Novelist

 Title: Novelist (Subscription Database)

Publisher: EBSCOhost

Topic: Readers Advisory

Age Range: All Ages

User’s Annotation: A wonderful resource for the teen who wants to find the next great read.

Resource Summary: Novelist is a great database full of different reader recommendations. By using reviews, articles, lists, read-alikes, award winners, and other information about books and authors, it helps assist a reader by showing their different options on the next book or books that they are looking forward to reading. With constant updates, like audiobook recommendations and books that have been integrated into the common core, Novelist stays on top of the needs of their users. It is a multifaceted tool that can create personalized lists for users and save librarians’ time. It can also show a librarian where any possible holes in their collection might be.

Critical Evaluation: Novelist is a fantastic resource for users as much as it is for library staff. If a collection development librarian needs to take a look at different award winning books for that year, they can find them easily through Novelist. When helping patrons, a librarian can use the books that the user has listed off that they liked to help calculate a reading solution that may yield one or a whole list of books for that person. If library staff and patrons are aware of the resource, they will use it. It will be worth the money spent on a subscription database.

Publisher Information: In the late 80s Duncan Smith, an avid readers' advisor, struggled with the fact that readers' advisory services were only as good as the individual librarian's memory and ability to read a wide range of genres. Although there are many librarians with an impressive knowledge of books, genres and reader needs, Duncan felt that their effectiveness could be increased if there was a database that allowed them to search for additional titles based on level, subject, title or author. In 1990, he formed a small company with two programmers, Roger Rohweder and John Strickler. They began creating NoveList part-time while maintaining their "day jobs." I n 1994, they sold their first copy of NoveList and shortly after, Duncan and Roger joined CARL Corporation, quitting their other jobs and working full-time on NoveList. NoveList launched as a DOS product with 20,000 adult titles and 1,200 reviews!

NoveList continued to grow and in 1999, EBSCO acquired NoveList from CARL. At that time, NoveList had five employees, counting Duncan and Roger.In 2000, NoveList changed strategic and philosophical direction by becoming a data creator instead of just a data aggregator. Feature Articles, BookTalks, and Book Discussion Guides were added first, with Author Read-alikes, Readers' Advisory training content and a variety of other reader and staff materials added later. Source - http://www.ebscohost.com/novelist/about-novelist/the-novelist-story

Curriculum Ties: English

Challenge Issues: None

Database Talk Ideas: Finish – One could talk about finishing a book that they really like and how they are always searching for the next book. The data base could be introduced as a resource to find more books and authors that fit the likes or dislikes of a particular person.