I went to the Clark Pleasant branch (in Whiteland, IN.) of the Johnson County Public Library system. I had never actually been in this library before other than to post things up on their bulletin boards, so I was not exactly sure where I was going. Here is what I observed and experienced during my "mystery shop."
I went there in the evening around 6:30 so there were very few patrons and staff there at the time. When I first entered, I saw a desk that simply said "Information," and it looked like the only place to go for questions but there was not anyone at that desk. So not wanting to feel awkward, I roamed around the fiction section for about ten minutes or so and then proceeded back to the "Information" desk.
The first question I was asked before I could even say anything, was "Do you want to sign up for our Winter Reading program?" I guess it is good that they are promoting library programs, but at the same time I felt a little guilty for not wanting to sign up for their program at that time. I also thought it could turn people away as they might think that that desk is only for signing up for the "Winter Reading Program," and I do not believe that is actually the case. I said no actually I just wanted to know if she could help me find a good book to read.
The librarian did ask me a few questions. She asked me what I liked and/or wanted to read, and I said mysteries (of course). The librarian then told me that she was a children's librarian there, and not real familiar with adult fiction. That was the point at which I expected her to either use some of the reader's advisory tools that we learned about in class or even go get another librarian who might be more knowledgeable about adult fiction.
However, she did not do either of those. She simply said she mainly has to know children's materials, but does try to read some YA and adult fiction/nonfiction so she knows some authors/titles who may be good in those areas. So, next she went straight to what she knew in the area. However, the first place she took me was the large print materials, and I do not know if that was because it was closest to the desk she was sitting at or because maybe her eyesight was bad.
She said she had been reading an author (Lisa Scottoline) that she really enjoyed, and wanted to see if they had her books. She found Lisa Scottoline, who by the way, writes legal thrillers, in large print and then proceeded on to locate her books in the regular fiction section. This librarian said she imagined that anything by her (Lisa Scottoline) would be good, which as we all know an author can be good but that does not mean that everything they write is good. I like Patricia Cornwell a lot, but I do not like every book that she has written, one in particular comes to mind, it is called "Predator."
This librarian also made sure to state that these books did not have a lot of foul language in them, which I assumed was something that she did not care for in books. I read Patricia Cornwell, who tends to throw a lot of curse words into her books and that does not bother me. Surprisingly, this librarian also said she had listened to one of Patricia Cornwell's books ("From Potter's Field") on audio--I am not sure if that book had foul language in it or not.
Next, she pondered what other authors she knew and then proceeded to pull all of Nicholas Sparks' books off the shelf. I am not sure how "I like to read mysteries, and really want to read a new mystery book" translated to Nicholas Sparks. She did also ask if I was interested in biographies or just fiction, and I said "no just fiction." Since I had asked for mysteries, I was waiting to see if she would mention Patricia Cornwell. She eventually did, but I said I had read all of her books (not true) :) and wanted something else kind of like what she writes. The librarian pointed out one other author-Kathy Reichs, who writes forensic thrillers/mysteries and is maybe closer to something that I would be interested in reading. The FOX TV series "Bones" is inspired by or based on her books, which I thought was interesting even though I have never seen this show.
She did also point out that the mystery books were labeled as such on the shelf, but at the same time said "and we have a lot of inspirational fiction." Again, I assume this is something that she likes to read so she assumes that I will, too.
Overall, I cannot say that she did a lot to find me a good book and the books by Kathy Reichs were probably the closest that she came to finding what I was looking for. I am intrigued by her books, although I do not know how much I will really like them. (After looking at NoveList, I think she may have hit it right on the nail with Kathy Reichs because NoveList has Patricia Cornwell as the number one read-alike. I thought these this author sounded very similar to Cornwell, and I was correct. The suggestion of Reichs was from books that her kids read I believe though, so she could not give me a lot of information on this author.) I think this reader's advisory interview could have been a lot better if she A.) used some of the tools we discussed in class and/or B.) went and got another librarian (this may have not been a sensible option to her though as I think I counted four employees in the entire library at the time). She was very pleasant and good at making conversation though, and at least made a good effort to help me find what I needed. I did also check-out a Janet Evanovich book, one of Kathy Reich's books, and another random book marked mystery that I found on the shelf.
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