Week 6 Prompt Response

 

Blind Date with a Book is always a good way to go! It feels safe to say that most people enjoy opening something up and being surprised. As a display, this idea works for most any theme, though the “date” part of it does fit particularly well with romance materials. 

If you’re not familiar with this kind of display, it involves wrapping books (or movies!) in wrapping paper, brown paper, or just something that obscures the cover. Little decorative designs can be added to the exterior in order to make it fit best with a theme, such as hearts for romance or knives for horror.

Once the book/movie is covered and decorated, you then add descriptive words to the wrapping. For the book A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske, I would include the words Magic, Victorian, LGBTQ Romance, Big Mystery, and (my favorite thing to include in descriptions for this book) Murderous Hedge Maze. The point with these descriptors is to offer the patron just enough information to pique their interest through the utilization of themes and characterizations, or even just straight appeal factors (atmospheric is a good one for AML). While not a direct librarian-to-patron readers’ advisory interaction, it is still a passive form of RA, because you are offering an unknown book based only on elements that a reader might identify as things they like. 

It’s also a very easy display to make eye-catching, as you can utilize bright colors, props, and it can fit on many kinds of shelving. All you need is books and/or movies, wrapping paper, and appeal factors! Below are some examples I found around the internet, as well as a few variations on the idea.

Image from OntarianLibrarian

Image from TVahlsing

Image from Mrs. G Talks Books

Images from:

http://mrsgtalksbooks.blogspot.com/2020/02/famous-first-lines-book-displays.html

https://ontarianlibrarian.com/2015/01/18/blind-date-with-a-book-tips-and-tricks/

https://tvahlsing.wordpress.com/2022/10/10/take-out-a-book-uberreads/