Risky Business

November 1, 2010

This thought-provoking title will pique awareness and present some "ah ha!" moments. It involves a degree of risk to provide exemplary library services to young adults in terms of collection building, programming, and technology. This book encourages librarians to take the necessary risks and describes factors to consider in different situations. Who or what will benefit from the risk? What would be the outcome of not taking it? These may appear to be simple questions, but when posed in reference to particular library concerns, they do give pause for serious thought. The book is aimed a bit more toward public librarians, but it includes information pertinent to all librarians who work with teens. Of particular interest are chapters devoted to developing a mature, appealing, high-interest YA collection. This section alone makes the book a worthwhile addition. The section on technology mentions the benefits of social networking using a Facebook page, but fails to clearly distinguish between personal and corporate (Fan) pages, the latter of which would be a less risky, more viable option. A helpful list of resources that support risk taking is also included.-Patricia N. McClune, Conestoga Valley High School, Lancaster, PA

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