mirth Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 I especially wonder if the public library experience is different in other countries. Basically, saying "ssshhhh" is no longer appropriate in the pub libs in my neck of the woods. Really, thinking of certain areas of our library -- I have been to quieter shopping malls. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Acorn Island Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 I totally agree! It is too loud to READ at the library. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jelbe5 Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 :iagree: to. I am the daughter of a University librarian. We also have security guards at our library who kindly escort loud and disruptive people (usually teens) out the door. Sad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SunnyDays Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 Oh, I've noticed this too lately. We have one library in our area where I can barely concentrate... kids run laps through the place, yelling and laughing, and no one says a word. Of course, we have another library in the area where one day, when I forgot to turn my cell phone off and it rang, just once... the reference librarian came racing through the stacks to chastise me for library cell phone usage and to remind me that this is a quiet place!! :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 a lot of it has to do with funding. Really. Libraries are under tremendous pressure to get bodies in the door. If people aren't coming in then funding gets cut. So, letting people feel as 'comfortable as possible' is the way to go. If people don't feel welcome, then they don't come in. DH is an academic librarian and still twitches about the cafe they put in 'his' library 5 years ago. A cafe will encourage students to come in an sit for hours. They drink coffee, use the wireless and up the stats. It is all about bodies through the door. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4kidlets4me Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 I was at our library this afternoon and listened to a baby scream her head off for 20 minutes before the mother even tried to quiet her. Meanwhile I shushed my 5 yo at least 10 times for talking to loudly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JenneinCA Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 Our library is quiet... sometimes. It is not quiet when the school next door lets out in the afternoon, so from 2:30 on. It is not quiet around the times that Story Time happens, so Thursday mornings. It is quiet the rest of the time. Of course, it is closed much of the rest of the time too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
readinmom Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 The library used to be the safe haven of peaceful quiet. We left the other evening because the children's section was out of control. Watched as lady ignored her boys climbing on top of the stacks, displays and jumping down yelling, "I'm Batman!" Dd 9 said very loudly that it was a shame that some people don't realize the library is supposed to be quiet. The mother and kids just gave her a vacant look. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canadianmumof5 Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 Yes. And I also remember having to look up the books I wanted in a little filing cabinet full of little drawers filled with index cards of book titles!!! No computer searching. And we signed out our books by writing our name & phone# on the back of little cards found in the front of each book. You would hand the cards to the librarian to file!!! Ahhhhh the good old days at the library :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 Our library is quiet, but we're a small town. Some of the books you can check out are antiques, seriously. There is at least one librarian that will remind you to be quiet if you're too loud. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Celia Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 Our library is quiet. We're in a relatively small town of 40,000. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristineW Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 Do I remember it? Yes. Do I miss it? No. I like that our children's section is physically separate from the rest of the library and that my kids can speak in indoor voices and ask questions without someone giving us a dirty look. I like kids sharing their favorite books and working on a craft. There are educational computers and little nooks with cushions for reading to your children. Even outdoor patios to read on if the weather is nice or to escape into in order to calm an upset child. If the kids get loud someone from reference will politely remind them to use indoor voices and running is never allowed. It can be a little loud after school gets out and between story times, but those times are clearly posted everywhere so other patrons can avoid those times. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NASDAQ Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 Our library is quiet. I live in a city of some two million, but the branch library is quiet. Central library iirc is pretty quiet, but it's huge so there may be parts where talking more is appropriate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommyof4ks Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 I am glad I am not alone! My kids and I are walking around whispering, and others are screaming across the room to one another. I thought I was just old and grouchy lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harriet Vane Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 I miss those quiet library days. The library really is too loud to read or study now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*Lulu* Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 Our library is quiet with the exception of the times story hours are going on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JennyD Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 Do I remember it? Yes. Do I miss it? No. I like that our children's section is physically separate from the rest of the library and that my kids can speak in indoor voices and ask questions without someone giving us a dirty look. I like kids sharing their favorite books and working on a craft. There are educational computers and little nooks with cushions for reading to your children. Even outdoor patios to read on if the weather is nice or to escape into in order to calm an upset child. If the kids get loud someone from reference will politely remind them to use indoor voices and running is never allowed. It can be a little loud after school gets out and between story times, but those times are clearly posted everywhere so other patrons can avoid those times. Same here. A library we used to go to (in a different city) was big on quiet, the children's section was not walled off from the adult section, and two of the librarians were aggressive shushers. I can't remember if I posted about it at the time, but once, when I was 38 weeks pregnant with #3, my then-2.5yo threw a fit in the middle of the children's section. While I was trying to gather up my screaming toddler, my older kid, and my books, one of the librarians came over and started, "Shh! Shhh!" As I waddled towards the door, dripping books and carrying my wailing child, another librarian came over to get in on the act, "Shh! Shh! There are people working here!" The scene culminated with me dumping all of our books on a surface near the door and loudly declaiming "I'M DOING THE BEST I CAN!!!" before storming out. Good times. Yeah, I'm not a fan of the beeping computers, but I do appreciate our current library setup, which is a lot more reasonable IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mergath Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 Our library is usually fairly quiet, though there are times when you get a family with completely oblivious parents that let their children run screaming through the place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lllll Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 (edited) .. Edited March 3, 2015 by ksva Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jelbe5 Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 It is also sad to see the stacks being culled of great older books. I have just about every book needed for Ambleside Online and most came from library discards. Nice for me, but it makes me sad to know many great books are no longer being checked out and read. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Serenade Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 One of the libraries we used to go to actually put in toys for the children to play with. I guess it was a nice idea, but it sure caused a lot of noise! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danestress Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 I tend to go during the day, and it's like every woman with a REALLY loud three year old is there, and for some reason, the moms have to talk to their children in their own very loudest voices that are more designed to impress everyone within hearing distance of what GREAT Moms they are, then to actually communicate with the child. Drives me nuts. I honestly don't mind the three year old voices. They are three, after all. But I don't understand why their mothers don't use increasingly quite voices rather than escalating in proportion to the child's decibel level. There are small "quiet" office type rooms in our library, but they are more work spaces than places you would sit and browse through a book. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SunnyDays Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 Right. I don't mind toys, story hours, or toddler voices marveling over the books. I *do* mind disrespectful kids and teens who think they can act any way they want and no one corrects them. I also mind the lady who wanders around chatting loudly on her cell phone, following her toddler who is pulling all the books off the shelves. I don't expect total silence, but I do expect there to be some standards of quiet behavior. I'm old fashioned and cranky, I guess. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwik Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 Our libraries have free wireless so they tend to have a lot of people loudly skyping their families in a variety of languages. They also have bunches of people using free power and internet. The locals used to complain but we have given up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IsabelC Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 When I was a kid, the library was a very quiet place, and they had a separate room for the kids' story time sessions. I don't know why it can't be done that way now. Or even have the little kids' section fenced off with a childproof gate so that they would be only in that area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoot Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 Our adult sections are rather quiet but the children's rooms are horrible. At least they don't allow people to use cell phones and the librarian will HUNT. YOU. DOWN. and make you put that puppy away if she hears or sees you. :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angela in ohio Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 I was thinking of this as ds and I tried to study at the library yesterday. They marched the preschool story time kiddos through the main adult library area singing, "If You're Happy and You Know It." Yes, it was cute, but I was shocked. It's not usually the children making noise; it's the adults having conversations loudly or taking cell phone calls. Yesterday we got to hear all about one woman's grandson and how he "unzipped his pants" (she must have said this phrase ten times) and now better marry the girl. She was standing right next to the children's section entrance, though I suppose discretion in front of children has gone the way of quiet libraries. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisbeth Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 Along with the bed bugs, another reason to avoid libraries. :(. Too bad, I used to love libraries. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luckymama Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 Wow, our fantastic library is quiet except for right at the checkout desk! The children's area is its own large (very large) room with a librarian's desk near the entry, catalog computers and Internet computers just for the kids, nonfiction, fiction, and picture books and then a story/play area waaaaay down at the far end away from the main library. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thescrappyhomeschooler Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 The Children's section can get wild and out of control because people seem to think the librarians are babysitters in a drop-off service. And now the teen section gets a little loud since they installed a video game section. However, the rest of our library is fairly quiet. The branch we frequent most often does not have a designated quiet reading room, but most of the other branches do. Those are very nice areas that are sealed off by walls and windows and have tables to work on, and comfortable chairs to lounge and read in. I like that idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catz Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 I took the kids to the library to work yesterday afternoon because we had 2 plumbers and a contractor in our house yesterday (we're having 2 bathrooms completely gutted and remodeled in our 97 year old house) and I was surprised how nice and quiet the very large library I chose was. Until a group of school kids came in. :glare: It took 10 minutes to corral them in a room, and then back to quiet. They sounded like a herd of elephants. I can tell you, that having 2 plumbers and a contractor in your house removing lead pipe and putting in new PVC from your 2nd floor into your basement is extremely loud and unpleasant for homeschooling! They're going to be back today in about an hour. :tongue_smilie:Crossing my fingers it's more quiet today and glad we're already signed up for an afternoon field trip. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kewb Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 My library is quiet. The children's room can be a little loud when there is an event going on but otherwise it is a nice, peaceful place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest submarines Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 Libraries won't survive if they want to maintain sterile environments of the days past. Hardly anyone uses an average public library for research. I'd rather libraries reflected modern needs, rather than remained frozen in the old ideals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Florida. Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 Yes.And I also remember having to look up the books I wanted in a little filing cabinet full of little drawers filled with index cards of book titles!!! No computer searching. And we signed out our books by writing our name & phone# on the back of little cards found in the front of each book. You would hand the cards to the librarian to file!!! Ahhhhh the good old days at the library :001_smile: :lol: Do I remember it? Yes. Do I miss it? No. I like that our children's section is physically separate from the rest of the library and that my kids can speak in indoor voices and ask questions without someone giving us a dirty look. I like kids sharing their favorite books and working on a craft. There are educational computers and little nooks with cushions for reading to your children. Even outdoor patios to read on if the weather is nice or to escape into in order to calm an upset child. If the kids get loud someone from reference will politely remind them to use indoor voices and running is never allowed. It can be a little loud after school gets out and between story times, but those times are clearly posted everywhere so other patrons can avoid those times. :iagree: With the exception of the outdoor patios, this is my library, and I love it. Libraries won't survive if they want to maintain sterile environments of the days past. Hardly anyone uses an average public library for research. I'd rather libraries reflected modern needs, rather than remained frozen in the old ideals. Well said. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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