Hello Bookworms, what is the importance of a library? Well, what is the importance of a sanctuary, a home, or a safe space? These could easily be interchanged with the first, as they pose the same question to me. I cannot remember when I was not elated to visit the library. As a child, my parents showed me nothing but its allure. It was as exhilarating as a theme park may seem to another child. Upon entering, it’s shelves upon shelves, books that never end, innumerous stories waiting to be read, and limitless wonder to be found. How can one not jump up and down?

The library has played a consistent, albeit varying, role in my life as I grow older. My university libraries have a more academic purpose when I do enter, unfortunately for me, as I would love to fill my days with meaningless pondering if I could. However, priorities shift as one matures, and pressures like deadlines and assignments hinder my fantasy of viewing the shelves all day. This is an unfortunate fact.

In high school, I spent many, many hours in the library. What may seem like a room or a building with one purpose, the library was an entrance point to me. It was the opening to anything I wanted to do; each corner held a different journey I could embark on—to study, immerse myself in a novel, or bug the librarian.

Looking back, there was no true rhyme or reason why I would end up in the library; I did. Everyone can make their conclusions as to how or why I so consistently felt pulled to that location. But I’ve never had any negative memory or experience associated with it, and thus, I’ve always felt safeguarded there. Almost everywhere else has always come with slight precaution. I don’t alarmingly suggest this. However, perusing through life without experiencing negative ramifications, even with things and places we adore, is challenging.

In unexplored places I visit, there are a few institutions that I will try to immediately pay a visit to to gauge the value a city or country gives to its citizens. These are the public transit, the public and academic libraries, museums (of all kinds..), and the parks. Nature always draws me in. The way the flowers are planted, the number of trash cans available, the attention to signage, and the accessibility of certain streets. These are acts of care, kindness, and love that a city, mainly its government, should give to its people. I will ultimately judge a location depending on how well they are executed.

I wrote a paper a few months ago on navigating the emotional labour librarians are forced to invest in within their positions. Prior to the research I did for the assignment, I had typically given little to no thought to the role of a librarian and none to how significant and depleting it could be. To keep a long story short, librarians are said to be frontline workers, and this couldn’t be closer to the truth. As a citizen who can access the library and its resources, I am blessed by their devotion, yet we can only do little to alleviate their workload.

Much of the stress of emotional labour comes from the dissonance in the authentic, emotive display that librarians display. As emotional labour performed through surface acting is a more significant predictor of emotional labour than deep acting, conceiving methods to attempt to feel the required emotion can facilitate this transition. When thinking of surface vs deep acting, dumb it down to what the words tell you. What is on our surface, and what do we truly feel? This is the ongoing battle that librarians deal with. Another way to imagine emotional labour is the cost of doing business. There can always be reductions in this cost through training and support. However, a few surveys have found that substantial change derives from the duration and intensity of client interactions and the variety of emotions expressed. The way I view it is that I try to be kind in all my interactions, particularly with strangers, but I always try a little harder for librarians. I want to express my gratitude for the library and the books I am using and to appease, if only a little, the burden many feel.

Moving on to happier topics, I wanted to highlight a few libraries I would love to visit. Apart from having a home library, there is little I dream about for my future home (that and a red door). So, I am guilty of taking inspiration from these majestic buildings, perhaps not the most realistic of plans…

Here is my little dream list (including some favourites):

1. Admont Abbey Library, Austria
2. Piccolomini Library, Siena, Italy
3. Strahov Monastery Library, Prague, Czechia
4. Abbey Library of St Gall, St Gallen, Switzerland
5. George Peabody Library, Baltimore, USA
6. The Black Diamond, Copenhagen, Denmark (best ever, confirmed)
7. Vatican Library, Vatican City, Rome
8. Boston Public Library, Boston Massachusetts, USA
9. Toronto Public Library – Locke Branch (just my favourite branch in Toronto)
10. The Hachioji Library at Tama Art University, Tokyo, Japan
11. Trinity College Library, Dublin

Thanks for reading!