Week Twelve Annotations: Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer

Title:  Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mount Everest Disaster

Author: Jon Krakauer

Publication Date: October 19, 1999
Number of Pages: 368 pages
Type: Memoir
Geographic Setting: Mount Everest
Time Period: May of 1996

Subject Headings:

- Mount Everest Disaster

- Natural Disasters

- Mountain Climbing
- Survival
-Adventure

Plot Summary:
In 1996 journalist Jon Krakauer was given the opportunity to write an article about climbing Mt. Everest.  Somehow, he managed to persuade his bosses to fully fund his own expedition, so that he can have the first-hand experience for his article.  Krakauer joined Rob Hall’s expedition, slowly climbing the mountain over a period of weeks (and witnessing a lot of illness and death along the way), and on May 10th their group begins their summit down Everest.  This is the start of what is now known as the Mt. Everest Disaster of 1996, and Krakauer was there to witness it firsthand.

Nonfiction Elements:

1. Narrative: This memoir is a mix of narrative and fact-based.  There are highly narrative descriptive points throughout the book, with facts interwoven.  It is a good mix of the two.
2. Subject: The subject of the book is the Mount Everest Disaster that took place in May, 1996, and claimed the lives of twelve climbers.
3. Type: This book is a memoir written by a journalist who was climbing Mt. Everest when the storm struck.
4. Appeal: This is a quick read for a non-fiction because it is highly descriptive and engaging.  The story is depressing, dark, as well as thrilling and will captivate readers from the very start.

If you enjoyed Into Thin Air, you might like these titles:

1. The Ledge by Jim Davidson
2. Alive by Piers Paul Read
3. Above All Things by Tanis Rideout (fiction)
4. Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer

Week Twelve Prompt

The Readers' Advisory Matrix

“My Friend Dahmer” by John “Derf” Backderf

1. Where is the book on the narrative continuum? Highly narrative (reads like fiction)
2. What is the subject of the book? Serial Killer - Jeffrey Dahmer
3. What type of book is it? Graphic Novel/Memoir
4. Articulate Appeal:
1. What is the pacing of the book? Fast Paced 
2. Describe the characters of the book? The main characters are high school boys. Mainly, Jeffrey Dahmer who is dark and twisted.  The other characters can be described as pretty normal high school boys.
3. How does the story feel? The story feels dark and sad.  Strangely the book makes you feel sad for Jeffrey Dahmer the child, who clearly needed attention and help.
4. What is the intent of the author? To educate readers on the pre-serial killer life of Jeffrey Dahmer, and maybe to gain a little perspective on how he became the notorious serial killer we know today.
5. What is the focus of the story? Jeffrey Dahmer.
6. Does the language matter?  The language in this book is short and sweet, because it is a graphic novel.  The language allows for the story to flow quickly.
7. Is the setting important and well-described? The setting of this book is very important because it gives the reader insight as to the life Jeffrey Dahmer was leading as a teenage boy.  It is very well described and illustrated. 
8. Are there details, and if so, what? Lots of details about Jeffrey Dahmer’s life in high school and at home.
9. Are there sufficient charts and other graphic materials? Are they useful and clear? This memoir is a graphic novel, so it is full of graphic materials.  They are very useful, clear and well illustrated.  It makes for the story to flow better and also allows the reader insight into the characters emotions through facial expression (or lack there of with Dahmer’s character). 
10. Does the book stress moments of learning, understanding, or experience? All three; Learning about Dahmer’s childhood, a little understanding into how he became who he became (not completely... there’s no excuse for the person he became!!!), and experiencing high school and Dahmer through the eyes of the author, who attended school with Dahmer and occasionally hung around him. 
5. Why would a reader enjoy this book?
1. Characters
2. Storyline
3. Illustrations

Week 11: Prompt Response

I personally love e-books. I love how I can keep an entire library in purse and bust it out whenever I want to. I also love physical books. I love having books covering my bookshelves at home. I love looking at them, seeing them, and smelling them (yea, I'm weird). I know a lot of people who avoid e-books because they don't want to give up physical books, and I say why can't we have both? A library on the go and a library at home? I don't think reading an e-book affects a persons knowledge of the genre at all. Why would it? It's the same thing, just more compact and portable. I think having the ability to change the font, spacing, and color of text is beneficial to readers because not everybody reads the same way. It's nice to be able to customize the book to your liking, and I think it helps a persons ability to read it quicker. Large Print lovers can make any book large print, rather than waiting for the Large Print to become available at the library.

I know a lot of people who prefer audiobooks to e-books because they feel like they can listen easier than they can read. It's nice to have the ability to "read" while driving or even at work.  I began listening to Amy Poehler's Yes, Please! because I heard it's more fun to listen to the author read the book to you.  I thought it was funny, but didn't finish it in my rental period time (too much rewinding) and never went back to it.  I think a lot of people enjoy listening to comedians reading their books

because it is a little like listening to a comedy show.  I personally do not have much experience with audiobooks and I have a harder time finishing them than e-books. I think it's easier for me to get distracted while listening, and then have to rewind and listen again. I honestly think I've never finished an audiobook in its entirety before. One of my close girlfriends is the complete opposite, and will not read books, she will only listen to the audiobook format. To each their own!

Book Club Experience

            I attend a monthly book club with a sometimes-large group of girlfriends.  The size generally varies as some months more people can make it than others.  It’s usually one of the only times I get out of the house each month, so it’s something I very much look forward to.  It also allows for me to read books that I normally wouldn’t pick up for myself and forces me to finish them so that I can participate in the discussion.  This past month I attended a book club for the book I read for our week three annotations, The Real Michael Swann.  I did not pick this book out, it was chosen by one of the other ladies (we rotate picking the books) but it happened to fit in well with this class!

            This week’s book club started with a small socialization over the food and drink table, as it normally does while we wait for all the members to arrive.  Once everyone is there (or majority of people – usually there are a few late comers) we start.  We started this month on time at approximately 7pm and gathered in the living room of one of the members houses.  The house always rotates as well, so we’re at a different place each month.

            Our book clubs are led differently each month, as the host generally determines how the night will go.  The host this month decided to prepare a list of questions that she put into a jar for each member to pick out and ask the group.  She started by removing a question and reading it to the group and waiting for the other members to chime in their responses.  Then the person next to her would pick her question, and the same would occur.  If the question picker wanted to answer the question, they were able to, however it was not required that they give an answer.  All of the questions were based on the plot – some “what if?” questions, some “what did you think about…” questions, but all of the questions were open-ended, no simple “yes” or “no” answers could be given.  Everybody participated in the discussion because everybody read a question out of the jar.  Some of the ladies had not finished the book, so they participated a little less than the ones who had read the entire thing.  This is also a common occurrence at book club as most of the ladies in the club are working moms who find it hard to finish a book in the allotted time period (and no judgment from anybody else – finishing the book is not a requirement, just appreciated more).  There are always two members who seem to speak up more than the rest of us, and a lot louder at times, but I wouldn’t say that they steal the spotlight of the club – they’re just more passionate about some of the books we read.  One of the rules we have for our club is that you can’t pick a book that you have already read.  In the past, there has been some awkwardness where a person will choose their “favorite book EVER!” and a lot of people actually really disliked it.  It causes a lot of tension during the club, and some people are generally afraid to speak up if they didn’t like it because they don’t want to hurt the book choosers choice.  I really do like this rule and I feel that since enforcing it we’ve had more positive experiences during book club.

            This month’s book was completely different from the books people generally choose for the club, which was a nice change for me because it was a really quick read, and a thriller.  (Two things I am always seeking out when choosing a new book).  We read a lot

Please not another WWII book, Violet!

of non-fiction books (one of our women is obsessed with World War II based books so those have been chosen quite a few times) and a lot of cultural and contemporary reads.  I have to admit, I struggle to finish a lot of the books for our book club because they are usually a lot longer and more difficult than I am used to, but it opens me up to so many books I would normally pass over.

            As I’ve stated previously, book club is my favorite day of the month.  I love that each month is a totally different experience, due to different hosts and a variety of different material.  I feel that attending a book club monthly has helped me with my readers advisory at the library and has given me experience in a lot of different genres I normally wouldn’t have picked out for myself.

Special Topics Summary: The True Crime Boom

True crime has been discussed for centuries, and it doesn’t seem to be going away any time soon. We are currently experiencing a True Crime Boom, where documentaries, podcasts, television series, books, and audio-books are being released at a record pace. There are many ways in which libraries can capitalize on this trend, but it’s important to also understand where this trend is coming from and what is drawing people to the true crime genre in order to do so.

True crime has always been something that fascinates people. The history of the true crime genre dates way back to the 1550’s in Britain, when authors and printers would release pamphlets describing shocking murders that happened in the area. Truman Capote can be credited with modernizing the true crime non-fiction genre, with his work In Cold Blood.  This book was released in 1965 and it deliberated the murders of four family members in Holcomb, Kansas. 

Flashforward nearly fifty years to the year 2014 when the podcast Serial by This American Life was released and reignited a flame in what is currently known as the True Crime Boom.  Serial is a true-crime investigative podcast about the 1999 murder of eighteen-year-old Hae Min Lee.  Lee’s ex-boyfriend, Adnan Masud Syed, was charged with her murder and sentenced to life in prison.  The popularity of this show skyrocketed partially due to the commotion it caused all over social media.  Within a short period of time, you couldn’t go anywhere without hearing about this podcast.  

Following Serial, the docuseries Making a Murderer was released by Netflix in the year of 2015.  This ten-episode series told the story of Stephen Avery, a man who was wrongfully convicted of rape and attempted murder and spent eighteen years in prison, and then was charged again for the murder of someone else shortly after being exonerated. What drew most viewers to this show was the investigative aspect of it.  

Libraries can capitalize on this growing trend by promoting their materials in ways that attract patrons.  Catchy displays would be a simple and easy way to promote materials, but there are so many other things that libraries can be doing.  Programs that are centered around showing true crime documentaries at the library followed with a discussion about the documentary that was watch could gather support of community members interested in true crime.