MONTICELLO - Sharon Briggs likes her job as director of the Monticello Library so well that she plans to remain "as long as it's fun."
There's quite a bit, besides books, at the local libraries that people don't know about, Briggs said. And she thinks they are missing out on a great value in the community.
"They can use the Internet, read magazines and newspapers, send a fax or make copies. And we have an adult book group and children reading programs," she said.
Briggs' favorite part of being a librarian is meeting people. She knows her library patrons personally, and she can "match people up with the new books" that arrive.
Briggs began her career as a librarian in 1986, when the library was housed in the village hall downtown.
The library moved to a new larger facility on East Lake Avenue in 1999, when Gene Lynn, a graduate of Monticello high school, decided to do something for the village. He purchased a funeral home in town and donated the building for a library. That move more than doubled the library space, and added extra room for offices and meetings.
In the 20 years she has served the library, Briggs has seen other big changes.
"Everything has changed," she said. "Technology is the biggest change. Audio cassettes have gone to CDs, video has become DVD; computers are now connected to the Internet."
And books aren't even books anymore, with electronic devices that allow runners and joggers, and drivers, to listen as they go.
Briggs said iPods have made downloading books so easy for people that the library's tiny one-book-per-cassette players are not checked out as much.
One thing she does not miss is the card files.
"I don't miss that one bit," she said. "We used to spend hours making and filing those things." She can now find book information twice as fast on the computer.
Briggs is an avid reader and movie watcher, which makes her job of ordering books much easier. And she collects art of readers.
"When I started, I didn't think there were many pictures of people reading," she said. "But once you start looking, there's quite a bit."
If you were allowed to make three wishes for Monticello, what would they be?
>An addition to the library, increased awareness of the library and the value people get for their taxes going to support it, more jobs and industry in town.
If you could be any other person for a day, who would it be?
>Eleanor Roosevelt
What is the last good book you read?
>"Ursula Under" by Ingrid Hill
What's in your CD player right now?
>"Free Life" (audiobook) by Ha Jin; at home it's the soundtrack from "Once."
If you could invite three famous people, living or dead, to dinner, who would they be?
>Frida Kahlo, Emily Dickinson and Louise Erdrich
If you could travel anywhere, where would it be?
>France, again
If you could go back in time to one event in history, what would it be?
>Paris, France, during the Impressionists painting era
What gets you relaxed?
>Reading
What is your favorite food?
>Tenderloin filet or lobster
What's your pet peeve?
>Late people
What's your favorite chore?
>Ordering books
There's quite a bit, besides books, at the local libraries that people don't know about, Briggs said. And she thinks they are missing out on a great value in the community.
"They can use the Internet, read magazines and newspapers, send a fax or make copies. And we have an adult book group and children reading programs," she said.
Briggs' favorite part of being a librarian is meeting people. She knows her library patrons personally, and she can "match people up with the new books" that arrive.
Briggs began her career as a librarian in 1986, when the library was housed in the village hall downtown.
The library moved to a new larger facility on East Lake Avenue in 1999, when Gene Lynn, a graduate of Monticello high school, decided to do something for the village. He purchased a funeral home in town and donated the building for a library. That move more than doubled the library space, and added extra room for offices and meetings.
In the 20 years she has served the library, Briggs has seen other big changes.
"Everything has changed," she said. "Technology is the biggest change. Audio cassettes have gone to CDs, video has become DVD; computers are now connected to the Internet."
And books aren't even books anymore, with electronic devices that allow runners and joggers, and drivers, to listen as they go.
Briggs said iPods have made downloading books so easy for people that the library's tiny one-book-per-cassette players are not checked out as much.
One thing she does not miss is the card files.
"I don't miss that one bit," she said. "We used to spend hours making and filing those things." She can now find book information twice as fast on the computer.
Briggs is an avid reader and movie watcher, which makes her job of ordering books much easier. And she collects art of readers.
"When I started, I didn't think there were many pictures of people reading," she said. "But once you start looking, there's quite a bit."
If you were allowed to make three wishes for Monticello, what would they be?
>An addition to the library, increased awareness of the library and the value people get for their taxes going to support it, more jobs and industry in town.
If you could be any other person for a day, who would it be?
>Eleanor Roosevelt
What is the last good book you read?
>"Ursula Under" by Ingrid Hill
What's in your CD player right now?
>"Free Life" (audiobook) by Ha Jin; at home it's the soundtrack from "Once."
If you could invite three famous people, living or dead, to dinner, who would they be?
>Frida Kahlo, Emily Dickinson and Louise Erdrich
If you could travel anywhere, where would it be?
>France, again
If you could go back in time to one event in history, what would it be?
>Paris, France, during the Impressionists painting era
What gets you relaxed?
>Reading
What is your favorite food?
>Tenderloin filet or lobster
What's your pet peeve?
>Late people
What's your favorite chore?
>Ordering books