Serving LGBTQ Teens: A Practical Guide for Librarians

(Paperback)

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Description

There are few places an LGBTQ teen can turn for help searching the internet at home leaves a potentially discoverable trail, teachers may condemn youth who seek their help, and certainly, in many cases, a teens parents are not an option. While there have been advancements in acceptance of the LGBTQ population, there is still a firm stronghold on discrimination and teens still face the fear of potential alienation. This leaves one of the only safe places for a teen to find information and, and indeed, find themselves in the context of the world at the library. Serving LGBTQ Teens offers the librarian a practical guide to library service to LGBTQ teens from collection development, understanding terminology, dealing with censorship issues, programming and outreach, readers advisory, and even to creating welcoming displays, librarians will find the tools they need to offer exceptional services for LGBTQ teens.

Reviews

In this engaging book, author Lisa Houde addresses the inherent challenges and issues related to working with LGBTQ teen communities. Covering traditional library topics such as programming and collection development, she also discusses those specific to LGBTQ teens such as creating safe zones. One of the best features of the book is the huge bibliography. The annotations go beyond mere description, offering a final word of advice about each title from the perspective of a librarian. Houdes breezy style makes reading through this book seem like talking over coffee with a mentor. -- Ellen Greenblatt, Emerita, University of Colorado; Lecturer, San Jose State University and University of Wisconsin-Madison iSchools
Amazingwhat a valuable, comprehensive, and inclusive resource! Lisa Houdes Serving LGBTQ Teens goes far beyond a standard bibliography for collection development to offer solutions for creating welcoming library spaces, reaching out to the community, and addressing efforts to censor LGBTQ material. Every librarian who wants to meet the needs of their diverse patrons should have this book. -- Jerome Pohlen, Author, Gay & Lesbian History for Kids: the Century-Long Struggle for LGBT rights, with 21 Activities
Lisa Houdes book,Serving LGBTQ Teens: A Practical Guide for Librarians, takes an energetic and accessible approach to providing library services to LGBTQ+ youth. The volume is grounded in best library practice, while expanding its strategies of inclusion. Houghs focus on safe space, honest collections, and engaging activities allows the library to function as a mirror of the best the LGBTQ+ community has to offer its members, and also as a door inviting those members into the broader community as a whole. -- Joyce M. Latham, Associate Professor, School of Information Studies, Chancellors representative to the Chancellors Advisory Committee for LGBT+ Advocacy at the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee

Author Bio

Lisa Houde is the assistant director and director of Youth Services at the Rye Public Library in Rye, New Hampshire. She is a member of several New Hampshire library organizations including the New Hampshire Library Association (NHLA), Childrens Librarians of New Hampshire (CHILIS), and Young Adult Library Services of New Hampshire (YALS); shes a past president of YALS. Lisa has presented several times at various New Hampshire library conferences on LGBTQ library service as well as presenting book talks for the New Hampshire Flume Award.