I’m working the Reference Desk at Douglass today and a guy comes in asking where he can find the books. He means the stacks (they are one floor down). I ask if there’s a particular book he needs and he pulls a small slip from his pocket with the author, title, and ‘Doug’ (I assume for ‘Douglass Library’; Rutgers has many). I look up the title, write down the call number for him and ask if he’s been to the library before. He said “no” and I offer to tag along and show him. He agrees to this and down the stairs we go.
I ask about the assignment to see if I can offer any research suggestions or help finding further information. Sounds like he has the research thing down as we track down his book (it was in the shelving stacks, glad I went with him).
Once the book is located and we head back up to the main floor he asks me about working in the library, then he asks, “What’s your favorite book?”
I ask, “fiction? Like a novel?”
“Yeah” he replies.
I tell him it’s The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett, give him a synopsis and warn him about its large number of pages, then in turn, ask him his favorite book. He responds with Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card. He in turn gives me a run down and tells me it’s not a large (or long) book and I should check it out.
I thank him for the recommendation and we part ways, him to Circulation and I head back to Reference. A minute later he comes back to Reference, book in hand and hands me his paperback copy of Ender's Game and asks me to read it. Dumbfounded I stumble over a few words, thank him, but go to try and give it back (I don’t want to just take the kid’s book). He refuses, tells me again to read it, and runs out the door!
How sweet of him. Now I have a book to read, just need to find the time!
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