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**NSW Readers Advisory Working Group meeting minutes**

Friday 3 July 2009, Liverpool Library

10am-12.15pm

Chair: Jenn Martin

Minutes: Therese Scott

====1. Attendance:====

  * Therese Scott (Ashfield)
  * Janelle Anderson (Kogarah)
  * Carolyn Bourke (Fairfield)
  * Fran Inkster (Manly)
  * Christine Giles(Balmain)
  * Trevor Sutcu (Bankstown) 
  * Donna Lawrence (Bankstown)
  * Yan Zhang (Parramatta)
  * Will Coombe (Lane Cove)
  * Samson Leung (Canada Bay)
  * Lin Goodaizi (Canada Bay)
  * Ken Klippel (Marrickville)
  * Jane Broadbare (Mosman)
  * Jenn Martin (Auburn)
  * Vassiliki Veros (City of Sydney)
  * Fay Gilliver (Bankstown)
  * Kate Nalder (Central Northern Regional Library-Tamworth)

====2. Apologies:====

  * Virginia Ghezzi (Camden)
  * Ellen Forsyth (State Library)
  * Sue Leverington (Port Stephens)


====3. RA Wiki demonstration====

Jenn gave us a run through on the ra wiki and created a new boo
group questions page ready for people to add content.

====4. RA Blog demo and groups on Flickr and the RISG Wiki====

Wiki members are encouraged to add lists and photos to flickr account to get some more images for the blog.
We should promote this idea to our library readers ie: adding photos of themselves reading.
Jenn gave a demo of flickr photo accounts, photostreams and how to send photos to other groups.

RISG wiki gives you a different perspective on reference and ra work.

====5. Discussion of possible survey and about how library clients and others find what they want to read.==== 

  * This is about the creation of a survey to send to all public libraries using survey monkey.
  * What kind of dialogue can we use to make sure patrons are walking away satisfied but empty handed? ie: ‘these look good but I won’t borrow anything today’. It’s all about building trust and relationships so they will come back and ask you again.
  * Methods include doing an exit survey of current customers to see how happy they are and then explore self help approaches of how people are finding information now.
  * Customers from different libraries all have different needs.
  * Some questions could be framed around: what people want to read, then how do they find it, and then build a profile of a person. The profile could then be a file of aust/nsw readers, send it through council, Facebook, libraries, probably need paper format first or put a laptop on the desk and help them to fill in. Vassiliki Veros from City of Sydney will help set up questions along with Jenn from Auburn, Therese from Ashfield and Ellen from State Library.
  * A page will be created on the wiki.

====6. Update on Readers Advisory training and readers advisory displays.====

**RA Training:**
Fairfield recently completed the rewarding reading training and then many staff at Fairfield were trained. Expressions of interest were sought to be on the readers’ advisory team. Staff from: housebound, books clubs, branch staff were interested. Ended up with more than needed so will train again next year. They created a blog on wordpress: ‘reading Fairfield’. Staff had to do homework and read outside their zone, and then they had to be in a book group to see what it was like to be in one. Blog could become a RA online training tool.
Fairfield trying to implement readers’ advisory thinking in the work of all staff.

**Displays:**
  * Vassiliki from Ultimo Library recently did a display called ‘its worth the effort!’ : a display of huge quarto or folio books which don’t usually get borrowed as they are so big but there are some wonderful titles in this collection.

  * Fairfield has electronic displays of new books or displays on a plasma screen in the library and their pcs have them as screensavers.of these new titles.

====7. Bibliotherapy: What partnerships do libraries already have , how do we progress this idea.==== 

Jenn from Auburn has written an article about bibliotherapy on the ALIA website: http://www.alia.org.au/governance/committees/public.libraries/summit09/pdfs/bibliotheraphy.Recommendation.pdf

Bibliotherapy includes producing prescription pamphlet for books, reading lists, etc. Ellen and Jenn have been asking are there partnerships between libraries and health services?

Maybe make connections with local doctors, psychiatrists, hospitals, cancer council, beyond blue, Alzheimer’s, local relevant government departments, Patrons often come to library to ask for medical advice and help as it is seen as non threatening. Good for libraries as it increases customer base and good for health care as they are overloaded anyway.
Perhaps we could go to the organizations en masse and propose that various public libraries want to create bibliotherapy lists, how can you help?

Bibliotherapy is also about escapism as is generally though fiction reading. We could talk to our book group members to see if they use the meetings as their bibliotherapy.

Will from Lane Cove said Council has a Men’s Shed (as does Ashfield) and the want to try to get the members to visit the library.

Auburn has a Living Library, Balmain branch libraries have baby health care nurses giving talks, Lane Cove living library book is a cancer survivor and is a keen ‘book’ who wants to talk about the experience : all of these are aspects of bibliotherapy.

=====8. Hard to please readers====
Sometimes it is best to encourage patrons to go elsewhere if they just can’t find something they want to borrow. This can be successfully achieved after rapport has been built. Create a cheat sheet of staff reading preferences to assist with helping hard to please readers.

====9. Adult Summer Reading Club====

  * Mosman has a summer and winter reading club for adults.
Patrons fill in a review card and a winner is drawn each week. There are prizes, free reserves, book vouchers etc. Review is published on Mosman Library website.
Bingo sheets at Lane Cove: Xmas hampers for kids and adults (food, wine, biscuits) : borrow and enter as many times as you borrow, usually there are 500 entries in each box.
The theme for a large scale summer reading club for adults could fit in with the summer reading challenge theme for children.
  * Randwick has a history reading club, there is a men’s book group at Mosman and Canterbury.

====10. Readers Day and Readers Week====

We decided to celebrate Readers Day /Readers Week during 26 October-3 November.
Vassiliki is checking the copyright of a possible fantastic theme called : “drop everything and read” as it is already being used.
In some ways we are preaching to the converted with readers day etc.
Some possible strategies include: a reading in public promotion (put the pics on flickr!) a reader in residence or a series of readers in residence positioned in a chair in the library. There is already a readers’ week page on the RA wiki and we will create a new flickr group. Please update lists on wiki if you have ideas!

====11. Big Book Club and 50 Books you can't put down====

Has everyone registered for both promotions?

====12. Other Business====

Fran congratulated Mosman on their information challenge between librarians and search engines.



====13.  What are we reading====
  * 
  * The fountainhead : Ayn Rand
  * The bloody white baron : James Palmer
  * Mr Pip : Lloyd Jones
  * Blink : Malcolm Gladwell
  * English Women’s Weekly short stories
  * Dewey the library cat
  * Gone tomorrow : Lee Child
  * The Red Princess (biography)
  * Belly dancing for beginners : Liz Byrski
  * The lonely passion of Judith Hearne : Brian Moore
  * Breath : Tim Winton
  * American Rust : Philip Meyer
  * Lord of scoundrels : Loretta
  * Superdove ; Courtney Humphries
  * Various Janet Evanovich titles
  * Alyssa Milano : memoir about baseball
  * My life as a traitor
  * Scarecrow : Michael Connelly
  * Kiss of Saddam : Michelle McDonald
  * Yiddish Policeman’s Union : Michael Chabon
  * Larry’s party : Carol Shields
  * The girl who played with fire : Stieg Larsson
  * Sham for peace : Sportts Frederick
  * Mystery of Olga Chakola : Antony Beevor
  * The Slap : Christos Tsiolkas
  * Glenn McGrath autobiography
  * Newspapers, magazines, websites about Michael Jackson.

====14. Next Meeting====

Friday November 27 2009 10am 

Tomaree Library and Community Centre
Town Centre Circuit
Salamander NSW 2317
Ph 4982 0670
Fax 4982 0930
Email: sue.leverington@portstephens.nsw.gov.au

Please rsvp to Sue and contact her for directions.