I work as a library assistant at the Greytown Library. We are lucky to be housed in the Town Centre, a recently-renovated heritage building where there is lots of light, an excellent heating system and a desk where library staff can serve the public while seated (a rarity in libraries).<\/p>\n
One of the best aspects of the job is the discussions with customers about books. One of the reasons I thought the job would suit me was because it involves lots of people contact and lots of books. And the job does suit me very well. I had no preconceptions about other readers and how many of them would like to discuss the books they read and\/or the books they wanted to read. In all my experience as a library customer – in the nine or ten different public libraries where I was “a regular” at various times – I had never been approached by a librarian with an offer of help, while I was browsing the shelves. However now that I am on the staff side of the equation, offering that help has led me to some of the most enjoyable conversations I have ever had.<\/p>\n
Take today as an example. A young woman, in her early years at high school, asked me if I could recommend any books. Together we scanned the shelves of our Young Adult collection and I talked with her about the titles I had read, as she shared the ones she had read. The customer was currently working her way through Robert Muchamore’s Cherub<\/em> series, after her brother recommended them to her. She had also read other series that I had not, and thought I might like the Pretty Little Liars<\/em> books. We had both read the Twilight<\/em>, and Tomorrow When the War Began<\/em> series. I was happy to send her away with Garth Nix’s The Old Kingdom<\/em> trilogy, the four Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants<\/em> books by Ann Brashares, and the first of Kathy Reich’s YA books, Virals<\/em>. We talked about dystopian novels and the enjoyment we had both had from The Hunger Games; <\/em>we talked about the experiences to be garnered from reading – far more than we could ever fit into a lifetime; and we talked about the joy of reading a book that ‘sucks you in’ from the very first pages and how reading creates ‘a happy place’ for us to enjoy. It was a wonderful conversation and the highlight of my day.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I work as a library assistant at the Greytown Library. We are lucky to be housed in the Town Centre, a recently-renovated heritage building where there is lots of light, an excellent heating system and a desk where library staff … Continue reading