Week 7: Prompt

Courtesy of morgueFile.com

For my Reader's Advisory class I read an article that showed books that were spotlighted in Oprah Winfrey's book club, did really well in sales.  This does not surprise me--and probably no one else is surprised either.  Celebrities have an exponential amount of pull.

If it is in the media, people are attracted to it either because they are really interested in reading the book for the sake of reading it; or, they want to see what all they hype is about so they read it out of curiosity.

If a book is made into a movie, it usually is on the best seller list just before the movie is released because people want to read it before watching the movie; and,  it maintains best seller list until after the movie is released because it did well in the box office. However, the amount of time it is on the best seller list depends not only on movie trailers, who is in the movie, and how good the movie actually is (according to box office reports).

The end all and be all of a books success is how good the book actually is (at least with very few exceptions).  As Oprah continued her book club, not all of the books did well via best seller lists.  If a book was good, it did really well.  However, not all people will fall into the 'Oprah or Hollywood loves this book so I will, too' mentality.  There are some of us who have our own mind and make it up on our own.

That being said, I have been led to many great books (in my opinion) because I was notified that they exist by popular media.  Those books deserved their 'best seller' status.

Week 7: Annotation

Author:  Carol J. Perry

Title:  Caught Dead Handed

Genre:  Mystery

Publication Date:  October 2014

Pages:  393

Geographical Setting: Salem, Massachusetts

Time Period: 2014

Series: Witch City Mystery (Book 1)

Plot Summary: Maralee Barrett (Lee), recent widow to famous NASCAR driver, Jimmy Barrett, returns to her hometown of Salem, Massachusetts for an interview with WICH-TV the local news channel.  However, before she is even interviewed, another was given the job. 

A sad turn of events, the demise of the popular psychic Ariel Constellation, results in Lee getting her slot as a psychic.  But, she isn’t really psychic . . . or is she. She hopes that taking the job might help to move into another position if it comes open. 

Lee notices little things that help detective Pete Mondello investigate the murders of Ariel Constellation and Yvette Pelletier.  However, as she digs deeper and deeper she becomes more confused and more fearful.

Meanwhile, she is developing feelings for two men:  Mondello and the man who was given the job she wanted, Scott Palmer. 

It’s all about real versus fake.  What and who is real?  What and who is fake? 

What makes it a Mystery?

* Murder

* Dead Bodies

* Investigation

Appeal:

Pacing--Comfortable and Cozy

Frame/Tone--Contemporary and mystical

Character--The protagonist is introspective and observant.

Similar Authors and why . . .

Bridesmaids Revisted
by Dorothy Cannell
~Cozy mystery w/
amateur female detective

A Stitch in Time
By Monica Ferris
~Cozy mystery w/
amateur female detective

The Whole Enchilada
by Diane Mott Davidson
~Cozy mystery w/
amateur female detective

It Takes a Witch
by Heather Blake
~Cozy mystery w/
mystical
amateur female detective
~Salem

Library Display for Romance

My Readers Advisory class was asked to give an example of an idea for creating a display for either Romance, Gentle, or Horror books.  See an idea percolating below:

There are many types of romance readers. There are many types of romance. Our branch really likes the cook books.  Why not create a display that appeals, at least in word power to all of these?  Romance is connected to dating and picking up a book can sometimes be a gamble just like dating.  I would like to have a Blind Date Romance Recipe display.

The books would be set on a table with a red/pink/white table cloth but each book would be wrapped in wrapping paper. On the outside of each book: a recipe (on a recipe card) that states what type of romance it is (what are its ingredients).

Is it a . . .

Courtesy of mourgueFile.com

• Gentle Romance
• Spicy Romance
• Adventure Romance
• Suspenseful Romance
• Christian Romance
• Young Romance
• etc.

A little information about the book such as an annotation from a librarian that has read it or from a reputable resource and/or the book jacket.  No authors to be listed--after all this is a "blind" reading--at least until they unwrap it at home.

Week 6 Annotation: Gentle Read

Author: Nicholas Sparks

Title: The Longest Ride

Genre: Gentle/Romance

Publication Date: 2013

Number of Pages: 398

Geographical Setting: North Carolina

Time Period:  1940 - 2011

Plot Summary: Two couples.  Two generations.  Discovering what real love is.  Ira has crashed his car during the middle of a snow storm at the age of 91.  His car is off an embankment and cannot be easily seen.  While he waits for help or death he visits with his wife who died 9 years ago and coaches him through surviving because he has “something left to do.” Four months prior to Ira’s accident, Luke and Sophia meet because Luke intervenes between an ex-boyfriend’s rage and Sophia’s fear.  Luke and Sophia become fast friends and discover how easy it is to fall in love.  But, there are secrets in the way.  Will Luke and Sophia be able to trust each other and overcome difficulties that threaten to tear them apart?  Will Ira be able to live long enough to accomplish what his wife says he needs to do? How do these two relationships connect?

What makes it a Gentle Read?
* Simple story line
* Story line is about the relationships of characters
* No explicit sex or violence

Appeal:
Pacing--Comfortable and leisurely
Tone--Touching with both traditional and modern nuances
Characterization--Ordinary people with realistic problems to overcome together.

Similar Authors and Works (why are they similar?):

One Summer
by David Baldacci
~Heart rending and
Family Relationships

Sea Change
by Karen White
~Love Story and
Leisurely paced

Where the River Ends
by Charles Martin
~Tug at your heart strings
real love
strengthening marriage

Week 5: "Kirkus Style Review"

For my Readers Advisory class we were asked to provide a "Kirkus Style Review."  I have just finished Labyrinth as you can tell from a previous post.  This is what I thought of it:

A well-researched adventure stretched between 800 years, Labyrinth by Kate Mosse is sure to captivate and keep you on the edge of your seat as chapter by chapter, pieces of a puzzle are revealed.

Two women. Two time periods.  Brought together through dreams and blood.  Alice is in France to meet with a solicitor about an inheritance she received from an aunt she didn’t know existed.  While there she meets up with a close friend to volunteer at an archeological dig.  Alice stumbles upon a great secret contained within a hidden cave. The boulder that almost killed Alice and revealed the cave is just the first of many dangers she will have to evade. Alaïs is in the year 1205 during the crusades and subsequent Inquisition that led to thousands of deaths, she is one of the last guardians of the labyrinth.  Both, Alice and Alaïs are in danger.  In 1205 Aquitaine, there are men on a quest to rid the world of “heretics”—the French.    There are also those who would take the secrets of the labyrinth and use them for selfish and evil purposes or destroy them as a symbol of heresy thought to plague the land. Alice’s journey is to find the reasons behind her being hunted.  Alaïs must find a way to evade capture on multiple fronts.  Each must protect those secrets as people around her are killed for helping.

You’ll want to follow the characters of Labyrinth as they weave through time “Pas a pas.”  “Step by step.”  These words push the women forward as they evade capture and most certainly death at the hands of those whom should be their partners in truth and love during perilous times. 

Aside: Contains some sexual material.

Week 5: Annotation 2

Labyrinth by  Kate Mosse

Genre: Adventure / Fantasy

Publication Date: 2005

Number of Pages: 508

Geographical Setting: Present day (2005) France / Medieval (1205) Aquitaine

Serie: First in Languedoc Trilogy

Plot Summary: Alice is our present day character and Alaïs is from 1205 Aquitaine.  Alice is unwittingly drawn into a mystery of monumental importance to her past and future.  She has always had dreams of Alaïs not knowing who she is, assuming that it is herself staged in a time period during the middle ages.  When Alice stumbles on a cave with a ring and labyrinth during an archeological dig as a volunteer, things start to spin out of control and seemingly—time.  The reader is thrown from one time to another wondering how it is all going to come together and how the two characters are connected.  While people around them (Alice and Alaïs) are disappearing or killed they are each in danger as they discover treachery and narrowly miss their own demise.  Not knowing whom to trust, each must trust her instincts as she tries to conquer evil and her own fears.

What makes this book an Adventure?

·      Individual(s) overcoming challenges for a moral purpose

·      Foreboding and danger around every corner

·      Setting is in exotic places

Appeal:

            Pacing—Compelling.  Readers are drawn to read further in order to find out how the heroines get out of sticky and/or dangerous situations. 

            Tone/Frame—Mystical, exotic, and dark.  The novel borders on fantasy as the storyline travels between two different time periods.  Battles, destruction, and death surround the characters as they fight their way through to a victory over evil.

            Style—Complex and detailed.  While the setting varies between two different time periods, the author uses appropriate and detailed setting, characterization, and language to engage the reader. 

Read Alikes--

Agincourt
by Bernard Cornwell
**Detailed, fast paced,
suspenseful,
historical fiction

Green Darkness 
by Anya Setoff
**Time Travel of heroine
into exotic Europe

Outlander
by Diana Gabaldon
**Fast paced, time travel,
historical fiction
suspenseful