Library 97: Roxbury Free Library
You never know what you might hear.
Library 97! The Roxbury Free Library was the 97th stop on my quest to read, write, and knit in all of Vermont’s public libraries.
I read: Gather, by Kenneth Cadow, chapter 26
I wrote: a Substack post
I knit: a Musselburgh hat by Ysolda Teague.
Heath knit: a No Sweat Shirt by Park Williams
On the way into Roxbury we drove past a summer camp described as a place where European staffers travel to the states to spend the summer teaching American children to play tennis and ride horses while their parents travel to Europe. A different sort of cultural exchange.
This is a one-room tea-house-turned-library, where the outer walls are lined with books and the inner room is wide open. Every book is in sight and just a few steps away. Some patrons come here to read from neighboring towns with larger libraries and larger collections because of Roxbury’s cozy vibe.
Director Ryan told us about something they are trying: inviting patrons to list books from their personal collections in the library catalog. So, Patron A would add their own books to the catalog, Patron B would find it online, request the book, and Patron A would take it to the library for circulation.
Ryan said it has been difficult to implement. Patrons are not always as fastidious as librarians at updating the records when their collection changes, for one. The “date available” might have to read something like “Whenever Patron B feels like bringing this book to the library, if they can find it.” There are other issues. This idea seems like is brilliant way to expand the titles available in any given community, but I’m not stuck in the weeds trying to make it work.
New to me: a stack of lendable sewing and quilting patterns, and a “book review form” taped in the back of a book.
Happy to see again: an external-wall-preserved-inside after renovations to a very old building; stained glass art; interesting books on display.
This library is in a small town (678 residents) and is not in walking distance from the school, so foot traffic is rare. Because of this, it is a quiet place to sit and read and knit and think. It is also a quiet place to overhear every word anyone says in the entire library.
A patron with three young children came to use the WiFi because they’d recently run over their internet cable with the lawnmower. They called the internet company, and were asked to describe how to find the cable. They said: “It’s in the yard. Next to a lot of recently cut grass.”
This detail made me laugh. I felt bad for this person’s tedious problem on this grand summer day, but glad they had the library to go to when they needed it. Little stolen moments like this keep me going back to these charming, tiny libraries. You never know what you might hear.
This post : perfect argument for why we need paid trained and dedicated librarians!