Some things about working in a library I love and hate in equal measure. Straightening is one of them. Especially straightening during the school holidays when the children’s library, to quote a colleague, ‘looks like they’ve been throwing the books about’.
I hate…
- that the books always need straightening in the holidays, everyday without fail, and there is no time
- that children will always, without fail, push the books to the back of the shelves
- knowing that this usually happens just after you’ve straightened
- that my colleagues can’t seem to tell the difference between a hardback and a paperback picture book so all my beautiful sorting is effectively wasted
- that we don’t have money to buy any more shelf ends so there are lots of tipsy books
- the way children’s non-fiction books are so thin that you have to pull them out to see the class number
But I love…
- the satisfaction of a beautifully ordered children’s library when there’s time to finish it
- that I can read the books as I go along
- getting to know the stock so well that I can spot which books are new and which have just been on loan for a very long time
- finding the new shiny picture books to put on display
- knowing the author of a book a child asks for without having to look it up because I’ve straightened past it so many times
- that straightening means I get to sit in the children’s library and listen to parents and grandparents reading stories, point toddlers towards board books, recommend new authors and listen to the excitement which is choosing a new book when you’re 7
Slightly shameful admission, but I have on occasion resorted to mental straightening of the children’s library as a cure for insomnia! Beats counting sheep and it’s quite effective. I’ve only ever got up to Roald Dahl…
Another public post for Library Day in the Life Day 5
Tags: librarydayinthelife, public post, work
