The next meeting is May 28, 2024. This will be a Virtual meeting.
Our next topic begins a year of exploring Readalikes. We begin with Author Readalikes. Everyone reads the benchmark: Emily Henry’s Beach Reads (2020). See the web page for complete instructions and resources. Please also read a Choice book in this category. Choice Assignment. If you wish to participate, please contact Leane to register.
We began 12 years ago when a group of MA RA librarians decided to emulate the IL ARRT (Illinois Adult Reading Round Table) which sets the standard for genre study. Instead of studying a genre over one or two years, we decided to schedule introductory sessions on the major genres because commitment to a full year of study would be difficult to sustain statewide. We follow Leane’s tenet of RA that “Something is Better Than Nothing” which is based on the supposition that if an RA practitioner waits until they know “everything” about a genre or to be “truly comfortable” with a genre before engaging in the RA conversation with a reader, a successful transaction will rarely, if ever, happen. We take what we already know and build on it, supplementing with new knowledge through study and implementing what we learn from our mistakes and successes. This philosophy has served us well as we have also explored many Nonfiction genres, Audio Books and Graphic Novels as formats, and audiences like Young Adult and GLBTQIA. In 2019, we spent one year studying Diversity across the genres.
Every few years we vote for the next round of genres based on what scares us the most and what we perceive the current needs of our active membership to be. In 2017, we began incorporating an instructional component to one meeting a year called the RA Toolbox. Toolbox workshops allow participants to learn and explore RA topics and skills other than Genre Study like conducting an RA interview. We suspended The RA Toolbox during Covid-19 and hope to reactivate this practice after the next ballot in 2022.
Our Discussion Leader is Leane Ellis, Readers’ Advisory Librarian & Consultant (rapotential@gmail.com), formerly from the Lucius Beebe Memorial Library in Wakefield.
All are welcome whether you have attended before or would like to investigate what genre study is all about. If you wish to attend, please contact Leane Ellis
(rapotential@gmail.com) for more information and/or sign up instructions for Virtual Meetings during the 2021 meetings affected by the Covid pandemic. Information for meetings are also posted on the Massachusetts Library System’s Continuing Education site under Workshop Calendars: Affiliate Group Meetings.
To find out what we are currently studying, check out the calendar to the right–and use the above drop-down menu to find the genre and the assignment.
Want to join our Google Group? Email Leane at rapotential@gmail.com and she will send you an invitation to join–-it is not a high traffic site but resources and RA interests are posted and discussed among group members. (Updated 3/28/23).
2022-2026_SCHEDULE (5/11/22)
Cancellation Policy: There is no plan to cancel a MA NE RA RT meeting since we will be meeting virtually using the Zoom platform sponsored by a group member for the foreseeable future. Leane will broadcast any cancellation or change to our meetings by 7:00am or before from the Google group, and post it on the group’s blog: https://ragenrestudy.wordpress.com/. Edited 5/09/22.
RA Wordle:
Northeastern MA Readers' Advisory Genre Study 