Have you been to any libraries recently, and if so, did you enjoy utilizing their services?

A few days ago, I had some free time and so I went to the library near my mom’s house. It was redone about 5 years ago and it’s beautiful. Huge, modern, lots of different spaces for reading, studying, chilling. I just enjoyed walking around the then I sat and read some magazines.

I noticed they now allow people to drink drinks, as there were water bottles and coffee cups on the tables. I also noticed that the newspapers used to be on sticks so nobody could steal them, but they were not user friendly. They’d have one copy of each paper, but now there were papers in many spots, and a bunch of copies of each, and no sticks in sight.

I also enjoy other libraries in nearby towns, but they’re different. One that I am in a book group in has a great library with a traditional New England feel.

Some talk about the demise of libraries, thanks to e-books and the internet being used for online research, as opposed to going to the Reference Department of the local library.

Do you go to your library in town? Do you have a nice library, maybe not in your town but a neighboring town, that you really enjoy going to? Or do you think of a library as a dinosaur – an archaic thing you never expect to need? Your taxes pay for the library so it’s something you might think about using.