Dealing with Difficult People in the Library

by American Library Association

Dealing with Difficult People in the Library offers practical strategies for managing problems posed by patrons and staff. It is the best hands-on guide to solving problems through communication, preventive measures, and clear and concise patron behavior policies.

Genres: Nonfiction, Librarianship, Adult, Library Science

195 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1999

Reviews

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little outdated in some areas, but it does include some good general tips.

[Greg · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm really happy I found this lying among the library stacks. This is an amazingly informative guidebook on how to deal with difficult patrons...at times, at least. I am only starting on my library career, which renders large portions of this book non-applicable to me - not to say this is some inherent fault with Willis's book, I just am not the target audience for things like hiring security or generating new rules. The more pertinent parts for entry-level library employees were more often than not very useful in some of the interactions I have dealt with on a regular basis.
Despite the practicality and the sense of humor, I could only give the book a modest 3/5 rating. A book covering a subject so pervasive in the field should cast a wider net rather than aim so narrowly towards administration or other higher-positions in the public library staff hierarchy. The format Willis uses does make the book easy to follow, but I occasionally felt as if I were reading a PowerPoint presentation.

[Shilo · Rating 1 out of 5]

I did not finish. It might have been good years ago. It is outdated now. It is also formal and coming from the point of view of an administrator who does not want to be sued or in trouble somehow.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good advice with practical examples.

[Rebecca Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good information but a little outdated. Some of the basic ideas still apply to libraries today.

[Danny Reid · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oh, hey, my library should have rules. That's a good point.

[Marybeth Isle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely a niche read. But my current niche, so I found it informative.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a quick read. Easy & understandable with very practical advice. WHY WASN'T THIS SOMETHING THEY HAD US READING IN GRAD SCHOOL?!

[andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book should be required reading for people in grad school who are interested in public library work. I'm surprised, looking back on my library school education, that issues discussed in this book were never touched on in my Public Libraries course. I would recommend this book to anyone beginning their first job in a public library. Although this book is ten years old (the chapter related to Internet issues is definitely dated), the principles of communication and customer services are still valid today. Willis provides great insight into various types of "difficult" people, including how to handle incidents with irate patrons, the mentally ill, the homeless, teens, etc. After I return the copy I've borrowed, I will be tracking down a copy for my own personal collection.

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was excellent. Depending on where you come from with dealing with difficult patrons, maybe you won't find this very useful. But I know that even the parts that seemed really basic, I would say "Omg, that's sooo true." And to be honest, I've already used a couple of these approaches, or looked at past situations that went wrong and been able to diagnose what went wrong. Because let's be real-- it isn't always their fault. We have bad days, too. I would recommend this to anyone working front line in a library.

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

For such a short book, Willis is very thorough and touches upon a variety of common situations that could happen to any librarian. His tips for clearly communicating, both verbally and not, are appreciated. It is nice to see such a practical and useful book geared specifically toward libraries. His strategies for communicating with difficult patrons (and also planning to prevent difficult patrons) were great, though I do wish that he had included more useful stock phrases to use in customer service transactions.

[Tracy Schillemore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much of the information in this book is common sense but the type of thing that is good to have reinforced. The book offers scenarios and activities. A few parts are more geared towards administrators but on a whole it is a quick read that is a good review for any front line workers. This book is relevant for workers beyond the library.

[Ashley · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lot of the information is basic, but it's also information that is easy to forget in customer service jobs. This is a great primer to dealing with public services and patron/customer interaction (the book is geared toward libraries, but there's no reason it wouldn't be helpful for other customer service workers as well).

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

So far, this book is accurate and funny! Am about halfway through and would recommend it to anyone who works in a public library!

[Veronica · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was expecting it to be more informative or provide more helpful suggestions, but it didn't...pretty disappointing

[Macaela · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was rather informative, if a little out of date. The version that I read dated back to 1999, when the internet was still rather new.