Week 11 Prompt

With the evolution of libraries and services we provide, ebooks and audiobooks have definitely become a staple in library collections everywhere.

What does the change in medium mean for appeal factors?
With the change from physical copies and the move for digital experiences so too have the possible appeal factors in reader's advisory. One of the main things that I found, when working with teens and this discussion expanded into adults, was that when it came to ebooks, convincing themselves to read longer books was much easier. Often times the width of a book would be something that intimidated them as readers, however because a device that reads ebooks are thin, they felt more confident in starting a larger book. I think another thing to consider when thinking about appeal factors is that the e-reader gives options that the reader may never have been able to deal with. I personally have a Kindle Paperwhite and this device, while not super technologically impressive, it gives light on the screen that can be adjusted so that while my wife is sleeping I can continue to read without bothering her. Often times the devices in which you listen to audiobooks or read ebooks have long battery life and because of that they can be taken on trips without taking up room like hard copy of books might. My previous library had nooks with preloaded titles on it for patrons to check out. I was told on numerous occasions that patrons would check these out before they went on vacations because of the convenience associated with them. The Nooks were preloaded with materials that crossed a wide variety of genres and interests to ensure that there would be something for every reader. 


If you can't hold a book and feel the physical weight of it in your hands, how does that affect your knowledge of the genre?
When it comes to the "physical"ness of a book, I'm not entirely sure that it affects my knowledge of the overall genre. However, with that said, I believe that the electronic devices and reading associated with books can either enhance your experience or detract. Fore instance, when looking at the romance genre, which is predominately an ebook reading powerhouse, I don't believe that the fact that it is a electronic copy makes much difference. These books are often times quick in pace to fit with the "action" that is going on with them and with just one push of a button the page turns, keeping the general pace of the book flowing. As mentioned earlier, when it comes to the fantasy genre, I can see electronic devices being a blessing for those patrons who are intimidated by the sheer size of the books, but contrary to that the reader may lose the sense of maps and extras that the physical copies of the books give out. Without easy access to these extras the magic of the genre can be lost and with that the sheer knowledge of what that specific genre could be. 

How about readers being able to change the font, line spacing, and color of text- how does that effect pacing and tone?
Changing the font, line spacing, and color of text can definitely be something that both enhances and detracts from the possible intent of the author. One subject area that comes to mind where making changes may effect the overall pacing and tone is Poetry. Often times the poet/author may want the poem to be laid out a specific way which gives proper rhythm and pacing to the content, if the reader changes that, the pacing could be thrown off. When it comes to books about horror that have a darker tone, changing the background color to black might aide in the feeling of darkness that the book is trying to achieve. 

How about audiobooks? Track length, narrator choice, is there music?
Audiobooks are something that I personally never tackle because I find them extremely boring and when I read, I like to read at my pace. One thing I have noticed though is that many people are turning to downloadable audiobooks because more and more finding a CD player in cars and elsewhere is becoming increasingly difficult. When patrons have issues where they don't like to read, or have a long commute (as is the case in Dallas, the commute part at least) audiobooks are a great suggestion for them. Sometimes the sheer amount of hours associated with the audiobooks intimidates listeners, but when I explain that most "tracks" are only 3-10 minutes long, they feel like they might be able to tackle listening to it. I've also found that audiobooks with a full production team including multiple narrator's and music tend to sit better with patrons as these are in reality a "movie" without pictures. Audiobooks can play into the different genres with the "cast" of narrators they choose to include.