries play in these documents. Only 34.3% of Australian documents mentioned a library, with UK documents far more likely to include them (74.3%). UK documents were more likely to mention school libraries, classroom libraries, public libraries, mobile libraries, online libraries and book swap areas, while parent libraries were only mentioned in Australian documents. Analysis of roles of libraries found mentions of borrowing and literature exposure; access to a well-resourced facility; reading for pleasure; reading for assessment; environment; research, information literacy and library skills; external expertise, resourcing and outreach; and literacy and literature instruction. UK documents were more likely to include these roles than their Australian counterparts.

Toni Morrosion – The Vitalist: Bio Versus Necro Centricities

Toni Morrison, as many think, is a feminist writer or an African-American writer and so on. When we read her novels, she does not confine herself with feminism, or Africanism, or Americanism, or a writer for pleasure reading. Morrison is a serious writer and deals with matters that are universal and each character that she develops speaks about the nature of love, passion, and they all are life-giving. Morrison gives many oppositional structures in her novels – characters, plots, incidents, and ideologies – to show the readers that the world (and each one of us) is surrounded with so many “opposites” which are inevitable and it is the duty of the human beings to cull the best out of them. Her characters and themes are life-affirming / life-denying or life-affording / death-dealing or having positive / negative attitudes. However, they all describe that love for oneself and others are the only measure that would make the world move.

How We Read Now

The digital revolution has transformed reading. Onscreen text, audiobooks, podcasts, and videos often replace print. We make these swaps for pleasure reading, but also in schools. How We Read Now offers a ringside seat to the impact of reading medium on learning. Teachers, administrators, librarians, and policy makers need to select classroom materials. College students must weigh their options. And parents face choices for their children. Digital selections are often based on cost or convenience, not educational evidence. Current research offers essential findings about how print and digital reading compare when the aim is learning. Yet the gap between what scholars and the larger public know is huge. How We Read Now closes the gap. The book begins by sizing up the state of reading today, revealing how little reading students have been doing. The heart of the book connects research insights to practical applications. Baron draws on work from international researchers, along with results from her collaborative studies of student reading practices ranging from middle school through college. The result is an impartial view of the evidence, including points on which the jury is still out. The book closes with two challenges. The first is that students increasingly complain print is boring. And second, for all the educational buzz about teaching critical thinking, digital reading is inherently ill suited for cultivating these habits of mind. Since screens and audio are now entrenched—and valuable—platforms for reading, we need to rethink how to help learners use them wisely.

Free Voluntary Reading and the Role of the Teacher Librarian

This paper attempts to do three things: Investigate recent research that outlines a relationship between free voluntary reading, or pleasure reading, and student achievement. Link these findings to my own research into the role of the teacher- librarian in creating a positive reading environment, and Detail some of the programs and initiatives that can support us in engaging students with their reading.

Fan fiction comments and their relationship to classroom learning

Reader comments appended to online fan fiction stories provide benefits as close reading and critical analysis tools. Fan fiction provides a space where fans can develop literary analysis skills and literacy through their interactions in comments. This multimethod study combined the interview of a fan author with various digital humanities methods to closely study the value of comments. A web scraping tool was used to collect comments, and documentary, textual, and terminological analyses were performed alongside topic modeling to assess the frequency of words associated with learning. The co-occurrence of certain words was studied to understand the assessments and analyses that readers were performing in their comments. The study found that fan fiction readers apply strategies of literary analysis to their pleasure reading.

Reading Spaces

This paper will explore briefly what research tells us about library design and, more specifically, the design of reading spaces for the provision of pleasure reading in school libraries. Acoustics, lighting and temperature levels, amongst other factors, all have an impact upon the learning experience that takes place in any school space. How we approach the creation of library reading spaces will be discussed with a particular focus on student views and opinions. Furniture, layout, colour, display and ambience will all be considered in light of how they affect comfort and learning opportunities. A number of illustrative examples of school library reading spaces and the views of students will be shared with the audience during the formal presentation.