March 2011

I have friends who joke with me about being a librarian. I think they do that because they aren’t really sure they know what a librarian does. My friends tell me it must be nice to go to work, in a quiet, stress-free environment where you get to read book after book after book. They wonder why I needed to go to “Library School” to learn the alphabet and the Dewey Decimal System. And some of them even think that being a librarian isn’t “real work” because we get to sit at a desk all day long and answer the same questions over and over.

There are many different types of jobs people do at the library. Some of us work at the Circulation Desk issuing new library cards to customers, checking out materials and then checking those materials back in and putting them back on the shelves. Some people work in Technical Services where they unpack, catalog and process all of the new materials that arrive every day. Others of us work at the Youth and Adult Reference desks where, yes, we do answer customer’s questions and help them with the computers. Some of us plan youth, teen and adult programs such as book discussions, story times and author visits. And some of us do scheduling, budgeting, building maintenance, strategic planning, staff development, personnel management and other business administrative duties.

Libraries across the country will be celebrating National Library Week from April 10th to the 16th. I encourage everyone to visit the Beloit Public Library this week to take advantage of all of the resources we offer and to get to know us a little better. Go ahead, friend, ask us what we do.

Don’t miss the upcoming FABL (Friends at Beloit Library) booksale going on during National Library Week. The sale begins Thursday April 14th at 9:30 a.m. and will be held in the Public Meeting Room. For more information about the booksale be sure to visit www.beloitlibrary.info .

Check out these books coming soon to the Beloit Public Library:

Beyond the Trees: Stories of Wisconsin Forests by Candice Gaukel Andrews. "Recognizing the social and ecological values of Wisconsin's forest resources helps us to achieve a more equitable and sustainable use of some of the most beautiful places on earth — our forests. Beyond the Trees reaches back into history — linking our forests together and at the same time seeing their great differences. This splendid book allows each reader the chance to explore the intimate reaches of Wisconsin's forest history with depth and excitement, mystery and adventure." (Nina Leopold Bradley, founder and director, the Aldo Leopold Foundation) (Review)

Indigo: In Search of the Color That Seduced the World by Catherine E. McKinley. For almost five millennia, in every culture and in every major religion, indigo-a blue pigment obtained from the small green leaf of a parasitic shrub through a complex process that even scientists still regard as mysterious-has been at the center of turbulent human encounters. (Product Description)

Liar, Liar: The Theory, Practice and Destructive Properties of Deception by Gary Paulsen. Kevin doesn't mean to make trouble when he lies. He's just really good at it, and it makes life so much easier. But as his lies pile up, he finds himself in big—and funny—trouble with his friends, family, and teachers. (Product Description)