Join us each month as we interview a Readers' Advisor at WPL so you can get to know the team a little better. This month we are featuring Genealogy & Local History Specialist, Gretchen! Continue below to find out Gretchen's favorite genre, the book she often recommends, and her tips for filling out our Book Match form.
How long have you worked in libraries?
16 years (10 at WPL).
What is your favorite book from childhood?
Mr. Popper’s Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater.
What is your favorite genre, series, or book?
My favorite genre is romance, especially when it’s blended with sci-fi, fantasy, or suspense.
Tell us about a book you can’t stop raving about.
Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall. It’s laugh-out-loud funny and has many endearing secondary characters. Highly recommended if you like contemporary romance and British humor.
What’s a book you often recommend?
The Devotion of Suspect X by Keigo Higashino, which is a Japanese psychological thriller with a perfectly crafted puzzle-box plot.
Do you re-read books? If so, which one and how often?
Sometimes, but usually on audio! It’s nice to listen to something familiar when I’m driving or working on a project. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon is one that I listen to every few years.
What tips do you have for someone who might be in a reading slump or trying to get back into reading?
If you start reading a book and it isn’t bringing you joy, don’t feel pressured to finish it. There are so many books in the world to try and not every one is going to be for every reader.
One of the ways patrons can get reading recommendations is though filling out our Book Match Form. Do you have any tips that patrons should follow when they fill out the form?
The more details you can give us about why you liked or disliked particular books and authors, the more personalized we are able to get with your recommendations. If one person liked a book because of its setting, and another person liked that same book for its plot, we might give them completely different recommendations.
What resources do you personally utilize when looking for the next book you want to read?
I get a lot of recommendations from friends, family, and other librarians. But when I’m trying to figure out whether I want to read a particular book, I like to go to Goodreads and check the bad reviews first. If the things that other people hated most are things that I like or feel neutral about in a book, that’s a good sign