As a librarian, I recommend books to a lot of people. And since good conversations involve give and take, I also receive a lot of book recommendations. Way more than I could ever read, but I always act polite and say everything sounds very interesting.
Last week Jenna came in and told me about a book called The Fred Factor. I did my normal polite thing, and a few minutes later one of the desk workers brought me the book because Jenna had given them my name after returning it. I was stuck now.
Thank goodness! It is excellent! It's a little baby book about living life positively. It's largely concerned with business, but the principles it discusses apply to all areas of life.
After working at the library for a year, I've gotten pretty stale. My innovative ideas have dried up. Where once I stopped to put series in order on the shelves, I now leave out-of-place books littered around. But no more (for as long as I remember this lesson)! I will be a Fred!
A girl came up for her Summer Reding prize with the title of the book she'd just returned, but not the author. Normally I would just say it didn't matter and give her the prize anyway. But after reading Fred Factor, I wanted to go above and beyond. So I went to the drop box wi her, found the author's name a couple pages in, and held the book while she painstakingly copied it down. As we headed back to the prize table, we passed her mom, who whispered, "Thank you" like it was some kind of big deal.
And maybe it is a big deal. How often do I take the time to get up and really help someone instead of just helping them in the way that is most convenient to me? I like being proactive and overly helpful. I hope it lasts.
You're hilarious. And I left it with the, "if she decides she wants to read it" phrase. :) I'm sorry (but not sorry) that you felt pressured into reading it. We should all be Freds! And btw, the first chapter was the best...probably because my mom was reading it to me while we were driving so we were cracking up together, but still!
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