I Work At A Public Library

Fun read.

I was annoyed by this more than I was amused. Rather than being a fleshed out collection of stories from library workers, it was a compilation of mostly dialogue exchanges. An example:

Elderly Patron: [timidly] Where are the computers?

Me: There are some in the Adult Department and in the coffee/vending machine area.

Elderly Patron: Thank you. If I get lost, someone will come find me, right?

That example is basically tonally the feeling of the book. Aside from the dialogue exchanges being annoying, I also kind of hated how it felt like the entire book was making the same tired jokes. Haha, elderly people and computers, amirite? Haha, mental illness is funny from the outside, high five. Haha, kids say the darndest things, those rascals. It felt mean spirited in a lot of places, and honestly, just between you and me....

....a lot of the stories felt made up. Particularly when you get to some of the exchanges involving "difficult" patrons (which, don't even really sound all that difficult). A patron will have an issue with a late fee or perceived treatment or some other library thing, and whoever is relating the exchange says exactly the perfect thing at the perfect time with the exact amount of snark. You almost expect an "and then everyone in the library clapped" at the end of some of these short exchanges.

Just an overall miss with me. I gave it a star for being library-focused, but I couldn't recommend this to anyone.

For bibliophiles everywhere. Not all of us have the privilege of helping others wade through the stacks in search of knowledge (of life, the universe, and everything), but most of can appreciate the tales contained in this little tome.

I spotted this while meandering through the stacks at my own public library, and the title caught my eye. I flipped through while standing there and added to my already heavy armload of books - and as soon as I got home I started reading (not going to lie, I was also cheered by the fact that this was a book I could finish in about an hour and help with my reading challenge).

Gina Sheridan is hysterical and seriously needs to write some more books (I only found one other!). She writes about her experiences with library patrons in a humorous but caring way. While yes, to an academic, many of the experiences she has are roll-on-the-floor-laughing funny, some people will probably prickle at a few of the technology-challenged anecdotes. While definitely finding the humor in her job - even at times when patrons have attempted to threaten said job - Gina clearly cares about her people, as evidenced by the several anecdotes dedicated to a persnickety patron named Carol.

There are also several anecdotes that left me positively teary-eyed, like the time Gina explained to a young patron new to the States, that she could pick any book she wanted and it wouldn't cost her family a thing. The wonder of a child with a wealth of books suddenly open to her - I just wanted to hug her.

Wish it had been longer but love I finished so quickly (how's that for indecisive, eh?). 4/5 stars due to feeling like some of the stories really needed more background, but were hilarious even out of context.

This was a good way to spend an hour. I certainly can relate. I thought it would be funnier, but perhaps I'm too close to the subject matter and am jaded.

Hilarious, quick read. Loved every page. Reminded me of my own years working at HDL, and the anecdotes have great parallels to my current job at a help desk. Always something different/quirky/annoying/crazy going on.