The first week of June in the UK is Volunteers' Week, a week that celebrates the amazing contributions volunteers make to all kinds of communities across the country. Read on to see how MA student Mariana has volunteered in the library team during this past academic year.
By Mariana Sierra. MA in Health, Cultures and Societies
Ever finished reading a book and just thought you had to tell everyone about it? Are you that one person who carefully tailors book recommendations for your friends? Turns out you have already been doing some sort of curation, and you might want to hear how volunteering with the Guild of Students and the Library could transform your relationship with literature. Read on!
Back home, my friends and I like to exchange our favourite reads, since sharing the stories that move us is our way of building a sense of community, which is why, when I moved to Liverpool for my Master’s, I found myself wanting to foster new connections through literature. The books featured in the Leisure Collection at the Library were great windows to the interests of the academic community, and I too wanted other members from the university to discover some of the mind-blowing writers and aesthetic explorations and concerns of my region, usually unknown to many. Although Library Search, the catalogue, already included some great titles translated from Spanish to English, I thought it could also benefit from a wider compilation of contemporary Latin-American works, so when I saw the opportunity to propose a new collection for the library, I knew it was my chance.
The first step was to send a short overview of my idea, and after chatting about it with Camille, Micaela and James, some of the great members of the Customer Service team in the Library, I received an invitation to join as a volunteer to curate a collection of Contemporary Latin-American Voices!
The first day started off with a fire-safety tour around the Sydney Jones library (which turns out is way bigger than I thought) and an introduction to all the staff working daily behind the scenes to ensure everything runs smoothly for students to access the resources provided by the library, from front desk to acquisitions. This was one of the most inspiring aspects of the whole experience, not only because everyone was so friendly, or because I got to see some secret spots in the library, but because it gave me an insight into the significant diversity of roles, expertise, and backgrounds in the sector, and I got to see how warm and rewarding a career in this field can be. This was reaffirmed when I met Fabiola, the brilliant (and patient) Library Assistant who mentored me and who provided an exceptional support to the collection.
Overall, the project lasted 3 months, in which I worked independently for about an hour a week. I checked in with Fabiola every fortnight to move forward in the process. During these sessions, she showed me how to use the library software, gave me her insights and advice, and walked me through the different stages of curating a collection, which she does so passionately, from researching trends to the fun part of setting up the physical display! Although a few times I did have to slow down to work on final submissions, she was very flexible and her enthusiasm also made me eager to keep advancing the project, which I was encouraged to do with complete freedom and independence, showing the staff’s trust and openness towards the student community.
Now the result is out! The Contemporary Latin-American Voices collection has more than 50 titles from all over the region, with short stories, poetry, novels, and non-fiction, both in physical and digital books, which can be accessed through Libby for free - all you need is to download the app or go to the Libby website and sign in with your university account!
The collection features renowned authors, many of whom have been awarded international awards, such as the Mexican Pulitzer Prize winner Cristina Rivera Garza and the shortlisted authors for the International Booker Prize Mariana Enriquez (Argentina) and Fernanda Melchor (Mexico). I am very excited about my fellow students laughing to Fabio Morábito’s home reading service, resonating with Alejandro Zambra’s text about family (Chile), Isabel Zapata’s experience of motherhood, Camila Sosa Villada’s worlds trans people create with their chosen families, Natalia Borges Polesso’s LGBT+ love stories (Brasil), reading the dark scenarios crafted by Agustina Bazterrica, Mariana Enriquez, Samanta Schweblin (Argentina) and Claudia Ulloa (Perú), which have heavy political undertones about military dictatorships in Latin America, and much more.
The physical display in the library includes 10 books and an interactive map where students from all over the world can also recommend titles from their home countries. If you haven’t, go check it out at the Sydney Jones Library and recommend one of those life-changing stories! Make sure you also explore the collection created by my fellow student curator, Women’s Voices Throughout Time, which delves into history from women’s perspective, also at the Sydney Jones Library! I got one by Abi Daré, and I can’t get over how good it is!
In addition to learning about curation, I also developed some great skills, including:
Overall, this has been an incredible chance to gain insights and experience relevant for the literary industry, and I would highly recommend a similar volunteering opportunity to anyone interested in a career in this field. You’ll get to meet great people, and add some high-quality experience to your CV. More than that, it has also been absolutely rewarding to bridge both ends of the Atlantic Ocean and aid in connecting our shared experiences and sensibility.
If you are interested in volunteering for a opportunity to gain experience and boost your skills and employability for a specific sector, go to the Guild’s volunteering page and stay tuned for more opportunities.
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