Week 3: Readers' Services Conversation

Conversation 1
In this conversation, I'm hearing that the customer wants interesting characters who are explored in depth. She wants to read about characters who are reflective and thoughtful and will perhaps prompt her to also be self-reflective. For this customer, I would recommend Jeannette Walls' The Glass Castle. Walls' memoir takes the reader inside her difficult childhood and follows her journey into a successful adulthood. Her writing is descriptive and captivating and will both immerse the reader in the setting and allow her to glimpse Walls' innermost thoughts and feelings.





Conversation 2
In this interaction, I hear that the reader is interested in vampires as the main characters, but furthermore she also wants a book that will be action-oriented and exciting over being romantic or angsty. For this customer, I would recommend Anne Rice's Interview with a Vampire or Stephen King's Salem's Lot. Of course, if she hasn't already read it, I'd also recommend Bram Stoker's classic, Dracula.

 

Conversation 3

I'm hearing from this customer that she would like some suggestions for narrative nonfiction. She wants something that is fast-paced like a story but is also fascinating in that it's "true." For this customer, I would recommend The Ice Balloon by Alec Wilkinson, the true, harrowing account of S.A. Andre, who attempted to reach the North Pole by hot air balloon in 1897. While many others joined this race over land, Andre's expedition adds the excitement of such an exotic means of transport. If the murder mystery aspect is a strong selling point for the customer, I would also recommend Erik Larson's The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic and Madness at the Fair that Changed America. His subtitle certainly hits all the interest points on this request.