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b_is_for_bibliophile 's review for:
The Secret Lives of Booksellers and Librarians
by Matt Eversmann, James Patterson
inspiring
reflective
Of course, as a fellow life-long reader myself, the title is what drew me in. It was interesting to see the different titles that are included in the bookish world of employment and how many ways librarians and booksellers engage the community to promote literacy.
I have no complaints about the content of the stories themselves. I think anyone who is a lifelong reader will have a very similar story, starting young because a family member was themselves a reader and continuing throughout their life.
However, I do have complaints about the editing and formatting of the book itself. For starters, there are five parts with titles (Part One: To be a bookseller, you have to play detective), which I thought was super cute, except that the stories contained typically had nothing to do with the title. For example, for part one I was excited to read about helping customers find books with "a blue cover" or whatever other example. While there were several stories throughout the book of sellers and librarians conducting their reference interviews to gather information about the titles, they were spread throughout and not focused into the section hinting at such content. I would have preferred no titles to the sections over this.
Another complaint is the focus on having so many voices that the editing went too far. Each story was boiled down to the same facts, with some stories containing more substance than others. Nearly every story included how the individual was a lifelong reader who "devoured" (used so many times) books and loved to help others find their own books. The reference stories were boiled down to giving a recommendation and those individuals coming back to get more because they loved the recommendations. At that point, it was so many filler words. I would have loved to have longer stories that focus on unique and creative ways that these professions give back to their communities, like the juvenile justice system library or the prison library support or special libraries. There was a medical librarian, but no other special libraries were mentioned, and even though the title was dropped once in the book, there was no other information offered. It's not a secret that many people who work with books love books and recommend to their patrons and help find books. The editors could have really worked to showcase just how much these establishments do for their communities. They were cute but ultimately fluff pieces for the most part.
Another complaint is the use of present tense chosen for this book. Even when the individuals were talking about the past, it was written as if it was happening in the present, and that doesn't seem natural even if we're thinking from a storytelling standpoint. If I was talking about my reading journey, I would use past for what happened in my younger years and transition into present as my story travels the years to join me where I am in life now. It was definitely a choice and I don't think it came across very well.
Why did James Patterson's name need to be in so many stories? We all know he's an author, and his name is already on the cover in a larger font that his co-writer. It was awkward and felt clunky, like those awkward advertisements or product placement in movies/tv shows, and unfortunately, I cared a little less about those stories as a result.
Overall, this book is filled with sweet, heartfelt, meaningful stories of what it means to live and work in the book world, taking into account how it used to be and what reading has become today, complete with shoutouts to BookTok and book banning. These stories are best taken in chunks, otherwise they might start to seem a little too repetitive. Fun read and cool to see all the positions open for book lovers out there.
I have no complaints about the content of the stories themselves. I think anyone who is a lifelong reader will have a very similar story, starting young because a family member was themselves a reader and continuing throughout their life.
However, I do have complaints about the editing and formatting of the book itself. For starters, there are five parts with titles (Part One: To be a bookseller, you have to play detective), which I thought was super cute, except that the stories contained typically had nothing to do with the title. For example, for part one I was excited to read about helping customers find books with "a blue cover" or whatever other example. While there were several stories throughout the book of sellers and librarians conducting their reference interviews to gather information about the titles, they were spread throughout and not focused into the section hinting at such content. I would have preferred no titles to the sections over this.
Another complaint is the focus on having so many voices that the editing went too far. Each story was boiled down to the same facts, with some stories containing more substance than others. Nearly every story included how the individual was a lifelong reader who "devoured" (used so many times) books and loved to help others find their own books. The reference stories were boiled down to giving a recommendation and those individuals coming back to get more because they loved the recommendations. At that point, it was so many filler words. I would have loved to have longer stories that focus on unique and creative ways that these professions give back to their communities, like the juvenile justice system library or the prison library support or special libraries. There was a medical librarian, but no other special libraries were mentioned, and even though the title was dropped once in the book, there was no other information offered. It's not a secret that many people who work with books love books and recommend to their patrons and help find books. The editors could have really worked to showcase just how much these establishments do for their communities. They were cute but ultimately fluff pieces for the most part.
Another complaint is the use of present tense chosen for this book. Even when the individuals were talking about the past, it was written as if it was happening in the present, and that doesn't seem natural even if we're thinking from a storytelling standpoint. If I was talking about my reading journey, I would use past for what happened in my younger years and transition into present as my story travels the years to join me where I am in life now. It was definitely a choice and I don't think it came across very well.
Why did James Patterson's name need to be in so many stories? We all know he's an author, and his name is already on the cover in a larger font that his co-writer. It was awkward and felt clunky, like those awkward advertisements or product placement in movies/tv shows, and unfortunately, I cared a little less about those stories as a result.
Overall, this book is filled with sweet, heartfelt, meaningful stories of what it means to live and work in the book world, taking into account how it used to be and what reading has become today, complete with shoutouts to BookTok and book banning. These stories are best taken in chunks, otherwise they might start to seem a little too repetitive. Fun read and cool to see all the positions open for book lovers out there.