All things Visible

'Never judge a book by its' cover' - how many times have you heard this statement?  How many times have we picked up a book just because it was attractive, beautiful and engaging?  If we are all honest we would admit that we do judge books by their covers and perhaps judge other things too, something that we shouldn't be proud of.  We as humans are visual beings, I will admit some more than others and I am a very visual person so the topic of this weeks module for Rudaí23 was of interest to me.

For many people visual engagement and interaction is essential for them to learn, I'm one of them. I can visually remember a page of text or an image, great help in exams!
For me, books all stacked on a shelf are hard to browse, I need to see the cover or illustration.  Children are best at this, picture books for children are so under-valued and always seen as only suitable for little ones, but they can be enjoyed by all ages.  Perhaps take the time to really look at some good illustrators, PJ Lynch comes to mind.

As part of my job I love creating attractive book displays that encourage people to browse books that they wouldn't normally look at, get people to broaden their horizons or challenge them in some way is part of our role I believe.  Perhaps even highlighting issues that are seen as controversial  - lives of refugees, War and its consequences, Poverty and literacy problems.
I believe in an informed society, I believe in providing people with both sides of the story - unvarnished, and let them decide for themselves. As a librarian I'm there to provide access to information not decide what information is correct for you, that's your responsibility as a citizen.

I love the very idea that social media tools such as Pinterest can open up new horizons for libraries, engage with people around the world and share experiences, ideas and help promote different genres, subjects, topics to other interested parties.  Take for example our Westside Library Pinterest, we have a board for genealogy and genealogical resources and it's gaining in popularity every day.
Sharing visual displays of libraries also helps break down the barriers for people that may find approaching libraries difficult.  Many still have ideas that libraries are intimidating, unwelcoming and daunting places to visit, perhaps many are but they are not in the majority any more.  We, as librarians have broken the mould with our industry and have reached out to our communities in ways never seen before, social media is only another way of reaching out.

And yes, I'm the librarian that can help you if you're looking for the book with the pink cover, white writing and a little girl on the front!