« But Whatever Happened to Your Sidebar? | Main | Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane »
June 20, 2007
Nancy Pearl Kicks All Kinds of Ass
“Reading a book is not something to be gotten through before you go on to the really great parts of your day; it should (and can) be something that makes the day a great one.”
-Nancy Pearl in Book Crush: For Kids and Teens – Recommended Reading for Every Mood, Moment, and Interest
I don’t care what anyone says: when I grow up, I want to be Nancy Pearl. I enjoy many things about librarianship, but the reason I decided to go to library school is that I feel better when I spend my days surrounded by books. It helps assuage my irrational fear of running out of reading material. Nancy Pearl is unabashedly all about the books, and I agree with her 125% when she talks about how libraries need to focus on their roots in print – that people still equate libraries with books and that this is a good thing we can and should build on.
I also agree with everything Pearl says in the introduction to her newest book, Book Crush. She touches on so many things that I wish I could make people believe about children and reading, especially in her discussions about how bribing and threatening kids into reading can impact children’s long-term attitudes toward reading and how vitally important it is for families to read together. Overall, the introduction reads like my philosophy of librarianship. I like that.
The rest of the book is equally wonderful. A la Book Lust and More Book Lust, Pearl offers focused book recommendations (with helpful and readable summaries) by topic, in this case, categorized by age – youngest readers, middle grade readers, and teens. Her recommendations continue to show a startling range and familiarity with literature, and her categories are truly useful for each age level. The youngest reader section has lists on things like counting books and dinosaurs, the middle grade section has booklists on topics like sports and friendship, and the teen lists venture into things like (my favorite), “Utopia – Not!” If one was trying to familiarize himself or herself with children’s or teen lit, this wouldn’t be a bad place to start. This will also be a useful reference tool for library staff, parents, teachers, and others who live or work with youth. I suggest buying two or three copies. You might want to do it before Nancy decides to come after *you* with a lightsaber.
Posted by adrienne at June 20, 2007 03:45 PM
Comments
Yes. Yes, she does. I haven't read Book Crush, but I love everything Nancy Pearl stands for. She gives public librarians a good name.
And now I have to go swipe one of my husband's Star Wars action figures so my NP can play with the light saber. 'Cause you're right, the shushing action doesn't quite cut it up against Darth Maul.
Posted by: eisha at June 20, 2007 11:27 PM
I would love to see Nancy Pearl shushing Darth Maul. She'd totally wipe the floor with him (before sitting him down with a book).
Posted by: Alkelda at June 21, 2007 10:34 AM
What do you think Nancy Pearl would recommend to Darth Maul? The Dance of Anger, maybe?
Posted by: adrienne at June 21, 2007 11:18 AM
Why is it I had this mental image of you reading the intro to "Book Crush," and exclaiming "Yes. Oh my god...yes! Duh!"??
Posted by: Sabrina at June 21, 2007 12:29 PM
Because that's pretty much what it was like, except it was more like, "I know! I know! Why am I not Nancy Pearl?"
Posted by: adrienne at June 21, 2007 12:52 PM
And why am I not Darth Maul?! I mean, really!
Posted by: jp at June 21, 2007 05:38 PM
jp: Because Darth Maul has horns instead of hair and really, REALLY bad skin problem.
Posted by: Sabrina at June 22, 2007 12:15 PM
Perhaps jp does too, I mean when was the last time you saw his arms recently? Although I thought the force was stronger in him.
Posted by: tonderdo at June 22, 2007 08:04 PM