We have a policy in my library regarding books based on movies and tv shows: we don’t buy them. In general, we try to avoid Dora, Sponge-Bob, and their friends. Of course there are always exceptions, especially when the books in question satisfy a need in our population or when they are of the highest quality. The graphic novelizations which accompany the Nickelodeon TV show Avatar: The Last Airbender fit that latter category to a T.
Avatar, or ATLA, premiered on Nickelodeon in 2005 to rave reviews. I first learned of the show when my boss at Barnes and Noble started praising its quality storytelling to high heaven. She was so enthused about it that I decided to check it out. Soon I too was hooked on a show about a 100-year old boy-monk frozen in ice and destined to save the world.
Our library owns all 3 seasons (or books, as the creators call them) of the show: Water, Earth, and Fire. We have two copies of each and they are never on the shelf! The element-related action can be intense but is never too scary, and the stories have real heart, which makes the entire series an easy sell to kids and parents.
The series concluded in 2008 and launched its critically-acclaimed sequel show Avatar: The Legend of Korra in 2012. Also launched in 2012? My favorite media tie-in, ever! The continuing adventures of Aang and the gang can be traced in sequel graphic novels. These self-contained, 3-part graphic novels are written by recent National Book Award finalist Gene Yang. The stories have amazing flow and lovely illustrations, and they have proved as popular with our patrons as the original series was. Two 3-part series have launched so far. 2012 saw the publication of Avatar: The Last Airbender – The Promise and last month saw the release of the third part of Avatar: The Last Airbender – The Search.
Both series were among the best graphic novels I read this year, and a further illustration that not all media tie-ins should be kept out of the library.
Chris Kolderup
That is an interesting collection development policy. Do your patrons notice that there are no books based on movies or TV shows in your library? Do you field many requests for books of that ilk to be purchased?
Elisabeth Gattullo Marrocolla
It’s interesting – patrons don’t miss those types of books as much as you would think! The most frequently asked questions we get are for Dora and the Disney Princesses, but parents are almost uniformly understanding when you explain the policy to them, especially since there are always exceptions. It only comes up a few times a year, and we have so many other options to fulfill those needs that it’s never been a problem (knock on wood!). It isn’t a hard-and-fast rule, which I think helps the policy as well.
Leah Mendenhall
I’m simply curious…why is your library against these types of materials? Especially since they could play a major role in helping beginner and/or hesitant readers develop an interest or passion for reading.
Elisabeth Gattullo Marrocolla
Like I said, it’s not a hard-and-fast rule, more like a guiding principle. There are plenty of exceptions, and most of those exceptions are in the beginning and early reader sections for the reasons you state. In Learn to Read we have Scooby-Doo, Star Wars, DC & Marvel, Lego, etc.
What we mostly try to avoid are paperback picture books and novelizations for older readers that are based on TV-shows and movies; a former librarian here called them “grocery store books.” As they tend to be lower-quality both in terms of material and content, we would rather spend our money elsewhere in those categories.