LISNews: Librarian News

The chianti begins flowing promptly at 7:30 p.m., accompanied by a spread of submarine sandwiches and chocolate-chip cookies.

So, too, does a lively dissection of David Grann's The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon. The nonfiction narrative details the New Yorker scribe's quest to trace the path of British explorer Percy Fawcett, who in 1925 disappeared while surveying the Brazilian jungle.

A 90-minute conversation, peppered with laughs and jabs at the self-admitted urbanite author ("too much of a professional" and "utterly contrived"), stretches well past sunset in the Dublin backyard of Rich King, chief operating officer of a Downtown law firm.

Just as prevalent as the banter -- and a few drink refills -- are plenty of deep thoughts: Why do we explore? What makes us obsess? Does a real pioneer use a GPS?

The group -- which includes professors, doctors, lawyers and businessmen -- is hardly a casual klatch (although some participants arrive sporting dress shirts with cuff links, others opt for T-shirts and flip-flops). They've read 121 more titles, each graded collectively on an academic scale -- from the excellent (Barbara Kingsolver's The Poisonwood Bible earned an "A") to the so-so (Herman Melville's Moby-Dick, a "B"). It's an all-male book club -- the only one in Columbus, OH, members think -- into its 11th year.

Steve Hartman (CBS News) reports on the book club that's inspiring people in other states and countries. It all began with an unlikely friendship between two men, one a lawyer and the other homeless. Read the story and watch the video at "A Tale With a Storybook Ending".

From Public Broadcasting wbfo, Mildred Blaisdell remembers spending afternoons in the late 50's and 60's at the B.F. Jones Memorial Library, particularly in the summertime.

There wasn't much air conditioning in Aliquippa, Pennsylvania in the late 50's and early 60's. But the library was a haven of coolness on hot, humid afternoons.

The B.F. Jones Memorial Library was a classy robber baron equivalent of "My parents went to the beach and all I got was this tee shirt." While my grandfathers were working in the Jones and Laughlin Steel MIll for low wages, the Jones and the Laughlins built lovely granite public libraries for the use of the families of their underpaid workers. The library was the most beautiful edifice in town.

In small libraries, there's no reference librarian. All staff members answer the phone and respond to the questions, many simple requests such as directions, times of local activities, phone numbers, genealogical information.

Evadna Bartlett collected some of the others.

"Do you know the phone number for the post office? I don't think it's in the phone book."