Conclusion

I started this blog with the idea of exploring children’s materials and hopefully gain a better understanding of the wide variety of items out there. While my career does not typically include children, I figured it was a good idea to have a general idea around the types of materials and what is out there for kids to enjoy. As a whole I work as collection development and acquisitions for the adult collection of a library system. Occasionally I work with children for basic reference questions and usually manage to assist them even though that is not my area of the library.

I would love to say I grew to have a love of children’s materials but that would be a lie. I gained a better grasp of what is out there for children but it did not increase my enjoyment. While I will be more aware of what is out there, I do not see myself developing a great love of books or items in the children’s department. I went looking for childhood classics and considered them for the assignment. While I read a lot of children’s books as a child I realized I never really had the desire to go back to them. I went into adult literature and stayed there comfortably. This assignment simply reasserted that feeling. I struggled to make my way through chapter books and to find books that I could speak about. I could see their value for children but I could not find the excitement for myself.

The most interesting portion of this blog for me was the illustrator study. I spent a lot of time looking into Dan Santat and exploring other illustrators to decide who I wanted to cover. After deciding on Dan Santat I focused heavily on the illustrations. I am a graphic novel/comic book fan so I have always been drawn to illustrations over text. The simplicity of his work on Dude! was perfect. The word ‘dude’ is the only word to be spoken by any character but the story is easy to follow. Even without the word, the story moves with the illustrations. I spent a great deal of time focusing on this part of the assignment, spending time with the artwork.

In my career, I will use some of this to help when I conduct children’s reference. I can carry on conversations with the children’s librarians. Otherwise, I am not quite sure how to reconcile this research into my career since I do not work with children much. As a whole, I do not see myself ever truly working with children because I do not enjoy it. While I like having a better grasp of the collection, it is not something that has offered a great deal of interest to me. In my private life, I struggle to see how these items will be brought in since I do not have children and do not really plan to have children either. Either way it has been an interesting way to expanding my horizons.