You Lucky Dog

Finished June 4

You Lucky Dog by Julia London

This novel has quite a few interesting characters, some adorable dogs, and a lively romance.The novel opens with a dog walker, with his many dogs in tow getting arrested as he sells drugs to a undercover cop. The result of this is that the friend who returns the dogs to their homes makes a mistake. 

Carla Kennedy is a woman struggling to get her PR business off the ground. She only has two  clients, one of which is a young high maintenance but promising fashion designer, and the other is a deluded woodworker who isn't open to change. Her parents have recently divorced, her sister is a panicky mom to several hard to control children, and she's recently become the owner of a depressed basset hound named Baxter.

Max Sheffington is a university professor and neuroscientist who's been doing research on autism and dogs. He was drawn to the subject because of his younger brother Jamie, who is autistic. Max is up for tenure again this year, and could really use the extra research funding that change in status could bring. He has his own dog, a cheerful and well adjusted basset hound named Hazel. 

Carla finds the dog left at her house more energetic and curious than she is used to, and soon realizes that this is not her dog. She takes it along to her client meeting and the dog ends up in the fashion shoot. 

Max also realizes that the dog left at his home isn't his. He finds it staring into a corner, seemingly uninterested in anything his dog usually does. He works hard to get it interested and tries different foods to get it to eat. Max has a weekend trip planned with his brother and is getting desperate for a dog sitter

When the two finally connect, they realize that their dogs like each other A LOT, and they quickly agree to some meetups for the dogs to play together. Carly also agrees to take both dogs for Max's weekend away. 

As the two get to know each other, and what each other's personal situation is, they find themselves connecting in other ways. 

There is lots of adorable dog stuff happening, as well as interesting pieces of fashion, autistic research, and PR processes. I liked the touches of humour, and the way the two main characters developed over the course of the book. This is an engaging and uplifting read, with some surprises along the way. 

Nothing But the Truth

Finished March 24

Nothing But the Truth by Holly James

Most of the action in this book takes place over a single day, and there is a lot going on. The main character is Lucy Green, a publicist for a PR firm based in Hollywood. She's hoping for a promotion, a proposal, a high-profile new client, and a very satisfying 30th birthday. 

The book begins the evening before where Lucy is waiting in a bar near work for her boyfriend Caleb to arrive. They've been together for two years and will be moving in together into a condo they've leased very soon. But Lucy admits to herself that she isn't excited about their relationship, and the bartender notices that she's not that excited about her drink either. When Lucy realizes that he's right and lets him bring her something else, she uses the new drink to make a silent wish for her birthday, that it be perfect.

From the moment she awakens the following morning, she starts noticing differences. She doesn't hold back from responding to her mother's criticism, she doesn't want to wear the Spanx her new dress requires, she doesn't want to smooth her hair into submission or cake her face with make-up. After a few interactions on her way into work, she realizes that what has really happened is that she cannot lie. Not verbally, not physically. A very interesting situation. 

As Lucy maneuvers her way through her day, dealing with wooing her new client, facing up to her boyfriend, and dealing with unacceptable actions at work, she finds herself realizing how unhappy she's been for a while, and how much she wants things to change. 

I loved the character of Lucy, and her friendships with Oliver and Nina, the way she treats Annie at the office, and Lily and Leo as clients. Lucy is stronger than she realized and very capable at her job and she has many people in her life who care about her.

There is, of course, great conversation, and a lot going on, but the way it all seems to flow well makes it a read that will keep you engaged and focused on Lucy and hoping that her day will be as perfect as she wished. 

Fantastic read. 

Getting Started with Evaluation

Finished October 21
Getting Started with Evaluation by Peter Hernon, Robert E. Dugan, and Joseph R. Matthews

This book starts with a definition of evaluation, looking at different ways to measure, benchmarking, and best practices. EBLIP, evidence-based library and information practice is discussed. There is a chapter on library metrics, looking at where we get the data we use. Following chapters look at subsets of this data.
Internal Evaluation for Planning and Decision Making includes a road map and a discussion of the three different types of data to collection: input, process, and output. External Evaluation to Inform Stakeholders and to Guide Continuous Improvement talks about the importance of thinking first about what and how you want to show the data, and about the quality of the data you collect. Types of data here include partnerships, customer satisfaction, supporting education and reputation.
There is a chapter dedicated to measuring satisfaction, looking at the different gap models that can be used, methods of data collection, and some samples. Measuring service quality is differentiated and gets its own chapter, looking at the two components: what is provided and how it is delivered. This discussion includes e-services.
The authors then move to ROI, looking at the economic benefits of direct use, indirect use, and non-use. It also includes ways to look at the cumulative impact on the community in areas such as community development, social inclusiveness, and an open democratic society. Measuring the value of the library and its service is also differentiated, and split into many categories: cognitive results, affective results, meeting expectations, accomplishments in relation to tasks, time aspects and money aspects. There is specific mention of the public library here with its role both as a traditional library, and as a community member.
Chapter 10 looks at what to do with the data we collection, including both how to use it and how to communicate it. This is split into sections of who to communicate to, what to communicate, and how to communicate it. It discusses the importance of aligning the three parts so that the what and the how are appropriate to the intended audience. Raw data should never be used, and libraries should be selective in the use of graphics. If a paragraph has more than five numbers in it, a table would be preferred to text. graphics are best with minimal text, and simple is always better than complex. Libraries should do test runs to ensure that the tool communicates the message that was intended. Another good reminder here is that colour can also play a subtle role, and choosing the appropriate type of chart for the message is important. An example of this is the guideline that pie charts show proportions, bar charts show relationships, and time series charts show change.
Any communication is to influence a particular group or groups of stakeholders. The timing of communication relates to the method. Libraries can be creative in the use of human interest stories placed in newspaper articles, written reports should always include an executive summary, presentations should be thought of in terms of visual appeal and good design, and newsletters should include information on progress towards goals.
The final chapter is a look at how evaluation leads to positive organizational change.
Every chapter has exercises, so this book would work well for classes in library school as well.