Secret Shopper Assignment

For this assignment, I went to my local library. I felt comfortable choosing this location because I have not been there recently, my school library has been meeting my needs.

Upon arriving at the library I approached the reference desk, where the reference librarian was sitting.  I told the librarian that I was wanting to try a new genre, horror, something written in the last five years.  Her immediate response was that was not her area and she really didn’t know, but she could show me the paperbacks they had that were horror and they should be more modern.

On the way to the paperback section, she stopped at the circulation desk upon seeing the circulation manager. She told him I was looking for a horror book. He responded with “That’s not my area”, she agreed with him but asked for his assistance. He recommended anything by Stephen King, he is classic horror, try anything that was made into a movie, the older stuff, such as The It, The Stand, The Shining, and Carrie. He did say that he was not a big fan of King because he didn’t like the author’s endings. He also recommended Ray Bradbury and H.P. Lovecraft, both other horror authors.

The reference librarian then showed me to the paperback section and where the Stephen King books were located and told me where I could find the other two authors. I thanked her for her assistance. I checked out Stephen King’s Pet Semetary and book about zombies.

Neither the reference librarian or the circulation manager used the reader’s advisory interview. I believe things could have gone much smoother if either employee had used it. There are no signs in the library encouraging patrons to ask for help finding something to read. I think the library could benefit from adding some signs encouraging patrons to ask for a good book to read, having a Goodreads account for patrons to follow, and possibly posting what they are currently reading in the library. I also believe some training for the employees on NoveList and reader’s advisory interviews would be beneficial.