2024 Discussion Challenge: Who am I?

So pumped for my first post for the 2024 Discussion Challenge hosted by Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction and Shannon @ It Starts at Midnight.

 

I thought my first post should be about me, don't worry, books play a huge part!

My name is Kym and I've been working in libraries for 15 years (academic, public, and state) and it's wild to think about. For the last 11 I've worked in Children and YA services so I read and review a lot of middle grade and YA books. 

While working in public libraries I realized that the kids and teen knew about the popular books, the Percy Jacksons of the world, so while I familiarized myself with them, I found myself reading other things. I needed to know what to give the kids once they finished Twilight and Divergent, so I don't tend to read the buzzy books of the moment but there are always a few exceptions.

I'm also really bad at finishing series. I have last book syndrome, I don't trust these authors not to kill off my favorite characters. I also got into the habit of starting series so I could suggest them to library readers, then moving on to something else. 

My job as a librarian has really influenced the type of reader I am, but I'm kind of okay with it. 

When I'm not working in the library world I spend time working with my team at the Hear Our Voices book tour company (see tab at the top of my page). We organize virtual book tours for books written by marginalized authors. 

Some of my favorites have been (Lore of the Wilds isn't until February now that it's been picked up by a traditional publisher, but I'm proud of the work we've done!):

Why blogging:

I've been blogging on an off since 2012. I started when I was new to public libraries because there were so many great blogs and resources for storytimes, readers advisory, and I was hoping to build community. Over time, I tried to go with everyone else to IG, but, while I still have one (two actually) for books, the aesthetic photography portion of it kills me. I just can't do it, and for me, something about it feels so different from blogging. With the swiping and the algorithms, I just don't think it can be my primary form of book sharing and connection. Even if no one reads this blog and it becomes a place for me to document my bookish thoughts, it just feels truer to me than the quick pace of bookstagram, and I'll never do more on Tik Tok than swipe and like. 

I'm hoping that by joining a few of these challenges and memes I can build some friendships here but also find more book lovers. I do most of my following through Bloglovin, but if anyone has other suggestions or better follow platforms, sharing is caring!

I hope to get to know more people and don't be surprised if you see my in your comments!