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Home My WebLink About2021-05-26; Library Board of Trustees; ; Carlsbad Reads Together 2021 Final ReportITEM #9 Meeting Date: May 26, 2021 To: Library Board of Trustees From: Emily Bruce, Training Coordinator Staff Contact: Emily Bruce, Emily.Bruce@carlsbadca.gov Subject: Carlsbad Reads Together 2021 Final Report District: All Recommended Action Receive presentation. No action needed. Executive Summary/Discussion Training Coordinator Emily Bruce will present a report of Carlsbad Reads Together 2021, including program statistics and a summary of participant feedback. Next Steps None. Fiscal Analysis None. Public Notification Public notice of this item was posted in keeping with the Ralph M. Brown Act and was available for public viewing and review at least 72 hours before the scheduled meeting date. Exhibits •Carlsbad Reads Together 2021 Summary Page 17 of 24 LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES ITEM #9 *Circulation data for 2021 gathered from 1/24/21 – 5/1/21 Circulation data for 2020 gathered from 12/2/19 – 5/1/20 Carlsbad Reads Together 2021 Summary Carlsbad Reads Together brings community members together and engages them in discussion about the same selection of books at the same time. The Carlsbad City Library celebrated the return of Carlsbad Reads Together in April 2021, following a 2020 postponement due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2021 Carlsbad Reads Together brought community members together to read the New York Times best-selling memoir Educated by Tara Westover, which highlighted the importance of education and the power of knowledge. Titles with similar themes were selected for younger readers; with The Reader by Traci Chee selected for teens and Nothing Stopped Sophie: The Story of Unshakable Mathematician Sophie Germaine by Cheryl Bardoe selected for children. Thanks to funding support from the Friends of the Library, the Library & Cultural Arts Department hosted eight events including a virtual author talk, book discussion, a Human Library, youth events and more. A total of 908 people participated in the first ever, all virtual Carlsbad Reads Together events throughout the month of April. Additional Friends of the Library funding supported the purchase of hard cover, audio CD, e-book and e-audiobook formats of the three selected titles in anticipation of the 2020 Carlsbad Reads Together and were kept available for checkout until Carlsbad Reads Together was rescheduled for 2021. To collect input on the program and provide insight towards planning for next year, a survey was distributed to participants of all eight Carlsbad Reads Together events. The Carlsbad Reads Together staff committee also met to debrief and share feedback on May 12. Although the COVID-19 pandemic brought unique challenges to 2021 Carlsbad Reads Together, feedback was still overwhelmingly positive and participants enjoyed the virtual program offerings. Facts About CRT 2021 PROGRAMS Total Number of Events 8 Total Event Participation 908 PRINT/MEDIA CIRCULATION* 2021 2020 Educated 46 206 Educated Large Print 3 28 Educated Audio CD 2 13 Educated Audio Player 1 5 Una educación 0 6 The Reader 12 10 Nothing Stopped Sophie 18 12 eBOOK/eAUDIO CIRCULATION* 2021 2020 Educated eBook 44 174 Educated eAudiobook 50 172 Una Educación eBook 4 3 The Reader eBook 4 4 Page 18 of 24 Carlsbad Reads Together 2021 Program Participation Date Program Participation Adult Programs 4/5/2021 Educated Book Discussion 15 4/8/2021 An Evening with Tara Westover 357 4/9 – 16/2021 An Evening with Tara Westover (recording) 234 4/22/2021 Who do you think WE are? (Genealogy) 45 4/24/2021 Human Library 21 4/1 – 30/2021 Herbal scrub craft kit (bilingual) 158 Youth Programs 4/14/2021 Carlsbad Reads Together – For Kids 6 4/20/2021 Book Warriors Teen Book Club 8 4/1 – 30/2021 Teen Write-Your-Own Memoir Kit 64 Total 908 Page 19 of 24 Carlsbad Reads Together 2021 Survey Responses Survey respondents: 123 *Other breakdown: Library staff (12), support organization (5), Library Board of Trustees (2), other unspecified (2) Page 20 of 24 1. How did you hear about Carlsbad Reads Together? (check all that apply) More Details 45 • City/Library website 40 44 35 • City/Library social media (Face ... 14 30 • Library e-Newsletter 44 25 • Newspaper 0 20 • A friend 15 25 10 • Other 23 5 0 2. How did you pa rticipate? (check all that apply) More Details • Read the Book(s) 82 90 • Attended "Educated" Book Dis ... 13 80 • Attended An Evening with Tar. .. 87 70 • Attended Carlsbad Reads Tog ... 0 60 50 • Attended Book Warriors Teen ... 4 40 • Attended Genealogy Program: ... 13 30 • Attended Virtual Human Libra ... 7 20 • Received a Teen Write-Your-O ... 6 10 0 • Received a Make Your Own He ... 28 Sample comments: “Very interesting personal story of resiliency. Her situation could be similar to many families dealing with dysfunction, mental health, child abuse and neglect, etc.” “Many angles to prompt thoughtful discussion.” “It provided perspectives into life, societies, and belief systems which would not be commonly encountered.” “The story has wide appeal, great reviews, and describes a non-traditional lifestyle.” “For me it was a difficult read.” Page 21 of 24 3. Which selected title did you read? (check all that apply) More Details • "Educated" by Tara Westover (... 95 • "The Reader" by Traci Chee (te... 5 • "Nothing Stopped Sophie" by... 0 5. Was "Educat ed" by Tara Westover a good selection for Carlsbad Reads Together? More Details • Yes • No 97 2 Do you have any suggestions for future Carlsbad Reads Together book selections? Sample comments: “(1) "Tightrope" by Nicolas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn. (2) "Caste" by Isabel Wilkerson. (3) "The Sum of Us" by Heather McGee” “Where Crawdads sing, the Tea girl of Hummingbird Lane, The vanishing half, the stationary shop” “Good books only. Meaning good reviews.” “Love your choices” Do you have any suggestions for improving the Carlsbad Reads Together program? Sample comments: “I hope you continue to have these author events. I enjoyed it just as much over Zoom and was glad to stay safe. Thank you for making these events possible.” “Not one. Excellent program & excellent library! I do love the zoom meetings, though - more people, more convenience, more easily available speakers.” “I love the program” “it's great! maybe virtual and in-person combined next year?” Page 22 of 24 Emily Bruce Training Coordinator May 26, 2021 Carlsbad Reads Together 2021 I I Carlsbad Reads Together •Program goal: bring community members together and engage them in discussion around the same selection of books at the same time Programs •First ever, all virtual Carlsbad Reads Together •Throughout April 2021 •8 programs for adults, teens and kids •908 participants I I CARLSBAD Who do you mi l'l.lc WE are, April 22 I s:30 p.m. . Human library April 2,4 I 1 -1 p.m. An Evening with Tara Westover (carlsbad City Library I I _Carlsbad Reads Together /~ 4 .Commun;ty Re.ading Event I C .€. J \. ( -~~ ., Carls5ad Ci!¾ Library Outreach and Promotion •Website •E-newsletters •Social media •News releases •Staff promotion I I Carlsba,dl City l!.ibra ry Published by Hootsuite . · AJ>ril 16 - he trn1a,n Libraty is a li bra,ry whe re real eople are t e book ; and readi g is a ,co vers<1tion. Living Books (peop e w· a parf cular life ,e:<perie ce or stor; to te ll) are avai b e for you to "c eek ou ~fo ra sp ecific borrowing time period. Every ~book" represe ts a group in o ur s,ociety ~hat is often s bjected to prejudice or disu imination because o.ftheir r estyle, diag osis, belief, disability, :s.ocial ;;ta us, ethnic orig i , ~ c Find o more a nd register ere. https://loom.ly/P6iDvsl 426 52 People• Reac eel Engage e ts oo·· s CARLSBAD Human Library (he( k out d living book April 24 I 1 -3 p.m. {c:Oil\ of Carlsbad 6 Shares Lessons learned •People enjoy virtual programs •Curbside pick-up programs are popular •The community is interested in well-reviewed and best-selling book selections I I Thank you! I I