Adult Reader's Advisory: "Lock In" by John Scalzi

Lock In

By John Scalzi

Synopsis: In the near future, a new virus causes a small segment of the population to "lock in" - unable to move but with perfectly functioning brains. Science allows victims of this disease, called Haden's Syndrome, to transfer their consciousness into a "threep," a machine that allows them to move through the world, or to borrow the body of an "Integrator" for a time by transferring their consciousness into the Integrator's body. In "Lock In," rookie FBI agent Chris Shane, a Haden sufferer, and Chris' more experienced partner, Leslie Vann, are assigned to investigate a Haden-related murder that could have ripple effects that they never could have imagined.

Science Fiction Elements: 

Pacing: "Lock-In" has a quick pace. There is a lot of action, and a lot of dialogue as Chris and Leslie unravel the murder mystery at the heart of the story. Even the world-building is done in a more incidental way, with the reader picking up bits and pieces about the world as Chris moves through it, although there are a few passages of "recollection" by Chris that fill in the blanks.

Frame & Setting: The world in "Lock-In" is fleshed out, interesting, and evocative. Scalzi is descriptive in his prose, making the world easy to see. He clearly has an idea of the science behind the futuristic aspects of the world, too. However, while there are scientific details that are discussed, especially relating to computer technology, they are accessible and explained in language that anybody with a basic understanding of computers can follow.

Story Line: "Lock In" is, basically, a police procedural mystery in a science fiction world. However, within that basic plotline, the book is able to explore a variety of timely issues, including economic disparity, disability culture, and gender. While the economic disparity and, especially, disability culture discussions are at the forefront of the story, the exploration of gender is much more subtle. 

Characterization: At the core, Chris and Leslie are basic characters in a police procedural mystery. Chris is a rookie, bright-eyed and a little lost, and Leslie is the more cynical seasoned veteran. Chris is the vehicle through which Scalzi is able to examine disability culture and gender, Chris is a likable person, and the relationship between Chris and Leslie is fun to watch as it builds. However, neither Chris nor Leslie are particularly notable characters on their own.

Tone & Mood: "Lock In" is straightforward and fairly upbeat. While there is murder and tragedy throughout the book, the book does not dwell on these aspects, instead continuing to move forward as Chris tries to solve the mystery. The book does, however, throw the reader into the world and fills in most of the blanks as the story progresses, so there is some light disorientation at first.

Style & Language: "Lock In" is written in a breezy, conversational style, in first-person from Chris' perspective. It is full of dialogue without a lot of description. There is jargon and slang that is unique to the book; however, slang terms make sense once they are explained, and are easy to understand.

Read-Alikes: John Scalzi's Hugo Award-winning "Redshirts" has the same easy readability, though it is darker with a more mind-bending concept. 

"Rule 34" by Charles Stross also features a near-future detective, this time monitoring the internet for illegal activity. 

"Flashback" by Dan Simmons is a near-future murder mystery, featuring a detective addicted to a drug that allows the user to re-experience moments of the past.

"Parasite" by Mira Grant is a near-future science fiction book with thriller and horror elements, about a world where genetically engineered tapeworms live inside humans and ward off disease.

"Ready Player One" by Ernest Cline is a near-future science fiction book about a young man who immerses himself in a technological utopia to escape the bleak Earth. 

Jenny's Take: I picked a perfect book for the week we read about mysteries and science fiction, because "Lock In" is both! Specifically, it's a police procedural that takes place in the near future. I enjoyed the easy-to-read, breezy style. I'm fascinated by science and I love the way a good science fiction author can bend science into an awesome concept, but sometimes I have trouble when there's too much hard science and jargon. "Lock In" is accessible but it has a lot of very interesting, notable issues that it's able to tackle in the framework of the story. This is a great genre-bender that will appeal to both science fiction fans and fans of mysteries and thrillers. It could be a great introduction into the science fiction genre, or (like it was for me) a fun, easy read for an existing sci-fi fan.

Adult Readers Advisory: Week Seven Prompt (In Defense of James Patterson)

For our prompt this week, I want you to think about fake memoirs, author mills, and celebrity inspired book clubs. Basically write a readers' response to one of the articles you are reading for this week - or talk about a time when a book or author that made headlines affected you personally or your work.

For this week's prompt, I want to talk about James Patterson.

Patterson is incredibly popular, but he's also controversial and often derided for his persona, writing style, commercialism, and use of co-authors. I've been known to make fun of him myself, mostly for his TV ads.

(Watch Patterson's commercial for "Private Vegas" here.)

He also doesn't really write the type of books I normally read, though I haven't read any of his books in particular. 

But I'm perfectly happy with Patterson writing his reportedly schlocky suspense books and doing his advertising juggernaut, complete with dorky commercials. If people are buying what he's selling, more power to him. 

While I can't vouch for the quality, or lack thereof, of Patterson's work, I have enjoyed a lot of books by people whose work has been derided for its inelegance and commercial nature. I devoured Dan Brown's books when "The DaVinci Code" got popular, for example. I just don't think it's particularly healthy or helpful to diss the books that people enjoy reading. It reeks of snobbery, and I've never understood why it particularly matters to anyone what another person chooses to read. There's value to "low culture" - entertaining culture - as well as the more artistic high culture, and there's room in the world for both.

It's especially a problem when librarians fall into this trap. The beginning of the ALA's Library Bill of Rights states, "Books and other library resources should be provided for the interest, information, and enlightenment of all people of the community the library serves." That means that, if people want to devour every James Patterson book, we should help them achieve that. It doesn't even matter why they want to read the allegedly bad book - whether they find the books comforting, or silly, or distracting, or because they genuinely think they're good. These are all valid reasons for wanting to read a book, because every reason is valid.

One of the other big issues that people have is with Patterson's co-writing, but that just doesn't seem like a problem to me. He credits his co-authors pretty prominently on his books, if not always in his commercials and other advertising. But Patterson is a former advertising executive, and he understands the idea of "branding" and, for better or worse, his name is a potent brand. And other commercially popular writers also have co-authors - one of my favorites is Janet Evanovich, who has co-written several series with other writers. As long as the author is up-front about the co-writing and the co-author is being treated fairly according to the contract, I have no problem with it. Let the readers decide if they want to read it.

We can all probably thank Patterson for giving the publishing industry a boost, too. His books sell incredibly well and makes his publishers a ton of money, which allows them to continue to publish books, including the less popular "good" books. He is also a supporter of reading in general, and has tried to start a discussion about the future of books and how to help books and reading thrive. Yes, it's partially self-serving, since he's made his living from books, but to be a successful writer, I think you need to also be a reader, and I suspect that Patterson would be sad to see books go away in general.

Adult Readers Advisory: Week 6 Prompt

For this week's prompt, I would like you to think of an innovative way to promote romance, gentle reads or horror at your local library (pick one, just one!). What would be most effective? A catchy display? Some passive programming? In what ways could you incorporate integrated advisory? Pretend you're pitching an idea to your boss and write at least a paragraph in your prompt response. Hint, pinterest can come in handy, so can Facebook's ALA Think Tank. Have fun with this one!!

For this prompt, I am choosing Romance.

Our library has had some romance-specific promotion - most notably last summer's Steamy Summer Reads, which was a display and a blog post - but for this promotion, I would like to encourage readers to cross over into romance from other genres. I believe that an effective way to do this would be to bring in popular movies and television shows and connect them with romance novels. While some of the connections could certainly be with traditional romantic comedies - If you liked "27 Dresses," try "Bet Me" by Jennifer Crusie - and some could be straight connections between books and movies or television shows, like the "Outlander" television show and book, I would like many of them to be connections that may not be immediately obvious. Many movies that would count as romances, or at least have romantic elements, are accepted in the mainstream in a way that romance novels are not. This could include a diverse group of well-regarded, popular, and "classic" movies and TV shows, such as "Groundhog Day," "Silver Linings Playbook," "The Princess Bride," "Bridesmaids," "Amelie," "Edward Scissorhands," "Dirty Dancing," "Gone with the Wind," "The American President," "Giant," "Game of Thrones," "Downton Abbey," "Doctor Who," and more. These could chosen from some of the most popular movies and TV shows checked out from the library, as well as including recent award-winners and movies considered to be "classics."

After the movies/TV shows and corresponding books are chosen, there are several methods of promotion:

• A display can be created, with both the DVDs and books displayed together. (There should also be pictures of the DVD covers ready in case the DVDs are checked out.) 
• A series of blog entries can be created to promote the display. Each blog entry would show the DVD and talk about the movie, maybe even including a clip of a favorite or particularly popular scene if available, and have a list of books, with a short explanation of why the books were chosen. Blog entries will be promoted across library social media platforms. This blog entries can also be converted to Word documents and put into a binder for future Readers Advisory interactions.
• A short video can be made explaining the promotion and highlighting a few of the matches. 
• A press release can be written and sent to the local newspaper; this can be included in the weekly book review column published in the local daily newspapers.

Patrons who check out the books can also provide feedback on the book, and whether they thought it corresponded to the movie, via quarter-sheet feedback slips. This can help staff members tweak the lists created for this project. Patrons who return their feedback slips by a certain date can be put in a drawing for a small prize, such as a library-branded book bag. 

Adult Reader's Advisory: "Romancing The Duke" by Tessa Dare

Romancing the Duke
By Tessa Dare
Series: Castles Ever After #1

Synopsis: Izzy Goodnight, the penniless spinster daughter of a late author, receives a mouldering castle as a bequest from her godfather. The problem is, the tormented but handsome Ransom, Duke of Rothbury, still lives there, and he doesn't want to give up his home. The stubborn pair battle over the castle they both believe is theirs, unwilling to admit that love is beginning to take hold of their hearts.

Romance Elements: 

Pacing: "Romancing the Duke" is a quick read, and the book feels fast-paced. It could be read in an afternoon, or easily read in small pieces over a longer period of time without losing the plot.

Frame & Setting: This is a historical romance in the Regency era, but while it features some of the issues of the nobility, Izzy and Ransom are mostly alone and far from the ballrooms and parties of the ton. "Romancing the Duke" takes on a fairy-tale feel, both because of the castle setting and because of the background of Izzy's father's fairy tale-like stories.

Story Line: The relationship between Izzy and Ransom are at the core of the story, although their struggle to figure out who legally owns the castle is both interesting and adds tension to the proceedings. More tension between the pair, however, come from Ransom's emotional and physical state and Izzy's attempts to help him - no small feat, considering the trauma he's been through.

Characterization: Izzy is caring, extremely smart and very determined to make her way in the world. However, she has also given up on finding love, even if she believes that it exists. Ransom is a former rake who has recently been injured and humiliated, making him depressed and distant as he sits in his crumbling castle. Both characters must learn and grow from each other, and they both make each other better, happier people.

Tone & Mood: "Romancing the Duke" is a romantic comedy, with several laugh-out-loud parts and some particularly quirky side characters. However, there are darker moments as well, and both Izzy and Ransom have difficult, tragic backstories that keep the book from feeling too fluffy. The sex scenes are descriptive, but come fairly late in the book, after they have made an emotional connection, if not a declaration of love. There is, naturally, a happy ending.

Style & Language: "Romancing the Duke" is descriptive, especially of emotions. The style draws the reader into the story and helps them get emotionally invested. The characters have strong, unique voices and feel realistic. The prose is light and easy to read.

Read-Alikes: In addition to continuing the Castles Ever After series with "Say Yes to the Marquess," readers may also enjoy these historical romances with strong, smart heroines and tormented heroes from the nobility:

• "The Duke and I" (The Bridgertons Series #1) by Julia Quinn.
• "Wicked Intentions" (Maiden Lane Series #1) by Elizabeth Hoyt.
• "Married by Morning" (Hathaways Series #4) by Lisa Kleypas.
• "The Truth about Lord Stoneville" (Hellions of Halstead Hall Series #1) by Sabrina Jeffries. 
• "Dangerous in Diamonds" (Rarest Blooms #4) by Madeline Hunter.

Jenny's Take: "Romancing the Duke" is a delightful example of the Regency romance style. It's light and fun to read, with a perfect amount of humor mixed with some deeper drama. Izzy is a wonderful heroine, because she's smart and a little quirky. Ransom is a perfect hero; I love a hero with some kind of secret or problem that torments him, and the way that a great heroine can help a hero get over his issues and thrive, while also becoming a better person herself. I also loved the comedic touches, like the cosplaying fan club of Izzy's father's books. "Romancing the Duke" has all the things that makes me love the romance genre - good characters, a sense of humor, drama, love, and a happy ending!

Adult Readers Advisory: Kirkus-Style Review of "The Choice"

The Choice

By Nicholas Sparks

Pub Date: September 2007

Page Count: 272pp

ISBN: 978-0-446-57992-6

Publisher: Hachette

A woman must make a tough choice about which man she will spend her life with. Years later, the man she chooses must make an even more difficult decision.

Sparks continues his string of weepy love stories with this book, about next-door neighbors Travis Parker and Gabby Holland and the tough choices they must make through friendship, courtship, and marriage. Two-thirds of the book shows readers how Travis and Gabby fall in love during one long weekend when Gabby’s boyfriend is out of town. Their whirlwind courtship is described in excruciating detail; the book includes trite conversations about nothing in particular, paragraphs describing mundane things, and more than one discussion about Travis’ preference for eating chicken over red meat. Even an interesting, morally sticky, and much more consequential choice of the last section of the book is overshadowed by long-winded passages full of dull details as Travis reflects on his mostly unremarkable marriage to Gabby in their picture-perfect house with their two adorable children. The fact that Travis and Gabby are the worst sort of stock characters - the laid-back man who lives life to the fullest and the overly emotional woman afraid to truly live - only makes the book more tedious to read. Sparks also, as usual, pads the book with pages of description of the beauty of the South and the charms of small-town living in monotonous prose.

A lifeless love story that will, nonetheless, have Sparks fans reaching for their Kleenex.

Adult Readers Advisory Week Five Prompt: A Review of Reviews

You can read the prompt for this assignment by clicking here. 

Ah, book reviews. You can be so very helpful, but you're certainly not a collection development or readers advisory silver bullet.

First of all, I am not a fan of the idea of not publishing bad reviews. What constitutes a "good book" is highly subjective, and what one reader might hate, another may love. Plus, when a review is well-written, it's often easy to tell if you'll like the book (or movie, or TV show, or whatever) even if the reviewer didn't. I write movie reviews on the side for our local newspaper (you can read my reviews here), and I try to give people an overview of what the movie is like so they know if they'll like it even if I hated it. Even in my most scathing review in recent memory, my review of "The Best Of Me" (based on the Nicholas Sparks book), I tried to at least pay lip service to the fact that people who like Sparks' books and movies will probably enjoy the movie.

The lack of reviews of bad material also can make it harder to serve a library's patron base. Let's face it, there are a lot of people who like books that are considered by people doing reviews to be "bad books." Libraries have to walk that difficult line of making sure the library has the "good books" (award-winning, well-reviewed, literary) while still serving the needs of the patrons who are clamoring for "bad books" (like "Fifty Shades of Grey"). By at least getting the word out there that a "bad book" in a genre or subgenre that is like catnip for your patron base has been published, review publishers can help librarians have what patrons want.

The lack of reviews for books only published as e-books is also a difficult question. While the stigma is going away, I sometimes get the feeling that there is still an idea in most peoples' heads that books that are only published as e-books are books that just aren't good enough to be published as "real" books. That's not entirely true, though. Romance and, especially, erotic romance and erotica can thrive as e-books, and readers who are fans of those books flock to them. Again, it hinders librarians from selecting and collecting the books that their patrons want when these books aren't reviewed and may not be on the librarian's radar.

However, if a librarian is selecting books in a particular genre that is either often considered "bad" (or has a patron base that likes these "bad" books), doesn't get reviewed a lot, or has a lot of e-book only books (and is selecting e-books), then the librarian has to find different places to get their collection development information. I am the romance selector for my library, and while I read Kirkus and Library Journal, I get a lot more helpful information about what romance readers are reading from good review blogs like Smart Bitches, Trashy Books and Dear Author. It's especially helpful with all of the little subgenres that exist in romance that don't necessarily get covered in review journals very often but are popular with readers. It's hard for busy librarians to go to so many sites, though, and so the less covered genres and subgenres get missed, to the detriment of the library patron.

And that brings me to the discussion of the reviews that were posted. The e-book-only reviews (one from Amazon and one from a blog) of "The Billionaire's First Christmas" are not great. There are a few things that may be helpful to readers, like the fact that the book has a dual point-of-view, or that it's a "clean" book (which is probably code for "no explicit sex," which is good for romance readers to know), or that it's a quick, light read, but neither review really digs into the feel of the book, and neither reviewer really examines why they liked or disliked the book. The reviews also have fairly poor grammar and are written incredibly casually; they feel like a quick email I would dash off to my sister to tell her about a book I had just finished. They feel unprofessional, and it doesn't make me trust their opinions because it doesn't seem like they've given it much thought. They also have the feel of "just one person's opinion," without thinking about ways to help the people reading the reviews know if this book would be their cup of tea.

Also, I'm not sure that this is romantic suspense; it looks more like just a contemporary romance to me. There is a little bit of danger for the heroine, but it sounds too cozy to be a modern romantic suspense book. If it is a romantic suspense, the reviews really didn't do a good job describing it.

The professional reviews of "Angela's Ashes," on the other hand, give the reader a solid synopsis. We also get the feel of the book with examples. The Booklist review, for example, has this great line: "McCourt spares us no details: the stench of the one toilet shared by an entire street, the insults of the charity officers, the maurauding rats, the street fights, the infected eyes, the fleas in the mattress . . . Yet he found a way to love in that miserable Limerick, and it is love one remembers as the dominant flavor in this Irish stew." That is a great sentence that gives you the feel of the book. The reviews tell me that it's going to be an intense, tough, and heartbreaking read, but that there will be transcendent moments of joy and humor, too. I can then decide: Do I want to read this book? Do my patrons like books like this? The reviews are all so strong, and it sounds like the kind of interesting, uplifting book that many people at my library like to read; I would purchase it for the collection.

I don't want people to think that only professional reviews in journals are worthwhile, though. SBTB uses less formal, more "chatty" and snarky language on its blog and the reviews are longer, but they are also helpful to get the idea of a book even if the reviewer wasn't a fan of the book (unless they're categorized as a "Rant," and then not helpful but often really funny). A good example is the review of "Liar's Game" by Kait Gamble. The reviewer gives examples of what the world feels like, what the characters are like, and what she thinks works and doesn't work in the book.

"Shadowfever" by Karen Marie Moning

Shadowfever
By Karen Marie Moning
Series: Fever #5

Synopsis

Mackayla Lane's life has taken quite a turn since arriving in Dublin to search for her sister's killer. The walls between the human world and Faery have come down, wreaking havoc on the world. Now, Mac is dealing with grief, mysteries abound, and she's not even sure who - or what - she is. And yet, Mac must continue her quest to find the Sinsar Dubh, a magical book that can make and destroy worlds.

Appeal

Pacing: Pacing is quick, with twists and turns everywhere. Any reader who thinks they know what is going on is quickly disabused of that notion. The pacing feels almost frantic at times. Some readers may feel like Moning is spinning her wheels in a few spots, but others may be happy for a brief reprieve from the twists and turns.

Frame & Setting: Moning has set up a rich world in which to set the Fever series, and "Shadowfever" continues the building of the worlds she has created. The mythology is thick, and all but requires readers to have read the first four books in the series. The world is built up even more in "Shadowfever," though readers are still far from knowing all of the secrets.

Storyline: The plotting is thick in "Shadowfever"; there is a lot going on in this book. However complicated the story gets, though, the book mostly stays in Mac's point of view, with just a few asides from teenager Dani. This helps keep things a little bit simpler for the reader while deepening the mystery - the reader only knows what Mac knows.

Characterization: Mac is a strong, likable character, and the fact that the reader is in her head during the vast majority of the book means that, even when she makes bad decisions (which she certainly does!), the reader understands her way of thinking. Mac is well-written and complex, as are most of the other characters in the book. Fans of Moning's Highlander romance novel series will also be pleased to see some well-loved characters from those books.

Tone & Mood: The Fever series has a lot of dark elements, and "Shadowfever" is probably the darkest yet in the series. However, Mac's underlying positivity shines through when things seem darkest, and bits of humor pop up throughout. Moning reassured readers throughout the series, in notes at the conclusion of books, that the story is ultimately a positive one, and Moning does make good on that promise despite a lot of darkness.

Style & Language: Moning's writing style is easy to read and understand, though it is peppered with strange names and expressions due to its magical content. "Shadowfever" is a quick read, despite its bulk.

Read-Alikes

In addition to Moning's "Highlander" romance series (especially the later books, "The Dark Highlander," "The Immortal Highlander," and "Spell of the Highlander"), readers may also enjoy paranormal romance and urban fantasy by Sherrilyn Kenyon ("Dark Hunter" series); the Southern Vampire mysteries by Charlaine Harris (upon which the TV series "TrueBlood" is based); and Patricia Briggs' Mercy Thompson series.

Jenny's Take

The Fever series quickly became almost an addiction, and "Shadowfever," which brings to a satisfying-enough conclusion, if not an outright ending, the story that Moning has been weaving through the series. It's a fast-paced, exciting story with many elements of fantasy, mystery, and romance mixed together in a perfect way.

The things I enjoyed the most about "Shadowfever" were the characters and the setting. Mac does have some pretty dark periods throughout this book, but they are understandable - though I was glad when her positivity came back. She is a very cool, strong, and funny character who feels very real to me. The other characters in the book are also well-written and fleshed-out. I also felt like the characters were inhabiting a real world, and the book allowed me to spend time in that world, with those characters, too.

"Shadowfever" is an absorbing book. This is top-notch urban fantasy, and it will be especially popular with readers who enjoy romance or romantic elements in their books.

Adult Readers Advisory: Secret Shopper

Using a public library where you are not known or a librarian who does not know you, ask for a good book to read. Discuss what happens: What questions were you asked? What tools if any did the librarian use to help you? Did the librarian successfully find a “good book” for you to read? If yes, how so? If no, why not? 

For my Secret Shopper assignment, I went an undisclosed library near my hometown. I found it easy to find where I needed to go. The service desk was staffed by two people.

I first went to wander around the stacks for about 10 minutes, to see if a staff member would approach me. Nobody did, although a staff member did walk past me as I browsed. I then went to the desk. The man I approached was friendly, although both staff members were clearly busy with other work.

I told the staff member that I had just finished a book, and I just didn’t know what to read next, and asked if he could help me find something to read. He asked me what kind of book I wanted to read, and I answered “romance.” After confirming that I had said romance, he showed me two spots - one where new fiction books are displayed, and the other where there are fairly recent paperback books. In the paperback section, he showed me a few spindles where there were romance novels shelved. I said “Thank you,” and he left.

The staff member I encountered did not conduct a readers’ advisory interview. He did confirm that I wanted to read romance, but did not ask me anything else about what kind of romance novel I wanted to read. I didn't get a sense that he was embarrassed about my choice of reading materials, nor did I feel judged, so I do not think that he did not conduct an interview because he was embarrassed to discuss romance further in depth or that he was looking down on my choice of reading materials.

I just think he didn't have much experience in the romance genre. I was disappointed, because romance is very diverse and means different things to different readers. Did I want a cozy romance or a steamy one? Contemporary or historical? Paranormal? Do I read Julia Quinn, Elizabeth Hoyt, Kresley Cole, Heather Graham, Danielle Steel, Janette Oke?

I didn't feel like the staff member had any real readers advisory training. I do think that they sections he led me to may have recently moved, so he may have automatically and understandably thought that I couldn't find books because they had moved. However, I tried to open our conversation with key words that should have indicated a readers advisory transaction, including the sentence: "I don't know what to read next."

The staff member also did not use any readers advisory resources, nor were there resources for patrons to pick up and use. This was especially disappointing to me, because the library I visited subscribes to NoveList. At the very least, I expected that the staff member I encountered would tell me about NoveList and tell me to search there for a book.

I also got the impression that both staff members at the desk were very busy with other work, and it was possible, even likely, that the staff member I approached was in the middle of another task not related to public service. This is something that any public librarian understands, but it doesn’t represent good service to the patron.

I also was not invited back to ask more questions if I couldn’t find what I wanted. Most of the books were not quite what I was looking for, but I didn’t feel like the staff member could give me any more help. Had I been a patron without library training, I’m sure I would have felt like the library didn’t have any books for me, when, in fact, the library certainly has books that I could enjoy.

The upside of this interaction is it inspired me to be a better readers advisor, and to be more proactive when I'm working at a public desk. I'm resolving to ask patrons who are wandering the stacks, especially the fiction stacks, if I can find them something to read. I also want to listen carefully for sentences and key words that may indicate that readers advisory would be helpful. I do not think patrons always realize that they can ask for help finding a book to read - I know I didn’t before I began working at a library - but I want to make sure that if they need that service, I can provide it. Finally, it strengthened my resolve to be conscious of patrons and to never look too busy when I'm working on a public desk. My job is to help the patrons!