Seasons of Reading

The summer reading program may be coming to an end, but that doesn't mean the reading has to stop.  Sure, vacations may be over--people are returning to work and kids are going back to school--but reading isn't.  It's not just a summertime activity but a year-round thing to do. 

Picture reading on a bench in the early fall with the leaves just starting to turn color.  Maybe you're enjoying a bestseller with a cup of warm apple cider.  Imagine reading in the middle of winter cuddled in a warm throw blanket on the sofa while the wind howls and the snow beats on the window.  Maybe you're indulging in a timeless classic while sipping on a cup of hot cocoa. Or envision reading on a picnic blanket in the park in spring with the sun shining on early blossoms.  Maybe you're cherishing a captivating memoir while quenching your thirst with a cool iced tea.

Get the idea?  Reading is something that you can do no matter the season, no matter the weather.  You can do it outdoors or indoors, when it's snowy or sunny.  You can do it with your favorite drink or no drink at all.

Whether you're small or tall, we hope you'll continue to enjoy your summer reading into the rest of the year.  Be sure to take the time to keep up with your reading, even if it's only for 15 or 20 minutes a day.  Those minutes will turn into hours of pure delight.  And if you need a good read, you can always stop by the perch and your friendly neighborhood perch librarian will be happy to recommend some picks.  Don't be a stranger to your library.

Looking forward to fall reading on the perch.
 

Not Just for Teens

Once upon a time in Libraryland, books were tailored to specific readers.  Teen books were for teens and could be found in the teen section; adult books were for adults and could be found in the adult section.  If you were a teen and wanted to feel all grown up, you ventured to the adult section and checked out the adult books, but if you were an adult, you wouldn't want to be caught dead in the teen section.  Oh, the humiliation!  An adult reading books meant for younger readers?  How preposterous!  That adult must undoubtedly be emotionally stunted!

The Harry Potter series in the late 1990s perhaps started the widespread trend of adults reading teen books.  In Great Britain, adults were secretly reading the wildly popular books wrapped in brown paper or newspapers out of shame that they would be seen reading a children's book.  When the publisher of the famous series caught wind what the adults were doing, they came up with an "adult" version of the book.  Technically, it was the same book only with a more sophisticated looking cover.

Nowadays, teen books are openly read by teens and adults alike without any embarrassment.  The line between teen and adult books is blurring, and audiences are becoming more varied.  Take for instance Twilight, The Hunger Games, and the Divergent series.  You'll see just as many adults reading those books as you see teens.

In my very humble opinion (and you always know it to be ever so humble), I think adults should feel free to read anything they want.  And I mean anything.  Sometimes, you just need to lose yourself in a teen book.  Other times, you need to read a kid's book (yes, you read that right).  You may not have control over being an adult in an adult's world, but isn't it nice to know you can always take a mental escape from it every so now and then?

Yours truly enjoying her own mental escape from the perch.

Kids and Library Etiquette

As many of you may (or may not) be aware, summer reading in the library is in full swing.  Yay!  And I'm happy to report that we currently have 326 kids, 48 teens, and 54 adults signed up to participate in the summer reading program.  Double yay!  We also have more people coming into the library daily than we normally have at any other time of the year.  Triple yay!

Unfortunately, though, we're seeing that many of our littlest readers are exhibiting some bad library etiquette, and we would greatly appreciate it if parents could help in correcting the manners of our youngest library users.

So here's a basic refresher on how to behave in the library:

• No running in the library.  The library isn't a playground.  Although we're happy to see kids excited about getting their books, we don't want to see them running and getting hurt.  We also don't want to see them playing tag and disrupting other library users who are trying to read and get work done.
• No shouting, yelling, or screaming in the library.  Again, the library isn't a playground.  Please remember to use your library voice (a.k.a. quiet voice or whisper) when you come in so you don't disrupt other people.  Save your loud voice for outside.  And parents--if your children are loud, we're grateful when you take them outside for a moment and return with them once they've calmed down.
• Don't throw library items around.  Books and other library materials aren't intended to stay on shelves unused.  They're supposed to be used and go on visits with borrowers to homes, work, school, and other places.  However, they're not meant to be thrown on the floor and other places where they can get damaged.  If you don't want an item, please leave it at the desk or at other designated areas.  It will be re-shelved properly.
• Don't scribble on the desks (or anywhere else).  You wouldn't scribble on your kitchen table or countertops, would you?  Then please don't scribble or allow kids to scribble on tables, chairs, books, or anything else in the library.  We want to keep the library a clean and inviting place for everyone.  If you or your kids have the need to scribble, we'll be happy to supply you with scratch paper and even crayons!
• Please and thank you are not bad words.  Politeness will get you far in the library, and we at the desk always like it when kids and adults have good manners.  We're here to help you and are happy to do so, but we never get tired of people asking us nicely for our assistance.

Let's make the library a safe, fun, and exciting place for everyone this summer and throughout the year!  After all, it's your library.  Treat the space and the materials in it like you own them, because you do.

My ever humble 2 cents from the perch.

 

It's Time Again for Summer Reading!

Yay!  Hurray!!  WooHOO!!!  I'm so excited!  I'm soooo excited!!  Did I mention I was excited?  And if you're wondering why I'm excited, it's because it's finally time for summer reading!  YES!!!  School's almost out, the weather's getting warmer, and trips to the lake will be happening soon.  It's a great time to kick back and relax with a good book!

Last week was the first week of our summer reading program, and I can happily report that so far we have 140 kids registered, 22 teens, and 28 adults.  That's awesome!  We're hoping to get even more people registered over the next few months, because as they say, it ain't over 'til it's over, and for us that's August 30.

If you can allow me to get up on the soapbox for a moment, I think summer reading is a really great thing.  It's something everyone can do no matter their age (kids too young to read can even be read to by an adult or an older sibling).  You can do it by yourself or with others.  You don't have to worry about reading for school book reports or for college research papers.  You just read whatever you like, whenever you like.  I remember how much I enjoyed the summer when I was growing up because I could read anything I wanted just for the fun of it (I still do, by the way).

And that's what summer reading is all about--reading just for fun.  It's not about what you read or how much you read.  It's just about reading.  That's all.  So come on in to the library, register for the summer reading program, check out some books, and have fun reading! 

Bookishly yours on the perch.

The 100th Post!

Wow!  I can't believe it!  This is it!  The BIG one!  Really!  This is officially the 100th Post of The Librarian's Perch!

To be honest (and modest), I wasn't entirely sure that this humble little library blog would actually make it to 100.  When you start with the first few blog posts, you're just happy to have something out there and hope that some people are reading what you put into cyberspace.  You try to think of interesting things to write about libraries--things about books, things about technologies, and sometimes just interesting things in general.

I hope that you, my loyal fans who have been following this blog, enjoyed reading the various posts.  Maybe some of them have been informative and made you think about different library services and issues.  Maybe some of them have been a little entertaining.  Whatever the case, you were hopefully able to take something away with you.

I sincerely thank you for taking the time to follow this library blog and for being supportive of our library.  As long as there are people like you out there who want to have fun reading, learning, and growing, there will always be a future for libraries.

Here's to the 100th Post and for the next hundred posts to come!

Yours truly celebrating with a happy dance on the perch.

 

Please Support the Base Library

Something's been bothering me for quite some time, but it's something I didn't want to face.  Unfortunately, it's something I can't ignore and I can't pretend that it isn't a big concern.  That something is the very existence of the base library here at Fairchild.

Last week, on two consecutive days, visiting patrons from different Air Force bases in different parts of the country have told me 1) how nice our library is and 2) how nice that Fairchild still has a library because the libraries at their bases were closed down.

I was disturbed by the second comment, but sadly, I wasn't surprised.  We at the library are well aware that times are tough (our budget has been practically nonexistent for the nearly five years I've been here), and the military is looking to make cuts where it can.  And our library is under the threat of closure just like the other remaining base libraries.

I know I'm probably a little biased toward our library at Fairchild because it's where my perch is at and where I get my bird seed, but in my humble opinion (and you know it to be ever so humble) closing base libraries is more harmful than helpful.

Being on the perch almost everyday, I see firsthand what our library does for the Fairchild community.  It serves everyone with access to the base, including active duty and retired military, dependents and civilians, contractors and students (a number of college classes are held on the base).

Military members visiting from other bases and retired military members traveling through the area with family can check out items from our library, something they can't do from the public library without proof of a local home address.  If these people want to check out a book or DVD to enjoy in their downtime, our base library is the only place where they can do so.

Many military families living on base are short on cash and often have just one car, which can make things difficult.  For stay-at-home military spouses, our library is a place that's not only close enough to walk to with their kids, but an outing that's free and fun.  There are books to read and toys to play with.  Sure, there's a public library just 3.5 miles down the road from the base, but that library may as well be on the other side of Spokane if you don't have a car and have three small children.

And people working on the base, whether civilian employees or contractors, often use our library because it's near where they work and is often more convenient to get to than the public library which may be a considerable distance from their homes.

Without our library, the quality of life at Fairchild would definitely decline for the different groups that use our resources and services.  The people at Fairchild do so much for the good of our country, shouldn't some good be done for them?

If you'd like to help keep the library at Fairchild open, take a moment to fill out an ICE (Interactive Customer Evaluation) form online at http://ice.disa.mil and let the Powers-That-Be know just how much our library means to you.  We enjoy serving you, and we hope to be doing so for a long time to come.

Thanking you sincerely from the perch for your support.
 

 

Bother Me--Please!

As many of you, my dear fans, know, I am twittering (or tweeting) happily on the perch, ever-ready for your library-related questions.  Many of you are considerate, which is very nice, but some of you are considerate to the point that you feel like you're bothering or interrupting me in order to ask me a question.  I have one word for you--don't.  Don't feel like you're disturbing me because you need to ask me something.

My number one priority as a perch librarian (a.k.a. reference librarian) is to be available to answer any questions you may have or to provide you with the help you need in finding library materials.  While I'm waiting for you to come to me, I'm taking care of different odds and ends to make use of the time.  I may be answering e-mails, preparing future library programs, doing some library training, processing materials, or writing posts for this blog.  All that, however, is secondary to helping you.

So even if I look busy working on something, please, PLEASE bother me with your questions!  I'm here first and foremost for you, my dear patrons.  That's why I get paid my bird seed.  To be here for you and to help you make the most of your library and your library experience.  After all, what good is the library and its information if not to serve the patrons?

My very humble opinion from the perch.