Week 5: Assignment 1

I chose the Urban Street Fiction Link from the Recommended Links- Genre and the Early Word site from the Recommended Links- Books. I really liked the layout of the Urban Fiction Link and the manner in which each genre was succintly defined at the top of the site. Those who happen upon this link without much experience with Street Fiction can use the definitions to choose a comfortable level from which to explore this gritty, often racy genre. This is also a good site to find an appropriate title to suit the street fiction - loving customer's taste to a tee. Since we do not categorize Street Fiction by their specific type such as teen, christian or urban non-fiction on our library shelves, it is very handy to find the most popular and current titles summarized and organized at our fingertips to read or print out for customers. I also liked that each book  synopsis is followed by two or three similiar recommended titles.

The Early Word site is a refteshing change from the average book link. Not just the go to place for the next good read, it is designed to bring librarians together to exchange ideas, share news and to find out which books are generating the most excitement and controversy across the country. In the busy world of the public library, in your own neck of the woods, it is easy to feel disconnected from the challenges and progress of the global library. Here is a chance to keep our collections fresh, to be competitive and to maintain our knowledge of current reading trends, by sharing resources and learning from other library systems via live chat, tweet or email. This site is a platform to share our private responses to books (which we love to do!) but also sheds light on the public impact of literature on our world - on other forms of media such as television, news and film.