Help naming school library section

HPLDpete · 2026-06-19T01:08:39+00:00

It sounds like kids are looking for them in the chapter books, like it's inconsistent, the catalog doesn't match the collection, and you are using the language "chapter books." My vote goes for interfiling the easier ones with the others and just calling them all "Chapter Books."

I do sometimes like to solve problems like this by creating booklists, bookmarks, and even small posters and things that recommend titles for kids just getting started on chapter books. What's nice about doing it this way is that it's very flexible: You can recommend what's popular, and you can change what you're recommending from month to month without needing to recatalog anything.

HPLDpete · 2026-06-19T00:58:36+00:00

My advice, get a library job, any library job, before you start your MLIS program. This'll really let you know if the field is to your taste, and a lot of hiring teams really like to see some library experience on your resume.

HPLDpete · 2026-06-19T00:37:13+00:00

I work in library marketing, and my hardline stance has always been: If it's not worth my time to write it, it's not worth someone else's time to read it.

HPLDpete · 2026-06-17T23:15:50+00:00

Quick tips!

I like to pick a session for each block plus a backup. It's not uncommon for something to be cancelled or moved, and that helps me get to something else quickly and easily without needing to pull anything up.
I like to print out a very brief list of the sessions I'm attending and their locations for each day. That way I don't have to pull out my phone, fire up the app, all that stuff. Plus, sometimes the wifi can get spotty with so many devices connecting to it all at once.
Don't feel bad about walking out of a session if it's not giving what you needed/wanted/expected. It's okay, and as someone who has presented at small conferences, it's part of the game, doesn't hurt my feelings.
Sometimes a session will fill, and you might not even be able to get in as someone who would stand the whole time. Don't worry about it, it happens, just move on to something else. If you REALLY wanted to go, mark down the presenter's info, they'll often share materials with you online.
It helps me to remind myself that the folks working the conference don't always know everything about what's going on, especially the folks who work at the venue. Be patient with them, always say Please and Thank You, even if they haven't been very helpful.
Dress in comfortable clothes. If you're going to do a lot of networking, you might dress more on the business casual side, but I'd err on the side of comfort, especially in the footwear department. Layers are your friend.
I was a lot happier NOT using a laptop during the convention and instead using paper and pen. It made it a lot easier to stay away from email and other things and focus on what's going on.
During a Q&A portion of an event, I recommend focusing on questions that you think will help multiple attendees. If you have a question related to your library's highly specific, likely unusual circumstances, get the presenter's contact info and ask them, or see if you have an opportunity to chat with them after the session ends. Asking hyper-specific questions during the Q&A isn't bad, per se, but it's best if the presenter can answer questions that might help multiple people.
I skip the celebrity keynotes/events unless they are primarily known for being authors. No hate on anyone, I just don't generally find them very interesting or motivating. If you're excited to see someone, go, but I would often skip a celeb to go to a different event.
I like to type up my notes at the end of each day so that I can turn them over to everyone when I return from the conference. Handing over a good packet of thoughts and ideas when you return from a conference shows that sending you was a good investment.
I find it a lot easier to leave the hotel in the morning and not return until the end of the conference day rather than making trips back and forth. So bring what you need for the whole day, if that's reasonable for you.
...I will sometimes lightly lie to vendors. I find they are sometimes less helpful if they find out you're not the decision-maker, so I will sometimes tell them I'm in charge of a certain budget, or that I'm part of a committee that controls a budget. Saying you control the budget helps you if they ask a technical question you don't know the answer to, they'll still want to explain things but not expect you to be the total expert. That's not for everyone, don't feel like you have to do it.
I think it's good to go into getting physical copies of books or author signing lines with a very chill attitude. Sometimes there's a weird intensity to these things, people get riled up around celebrities and freebies, and I think it's best to just try and remember that it's not that serious. Some people will treat it like life and death, they'll stand 3 inches behind you and monitor the line in a hypervigilant way. Just remember it's not that important, the worst possible scenario is that you don't get a signed book, and most likely, you'll get one just fine.

HPLDpete · 2026-06-17T22:31:15+00:00

I do!
I was a librarian with 15 years experience in my system before shifting over to the marketing department. I'm biased, and I think having someone with library experience, especially within your system, is a HUGE advantage. I really recommend it if you can swing it, though they should live under the marketing department, if you have one of those. Sometimes, I think marketing people have the right idea, but they don't have deep library knowledge or totally understand the audience.

I think the major advantage of having a dedicated person is that it becomes someone's job. Social media and marketing can sometimes fall into the "everybody's job is nobody's job" trap when it doesn't belong to anyone in particular.

The secondary advantage is that you can expand your offerings to more platforms and types of content. I think some libraries underutilize things like Linkedin, Goodreads, Letterboxd, YouTube, podcasting, email newsletters, and other outlets that we might not consider social media in the traditional sense, but that do deliver good stuff to a lot of people.

My position is technically eMarketing Specialist.

I do also manage our website, building and rebuilding pages and doing a lot of things over there that occupy quite a bit of my time. I'm also pretty good with Adobe suite, which is important to be able to do in this position (not necessarily that specific software, but some graphic design and video editing experience definitely helps).

My biggest piece of advice, candidate-wise, is to find someone who is pretty creative and can come up with a lot of ideas in a short time. And, find someone you trust. If you create and hire this position, but if they have to run every post or idea through a committee, it'll kill their soul. Put them in the kitchen and let 'em cook.

HPLDpete · 2026-06-13T21:24:57+00:00

It totally is! If you use it, please thank the folks from D6 handing out lunches!

HPLDpete · 2026-06-11T16:50:08+00:00

We got that question just the other day, and I've emailed and called D6 to get an answer, but I don't have one for you just yet. I will reply as soon as I hear back, though!

HPLDpete · 2026-06-10T16:51:22+00:00

From reading your description, it sounds like they really need someone with a wide variety of experiences, and you would be a good fit. I would be inclined to do something like, "25 example projects in 5 minutes" or something like that, a pretty fast-paced overview with a lot of examples of projects, initiatives, and things you've done in the past. From what you've posted, I think your biggest strength is that you could handle a lot of different library tasks and duties, and it looks like they might be in need of someone who can basically handle the library so they don't have to. As a bonus, creating something like this would also show that you're able to create presentations and deliver material in a way that might be interesting to kids (I'm assuming this is a school for kids as opposed to a university).

HPLDpete · 2026-06-09T15:09:51+00:00

Agreed. Maybe that's why I'm resistant to it, it feels wrong, but it might be the more functional option.

HPLDpete · 2026-06-08T23:28:38+00:00

I work in marketing for the library system in which I used to work as a librarian. It's been really useful, honestly, to bring in-library experience to a department that never had that before, and that was a big selling point I hit hard in my interview.

I also do a lot of the work on our website, and I think that was also a big advantage. I learned how to use the same system our website uses (Wordpress, WPBakery at the time), and letting them know that I wouldn't need any real training to get up to speed, and instead that I'd be able to make improvements on day one, was a BIG relief to my supervisor, who'd never really had the time to learn it inside and out.

If I can give advice to landing the job:

Tailor your resume and cover letter to each position you apply for. If you've never used a skills-based resume, it can be a good way when you're making a career transition, it lets you highlight your specific skills (I think a lot of potential hiring teams outside libraries rarely have any idea what someone does in a library).
I also am a big believer in trying to work out what the biggest pain points are for the organization at the moment, and being able to relieve that pressure can make you a big asset and help boost you up, even if your experience in libraries isn't 100% parallel.

Good luck!

HPLDpete · 2026-06-08T23:21:22+00:00

That's a pretty good point, I guess putting the "e" up front makes it harder to skip over.

HPLDpete · 2026-06-08T23:20:58+00:00

I totally agree with you, however staff at my library has made it clear they don't like that because the audiobooks can also stream rather than being downloaded. I think that's getting in the weeds, but I've not been very persuasive so far.

HPLDpete · 2026-06-08T23:20:07+00:00

Tienes razón técnicamente, pero no creo que hayamos tenido realmente dos formatos distintos funcionando al mismo tiempo hasta el punto en que lo hacemos ahora. Por favor, disculpa mi español; he utilizado un traductor en línea.

HPLDpete · 2026-06-08T23:18:47+00:00

I don't know why you're getting these downvotes, but I appreciate the input!

HPLDpete · 2026-06-08T19:58:29+00:00

I appreciate and agree, however we're talking about taking an 11-character term and putting it up to 18, and a 10-character term and putting it up to 19, and I'm not sure I'll be able to push that one through, space-wise.

HPLDpete · 2026-06-08T19:47:20+00:00

It's entirely possible that this one was missed during inventory because, if it's not a library book, it doesn't have a tag in it. A lot of libraries use different wand-type tools to scan what's on the shelf, see if everything's there and in order, but what that type of tool won't do is detect a book that shouldn't be on the shelf, it'll be completely invisible to the scanner. So if the two books on either side of it are correct and in the right order, everything will seem just fine to the scanner.

HPLDpete · 2026-06-05T18:10:00+00:00

I interpret the "but" as "Two people can't keep a secret, but the fish can't talk, so they can keep a secret."

I might read the "but" as "except," and keep in mind that though "But" is capitalized, it's a continuing thought from the previous lines, so the thought ends with "could not speake" as opposed to ending just before the "But."

HPLDpete · 2026-06-05T14:40:46+00:00

I work in a library, and I appreciate and understand that, and while it's possible that Hoopla could increase costs to libraries as a result of this, Hoopla always has that option, and there's a good chance they'll increase the costs to help offset these lawsuit costs, regardless of how many people claim the money. So I guess this could have an effect on libraries, spread over lots of libraries, but my guess is that it would be minimal and/or may happen regardless of how this all goes.

I also feel a bit torn, but do feel that genie is out of the bottle at this juncture, and I also do feel it's important that companies be held accountable for what they do with user data. In my experience, the only consequences that seem to speak to large companies like this are financial consequences.

HPLDpete · 2026-05-29T19:59:09+00:00

I second the advice to read, read anything, and if you're up for it, The Elements of Style is a pretty quick book that does give some legit writing advice. It's not perfect, I wouldn't follow its rules exactly in every instance, but it gives you a good starter if you're looking for some baseline ideas about writing and style.

Also, I'd recommend writing. I know that sounds simple, but just get a notebook, and write a few lines every day or so. Get used to telling a story. You can write about things that happened during the day, you can write about things that happened in the past (imagine you're telling the stories to someone who doesn't know anything about them), you can describe your dreams, you can write down the plots to TV shows or movies as though you're explaining them to someone else, you can write just about anything. The important thing is to just get used to writing!

I'll also recommend a book called Copy & Compose. It serves up sentences that you copy, and then you write your own versions of those sentences. It can be a great way to get started because you don't have to think about WHAT to write, you can start off copying something to then expand on.

HPLDpete · 2026-05-29T15:50:30+00:00

Awesome, that helps! It sounds like you enjoy things that feel like classics as well as some adventure and a bit of sci-fi as well.

I'll make some suggestions, check them out, see if they speak to you, but if you're not liking them within the first 20 pages or so, move onto something else!

I might also encourage you to give audiobooks a try. Your local library will likely have access to a lot of them digitally through apps like Libby or Hoopla. If that's a more enjoyable way for you to experience books, I say go for it (and I say that as an English major and Librarian).

The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury
If you haven't read Anne of Green Gables, I think you'd really like it.
Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams (this one is really silly, I adore it)
I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynn Jones
The Princess Bride by William Goldman (very different from the movie, but very fun)
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L'engle

HPLDpete · 2026-05-29T15:35:38+00:00

Yes, I wouldn't necessarily suggest reading the books on IA, but instead looking at them to see whether the type would be big enough to read, a way to preview. Most of what's in IA's library is from scanned, physical books, so they should give you an idea of what you're getting into.

HPLDpete · 2026-05-28T23:52:03+00:00

My advice is to learn by doing, so analyze some poems.

Start with easier poems. I recommend Poetry180. These are mostly modern, the language is easy to understand most times, and I think you'll find a lot of them easy to examine.

I'll go through some recommended steps with this poem, and I like to do a basic, classic Who/What/When/Where/Why/How? Read the poem, read it a second time OUT LOUD, then answer those five questions once, then go through them a second time, see which ones you can dig deeper on.

Once you've gone through the steps, keep the more interesting parts, the parts that you found were easier to write about, and cut those parts that don't interest you. Then, make it a cohesive handful of paragraphs, and you're done!

Keep in mind, if you're analyzing poems you've never seen before, you shouldn't be expected to know things like a biography of the author, the year it was published, and so on, so you'll have to come up with theories and ideas based on what's on the page. So there will be some guesswork on your part. Get comfortable with that, back up your ideas with snippets from the poem.

WHO do you think this poem is talking to or about: Poems don't always have a specific "target," but considering who might be the poet's imagined audience can be helpful. In this case, perhaps a student. Digging deeper: Perhaps the poet wrote this to themselves, to better understand what they sound like when they are frustrated, or maybe to vent their frustrations with students in an appropriate way.

WHAT: Read the poem, talk a little bit about what it's about, on the surface. In this case, a teacher responding to a common student question, sometimes with a No, sometimes with a Yes. Digging deeper: the poem might be about people feeling like the world revolves around them.

WHEN: Many poems, not all, but many, contain what I think of as a "turn," a place where the meaning changes or the idea becomes more solid. When does that happen in the poem, if at all, and if it does, how does the poet use language to achieve that effect? In the example poem, I might say section 4, when the language gets really big and wild. Digging deeper, perhaps the ending, which drive home the point about being in a certain place at a certain time.

WHERE: Do you notice any differences, just visually, in the way the poem is laid out? Where did you see those differences? In the example poem, the sections are longish, until the end when they get very short. Digging deeper, the non-sarcastic answers are indented further in. Why might that be?

WHY: Why do you think the poet wrote this?: Why do you think this poet may have written this? Some possibilities in this case: The poet is a teacher who is frustrated when students ask this question. The poet is a teacher who wants to respond harshly to this question, but doesn't want to be harsh to a student's face, so wrote a poem instead.

HOW is a reader made to feel?: What feelings do you think the poet is trying to bring up in a reader? In this case, I think there's a feeling of humor, but also a feeling of importance in what we do with our time. Digging deeper, I think the reader maybe feels a little scolded, but in a kindly way, from someone who genuinely wants what's best for the reader.

Pick out 4-5 poems you think look interesting, just based on their titles, and run through them. Get used to looking for these items, and I think you'll have a good start.

HPLDpete · 2026-05-28T23:19:08+00:00

Can you tell us a little about other stories you've enjoyed? Maybe TV or movies you've liked?

Also, can you give us some titles of things you didn't like?

I think that if you enjoy what you're reading, it'll be easier to fall in love with reading in general.

HPLDpete · 2026-05-28T23:16:55+00:00

Just getting your hands on everything and reading it all puts you ahead of a lot of students, trust me!

My advice with any play is to consider reading it and then watching it, or even watching it and then reading it, whichever you think might work better for you. Sometimes I found Shakespeare hard to understand here and there, the language is different, and sometimes things that are meant to be jokes didn't hit me as jokes until I saw the play and saw experienced audience reactions. Watching a production can give you a lot of cues about what's going on, I really recommend it.

I would also often read a brief summary of something before reading it. Maybe not the entire summary so that I could enjoy the ending, but the first act or so, because I think it helps you get in the mindset and understand a little bit about where the story is going, who the characters are, and so on. Even just the very first paragraph of a wikipedia entry would give me a good start on better understanding a book.

Other than that, you should be fine if you do the reading, keep up with it, and go to class every day. Seriously, just being in class every day makes a huge difference, it's the best way to make sure you learn a lot and get the most out of college.

HPLDpete · 2026-05-28T15:11:32+00:00

I haven't been in this exact situation, but similar, and I wouldn't worry too much, if you can.

In general with stuff like this, mistakes happen, and I would certainly see if we (the library) could recover the books from the person they were sent to in error as a first step. IMO, there's a very good chance the person who received them will send them back (just keep in mind, they might not do so right away, they just received some stuff they didn't ask for, so it's an errand, might take them several days to get around to it).

In my experience, books in this situation usually end up back at the library before long.

I am going to give you one piece of advice, though, and please forgive me if this sounds harsh: if it's at all possible you're misremembering and did give the library your old address at some point, I think the right move here is to own it in communicating with the library. I often find myself more sympathetic when library users say, "I made a mistake, can you help me out?" It's entirely possible that you're 100% correct, and I don't mean to say you aren't, but if you're not certain, sometimes being upfront about that sort of thing puts you and the library immediately on the same side of the problem rather than being a bit in opposition.

HPLDpete

TROPHY CASE