Secret Shopper Experience

Below is generalized scripting of my readers’ advisory interaction with this librarian; it is not exactly word for word, but as close as I could remember when writing it down after the interaction had concluded.

Librarian: (turning towards me, making eye contact, smiling) Good Morning, is there something that I can help you with?

Me: Yes, I need a good book to read. Do you have any suggestions or can you help me?

Librarian: I sure can, have you read any books recently that you have enjoyed? Alternatively, is there a specific genre that you are interested in?

Me: I tend to be all over the place with my reading, I just finished All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven and Meddling Kids by Edgar Cantero. I thought both were good.

Librarian: I am actually familiar with both of those, and they are quite different. Did you enjoy the realistic nature of All the Bright Places or did you prefer the mystery/horror elements of Meddling Kids?

Me: I enjoyed both, but I am really looking for something that is different from what I have already read. Something that I will not be able to put down (at this point, I could see that she had brought up Novelist on her computer, but changed tactics when I said that I wanted something different than what I had read recently).

Librarian: Well, if you want something different from what you have already read, have you considered romance or fantasy books? Perhaps a combination of the two?

Me: I would definitely be willing to consider it; do you have anything in mind?

Librarian: I personally just finished Patricia Briggs Mercy Thompson series. It features werewolves with an urban fantasy feel and is very fast-paced. There is also some romance thrown in there too. There are ten books in the series and would definitely keep you busy for a little bit.

Me: Sounds interesting, I would definitely like to try them.

Librarian: Great, follow me and I will show you where they are shelved, I know that they first book is in because it just was returned this morning!

Librarian: (After leading me to the books, she grabbed the first one and handed it to me) Just let me know if this does not catch your interest and we will find something else for you (walks away to let me read the synopsis).

With this assignment, I had essentially prepared myself to experience the worst, but hoped for the best. I am thankful, however, that my experience with requesting a good book went just as well as it could have. I felt immediately welcomed by the librarian I was dealing with, and she did not appear phased by the dreaded question of asking for a ‘good’ book. The librarian was thorough in questioning me as to what I had previously read and what genres of books that I enjoyed. Even though I purposefully evaded her attempt to narrow down my interest to see what her reaction would be, she remained calm and ditched her initial plan of using novelist to find books similar to what I had recently read. Instead, she attached to what I had said about being willing to read just about anything, and attempted to find a genre that I had yet to explore. I felt that she understood my needs as a reader, and she made me feel comfortable; essentially, she made me feel like our RA interview was just a casual conversation between friends. In all honesty, there was nothing additional that this librarian could have done to make my experience better, because I walked away more than satisfied with a new series to read.