Have you requested a Grab Bag from your library yet? This is a brand new service that we debuted this summer to help you find great books while you can’t physically browse our stacks. Just fill out the quick Grab Bag form and our librarians (often me!) will pick a selection of books customized just for you. We’ve helped hundreds of people get their hands on some great books this summer, from picture books about unicorns or dinosaurs to large print cozy mysteries to cookbooks with new recipes to easy readers for new school year reading practice. I thought I’d give you a behind-the-scenes glimpse at what goes into our Grab Bags.
When I arrive at the library in the morning, one of the first things I do is check our library email account for new Grab Bag requests. One of our librarians working from home often works on the lists of books if there are requests for children’s books. I print out all the requests and any lists that have already been put together. If no lists have been made yet or when we get requests for adult books, I start with research!
I take a look at the request and note the types of books that you have enjoyed or disliked. I use tools like our library’s catalog and the NoveList database to seek out books that fit the bill for whatever our patrons request. We keep lists of books at different reading levels that I use to help kids who are just learning to read (we’re happy to share them – let us know if you want a list for a certain level). And I often rely on my own reading and the reader’s advisory skills I learned when getting my Master’s of Library Science to find books that are going to be just right.
Once I’ve got a list of books to pull, I head into the stacks to find the books. I seek them out, sometimes discovering forgotten favorites in my search and switching out my choices for you, and then I take them to a desk to place and trigger the holds. Books that are requested for delivery to our Galena Branch go into the transit box to be taken the next time the transit van goes up there. Books for New Albany pickup get placed on our holds shelf, waiting for you to come and grab them curbside or in our lobby area.
Once the books are on hold (or on their way to Galena), I write a personalized email to each patron to explain why we chose the books we chose. We love getting feedback, good or bad, because we want to choose books that you want to read. If we miss the mark, let us know and we’re happy to try again. There are thousands of books sitting on the library’s shelves right now and we’d much rather they be in your hands being read.
I try to get to the Grab Bags as quickly as I can, but right now we have very limited staff in the building and we get literally hundreds of holds requests each day. We’re often able to get the Grab Bags ready same-day, but we do ask that you give us a couple of days. Pulling the Grab Bags is one of my very favorite things and I’m so lucky to get to interact with our patrons in this way. If you want to request some books, feel free to give our Grab Bags a try! You might discover a wonderful new book you never would have known about! Or maybe we can just make it easier to get your kid books for school. We’re here to help!
— Abby Johnson, Collection Development Leader
