Being a Teen Library Services Advocate

Each slender volume provides both theoretical and practical information on aspects of serving this audience. Braun tackles advocacy for teens inside and outside the library. Unfortunately, several chapters have lengthy sidebars that interrupt the narrative flow. Eagle tackles the sensitive issues that teen librarians can face in working with patrons, ranging from smoking and drugs to online ethics. For librarians who wish to intervene and make a difference in their patrons' lives, this guide provides plenty of information. Flowers discusses moving beyond statistics to actually evaluate teen services within a library. There is excellent information here, but there are some assumptions about the ability of librarians to gain statistical information that is necessary for evaluation. In addition, the surveys and forms included do not appear available in a downloadable or reproducible format. All three books are well researched and easy for busy librarians to skim. While not perfect, they give the types of practical advice that librarians need.—Melissa Rabey, Frederick County Public Libraries, MD