Man-hater

I’ll begin by saying this is sort of a hodge-podge post: a few book recommendations, a pondering about library patrons, and the story of how I became a “man-hater.” I think I’ll do a full-fledged book review later on in the week but as for now, here’s some thoughts, barely related to each other.

I might as well get to the exciting part first: how I became a “man-hater.” To sum it up, I had the audacity to politely ask a man in his mid to late 40s to leave the teen area and take his phone conversation to the hall or lobby of the library. It didn’t seem to me to be an outrageous request since he was sitting directly to the right of a sign in the teen area that stated that it was reserved for people between the ages of 13-19 from the hours of 3-9pm on weekdays and 9-5 on Saturday. (This, I think is important, teens should have a space in the library and in the world, where they can feel safe. Having grownups occupy that space makes it potentially not safe for teens and also unwelcoming to them. I feel strongly about this.) Also, he passed a number of signs on the way in, again politely, asking patrons not to use their phones in the library.

After running to the staff area and returning to the circulation desk, thinking nothing about the previous encounter, until my coworkers said that thank goodness I wasn’t there because the guy totally lost it. He demanded to know who I was – so he could call and complain about me – and wanted to know what right did I have to tell a man to get off the phone? They explained that was the rule and he countered with: “the rules are meant to be broken.” Oh, really, Disgruntled-Creepy-Patron? I had no idea. He furthermore wanted to know what my problem is and whether I was some sort of “man-hater” or something.

Now this just made me laugh. Of course! The woman (I say woman, though he called me a girl – I hate that) with the pixie haircut who asks that male patrons – and all patrons – follow the rules must be some sort of militant lesbian!

So now my man-hating is a joke throughout the library. I don’t mind at all. It’s also a good reminder that library patrons come in all different types. Sometimes it can be frustrating to try and help them, or at the very least not anger them with your man-hating ways.

On a lighter note, here’s some YA books you should read:
Little brother by Cory Doctorow – Read this if you like to read about computers, you hate the Patriot Act, and you were needing something else to be paranoid about. But seriously, a good, dystopian-esque novel set in the present day where the Department of Homeland Security basically takes over the country and a group of kid hackers bring them down! Fun!

When you reach me by Rebecca Stead – A middle schooler who only read’s L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time, starts receiving notes from a mysterious stranger who knows about her life, her spare key, and her mother’s upcoming appearance on the $20,000 Pyramid game show. A good read, and a good reminder about how awesome L’Engle is.

Anna dressed in blood – Kendare Blake – Somehow I didn’t expect this to be scary. Yes, I know the title is, “Anna dressed in blood,” so how could that not be scary? Well it was a little scary, but it is also an interesting story about a ghost hunter who falls in love with one of the ghosts he’s supposed to “kill” and how he learns to make friends after all. Awwwwww.

There you go: a blog post worthy of the “Potpourri” category of Jeopardy clues.