Sources used
Novelist. Retrieved from http://0-web.ebscohost.com.library.sl.nsw.gov.au/novp/search?sid=4c6ffeb7-f1e5-4bf6-ad48-32b346b17053%40sessionmgr4&vid=1&hid=17
Fiction Connection. Retrieved from http://www.fictionconnection.com/welcomeclouds.asp?c_over=1
Amazon. Retrieved from http://www.amazon.com/
Good Reads. Retrieved from http://www.goodreads.com/
Search Strategies
Novelist
This was the main resource used to located the items for the bibliography. The main subject headings I used were:
Su: Women Pirates AND Aud: Teens
Su: Girl Pirates AND Aud: Teens & Ages 9-12
Su: Pirates AND Aud: Teens
Su: Sea stories AND SU: Historical Fiction
Su: Sea stories AND Aud: Teens & Ages 9-12
I found that if I only limited searches to terms such as ‘Pirates’ or ‘Girl Pirates’, I got very limited results, so I further broadened my search using terms such as ‘Sea stories’.
Fiction Connection
I found Fiction Connection, while a good resource, very annoying to work with as it kept logging me out. However, it did manage to give me items that I hadn’t found in Novelist.
My search strategy for Fiction Connection was a general keyword search of ‘Pirates’ and then narrowing down my search by using the search refiner.
Original Search: Pirates
Refined by:
Topic: Pirates
Reading Level: Young Adult
Amazon
Though this was mainly used to find reviews for the books chosen, some books were located by browsing the recommended reads of the items that were searched.
Good Reads
This was also used to find reviews for the books, but it was also a helpful resource when it began to become difficult to find items. GoodReads has a useful tool that allows you to see what lists a book has been put on.
Usefulness to Target Audience
I feel that that my blog has fulfilled the purpose of promoting pirate literature. While my original plan was to promote pirate novels that featured a female protagonist, I found that the concept was too narrow and knew that I wouldn’t have been able to find 20 items to fit that criterion. Instead, I decided to focus on items that portrayed a traditional image of piracy, and included historical details of both piracy and details of time the novel was set, while still focusing on my female target audience.
I feel the items I chose fulfilled the criteria. Nine of the items feature female protagonists, which were found to be strong female characters (which I was looking for), and didn’t focus too much on romance. I tried to find items that also included a lot of historical detail of the time that the novels were set in, and actively looked for items whose reviews included strong praise for the amount of historical detail in the novel.
While I wasn’t planning to, it was inevitable that I include some items that were part of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. I found that could be a smart move, as my target audience would be familiar with the movies and would more likely seek any novels that occur in that universe.
Blog Design
I feel that that the blog is designed in a way that promotes the topic. The banner was designed in a way to make it feel like an old paper scroll. While I wanted to make the library’s logo visible, I didn’t want it to look like a logo, so I made it look like a burnt seal instead.
The blog also provides links to the Manly Library’s website, and the website for the National Maritime Museum.
Item excluded from blog
King, A.S. The dust of 100 dogs, Woodbury, Minn. : Flux, c2009.
Reason for exclusion
This item flip-flopped from being on, then off the list. Ultimately, I decided to leave exclude it from my list of choices because while it is marketed towards readers 12 and up, I found that it would be more suitable to an older age range than the 12-15 group I was targeting.
Reviews about that book say that it is not for the faint hearted, with graphic scenes of human and animal abuse, and sex scenes that are described as graphic and disturbing. While I found the premise interesting, I thought that while other books on the list involved violence and some gore, the violence and the fact that it included graphic sex scenes made it an inappropriate choice.
