Secret Shopper Experience

 The focus of my secret shopper experience was to find a historical fiction book that I will be able to annotate later in Adult Reader's Advisory since I have a romance book selected already. Overall, I walked away from my interaction with the reference librarian and felt okay with the books I was recommended, but I also noticed that the interview portion of my interaction felt rather short, as though it was rushed. I also made note in my paper of Becky Spratford's comment that librarians should "switch up who you are talking to, learn their likes and dislikes, and gather a larger variety of perspectives in order to build your skills" (Spratford, 2016, p. 10). This was due to the fact that the librarian mentioned that one of their coworkers would have potentially been better suited to help me with my inquiry, and while I appreciated the effort that was shown to help me find books, I also noticed that comment and how it made me think of the librarian's ability going forward.

In the end, I was recommended three books that were considered historical fiction during World War II: The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah, Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly, and All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr (Hannah, 2015; Kelly, 2016; Doerr, 2014). In general, I really enjoyed being able to be a secret shopper, but like I mention in my paper, I also felt limited in my interaction because I had to keep it that "secret" and I couldn't let anyone know that I was analyzing the reference interview. When I ask for recommendations in the future (or when I'm asked for one by a patron), I know I will want to keep this experience in mind and conduct myself accordingly.

References

Doerr, A. (2014). All the light we cannot see: A novel. Scribner.

Hannah, K. (2015). The nightingale: A novel. St. Martin's Press.

Kelly, M. H. (2016). Lilac girls: A novel. Ballantine Books.

Spratford, B. (2016, April). Talk among yourselves: Jump starting your readers' advisory. ILA Reporter, 34(2), 8-10. https://www.ulib.iupui.edu/cgi-bin/proxy.pl?url=https://search-ebscohost-com.proxy.ulib.uits.iu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lls&AN=114137217&site=ehost-live