Oyster Bay-East Norwich

As I pulled into my parking spot, I realized I’ve driven passed this library twice before in my life.  I was pretty excited to finally go inside.  Oyster Bay-East Norwich (OBEN for short) is a pretty library that looks like a house from the outside.  There’s a large lot to the left, and lots of green around the front, which you can see a bit of in the pictures.  When I was there, they were advertising a movie.  The sign was simple but it really made the entrance inviting, like when a store puts out their best meals because they want people to stop in.  There are also some men on the roof, which I didn’t notice until just now when I was uploading the pictures.  Whoops!

Once inside, I stopped by the reference desk and asked a librarian for help locating a book.  He took me to the wrong section at first, and after realizing none of the books were on my topic, quickly scooted me over to the right place and we exchanged jokes about the mistake.  I could tell by the way he immediately got out of his seat when I first asked for help that he knew the collection and that I was in good hands.

I found the young adult books while wandering the shelves, and picked out a graphic novel that looked really interesting.  Finally, I made my way to the circulation clerk, who kindly checked out my materials for me, and I walked happily back to my car.

 

Mineola

 Here’s another library I’ve really been looking forward to visiting.  Whenever I mentioned that I was planning a trip there, most heads nodded approvingly and complimented the library.  And now I know why.

I parked (so terribly the first time, I got back in the car and fixed myself for the sake of retaining my driving dignity) on the street in front of the library, and walked in.  As usual, I went straight to the reference desk and asked for my book.  The reference librarian chatted happily with me while she looked up my call number, then she walked me to the location of the book.  While we were there, she pointed out a few other titles I might enjoy, and explained how the OPAC worked, as well as how the library was arranged.  She was so kind, extremely helpful and friendly.  And she didn’t tell me all this information so I wouldn’t bother her the next time I visited–she was doing it because she genuinely wanted to share information with me.  It was greatly appreciated.

I visited their young adult books, which were on a few shelves by reference, and picked one out.  The circulation clerk was very personable and really made sure I knew when all my books were due.

Results

Both of these libraries are pretty from the outside (and I’d say about the same size on the inside).  OBEN had the bigger and more convenient parking situation, but Mineola’s extremely patron-conscious staff makes me hand this round over to: