Friday, September 25, 2020

Libraries by Sharon Dean


LUCY BURDETTE: Today we welcome Sharon Dean to the blog with a subject I bet we can all agree on--our love of libraries!

SHARON DEAN: When I was in elementary school, I devoured a series of biographies bound in orange. I read now that they were published by Bobbs-Merrill and that there were over two hundred of them. I could still lead anyone to the shelf where they sat waiting for me to select enough to keep me busy for the week. 

My first job was shelving books in that little library that I still associate with orange-bound biographies. When I was about thirteen, I'd walk the half mile to my job and walk home by myself in the dark. Those were days when we weren't as fearful. The biggest fear my parents had was that I'd go to my job and find the librarian dead. Her name was Bertha and I remember her as a shriveled old lady, though she probably wasn't much older than fifty. But she was ill with cancer. A strange smell often filled the library. I think that it was the smell of death. And, yes, she died while I still worked there, but thankfully not in the library.


I gave Bertha's name to the elderly, former librarian in my novel The Barn. I based that library not on the one of my childhood but on the one in the town where I raised my children. There's a wonderful story about that library. It had once been a church. When the church closed and joined the other Protestant church in town, there was a stipulation that the building had to be used for church purposes or income. My kids went to youth group there and they roller skated around the former, now pew-less, sanctuary. My daughter took her first dance classes there. 


When the town needed a new library, this old church seemed a perfect place. It would absolve the other church of the financial burden of its upkeep and provide the town the space it badly needed. But there was that clause in the will that related not to the building, but to the land the building was on. It took years, but two women eventually tracked down the heir, who was, I recall, a librarian himself. He gladly gave permission for the church to become a library. 


Bigger libraries are now available to me. The library at the college in the East where I taught, the library at the college in the West where I now live, the Carnegie town library in my town, the many libraries I researched in when I was an academic: the Beinecke at Yale, the Hay at Brown, the Houghton at Harvard, the Morgan Pierpont in New York City. But my heart is with the small libraries of my childhood and my young motherhood and of that little library that Charity Royall is in charge of in Edith Wharton's Summer. 


When I was researching for The Wicked Bible, my forthcoming novel featuring Deborah Strong, librarian and reluctant sleuth, I read two books on the history of libraries: Wayne A. Wiegand's, Part of Our Lives: A People's History of the American Public Library (Oxford UP, 2015) and Matthew Battles' Library: An Unquiet History (Norton, 2015). What an interesting history it is. Big or small, libraries deserve to be labeled "sacred spaces."

In this age of easy downloads, how important are libraries to you? What stories about a library would you like to share?


About the book: In 1990, Deborah Madison and Rachel Cummings, both seventeen, are enjoying a bicycle ride on a beautiful September day in New Hampshire. They stop at a local barn that no longer houses cows but still displays a wooden cow’s head that peeks out from a window in the rafters. Sliding open the door, they find Rachel’s boyfriend, Joseph Wheeler, dead on the barn’s floor.

The case lies as cold as Joseph for nearly thirty years until Rachel returns to New Hampshire to attend the funeral of Joseph’s mother. The girls, now women, reopen the cold case and uncover secrets that have festered, as they often do, in small towns. Against a backdrop of cold and snow and freezing rain, Deborah and Rachel rekindle their friendship and confess the guilt each of them has felt about things that happened in the past. The Barn is a story of friendship lost and recovered, secrets buried and unburied, and the power of forgiveness.


About Sharon Dean
: Sharon L. Dean grew up in Massachusetts where she was immersed in the literature of New England. She earned undergraduate and graduate degrees at the University of New Hampshire, a state she lived and taught in before moving to Oregon. After giving up writing scholarly books that required footnotes, she reinvented herself as a fiction writer. She is the author of three Susan Warner mysteries and of a literary novel titled Leaving Freedom. The Barn, the first novel in a new mystery series, features librarian and reluctant sleuth Deborah Strong as she and her friend solve a thirty-year-old cold case. Set in the depth of New Hampshire’s January, The Barn is a story of friendship lost and recovered, secrets buried and unburied, and the power of forgiveness.



87 comments:

  1. Sharon, I am such a fan of libraries. Downloads may be convenient, but there’s nothing quite like walking through the library with its shelves of books stretching from wall to wall.

    My children loved the library. Of course, when they were small, we still had to fill out library cards and get our books stamped with the return date. When I took the children to get their own library cards, the librarian said they had to be able to print their names in order to have a card.
    Allen wrote his name and got a card, but Lauren couldn’t yet write her full name, so no card for her, which upset him very much. We got books and went home; I was busy starting supper while the children went to read their books.
    It wasn’t long before Allen came out to the kitchen and said we needed to go back to the library so that Lauren could have a card. I explained that she couldn’t get one because she couldn’t yet write her whole name. He said, “I know . . . I taught her to write it so she could have a card, too.”
    We turned off the dinner and went back to the library and she got her card.

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    1. What a sweet memory, Joan! Sounds like you did a wonderful job of raising caring, kind children.

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    2. What a lovely story! And what a great brother. That story says so much about him, and about your family.

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    3. That is adorable! What a dear dear story.

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    4. It's 5:30 AM where I live and I'm waking up to this terrific story that's making me remember my first library card.

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    5. What a fabulous story, and what great children you have!

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    6. Great story, and what an excellent big brother!

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    7. Joan, thank you for my first smile of the day!

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    8. Oh, wow. What a lovely story, Joan; it made me tear up, and I love that -- warms my heart in these dark times...

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  2. I loved going to the library as a kid. I knew where all my favorite authors were, and I'd stop by their section, even if I knew no new books would be there, just to smile at them.

    I don't use my library as much any more, but I still use it occasionally. I've been using it for downloads more this year. I've got to say dowloadable audio books sure are nice.

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    1. that's nice that you stopped by the shelves to smile at the books:)

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    2. I, too, don't use the library as much as I used to, but I get to enjoy watching my grandchild with his pile of library books.

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  3. Now that's a long love affair, Sharon. All those amazing libraries you've enjoyed! Churches and libraries do have a lot in common, don't they?

    The school library when I was in second grade saved me from grim reality, in a variety of ways. I learned to read early, and must have been bored and possibly disruptive during reading class. My blessed teacher, Mrs. Young, sent me to the library during that time, where I discovered the Bobbsey Twins, Nancy Drew, and the Hardy Boys. And a lifetime love of books and all that went with them. At the time our family's home life was a disaster, but the peace of those hours in the quiet dimness of the stacks kept me whole. I would even go so far as to say Mrs. Young changed the potential course of my life with her decision.

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    1. An amazing story Karen. I wonder if she knew how much that time meant to you?

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    2. Yes, libraries are spaces of refuge. I'm glad there are Mrs. Youngs in the world.

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    3. Wow, Karen. Isn't it great to remember that perceptive and kind teacher who made such a difference in your life?

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    4. Roberta, I suspect she understood. But what a kind and thoughtful way to manage my inattention. And yes, Judy, it's been 62 years, and it still makes me grateful.

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  4. As a kid I would go to the library on occasion or when they had the Bookmobile and drove to the various neighborhoods in the summer time, I would pick up a bunch of books then.

    As I got older, I didn't read as much. The required reading in high school sucked the joy of reading out of me. (Lesson #1 - Never tell an English teacher that just because a book is 200 years old doesn't automatically make it a classic, even if you think the book sucks.)

    But as I got back into reading after graduation, I stuck to bookstores and never went to the local library here in town except for the few times the basketball league held coaches meetings there or the time I met Archer Mayor there at a signing. I also got to see Hank Phillippi Ryan at a signing event she did there as well. (Lesson #2 - That same English teacher you told a "literary classic" sucked hearing famous award-wining novelist/reporter call you a very good book reviewer will always be an unexpected bit of awesome!)

    Then about 18 months or so, I saw an ad in the local weekly paper about the new library director starting up a mystery book club. While I typically abhor the idea of book clubs, for some reason I was intrigued. I went to the first meeting and while the book we chose ended up being AWFUL, the idea of the club itself became something I really looked forward to.

    Then when Ingrid Thoft Skyped into a meeting and Edith Maxwell appeared LIVE-IN PERSON at another meeting, it went up to a new level.

    I'm reasonably friendly with the library director now (he even suggested that I apply to be one of the library trustees when they had an open seat) and one of the trustees who is part of the mystery book club.

    And I started picking up books to read directly from the library which I hadn't done for years. Some new-to-me authors (book club selections or otherwise) and some authors whose books I loved but don't typically save on my overflowing shelves.

    I'm not a fanatic about my local library now or anything but it certainly does serve more of a purpose in my life than it has in decades and how can that ever be seen as a bad thing?

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    1. it's a good thing Jay! Were you tempted to become a trustee?

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    2. Thanks Hank!

      Lucy, I wasn't tempted to become a trustee. Since my time in basketball coaching ended, I've pulled back from any semblance of a "public" life here in town. I have no desire to resume anything like that regardless of the situation.

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    3. I discovered the library in my new hometown through a mystery readers book club. I learned so much about the different subcategories of mysteries as I started my journey to become a writer of cozies.

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  5. Well, you all know about me and library’s when I was a kid, so I will repeat that story! But two things: sharon, the barn sounds absolutely fabulous, can’t wait to read it.
    And Bobbs-Merrill ! I remember those biographies, two: like Dorothea Dix, girl of the city? They each had the name of the character, then a little description, right? Mine were bound in blue.
    And! Are used to work for Bobbs-Merrill! It was one of my first real jobs. I was a proofreader, and had to read the entire Indiana code of laws out loud. With punctuation.

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    1. Oh my. The Indiana code of laws. Stick with those biographies. I wanted to post a photo of one but feared copyright issues. You can google it, though. The photos will bring back memories.

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    2. Oh, I remember those now! I was hoping to find a photo. They were wonderful. My favorite was Nellie Bly - Hank, you would have loved that, too.

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    3. Nellie Bly was awesome! And Hank, at least reading the Indiana Code of Laws in such detail gave you nice material for future thrillers.

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    4. Remembering those biographies (or ones like them as I remember red, not orange covers). My very best friend and I competed to read the most of these one summer. Either it was a rainy summer or our mothers just enjoyed us being quietly occupied (cowboys and space cadet adventures were our favorite and not silent made up games), as I don’t remembered being shooed outside, Thanks for the memory, Sharon.

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    5. I was always shooed outside. But I carried a book with me.

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  6. I have a long love affair with public libraries. When I was growing up we were pretty poor. My dad worked away all week, with the family's only car. But my mom and I walked to the library twice a week to check out the maximum allowed number of books. It was a beautiful, central part of my childhood.

    After I grew up I wandered away from library use for a couple decades or so. But when we moved to our current home in 1995 I rediscovered the joy of a good public library and raised my son on frequent visits.

    Today as an empty nester I use it more than ever. During the early months of COVID I had to rely exclusively on downloads, of course. But then they went to curbside pickup of reserves, and just this week re-opened with limited services. The pleasure of reading real, physical library books again after ebooks only was huge, and I now look forward to at least a limited experience of browsing again.

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    1. Those walks to the library are part of what has made them special to me. Even now I'm fortunate to have both a town library and a university library in walking distance.

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  7. Sharon, when I began reading your post I felt a strong sense of nostalgia for my own childhood. Those orange-covered biographies were the beginning of my love for history and a big part of my weekly haul of books from the library. And, at age thirteen, my first job was shelving books in that same library -- no dying librarian though (thank heavens!). Today, I am a trustee of that library and am grateful to have the chance to give back to the place that gave me such a good start in life. Given the chance, I can go on at great length about the value of public libraries to their communities (and have, on numerous occasions!). And I recommend Eric Klinenberg's Palaces for the People about the importance of social infrastructure, including libraries in today's communities. And now, I'm off to find The Barn. Thank you for the trip down memory lane, Sharon!

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    1. Sounds like we have much in common, Chris. Just writing this blog plunged me into nostalgia for those old orange covered biographies.

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  8. I couldn't live with libraries. The ones here in Atlanta now have curb side pick up and return. You place a Hold on a book on line and then pick it up once available. I am devoted to my library. I worked there after school two days a week and all day Saturday while in high school and during the summer I worked every day. I reshelved books at first and was finally promoted to desk work, checking books in and out. I loved it and got first chance at some of the books.

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    1. I'll bet you know all kinds of names of books and authors because of that shelving. I know I do. What perfect part-time jobs we had.

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  9. Welcome Sharon and congratulations for The Barn.
    I don't even know if there was a library where I grew up. My first borrowed books were at elementary school.
    I fell in love with library in college mainly because, as an introvert, it was the calmer spot of the place, my refugee between courses to study and do my work.
    Entering a library for me is a little like entering a church or entering a big park in a city : very calming. I find it very fitting that a church became a library in your town.
    It is as an adult that I began to use the services of the library. For over forty years now, it has been the favourite building of my little town. I can say that it saved me thousands of dollars and enriched my life even more.
    When travelling, visiting libraries is a must for me.

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    1. When I remember my college library, I remember the day they put in a new striped carpet. The place of calm became the place where we all got vertigo. When the carpet was replaced, I believe the library sold pieces as memorabilia.

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    2. Wow that carpet story is crazy! some decorator really missed the mark

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    3. Yup. Anyone who was a student at the time would remember that carpet. After all, it was pre-internet and we all had to use the library.

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    4. Recently my library has begun printing how much you have saved by borrowing their books. This info is entered at the end of your check out receipt. I think that is so cool!

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    5. Nice idea. It's getting us a readership if not royalties!

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  10. Congratulations on The Barn, Sharon. I love the cover and the story sounds great. I've put it in my Amazon cart. I am a fan of barns and barn pictures. In fact, I'm getting ready to order a print from an artist in my hometown. It's a fall painting with a barn and leaves.

    Growing up, going to the town library (and I'm from a small town) was a thrill. I can remember when I was old enough to drift over from the children's room to the adult sections. That was really exciting. Two of my favorite teachers/people ever are my elementary school librarian and my junior high librarian. Both these women were a huge influence in my finally getting my Masters in Library Science in my late forties. Unfortunately, my high school librarian was awful, but by then I was already in love with libraries. The library where I now live is not the greatest, so I've tapered off using it in recent years, especially since they did a renovation that made the library less user friendly for adults. I want the library to be user friendly to children and teens, but I don't think the planners appreciated the adult users enough. Anyway, my husband is happy with their audio books app, so that's something.

    I just read Danielle's comments above, and I have to agree with that feeling she describes of entering a library. And, yes to checking out the libraries when I travel. I loved seeing the library in Kansas City, where the giant books are painted outside.

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    1. Yes, Chris Wait of High Pines Creative did a wonderful job on the cover. There's a story about the cow's head from my childhood as well. It's in my Acknowledgments, I believe. Apparently librarians often fight with architects over library design.

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  11. Congratulations on The Barn.

    As a child I vowed to read every book in the library in our town. Of course, it never happened. New books would come in to replace the ones I read on a regular basis. I could never catch up! As a teen I became the student librarian in our high school library. The added perk came when the school decided to sell off their older books, many of which were first editions, and I was given first choice on the haul.

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    1. I wonder if some of those first editions are now worth thousands! Your vow to read every book in the library is like my vow to read the whole of the Library of America series.

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    2. I gave them to my brother who still has them. One we are sure is a collector's item, it's a first edition of Robert Burns poetry, and it is signed. Some of the pages toward the back were uncut.

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    3. Oh, yes, that would be worth some money.

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  12. Sharon, welcome to JRW and congratulations on your new release. The Barn sounds like a book that I will really enjoy reading. It's going on my TBR list right now.

    As a child, I lived in a small town and was constantly at the library as a kid, usually leaving with the maximum number of books each time. My library card had 4 digits, beginning with the number 1. Very small town!

    I adore my neighborhood library. The libraries in many towns around here are interconnected for the purpose of sharing books. Everything in Connecticut is pretty close, so sharing books is a wonderful way to increase availability. During the pandemic, they are not bringing them into our library as they usually do, but they are sending them back for us. So, since the pandemic has necessitated these changes, I have driven to other towns to pick up books that weren't at my library. My library returns them for me. And although I have spent a fortune on books since the pandemic began, including buying a Kindle and stocking it with JRW authors' works, I am still using the library. Right now I'm reading between 2 and 5 books per week;-)

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    1. I'd hadn't thought that Covid interfered with interlibary loan. How much I relied on that when I was an academic!

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  13. Everywhere I've ever lived (and sometimes even vacationed), I check out the local library. Today I work part-time at the local library system and see firsthand how much it means to residents. There are often cars sitting out front before, during, and after library hours--people who have no or poor internet access come to use the free WiFi. Because our little library is part of a huge consortium of libraries, plenty of people go online and request materials from other libraries--one of my favorite tasks is doing the incoming and outgoing routing of materials--love to see what people are reading and watching. An elderly man and his daughter came in weekly (before pandemic) to play a quiet game of chess. Several older people often came in to sit in a comfortable chair and read the newspapers. The night of the cooking program, the library would be filled with delicious, mouth-watering smells. Or kids shrieking with laughter as they joined in storytime activities. I love libraries!!

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    1. How appropriate you last name for my church library.You check out what people are reading--librarians are sleuths!

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  14. Congratulations on The Barn, Sharon. I love that you reinvented yourself as a fiction writer after years of requiring footnotes in your scholarly writing!

    My memories of libraries are most vivid from my undergrad days. I found myself, as it were, as a thinker and learner and explorer-of-ideas by wandering the stacks of the university's library. I remember wandering from stack to stack, wondering at the marvel of the Dewey Decimal system of cataloguing -- and realizing that one idea or thought I had and was finding books for/about joined up intriguingly with others that were shelved alongside or nearby. I found it wonderful -- and eye opening.

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    1. Those books I used to research the history of libraries talked about the Dewey Decimal system. Now I navigate whatever the other system is called. All the books on literature get catalogued as PS something.

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  15. Sharon, I do remember those orange books, for some reason I particularly remember one about one of King Henry's wives, maybe Jane Seymour, not sure all these years later. But I love libraries and I do depend on them. Thank goodness my local library is open again or I would truly go broke if I bought all the books I wanted to read and all the DVDs I wanted to watch. When my daughter was very young she wanted her own library card and I told her she had to be seven years old to get one. I just made that age up. She was so thrilled when she turned 7 and got her very own card. On the other hand, different library, my sixteen year old granddaughter wanted a card in her name and was told she had to be eighteen! I was outraged but they must have had that rule for a reason.

    I still love the library and I'm looking forward to reading your book.

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    1. Eighteen for a library card? What would happen to my 8 year old grandson who likes to brag about his card?

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    2. Eighteen? Wow! We have a voracious little reader--he can't be more than 10 years old. He goes online when we don't have a book he wants and orders it from other libraries in our system. We are always thrilled when books come through routing for him!

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    3. All my grandchildren are readers. So important. A friend once told me that her mother said she'd never be bored if she loved reading. So true.

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  17. The Barn sounds fascinating, Sharon. Congratulations! I loved libraries as a kid, and still revere them as an adult, although I don't visit them much anymore. I should. Maybe, when I can go back out in public safely again, I'll spend a day just exploring mine.

    Song of the Week Fans? Here's a gentle little marvel from Sonny Landreth called Next of Kindred Spirit. I hope you enjoy it. Watch what he does with his hands. https://youtu.be/RvoRdTGNUFk

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    1. I wonder if there's a song about libraries!

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    2. Thanks for the lovely Sonny, Gigi! A sweet piece to take us into a gorgeous fall weekend!

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    3. There probably is a song about libraries, Sharon, but I can't think of one. Other than the obvious Meredith Willson option, which might or might not annoy every librarian on the planet. https://youtu.be/7N9C2JS9mWc

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  18. Oh, how I do miss the library in these COVID times! While curb side pickup has been available for several months and appointments for computer use, research, and browsing for about a month, the joy of just walking in on a whim and browsing and browsing. And, the good feelings of leaving books for others to discover at the Book Cellar (the basement Friends’ basement store) aren’t available. Oh, how I want to hug my library and it’s librarians, :)

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    1. In my library there's a rack of books that people leave for the taking. No check-out required. My husband always took a pile of them and returned them well read and dogeared.

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  19. Welcome to Jungle Reds. Is it a coincidence that Deborah Madison shares a name with the name of a cookbook? We miss the library in those pandemic times! Luckily, we can borrow ebooks from the library. I remember going to the library as a kid. They had a kiddie corner where little children could sit at the little table and read books.

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    1. I did not know about a Deborah Madison cookbook. Maybe I can work that in to my novel in progress where there seems to be a lot of cooking going on. You've made me remember that I used to read to kids at story hour.

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    2. I remembered seeing her cookbooks because one of my inlaws is a strong vegetarian. Here's the link to one of her books from Goodreads:
      https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/138529.Vegetarian_Suppers_from_Deborah_Madison_s_Kitchen?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=gr3ZjkFrBI&rank=2

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    3. Sorry about the link. Just type in "Deborah Madison" in the search box at Goodreads.

      Thanks for your kind note about reading stories.

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  20. There's something about little libraries that is endearing. The library in a neighboring town is so cute - and is apparently the last of the Carnegie libraries built in the Pittsburgh area.

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    1. I had a colleague who used to teach a unit on Andrew Carnegie. Whatever else he was, he certainly had an impact on the growth of libraries.

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  21. Congratulations on your new release! So many libraries in my life, my favorite in the small NE Ohio town where we raised our kids. In addition to story hour, they had summer programs for kids exploring the history of the town (old houses, tombstone rubbing, underground railroad tunnels). At the time, the library was housed in an old farmhouse across from the town green. After we moved away, a splendid new, state-of-the art library replaced it and the farmhouse became offices for the historical society.

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    1. State of the art libraries are terrific, but I do love the idea of a library in an old farmhouse. The one in my town where the church became a library was first in one room of the town hall. That's where I read to kids at story hour.

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  22. Welcome to JRW's Sharon. I like the idea of The Barn, with old friends reconnecting. Your story of the librarian who was ill brought back a poignant memory for me. Mrs. Machlett, who made sure I applied for Library School also had end stage cancer. All of us in her department, student workers and colleagues kept silent vigil. She lived in hope and died with dignity. One forgets how many lessons librarians teach us.
    I am late typing today as I just got back from my volunteer library job. It is nice to be surrounded by print.

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    1. So many people on this thread still volunteer at libraries. All these memories of libraries and your comment about friends are making me think of the friends from my childhood.I'm still in contact with "the neighborhood girls."

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  23. Hi Sharon, and congratulations on The Barn! I loved libraries growing up and took home the maximum number of books every week, but I don't remember the biographies! Maybe we didn't get them in Texas... When my daughter was small we loved our neighborhood library--in fact, I was volunteering there while writing my first novel, so I must have picked up good book vibes. Alas, I don't use the library much where we live now, something I should remedy. My very favorite library is the British Library, and I'm the proud possessor of a British Library reader's card!

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  24. People I've asked here on the West Coast don't remember those biographies either. Maybe they were regional. A British Library card. Nice. I'm nowhere near Massachusetts now, but I do have a card for the Houghton at Harvard. Probably out of date. I used it when I was doing research there.

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  25. I'll be on the lookout for that new book!
    In this Time of Covid, our library is so, so s-l-o-w. They stopped ordering months ago, they hold books 5 days after return before the next person can have it, and of course they are closed to people wanting to go inside. With no deadlines or late fees, people keep books forever. I have nearly twenty books on hold and nothing comes!

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    1. Sorry about the long waits. Our library is open, masked required, limited number allowed inside. Closed today. Sadly I just walked to it--someone was camped out on the steps in a sleeping bag. We have services for the homeless here, but things are stretched right now because of the fire that started here and wiped out the two towns north of us. But there's justice--the libraries survived!

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  26. I was lucky enough as a kid to be able to use the city, county, or school libraries depending on where we lived and which was handy. The library in the small town in Ohio where we lived for 18 years or so had the most wonderful head librarian. He would track anything down for you happily. When he retired he turned around and went to work at the library at the private prep school in town. I'm back in my hometown for now and do love our neighborhood library. I do a lot of my browsing online now and reserve books. With the Covid that is the only way it can be done unfortunately.

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    1. No one was a certified librarian when I as a kid and raising my kids. But my character is. She keeps the small library feel even as she moves it into the 21st century.

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  27. This sounds wonderful, Sharon! Former librarian here. My first job was also as a library page, and I did an internship at Beinecke as well. I'll be on the look out for The Barn.

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  28. I love the Beinecke. I was working on Constance Fenimore Woolson and looking at her correspondence with Daniel Cady Eaton about ferns. Ada Shepherd also interests me--there's material on her at the Beinecke. She was Sophia Hawthorne's medium. I always wonder if there's a connection to my great grandmother, Ada Shepherd Marinel. Never have been able to discover it. The spelling varies, as it did in the 19th century.

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  29. What wonderful information about libraries, here, as well as about you and your books, Sharon L. Dean. Well done! Younger people would be amazed at the depth, breadth and influence of our classic “Paper Internet “ and the buildings that house it.
    I have been honored to work with you in our writers critique group, Monday Mayhem. Long may we rave. And write!

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  30. Thanks, Carole.I love the term "Paper Internet." Life seemed so simple then.

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