Tricky Shelving Guides at Post Road

Submitted by Anthony Caspanello

Every collection has its own nuances but there isn't a collection more nuanced than Juvenile Fiction. Think American Girl books are sorted by girl names, then followed by a number of subseries, Dan Gutman has many (Weird) series and standalone titles interfiled, Erin Hunter has fifteen different series of similar titles, and let's not even open the Pandora's box that is Minecraft. 

To help CSAs and volunteers alike, Post Road has a Tricky Shelving Document that lists all the nuances and exceptions we must consider when shelving. As we approached summer, we wanted to figure out a way to condense this information into something more portable that could be quickly referenced when shelving. 

The first step in this process was to update the tricky shelving document we already had developed, spearheading this update was CSA Marie Anderson. Marie took note of the most challenging series of the collection, and beyond just juvenile, and overhauled the document. In addition, to help aid the visual learner, pictures are now included to help illustrate correct shelving order. This document can be found here.

Next, we had to figure out a way to allow this to be something that is quickly accessible. We considered a magnetic guide that is hidden underneath the shelves or a paper brochure that a teen can put in their pocket. We eventually settled on something that is more durable and that can be attached to a cart using a keyring. Information for select series were condensed into our new tricky shelving guides.

This key ring guide pairs well with the new magnets we bought several months ago as it can hang from the magnet securely. Each page highlights one or two select tricky series, lists any subseries or additional considerations to be aware of when shelving in this area. CSAs and VolunTEENS can consult this while sorting or bring it out to the stacks to aid in shelving.

When our VolunTEENS started this summer, we had them read our tricky shelving document and our tricky shelving guide to become familiar with the challenging shelving aspects of our collection. Even in the middle of summer, the VolunTEENS are still consulting these tools to ensure that they are sorting and shelving properly.

We asked our returning VolunTEENS what they thought of these tools, and we were met with positive comments. Two returning teens independently stated that the tools were very helpful— "especially with Minecraft."