INF506-Social Networking for Information Professionals

Hi all! My other class this semester has just begun! I am enrolled in INF506, Social Networking for Information Professionals at Charles Sturt University in Australia! Simmons College has a consortium of schools where students can take online classes towards their Master's in Library and Information Science.  The first week of this class has been intense but also fun and educational! We have begun by immersing ourselves in a number of social networking sites and will be learning how they can benefit libraries and library professionals! This class requires us to keep an Online Learning Journal where we document our learning experiences, which works out nicely for me since this whole blog has been created for that very purpose!

• What Is Social Networking?

When I think of social networking, I think of an online platform where people can share thoughts, ideas, opinions, pictures, write messages and basically stay in touch with one another.  I love that sites like Facebook allow me to see what family and friends that I don't  talk to very often are up to every day.  Social Networking is also a way to meet new people and find out about new places or products.  When you like something on Facebook, you learn more about companies and products by getting updates on your News Feed.  There are also sites like LinkedIn that are geared toward professional networking, and micro-blogging on Twitter allows users to interact closely with famous people like movie stars and musicians.  While there are many social networking sites out there, I think they all have a common goal: for people to connect by sharing content.

• Social Networking Sites I Use

I use quite a few Social Networking sites! For personal use, I am currently using Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Blogspot, Google+ and Flickr.  I actually started using Twitter, Pinterest and Google+ for educational purposes for my Young Adult Literature class, which served the purpose of staying current and up to date in order to serve teens better.  I loved Twitter and Pinterest and still use them both very often! Google+ allows users to organize friends, acquaintances, co-workers, etc.  into different circles, so you can decide what they see about you.  It is a bit like Facebook but with more options for users.  Google+ also allows users to have "hangouts" where up to ten people can have a face to face chat, and that is how we had class discussions for my online class.  I've also used a few different educational platforms for school, such as Wikis, Blackboard and Moodle.

Ames Free Library (where I work) is very current as far as being involved in Social Networking.  We maintain Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, three Blogspot blogs and now even Pinterest! I manage the Twitter page for the library and one of the blogs-this one! The library advertises its services, fundraisers, new materials, programs and more on these Social Networking Platforms and is able to reach more users that way.  This week's readings discussed how library website use has declined over the past few years.  Could it be because libraries are not remaining current by adopting Social Networking? I think it's extremely important for libraries to do so in order to remain relevant.

• Learning Expectations for INF506

INF506 requires students to create Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, Delicious, LinkedIn and Second Life accounts and we will be immersing ourselves in these technologies! I am excited to learn more about how these Social Networking tools can be used in libraries specifically to help promote learning, literacy, community and more! I hope to pass this knowledge on to co-workers and library patrons in order for them to become comfortable navigating the world of Web 2.0 and to keep them connected.

The Inspirational Fiction Genre- Looking for Salvation at the Dairy Queen by Susan Gregg Gilmore

Inspirational Fiction is another genre that I don't read too often.  After learning the characteristics of this genre, I've learned what kind of books in this genre I would like and what I wouldn't.  I really enjoyed Looking for Salvation at the Dairy Queen because it is just a great feel-good book that is illustrates human imperfection and wonderfully drawn characters that make you laugh out loud.  Check out the characteristics of this genre below to determine if you'd like Inspirational Fiction.  In this genre you may find:

•  Christian principles, especially in resolving the conflict
• A spiritual search
• No sex or profanity 

Sound like something you may enjoy? Is so, here are  some resources to help you find the perfect book for you!

• The Christy Awards for exceptional Christian Fiction
• Gold Medallion for Evangelical Fiction
• Rita (Romance Writers of America, Inspirational Category)
• Christian Booksellers Association

For an introduction to this genre, I recommend Looking for Salvation at the Dairy Queen.  It's not over the top or preachy, but it deals with a young woman's struggle to understand her faith and how it defines her life.  Here is my review!

Gilmore, Susan Gregg. Looking for Salvation at the Dairy Queen: A Novel. New York: Shaye Areheart, 2008. ISBN: 978-0-307-39501-6

This book is a coming of age story of a young girl growing up in the tiny southern town of Ringgold, Georgia.  Catherine Grace is the preacher’s daughter and comes from a long line of preachers of the Cedar Grove Baptist Church.  The story takes the reader through her childhood, where her father’s role as preacher has an immense impact on her own journey of faith, acceptance and personal beliefs.  The Dairy Queen is Catherine Grace’s favorite place because it represents the outside world, something she can’t wait to be a part of.  It is also where she comes to big decisions in her life while consuming copious amounts of dilly bars. When Catherine Grace turns 18 her dream of leaving her small town and living in the big city are realized, only to be called back by the death of her father.  When she returns home, she learns secrets about her father that contradict all he’s taught her about leading a Christian life.  This book illustrates the important message that everyone sins and forgiveness is an essential part of life.

This title covers many important Christian principles, as illustrated through Catherine Grace’s father as teacher, father and pastor.  Catherine Grace struggles to accept and understand her father’s teachings at times throughout the book such as accepting the “infallible authority of the bible” and “addressing life’s dilemmas through Jesus” as described in John Mort’s book “Christian Fiction.”  This book has no profanity and no sex scenes.  However, Catherine Grace’s preacher father gets the Sunday school teacher, Miss Raines, pregnant out of wedlock.  This turn of events was interesting because it is reminiscent of “The Scarlet Letter,” which is named as one of the first Christian Fiction novels written.

I loved this book! I’m not really a Christian Fiction reader, and I think this would be a great book to introduce someone to the genre.  While the book is focused on the Christian faith and principles, it is not overly religious.  It is still a great story with wonderfully charming and funny characters that are so well developed you feel like you will miss them when the book is over.  The relationships between Catherine Grace, her sister Martha Ann, and neighbor Gloria Jean are so well developed and are one of the best parts of the book.  The community is close knit, they all know each other’s business and it is laugh-out-loud funny at times!

This book takes place in the sixties and seventies in a small Southern town, and the style of writing and the sense of community reminded me of “The Help.”  I would recommend this to readers that enjoy women’s southern fiction.

Do you read Inspirational Fiction? What are your favorite authors and titles? I'd love to hear from you!