"Ask Me What I'm Reading!"

[zenithblue]

The library I work for recently printed a bunch of little tags that say "Ask Me What I'm Reading!" You can then print an image of the book you want to talk about in the space beneath, and pin it to your nametag. They're very excited about this as a way to foster conversation and find new opportunities to provide a reader's advisory.

On Friday I had

Comments

[somethinghead]

Just put Carlton Mellick III books on your nametag. I think after the first grandmother you discuss Baby Jesus Butt Plug or Razor Wire Pubic Hair with, people will start to figure out that it's not such a good idea.

[zenithblue]

Amusingly enough, our library system actually owns both those titles.

That's the thing: we're all about intellectual freedom and non-censorship, but it's generally given that talking about some of those titles is a bad idea. It's like a swinging log trap.

[punkybrister69]

I am now thoroughly intrigued.
Is it advisable to actually read Mellick? I've never partaken.

[somethinghead]

I haven't actually read anything, some people like him. I was looking for a copy of Satan Burger which I hear is a good place to start with him, but I couldn't find it in stock anywhere near me.

[antarcticlust]

One of the Borders I worked out had "Just finished reading/listening/watching" name tags that we could write titles in. I actually liked those, because it started a lot of conversations. I agree that books should be "safe," and I think in bookstores you can almost get away with more of that than a library. I think I'd hate working in a library, as opposed to a bookstore, because (if this makes sense) in a library the books almost seem more commodified than in the store. In a story, having conversations with the staff is part of the experience being sold, but in a library (at least, in the Madison Public Library) that's unheard of. They really design the space so that it's not conducive to hang out, browse, and discuss books- you make your requests online, you pick them up from the request shelf (they recently made this so that you pick out your own requests on the shelf now, instead of them getting them for you), you can even self-checkout, as though at no point in the interaction did another human being become involved

[antarcticlust]

*In a STORE, not a STORY. Oops.

[zenithblue]

That's an interesting perspective (re: the more commodified library)...my experience has been the opposite. The library is designed as a communal experience, but because it's communal it pulls in an even more diverse population than a bookstore does. And because we're a government agency, we walk a funny line between viciously defending intellectual freedom and also presenting a safe and innocuous setting for all kinds of people. Multnomah County's pretty progressive, so by and large this isn't too hard, but the idea of having what could be a controversial opinionated conversation while at the same time being the person who collects money and handles accounts...well, it seems like it could be a mess waiting to happen

[antarcticlust]

I totally get all of your frustrations, and I definitely see your point in terms of a government agency versus a retail experience. I love browsing, and think of bookstores as places to spend a lot of time in, rather than an in-and-out experience. Maybe this stems from a sense of ownership over that kind of space because I've worked in so many of them

[decemberthirty]

Wow, did she actually say that last line? Because that's the point at which I would have been unable to resist the temptation to yell, "That's why I'm getting out! WA HA HA HA!"

I can think of few things that I would find more frustrating and personally oppressive than having to pretend to be reading some "appropriate" book, and then having watered-down conversations about why I like it so much. If you can't do it in a way that allows/encourages people to actually engage with books and with each other, then it shouldn't be done at all.

Besides, wearing a picture of a book on your chest only provides more encouragement for people to look at your tits.

[zenithblue]

It's true, I did realize as soon as I walked away from this post that I should think of it as a intellectual freedom experiment. Let's find out what happens when I put Lolita or something similar on my tag.

I think part of my knee-jerk dislike of the thing comes on the heels of a whole string of Lost Girls conversations I've had with coworkers in the past month, conversations which just seem to reveal a lot of the quiet hypocrisy of carrying books we're not comfortable talking about or alluding to in a measured way.

Admittedly, I've had more positive interactions with patrons over books than negative ones (I certainly don't avoid talking books when it feels appropriate). I just don't want to put my beloved totems out and subject them to "book-club-itis," where we only talk about the really easy and superficial parts of them.

Still, the tag as a form of deliberate mischief might be something I can get behind.

[zenithblue]

...laughing my ass off at that...

All my library posts seem to end with tits one way or another. I wonder if this is something I should be concerned about. Heh.

[johnnybrainwash]

I haven't seen these tags yet. I wonder if everyone knows better than to show them to me.

I foresee mayhem.

[zenithblue]

See, you're quicker than me. I had to yell about it a few days before realizing the mischief-potential. Now I'm getting a little excited.

And actually, our respective reactions probably are fairly good measures of our respective personalities.

[kiwikat]

i would feel exactly the same way.