The Magic of a Public Library
There is a kind of magic that exists in this world that I’d completely forgotten about…until just recently. For quite some time now, I have been a devout customer of Barnes & Noble. Regardless of what state I was living in, I’d always find the nearest location, eager to collect more titles for my personal library. What I had not done in years was utilize a local public library, primarily because it didn’t seem necessary or practical. I had a library card (which I almost never used) when I lived in Washington State. I also had another card for the Fort Lewis library, located on the Army post where I worked. In 2014 though, I got out of the Army, moved to Phoenix, Arizona, with my husband and our 3 dogs, and haven’t had a library card since — until now! I never really saw the point in patronizing a local library when I could just buy my books new and help to keep businesses like Barnes & Noble afloat. I’m not a huge fan of e-books (outside of my college textbooks), I prefer the real thing. Either way though, the thought of getting a library card just didn’t really enter my mind. I’d been so used to purchasing my books that I didn’t really see why I would want to read a book that didn’t belong to me, much less on borrowed time.
Then the unexpected happened; after a year and a half of living in Phoenix (my husband’s hometown), my hubby and I moved yet again. We ended up back in Green Bay, Wisconsin, where I grew up. I wasn’t exactly thrilled, as I had wanted to get away from Green Bay my whole life. I never really felt like I fit in there. The really fond memories I have of being a kid/teen growing up in Green Bay, were the trips I took to the library with my mom and little brother.
However, this time around, I avoided getting a library card because moving back to Green Bay was not what I expected to happen, and the last thing I wanted to do was to get attached to anything that would pave the way for putting down roots here. Fast-forward a year and a half later, and my computer decides to start acting stupid — for like the millionth time! So, it was off to the library I went, to use their computers for my schoolwork, since I go to SNHU Online. However, you need a library card number to be granted computer access. So, I signed up for a card. The library nearest my house isn’t even one of the ones I frequented as a kid, so it held no sentimental value for me. However, it was nice to be able to get my assignments submitted.
The first day I went there to do my homework, I decided to browse a little bit first. I wanted to see what they had for Stephen King books, as I feel that’s what shows a library’s true colors. I perused the shelf that had about 8 titles or so, and saw an anthology of King’s short stories, titled “Everything’s Eventual: 14 Dark Tales”. I stared at it for a little bit, took it off the shelf, looked at the cover, checked the contents to see what stories were in there, and how long they were on average, then put it back on the shelf. After spending 4–5 hours doing my homework, I decided to get a book on how to beat procrastination that I’d seen there the day before when I signed up for my card. I also went back to the shelf of Stephen King titles after thinking about that anthology all day and hoping no one else had checked it out. To my relief, it was still there, so I plucked it off the shelf, and proudly left the library with 2 books!
About five days later, I went with my husband to get him a library card at the library near my parents’ house. This was the branch I went to a lot as a kid with my younger brother. I used to come out of that library with an armload of books for both me and my brother, stacked about a foot or two high on average. However, I was curious to see how things had changed. To my surprise, not that much was different. The one obvious change was that there was now a row of about four self-checkout machines, instead of the single one we had in 2007. The librarian’s desk was much smaller as well, and had been moved slightly from where it used to reside. It was odd to think that it had been about 10 years, maybe a little less, since I’d been to this library (which incidentally is where I’m writing this article from right now). That being said, I didn’t expect them to have the same books I grew up with, since the “Adventures of the Bailey School Kids” series has been out of print for a number of years now, along with the older “Goosebumps” books and the American Girl “Girls of Many Lands” titles. I didn’t expect to find them on the shelves…but I did! I saw the “Girls of Many Lands” books first, mostly by accident, which got me wondering if they’d have the “Bailey School Kids” series too. As it turns out, they had quite a few, at which I almost cried! I’m a sap for nostalgia, especially in the form of literature. They still had lots of “Goosebumps” titles, which only mildly surprised me, but it was a magical feeling to know that the kids books I remembered so fondly were still there for new generations to enjoy.
This library branch also had a lot more Stephen King titles to choose from than the other location I went to, and they even had a Foreign Film DVD section (several titles of which I’ve already seen)! I ended up finding a book in the teen section I’d been wanting to read for about a year now, called “The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly”, a debut novel by Stephanie Oakes. Every time I’d checked Barnes & Noble, they never had it in stock and I didn’t have the patience to order it, so I decided to wait. They never got another copy back in stock after they sold their first couple. Of course, when I saw that book at the library, I had to get it. I’m currently on the 7th chapter and so far it’s very compelling! The chapters are ridiculously short (just how I like a good page turner to be), so I can always justify reading “just one more…”
Then I decided to look up a book that I didn’t see on the shelf in the teen section. It was a book I read when I was about 13, called “A Mango Shaped Space” by Wendy Mass. To my delight, they had it at this location as well, with the same cover picture I remembered. The computer catalog status said that it was currently on hold for someone though. I smiled and thought, I hope they love it as much as I did.
So, in starting a new writing journey, by choosing to write for Medium, I also began a new journey as a reader by going to the library again. Maybe my computer being uncooperative was one of the best things that could have happened to me this summer. Honestly, for all my literary choices I have at home, I haven’t managed to read one book from beginning to end for fun since the summer of 2015. Something about the library, knowing that the book isn’t yours, that you have to read it by a certain date, so that you can pass it on to someone else, gives a sense of urgency to just read the dang book already! It also gives a sense of community, knowing that someone before you borrowed that book, and probably enjoyed it, now it’s your turn, and afterwards, it’ll be someone else’s turn. You and all these strangers in your community are linked by your love of literature. What could be more magical than that?
References
Casanova, Mary, et al. Girls of Many Lands. American Girl. 2002. Print.
Dadey, Debbie & Jones, Marcia Thornton. Adventures of the Bailey School Kids. Scholastic. 1990. Print.
Dobosz, Ann Marie. The Perfectionism Workbook for Teens: Activities to Help You Reduce Anxiety and Get Things Done. Instant Help. 2016. Print.
King, Stephen. Everything’s Eventual: 14 Dark Tales. Pocket Books. 2003. Print.
Mass, Wendy. A Mango Shaped Space. Little, Brown and Company. 2003. Print.
Oakes, Stephanie. The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly. Dial/Penguin. 2015. Print.
Stine, R. L. Goosebumps. Scholastic. 1992. Print.
