The public library - a haven of calm, source of information, home to the student, the geek and the aging librarian. Or so you might think.
Don Borchert's ten years as assistant librarian have taught him that a library is more than just a place to borrow books, it's also a place where people hide from the law, fall in love, fight, deal drugs, introduce their children to reading, look up porn and pursue their dreams. Borchett's hilarious memoir delves behind the bookshelves as he discovers the weird, dangerous and downright dirty world of a public library and the fearless civil servants who patrol its aisles.
Apart from the location, Friends of the Library and Volunteers this books shows, in a quite humourous way, how universal the library experience can be. I had a good giggle and regularly nodded in wry acknowledgement.
Full of snippets of what life can be like behind the desk and insights into what people really do in libraries it's a great fun read. Despite the tag line I didn't find it shocking at all. The stories are individual and there's some filling in of the background but they each pretty much stand-alone, rather like a series of articles than an overarching book.
I also agree with the end of the introduction:
"Support your local library.
Get a library card.
Pay your goddam fines. Man up for Christ's sake. Be a little responsible.
And if there's any shushing to be done, let it be done by a professional.
Me."
Reading updates
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Started reading
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19 December, 2009:
Finished reading
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19 December, 2009:
Reviewed