These are a Few of my Favorite Things

Thing 4 - Get to Know Your Public Library

Having worked for 3 years at the Red Balloon Book Shop as a bookseller and 8 years at the St. Paul Public Library as a part-time Librarian as a second job, I feel lucky to have some solid connections in the book world besides my school.

It was especially convenient to actively engage students from my school in the public library world either to get cards or clear up their records so they could start using their cards again.

When a book is requested, I sit the student down and we go into the Public Library Catalog and find the book and then check on the Library Card and if active reserve the book at the nearest Library for ease of use by the student.

For other students and some staff, I reserve the book and check it out myself to facilitate getting the material of interest. I know the people and the places and how to get things easily.

Sometimes my friends will facilitate my getting materials by meeting me with the book or putting it in their front porch where I pick it up later.

Fines and adjustments can sometimes make it easier to get problems out of the way between the student and his use of the facility. I usually try to relieve the particular student with fines or a lost card by reminding them that only good readers loose books or cards!

One of my favorite stories of this particular use took place when I was at Johnson High. A female student was doing a report and I told her that if she came down to the Central Downtown Library where I was working that night that I would help her find material and we could print out relevant articles. She did come and with an entourage of males one of which was her brother. After getting her articles, I walked them up from the Children's Room where I worked to the Public Reference Desk. I didn't want to just direct them up there as their shyness can work into avoidance at the critical time in seeking materials. We got the name and location of some relevant material and were walking that way. The brother had been staring at me and finally couldn't resist asking if I had a sister. I said, "No." He continued, "Well, you sure look a lot like our High School Librarian. The sister cut him off, "She IS our high school librarian, stupid!"

I often asked the brother if I could tell "our story" and he usually let me.