How To Recommend Books: A Guide for Patrons, by a Library Page

Hello, library patron!

So, you want to recommend books to your local librarian/library page. Great! Library workers, as a general rule, like books, and are always on the lookout for new authors they might enjoy. But, you're having some trouble finding the right way to recommend that great author whom you love so much. You don't want to offend them, and you don't want to bore them. Here is a handy-dandy guide, written by a genuine library worker, employing examples from her four years of library service.

Here are some successful approaches:

1. The direct approach. "You should read Agatha Christie." A bit blunt, but effective. Keep in mind, this should be said in a nice tone of voice, since it could sound sort of rude.

2. The Why-You-Like-An-Author approach. "Have you read anything by Janet Evanovich? You should, she's really funny. She always makes me laugh out loud." Also direct, but with a bit more background.

3. The I-Just-Really-Like-This-Book Approach. "I thought that The Time Traveler's Wife was really good. You should read it." This works.

4. The mutual interest approach. "You like Patrick O'Brian? If you like military history of that period, you should read Bernard Cornwell- he wrote a series of books about the army during the Napoleonic Wars." This is my favorite approach, but it does require some knowledge about your librarian's interests.

5. The Same-Author Approach. "If you liked Dawn's Early Light and Yankee Stranger, you should read Queen's Folly. I like Elswyth Thane." If you know that they like an author, this is always a good plan. Even if they have already read the book, it can lead to fun conversations.

6. The Sequel-By-Another-Author Approach. "You like Sherlock Holmes? Have you read Laurie R. King? She wrote some sequels about him and his apprentice, Mary Russell." If it's a good sequel, this is great. (And in the case of Sherlock Holmes, he of the many pastiches, they might well have something to reccomend back. For example, The Case of Emily V.) (This is also true for sequels of Pride and Prejudice, though many librarians are highly opinionated about these.)

7. The Genre Approach. "You like historical fiction? Try reading Rosemary Sutcliffe, she's a good author." Also effective.

8. The Parroting-Popular-Opinion Approach. "You should read Twilight. Everyone says it's great." It's not the best approach, but public opinion often is decent in regards to books. I mean, The Kite Runner was popular for a reason, right?

9. The What-The-Heck Approach. "I found this book for you in the stacks. Take it out and read it. You'll like it." This is not the best approach, but it will probably make your librarian friend laugh, and that is nice too.

And, two bad approaches.

1. The Offensive-Snobbery-For-No-Good-Reason Approach. "You should read Laurell K. Hamilton. If you don't, people will think you're illiterate." Gee, thanks, lady.

2. The WTF Approach. "I hated this book. I have no idea why my wife ordered it. You can read it if you want." Err, thanks?

Feel free to print out this hand guide to carry with you.