Red Hot RA: Demystifying the Romance Genre
It’s the genre readers (and non-readers) seem to love to hate: romance. Despite sales of more than $1B in 2013 (RWA), romance is often…
Public Libraries and Happiness
Can public libraries make people happier and healthier? There is close link between equality and happiness. The people who live in more equal countries…
OPLA’s Readers’ Advisory Committee – A 10 Year Reflection
What could be simpler, connecting readers and books, right? The truth is, it isn’t easy, and library staff, while often readers themselves, can find…
Public Libraries and Well-being
Can public libraries contribute to individual and community well-being? The research suggests this is so. As a result libraries should embed this within their strategic objectives.
Reading about Reading: Elevate Your Work from a Job to a Passion
In her 1979 book, Language of the Night, Ursula K. Le Guin observed that many people are anti-fiction: “We tend, as a people, to…
Public Libraries and Inequality
Can public libraries make society more equal? Inequality has become a dominant concern and focus of public policy discourse at international, national, regional and…
Reading Outside Your Comfort Zone
How many times have we heard from a patron that they will only read a specific genre? I myself am guilty of this statement.…
Evaluating Public Library Impact and Outcomes
Searching for meaningful and measurable impact and outcome measures has become something of a Holy Grail for public libraries. The approach to date has…
What Should I Read Next? : Staff Picks
Looking for a way to highlight materials you have enjoyed, increase circulation and start a conversation with customers about library items? Staff picks are…
The Community-Led Public Library
What does a Community-Led Public Library look like? At the core of the Community-Led Library is relationship building, both internally (within an organisation) and…
Readers’ Advisory – There’s an App for That!
Readers' advisory is provided in an ever-widening range of places and spaces. From the in-person reference interview to virtual chat, from websites to electronic…
Building Your RA Knowledge Through Reading Journals
My cataloguing professor often referred to his “card catalogue mind”. I’m not quite sure what he meant by that phrase, but I like to…
Developing a Community-Led Service Culture
My previous postings have explored how strategies, structures and systems must be community-led if public libraries are to meet community needs. But the most…