24 Hour Library

With a new film adaptation of Anne of Green Gables recently broadcast on PBS (which you can stream on the PBS website until December 22, 2016) and the upcoming adaptation of Beauty and the Beast starring Emma Watson, it felt like the perfect time to showcase some of the Alexandria Public Library’s access to retellings of classic novels and fairy tales in the young adult fiction section. I was surprised at how many were available in the stacks. Not only were there retellings that stuck fairly strictly to the original material, but there were plenty that only followed the originals loosely. Below are the results of the display for the first week, though it needed significant restocking throughout its display life. I’ve included a list of the titles I used on the display.

The flyer posted with the display explaining the theme also included a list of other titles available throughout the system, which patrons might place a hold on to come to the Duncan branch or pick up at its owning branch after searching the catalog for the item.

Each book sat with a bookmark encouraging browsers to check them out and with a secret message lower down, hidden in the pages of the book. I always found as a browser at public libraries when I was a teenager that I was never sure if the books on display could be checked out or not. In fact, I was convinced they could not be checked out because doing so would disturb the display and leave a gap! Knowing what I know now, this sounds ridiculous. I’m inclined to believe, however, that plenty of people who browse my displays have the same feelings of uncertainty now, so I feel it’s really important to indicate somewhere on the display that patrons are allowed and even encouraged to check out items on the display.

What retellings do you love?

Titles Used on Display